An open letter to John Kerry
03-28-2004, 06:42 PM
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An open letter to John Kerry
As there are so many vets here and relatives of vets and also due to the upcoming elections I thought that the following letter may be of interest some of you. Due to it's length I have posted it in two sections. (Hope this is OK with the mods)
An Open Letter to John Kerry
By Larry Purdy
FrontPageMagazine.com | March 26, 2004
Benedict Arnold was a war hero, wounded in battle---before he turned against his country. Hitler was likewise a decorated and wounded veteran of the First World War. Being a war hero is not a lifetime . . . exempt[ion] . . . from responsibility for what you do thereafter. -- Thomas Sowell. [1]
Not that long ago you wrote a letter to President Bush in which you accused him of reopening the wounds of the Vietnam war for “personal political gain.” Putting aside the stunning hypocrisy of your claim in view of your own nonstop references to your service in that conflict, culminating in your most recent campaign advertisement, please allow me to respond.
As a former naval officer who also served in Vietnam, I had thought that tragic war was behind us. I assumed you, too, had put Vietnam behind us. But it has been you---not the President---who has made Vietnam an issue. Speaking personally, I feel you have every right to do so.
Let me begin by saying that during my entire twelve month tour supporting the swift boat division in which you served in An Thoi, as well as the Seawolves (Navy attack helicopters), Strike Attack Boats (STABs) and SEALs in My Tho and Dong Tam, I never once heard reports about, much less witnessed, the sorts of atrocities you have accused American servicemen of committing. What I witnessed were young men, often frightened at the prospect of operating in areas largely controlled by the enemy, who did their jobs as skillfully and honorably as they knew how. While I do not presume to speak for them, and obviously I cannot speak for you, I did not know a single person in Vietnam who did any of the things you described.
With that in mind, let’s talk about what you described, beginning with your testimony before Congress on April 22, 1971, two years after you returned from Vietnam. You said many interesting things including the following:
[S]everal months ago in Detroit [referring to what you later describe as the “Winter Soldier Investigation”], we had an investigation at which over 150 honorably discharged and many very highly decorated veterans testified to war crimes committed in Southeast Asia, not isolated incidents but crimes committed on a day-to-day basis with the full awareness of officers at all levels of command.
They . . . had personally raped, cut off ears, cut off heads, taped wires from portable telephones to human genitals and turned up the power, cut off limbs, blown up bodies, randomly shot at civilians, razed villages in [a] fashion reminiscent of Genghis Khan, shot cattle and dogs for fun, poisoned food stocks, and generally ravaged the countryside of South Vietnam . . . . [2]
These are very serious allegations. I assume you did not make them lightly. So here are a few straightforward questions to which all Americans (but most particularly all living Vietnam veterans) deserve your thoughtful response:
1. Did you or any of the men who served under your command commit any of the “war crimes” you described in your testimony? (page 180) If so, what did you do when you were there to stop these crimes from occurring?
2. You testified that the men who participated with you in the “Winter Soldier Investigation” in Detroit “relived the absolute horror of what this country . . . made them do.” (page 180) Having described these actions in great detail, did you come away feeling a certain sympathy with, say, **** storm troopers or concentration camp guards, who also claimed that they were doing only what their country made them do?
3. Would you agree that there were American servicemen who, unlike you and your “Winter Soldier” colleagues, found the strength to refuse to engage in the sorts of atrocities you described? And would you agree that these men (in vastly greater numbers than those who appeared with you in Detroit) displayed more courage and character than did you?
4. Do you believe any former United States military officer who so much as tolerated the sort of behavior you described in your testimony should be elected President of the United States?
5. Despite the blatant and outrageous violations of the Geneva Conventions by the Viet Cong and the NVA, you testified that America was “more guilty than any other body of violations of those Geneva Conventions.” (page 185) Were you serious when you said that?
Putting aside your testimony about how you and your “Winter Soldier” friends behaved during your tours of duty, of equal interest were your general observations about America and its institutions. For example, you offered the following observation (which reportedly elicited laughter from the “Winter Soldiers” who filled the chamber during your testimony):
.... go to the part 2 post to read the rest...........
An Open Letter to John Kerry
By Larry Purdy
FrontPageMagazine.com | March 26, 2004
Benedict Arnold was a war hero, wounded in battle---before he turned against his country. Hitler was likewise a decorated and wounded veteran of the First World War. Being a war hero is not a lifetime . . . exempt[ion] . . . from responsibility for what you do thereafter. -- Thomas Sowell. [1]
Not that long ago you wrote a letter to President Bush in which you accused him of reopening the wounds of the Vietnam war for “personal political gain.” Putting aside the stunning hypocrisy of your claim in view of your own nonstop references to your service in that conflict, culminating in your most recent campaign advertisement, please allow me to respond.
As a former naval officer who also served in Vietnam, I had thought that tragic war was behind us. I assumed you, too, had put Vietnam behind us. But it has been you---not the President---who has made Vietnam an issue. Speaking personally, I feel you have every right to do so.
Let me begin by saying that during my entire twelve month tour supporting the swift boat division in which you served in An Thoi, as well as the Seawolves (Navy attack helicopters), Strike Attack Boats (STABs) and SEALs in My Tho and Dong Tam, I never once heard reports about, much less witnessed, the sorts of atrocities you have accused American servicemen of committing. What I witnessed were young men, often frightened at the prospect of operating in areas largely controlled by the enemy, who did their jobs as skillfully and honorably as they knew how. While I do not presume to speak for them, and obviously I cannot speak for you, I did not know a single person in Vietnam who did any of the things you described.
With that in mind, let’s talk about what you described, beginning with your testimony before Congress on April 22, 1971, two years after you returned from Vietnam. You said many interesting things including the following:
[S]everal months ago in Detroit [referring to what you later describe as the “Winter Soldier Investigation”], we had an investigation at which over 150 honorably discharged and many very highly decorated veterans testified to war crimes committed in Southeast Asia, not isolated incidents but crimes committed on a day-to-day basis with the full awareness of officers at all levels of command.
They . . . had personally raped, cut off ears, cut off heads, taped wires from portable telephones to human genitals and turned up the power, cut off limbs, blown up bodies, randomly shot at civilians, razed villages in [a] fashion reminiscent of Genghis Khan, shot cattle and dogs for fun, poisoned food stocks, and generally ravaged the countryside of South Vietnam . . . . [2]
These are very serious allegations. I assume you did not make them lightly. So here are a few straightforward questions to which all Americans (but most particularly all living Vietnam veterans) deserve your thoughtful response:
1. Did you or any of the men who served under your command commit any of the “war crimes” you described in your testimony? (page 180) If so, what did you do when you were there to stop these crimes from occurring?
2. You testified that the men who participated with you in the “Winter Soldier Investigation” in Detroit “relived the absolute horror of what this country . . . made them do.” (page 180) Having described these actions in great detail, did you come away feeling a certain sympathy with, say, **** storm troopers or concentration camp guards, who also claimed that they were doing only what their country made them do?
3. Would you agree that there were American servicemen who, unlike you and your “Winter Soldier” colleagues, found the strength to refuse to engage in the sorts of atrocities you described? And would you agree that these men (in vastly greater numbers than those who appeared with you in Detroit) displayed more courage and character than did you?
4. Do you believe any former United States military officer who so much as tolerated the sort of behavior you described in your testimony should be elected President of the United States?
5. Despite the blatant and outrageous violations of the Geneva Conventions by the Viet Cong and the NVA, you testified that America was “more guilty than any other body of violations of those Geneva Conventions.” (page 185) Were you serious when you said that?
Putting aside your testimony about how you and your “Winter Soldier” friends behaved during your tours of duty, of equal interest were your general observations about America and its institutions. For example, you offered the following observation (which reportedly elicited laughter from the “Winter Soldiers” who filled the chamber during your testimony):
.... go to the part 2 post to read the rest...........
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