Rick Reuben wrote:So you think everyone who contributed their war memories to that book just made it all up?
I put more stock in the testimony of the handful of dudes who were actually ON the swiftboat with Kerry. You know, like, the guys whose lives he saved, the ones whom you can see praising him in...
Going Upriver: The Long War of John Kerry. To say "I smell a right-wing hitjob" is an understatement. More like "I can trace the right-wing hitjob for you, plain as day." The parts that weren't outright, partisan-funded lies were simply the result of a lot of vets (whose actual combat service was, with one exception, periphreal to Kerry's) who felt demonized by Kerry's testimony and actions after he got home. I'm pretty sympathetic to those feelings, but not when they lead you to join a rightwing hatchet organization based on horseshit, distortions, and lies.
Excuse the wikipeding:
Several of those who joined SBVT during the 2004 campaign were officers who had previously praised Kerry's conduct during the Vietnam War. These included Division Commander Grant Hibbard, who wrote positive evaluations of Kerry, and Commander George Elliott, who submitted Kerry for a Silver Star. [...] Of those who served in Kerry's boat crew, only Stephen Gardner joined SBVT. He was not present on any of the occasions when Kerry won his medals, including his Purple Hearts. Gardner appeared in two of the group's television advertisements.
Swift boat patrols...scary shit! Your whole job is to motor around and draw enemy fire so that command can zero in on their location. That explains the 75%+ casualty rates.