Troops Harrased by Politician

[A_Wanderer]

The Marines ? two in uniform and two off-duty ? were polite but curt while chatting with Kerry, answering most of his questions with a ?yes, sir? or ?no, sir.?

But they turned downright nasty after the Massachusetts senator thanked them "for their service" and left.

"He imposed on us and I disagree with him coming over here shaking our hands," one Marine said, adding, "I'm 100 percent against [him]."

A sergeant with 10 years of service under his belt said, "I speak for all of us. We think that we are doing the right thing in Iraq," before saying he is to be deployed there in a few weeks and is "eager" to go and serve.

Semper Fi

 

[BVS]

WTF?! Am I missing something here, he thanked some marines, and because they don't support him they are being harassed by him?

 

[STING2]

Its not harrassment. These Marines don't like Kerry and felt uncomfortable kissing his butt when he came over. Unfortunately, if the liberals have their way, they will have to salute him in a few months.

 

[ThatGuy]

That's silly. We'll see how the military votes in November. Then we'll know if this incident is indicative of a larger trend, or not.

By the way, STING, thanks for the use of "liberal" as a slur. I see you've been reading up on your old GOPAC memos.

 

[pub crawler]

Its not harrassment. These Marines don't like Kerry and felt uncomfortable kissing his butt when he came over. Unfortunately, if the liberals have their way, they will have to salute him in a few months.

Oh, I get it. The only president that can be Commander in Chief is a Republican president. Funny how that works.

 

[ThatGuy]

Actually, what I don't understand is if they were so upset by Kerry's coming over to chat with them, why didn't they just tell him right to his face? "I'm sorry sir, I don't agree with your policies, and I will not be voting for you in November. Now if you'll excuse me I'm trying to finish my Biggie Shake and would prefer not to be disturbed." It's not like they have to listen to him. He's not their commander-in-chief (yet).

 

[BVS]

I think the real question here is "why is Kerry at Wendy's?" Come on people let's stick to the serious issues. Was he trying to get them to use Heinz ketchup?

 

[ThatGuy]

Wait, BVS, does BONO USE HEINZ KETCHUP???!!! There goes the AIDS funding.

 

[BVS]

Wait, BVS, does BONO USE HEINZ KETCHUP???!!! There goes the AIDS funding.

You win for the best post in the last 24 hours.

 

[Diemen]

Brilliant.

 

[MrsSpringsteen]

As to why Kerry is at Wendy's, the Edwards have a tradition of celebrating their anniversary there, so they were all there.

I think the Marines were being respectful to his face because as far as I know, that's how most soldiers try to behave. I'd like to think that's how most people would try to behave, regardless of their political/personal beliefs. If I met Bush, I'd like to think I'd be respectful of the office he holds and do the same.

I don't fault them for their opinion about him or for voicing it, that's their right What exactly constitutes "curt" or "nasty"? I don't see from this description that they were either-and if they feel he "imposed" upon them/used them for a photo op or whatever, perhaps that comes from their biases, which we all have.

 

[verte76]

I don't see how this was "harrassment". If he hadn't spoken to them he might have been dissed for being rude.

 

[STING2]

That's silly. We'll see how the military votes in November. Then we'll know if this incident is indicative of a larger trend, or not.

By the way, STING, thanks for the use of "liberal" as a slur. I see you've been reading up on your old GOPAC memos.

Its silly for someone in the Military to have a negative opinion about John Kerry?

The majority in the military tend to vote for candidates that support the military with the most money for pay, weapons and training. Over the past 2 and half decades, the Republican party overall has been far more supportive of heavy defense spending where as the Democrats including Mr. Kerry himself have attempted to cut defense spending deeply. Although members of the military keep politics quiet, typically the military currently votes Republican in numbers similar to the way Labor Unions vote for Democrats. An Army times poll recently found that only 13% of military personal consider themselves to be democrats.

You will definitely have military personal supporting Kerry this year, but the majority, at least of the active duty military, will most likely be supporting Bush. If the Absentee Ballots of military personal who pick Florida as their state had been counted in the 2000 election, Bush would have won the election there by thousands of votes and there would not have been any disputes.

Sorry I used the word liberal, but most people in hear certainly do not worry about editing their post when talking about Bush and those that support him.

 

[Klaus]

Ex Public Affairs Officer Lt. John Oliveira (USS "Theodore Roosevelt") might be one of the most famous in public who turned away from Bush because he was unable to continue to do propaganda for a war he didn't believe in anymore. He felt betrayed by the current government.

Maybee someone can link the english original statements of him because retranslating them into english dosn't make them better.

 

[Scarletwine]

This seems to be a pretty impressive endorsement of Kerry.

Boston, MA - In an unprecedented display of support from the military establishment, twelve retired generals and admirals endorsed John Kerry for president of the United States on Wednesday. These distinguished flag officers join the ranks of tens of thousands of veterans ? including over 500 veteran delegates in Boston - who want a stronger, more secure America and their fellow veteran John Kerry to be the next Commander-in-Chief.

"My son is a Navy sailor, my son-in-law is a Navy sailor, and my nephew is a Navy sailor. I want them, and all of America?s sons and daughters in uniform to have a new, wiser, better, and courageous commander-in-chief in John Kerry," said Vice Admiral Lee F. Gunn (USN, Ret.)

"Success in the global war on terror requires enlightened U.S. leadership ? leadership that knows the importance of listening to and working with other countries. Senator Kerry is such a leader, and as Commander-in-Chief, he will adapt our military to the unprecedented security demands faced by our country and its armed forces," said Lieutenant General Daniel Christman (USA, Ret.)

Lieutenant General Edward D. Baca (United States Army, Retired)
Lieutenant General Daniel W. Christman (United States Army, Retired)
General Wesley K. Clark (United States Army, Retired)
Admiral William J. Crowe (United States Navy, Retired)
Vice Admiral Lee F. Gunn (United States Navy, Retired)
General Joseph Hoar (United States Marine Corps, Retired)
Lieutenant General Claudia J. Kennedy (United States Army, Retired)
Lieutenant General Donald Kerrick (United States Army, Retired)
General Merrill ?Tony? A. McPeak (United States Air Force, Retired)
General John M. Shalikashvili (United States Army, Retired)
Admiral Stansfield Turner (United States Navy, Retired)
General Johnnie E. Wilson (United States Army, Retired)

http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/releases/pr_2004_0728a.html

Of course they are retired. It would be against procedure for active military to endorse anyone.

 

[STING2]

This seems to be a pretty impressive endorsement of Kerry.

Boston, MA - In an unprecedented display of support from the military establishment, twelve retired generals and admirals endorsed John Kerry for president of the United States on Wednesday. These distinguished flag officers join the ranks of tens of thousands of veterans ? including over 500 veteran delegates in Boston - who want a stronger, more secure America and their fellow veteran John Kerry to be the next Commander-in-Chief.

"My son is a Navy sailor, my son-in-law is a Navy sailor, and my nephew is a Navy sailor. I want them, and all of America?s sons and daughters in uniform to have a new, wiser, better, and courageous commander-in-chief in John Kerry," said Vice Admiral Lee F. Gunn (USN, Ret.)

"Success in the global war on terror requires enlightened U.S. leadership ? leadership that knows the importance of listening to and working with other countries. Senator Kerry is such a leader, and as Commander-in-Chief, he will adapt our military to the unprecedented security demands faced by our country and its armed forces," said Lieutenant General Daniel Christman (USA, Ret.)

Lieutenant General Edward D. Baca (United States Army, Retired)
Lieutenant General Daniel W. Christman (United States Army, Retired)
General Wesley K. Clark (United States Army, Retired)
Admiral William J. Crowe (United States Navy, Retired)
Vice Admiral Lee F. Gunn (United States Navy, Retired)
General Joseph Hoar (United States Marine Corps, Retired)
Lieutenant General Claudia J. Kennedy (United States Army, Retired)
Lieutenant General Donald Kerrick (United States Army, Retired)
General Merrill ?Tony? A. McPeak (United States Air Force, Retired)
General John M. Shalikashvili (United States Army, Retired)
Admiral Stansfield Turner (United States Navy, Retired)
General Johnnie E. Wilson (United States Army, Retired)

http://www.johnkerry.com/pressroom/releases/pr_2004_0728a.html

Of course they are retired. It would be against procedure for active military to endorse anyone.

There are thousands of Retired Generals from the military out there, so its actually a surprise that only 12 Generals are listed here supporting Kerry.

Once again, there are military personal that support both parties, but the majority of the military supports those that typically provide them with more money for weapons, training and pay. Over the past two and a half decades, the Republicans have been the party that has offered the military the strongest support.

 

[DaveC]

A sergeant with 10 years of service under his belt said, "I speak for all of us. We think that we are doing the right thing in Iraq," before saying he is to be deployed there in a few weeks and is "eager" to go and serve.

No, no you don't, you pompous ass.

 

[zoney!]

oh, no...Dave...he just meant "All four of us at Wendy's."