Posted on 08/19/2004 12:50:51 PM PDT by gilliam
Statement by Navy Veteran Van Odell, Swift Boat Veterans for Truth, in Rebuttal to Michael Dobbs, Washington Post, August 19, 2004
A courageous, soft spoken man of the Midwest, Larry Thurlow has a heart bigger than the great plains and a commitment to truth and honesty that is boundless. He is under attack, because John Kerry is feeling the heat of truth at the hands of this honest man and others like him.
The Kerry Campaign is attacking the truthfulness of this man and the Bronze Star he so richly deserves for his actions on March 13, 1969. I was there. I saw what happened.
The mine’s detonation lifted PCF-3 completely out of the water just yards ahead of me. All boats commenced suppression fire in case enemy small arms fire ensued. None did.
All boats came to the aid of PCF-3, except one: John Kerry’s boat. Kerry fled.
Larry Thurlow piloted his boat straight toward the mine-damaged PCF-3 from which thick, black smoke billowed. He jumped aboard and personally led damage control operations that saved the boat and rescue operations that saved the lives of badly wounded men. Larry’s leadership was in the highest traditions of the naval service. His leadership allowed the other men and boats of the mission to exit the river safely.
This “single act of meritorious service” – the chief requirement of the Bronze Star – should be honored, not ridiculed, by the Kerry campaign and its allies in the mainstream media.
To reiterate, only one enemy weapon was deployed that day – the command-detonated submerged mine that disabled PCF-3. Larry Thurlow’s citation contained references to “enemy small arms and automatic weapons fire,” because that was the language chosen by John Kerry who penned the “spot report” on the action that day. There was no “enemy small arms and automatic weapons fire” received that day. John Kerry’s report was fiction – a hoax on the entire chain of command.
Larry Thurlow’s heroism and meritorious service, however, is real. To me Larry is one of the heroes of our country. He is a man who served his country when called and who returned home to be a productive citizen. Larry and men like him are the strong backbone of our society. I am proud to have served with him.
When danger reared it's ugly head
Sir F'n bravely turned and fled.
Brave, brave, brave, brave Sir F'n.
Shalom.
The crickets are busy these days.
Shalom.
Hello Rassman.
I did see on another thread something about the swiftboats firing in case of enemy fire. And someone pointed out that, being in water as he was, Rassman likely wouln't have been in a position to tell the difference.
Rassman is confused on this point as he says when he surfaced all the boats were gone. We know Kerry's boat was gone because he came "back" to pull Rassman from the water. PCF 3 was not gone because it was damagaed by the mine, Crew of the other boats say they gathered around the 3 boat to rescue injured crewman and salvage the boat. I think for whatever reason, shock, confusion or whatever, Rassman is an unreliable wittness.
Not nearly as much as one would think. Time and again major stories and scandals have failed to penetrate, especially once he gets into details and he said/she said. Thus we need to continue to bust our butts explaining this story at the water cooler, social gatherings, etc.
I figured some of his old crew might genuinely like Kerry. But this statement smells of a cash transfer.
I hope it gets made CLEAR to everyone that the after action report was written BY KERRY, and that he perptrated a hoax on the Navy. I'm sure Vets won't be amused!
I like it!
Let's rewrite that to reflect the John F'in Kerry of today:
He said he learned 30 years ago in combat that when attacked, you sit down for 40 minutes 'unable to think'...
James 1:8 "A double-minded man is unstable in all his ways" I guess that about sums it up...
It is amazing how well prepared these Vets are for the liberal game plan! They seem to know what they're going to do before they do it and are dialed in with perfect responses. Swiftvets, we owe you a HUGE debt of gratitude for stepping out, facing the fire (again!) and telling the truth!!! Contribute, by the book and keep the heat on!
yep, you're right. They say you can't know whats happening on another boat.
O'Neil is a smart lawyer -- clerked early in his career for the US Supreme Court.
Apparently today, the Wash Post, trying to help Kerry, actually shot a huge hole in his story and ultimately, unknowingly helped confirm that Kerry wrote the fraudulent citation reports. Stunning.
This is a great rapid-response article.
I LOVE these guys!
Whose story keeps changing and whose stays the same? The Vets are telling the same story over and over because it's the truth. Kerry's changes like the weather because it's all lies. He's afraid to open his mouth because he can't remember what lies he told yesterday. The only thing that has kept the Kerry ship from turning into the Titanic is the mainstream media that won't give this the play it deserves, but I think that is starting to change.
The only reason it has stayed alive in the news is that these guys just aren't going to go away and they are getting enough donations to keep it going. God bless them because the Democrat attack machine is in high gear. Donate to their efforts if you can.
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