Smash has been showing the latest Swift Vet anti-Kerry commercials at his site. And Blackfive thinks that most military personnel will not vote for Kerry because they don't trust him.
The commercials and the campaign by Swift Vets are very powerful. But I ran across another commercial today that I also felt was powerful.
It reminded me that there are different opinions about Viet Nam. Even among the Veterans that served there.
The same is true for the Iraq War.
Here are two organizations, along with their mission statements, that regularly present unvarnished opinions of Iraq veterans. Both are political organizations, but they have made no endorsement for President, etc.
They give a picture of Iraq that quite different from what the Media or the Department of Defense has shown. Different even from what many of the active duty soldier blogs have described. And I can't see some of these soldiers trusting Kerry or Bush.
They contain ranges of opinion, (not all of which I agree with) but some of the entries are very sobering reading.
(click on picture to view commercial)
I can't help but wonder if in 20-30 years, will Spc. Acosta also be called a coward and traitor? And by whom and for what purpose?
Operation Truth will educate the American public about the truth of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan from the perspective of the soldiers who have experienced them first-hand. Many of our government's policies and approaches to military operations have manifested themselves as problems on the front lines and back at home. Whether the subject is the role of private contractors in military operations, the lack of body armor for troops, the closing of V.A. hospitals, or the effects of "Stop-loss," the men and women who have served and who have returned to civilian life truly have a unique and politically valuable perspective.Operation Truth will put a face on policy and will serve as the preeminent voice for informed opinion and analysis. We will provide returning Veterans with national, regional, and local podiums from which they can expose the preventable hardships they experienced as a result of failures in governmental leadership, planning, and execution. The press, the politicians, and the public will now all come to us for a first-hand perspective.
The decision to send troops to Iraq has already been made. Our goal is to ensure that the issues and hardships facing our troops are elevated in the public debate during this election season and beyond. In doing so, we will hold all our elected officials - and political candidates - accountable for their positions, their actions, and their inaction.
Soldiers for Truth is run by David Hackworth, a somewhat controversial figure. However, I did find a variety of opinions expressed on this site.Soldiers For The Truth is a grass-roots educational organization started by a small group of concerned veterans and citizens to inform the public, the Congress, and the media on the decline in readiness of our armed forces. It is a non-profit organization under section 501 (c) (3) of the Internal revenue Code.
Lastly, here's a letter from a Sgt. NCO on active duty in Iraq that you should read.
The Sgt., an almost 20 year veteran, is currently facing disciplinary charges for this statement.
