The National Guard Association of the United States yesterday unveiled a bust of a young Lt. George W. Bush. The association expressed its pride in Bush, who is perhaps its most famous alumnus around today.
Of course, the Washington Post manages two paragraphs questioning Bush's service in a four-graf story, but it seems both petty and half-hearted.
11 comments:
I know a lot of guys who served in the Guard and none of them had connections. My uncle was a poor boy from Oklahoma and was in the NG, activated to go fight in Europe in WW2. My brother in law was in the Guard. Gale was in the Gaurd too and none of these people had any political pull at all. At least Bush served, which is more than can be said for Clinton.
The story was the usual snarky half ass smear job we have seen time and again. It is surprising they did not find away to slip in Katrina.
TANG's F-102 Delta Dart was--like all the so-called 'century series' of USA fighter aircraft--basically a guy riding a monster jet engine. The Dart was especially hard on pilots, and killed aplenty of 'em. It was designed to climb straight up--fast--in all-weather--to intercept Russian nuclear-armed bombers, and drop 'em with a close missile shot. Bush's unit was charged with airspace between USA and Cuba, and he did his job. He could've been sent to VietNam anytime. Meanwhile, nobody trying to avoid a tough job ever found himself a fighter jockey in an F-102.
And the fatality rate was considerably higher than, say, for Army photographers in Saigon. It's also worth looking at the time 1LT Bush spent on active duty, compared to either Gore or Kerry.
Peter, you're right--the whole design concept was to put the thing on the Bear ASAP. Wing-loading was extremed to lower drag and raise speed. Wing-loading being inverse to 'lift', the thing was not forgiving of error of any sort pilot or mechanical, and came in so hot that like all the 'century-series' it needed special (long-long) runways to ever get it down and stopped, in one piece.
For most folks, flying one of 'em would've been plenty enough of a national-service accomplishment.
Yet I've never once heard GWB brag, or lean on it in any way.
Never seen him salute a civilian gathering and say "My Name Is George Bush And I'm Reporting For Doody!"
Who do these reporters they think they are? What are their qualifications to evaluate who deserves the National Guard's esteem?
"Fool's names and fool's faces,
Are often seen in public places."
They just can't help themselves from trying a little CPR on a dead meme. At least they didn't run pictures of the TANG memo.
Who do they think we are?
Democrats - they only have one audience. May their niche grow ever smaller.
Got a career to advance, got to keep them bona fides up.
vnjagvet
I would echo the same comment regarding the carrier trap on the Lincoln back in 2003. It was the most natural thing for a former ANG jock to do.
The MSM chattering class just doesn't get it. It must have really been like a hot poker in the eye to their egos the way they reacted.
I recall being severely stunned by the left's reaction to that simple gesture toward the crew of the Lincoln, which I belief had done a double tour in the war zone. The nastiness of the reaction was breathtaking, utterly out of proportion. As iuf the president's show had been for them, and they were way to savvy for such corn. I guess it still hasn't dawned on the self-styled sophisticates that the event had nothing to do with them, it was for the military, and whoever didn't like it didn't *have* to like it.
Thanks for making my point, Mark.
I know you know, and you know I know you know, the truths behind those little jabs.
"Not a fan" -- finish the thought -- "I'm not a fan of my slander victims"
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