Thursday, October 04, 2007

Pretend to Be All You Can Be

From Ann Coulter (sometimes she isn't ranting):

Pretend to Be All That You Can Be
by
Posted 10/03/2007

Not content to wait for my book to come out, Senate Democrats are demanding a censure resolution against Rush Limbaugh. Ah, the memories ...

In my experience, having prominent Democrats censure you on the Senate floor is the equivalent of 50 book signings. Or being put on the cover of The New York Times magazine 20 years ago when people still read The New York Times magazine. They should rename Senate censure resolutions "Harry Reid's Book Club."

Liberals are hopping mad because Rush Limbaugh referred to phony soldiers as "phony soldiers." They claim he was accusing all Democrats in the military of being "phony."

True, all Democrats in the military are not phony soldiers, but all phony soldiers seem to be Democrats.

If we are to believe the self-descriptions of callers to talk radio and the typical soldier interviewed on MSNBC, the military is fairly bristling with Moveon.org types.

The reality is quite the opposite. While liberals have managed to worm themselves into every important institution in America, from the public schools to the CIA to charitable foundations, they are shamefully absent from the military.

As noted in that great book that came out this week, "If Democrats Had Any Brains, They'd Be Republicans":

"According to a Military Times survey taken in September 2004, active-duty military personnel preferred President Bush to Kerry by about 73 percent to 18 percent. Sixty percent describe themselves as Republican and less than 10 percent call themselves Democrat (the same 10 percent that MSNBC has on its speed-dial). Even among the veterans, Republicans outnumber Democrats 46 percent to 22 percent."

So there aren't a lot of anti-war military types for the media to turn into this month's "It Girl." (If conservatives ran the media, there would be a constant stream of government employees admitting to sloth and incompetence, welfare recipients admitting to being welfare cheats and public schoolteachers who support school vouchers.) Sometimes liberals get desperate and have to concoct Tawana Brawley veterans.

In addition to famous fake soldiers promoted by the anti-war crowd, like Jesse MacBeth and "Winter Soldier" Al Hubbard, even liberals with actual military experience are constantly being caught in the middle of some liberal hoax.

Al Gore endlessly bragged to the media about his service in Vietnam. "I took my turn regularly on the perimeter in these little firebases out in the boonies. Something would move, we'd fire first and ask questions later," he told Vanity Fair. And then we found out Gore had a personal bodyguard in Vietnam, the most dangerous weapon he carried was a typewriter, and he left after three months. Although to his credit, Gore did not put in for a Purple Heart for the carpal tunnel syndrome he got from all that typing.

Speaking of which, John Kerry claimed to be a valiant, Purple Heart-deserving Vietnam veteran, who spent Christmas 1968 in Cambodia -- until he ran for president and more than 280 Swift Boat Veterans called him a liar. We've been waiting more than 20 months for Kerry to make good on his "Meet the Press" pledge to sign form 180, which would allow the military to release his records.

Then there was Bill Burkett, who gave CBS the phony National Guard documents; Scott Thomas Beauchamp, The New Republic's fantasist anti-war "Baghdad Diarist"; and Max Cleland, whose injuries were repeatedly and falsely described as a result of enemy fire.

Liberals will even turn a war hero like Pat Tillman into an anti-war cause celebre posthumously -- so he can't disagree. Tillman died in a friendly fire incident that occurred -- unlike Max Cleland's accident -- during actual combat with the enemy.

Because they are screaming, hysterical women, liberals treat friendly fire like a drunk driving accident. But friendly fire has been a part of war from time immemorial.

Liberals have an insane, litigious view of the military: There's been an accident in warfare, let's sue! It's as mad as the line from "Dr. Strangelove": "Gentlemen! No fighting in the War Room!" Golly jeepers, accidents can't happen in a war!

Contrary to the insinuations of his family, we don't know what Pat Tillman would say about the war he volunteered for, but we do know that he was a patriot until death. And we know what other patriots have said about friendly fire during a war.

In his book Faith of My Fathers, John McCain describes how demoralized American prisoners of war in Vietnam were when they didn't hear any bombing for years. Finally, after a long bombing halt, Nixon renewed aerial bombing of North Vietnam in December 1972.

Our bombers couldn't know with precision where the enemy was holding (and torturing) our troops. McCain and the rest of those POWs could easily have been hit and killed by an American bomb.

But the POWs weren't denouncing the U.S. military for risking their lives with "friendly fire." They weren't crying Mommy, investigate this! Get me a trial lawyer! If their camp had been hit by American bombs, it would have been as the POWs were shouting: "God bless President Nixon!"

That's from their own mouths; that's what's in their hearts. Friendly fire -- to a nation that hasn't lost its wits -- is part of waging war.

If Democrats don't want to hear about "phony soldiers," maybe they should stop trying to edify us with these bathos-laden hoaxes.

9 comments:

SeattleSusieQ said...

There are so many lies and misrepresentations in this it doesn't deserve a response. You should be ashamed of yourself for posting this sh*t.

You can see them (you) trying again - if you keep repeating the lie that Limbaugh *only* meant the guy who misrepresented himself - people like you will believe it.

But IT IS A LIE! And a BIG LIE.

Gonzo said...

Wait a sec, I should be ashamed? I'm not the one who believes MM hook, line, and sinker.

Isn't the whole "IT IS A LIE" thing over the top? Or are you channeling the ghost of Lavrenti Beria?

This is another political faux scandal that is, apparently, blowing up in the face of the hate-mongering Stalinists...oh, sorry, progressives. I get the two mixed up - probably due to boths propensity to desire to squash and delegitimize free speech.

I'm glad you're so open to a careful and thoughtful review of what really happened.

SeattleSusieQ said...

Gonzo wrote I'm glad you're so open to a careful and thoughtful review of what really happened.

I AM. What part of unedited audio tape don't YOU understand? What part of the outrage of suggesting a combat veteran must be too stupid to understand "truth" because he opposes this occupation can't you see?

Stalinist? Interesting comparison. Care to discuss your reasoning for that?

You get all frothy when someone suggests Rovian politics as textbook "Mein Kempf", but you'll throw out "Stalinism"?

that reminds me. Here's something interesting for you to hear (see).
Thom Hartmann reads from something he wrote His books detail the sources of his information.

SeattleSusieQ said...

I forgot to add!
Gonzo wrote: I get the two mixed up - probably due to boths propensity to desire to squash and delegitimize free speech.


You are so mixed up I feel sorry for you. Who has started "free speech zones?" Which adminstration told people they'd better "watch what they say" after 9-11? Who started this most recent rant by making the big stink about the free speech of the "MoveOn" ad?

How about writing to your Congressman to get equal time on Armed Forces Radio for Thom Hartmann or Ed Schultz? Why do the Republicans continue to block providing 2 sides for our armed services? Are they afraid the soldiers are "too stupid" for it? Afraid the soldiers will understand Rush for the lying piece of crap he is - who admitted after the '06 elections he was tired of "carrying water" for the Republicans, thereby admitting his program is based on Republican talking points?

Why should my tax dollars go towards promoting lies? At the very least I want truth out there, too and let the soldiers make their own decisions.

As for the military supporting the war - they support their buddies, but more and more of them are questioning the orders they have. They'll obey them, but you'll notice how high the signing bonuses have gotten.

My friend's son has been in Iraq twice already but was told he would not be able to stay with his buddies for his remaining time - unless he signed up for another 15 months. That sucks! And it suggests that the main reason they are there are financial in nature.

Gonzo said...

Hey, wait a sec: I thought AFR had two conservatives and two liberal talk shows. That sounds even to me: Am I wrong?

As to adding more progressives to AFR, here's a thought. You're not going to like it but consider it carefully:

Armed Forces Radio's mission is to entertain and uplift the morale of the troops in the field, right? As such, I would imagine that they would be very careful about what is aired. Progressive hosts tend to be very negative about the mission and about the conduct of the soldiers in the field. Now, I don't want to start a debate on who's right - Limbaugh or Hartmann. But can you understand how damaging it might be to morale for some left-winger to start insulting what they do on the air and leave an impression that they're all losers and killers?

To be fair most, if not all, of progressive radio hosts claim to support the troops, just not their mission. But it's not the same thing.

In summation, I would daresay that it's a lot safer for an AFR program manager to put on a flag-waving, kick-ass and take names type of right-winger like Limbaugh.

That's my honest take on it.

Garrett said...

Free-speech zones first appeared at the WTO in Seattle, under Clinton, unfortunately.

Garrett said...

I do agree that you should be ashamed for reposting it, though. The only "phony soldiers" are the ones who quit the Guard because they had better things to do, like work on political campaigns. How can you repeat the lies of someone who calls a double amputee a phony soldier? Sounds pretty damned real to me.

Gonzo said...

You too, drinking the Kool-aid. Goddmand it, read what he said and not what some agitprop site tells you what to think.

Garrett said...

I did read what he said. You might want to try it yourself sometime.