Kerry question: How common is 3 purple hearts in 3 months?

[faithincowboys]

BS-- he got his medals and that's all he went there for. He spent some time on a ship-- in zero danger. And four months on the swift boat.

I betcha MR. Jim Rassman (the guy he saved)has Heinz-Kerry money in a bank account somewhere. Have you seen the guy at the rat rallies? He looks like he is in the middle of a root canal.

[Arpege92]

Well, having the chin that he has, it's not hard to see how he may injure himself shaving.

[leadpenny]

he got his medals and that's all he went there for. He spent some time on a ship-- in zero danger. And four months on the swift boat.

Still shootin' your mouth off, eh? How do you know what kind of danger he was in? Unless you can back up those statements, you need to put a sock in it.

[familyofman]

Seems there are an awfull lot of people around these parts that questions the medals won by Kerry. Does anyone have proof (no rumor/innuendo) that they were not really justified? How about all of the medals awarded to all VN vets? How is it possible to denegrate some & not all awarded during the same time? I think you have to either accept them all, or reject as bogus all of them - unless there is definite proof of Kerry's being earned equally.

[Central_Floridian]

Unless there is some reason to say Kerry is a coward, I'd have to say that is a pretty cheap shot. Frankly, I'm much more impressed by Kerry's Vietnam war record than Pres. Bush's.

[faithincowboys]

Wow, you are clearly not who you say you are.

Go to Vietnam Veterans against John Kerry's website...

[GigaDittos]

OOOOOOPS!!!!!! CORRECTION: "I" should read "He". Sorry.

[Central_Floridian]

A Marine recon lt. I know was saved by a Marine cpl. who ran across an open field that was being stormed by an NVA company, picked up the lt. (whose legs were nearly blown off) and carried him to a helicopter.
The cpl. was offered the Silver Star but turned it down.
The greatest heroes are not those who seek decorations.

[7thson]

If it is true that he was in only for six months, then what Kennedy the Ted said yesterday seems to be BS - that Kerry was there for two tours. Doesn't mean two years?

[leadpenny]

I don't think it is that simple. There were many cases of individuals receiving medals they didn't deserve in Vietnam. It's probably happened in all wars. But, what is going on here, on this thread, brings discredit on Free Republic. Many of the posts I have read are uninformed and childish.

[RottiBiz]

Bookmark and bump!

[leadpenny]

I won't go anywhere. Prove what you claimed in post 81!

[kako]

My father was shot, stabbed, and blown out of a landing craft during WWII,

Bayonet wounds (or any caused by hand-to-hand combat) have been so rare for the last 100 years that I'm surprised your father did not receive a Purple Heart.

As other posters have mentioned, you may be able to remedy this by getting a belated Purple Heart awarded, especially since the type wound and the action in which it must've occurred was so rare.

[MIchaelTArchangel]

And his Silver Star, for shooting an already-wounded VC dead in the back, is a travesty.

It is worse than a travesty. If what his gunner reported is true, what Kerry did was a war crime. That may explain why Kerry, upon his return, joined Vietnam Veterans Against the War and its Winter Soldier project which claimed our soldiers were routinely committing war crimes there. Maybe it was not all our soldiers and sailors, but a select few who had guilty consciences for violating the rules of engagement.

[MIchaelTArchangel]

Are you certain that individual on the sailboat is John Kerry. If so, that picture had to have been taken no later than late September 1963. Since Kerry was a member of the Class of 1966, he would have been a freshman or a high school student at the time of the picture. I didn't know Kerry was such a close friend of the Kennedys back then.

[Don Carlos]

Index bump.

[MIchaelTArchangel]

Ham & cheese? But he's Jewish, isn't he?

I really don't know what Kerry is. He has allowed people to think he is Irish, Czech, Catholic, Episcopalian, Jewish, etc. You tell him what you want him to be, and he will oblige.

[familyofman]

"Many of the posts I have read are uninformed and childish."

Not to mention based on politics more than fact. The line of reasoning that you can pick and choose which medal recipients are worthy based on actions/politics after the fact really don't make any logical sense. That is unless you allow the same reasoning to be applied to those that agree with you. It's a very destructive way to go if you think service to your country means something.

[mass55th]

Thanks for your great reply and the important info included within. I'm in the process of trying to get a copy of my brother's service record. He served in Vietnam from 1966-67. He died in '95.

I had previously attempted to get information about my uncle's WWII service time. At first I was told that his record had been destroyed in the fire, but then I was told by a WWII vet that I should contact my Congressman. I did so, but was disappointed to find out that because I wasn't his wife, brother, sister or child, I would not be able to see what was in his military record. My uncle died in '64. His wife passed away a few years ago. My aunt and uncle never had children. My mother was his only sibling and she died in '90. Unfortunately, because of these restrictions, I'll probably never be able to verify where he was during the war, or the wound he allegedly received which earned him the Purple Heart.

[leadpenny]

Said very well!