Posted on 08/26/2004 6:03:30 AM PDT by renotse
John Kerry 3 purple hearts zero days in hospital.....What is wrong with this picture.
Shame on you! Spotlight on Cleland in wound controversy
Even though he lost both legs and his right arm in Vietnam, Max Cleland was not awarded even one Purple Heart.
This is because his wounds were not the result of enemy fire, but came when, miles away from any fighting, he picked up a hand grenade he saw lying on the ground and it detonated.
In his autobiography, ``Strong at the Broken Places,'' the former Democratic senator wrote, ``I was not entitled to the Purple Heart . . . since I was not wounded by enemy action.''
The Swift Boat Veterans for Truth have challenged the legitimacy of the Purple Hearts given to Democratic presidential candidate John Kerry [related, bio], saying that some of them were awarded for Vietnam wounds that were unintentionally self-inflicted. Military regulations at the time said recipients must be wounded by enemy fire.
The Kerry campaign has acknowledged that the wound he suffered for his first Purple Heart may have come when he was hit by shrapnel from an M-79 grenade round he himself fired.
The severity of Kerry's wounds also have been the subject of controversy.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.bostonherald.com ...
Such insignificant wounds and liberals think Purple Hearts are worthy decorations for military personnel not even in harm's way! <snort
How dare Kerry send a maimed veteran as his agent to try to suppress the First Amendment free speech of heroic swift boat vets!
How dare Kerry send Cleland to try to suppress the very Document which Cleland gave three limbs defending!!
Without doubt, this is the most pathetic whining a candidate for President has ever displayed.
He didn't see the spoon had flown off. Apparently another GI had straightened the pin on his grenade and placed it back on his web gear. Stupid thing to do. What if it had fallen off in slick? Anyway, Cleland apparently saw it on the grown and assumed it was his and had simply fallen off his own web gear. Big mistake...
Max is also in the mix. He did suffer but he was not with Kerry in country. Max is being too much a slut.
I may have not been clear on my point.
This was already posted.
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I think this may also be incorrect. I saw a progarm on Max sometime ago and he described the incident. He was new and he bent the pins on the granades so they would come out easier while in the field. Apparently he was exiting a chopper when a pin came out of a grenade, thus his injuries. I may be totally mistaken, but I really think this is what happened.
Interesting note, on one of the congressional websites there is mention of his injuries related to a grenade with an apparent absence of the self-inflicted part.
The few amputees I've know have always buttoned and pinned that sleeve up, not wanting to focus attention on their injury.
Gunny,
In Clelands autobio, he states that it wasn't a big deal (the grenade lying on the ground), other grenades had fallen off his web gear before. (what an idiot)
He DID volunteer to go to Kaysan (spelling) to set up the commo gear that had been destroyed during the seige. That was fairly ballsy, considering the smoke had hardly cleared.
Another thing that I saw was unbending the cotter pin on the Pull Ring, I didn't have a problem with that, if, you put a piece of tape, full rap, around the ring.
"And to think that I spent a whole year there at taxpayer expense, even refused 2 PH (Purple Heart), because only stupes that forgot to duck get PH..."
Anyone curious to see what real soldiers looked like back then in their off hours can visit:
http://www.seawolf-hal3.org/gallery/Det-1
I'd bet you....in the dark dead of night,...Cleland wonders why Kerry doesn't limp, doesn't ache, & doesn't have visible scars.
kaysan= Khe Sanh
I had a chance to speak directly with Max Cleland about 8-10 years ago at a banquet in Atlanta Ga.
I wear braces on both legs due to wounds from Vietnam and it was the icebreaker that brought us to have a discussion as how we were injured.
Mr Cleland told me that he had strung a grenade by it's pin ring to his web gear. He and a friend were taking pictures jumping in and out of a unmanned parked Huey.
He said they had been drinking and were alittle careless, as he jumped out of the Huey the grenade departed company with attached ring/pin and fell to the ground, the handle popped off and the grenade started it's fuse, he attempted to pick it up and throw it away as it went off.
Now that's what he told ME, I not saying it's a true account, it IS the account he relayed to me however.
Background...Nearly 25% of all US troops KIA in RVN died in RVNs two most northern Provinces, Quang Tri and Thua Tien. 44 Provinces total. 53% of all US KIA died in I Corps/MR One.
Cleland served in 1st Cav Division. A Division which lost approx.5500KIA. More than any other Army Division.
Nearly 15K Marines died in RVN. I do not have the geographical breakdown on them. However, I would surmise that many, if not majority, were KIA in Quang Tri/Thua Tien Province. Part of the initial "grand design" of North Vietnam.
Anyone who thinks Cleland was 15 miles from the fighting, or even miles from the fighting, needs to have their head gear flushed out. Both these Provinces were extremely dangerous places to be...
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