What a bunch of maggots Fox News and the Republicans are. In an effort
to further prove that they are fair and balanced, Fox News posted this
headline; "Kerry Reloads in Dogfight Over Snipe at Troops in Iraq"

Problem is, John Kerry's recent comments were aimed at President Bush.
Not at the troops.

Hell, the Republicans, who are getting their asses handed to them in
most polls and are in real danger of losing control of both branches
of Congress, are scrambling to make something of nothing. Fox News is
in the lead, as usual, but they're not out there alone.

So. Let's look at this. Here's what John Kerry said.

While campaigning in California, Kerry told a college crowd on Monday:
"You know, education, if you make the most of it, you study hard, you
do your homework and you make an effort to be smart, you can do well.
If you don't, you get stuck in Iraq." Like ... say ... George W. Bush?

The Republicans sounded a loud "Eureka!" believing they had at last
stumbled across something that might effectively distract the American
public from their party's moral depravity, their dismantling of
American democracy, and the war profiteering of their rich corporate
campaign donors. President Bush, who has been running around of late
trying to remind Americans of what should be foremost on their minds
when heading to the polls (keeping same-sex couples from getting
married, for example), seized upon Kerry's comments immediately.

Said President Bush; "The senator's suggestion that the men and women
of our military are somehow uneducated is insulting and shameful. The
men and women who serve in our all-volunteer Armed Forces are plenty
smart."

True. The men and women of our Armed Forces ARE plenty smart. Unlike
their President, who completely missed it that John Kerry's remarks
were a jab at HIM, NOT the troops.

Not to miss an opportunity to kiss some Conservative ass and bolster
his imminent 2008 Presidential bid, John McCain said; "The suggestion
that only the least educated Americans would agree to serve in the
military and fight in Iraq is an insult to every soldier serving in
combat."

Now, I don't think John McCain is stupid or uneducated. I think he
knew exactly what John Kerry meant. However, being a politician, he
couldn't help but pile on when all his right-wing buddies were doing
the same.

Uncharacteristically, John Kerry came back out swinging.

He said his remarks, which he conceded were part of a "botched joke,"
had been distorted and called the criticism directed at him the work
of "assorted right-wing nut jobs and right-wing talk show hosts." He
went on to say "It disgusts me that these Republican hacks, who have
never worn the uniform of our country, lie and distort so blatantly
and carelessly about those who have. If anyone thinks a veteran would
criticise the more than 140,000 heroes serving in Iraq and not the
president who got us stuck there, they're crazy."

Dayum, brother. You tell 'em!

At a televised news conference today in Seattle, Mr. Kerry said he was
"disgusted" by the Republican attacks, which he noted were coming at
the end of a bloody month in Iraq. "Sadly, this is the best this
administration can do," he said.

He stepped it up today, issuing a fresh denunciation of the
administration this evening as Bush was in Georgia. "Had George Bush
and Dick Cheney been in combat one minute of their comfortable lives,
they would never have sent American troops to war without body armor
or without a plan to win the peace, and they wouldn't be exploiting
our troops today," the senator said. "No Democrat will be bullied by
an administration that has a cut-and-run policy in Afghanistan and a
stand-still-and-lose strategy in Iraq." He accused Republicans of
creating "straw men" because "they're afraid to debate real men."

I have to admit that this skirmish tickled the hell out of me. I was
glad to see a Democrat come out swinging. Typically, there has been a
lot of hand-wringing in some Democratic circles, with some worrying
that Kerry's remarks will hurt Democrats at the polls on Election Day.
I doubt it. If anything, I think Americans will be glad to see a
Democrat who has some balls for a change, instead of the snivelling
candy-asses who are too afraid of making waves to make an effective
stand. It's no wonder Democrats have generally lost the last couple of
elections. It's rare for one to say what he or she means, or to take a
stand without running opinion polls first.

Al Gore is a good example. How many people have been stunned at the
man who we now know as Al Gore, who is steadfast in his opinions and
willing to fight it out? Where was this man during the 2000
Presidential campaign? All of his friends and associates say that this
is the real Al Gore; this passionate eco-warrior who is an energetic
and charismatic man who makes a compelling case for the issues he
believes in. Where was he in 2000?

He was supressed by the same hand-wringers who are so worried today
that John Kerry's remarks will hurt the Democrats' chances on Election
Day. I say if Kerry's remarks hurt the Democrats, it will be because
his principled and defiant stand provides such stark contrast to the
policy of appeasement that Democratic strategists prefer to pursue.

Finally. A Democrat with balls (sorry, Hillary, I don't mean that in
the literal sense)!

Wouldn't it be a wonderful world if John Kerry's recent passion (which
was so sadly lacking in the 2004 Presidential campaign) was the rule
among Democrats and not the exception?