I copied this from a Veterans Board I moderate, it is from a retired SeaBee Master Chief.............

What is a 'War Hero'?

I've been listening to Congressmen Jack Murtha's negative comments about the
war in Iraq for some months now. I've heard him repeatedly described as a
"war hero".

Thirty-seven years in the Marine Corps.

Wow!

I visualize a burly ex-Marine, his chest bedazzled with medals, the survivor
of countless combats in Korea, Vietnam, and the Gulf War. A man who knows
war and combat from the inside out. A man with the experience that allows
him to see that the war in Iraq is hopeless, and we should all quit and go
home.

Although I've been turned off by Murtha's remarks, I never questioned his
war hero status.

Nor has our liberal press which is why Murtha has been getting away with his
charade.

Then the other day, bingo! I suddenly knew something was rotten in Denmark
about Jack Murtha's war hero status. I've been bothered by his comments in
the past but his latest remarks about Marines killing civilians in cold
blood caught my attention. Whether this turns out to be true or not,
something just didn't compute.

No real Marine who's "been there" would prejudge combat troops prior to the
release of a military inquiry.

That was the moment when I woke up and said, "Hey, I'm going to check this
guy out."

And what did I find? Did I find a man of vast operational experience with an
extensive combat record? No. I found a man whom fellow congressman Don
Bailey of Pennsylvania, Silver Star and three Bronze Stars, calls 'a liar
and a phony'. A man who came to Bailey crying and sobbing, thanking him for
saving Murtha from the ethics committee (on ABSCAM-related charges) at which
time he admitted to Bailey that his Purple Hearts weren't earned.

I found a man with a couple of years of active duty, and the rest of his 37-year career spent in the Marine Corps Reserve.

I found a man who served in the Marines during Korean War, yes, but somehow never actually made it to Korea.

I found a man with one year in Vietnam, not 'up front' but in the rear area, as a staff intelligence offer.

I found a man who's no more been in combat, or is a war hero, than I am.

Even John Kerry has more combat experience than Jack Murtha.

I know flight attendants who have spent more time in Danang than him.

So what is a War Hero? Well at the bare minimum, a war hero would have to be
somebody who's actually been in combat, somebody who's been in direct
contact with the enemy over some extended period of time, somebody who's
been shot at and/or had their life repeatedly threatened like the Infantry
or the Army, Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force pilots who flew over Vietnam;
somebody who has performed his or her duties in a heroic manner.

So, what is Jack Murtha?

Just one more scheming politician, a Democrat, sensing a change in the
direction of the political winds. A man who volunteered for a year's duty in
Vietnam as a staff intelligence officer, so he could come home and run for
Congress in 1968 as a war hero.

Barf.

Sound familiar? A man who's thinking about the next election, and hoping
he's on the right side when it comes.

As a citizen and as a Congressman, Murtha has every right to express his
opinion on the Iraq War - but not cloaked in the mantle of a Marine Corps
war hero with vast experience in such matters. His comments are very
destructive to the morale of our troops and have only one objective - to get
re-elected.

See.....


Murtha's War Hero Status Called Into Question
By Marc Morano and Randy Hall
CNSNews.com Staff
January 13, 2006
__________________

Here is the link to the original article:
http://www.cnsnews.com/ViewSpecialRe...20060113a.html

And here is the memo from Bailey:
http://www.politicspa.com/FEATURES/baileylttomurtha.htm

Regardless of how or were he served he should still be respected.

Originally Posted by Rabs

Regardless of how or were he served he should still be respected.

First of all I would like to say good for you for sticking up for this guy.


Secondly uh. . . ok.

If this guy was a true Marine he would not be among the first to stick his irons in the fire to brand any other Marine in any way, no matter what the circumstances are or what the topic is about. That this man calls himself a Marine makes me angry that he "has been described" as a "War Hero" (yet from what I have seen and read so far he does not deny it) makes my blood boil.

Isnt this becoming alittle stale?

Everytime a Democratic vet comes out against the Administration all of a sudden his service record gets attacked, and its usually by the same bunch of clods and their 'expert' opinions. We saw this with Al Gore, John Kerry, Max Cleland, and now with John Murtha. Enough is enough. At the very least why not investigate the Republicans military records like Bush (Daddy got me in the guard to avoid Vietnam, and then I went AWOL for a year to work on a political camapaign), Cheney ("I had other priorities)" or my personal favorite Tom Delay ("I wanted to go to Vietnam but the Blacks took all the spots, so I couldnt go").

Doesn't sound like any Marine I know. Most of them I know would defend a fellow Marine even when they KNOW he is wrong. Its one of the things I like about 'em.

Originally Posted by mmarsh

Isnt this becoming alittle stale?

Everytime a Democratic vet comes out against the Administration all of a sudden his service record gets attacked, and its usually by the same bunch of clods and their 'expert' opinions. We saw this with Al Gore, John Kerry, Max Cleland, and now with John Murtha. Enough is enough. At the very least why not investigate the Republicans military records like Bush (Daddy got me in the guard to avoid Vietnam, and then I went AWOL for a year to work on a political camapaign), Cheney ("I had other priorities)" or my personal favorite Tom Delay ("I wanted to go to Vietnam but the Blacks took all the spots, so I couldnt go").

Could it be that all they are doing is demonstrating their true character? Service records don't lie but can be manipulated if you know the right people, especially if you're an officer. And this includes democrats, republicans, bullmoose, torys, whigs, well, you get the idea. And if an imposter claiming a butt-load of medals runs for office of any kind, the first thing the opposition will go after is their war hero status.

Originally Posted by Rabs

Regardless of how or were he served he should still be respected.

Sure, he gets my respect for serving, but he loses it by allowing others to call him a War Hero.You can serve, and you should be proud of serving, but dont let others talk you up, it ill becomes anyone.

Originally Posted by Missileer

Could it be that all they are doing is demonstrating their true character? Service records don't lie but can be manipulated if you know the right people, especially if you're an officer. And this includes democrats, republicans, bullmoose, torys, whigs, well, you get the idea. And if an imposter claiming a butt-load of medals runs for office of any kind, the first thing the opposition will go after is their war hero status.

I can accept that for an isolated case or two. But we are seeing for at least 4 people in the past few years. I found another example, in 2000 NewsMax (run by Bush pal Richard Scaife) ran articles by Ted Sampley (who was later behind the Swift Boat vets) against John McCain suggesting that he evaded death by snitching in the POW camp he was enterred). So I am wrong to say its just Dems. Its anybody who became an obsticle to the president.

http://dir.salon.com/story/opinion/c...ear/index.html

5 people is a little too much of a coincidence for my taste and it just reeks of a smear campaign politics. I agree with Rabs whether you agree with their politics or not, people who have worn the uniform (espically those who saw combat) deserve to be respected unless the person is a certified phoney (like the Australian guy we saw in the other thread).

So whenever I hear a new story about how so-and-so lied/manipulated/etc about his military service I take it with a grain of salt.

He's an old anti freedom moron...