Beautiful diary written by a psychologist specializing in helping Vietnam vets. Re: JK & Vietnam

[beachmom]

This is the best diary I have read on the subject of why so many vets went along with the swiftboating. And it is beautifully written, also containing a plea to not go after McCain's service, for which I wholeheartedly agree.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/6/12/9017/77019/26/533909

The good name of John Kerry
by Sundiata
Thu Jun 12, 2008 at 06:00:17 AM PDT

Tonight I watched John Kerry respond to John McCain's remark about bringing the troops home from Iraq. I was reminded that Kerry was a superb combat commander. Military records and eyewitness accounts show Kerry was courageous and effective under fire. The enlisted men on his boat spoke up for him, an officer, and that says it all (including what we should think about the lone dissenter). All of this and his record was trashed by other vets, mostly officers who weren't there when he did what he did. The swift-boating of John Kerry is one of the most shameful episodes in the history of US politics and it was all about getting revenge for Kerry bringing light to the fact that the US military in Vietnam was out of control(the result of being inserted into a bizarre world of death and horror). For their efforts, the swiftboaters got us another 4 years of Bush, Cheney, Rove, Gonzales, Rice et al.

Sundiata's diary :: ::
Barack Obama often calls John McCain an authentic war hero. No one should question this and no one with any standing in the public eye is likely to. But, it is a bitter irony that GOP operatives were willing and able to irreparably damage the reputation of another authentic hero of the Vietnam War, John Kerry. Not only did the swiftboaters play a key role in Kerry's narrow defeat in the 2004 presidential election; they caused people to question the authenticity of a man who served with great distinction and then did his best to bring home the troops who were still being sacrificed in the hopelessly lost cause of Vietnam.

We often imagine how different things would be if the votes had been counted in Florida and Al Gore had been awarded the victory he earned but didn't receive. Just as President Al Gore would have responded more effectively to the terrorist threat than the Bush administration (one could scarcely have been less effective), President John Kerry would have been uniquely qualified to salvage the developing debacle in Iraq and refocus our attention on countering terrorism. Can we doubt that he would have the troops home by now? And well before running for President, Kerry had done extensive research on terrorist infrastructure and methods. He was and is an expert on national security and foreign policy. Instead of plunging ever deeper into polarization and paranoia, our world would already be much safer after 4 years of President Kerry.

I am a psychologist who has some 27 years of experience evaluating and providing psychological therapy for Vietnam veterans. Long ago I learned how to analyze military records to document combat experience and stress exposure in order to validate the self-reports of veterans. If the records indicate that the vet has lied or distorted the narrative, so be it. Having done my best to honor and serve those who served us, and hoping desperately that George W Bush would be defeated in his bid for reelection, I was acutely concerned about the swiftboat controversy as it unfolded. This led me to scour the internet for all relevant information that would shed light on what Sen. Kerry actually did in Vietnam. I also sought the reasons that Kerry was trailing Bush among veterans in the voting population.

Read the rest at the link. This diarist is full of compassion, and what he wrote is like a cool drink of water away from the ugliness.