Post by Bill Weldon on Feb 15, 2007 9:59:31 GMT -5
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Vietnam déjà vu
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Posted: February 9, 2007
1:00 a.m. Eastern
There's an effort under way by liberal revisionists to rewrite history about the anti-war left's horrible treatment of Vietnam veterans, just as they prepare to besmirch the good efforts of veterans in the war on terrorism.
The groundwork for these shenanigans was laid by associate professor Jerry Lembcke of Holy Cross College in Worcester, Mass., and his book, "Spitting Image: Myth, Memory, and the Legacy of Vietnam."
Lembcke, who was an active member of Vietnam Veterans Against the War, claims that Vietnam veterans lied about the treatment they received, and that it was in fact war supporters who were disrespectful toward veterans for failing to do a better job prosecuting the war.
This is the most absurd and disingenuous propaganda to come from the radical left in quite some time, but what is most disturbing is to see how such misinformation is being used as a tool by anti-war liberals to undermine public support for the war on terrorism.
MSNBC's liberal chieftain, Keith Olbermann, advanced Lembcke's attempts at revisionist history last week, making the following declaration on the Feb. 1, 2007, broadcast of "Countdown with Keith Olbermann":
And, oh, by the way, there is not one confirmed case, not one, of Americans spitting on veterans returning from Vietnam.
Olbermann and Lembcke are either deliberately lying, or they're not making much of an effort at all to find the truth.
After putting out a call over the airwaves of the "Lee Rodgers & Melanie Morgan Show" on KSFO 560 in San Francisco, I began to receive a stream of statements by Vietnam veterans who were spit upon. These upstanding veterans were disgusted by the attempt of anti-war liberals to whitewash their shameful behavior in the past, in an attempt to improve their image in the debate over the war effort today.
It breaks my heart, and has reduced me to tears, to think about how ungrateful our nation was to those who served their country and risked their lives in service to the United States military. Here's a small sampling of the many, many accounts I received.
First, consider the moving words of Larry from San Ramon:
Unfortunately, I was one of the U.S. servicemen that had the opportunity to be spat upon during the Vietnam era. I was a member of the Air Force (1969-1973). This happened to me in travels through Seattle and Oakland airports. I held my head straight and wore their "gift" as a badge of honor, but inside it broke my heart.
Karl from Vacaville, a former American Legion post commander, wrote in with this account:
I served four years that overlapped from the end of the Vietnam War and into the post-Vietnam Cold War period. The U.S. Army by that time was giving out warnings regarding the wearing of our uniforms in public (i.e., don't do it), but they also insisted that if we traveled around town (even in civilian dress) that we hang out in groups of four or more because the likelihood of getting beat-up by the "antis" was very high. I personally suffered verbal abuse (called "baby killer," etc.). I have been spat on and once was kicked out of a Seattle café right after the waitress addressed our group (there were five of us) with the words, "What the f--- are you doing here?!"
Peter of Concord gave this account:
In 1965, I was stationed at Treasure Island in the Navy. I had graduated from Beverly Hills High School in June 1962, and many of my friends had gone to Berserkley! I joined the Navy instead. Several times I visited my friends in their frat houses along Collage Ave. in uniform. Walking down College Ave. I was accosted by numerous pothead students with long hair, dirty clothes, who smelled really bad. On several occassions, they spit on me, called me "baby killer!" and threw garbage at me! My friends pleaded with me not to visit them wearing my Navy blues. I also had to buy a wig so these miscreants would not see my close haircut! It was not pleasant. …
The abuse by the degenerates of the anti-war left against our troops during the Vietnam War is not a myth – it is the truth.
The Washington Post is reporting this week that a new era of anti-war veterans are now working to provide a veteran's face to the ruthless efforts of liberal political activists to undermine the war effort.
Calling themselves "Vote Vets," they are a front group for a collaboration of organizations, including MoveOn.org and Americans United for Change – two groups that were strong supporters of Sen. John Kerry in the 2004 election.
The Kerry connection is important because, as the Washington Post admitted, Kerry has been involved, along with Democrat congressional leaders Nancy Pelosi and Steny Hoyer, in working out a strategy to advance their agenda.
As the Post reported: "Sen. John F. Kerry, D-Mass., who appeared with four veterans yesterday morning, said he saw parallels between VoteVets.org and Vietnam Veterans Against the War, the group of protesters he led during Vietnam."
We can't allow them to succeed. We can't allow these vile people to turn the war against terrorism into another Vietnam era. The men and women who serve this military deserve better, as did those fine people who fought bravely more than 30 years ago, only to come home to be spit upon.
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