Jesse Ventura Helps Launch Organization 'Operation Truth'

[Larkspur]

Jesse Ventura Helps Launch Organization 'Operation Truth'
http://www.commondreams.org/headlines04/0825-02.htm

<SNIP>
"Now that I'm a civilian, I'm here to speak out that I think the current use of the National Guard is wrong," Ventura said Tuesday.

Ventura is serving as an advisory board member for a new group called Operation Truth, a nonprofit organization set up "to give voice to troops who served in Iraq."

Emphasizing that he is an independent, not a Republican or Democrat, Ventura said the National Guard was designed to protect the homeland, not fight overseas.

"Having been in the military, I know what it's like to deploy overseas," said Ventura, a former Navy SEAL. "I did 17 months, two tours, when I was in. I also was the head of the Minnesota National Guard as governor. You're the commander in chief. At that point in time, I did my job. I didn't say anything because of the chain of command."

Now that he no longer serves in that role, he said it was time to weigh in.
<SNIP>

[Ripley]

1. Wow, I'm shocked.

Seriously...I never really liked Jesse. I'm glad he's speaking out about this.

Funny graphic Larkspur! (Dean voter on loan...)

[Larkspur]

4. ABB coalition expires on Nov. 3, 2004

The graphic is also a bumpersticker, which I have on my car -- http://www.cafepress.com/all_things_dfa.12765811

[Feanorcurufinwe]

6. What a self-defeating sentiment.

As if our work is done when Bush is voted out :eyes:

[Name removed]

7. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

9. What does your post mean?

:shrug:

[Cheswick2.0]

11. Our work isn't done then

our coalition is unless you are planning on protesting the war, NCLB, the Patriot act etc....
Some of us are planning on forcing Kerry to embrace liberal and POPULIST politics. Join us if you agree.
After the election ABB serves no purpose except to agree to a lot of centrist DLC policy.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

13. Our work certainly isn't done.

The key to effecting any real change will be to keep the new voters involved in the process. There are a huge number of people energized about politics right now, but if they pop a cork and think their work is done on Nov. 2, we won't have done much. I am no fan of Clinton, to me he represented the ultimate corporatist Democrat, but nevertheless, we had a chance in 92-93 - a majority of 18-24 yr olds voted for the first time in history. If those voters had stayed engaged, we could have made strides anyway -- because even if I disagreed with Clinton on so many issues, I recognize (more so in hindsight than at the time) that he was on my side -- my ally. Kerry can't change the world by himself. He needs people to stay actively engaged, and I am afraid that too many people see only the immediate goal and then will return to complacency. That's why it is so important to win the Senate and make some strides in the House so we actually can govern and show some positive results.

If you are going into this with the idea that President Kerry will be not your ally, but your enemy, and not focusing on the forces opposed to you -- the Republicans -- you are guaranteeing that your efforts will not be constructive.

[Larkspur]

15. Thomas Merton said in 1968 during the height of the Vietnam War

The real question … raised by non-violent action is not at all whether the democratic ideal ought to be replaced by something else: it is on the contrary an accusation of those who, while mouthing democratic slogans, have in fact clearly betrayed the democratic ideal and emptied it of meaning…it may in fact be necessary to practice non-violent methods if democracy is to be kept alive and preserved against the sclerosis which is gradually hardening it into a new form of Totalism. -- Thomas Merton, Faith and Violence: Christian Teaching and Christian Practice , 1968, University of Notre Dame Press.

Those of us who protested the Iraq War and Israel's apartheid policies, don't trust Kerry in regards to that war or with the I/P situation. Kerry has voiced support for the Iraq War and for Ariel Sharon's apartheid policies against the Palestinians. As Will Pitt's pre-emptive excuse thread, a few days ago, suggests, Kerry will stab progressives in the back to survive politically. That will do alot to demoralize voters who think that Kerry is the Great White Liberal Hope. Those of us who are cynical of Kerry, won't be surprised, and are already working to elect progressive leaders at different layers of our political system and support groups, like DFA 2.0, that are working to overhaul our corrupt political system.

The Vietnam War and it's after-affects, not the Civil Rights Act, is what knocked the wind out of the post-FDR Democratic Party and led to voter apathy. LBJ lied to get Gulf of Tonkin passed and Nixon lied about ending the Vietnam War to get elected. When leaders of both parties lied over our involvement in that brutal war, voters felt that their votes didn't matter because leaders, like LBJ, Nixon, Bush, and Kerry, will do what they want and not listen to the people. Neither Kerry nor Bush listened to the 10 million who marched on Feb 15, 2002 to protest the Iraq war. Kerry didn't listen to his constituents on August 28, 2002 who participated in MoveOn.org's anti-Iraq War campaign. That's the kind of recent history about Kerry, that makes me cynical about him.

Should Kerry escalate our involvement in Iraq, which he already has suggested, Vietnam ver 2.0 will begin.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

16. You made a false statement in your post

Should Kerry escalate our involvement in Iraq, which he already has suggested

Untrue. Since you are making this assertion, the burden is on you to show when Kerry supposedly suggested 'escalating our involvement in Iraq'

let's see it. Let's see a link or reference to such a statement from Kerry.

[Larkspur]

18. I found it under John Kerry's web site, why couldn't you?

http://www.johnkerry.com/pdf/pr_2004_0603.pdf

Under Expand America's Active Duty forces. I notice that they say "not to increase overall number of soldiers in Iraq", but if Kerry can't get Europe to send troops and the numbers we have in Iraq now can't handle the situation, what's Kerry going to do? He'll have 2 choices, 1) increase troops in Iraq or 2) Pull out. Kerry has never said what his contingency plan is should Europe not send troops into Iraq. And with Iraq already spiraling out of control and festering with anti-American and anti-Western attitudes, more Western troops may be too little, too late by the time Kerry would take the White House.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

19. An even more blatantly false statement.

What you have proven is that your statement was false. Kerry's actual position is not what you said it was, but it seems like you wish he held that position so you could be justified in making him your enemy instead of the Republicans.

Your original statement: Should Kerry escalate our involvement in Iraq, which he already has suggested could originally have been interpreted as a simple case of you being misinformed, but now that you have clarified, it appears more like a case of intentional deception. Just my own personal opinion about the specific content of these two particular messages, of course.

[Larkspur]

20. Now, you know how people feel when Kerry makes nuance statements

I was not intentionally trying to deceive.

Kerry had mentioned the 40,000 troops thing along with his Iraq statements, so I confused them, but in reality, Iraq reality, we already know that there are not enough troops in Iraq to handle the situation. That is common knowledge and was so before the war started.

Kerry is banking on Europe to bail him out, but Europe, after Muslim countries, was the most anti-Iraq war section of the world. It would be political suicide for Schroeder and Chirac to send their troops into Iraq to clean up America's mess. The Spanish PM has already given Kerry the diplomatic "finger" about re-sending Spanish troops into Iraq.

So with Iraq spiraling out of control, anti-American feelings rising, and Sistani ready to launch against the American forces one of the larges non-violent marches since Gandhi's salt march against the British in India, where or where is Kerry going to get the troops to support Iraq, should Europe give him a big "NO"?

[Feanorcurufinwe]

21. No, now I know how I feel when the opposition deceptively mischaracterizes

It's not an unfamiliar feeling.

I don't have a problem with Kerry's honesty in the face of complication. I do have a problem with someone knowingly misstating his position.

Do the ends really justify the means? Truth, falsehood -- don't matter?

I disagree.

[Larkspur]

23. Then I guess we'll have to agree to disagree

I felt the same when a Kerry supporter, who is still here, on this board launched 10 anti-Dean threads that were based on unfounded accusations against Dean within one minute of each other last year. I'm using tactics that I learned from Kerry supporters, so yeah, I know how you feel.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

24. So you think one wrong justifies another?

Two wrongs make a right?

OK. I guess we will have to agree to disagree about that. :eyes:

[Larkspur]

25. The Kerry supporters who posted anti-Dean threads, do

I'm half Irish, and my Irish ancestors say, "don't get mad, get even." That's what I'm doing.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

28. So let me get this straight - you are doing this to spite Kerry supporters

You're admitting that the reason for your mischaracterizations is to 'get even' with Kerry supporters?

OK :eyes:

Good luck with that.

[Larkspur]

30. I just thought that Kerry supporters would like a taste of their own

medicine. I am just being gracious in returning what they dished out.

[blm]

17. Misstating Kerry's position yet again. No surprise.

Please show some decency towards our nominee by sticking to the truth.

[jonnyblitz]

26. great post

:thumbsup:

[Feanorcurufinwe]

29. Too bad it's not true

[wishlist]

2. Good article- nonpartisan but shares Kerry's position on back door draft

Thanks for posting. My better half just asked me last night where Jesse Ventura was and why he wasn't speaking out about any of the campaign issues.

[napi21]

3. I also forgot Jesse was in 'Nam too!

He's very good at this kind of speaking, and usually plays a non-partisan, but comonsense aproach. I hope he gets some airtime with his views!

[billybob537]

5. It's like Bruce Springstien said "This election

is too important to sit out"

[TexasBushwhacker]

8. THIS ROCKS

Although it's my understanding that Jesse Ventura did a HORRIBLE job as governor, he always seems to be on the "right" side, that is, the side that I agree with ;) He really seems to know his stuff, and he's quite articulate.

[zbdent]

10. Wow - if Jesse was running as a Dem, you'd see

Navy Seal Veterans for Truth

"I never saw Jesse Ventura do any of the things he claims." (Of course, he was under his real name then).

"Jesse Ventura is faking his blood clot lung damage."

etc . . .

[loftycity]

12. Jesse has the power to turn the Limbaugh, Hannity+Savage listeners

He can take those dim witted folks and turn them around in a heartbeat.
They listen to Jesse, Jesse speaks their language. He has power in that respect. I hope he uses it to turn the dim witted around.

[Noodleboy13]

14. Jesse is a bit of an enigma.

He wasn't THAT bad as a governor (certainly better than the slimy corporate whore we have now), but he often did or said things that were a little off-putting. He was, however, always willing to speak his mind, and I feel he has a pretty good sense of right and wrong.
Given his cachet among certain demographics, I think his speaking out will at least cause some folks to maybe think about this mess of a war.




I ain't got time to bleed,
Noodleboy

[Lizz612]

22. You said it

Jesse was abrasive at times, but not a bad gov. over all. I think he will make a very good conduit for the stories of the soldiers to reach those who wouldn't hear them.

[Disturbed]

27. Iraq

Perhaps by the time J. Kerry can actually do something regarding Iraq the situation will be in such dire straits that he will have to begin the drawdown. If al Sistani calls for a Fatwa to end the Occupation, Iraq may implode. Will the Kurds join in the Uprising against the Occupation and the phony Iraq Interim Govt.?

Is Ventura a Libertarian ?

http://www.theadvocates.org/celebrities/jesse-ventura.html