# What happened to John Kerry **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Created:** [February 28, 2014, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557 "2014-02-28T23:49:42Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![slowlearner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@slowlearner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slowlearner)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2014, 11:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/1 "2014-02-28T23:49:42Z")
John Kerry used to be a rather silly presidential candidate married to a sort of exotic rich lady, and he once was a warrior hippie who threw, sort of, his combat decorations over the White House fence. What happened to turn him into a warmonger? Is he banging Susan Rice? The Administration took a step back (was pushed back by the people) from war with Syria, now it seems like all of them are hell bent to attack everybody even as they cut the size of the army. Why does everybody turn into Dick Cheney? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [February 28, 2014, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/2 "2014-02-28T23:55:02Z")
Your OP is pretty incoherent, and I don’t know who this “everyone” you are talking about that he’s trying to attack, but I have to say that Kerry was completely unbelievable as he was lobbying to bomb Syria. It was like watching a really bad actor. ---
**Author:** ![slowlearner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@slowlearner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slowlearner)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/3 "2014-03-01T01:37:09Z")
[http://news.antiwar.com/2014/02/27/kerry-rails-against-new-isolationism-among-americans/](http://news.antiwar.com/2014/02/27/kerry-rails-against-new-isolationism-among-americans/) I take great pleasure from being other than rational. Doesn’t it strike you as odd that this one time antiwar hero has become just another bloodthirsty old man? As Cormac McCarthy noted, “Young men love war, and old men love that in them.” ---
**Author:** ![Linden\_Arden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@Linden\_Arden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linden_Arden)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/4 "2014-03-01T01:42:15Z")
Kerry voted for the Iraq War, IIRC. Nothing “happened” to him. ---
**Author:** ![Der\_Trihs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/der_trihs/32/233_2.png) [@Der\_Trihs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Der_Trihs)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/5 "2014-03-01T01:43:30Z")
> [@slowlearner](#): > > I take great pleasure from being other than rational. :dubious: And this is supposed to bolster your argument _how?_ ---
**Author:** ![silenus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/silenus/32/166_2.png) [@silenus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/silenus)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/6 "2014-03-01T01:44:55Z")
Appropos username, at least. ---
**Author:** ![slowlearner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@slowlearner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/slowlearner)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 1:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/7 "2014-03-01T01:52:37Z")
Learn a little every day and don’t forget. It’s amazing how the people running things depend on your forgetting, or never learning in the 1st place. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 2:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/8 "2014-03-01T02:13:34Z")
> [@Linden\_Arden](#): > > Kerry voted for the Iraq War, IIRC. > > Nothing “happened” to him. The 2nd one, but not the 1st one. Reeks of politics, which is sad when war is involved. ---
**Author:** ![Linden\_Arden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/53a042/32.png) [@Linden\_Arden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Linden_Arden)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 2:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/9 "2014-03-01T02:21:17Z")
> [@John\_Mace](#): > > The 2nd one, but not the 1st one. Reeks of politics, which is sad when war is involved. I agree fully. The first Iraq War involved Iraqi aggression and the second one did not. Kerry gets no respect from me (nor does Bush/Cheney). ---
**Author:** ![dofe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7ba0ec/32.png) [@dofe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dofe)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/10 "2014-03-01T02:48:48Z")
Maybe Kerry is just like most people in that he understands that each situation is different and must be judged on its own merits? It’s completely rational to be antiwar when dealing with a war you believe is wrong, and to be in favor of military action when it’s warranted. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/11 "2014-03-01T03:13:55Z")
Was I the only one who found the reference to the “exotic” wife a bit surprising? Slow, What did you mean? ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 3:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/12 "2014-03-01T03:18:30Z")
> [@dofe](#): > > Maybe Kerry is just like most people in that he understands that each situation is different and must be judged on its own merits? It’s completely rational to be antiwar when dealing with a war you believe is wrong, and to be in favor of military action when it’s warranted. True. Do you think Kerry fits that description? I don’t. ---
**Author:** ![Captain\_Amazing](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6de8d8/32.png) [@Captain\_Amazing](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Captain_Amazing)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/13 "2014-03-01T03:49:11Z")
> [@Ibn\_Warraq](#): > > What did you mean? He probably meant that she had the foreign background. But I don’t know if his shift is surprising. There’s no reason to expect a 27 year old disillusioned and angry wounded veteran to have the same views as a 70 year old former Senator and the current chief diplomat of the United States. > [@John\_Mace](#): > > True. Do you think Kerry fits that description? I don’t. No, he’s clearly mentally imbalanced and flips a coin, Two-Face style, to decide what wars he supports. Seriously, though, why wouldn’t Kerry fit that description? Even Vietnam Veterans Against the War wasn’t against all wars. They tried to link themselves to the Continental Army in the American Revolution, and tried to camp out on Bunker Hill. ---
**Author:** ![Claverhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/13edae/32.png) [@Claverhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Claverhouse)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 1:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/14 "2014-03-01T13:11:16Z")
> [@Captain\_Amazing](#): > > He probably meant that she had the foreign background. > > But I don’t know if his shift is surprising. There’s no reason to expect a 27 year old disillusioned and angry wounded veteran to have the same views as a 70 year old former Senator and the current chief diplomat of the United States. > > No, he’s clearly mentally imbalanced and flips a coin, Two-Face style, to decide what wars he supports. Seriously, though, why wouldn’t Kerry fit that description? Even Vietnam Veterans Against the War wasn’t against all wars. They tried to link themselves to the Continental Army in the American Revolution, and tried to camp out on Bunker Hill. And perhaps his views on just wars have become more nuanced through his long friendship with his colleague ( co-sponsoring bills even ) and fellow veteran John McCain; not to mention Mr. Obama’s vigorous defence of, and admiration of, America’s involvement in Vietnam. ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 2:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/15 "2014-03-01T14:32:37Z")
> [@Captain\_Amazing](#): > > No, he’s clearly mentally imbalanced and flips a coin, Two-Face style, to decide what wars he supports. Holy False Dichotomy, Batman! > [@](#): > > Seriously, though, why wouldn’t Kerry fit that description? Even Vietnam Veterans Against the War wasn’t against all wars. They tried to link themselves to the Continental Army in the American Revolution, and tried to camp out on Bunker Hill. War #1: A nation invades a US ally. The US president gets a UNSC approval and a massive coalition of nations to join forces to repel the invading nation. War #2: None of the above, except that Kerry is now a presidential candidate (as is Clinton). That’s why. ---
**Author:** ![magellan01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@magellan01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/magellan01)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/16 "2014-03-01T14:37:39Z")
A) The Botox is leaching into his brain. B) He’s just a lying piece of shit politician who will do and say anything if he thinks it’ll help him in the polls. C) A and B. ---
**Author:** ![Sam\_Stone](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecccb3/32.png) [@Sam\_Stone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sam_Stone)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 8:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/17 "2014-03-01T20:45:10Z")
Kerry has been on the ‘hawkish’ side of the Democrats for a long time. During the Clinton administration he pushed hard for military action against Iraq. ---
**Author:** ![BrokenBriton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4bbf92/32.png) [@BrokenBriton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrokenBriton)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/18 "2014-03-01T21:15:54Z")
Just showing his true colours; say and do anything that serves ambition. ---
**Author:** ![Ibn\_Warraq](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/e19b73/32.png) [@Ibn\_Warraq](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ibn_Warraq)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 9:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/19 "2014-03-01T21:33:19Z")
> [@Sam\_Stone](#): > > Kerry has been on the ‘hawkish’ side of the Democrats for a long time. During the Clinton administration he pushed hard for military action against Iraq. In the early 90s he voted against the Gulf War. ---
**Author:** ![Shodan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/9f8e36/32.png) [@Shodan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shodan)\ **Post date:** [March 1, 2014, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557/20 "2014-03-01T21:36:52Z")
He’s Obama’s Secretary of State. It’s his job to push for whatever wars Obama thinks are a good idea, at least in public. His geopolitical judgment isn’t good enough to make him an independent voice in the US - as mentioned, he opposed the first Gulf War and voted for the second. I think since he was in Viet Nam, and then came back to oppose the war, tossed away his decorations, then reclaimed them, then decided he was going to be the voice of reason and peace when Saddam invaded Kuwait, so he opposed that war too. Then the US military went thru the Iraqis like shit thru a goose and wound up looking deservedly dumb. So he then decided to go with the majority and vote to authorize the Iraqi invasion. Then he thought he could be elected President by opposing the guy who actually invaded, and lost pretty handily. So he has sort of hitched his wagon to Obama’s star and hopes that whatever Obama decides, he can finish his career by selling. I don’t think his basic character has changed, or his judgments, just who he has decided to back. Now it’s Obama. I don’t know if there is anything Obama can decide that Kerry would oppose so much he would quit - I doubt it, especially if he still harbors any dreams of the White House. But I suspect he either has given up on that, or would be shown in a few primaries that everyone else has written him off as Chief Executive. Regards, Shodan [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-happened-to-john-kerry/682557.md?page=2)