I believe it's terribly unfair to assert that the people who went to jail rather than serve in the war did so to save themselves. Maybe some did. Maybe some got their dad's to get them positions in the national guard for the same reason.

Then again, maybe those who chose to go to jail had come to the realization that the war was wrong. Maybe they decided "not to show up" because they knew that to be the only way to put an end to this war, and possibly to all war. Maybe.

It is not for us to judge people who made choices during a very difficult time, unless their subsequent behavior betrays them as hypocrites or cowards. That goes for those who served, those who stayed home and those who chose expatriation. We all live with the knowledge of the choices we have made. Senator Kerry has had to live with a lot more than a fool like me. He faced a lot more, that's for sure. I wish he would have spoken about this before he was forced to (this has been done to head off a magazine article on the subject, you know), but I'm sure he had his reasons not to. Most men who serve honorably don't relish talking about their experiences at the front. He has lived well in his public life and I admire him for facing up to his sense of duty during the war, during his time in congress and today.

Bart