John Kerry for SECDEF? Hell no!

by Don Bendell 

On February 2, 2011, I fell off a ladder landing on a steel fence in below-zero weather, fracturing my back, a rib, and got a minor concussion as well as a subdural hematoma, a brain bleed. Then, last fall I fell off the top of another ladder in my barn and severely bruised my hip, thigh, and a rib. Eight years ago, I wrote about my wife having rotator cuff surgery, getting an infection, and having to be cut in the same scar and operated on again. Just thinking about such pain and facing traumatic memories like those, makes me cringe.

Such memories, however, pale in comparison to what I am going through right now, in my heart. The old hurts are re-surfacing, the pain, and the feelings of betrayal are returning. I am being cut in the same scar, facing a new fracture in the broken places.

How did we who served in Boy Scouts, our churches, or Student Councils suddenly get brain-washed overnight by the military and turned into cold-blooded killers, torturers, and rapists of the ilk of the Nazi SS, the Taliban, or al-Qaida? That does not make sense, does it? Most American soldiers, like me, grew up idolizing John Wayne, Roy Rogers, and all the other heroes of my youth. That was why I volunteered to join the army, go to OCS, earn Jump Wings, a Green Beret, and go to South Vietnam to fight.

President Barack Obama is considering making John Kerry, of all people, our new Secretary of Defense. 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, blew 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 in 1968 and 1969 on a Special Forces A-team 4 miles from the border of Laos and a District Coordinator of the Top Secret Phoenix Program. We were the most-highly trained of all soldiers and saw the most action of anybody in that war. Everybody in the world knows that, but what the news does not report was that we also built churches and schools, treated illnesses, and passed out food, clothing, medicine, and good will. We had fun and loved interacting with the indigenous people of Vietnam, just like our boys did in Normandy, Baghdad, Saigon, and everywhere American soldiers ever served. We are the ones who gave away and still do give away our candy bars and rations to kids, our friendship to primitive fellow warriors in far-off lands, and our hearts to oppressed people all over the globe. But you, John Kerry, labeled us as mindless robotic killers and rapists just so you could launch your intended political career. You also, with your outrageous lies, furthered the anti-war movement sending honorable, noble Vietnam veterans into a nationally-imposed closet of shame and disgrace not to be brought out into the light until just recently. Now that we are “in vogue,” posers everywhere now claim to be Vietnam veterans.

John Kerry, you betrayed all of us by contributing to the myths and fallacies of the Vietnam anti-war movement when you tossed all your dubious medals over the fence of the US Capitol so you could send your new political career into orbit as the star of the anti-war movement. And where has it gotten you, Senator? You ran for President and are being considered for a Cabinet position, but you are reviled and despised by millions of your fellow veterans. I always smile and do not ever hide my face when I look in the mirror to shave in the morning. I wonder what you do?

Senator John Kerry, you and I were military officers in Vietnam. If you personally saw all these atrocities occur in Vietnam, as an officer why didn’t you stop them or at the very least report them? Why is there not one record anywhere of you ever reporting a single atrocity to higher headquarters of any command at any time? As officers, it was our duty to report and stop such things from happening. 

As an officer of the US military, by not reporting them when they occurred, you are an accomplice to numerous crimes and should have been court-martialed. Then, after Vietnam, while still a Reserve officer in the US Navy you went to Paris, met and negotiated with the North Vietnamese delegation, and have admitted same publicly. You were not a government official at that time, and that clearly was consorting with the enemy and totally illegal under the tenets of the Uniform Code of Military Justice.

Keep reading (article continues)...

Don Bendell is a best-selling author, a disabled Green Beret Vietnam veteran, and a 1995 inductee into the International Karate and Kickboxing Hall of Fame.

Permission is hereby granted to reprint, copy, or pass this on wherever and to whomever you choose. This is posted on Don’s blog, Shooting from the Hip, accessed at his website www.donbendell.com.

Don Bendell

Best-selling author of Strongheart  (Berkley-Penguin, 2011) www.donbendell.com

She Sails Again!

By Findalis of Monkey in the Middle

 It is written by sailors that all objects of beauty are called "she".  Especially sailing ships.  And the USS Constitution is no exception.

USS Constitution is a wooden-hulled, three-masted heavy frigate of the United States Navy. Named by President George Washington after the Constitution of the United States of America, she is the world's oldest commissioned naval vessel afloat. Launched in 1797, Constitution was one of six original frigates authorized for construction by the Naval Act of 1794 and the third constructed. Joshua Humphreys designed the frigates to be the young Navy's capital ships, and so Constitution and her sisters were larger and more heavily armed and built than standard frigates of the period. Built in Boston, Massachusetts, at Edmund Hartt's shipyard, her first duties with the newly formed United States Navy were to provide protection for American merchant shipping during the Quasi-War with France and to defeat the Barbary pirates in the First Barbary War.

Constitution is most famous for her actions during the War of 1812 against Great Britain, when she captured numerous merchant ships and defeated five British warships: HMS Guerriere, Java, Pictou, Cyane and Levant. The battle with Guerriere earned her the nickname of "Old Ironsides" and public adoration that has repeatedly saved her from scrapping. She continued to actively serve the nation as flagship in the Mediterranean and African squadrons, and circled the world in the 1840s. During the American Civil War she served as a training ship for the United States Naval Academy and carried artwork and industrial displays to the Paris Exposition of 1878. Retired from active service in 1881, she served as a receiving ship until designated a museum ship in 1907. In 1931 she started a three-year, 90-port tour of the nation, and in 1997 she finally sailed again under her own power for her 200th birthday. On August 19, 2012, she sailed again under her own power in Boston Harbor to commemorate the 200th anniversary of her defeat of the Guerriere.

Constitution's stated mission today is to promote understanding of the Navy’s role in war and peace through educational outreach, historic demonstration, and active participation in public events. As a fully commissioned US Navy ship, her crew of 60 officers and sailors participate in ceremonies, educational programs, and special events while keeping the ship open to visitors year round and providing free tours. The officers and crew are all active-duty US Navy personnel and the assignment is considered special duty in the Navy. Traditionally, command of the vessel is assigned to a Navy Commander. She is berthed at Pier 1 of the former Charlestown Navy Yard, at one end of Boston's Freedom Trail.

She was berthed at Pier 1 of the former Charlestown Navy Yard.  Now she is at sea once more.  Celebrating her victory over a British ship 200 years ago.

At 215 years old, the USS Constitution is the U.S. Navy's oldest commissioned warship afloat. But it's not too old to take a quick sail.

For 17 minutes on Sunday, the ship cruised west across Boston Harbor, reaching a maximum speed of 3.1 knots. It was its first sail under its own power since turning 200 in 1997.

The short trip -- a distance of 1,100 yards -- was to commemorate the Constitution's victory over a British warship of a similar size in a fierce battle during the War of 1812. The victory earned the ship its nickname, "Old Ironsides."

Chief Petty Officer Frank Neely, a Constitution spokesman and crew member, said he was among the 285 lucky people who were aboard on Sunday. It was a warn day with a few clouds, but still perfect for the sail, he said.

"This was really terrific," Neely said. "It couldn't have been more memorable."

The trip marked the day two centuries ago when the Constitution defeated the British frigate HMS Guerriere during the War of 1812. The Guerriere proved no match for the Constitution, which was heavier and longer. The vessels blasted away at each other at close range, even colliding at one point, during the 35-minute battle.

"I cannot think of a better way to honor those who fought in the war as well as celebrate Constitution's successes during the War of 1812 than for the ship to be under sail," Constitution Cmdr. Matt Bonner said in a statement.

Following the sail, tugs took the vessel to Fort Independence on nearby Castle Island where a huge crowd had gathered, and the Constitution fired a 21-gun salute, Neely said.

The ship, which was first launched in 1797, is stationed in Charlestown, and periodically is tugged into the harbor for historical display. Its primary mission today is to provide teach people about its history. Each year, about 500,000 people tour the ship, Neely said.

Source

She looks wonderful for a 215 year old lady.  Her guns are still workable and she is the oldest commissioned vessel in the world.  Wouldn't you want to be one of the lucky people aboard this wonderful ship?