I am not in any way decrying people who have done military service and put their lives on the line for their country, Teribus. I respect what they have gone through. I'm simply saying that having done so does not qualify them as being more suited to holding political office than other people are who weren't in the military. Period.

Yet a person's having done military service is constantly used in American politics to influence voters to vote for him. It shouldn't be used that way. It is not used in Canadian politics to influence voters in that fashion. That is my only point.

You claim that I attack or decry the military? Nope. I don't. Not at all. I respect the military. I merely say that military matters are a completely separate field of work from running a government (except in a military dictatorship, of course) and that having had expertise in the military field does not equate to having expertise in the field of governing, nor should it be seen to do so.

The American political parties constantly try to hurt each other by beating the drums of patriotism and suggesting that the other guy is less patriotic than they are. That's extremely cynical, it's deliberate character assassination, it's a form of slander, and they should both stop doing it.

But ha! I might as well wait for the ocean to stop rolling onto the shore...an equally predictable event.

Remember John Kerry boasting about his three Purple Hearts, for heaven's sake? They (the Democrats and Republicans) both do it whenever they can. The only thing is, the Republicans clearly think they've got a monopoly on such patriotic heroics, and they're done such a good job for so long pretending that they do, that the American public seems to believe it.

That's funny, in a sad sort of way. Goebbels would be really impressed, I think.