War is sad
: Jay Rosen says the essence of the Swiftie story is sadness: It’s sad that we’re still fighting (over) Vietnam.
The way I said it this weekend: “The real lesson of the whole Swift Board brouhaha is this: America isn’t over Vietnam — not by a long shot.”
Glenn Reynolds quotes Dale Franks today with a proposal for a truce — the same one I have been proposing since the beginning of this:
In order to move the presidential campaign away from what happened or didn’t happen in Vietnam 35 years ago, I offer a suggestion. Since the Kerry camp wishes to argue that official Navy records are conclusive proof that Kerry served honorably and with distinction, I suggest that those of us opposed to Kerry offer to accept that argument, as long as the Kerry people accept the logical corollary: the official Air Force records indicating George W. Bush was honorably discharged from his service is conclusive proof that he properly met his obligations as well.
Sold.
But now, sadly, we’ve moved from fighting over Vietnam again to fighting over who started fighting over Vietnam again. Reynolds says Kerry violated a truce on Vietnam in American politics.
Can you say “quagmire”? Vietnam was invoked by Iraq-war opponents and they would probably say it was Bush’s fault for creating another Vietnam. (Readers of this site will know I am not a quagmirist and wouldn’t take the position.)
Well, my fellow Americans, it seems we need to go back on the couch to deal with this Vietnam thing.
But in the meantime, we have a President to elect. Don’t we all just want to move on?
