My thanks to you for your son’s service. Tell him thanks for all of us If my daughter got such an idea, I’d tie here to a tree – pure selfishness.

I’m also in AZ – Paradise Valley and I’m a Vietnam Vet.

I remember just after 9-11 listening to an NPR [female] commentator talk to her [university] students about how it right to think about service at “time like this.” So what kind of service did she think her students should perform during this time of need? She said that she told her students that they should think about working with “the poor”, in healthcare and other good works. Now, there is nothing wrong with this kind of service and many people have a gift for it. However, when your country is attacked then there is one form of service that takes precedence over all others…military service. This form of service was the last thing in her thoughts.

For some odd reason, my wife and I produced two paratroopers and a combat MP (interpreter), who served in Afghanistan and Guantanamo.

All of them were “college material”, which is to say, the euphemism that evolved from the progressive education nonsense of the twentieth century to distinguish us certain other people, applies to them.

I served in Vietnam, but that was early in the war (66 and 67) and we raised the kids moderately conservative, with no emphasis on military service.

Both college educated, we’re one of several parents in a precious Connecticut town who have kids gone off to serve. To many here, the culprit is either a Wendigo or a Stepford lab, but never patriotism, sacrifice or duty.

We’re ambivalent and sometimes frightened about all this. The times are changin’, and somebody has to step up. Thank all of you for your service, too.

If I am not being too impertinent in asking, what sort of writing do you do? Where can I find your work?

A ten-year-old raving patriot; sounds dangerous!

Thanks,

Jamie Irons

Thank you, I’m just fine. Just like lots of other Moms in the same situation.

Sort of being facetious about the data on military votes…I already know that one!

TmjUtah,

Herd of cats! Ha! Love it!

I like your question of who will lead the Democrats, going forward. The DNC currently sports a gaping hole ripped wide open by the catfight between the Clintonistas and everyone else. It’s distasteful to consider peering into that abyss, but I’ll be interested to read what others think of this question.

Now, w/Cabana Boy dredging up the spectre of Nam and how he treated the vets and how he will treat our current armed forces….

I expect a lot of lawyers challenging a lot of ballots.

However, make sure your son and his band of brothers doesn’t dawdle in filling out his ballot and make sure they dot every ‘i” and cross every “t.”.

Rumor was there were votes left on the ships that were never mailed.

Who is a nominal successor to Tony MacAullife for chairmanship of the DNC, in your opinion?

Please name which serving or emeritus Dem politicians that have enough national stature to lead the Democrat ‘base’…and possess any believable credentials for working across party lines?

I don’t have answers for either question, and I’m beginning to think the answers are critical in understanding the contemporary political landscape. The party hasn’t been led for the last decade and change. It’s been exploited.

It’s a herd of cats…and the leadership has consisted of staying in front with the promise of tuna to come.

Oh wow.

How are you doing?

I have a 10-year old who I’ve turned into a raving patriot, and a big part of me is thinking: WHAT THE HELL AM I DOING?

Of course, my sense is that our guys are so well-trained & competent that our casualties are extremely low, relatively speaking.

Still, I’m thinking this must be a stressful time for you.

Hang in there.

As to the military vote, gosh. I’m sure I had polling data on that.

It’s swinging widely over to Bush.

…

Heck, I can’t find the data I saw. Gallup has a new poll out today saying no effect whatsoever from Swift Boat ads, but no one seems to believe that, including me.

JMO, but I think the 527s are party organs and stay with the party regardless of who wins or loses. MoveOn will move on. They started with the premise of fighting the Clinton impeachement stuff, then switched to BDS and they’ll move on to whatever the party needs.

Whether or not the Big Money keeps pouring into them is another matter. I don’t believe for one moment that Soros funds this stuff out of any reason other than placing his financial bets on the how he makes his next few billion dollars. A while back I linked to a financial analyst who was telling folks to jump on the “Soros Big Bet” bandwagon which was, essentially, speculating that the USD and economy would decline and that the euro and European (particularly the former east-bloc) economy would advance. Soros is in this for a weak US and a strong Europe.

Buffet doesn’t give a flying hoot about estate-taxes and meritocracy for any “altruistic” reasons. He wants the estate tax in place because he sells insurance to offset estate taxes.

The Big Money is out to make Bigger Money. I’ll never believe for one moment that Big Money is partisan for any reason other than making more money.

I don’t think what the margin of victory (in a Bush win) means one whit to the “party”.

Hmm. I don’t think I’m quite following. (Tired today . . . )

I’ve had the same impression you do, that the Clintonistas aren’t defending Kerry.

OTOH, apparently Hillary was pretty intense on the subject of smear campaigns on ABC This Week yesterday, and of course Susan Estrich is talking about legitimacy, etc . . .

I don’t understand the specific power & influence structure of the two parties well, so I have to say I have no idea who, if anyone, is really running the Democratic Party right now.

For instance (and there are others here who will know this) where is George Soros vis a vis the Clintons?

Where is moveon vis a vis the DLC?

Do the John Kerry 527s automatically switch over to the Clintons when/if he loses?

etc.

So when I say Kerry losing will be good for the “Democratic Party” I’m thinking more the rank & file. I remember Dowd having a wonderful line about Clinton jamming all the Jesse Jacksons & “No CARB” street protestors inside a box and sitting on it (that wasn’t the line) and that’s what I’m thinking about.

My sense is that if Kerry loses decisively, the perennial argument inside the Democratic Party over whether to move left or move right will also be won decisively, for the time being at least, by the move-righters.