The wisdom of Kerry's Viet Nam strategy

Thanks to Harvey over at Bad Example, I've had a chance to take a look at the letter drafted by Swiftboat Veterans for Truth which their legal team is sending to media outlets from which they've purchased time to show their ad. I have no doubt that what they are saying is the truth and that John Kerry has lied about his service in Viet Nam and the circumstances under which at least some of his medals were "earned."

Harvey writes:

The thing is, I don't really care.

Don't get me wrong. I expect no end of amusement out of the process, in the same way that peeing on a cockroach that's fallen into a toilet bowl is amusing.

But the thing is, this stuff happened over 30 years ago, and at best it's only an indication of his character BACK THEN.

Here's the thing. Kerry has based his campaign largely on his service in Viet Nam. He is using it to showcase his bravery, patriotism, and leadership ability. Although his actions at the time were indications of his character only at that time, his perpetuation of the lie and his reliance on this fraudulent personal history for his campaign are indications of his character today. It's also an indication of his intelligence, or the lack thereof. He has set himself irrevocably on this course and it's far too late to deviate from it now. Now that he's being called on it, he really has no choice but to ride it out. Given how smart he claims to be, you would think he would have considered this outcome as a possibility. Even if he did, he decided to go ahead with it anyway. On the other hand, it could be that he's told this lie so many times that he actually believes it himself, in which case he is a victim of self-delusion. In either case, it does not inspire confidence in his ability to serve as Commander-in-Chief of the US armed forces, as well as fulfill the other responsibilities of the President.

So, in my case, I do factor this into my choice of which candidate I will vote for. It is not, by itself, a necessary nor sufficient condition, but it does serve to reinforce my decision. As for the other considerations, Harvey sums them up thusly:

But what about NOW? What about his stated plans for a Kerry Presidential administration?

He's outlined what he stands for on his web site, and the short version is, "I will raise your taxes, socialize medicine, increase the size, scope, and number of government programs, and take advice from foreign governments who think that going into Iraq was wrong". If you think I'm exaggerating or mischaracterizing, please check his site yourself and cite it when correcting me.

Even though I criticize Bush for growing the government, and some other actions which I feel are contrary to a truly conservative viewpoint, what he has done is nothing compared to what Kerry would do if given the chance.