AARP to be Attacked by the Swiftboat Boys!!--Unbelievable

[DemocracyInaction]

Just heard a blurb on MSNBC. The scum behind the Swiftboat ads are now hiring the same ad firm to do ads attacking the AARP to futher Bush's agenda of privatization of Social Security. So...the bastards who demonized a real American hero and raised up the boy who served his country on a barstool and then went AWOL are now going to demonize the AARP and old people!!! With any luck, folks, maybe this time the "cancer" called the right wing anti-American pigs that are attacking everything in this nation might just go too far. Perhaps the backlash will begin removing the Republicans from office. It's going to be interesting to see what kind of brawl breaks out between this small group of facists and the AARP.

[burythehatchet]

1. there won't be any brawl

the head of AARP is a repub operative who's first job was to get the group behind the drug benefit scam, next is SSI. He's said he's against it, but I believe that's a fraudulent position. They do want to destroy AARP altogether and create alternative organizations. They see the huge money in it.

[rumpel]

2. Here is the whole story in the NY Times today

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/02/21/politics/21social.html?th

[Kerrytravelers]

3. So, I thought the Swifties were only going public to speak out against

Kerry because he was a traitor. I thought they weren't linked to Republicans.

ok... gather yourself from tool much gales of laughter...

I say let them all go crazy. It'll make our jobs much easier in 2006 and 2008.

[kk897]

7. No. The CRC (rightie PR firm behind just about EVERY "conservative"

cause) represents Lexis-Nexis, too. Think on that for a while.

[Telly Savalas]

27. Lots of old people served in WWII

and I betcha most of them are even less deserving of their purple hearts than Kerry. I'm sure this is why the Swifties feel compelled to stay in the ring. :eyes:

[EVDebs]

4. This DU link shows O'Neill's service on Swifts

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=132&topic_id=1598345 of six months compared with Kerry's .

[LittleClarkie]

9. Like, oopie, looks like O'Neill served longer than you gave him credit for

Do a find for his name on that link. Not to defend the m-er f-er, but you claimed before that he only served 6 months. Yeah, on the 94.

He served another six months on the 53.

PCF 53 from 3/69 to 9/69
PCF 94 from 9/69 to 3/70

So, he did serve the 12 months average that he talks about.

[EVDebs]

12. I stand corrected and apolgize to all DUers I may have misled

From my understanding at the time I posted I was not aware of O'Neill's full service record on the PCF 53 boat. The question then becomes what was the 'average' length of service ? If you go by swift boat duty, O'Neill's twelve months outdoes Kerry's by far. If you go by total length of service in the military, I would assume Kerry's 3 and 1/2 yrs outdoes O'Neill's 2...but I never saw O'Neill's service record put up as a comparison to Kerry's. Which is why I made my mistake.

Again, I apologize. But I don't think Kerry has anything to apologize for to begin with, do you LittleClarkie ?

[LittleClarkie]

14. No, and your original point still has some merit

that if O'Neill is going to nitpick and misrepresent Kerry's record, it should be known that O'Neill only served for one hitch, while Kerry served a good part of two.

It shouldn't matter either way for either man, but what's good for the goose is good for the gander. If Kerry is a short-termer in one way, it can be said that O'Neill was a short-termer in another way.

O'Neill has been misrepresenting Kerry for over 30 years now. Ridiculous things like saying there was a lone boy in a loincloth that Kerry killed when he was
1. not a boy
2. not in a loincloth
3. carrying a grenade laucher, which made him an enemy combatant at any rate.
4. Not alone

All from a passage in Tour of Duty that O'Neill can't figure out. Yes, Mr. Smear, there was only one guy with a grenade launcher. But that doesn't mean there were no other enemy combatants. Just that there was only ONE enemy combatant so armed.

What I can't figure out is how O'Neill could think Nixon was so magnificent when O'Neill is so much farther to the right than Tricky ever was, and even Richard Nixon was able to shake hands and make amends with Kerry before he died. That puts Nixon head and shoulders over these weirdos.

So no, I would agree, John Kerry has nothing to either explain or apologize for in regard to his service. In fact, if these people really supported the troops as they claim, they would be honorable and not even bring it up, and only center on what he did after the war. That is fair game, opinion-wise. But these are not honorable men.

[EVDebs]

15. Littleclarkie ... I'm torn up by having only looked at PCF94

for O'Neill, while the records I found clearly gave Kerry's PCF 44 and PCF 94 records. I didn't see anything on name searches from that site and the only reason I posted was because someone on another site said he checked and came up with the same info I did. Which caused the errors to begin with: Kerry's record has been publicized while the grand inquisitor O'Neill's has not. For Kerry, it was practically required--even demanded of that he give his complete military records.

Sheeeez. Now we're hearing Wayne Madsen web reports that GWB was sequestered in San Diego in rehap occasionally skipping over to Alabama on 'campaign' work. GWB's record is hardly 'clear' and 'open' as Kerry's.

Maybe that's why mistakes are made. If GWB cleared things up in his accounts. But then people would hold him accountable, just as with Kerry.

As for the Vietnam War, please read this about Nixon and his original October Surprise circa 1968...
http://www.tompaine.com/feature2.cfm/ID/3621

You do good work Littleclarkie. Thanks for correcting me.

Regarding Social Security, all us DUers should have Chapter 8 of David Cay Johnston's book "Perfectly Legal" ready to refer conservatives and Bush supporters to. It's all about how the social security system subsidizes the super-rich. Basically, if you're not making over $3 million individually or as a small business, you're subsidizing the super-rich and multinational-globalized corporations. The full title of Johnstons' book is priceless !

[karynnj]

20. Someone posted that the 4 months Kerry served were more dangerous

At the risk of posting misinformation, they said that within a short time after Kerry left, Hoffman transfered and the mission changed to a far less intense, less dangerous mission.

[chomskysright]

5. AARP is addressing issue here....

http://aarp.typepad.com/socialsecurity/

[candy331]

6. So the sellouts on Medicare reform now has the Swifties on their

ass, when will people learn if you ever side with the regime you can never go back.

[annabanana]

25. They did excellent work for decades for American seniors...

When they 'went for' the administration's shell game discount card scam, they were in large part responding to the desperation that their constituency was feeling with the spiraling meds costs and didn't see anything else coming down the pike anytime soon. The old folks can't wait for the fix to be perfect you know.
They were royally burned for that misguided collaboration and are trying to get back on the side of the angels. I, for one, am willing to give them that chance.

[xchrom]

8. will zell miller be helping the swift boat liars?

[LittleClarkie]

10. The lobbying group, USA Next, is using the same ad agency

as the Smear vets. It is not the Smear vets attacking the AARP. But it is the same ad agency that helped the Smear vets.

[No Mandate Here.]

11. AARP hates America (especially soldiers) and want gay marriage,

so says Rove's stooges' ad in the American Spectator.

(courtesy of Josh Marshall)



Absolutely unbelievable. I dropped my AARP membership when they sold us out for the drug benefit (!???!), but will start it up again if they have to fight this absolute HATE.

I hope the level of political discourse in this country can recover from these idiots.

[Telly Savalas]

28. I'm hoping the Swifties will run with my new ad...

**********************************************

KNOW YOUR ENEMY!


**********************************************

[HeatherG.]

13. This Is Actually Good For Us

If I understand correctly members of the SBVFT are getting involved in conservative policy issues. During the election they insisted that they were non-partisan and just opposed Kerry. We knew that wasn't true. Now the public will understand that these guys are political conservatives and can't be trusted to give an honest portrayal of Kerry.

[EVDebs]

16. They blame war protesters for having 'lost' the Vietnam War...

when in fact, as the Pentagon Papers etc. prove, the intelligence was that we couldn't have won the war in the first place, and MacNamara et al knew this...but kept on going.

Now historians are reinterpreting LBJ's famous quote of Dec 1963
see http://www.webcom.com/ctka/letters/jock2.html
but the fact remains, JFK knew better, Johnson did not. And now the historian mentioned in the link above is writing about the Bush presidency. More than a little incentive to skew history, which is written by the winners most of the time.

Winter Soldier reports and Tiger Force are what these SBVF'T' are mad at Kerry for. How could we have won a war with that much popular support in Vietnam ?

MacNamara's "In Retrospect" http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1548/is_n4_v10/ai_17100323
is a better starting place for the SBVF'T' to begin their arguments with DUers...not Social Security or John Kerry's candidacy for president.

[HeatherG.]

24. Do You Remember What The Pentagon Papers Said?

I could have used that when I was discussing the Vietnam war and Kerry with a freeper. I am going to print out the articles you gave me. It will be easier to read them on paper, than on my computer. This annoying box keeps popping up and covering part of the screen. It says Virus detected! I know I have a virus,it doesn't have to constantly remind me. I am going to have to buy something to kill Bck/Agent. E.

[John_H]

22. The SBL's are a special case

If you don't fight back, they're dangerous as Kerry can tell you. If you do fire back they're easy to turn around on the GOP.

[newportdadde]

17. That CPAC conference happening now. ...

Zell is giving the swift boat liars a 'courage under fire' award.

[Igel]

18. Post #10 points out that the ranting's a bit misplaced.

Quoting some of the article is a good idea sometimes.

"Taking its cues from the success of last year's Swift boat veterans' campaign in the presidential race, a conservative lobbying organization has hired some of the same consultants to orchestrate attacks on one of President Bush's toughest opponents in the battle to overhaul Social Security.

The lobbying group, USA Next, which has poured millions of dollars into Republican policy battles, now says it plans to spend as much as $10 million on commercials and other tactics assailing AARP, the powerhouse lobby opposing the private investment accounts at the center of Mr. Bush's plan."

[F.Gordon]

19. Art Linkletter? Focus on the Family?

Racist Homophobic Right Wing Fundies say the Darndest Things.

How much more of this bullshit has to go on before the Republican Voter insert cliche here?

They'll LIE to get your vote for one or two elections, but when they decide you are no longer needed they'll turn on you insert cliche here.

It's pure Gannonism. They'll pay you off. Fuck you a few times. But when they tire of you they move on to the next whore....

[John_H]

21. Good. Maybe, unlike the Team Kerry, the AARP will fire back.

[Zinfandel]

23. These fuckers won't give up. They will proceed with the...

usual Republican tactics...Get a known personality like Art Linkletter, who'll sell his soul and his image, to push the Bush agenda & their corporate lies.

Many senior's grew up with the Linkletter bullshit, and lots trust the fucker.

This is Rove's usual tactic's...They then finance the right-wing groups television, radio and print ads... The corporate media's talking heads sell it...

While Bush does his bullshit "press conferences", and the republicans go on every possible television & radio show, ALL repeating the same mantra, (of the White House daily memos and talking points) pounding it over and over again until the people believe the lies as fact.

This is something we must continue screaming about the Bush lies--- with the help of MoveOn.org to counteract the bullshit!

[McCamy Taylor]

26. This weapon is gonna blow up in the GOP's face....

:nuke: