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August 19, 2004

Unfit For Command

I finished the infamous Unfit For Command last night, so I thought I'd offer a few observations about the book and what it says about John Kerry and about the famed Swiftvets.

The book itself is fair, but nothing more. It's written in a clean, easy-to-read style that makes the pages turn quickly, but also in such a way that little of what the reader sees will stick with him beyond the clear disdain the authors have for their subject. The book could also have used another pass from an editor, as several typographical and grammatical errors mar the reading experience.

The authors split the book into two parts: Kerry's service in Vietnam, and his actions following his return from Vietnam. Many of the controversies regarding Kerry's Vietnam service have been covered extensively in the blogosphere and to a lesser degree in the mainstream media, so a reader familiar with Kerry will find little new there. The bottom line for most of these events is similar: even were Kerry to release all of his military records, it would be impossible to prove which side is correct in their interpretation of the events. My own personal belief is that both sides believe what they're saying, as the facts in most of the cases agree, but after 36 years, I don't see how you can rely on people's memory to determine the truth. People who already dislike Kerry may be able to bolster their opinion of him based on what the Swiftvets have to say about his Vietnam exploits, but I suspect it will take something more than memories to sway undecided voters.

The second part of the book is more interesting, as it looks at Kerry's history of antiwar (and the book claims, anti-American) activities. While some of these have also already seen play, having them all gathered together paints a very unflattering portrait of Kerry. This part would have been sufficient to convince me to vote against Kerry, had I not already decided to do so, because of his betrayal of the men he now refers to as his band of brothers. Other military veterans may or may not feel similarly, but if the accusations made by the book are accurate, they could well damage Kerry's electoral prospects. The second half of the book is, in my estimation, far more damning to Kerry because it relies much more on facts that can be proven, as opposed to interpretation of events looking back over 30 years.

Which raises the question, even more so after today's Washington Post story about a Swiftvet whose story has been undermined by period records, if the Swiftvets aren't projecting some of their anger over Kerry's postwar activities onto his wartime service. I don't think that they're lying or intentionally casting Kerry in a bad light necessarily; their anger over Kerry's postwar activities is, in my mind, quite justified. Is it unreasonable to suggest that that knowledge could have affected their memories of Kerry prior to that time?

I don't think this book will actually change many minds. The activities to which the book refers, even if absolutely true, were so long ago that it's hard to believe many people will use them as the basis for their votes. Had John Kerry not made his Vietnam service the centerpiece of his campaign, they wouldn't even merit discussion. Given that choice, however, it would be nice to see Kerry release his service records and establish what facts are available about his service once and for all. Better yet, Kerry could shut up about Vietnam and start explaining to the country why he would be a better President than George Bush.