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Monday, Nov 23, 2009
[Read "Republicans' Dishonorable Charge," by Joe Conason, and "Another Swift Lie," by Martin Lewis.]
I find it sad that a small group of swift boat veterans are so desperate to damage Kerry's reputation that they are willing to malign the reputation of all Vietnam veterans.
By claiming Kerry lied or exaggerated to receive his medals in Vietnam, they imply that one could get a medal just by saying any old thing. If their claims are true, and Sen. John Kerry lied to get his medals, how can I believe that no one else did?
Now, whenever I see a Purple Heart license plate or a veteran's proud display of his medals, am I supposed to think, 'Yes, but maybe they didn't deserve it?' The so-called Swift Boat Veterans for Truth want to smear Kerry, but they are using a very broad brush and are smearing everyone in our armed forces who has ever earned a medal.
-- Michael Ossipov
Before complaining that the Swift Boat Veterans for the Truth are unfairly attacking Kerry's military record, it's worth remembering a statement of Kerry's from during the 2000 campaign:
"Those of us who were in the military wonder how it is that someone who is supposedly serving on active duty ... can miss a whole year of service without even explaining where it went."
Republicans did not force John Kerry to use his military service as a major focus of his bid for president -- he and his advisors chose to make it one. I could not care less about what happened 30 years ago with these guys (Bush or Kerry). But when you make claims about your own service while questioning the service of your opponent, you are asking for scrutiny. And scrutiny is exactly what Kerry will get.
-- David Bingham
[Read "Down and Out and on the Move," by Michelle Goldberg.]
I was glad to see Salon's coverage of Cheri Honkala and the Kensington Welfare Rights Union. I doubt anyone could argue anymore against the hard fact that there is enough money and food in the world for all, and that no one should be homeless or poor.
This country's history is steeped in the "Protestant ethic," which feeds the myth that anybody can make it in this country if they just try hard enough. Honkala's determination and the actions of the KWRU should humble us all and bring truth back to the forefront of all our lives.
-- Nora Madison-Thompson
Though I don't want to oversimplify the reasons why people may find themselves homeless, I have to wonder if Cheri Honkala and many other members of her movement could soon improve their lots by putting the same level of energy and time into a job, however menial, instead of marching around New Jersey asking for a free ride.
Society owes able-bodied, adult individuals nothing. If anything, the reverse is true and able-bodied men and women owe society (and their fellow man) their contribution of a solid day's work.
I believe that if the members of "the movement" individually set their sights on cleaning up their acts and taking the steps necessary to get back on track, a year from now they would find themselves much better off than after a year spent marching and bemoaning their fate and waiting for society to recognize their so-called "right" to a house.
-- Ed Viau
[Read "World Bank of Ideas," by Eric Weiner.]
The author of "World Bank of Ideas" fails to sufficiently appreciate why the American system of government has remained virtually unchanged for over 200 years -- longer than any other democracy in the world.
The Founding Fathers had a keener appreciation for history, human nature and practical political thought than any group of people in the world today. They meticulously sifted through Athenian democratic models, the government of republican Rome, and that of the republic of Venice for ideas on creating a stable system of government that allows for the happiness and freedom of the people. They built our system to last, and it has.
The number of tenured academics who are capable of intelligently discussing such practical historical models is vanishingly small. I doubt any modern career politician could, though there may be a few members of the judiciary capable of the exercise.
The idea of changing this venerable, glorious system out of aesthetic appreciation for making it "more democratic" (a word which doesn't even exist in the Constitution) is nausea-inducing.
-- Scott Locklin
As a South African citizen, it amazes me that American writers take for granted that the United States is the most free and democratic country in the world.
This is as baseless a claim as the Roman (and later the British) notion that their societies held the monopoly on ideals such as honor. Empires need their mythology far more badly than mere nations seem to.
South Africa is now acknowledged to have one of the most sophisticated democratic constitutions in the world, and we achieved democracy through negotiation rather than revolution. And while voter turnout could be better, after three democratic elections we are still excited by the democratic process. We attract immigrants from all over Africa and Asia for many of the same reasons as America does -- greater economic opportunity and political stability.
And yet, we are still humble enough to refer to our good fortune as "the miracle." I submit that in many critical respects, we and other new nations like us are at least as democratic as you. And unencumbered by the arrogant need to "export" our democracy, we are more free, too.
-- Nick Paul
While Eric Weiner's article on the wealth of democratic ideas to be found in other countries was welcome, he failed to mention the most important non-American idea of them all, namely proportional representation.
Most of the ills that Weiner mentions can be traced ultimately to the fact that in the U.S. we use the single-member, first-past-the-post, winner-take-all system of populating our legislatures, the result being that very large numbers of voters -- possibly even a majority -- can find themselves disenfranchised in the final result. People who feel they are not represented on a systematic basis eventually get tired of losing and drop out of the system. Our low voter-turnout rates attest to this.
-- Chloe Pajerek
