Why, Yes, Mr. Blumenthal - You Are an Ass

Tuesday, May 18, 2010
You know, I understand a candidate's desire to polish their public image in order to get elected. Everyone wants to put their best foot forward when they're running for office, and leveraging your experiences in order to appear to be "the best man for the job" is part of the process.

But you shouldn't lie.

And you especially shouldn't lie about things that can be easily verified.

And you really shouldn't lie about things that make you look like an opportunistic douche bag with no honor and no respect for the men and women who have served our nation in uniform in combat zones.

Why, yes, Mr. Richard Blumenthal, I am looking at you.

Here's the thing - Mr. Blumenthal didn't lie in an overt manner in terms of whether or not he served in country during the Vietnam war. He simply implied, and rather strongly, that he had. Weaselly SOB.

And here's what I don't get. In spite of his five deferments during the Vietnam era, Mr. Blumenthal did in fact serve in the United States Marine Corps Reserve. I've heard no rumors that his service during that time was anything less than honorable. His unit was simply not called up.

So why would you risk your reputation by attempting to exaggerate your service or imply you did in fact serve in a combat role, when the truth is perfectly honorable and defensible? It may not be as exciting, but it has the unassailable virtue of being true.

Mr. Blumenthal, you are an ass. Honorable veterans speak the truth about their service, and do not try and falsely imply experiences they haven't had for political purposes. Because the truth will serve, you see. If your service was honorable, whether it included combat in Vietnam or not, you have reason to be proud of it, and your lies and exaggerations cheapen it.

I've never served in combat. But I served honorably for seventeen years, and I would not have hesitated to go into harm's way had the situation arisen. That's enough for me. And it should have been enough for Mr. Blumenthal.

___________
H/T to the Smart Man, who is also a veteran, but doesn't lie about what he did when in uniform.

4 comments:

Anonymous said...
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Janiece said...

*TONG*

Warner (aka ntsc) said...

Getting into a reserve unit during Vietnam was almost impossible, they had waiting lists several years long.

I am not aware of any reserve unit being called into active duty for service in Vietnam. A reserve unit was a sure way to avoid combat.

Now it is possible that Mr. Blumenthal, as could have Mr. Bush, put his name on a waiting list on his 18th birthday, but I doubt it.

The Mechanicky Gal said...

Wasn't the reserves a way for wealthy (usually white, privileged) guys to avoid that whole mess?
I mean, who wants to go and get blown up with a lot of poors?
Sort of like the National Guard?