Unfit to Command Book Signing

[Maleficent13]

One of the co-authors of "Unfit to Command" was at my local bookstore this weekend to do a book signing.

I had no idea he was coming. I stopped at the bookstore to buy a birthday present for a friend (ironically, Clinton's book). When I got to the parking lot, I saw most of the parking spaces closest the door were blocked off, and there were several police cruisers in the parking lot.

Getting to the door, I saw a list of "rules" posted to the glass, governing how bookstore patrons were to act during this signing.

Entering the store, I saw several officers manning the doors and the area the signing was going on.

What I did not see?

Anyone standing in line to get a book signed. The author was due out to begin signing approx. 15 minutes after my arrival at the book store. The population of the store, not counting employees or officers, was I would guess about 20, half of whom were children listening to storytime in the children's section. Some people paused at the list of "rules" to briefly skim them, shrugged, and went about their book buying. A couple kids gawked at the guns in the policemen's holsters. That was about it for the excitement level in the store.

It seemed kind of odd to me, really. I would have thought this would have been a huge event.

 

[wvrevy]

It probably would have been, but since the Republicans were already caught once coordinating with the Swift Liars, they couldn't risk it again

 

[rcyannacci]

Interesting...not the kind of thing you'd expect from a bookstore. Was it a locally owned place or a national chain? For example, I can't imagine one of our local stores (Book People, Book Woman, etc) putting out a list of rules for behavior (although I guess they are entitled since it's a private business), but I could see it happening at a Barnes and Noble.

Also interesting that so few "supporters" showed...it is possible the voters might be ready to move off of this issue?

 

[wvrevy]

Originally posted by rcyannacci
Also interesting that so few "supporters" showed...it is possible the voters might be ready to move off of this issue?

Good grief, I hope so I mean, after all:

* Alfred French, who signed an affidavit accusing John Kerry of exaggerating his war record, is in trouble after it was revealed that he didn't serve with Kerry and did not actually witness his behavior in Vietnam. Lying in affidavits is obviously not a good idea when you're a county prosecutor. Oh yes, he also got caught lying about an extra-marital affair.

* After Ken Cordier's departure from Team Bush it was the turn of Benjamin Ginsberg to quit last week when it was revealed that not only was he a lawyer for George W. Bush's campaign, he was a lawyer for - surprise - Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. We hear the door did not hit him in the butt on the way out.

* Jim Russell (who, unlike the Swift Boat Veterans for "Truth," was actually there the day that Kerry pulled Jim Rassmann out of the river) composed a stirring letter contradicting their story. "The picture I have in my mind of Kerry bending over from his boat picking some hapless guy out of the river while all hell was breaking loose around us, is a picture based on fact and it cannot be disputed or changed," he wrote.

* Larry Thurlow signed an affidavit accusing Kerry of lying about being under fire when he rescued Rassmann, saying "no return fire occurred.... I never heard a shot." This directly contradicts his own Bronze Star citation. But a third Bronze Star was awarded that day, to another Swift Boat skipper, Robert Lambert. Lambert's recently-released citation says that "all units came under small arms and automatic weapons fire from the river banks," and that Lambert "directed accurate suppressing fire at the enemy." The citation praises his "coolness, professionalism and courage under fire." Thurlow claims that Kerry faked the citations by falsely describing events to superior officers. But Kerry is not the eyewitness on Thurlow's citation - Lambert is. Can it be any more obvious that Thurlow is lying?

* John O'Neill has been making a big stink lately over whether John Kerry was in Cambodia or not during the Vietnam War. It appears that nobody - including Kerry - is really sure. But O'Neill - as usual - made himself look like a complete idiot by claiming to CNN that he (O'Neill) had never been in Cambodia and in fact it was impossible to cross the border by river. Whoops! It turns out that O'Neill appears on an audio tape recorded in the Oval Office telling the complete opposite to Richard Nixon. O'NEILL: "I was in Cambodia, sir. I worked along the border on the water." NIXON: "In a swift boat?" O'NEILL: "Yes, sir." Ah, credibility. We hardly knew ye.

* Even George W. Bush admits John Kerry is a war hero, saying last week, "I think him [Kerry] going to Vietnam was more heroic than my flying fighter jets. He was in harm's way and I wasn't." So now it's clear that either George W. Bush or the Swift Boat Idiots are lying. One or the other. Who can it be?

If, after all that, people still want to listen to these liars, then I'm not holding out a lot of hope for us as a nation

 

[disney4us2002]

Perhaps just as you didn't know he was coming, so others might not have known. Maybe it wasn't advertised well. I find it difficult to believe that if so there wouldn't have been people there just to buy the book if not to get an autograph. The book is sold out everywhere, even online. I don't think people are moving on. I've only ever gone to a book signing once and it was for a children's book author. I'm just not into that mattering I guess.

 

[Maleficent13]

I figured I didn't know because I am media impaired. I don't have a TV and I rarely listen to local radio stations. My news comes from the internet news sites. I thought I would be in the minority, but I guess I'm not.

Funnily enough, there were some W protesters outside the shop holding Kerry signs. There seemed to be more of them than anyone else. It sort of amused me, as there was no one there to hear their protests.

 

[bsnyder]

Originally posted by wvrevy

* John O'Neill has been making a big stink lately over whether John Kerry was in Cambodia or not during the Vietnam War. It appears that nobody - including Kerry - is really sure. But O'Neill - as usual - made himself look like a complete idiot by claiming to CNN that he (O'Neill) had never been in Cambodia and in fact it was impossible to cross the border by river. Whoops! It turns out that O'Neill appears on an audio tape recorded in the Oval Office telling the complete opposite to Richard Nixon. O'NEILL: "I was in Cambodia, sir. I worked along the border on the water." NIXON: "In a swift boat?" O'NEILL: "Yes, sir." Ah, credibility. We hardly knew ye.

If, after all that, people still want to listen to these liars, then I'm not holding out a lot of hope for us as a nation

Here's an excerpt from an online forum transcript (last week) in the Washington Post, where readers emailed questions to John O'Neill:

Dayton, Ohio: Mr. O'Neill, I recently heard a portion of the White House audio tape of your meeting with President Nixon. I heard you tell President Nixon that you had gone to Cambodia on your swift boat.

I also heard you tell a reporter recently(on tape) that you had never been in Cambodia.

Did you lie to President Nixon or did you lie to the reporter?

Have you ever been in Cambodia, and if so, when did you go and did you go more than once?

If you have never been in Cambodia, how close did you ever get to the Cambodian border (in feet or miles)?

John E. O'Neill: I lied to no one. You quote the first half of the statement but ignore the following sentence. I clearly said that I was on the Cambodian border. I was on a canal system known as Bernique's Creek located about 100 yards south of the Cambodian border from which it would have been very difficult to get into Cambodia at least from a boat.

I never went to Cambodia. Unlike the Kerry story you are defensive about I don't believe I can ever fairly be interpreted as saying anything different. John Kerry on many different occasions said that the turning point of his life was being in Cambodia illegally for Christmas Eve and Christmas in 1968. This was in a different area than I was in and close approach to Cambodia was not possible for him in that area. In fact he was more than 50 miles away. How many people invent the turning point of their life and repeat it on the senate floor, in articles and more than 50 times in 35 years?

 

[bsnyder]

Here's the link to the whole transcript:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A12893-2004Aug18.html

 

[KarenC]

Originally posted by disney4us2002
The book is sold out everywhere, even online. I don't think people are moving on.

There were hundreds of copies available at my Costco this weekend.

 

[Saffron]

There's a sort of irony, don't you think? Zero at a book signing on the same day 120,000 pour into the streets of New York.

 

[wvrevy]

Originally posted by bsnyder
Here's the link to the whole transcript:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A12893-2004Aug18.html

Lol....Um, I POSTED the entire quote from the tape: "I was in Cambodia sir. I worked along the border on the water."

His further quotes have said EXACTLY the opposite. Now, was he lying then, or is he lying now.....Gee, I wonder.

Face it. These guys are nothing but a bunch of liars, and it's people like you that are feeding the frenzy surrounding these "revelations". Hell, at this point, even the president thinks they are liars...he said EXPLICITLY that he believes John Kerry. They have been shown to have contradicted themselves and outright lied at every turn...What more do you want ?

 

[bsnyder]

Maybe we should have the opportunity to ask John Kerry some questions, specifically, about the Cambodia story and about his Senate testimony in 1971.

He hasn't done a press conference since August 1st. Unbelievable, for a major party candidate this close to the election.

 

[peachgirl]

According to the papers here, the book is sitting like a rock. Surprisingly, President Clinton's book sold extremely well.

Considering the political climate where I live, I'm very surprised and very pleased.

Lol....Um, I POSTED the entire quote from the tape: "I was in Cambodia sir. I worked along the border on the water."

You posted more than enough to know what the meaning of what he said was.

After all, complete sentences are not important when trying to discern intent.

 

[bsnyder]

Where did I ever say that wasn't the whole quote. I was simply adding his rebuttal to wvrevy's charges.

 

[rcyannacci]

I never thought I'd say this, but I'm almost glad the Republican Convention is starting. It's time for a different news cycle.

Not that I'll likely agree with the message of the convention, but I bet it will be designed to drowned out the Swiftboat fiasco- if they don't want this to go away as quickly as possible, then they're crazy since it's doing major damage to the credibility of thier campaign.

Hopefully by this time next week, we'll all be on to debating different topics. The Swiftys will have done thier damage (to the Republican's benefit or detriment), and the voters will go an and do what they're going to do anyway- vote according to the economy or to thier position on a personally meaningful issue.

As a side note, if the campaigns really are interested in getting young voters to the polls (considering most other populations are now decided), they really need to be really careful with the Vietnam debates. First of all, none of them were alive, so it reads like ancient history to them. Plus, they've literally studied this in their history books and know what happened as a result of the draft. Very few politicians are talking about the draft right now, but that doesn't mean it isn't constantly on the minds of young people right now.