How on earth can anyone look at the lives of John Kerry and George W. Bush and claim that they have confidence in W? If this is (fair & balanced) incredulity, so be it.
George W. Bush and John Kerry both spent their mid twenties in uniform. The similarities end there.
John Kerry February 18, 1966:
December, 1967:
November 17, 1968:
December 2, 1968:
February 20, 1969:
February 28, 1969:
March 13, 1969:
April, 1969:
January 3, 1970:
February 1970:
June 1970:
April 23, 1971:
April 23, 1971:
November 10, 1971:
April 1972:
November 1972:
September, 1973:
George W. Bush February, 1968:
May 27, 1968:
June 9, 1968:
September 1968:
November 1968:
November 1969:
December 1969:
June 1970:
November 3, 1970:
November 7, 1970:
January 1971:
Spring 1971:
May 26, 1972:
August 1972:
November 1972:
December 1972:
October 1, 1973:
[x Mother Jones Magazine]
Brothers in Arms?
February 8, 2004
A senior at Yale, Kerry commits to enlist in the Navy.
Kerry is assigned as an Ensign to the guided-missile frigate USS Gridley. After five-months aboard, he returns to San Diego to undergo training to command a Swift boat, used by the Navy for patrols in Vietnam.
June, 1968:
Kerry is promoted to Lieutenant.
Kerry arrives in Vietnam, where he is given command of Swift boat No. 44, operating in the Mekong Delta.
Kerry gets his first taste of intense combat, and
is wounded in the arm. He is awarded a Purple Heart.
January, 1969:
Kerry takes command of a new Swift boat, completing
18 missions over 48 days, almost all in the Mekong Delta area.
Kerry is wounded again, taking shrapnel in the
left thigh, after a gunboat battle. He is awarded a second Purple
Heart.
Kerry and his boat crew, coming under attack while patroling in the Mekong Delta, decide to counterattack. In the middle of the ensuing firefight, Kerry leaves his boat, pursues a Viet Cong fighter into a small hut, kills him, and retreives a rocket launcher. He is awarded a Silver Star.
A mine detonates near Kerry's boat, wounding him in the right arm. He is awarded a third Purple Heart. He is also awarded a Bronze Star for pulling a crew member, who had fallen overboard, back on the boat amidst a firefight.
According to Navy rules, sailors that have been wounded three times in combat are eligible to be transfered to the U.S. for noncombat duty. Kerry is transferred to desk duty in Brooklyn, NY.
Kerry requests that he be discharged early from the Navy
so that he can run for Congress in Massachusetts' Third District. The request is granted, and Kerry begins his first
political campaign.
Kerry drops his bid for the Democratic nomination and supports Robert F. Drinan. Drinan, a staunch opponent of the war, wins the race and goes on to serve in Congress for ten years.
Kerry joins Vietnam Veterans Against the War, and becomes one of the group's unofficial spokespeople.
Kerry helps to organize a huge anti-war protest
outside Congress, earning a place on president Richard Nixon's "enemies' list." He joins a group of Vietnam veterans who throw medals and campaign ribbons over a fence in front of the Capitol.
Kerry testifies before the Senate Foreign Relations
Committee. He tells lawmakers: "How do you ask a man to be the last
man to die for a mistake?"
Kerry quits Vietnam Veterans Against the War.
Kerry moves to Massachusetts' 5th District to run for
Congress again. He wins the Democratic nomination but loses to Republican Paul
Cronin, in part because of his anti-war views.
After losing the election, Kerry is hired as a regional coordinator for Cooperative for American Relief to Everywhere(CARE).
Kerry enrolls at Boston College Law School.
A senior at Yale, Bush takes an Air Force officers test. He scores in
25th percentile in the pilot aptitude portion, and declares that he does
not wish to serve overseas.
Bush enlists in Texas Air National Guard. Aided by
Texas House Speaker Ben Barnes, he jumps over waiting list. He
pledges two years of active duty and four years of reserve duty.
Bush's student deferment expires.
After basic training, Bush pulls inactive duty to
act as gopher on Florida Senator Edward J. Gurney's campaign.
After Gurney wins, Bush is reactivated and
transferred to Georgia.
Bush is flown to the White House by President Nixon
for a date with daughter Tricia.
Bush transfers to Houston and moves into Chateaux
Dijon complex. Laura lives there too, but they don't meet till later.
March 1970:
Bush gets his wings.
Bush joins the Guard's "Champagne Unit," where he flies
with sons of Texas' elite.
George Bush Sr. loses Senate election to Lloyd
Bentsen, whose son is also in the "Champagne Unit."
Bush is promoted to first lieutenant. Rejected by
University of Texas School of Law.
The Texas Air National Guard begins testing for drugs
during physicals.
Bush is hired by a Texas agricultural importer. He uses
a National Guard F-102 to shuttle tropical plants from Florida.
Bush transfers to Alabama Guard unit so he can work on
Senator William Blount's reelection campaign. According to his
commanding officer, Bush never shows up for duty while in Alabama.
Bush is grounded for missing a mandatory physical.
Bush returns to Houston, but never reports for Guard duty.
In D.C. for the holidays, Bush takes 16-year-old
brother Marvin drinking and driving. Confronted by father, Bush
suggests they settle it mano a mano.
The Air National Guard relieves Bush from
commitment eight months early, allowing him to attend Harvard
Business School.
© 2004 The Foundation for National Progress
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