They can dish it out, but they just can't take it

First of all, I'm a little hesitant to even bring this up, because I don't have a big problem with Bush serving in the National Guard rather than Vietnam--as long as he owns up to avoiding combat in Vietnam and to losing interest in the Guard before his time was up. It's the dishonesty and the whining that dishonors his administration.

I'm only two years younger than Bush, and I fully supported, then and now, the choice to avoid Vietnam. At the same time, I had great respect for the soldiers who DID go to Vietnam, and great anger for the politicians in Washington who wasted all those lives for a war they weren't willing to win--or willing to lose. But that's old news. The issue for me is that Bush won't own up to avoiding Vietnam, yet he and his political machine belittle the service of a Vietnam vet. In doing so, he diminishes, not only all other Vietnam veterans, but all veterans, as well as the soldiers currently serving our country.

On the same note, Bush's side-stepping the Swift Boat ad issue would be easier to bear if I could hear an acknowledgement from the Bush camp that young Kerry and the other Vietnam Vets Against the War earned the right to protest the war because they put their lives on the line for this country--when young Bush wasn't willing to do the same. Because whether or not you agree with Kerry and the V.V.A.W., the facts speak to young Kerry's service to his country, through both his military service and his political activism to end the war and bring our troops home.

And now that Bush's service record is back in the news, what do we hear from the Republicans? "It is dirty politics," whines Dan Bartlett, White House communications director. This from Karl Rove's White House. From the party that mocked the Purple Heart at their national convention. They can dish it out, but they just can't take it.

Another reason Bush's service record matters to me is that Bush has sent the National Guard to fight a foreign war, extending their service beyond their discharge dates, yet he joined the National Guard to avoid a foreign war and appears to have lost interest before his discharge date. Rather than continue to spin and side-step, he needs to be honest about this. How else can he be considered genuine when he sends soldiers into battle? It's a matter of character. Of honor.

The presidential race should not be a popularity contest but rather a campaign for the party platform. One should vote for the platform that best reflects one's values and beliefs. That said, the candidate's character matters when it comes down to defending and promoting that platform.

Be well, Lynn