On 22 Aug 2004 22:04:21 GMT, otforme (Charlie Self)
wrote:

Mike Hide notes:

Many times on TV the reporters refer to Kerry's TWO tours of duty in Vietnam
. Was a tour reduced to 6 weeks at that time . I now guys that went in for
one and spent 2 years there .

No. If they went for one, it was 13 months.

If the went longer, they signed up for it. I've got a friend who did most of
two tours in the Airborne...caught phosphorus in the forehead and decided to
take the ticket home.


I hear reporters say Kerry enlisted to go to Vietnam, which as far as I am
concerned is true . No mention is made that after being deferred to complete
his law degree, and at that point being eligible for the draft, he requested
another deferment so he could go to France, it was denied. At that point he
was going to Vietnam regardless .

No. He was going in the Army, if he was drafted. He might or might not have
gone to 'Nam. There was enough in-service finagling, just as there is during
every war, to allow most people to stay well away from combat locales, never
mind actual combat. There's another point that no one seems to recognize: for
every grunt, otherwise known as a combat troop, there are from 7 to 9 support
people keeping that grunt fed, in ammo, generally supplied and healthy. So
going into a combat area such as 'Nam does not automatically mean you're going
to get shot at. Going into an outfit like swift boats does. I wonder if that
was voluntary?


According to his fitness reports, Kerry volunteered for Swift boat duty:
http://www.swiftvets.com/staticpages...p?page=Fitreps (this links to
a web page on Kerry's own site that publishes the fitness reports Kerry is
willing to release).

.... snip