# Senator John Kerry (Personal opinion) **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [February 29, 2004, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811 "2004-02-29T23:57:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![LogicinMotion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d07c76/32.png) [@LogicinMotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LogicinMotion)\ **Post date:** [February 29, 2004, 11:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/1 "2004-02-29T23:57:35Z")
Dear Senator Kerry. I’ve been aware of you on the periphery of my social vision for some time now, mostly due to the Presidential race. Politics is not really my thing, as I know that most if not all politicians are corrupt, and do nothing more than please themselves, their friends, and their colleagues. That is unfortunately just how politics is. Unfortunately it’s a pandemic corruption and it now spans the globe. It’s rife in my country of origin, rife here, and equally rife in every other nation I’ve visited, and I for your information have travelled the globe. I’ve heard much airing of American political dirty laundry over the last few years but of course with the race for President hotting up, this airing of dirty laundry is becoming a daily affair. Recently I became aware of one individuals opinion on a website, which I was somewhat surprised at, so I did some basic research. What do you know? It’s true! Which is really the point of this thread. You Senator Kerry, are a disgrace. I cannot say I’m ashamed of you, because I barely know you, or what you have done in the past, but I can say that as of right now, I’m ashamed for you. Link: [http://www.donbendell.com/](http://www.donbendell.com/) > [@](#): > > My wife had rotator cuff surgery earlier this year, and the recovery is terribly painful. Then, she developed a staph-epi infection, and they had to cut the same scar open and operate on her again. Just thinking about the pain and anxiety of facing that painful surgery a second time in the same wound, makes me cringe. That experience, however pales in comparison to what I am going through right now, in my heart. > > The old hurts are surfacing and the feelings of betrayal by fellow citizens, and their leader stirring them up, are breaking my heart again. I am being cut in the same scar. How did we who served in Vietnam suddenly become cold-blooded killers, torturers, and rapists, of the ilk of the Nazi SS or the Taliban? Most of us were American soldiers who grew up idolizing John Wayne, Roy Rogers, and all the other heroes. That was why I volunteered. But for political expediency, John Kerry has rewritten history, again. After spending only four months in the country of Vietnam, John Kerry testified before Congress in 1971 with these exact words about incidents he supposedly witnessed or heard about from other vets: “They 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, shot cattle and dogs for fun, poisoned food stocks, and generally ravaged the countryside of South Vietnam." > > I was a green beret officer who volunteered for duty in Vietnam and fought in the thick of it in 1968 and 1969 on a Special Forces A-team on the Ho Chi Minh Trail, just for starters. We were the elite. We saw the most action. Everybody in the world knows that. But we did not just kill people, we built a church, a school, treated illnesses, passed out soap, food, and clothing, and had fun and loving interaction with the indigenous people of Vietnam, just like our boys did in Normandy, Baghdad, Saigon, and everywhere American soldiers ever served. We all gave away our candy bars and rations to kids. Our hearts to oppressed people all over the globe. > > My children and grandchildren could read your words, and think those horrendous things about me, Mr. Kerry. You are a bold-faced, unprincipled liar, and a disgrace, and you have dishonored me and all my fellow Vietnam veterans. Sure, there were a couple bad-apples, but I saw none, and I saw it all, and if I did, as an army officer, it was my obligation to stop it, or at the very least report it. Why is there not a single record anywhere of you ever reporting any incidents like this or having the perpetrators arrested? The answer is simple. You are a liar. Your medals and mine are not a free pass for lifetime, Senator Kerry, to bypass character, integrity, and morality. I earn my green beret over and over daily in all aspects of my life. > > Eight National Guard green berets, and other National Guard soldiers, have been killed in Iraq and Afghanistan, and you totally dishonored their widows and families by lumping National Guard service in with being a draft-dodger, conscientious objector, and deserter, just so you can try to sabotage the patriotism of our President who proudly served as an Air National Guard jet pilot. I have a son earning his green beret at Fort Bragg right now, and his wife serves honorably in the Air National Guard, just like President Bush did, and I am as proud of her as I am my son. I volunteered for Vietnam and have no problem whatsoever with President Bush being our Commander-In-Chief. In fact, I am proud of him as our leader. > > John Kerry, you personally derailed the Vietnam Human Rights Bill, HR2883, in 2001, after it had passed the House by a 411 to 1 vote, and thousands of pro-American Montagnard tribespeople in Vietnam died since then who could have been saved, by you. Earlier, as Chair of the Senate Select Committee on MIA/POW Affairs, you personally quashed the efforts of any and all veterans to report sightings of living POW’s, when you held those reins in Congress. You have fought tooth and nail to push for the US to normalize relations with Vietnam for years. Why, Mr. Kerry? Simple, your first cousin C. Stewart Forbes, CEO, of Colliers International, recently signed a contract with Hanoi, worth BILLIONS of dollars for Collier’s International to become the exclusive real estate representative for the country of Vietnam. > > “Hanoi John,” now that it works for you, you beat your chest about your Vietnam service, but to me, you are a phony, opportunistic, hypocrite. You are one of those politicians that is like a fertilizer machine: all that comes out of you is horse manure, and you are spreading it everywhere. > > Medals do not make a man. Morals do. How VERY true. Logic. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 12:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/2 "2004-03-01T00:09:41Z")
And I am less than impressed by those who quote partial sentences from public leaders without using elipses. It’s dishonest. It’s misleading. Unsubstantiated claims of corruption dismay me as well. I’m not saying that corruption does not exist in the US. I’m saying 1) it is worse than some Western countries and better than most all 3rd world countries and 2) it is wholly irrelevant to the point being made in the quote. When politicians spin, they have an excuse: part of their job involves not offending anybody, when possible. When posters spin, it becomes more of a personal character issue. I’m sure there’s a case to be made against Kerry. I would hope that in the future it could be pitched with more honesty. Yours, M4M ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 12:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/3 "2004-03-01T00:19:58Z")
From here: VIETNAM WAR VETERAN JOHN KERRY’S TESTIMONY BEFORE THE SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE, APRIL 22, 1971 [http://www.richmond.edu/~ebolt/history398/JohnKerryTestimony.html](http://www.richmond.edu/~ebolt/history398/JohnKerryTestimony.html) > [@](#): > > Statement of Mr. John Kerry > > …I am not here as John Kerry. I am here as one member of the group of 1,000 which is a small representation of a very much larger group of veterans in this country, and were it possible for all of them to sit at this table they would be here and have the same kind of testimony… > > WINTER SOLDIER INVESTIGATION > > I would like to talk, representing all those veterans, and say that several months ago in Detroit, 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 told the stories at times 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 fashion reminiscent of Genghis Khan, shot cattle and dogs for fun, poisoned food stocks, and generally ravaged the countryside of South Vietnam in addition to the normal ravage of war, and the normal and very particular ravaging which is done by the applied bombing power of this country. > > We call this investigation the “Winter Soldier Investigation.” The term “Winter Soldier” is a play on words of Thomas Paine in 1776 when he spoke of the Sunshine Patriot and summertime soldiers who deserted at Valley Forge because the going was rough. > > We who have come here to Washington have come here because we feel we have to be winter soldiers now. We could come back to this country; we could be quiet; we could hold our silence; we could not tell what went on in Vietnam, but we feel because of what threatens this country, the fact that the crimes threaten it, not reds, and not redcoats but the crimes which we are committing that threaten it, that we have to speak out. > > FEELINGS OF MEN COMING BACK FROM VIETNAM… That sounds to me like Kerry is reporting on a meeting. Please show me the part where Kerry is saying that he “personally witnessed” something. Thanks. Google is your friend. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/4 "2004-03-01T00:25:40Z")
The OP is posting someone else’s dishonest, partisan diatribe as if it’s a legitimate cite. Hey, **Logic**. FYI, your quoted rant is a gross distortion of what Kerry actually said. Why don’t you read the actual fucking [transcript](http://www.richmond.edu/~ebolt/history398/JohnKerryTestimony.html) before you make any more of an ass of yourself. Here’s a hint for you, Kerry never said he “witnessed” anything, nor did he make any general accusations against all vets. Kerry interviewed scores of vets for his “Winter Soldier” investigation and reported to congress what _they_ had told _him_. I defy you to locat a single “lie” in Kerry’s testimony and I double dog dare you to deny that US soldiers committed attrocities in Vietnam. Your OP is shite. Fuck you. ---
**Author:** ![LogicinMotion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d07c76/32.png) [@LogicinMotion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LogicinMotion)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/5 "2004-03-01T00:30:28Z")
> [@](#): > > And I am less than impressed by those who quote partial sentences from public leaders without using elipses. _ah, ok._ (Holds hand to head) > [@](#): > > It’s dishonest. It’s misleading. _I beg your pardon? Are you trying to be funny?_ > [@](#): > > Unsubstantiated claims of corruption dismay me as well. I’m not saying that corruption does not exist in the US. I’m saying 1) it is worse than some Western countries and better than most all 3rd world countries and 2) it is wholly irrelevant to the point being made in the quote. _Ah, no. The point is this. Politics is corrupt, politicians say whatever they want to, not out of public spirit, but out of political and personal expediency. That is what Senator Kerry is doing, to make the most out of his war record, and time served in the military. He is in fact slurring the many, so that the few can stand out whiter than white against a backdrop of black or grey. Take your pick._ > [@](#): > > When politicians spin, they have an excuse: part of their job involves not offending anybody, when possible. _POLITICIANS SHOULD NOT SPIN PERIOD. They should TELL THE DAMNED TRUTH, they are in the position they hold because they were elected, and the public trusts them with whatever power they have been given. THERE IS NO EXCUSE FOR any SPIN, or LIE. None at all. YOU are the kind of person who thinks politics is corrupt and that lies must be told because people cannot be told the truth, because in your eyes, they’d be unable to deal with it. Thanks. I’d prefer the brutal and honest truth at every juncture._ > [@](#): > > When posters spin, it becomes more of a personal character issue. _I was not spinning anything. I began this thread and called it personal opinion. I never said I was Mr Informed or I knew better than anyone. I did not talk down to anyone or berate and attack them with my opinion. I said what I had become aware of, and said that I’d done some basic research that proved the opinion I cut and pasted to be correct. No more and no less. Thankyou for attempting to characterise me though. Big thumbs up there sweety._ > [@](#): > > I’m sure there’s a case to be made against Kerry. I would hope that in the future it could be pitched with more honesty. _Feel free to add your own opinion then and try to attack the topic, not the poster. There’s a good doper._ > [@](#): > > Yours, M4M ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/6 "2004-03-01T00:38:16Z")
I see I was not clear. Let me try again. You claim that Kerry says that he witnessed atrocities (or at least your hero Dan Bandell does). Your evidence for that contention is a single re-arranged sentence by Kerry’s. When you look at the original sentence, you see that no such claim is being made. Then, Danny-boy has the nerve to call Kerry a liar. He bases his claim on his own fabrications. How dishonest. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/7 "2004-03-01T00:45:51Z")
Ok. Danny-boy is dishonest. We know that, because he mangled Kerry’s quote for his own twisted purposes. It is _possible_ that the OP’s characterization of Danny-boy (“How VERY true”) is merely incompetent. The original poster has some choices ahead of him. He can clarify. He can confess error. He can tip-toe away. Admittedly, he may also be able to substantiate his claims. But I doubt that. We know that the poster is comfortable attacking the character of Kerry. We know that he doesn’t like to have his own character attacked. And we know that this is the pit, where personal attacks are permitted. Time will reveal all. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/8 "2004-03-01T00:58:55Z")
> [@LogicinMotion](#): > > \*I was not spinning anything. I began this thread and called it personal opinion. I never said I was Mr Informed or I knew better than anyone. I did not talk down to anyone or berate and attack them with my opinion. I said what I had become aware of, and said that I’d done some basic research that proved the opinion I cut and pasted to be correct. This is hilarious. I typed “Kerry Testimony 1971” into Google: the very first link that came up was… Kerry’s actual Testimony! This testimony… revealed that Danny-boy misquoted Kerry! Basic research my posterior. > [@LogicinMotion](#): > > You Senator Kerry, are a disgrace. I cannot say I’m ashamed of you, because I barely know you, or what you have done in the past, but I can say that as of right now, I’m ashamed for you. I’d call that, “Talking down”, to Mr. Kerry. Oh heck, I’d even call it an attack. But, hey, that’s just IM-not-so-HO. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/9 "2004-03-01T01:58:56Z")
“POLITICIANS SHOULD NOT SPIN PERIOD. They should TELL THE DAMNED TRUTH” ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/10 "2004-03-01T02:56:35Z")
> [@LogicinMotion](#): > > \*Ah, no. The point is this. Politics is corrupt, politicians say whatever they want to, not out of public spirit, but out of political and personal expediency. > [@LogicinMotion](#): > > YOU are the kind of person who thinks politics is corrupt and that lies must be told because people cannot be told the truth, because in your eyes, they’d be unable to deal with it. Umm… What the hell? ---
**Author:** ![elucidator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/8edcca/32.png) [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 2:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/11 "2004-03-01T02:59:47Z")
**Logic** , commendations! Seldom have I seen such a droll satire, underscoring so perfectly the moral bankruptcy of Mr. Kerry’s political enemies! Your humorous fiction is a bit over the top, however. Not even the scoundrels and lickspittles currently infesting the White House would _really_ stoop so low as your characiture suggests. I mean, decency has bounds, after all! Still, despite it’s grotesque exaggerations, it is a worthy effort, and shows promise. Have you considered writing in domestic comedy? ---
**Author:** ![toque](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9e8a1a/32.png) [@toque](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/toque)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 3:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/12 "2004-03-01T03:00:43Z")
What a fucking dipshit. And you there’s assholes all over the net spreading this horseshit without getting the Straight Dope smackdown. ---
**Author:** ![SnoopyFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@SnoopyFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnoopyFan)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/13 "2004-03-01T03:11:29Z")
/sarcasm But … but … but … John Kerry is a war hero, OP!!! ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 4:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/14 "2004-03-01T04:26:30Z")
[substantiated claim] Well, in fact Kerry is a [War Hero](http://www.jsonline.com/news/gen/feb04/207249.asp). "Sandusky, an Illinois resident who appears in a widely viewed television ad for Kerry and is traveling the region stumping for his old comrade, said Kerry **regularly risked his own life to save those of his crew**. Sandusky vowed Thursday to steer clear of the “blood and guts” stories, but he did recount the time Kerry earned the Silver Star by ordering the boat beached so he could chase down and kill an enemy soldier who wielded a rocket launcher. “John knew it was the only way,” Sandusky said. “He knew (the enemy soldier) was going to launch.” " [/substantiated claim] Emphasis added. ---
**Author:** ![Doomtrain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/0ea827/32.png) [@Doomtrain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Doomtrain)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/15 "2004-03-01T16:16:05Z")
Oh, it won’t do any good **M4M** , Snoopy’s just a drive-by bitch and all the facts in the world won’t matter, because holding more than two or three ideas in her head at a time would be too difficult. ---
**Author:** ![Measure\_for\_Measure](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/measure_for_measure/32/557_2.png) [@Measure\_for\_Measure](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Measure_for_Measure)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 4:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/16 "2004-03-01T16:58:02Z")
> [@elucidator](#): > > **Logic** , commendations! Seldom have I seen such a droll satire, underscoring so perfectly the moral bankruptcy of Mr. Kerry’s political enemies! Your humorous fiction is a bit over the top, however. Not even the scoundrels and lickspittles currently infesting the White House would _really_ stoop so low as your caricature suggests. I mean, decency has bounds, after all! > > Still, despite it’s grotesque exaggerations, it is a worthy effort, and shows promise. Have you considered writing in domestic comedy? Actually, we have the makings of a decent case study in political pathology. Specifically, the Danny-boy quote displays **Preemptive Hypocrisy** , a rhetorical trick used by the dishonest. Indulge in a vice, then accuse your opponents of that same vice to confuse the issue. Danny-boy intentionally misquotes Kerry, and then uses this falsehood to accuse Kerry of lying. Of course, it is Danny-boy who is the liar. Preemptive hypocrisy is a sound technique. One could write a book filled with statements bordering on defamation and title it, _Slander_. Also, one could fill it with [demonstrably false claims](http://www.spinsanity.org/columns/20031023.html) (as opposed to contentious statements) and subtitle it, “Lies by My Political Opponents”. Or something like that. One could defend somebody who supported a certain mid-20th century tyrant’s shock troops and title the resulting book, “Treason”. (Not that defending SS troops constitutes treason _per se_, it merely satisfies the loose characterization of that serious accusation put forward in [the book that I’m alluding to](http://www.yuricareport.com/RevisitedBks/CoulterTreason.html)). Ditto for those who pen tributes to defenders of mid-20th century war criminials: free speech is certainly not a crime. Preemptive hypocrisy shows promise. Expect to see more of it and use it as a gauge of the speaker’s honesty. ---
**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/17 "2004-03-01T17:07:56Z")
> [@GMRyujin](#): > > Snoopy’s just a drive-by bitch Lies, LIES! Snoopy was a decorated World War One flying Ace! ---
**Author:** ![EddyTeddyFreddy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eddyteddyfreddy/32/18796_2.png) [@EddyTeddyFreddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EddyTeddyFreddy)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2004, 5:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/18 "2004-03-01T17:15:34Z")
> [@Measure for Measure](#): > > Preemptive hypocrisy shows promise. Expect to see more of it and use it as a gauge of the speaker’s honesty. It will certainly go over big with those who believe that all politicians are bought-and-paid-for liars, except for their own third-party/splinter group/ independent/fringe element candidate crusading for the true-blue agenda, no compromise allowed. > [@Squink](#): > > Quote: > Originally Posted by GMRyujin > Snoopy’s just a drive-by bitch > > Lies, LIES! Snoopy was a decorated World War One flying Ace! And he wasn’t a bitch, either. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![stpauler](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9d8465/32.png) [@stpauler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stpauler)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2004, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/19 "2004-03-02T16:13:32Z")
I opened this thread up as I just got the e-mail of Danny-boy-cakes in my e-mail box from my republican step-dad. (I’d like to take this time to thank **Diogenes** for a very good quotable part of my retort to him). 🙂 The best part of the statement in the OP is > [@](#): > > “Sure, there were a couple bad-apples, but I saw none, and I saw it all, and if I did, as an army officer, it was my obligation to stop it, or at the very least report it.”. So he says there are a couple of bad apples, but then he didn’t see any, but then he saw everything. So which is it? Did he see some and not report it? Did he suddenly become an omnipresent god and saw everything and therefore would be the q.e.d. expert? If he did see everything and knew there were bad apples, why didn’t he report it? It’s statements like that up there that make one’s head explode trying to find the logic in it. ---
**Author:** ![Geobabe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/geobabe/32/3908_2.png) [@Geobabe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Geobabe)\ **Post date:** [March 2, 2004, 6:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811/20 "2004-03-02T18:42:17Z")
> [@](#): > > But we did not just kill people, we built a church, a school, treated illnesses, passed out soap, food, and clothing, and had fun and loving interaction with the indigenous people of Vietnam, just like our boys did in Normandy, Baghdad, Saigon, and everywhere American soldiers ever served. We all gave away our candy bars and rations to kids. So because this fella and his unit didn’t commit any atrocities, nobody did? Sure. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/senator-john-kerry-personal-opinion/231811.md?page=2)