Outrage response to prisoner abuse shows liberal hypocrisy

by James Simpson
Potomac News
Friday, May 21, 2004

I can't help but be taken aback when I hear liberals attacking the Bush Administration for the "abuse" that happened at Abu Ghraib prison. If they are so upset about Abu Ghraib then how in the world can they support John Kerry for President?

According to an interview on NBC News' Meet The Press, April 18, 1971, Mr. Kerry, speaking as a member of Vietnam Veterans Against the War, said: "There are all kinds of atrocities and I would have to say that, yes, yes, I committed the same kind of atrocities as thousands of other soldiers have committed in that I took part in shootings in free-fire zones. I conducted harassment and interdiction fire. I used 50-caliber machine guns which we were granted and ordered to use, which were our only weapon against people. I took part in search-and-destroy missions, in the burning of villages. All of this is contrary to the laws of warfare. All of this is contrary to the Geneva Conventions and all of this ordered as a matter of written established policy by the government of the United States from the top down."

When Tim Russert, Moderator for NBC News' Meet The Press, confronted Mr. Kerry about this during an interview on April 18, 2004, his immediate response was "Where did all that dark hair go, Tim? That's a big question for me." What a typical response from someone without any principles. He then goes on to deflect criticism by stating that his language was "a bit excessive" and that his words were "a little bit over the top" and he wishes he had found a way to "say it in a less abrasive way."

How is it possible for Democrats to support this man for President while simultaneously condemning President Bush because the prison guards at Abu Ghraib were abusive? What kind of twisted logic is this? Kerry can admit to committing the "same kind of atrocities as thousands of other soldiers" in "search-and-destroy missions, in the burning of villages" but because a few enlisted soldiers in Iraqi abused inmates Bush is to be condemned? Give me a break!

Don't take my criticism of Kerry as an endorsement of the Bush Administration. I can't stand the man or those who work for him. Like all politicians these days, he has no regard for the U.S. Constitution. Unfortunately, there just aren't any decent options anymore - we are forced to vote for the lesser of two evils. In the upcoming election we can choose between slavery (Kerry and his socialist budget agenda) or a police state (Bush and his communist style Patriot Act).

On both sides of the isle there is talk of reinstating the draft. Of course this is only necessary because of our invasion of Iraq. When a war is justified, as was the retaliation against Afghanistan, young men and women will line up at recruiting centers to join. However, when a war is based on half truths, and soldiers' lives are at risk every day for "humanitarian" reasons, there is a completely different response.

We give Iraq, and other hostile nations, billions in taxpayer money, yet many of our troops are sent into hostile areas lacking body armor or armored humvees. If you're a soldier and you hear that the porkers on Capital Hill are "giving away" $18 billion in taxpayer money to Iraq, all while you are sweating your butt off in a desert risking your life because politicians are more concerned with their pork than with protecting your life - is it any wonder we have a difficult time getting men and women to re-enlist or join the military?

Is anyone really amazed that a few soldiers, who are ordered to live and die in such a cesspool, will occasionally lose their sense of right and wrong? I don't condone what was done at Abu Ghraib, however I am not surprised.

While the investigation into abuse at Abu Ghraib continues, I am certain of one thing. There are officers who bear some responsibility and should be held accountable - if for no other reason than they should have been aware of what was happening under their command. If the only reprimands and courts-martial are directed against enlisted personnel, then some folks will be getting away scot-free - as John Kerry did after committing even more egregious "atrocities" in Vietnam.

James Simpson lives in Lake Ridge.