Dem Vets Smeared/Swiftboated ? Compiling a list, need DU help

[EVDebs]

A post by DUer Tom Rinaldo has an excellent suggestion and DU can help:

"...compile a comprehensive roster of good solid Democratic Veterans who have been smeared and swiftboated by chickenhawks or their supporters.

List them all in one place, including their years of service to America and awards won, headed off by a lead that says: What do these distinguished American Veterans have in common? They are all Democrats who have had their service to America belittled by swiftboaters in support of chickenhawks who never served one day in our nation's military."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=2873522&mesg_id=2873730

Moderators, I'm starting out here in GD/P but if there's an activist page for this we really need to get the word out to Dem vets and other progressives who are being presecuted by the neocon for exercising their right to criticize bad policy.

[Tom Rinaldo]

1. Obviously we can start with Cleland, Kerry and Clark

Add to that Murtha and Murphy. Those are the easy names, but I suspect if we go through the list of Fighting Dems running for office this year we can add a lot more.

It might be good to include a representitive outrageous slur for each one, contrasting with the facts of their record of service to America.

[Jack Rabbit]

2. Tammy Duckworth

!!

[Lasher]

3. Here is a good resource

Who Served?

http://www.awolbush.com/whoserved.html

[zbdent]

4. Don't forget that Hackett was "rumored"

to have not served in Iraq, but was "in a law office" in Kuwait ...

Any veteran of this "war" (occupation) will tell you that nowhere (not even the green zone) is "safe" ...

[Bandit]

5. Every veteran that ever received a Purple Heart

With their little purple heart band-aids

[CTyankee]

6. That was a particularly nasty bit

It should be replayed for the general populace. I believe it was the delegates to the repub convention who wore the purple heart bandaids. It was so disgusting and the media never made much of it. I think if more people knew about it they would be angry.

[Tom Rinaldo]

7. Any Democratic Vets running in your State or District?

Have any swiftboating Republicans tried to either minimize their service to America Or their determination to defend America against legitimate threats to it?

[EVDebs]

8. My rep is Lynn Woolsey, fortunately and Mike Thompson is nextdoor

in the neighboring district in California. Rep Mike Thompson, a Vietnam vet, has been to Iraq and is much like Murtha on these matters. Iraq-Nam is a quagmire and demands redeployment as the Democratic policy once D's take the House (at least) come Nov 7th.

[Jai4WKC08]

9. Massa and Sestak

There's a whisper campaign against Eric Massa, saying that he was in the military for 24 years and "only" made Commander (O-5), implying he either wasn't a very good officer, or maybe got into trouble somewhere along the way. It's total BS, of course. O-5 is a perfectly successful military career of 24 years, especially when you consider that Massa spent the last year or two in military medical channels. In fact, Massa's actual assignments show that he was doing very well up to the point of his retirement, since the Navy doesn't give away the choice jobs he had to under-performers. But that's the way this particular mud-slinging works -- most people don't know anything about officer career progression, it takes too long to explain, and when it's just passed around by third parties, there's no opportunity to challenge it anyway.

I have heard there's something similar going on with Joe Sestak, but I don't know the details. Something to the effect that he didn't serve the 3 years required to retain his Vice Admiral rank, having to retire as a Rear Admiral, so he had to have been fired, or forced to retire early. Again, nothing specific enough to combat directly.

[GoldenOldie]

10. Time to put a name and face to each and every Swiftboat Liar.

It is innocuous to simply have a label of "Swiftboat," out there attacking veterans or anyone else who attempts takes on these faceless nameless cowards.

We all know John Murtha, Max Clelland, John Kerry, etc., etc., etc., but very few if any show the faces of their attackers. It's time to force them out of their bunkers and make them actually publically face those who they have personally attacked, their families, and the Nation who truly honors their service.

How about a rogues gallery of Swiftboat Liars, complete with photo's of each and everyone of them in their military uniform or snapshots of them serving with their comrades, along with their bio's/awards, etc., and the latest photo.