Actually, I’m sick of the conservative tactic of slinging mud in all directions and seeing what sticks. They did it for 8 years with the Clintons. And they are up to it again. Back in February, The Drudge Report claimed to have a story that John Kerry had cheated on wife with an intern and then had hid her away in Africa. It spread like wildfire over various right wing outlets. It was revealed shortly thereafter that the story was complete bunk. Now, it is the Swift Boat guys. And they are spread ridiculous lies. Of course they play on some small nuggets of truth, but their falsehoods continue to spread. Michelle Malkin tries to take these insane claims to the mainstream on MSNBC. Luckily Chris Matthews holds her to task and demands that she give a source for claiming that maybe Kerry shot himself. She does not. You’ve got to see it to believe it. (Malkin feels she was set up, decide for yourself.)

In all fairness, it does seem that Kerry’s Purple Hearts are not for the most extreme injuries. I, for one, will not question the Navy’s wisdom on how they hand out Purple Hearts. And I don’t care how small the injury is, I won’t claim to comprehend what it would be like to shot at and injured while in defense of my country.

So I’m already fired up about this and then yesterday I see this headline: “Vietnam Vet Says Has No Proof for Claim Kerry Lied” It seems to me that this whole swift boat thing is not proof that Kerry isn’t what he claims, but that it is nothing more than a bunch of guys (who either don’t like Kerry personally or don’t want him to be president) saying that they never saw a bullet hit him. I’ve never seen Barry Bonds hit a homerun either. Should we take away the records?

I don’t know if I can express in words how mad this makes me. Were there aspects of Kerry’s tour in Vietnam that were screwy? Probably, it was a screwy war. If Purple Hearts were given out more freely during that conflict, who are we to question it. Perhaps it has to do with the fact that young men were fighting a war that, increasingly, we could not win. Yet, they kept putting themselves in harm’s way. That is bravery and that is patriotism.

If it is all bunk, you might ask, where do they find all these veterans? I’d imagine it is not that hard. I’m sure many of them felt betrayed by Kerry leading Vietnam Veterans Against the War and testifying to the Congress. I have no doubt that these guys are all Republicans and fans of Dubya. Of course, the Swifties have no direct ties to Bush campaign; everyone is very clear about that. Of course, I don’t believe that for one second. And neither do you.

This brings me to my final point. Every Bush supporter I’ve spoken to goes to great length to tell me how he is a man of principle and integrity. I hope that is true. And I hope that Dubya has the integrity to call on these Swifties to stop sling mud about Kerry’s service. You don’t get to award yourself a Purple Heart (or a Silver Star or a Bronze Star.) The more the Swifties attempt to discredit Kerry the more they take away from all of the others who have served in that conflict and were awarded Purple Hearts (and Silver Stars and Bronze Stars.)

Prove me wrong Mr. President, and do the right thing.