I didn't care or vote for this guy b/c I thought he was a doochbag. But neither did I vote for Bush because I thought he was a turn. So I can relate to how you feel with this election.
A quick Google check showed that Kerry did in fact authorize the release of his records. He signed the release on May 20, 2005. I asked myself why the heck did it take him two years to do it when he could have put easily dismissed doubt about his service in 2004. Well here's his explanation:
"The call for me to sign a 180 form came from the same partisan operatives who were lying about my record on a daily basis on the Web and in the right-wing media. Even though the media was discrediting them, they continued to lie. I felt strongly that we shouldn't kowtow to them and their attempts to drag their lies out." -John Kerry
Well like I said I felt he was a doochbag in 2004 and my instinct proved me right again with this remark he made in 2005. Maybe he didn't understand how to play the game as well or something. Who knows?
Another interesting thing I caught earlier in the day was Cindy McCain's refusal to release her tax records. She says she will "never release them". I respect her privacy and also acknowledge the fact that she is not the one running for president but I wonder would this be MSM news if Michelle Obama said the same thing?
Okay, let's clarify what actually happened with Kerry's records. He did in fact sign the SF180, but stipulated the information WOULD NOT be released to the public. Instead, he allowed a media friend... worked for the Boston Globe as I recall, to review his records and report on them. They have NOT been released to the public. Wanna guess why? Douche bag is too nice a term for this liar.
Cindy McCain is not running for President. She's obviously not done anything illegal, or the IRS would be after her. I wonder what would be said if Michelle Obama avoided answering a question proposed to her by a national reporter, and instead snapped, "This is not helping my children!" to avoid answering. Oh, wait a minute....
But I still don't understand why douchebag's refusal to fully disclose make him an outright liar. This is what was reported to Judicial Watch:
Our examination found that existing documentation regarding the Silver Star, Bronze Star and Purple Heart medals indicates the awards approval process was properly followed. In particular, the senior officers who awarded the medals were properly delegated authority to do so. In addition, we found that they correctly followed the procedures in place at the time for approving these awards.
Conducting any additional review regarding events that took place over 30 years ago would not be productive. The passage of time would make reconstruction of the facts and circumstances unreliable, and would not allow the information gathered to be considered in the context of the time in which the events took place.
Our review also considered the fact that Senator Kerry's post-active duty activities were public and that military and civilian officials were aware of his actions at the time. For these reasons, I have determined that Senator Kerry's awards were properly approved and will take no further action in this matter. -V.A Route September 2004
I don't see any serious wrongdoing here. Any allegations of wrongdoing were spearheaded publicly by Bush supporters. Can we really say with certainty that these people were being objective? I don't think so.
If you're gonna call Kerry a liar without any direct evidence of wrongdoing then how could you unequivocally state that Cindy McCain *obviously* isn't a liar when both situations stem from privacy concerns. Doochebag *should* have disclosed his records as a candidate but Cindy McCain's refusal *should* also cast doubts regardless. If there's no wrongdoing then what's the big deal? She risks looking like a doochebag in the end by not showing it. A foxy doochebag but still...
I don't give a damn about his medals. I know enough about his character to know him in spite of the medals. Rodolfo, my problem is with his DD... dishonorable discharge, which would not only preclude his running for President, it would preclude him from continuing as a U.S. Senator. Do I know for sure he got one? No. Do you know for sure he didn't? No. Why? Because the worst President in the history of the United States, Jimmy Carter, changed the status of his discharge several years after he got it, through Executive Order. How could all this be INSTANTLY cleared up? Release the DD214 to the public as he promised. Then ALL would be perfectly clear. Tim Russert asked if he would sign the release and he said he would. But he DID NOT release the information for public scrutiny... He allowed one person... a friend... to review the record. You call him what you want. As I said before, to ALL Viet Nam Veterans, douche bag is wholly inadequate.
How can you say on one hand you don't know for sure he got a DD and then on the same line claim that President Carter changed his DD papers? Do you know with absolute certainty or not?
Look even those who supported him in the past agree that he wasn't the best candidate. The question is could have he taken our country further in a hole the way President Bush has these last four years? We'll never know will we? What we do know today is that President Bush has received the *WORST* favorability (is that even a word?) rating in modern history. That must tell us both something.
But ya I'm with you on this. He should simply release it to get the whole thing behind him. On the other hand we do have to respect privacy laws and since he isn't running for President then he's off the hook. Besides the dooche didn't get elected anyway so who cares?
But I'm not so sure about Mrs. McCain though. I smell another double standard here. No one is up in arms over her refusal to release her records. What's the big deal? The best she could come with is she's not the one running for President. But the same logic could be applied to John Kerry's wife. She was literally forced to show her records from the media's insistence that she show them and she eventually did. How can John McCain be the champion for transparency when her own wife refuses to be transparent? Wouldn't it be fair to show the same level of scrutiny on Mrs. McCain the way Mrs. Kerry was scrutinized four years ago? She should show her returns so the electorate can verify with absolute certainty that there is no conflict of interest should Senator McCain become the President. But despite that she refuses so I think in the end this lack of transparency on her part will make her look like a douche bag.
I already told you why GB. He doesn't release them because he's a douche bag! You want to take it a next step by proclaiming he's a Liar which I'm not quite ready to do because of the withheld evidence. His behavior makes him a douche but not a liar. The same way I won't pass absolute judgment on Mrs. McCain simply because I have not seen the evidence. Like Kerry Mrs. McCain's behavior makes her look like a douche but I don't think she's lying about anything.
So let's explore why some people care so much. Let's assume he did get a DD. What do you think it was for? Was it because of any criminal negligence? What was the charge exactly? Let's for argument's sake say he got a DD because he was opposed to the Vietnam war. Is this why it's so important for so many people? Is this what it all boils down to. It's not about his patriotism or his character. Those are just buzzwords used to mask the underlying hatred for a guy who dissented. If that were the case then questioning his integrity and character is pointless because there are many Americans like him who share the same views. This contrarian view doesn't make them Un-American. I think is another example of where the most passionate and politically committed Americans have been in: Stuck in the 60s
John Kerry had a chance to elevate the discussion by fully disclosing his papers. He didn't. He didn't trust the American people to decide for themselves and that's part of what doomed his candidacy. But that's the past. I'm only here for the future because that's where I'll be.
I'm glad John McCain showed his military records. He should be commended for that. His wife should do the same so you and I can take a look at them. So why are you still silent on that? It's only fair to ask don't you think? If she has nothing to hide then what's the big deal? Lots of folks want to know too.
Okay, I'll concede your point that the unreleased records could in fact clear him completely, so calling him a liar because of them is premature. But his "Jinjiss Khan" speech before Congress was still pack full of untruths, so the douche bag is still a liar. The neat thing? I cannot imagine his DD214 won't be a huge issue in his reelection. Will Massachussetts elect him again? Probably. What gives with those folks?
8 comments:
I didn't care or vote for this guy b/c I thought he was a doochbag. But neither did I vote for Bush because I thought he was a turn. So I can relate to how you feel with this election.
A quick Google check showed that Kerry did in fact authorize the release of his records. He signed the release on May 20, 2005. I asked myself why the heck did it take him two years to do it when he could have put easily dismissed doubt about his service in 2004. Well here's his explanation:
"The call for me to sign a 180 form came from the same partisan operatives who were lying about my record on a daily basis on the Web and in the right-wing media. Even though the media was discrediting them, they continued to lie. I felt strongly that we shouldn't kowtow to them and their attempts to drag their lies out." -John Kerry
Well like I said I felt he was a doochbag in 2004 and my instinct proved me right again with this remark he made in 2005. Maybe he didn't understand how to play the game as well or something. Who knows?
Another interesting thing I caught earlier in the day was Cindy McCain's refusal to release her tax records. She says she will "never release them". I respect her privacy and also acknowledge the fact that she is not the one running for president but I wonder would this be MSM news if Michelle Obama said the same thing?
Okay, let's clarify what actually happened with Kerry's records.
He did in fact sign the SF180, but stipulated the information WOULD NOT be released to the public. Instead, he allowed a media friend... worked for the Boston Globe as I recall, to review his records and report on them. They have NOT been released to the public. Wanna guess why?
Douche bag is too nice a term for this liar.
Cindy McCain is not running for President. She's obviously not done anything illegal, or the IRS would be after her.
I wonder what would be said if Michelle Obama avoided answering a question proposed to her by a national reporter, and instead snapped, "This is not helping my children!" to avoid answering.
Oh, wait a minute....
But I still don't understand why douchebag's refusal to fully disclose make him an outright liar. This is what was reported to Judicial Watch:
Our examination found that existing documentation regarding the Silver Star, Bronze Star and Purple Heart medals indicates the awards approval process was properly followed. In particular, the senior officers who awarded the medals were properly delegated authority to do so. In addition, we found that they correctly followed the procedures in place at the time for approving these awards.
Conducting any additional review regarding events that took place over 30 years ago would not be productive. The passage of time would make reconstruction of the facts and circumstances unreliable, and would not allow the information gathered to be considered in the context of the time in which the events took place.
Our review also considered the fact that Senator Kerry's post-active duty activities were public and that military and civilian officials were aware of his actions at the time. For these reasons, I have determined that Senator Kerry's awards were properly approved and will take no further action in this matter. -V.A Route September 2004
I don't see any serious wrongdoing here. Any allegations of wrongdoing were spearheaded publicly by Bush supporters. Can we really say with certainty that these people were being objective? I don't think so.
If you're gonna call Kerry a liar without any direct evidence of wrongdoing then how could you unequivocally state that Cindy McCain *obviously* isn't a liar when both situations stem from privacy concerns. Doochebag *should* have disclosed his records as a candidate but Cindy McCain's refusal *should* also cast doubts regardless. If there's no wrongdoing then what's the big deal? She risks looking like a doochebag in the end by not showing it. A foxy doochebag but still...
I don't give a damn about his medals.
I know enough about his character to know him in spite of the medals.
Rodolfo, my problem is with his DD... dishonorable discharge, which would not only preclude his running for President, it would preclude him from continuing as a U.S. Senator. Do I know for sure he got one? No. Do you know for sure he didn't? No. Why? Because the worst President in the history of the United States, Jimmy Carter, changed the status of his discharge several years after he got it, through Executive Order.
How could all this be INSTANTLY cleared up?
Release the DD214 to the public as he promised. Then ALL would be perfectly clear.
Tim Russert asked if he would sign the release and he said he would. But he DID NOT release the information for public scrutiny... He allowed one person... a friend... to review the record.
You call him what you want.
As I said before, to ALL Viet Nam Veterans, douche bag is wholly inadequate.
How can you say on one hand you don't know for sure he got a DD and then on the same line claim that President Carter changed his DD papers? Do you know with absolute certainty or not?
Look even those who supported him in the past agree that he wasn't the best candidate. The question is could have he taken our country further in a hole the way President Bush has these last four years? We'll never know will we? What we do know today is that President Bush has received the *WORST* favorability (is that even a word?) rating in modern history. That must tell us both something.
But ya I'm with you on this. He should simply release it to get the whole thing behind him. On the other hand we do have to respect privacy laws and since he isn't running for President then he's off the hook. Besides the dooche didn't get elected anyway so who cares?
But I'm not so sure about Mrs. McCain though. I smell another double standard here. No one is up in arms over her refusal to release her records. What's the big deal? The best she could come with is she's not the one running for President. But the same logic could be applied to John Kerry's wife. She was literally forced to show her records from the media's insistence that she show them and she eventually did. How can John McCain be the champion for transparency when her own wife refuses to be transparent? Wouldn't it be fair to show the same level of scrutiny on Mrs. McCain the way Mrs. Kerry was scrutinized four years ago? She should show her returns so the electorate can verify with absolute certainty that there is no conflict of interest should Senator McCain become the President. But despite that she refuses so I think in the end this lack of transparency on her part will make her look like a douche bag.
Let me restate my case, simply as I can. All could be cleared up if he would just release his military records. Why won't he do that R?
Lots of folks want to know!
I already told you why GB. He doesn't release them because he's a douche bag! You want to take it a next step by proclaiming he's a Liar which I'm not quite ready to do because of the withheld evidence. His behavior makes him a douche but not a liar. The same way I won't pass absolute judgment on Mrs. McCain simply because I have not seen the evidence. Like Kerry Mrs. McCain's behavior makes her look like a douche but I don't think she's lying about anything.
So let's explore why some people care so much. Let's assume he did get a DD. What do you think it was for? Was it because of any criminal negligence? What was the charge exactly? Let's for argument's sake say he got a DD because he was opposed to the Vietnam war. Is this why it's so important for so many people? Is this what it all boils down to. It's not about his patriotism or his character. Those are just buzzwords used to mask the underlying hatred for a guy who dissented. If that were the case then questioning his integrity and character is pointless because there are many Americans like him who share the same views. This contrarian view doesn't make them Un-American. I think is another example of where the most passionate and politically committed Americans have been in: Stuck in the 60s
John Kerry had a chance to elevate the discussion by fully disclosing his papers. He didn't. He didn't trust the American people to decide for themselves and that's part of what doomed his candidacy. But that's the past. I'm only here for the future because that's where I'll be.
I'm glad John McCain showed his military records. He should be commended for that. His wife should do the same so you and I can take a look at them. So why are you still silent on that? It's only fair to ask don't you think? If she has nothing to hide then what's the big deal? Lots of folks want to know too.
Okay, I'll concede your point that the unreleased records could in fact clear him completely, so calling him a liar because of them is premature.
But his "Jinjiss Khan" speech before Congress was still pack full of untruths, so the douche bag is still a liar.
The neat thing? I cannot imagine his DD214 won't be a huge issue in his reelection. Will Massachussetts elect him again?
Probably.
What gives with those folks?
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