Quick blurb

Okay, I'm getting tired of discussing Kerry's war record.

It's obvious to me we aren't going to get to the bottom of this. And it's clear to me that, given the passage of time, the multiple agendas, and the way hindsight effects us all, we'll need to take what everyone (including Kerry) says about his military history with a grain of salt.

As you know, the Swiftboat Veterans for Truth continue to bash Kerry for lying about his war record and for being a general weasel.

Just this week, one of these vets, Al French (a Clackamas County prosecutor for whom I used to work and who I would trust with my life) was outed in the Oregonian for basing his commentary in the Swifties' first commercial on hearsay.

Now, Al has made himself very clear on what he believes Kerry has said or done which is dishonest.

In the interest of full disclosure: first, I'm a registered Republic; second, Al French worked with me in Marion County and I've spent time with him professionally and socially; and third, I'm really not likely to vote for Kerry.

I'm not too preturbed about Al French basing his accusations towards Kerry on the hearsay of his friends. Although I 've seen a fair amount of guff directed Al's way for basing his conclusions on something that wouldn't be allowed into court, that's pretty weak. We all make important decisions based on what friends tell us. Life is not court. When I was out of town and The Missus found a house she liked, I told her to consult JLowe to decide whether or not I'd approve, because I trust JLowe implicitly. When one of my friends tells me something is true, and they mean it, I lean that way. When I check with several friends (as Al did), all of whom I trust, and they all say something is true, I'll bet on what they've told me 999 times out of 1000. So I don't think there's a particular problem with Al's assertions, provided he really did consult several people and provided he was in the general area of the occurences he discusses (which he was, just not right there).

Despite the fact that I believe Al French, we run into awkward situations, though, where we need to step back and scratch our heads. For instance, The Smoking Gun has found that one of the Swifties actually praised Kerry in very flattering terms back in 'Nam, and now has his bayonet so far into Kerry's back John's looking like an olive in a martini.

And so we end up having to consider the source of everything we hear, but since we don't know much about Kerry's accusers, I find myself just deciding to throw out the military career as a consideration and look at other factors, such as views on the economy and the likelihood of the candidate to allign themselves with my belief system. And, in the end, is it really appropriate to elect someone solely on the basis of what they did (or didn't do) back in 'Nam? I'm incredulous that Kerry made his military service such a centerpiece of his campaign when I don't particularly think what he did 30 years ago in the jungle really qualifies (or disqualifies) him for the duties of POTUS.

Pointless rant. Just saw that TSG article and realized how tired I am of the whole mess. Let's have our election and be done with it.

UPDATE: I realized that in my tired state while writing this, I missed the obvious point that a person's honesty does bear on their ability to serve (whether being dishonest makes you a better President politically is a question I won't tackle). My point is that I don't know that Kerry is demonstrably attempting dishonesty, or whether his accusers are, or whether all are just suffering from looking at things through a hazy 30-year-old glass. And if the dishonesty isn't provable (by either side), then I don't think that this topic merits much more discussion, when debates on policies, positions, and vision are more pertinent to present electability. Pieman 8/22/04 2:26pm

Anyway, the best part of any of my posts. The LINKS.

Can this bode well for the next Star Wars?

Next time your beer tastes like piss, this may explain the problem (although there's still no excuse for American-made PBR...)

Daddy likey!

Viva Iraq! This has to be the greatest story of this year's Olympics. Unless you count this.

Dumb, dumb, dumb. Punchline's on the third page.

As a right-thinking American, it pains me to show you this. (Courtesy of Chickenhead)

And, yes, we have games:

Swimming pool Sumo and Moonlander (remember that game?)

Enough already! Have a good night.

Catch ya later.