strib: Now, George McGovern talks about peace and war

[question everything]

startribune.com

Now, George McGovern talks about peace and war
Bob Von Sternberg
Star Tribune
Published July 24, 2005

The old bomber pilot sat in the corner of the vast airplane hanger all day Saturday, signing his name, posing for photos and graciously accepting kind words from total strangers who thanked him for his service to his country.

One admirer unfurled a large lithograph of a B-24 Liberator, the bomber the old pilot had flown on his 35 missions during World War II. Before signing his autograph, he tapped his pen on the plane's tail, emblazoned with the legend "72."You'd have to say that number's somewhat significant to me," George McGovern said with a wry smile.

McGovern remains best-known to most Americans as the Democratic presidential nominee in 1972, when he was crushed by Richard Nixon's reelection juggernaut. But this weekend, at Flying Cloud Airport in Eden Prairie, he was, more to the point, one of dozens of flying luminaries of the nation's past wars being feted during the airport's annual Air Expo. McGovern nodded toward the airfield, where other restored World War II bombers had earlier been thrumming low over runways with paying customers aboard. "I find it interesting -- you seem to turn up these B-24s everywhere," he said.

(snip)

During the course of those interviews, McGovern said Ambrose told him, "If I'd been running your campaign in '72, you would have won. They'd have known all about what you did in the war." They didn't, because during that long-ago campaign, McGovern barely mentioned his war record. "I suppose I should have made more of it, or my supporters should have," he said. "But it's really hard to get up and say you were a hero.

"Yes, I was the antiwar candidate, and I was proud of that fact. I still am. But they tried to call me unpatriotic because of that. If they'd known I'd been a combat pilot, it might have left a different impression in more peoples' minds."

(snip)

Several others thanked him for his antiwar stand, then and now. "A lot of them ask me what the hell we're trying to do over there in the desert," McGovern said. "They tell me, if we knew what we know now ..."

(snip)

Bob von Sternberg is at [e-mail].

http://www.startribune.com/stories/462/5522611.html

[chieftain]

1. I know this is an old thought, but isn't it amazing the war heroes

we have on the Liberal side that are slandered as being soft by the deserters and shirkers who make up the macho conservative clique.

[question everything]

3. Sure. Because the liberals of the past never hesitated in serving

the communities, the world communities. Thus Roosevelt and Truman and Kennedy and Clinton always knew that it was the moral duty of the United States to come to the aid of weak countries that were attacked.

While the traditional Republicans did not believe in any government intervention, including war, of course. Unless they could personally benefit from the war effort.

And it was really the McGovern candidacy that put the liberals in the field of soft on defense and soft on crime. I guess this was why Dukakis took on that disaster ride in the tank and Kerry emphasized his military service so much that he neglected to look to the future, and to face accusations head on.

And yes, we have Bush and Rove and all of his advisers who have never faced real fire. But, hey, you put on a flight suit and you get all the props around you and you almost look like a leader.

[yardwork]

2. McGovern was smeared as a "wimp"

Some of the same people involved with Nixon's reelection committee (the aptly named CREEP) are big names in the chimpy White House.

The smeared Kerry's war record the same way they smeared McGovern, and the sheeple ate it up.

When will people in the U.S. wake up and recognize the real heroes, the real people with ethics, the real spiritual ones among us - instead of the fakes?

[Deja Q]

4. They don't.

They're too worried about their families and their pensions, ironically...

Maybe it's time for Dems to hijack the repukes on the families issue rather than being a "me too" party?