I could answer this diatribe but it wouldn't mean anything. The premise is absurd. When Guest says:

"Honestly Frank, you have all the blood on your hands that Bush, et al have--you supported their war by supporting the Republican Lite pro-war candidate."

It becomes a smear campaign just like the Swift Boat for Truth ads. I will reiterate that the only reason Kerry supported the war was that he thought that a threat would keep the UN inspectors in place. He was consistent. I don't agree with this position but I could understand it.

"How many lives did blind support for the Kerry hawk take? Quite a few."

Kerry didn't instigate a pre-emptive strike on Iraq. Bush did. He said he would have handled it differently. He did not say how.

"You are so pathetic in your attempts to make yourself look like Bush being re-elected wasn't your fault. You are sleazily trying to weasal out of any accountability for your actions supporting a pro-war candidate."

This kind of rhetoric will ensure the GOP a run for the next thirty years. Why is it that there are some rabble rousers on the Left who refuse to do anything important but trash others who would normally be on their side? Why is Guest so angry? Is he a plant by Republican operatives? Sounds just like Karl Rove to me.

"Do any of us feel safer with Bush at the helm? What the hell kind of ludicrous statement is that? The progressive left that wasn't blinded by hatred for Bush, that still had functioning intellects, NEVER supported EITHER pro-war candidate."

The statement wasn't addressed to the Guest who by the way is unable to reveal his name. That's what makes it so suspicious. I think Kerry was more a potential statesman than Bush and would have brought our troops home. Now with Bush in power we will never know. All Bush, Cheney and Rove have to do is point a finger at our Guest here and laugh.

"You just keep refusing to accept responsibility for Bush's re-election, and think you can come in mouthing the anti-war rhetoric you shouted down on November 1st. You are a damn hypocrite."

Too bad the Guest's anger isn't channelled toward a more productive end. Since I worked very hard to get Kerry elected, I bear no responsibility for Bush's election. OTOH, the Guest is apparently not anti-war since he seems to
feel that yelling and screaming violence is the answer to solving the world's problems. I think the Guest is very young and needs to take his rage out on someone else. But the problem with this kind of rage and smear is that it doesn't solve anything and really adds to the ammunition of the Right-wing.

It's the same old problem with some like Guest on the Radical Left. They kind of mirror the Radical Right in shouting down the opposition and refusing to reason with dialogue. It's too easy to smear and yell epithets because it takes away from their responsibility to have a decent dialogue with the rest of the world.This may be one reason why Progressives are not in office now.

I am sincere in believing that we should support our troops by bringing them home. I don't agree that Kerry was responsible for any of the blood letting in Iraq. He, unlike the Guest, has had experience in war and knows how horrible it really is. He has served on the basis of his convictions which I respect.

Please, folks on the Left, can't we start organizing and getting together rather than smearing each other and by so doing claim some kind of superior moral ground? I hear Karl Rove's laughter now.

Frank