Ron Kovic served two tours of duty during the Vietnam War. He was
paralyzed from the chest down in combat in 1968 and has been in a
wheelchair ever since. Along with Oliver Stone, Kovic was the
co-screenwriter of the 1989 Academy Award-winning film based on his
book, Born on the Fourth of July (Akashic Books). The following is the
introduction to the new edition of the book.
It was
exactly forty years ago this past September that I left my house in
Massapequa, New York to join the United States Marine Corps and begin
an extraordinary journey that was to lead me into a disastrous war
which would change my life, and others of my generation, profoundly and
forever. There are times in the lives of both individuals and nations
when we cross certain thresholds where there is no going back, no
return to the innocence we once knew; the change is utter and
irreconcilable. We often sense these moments. I know I did that day.
Happy 4th of July to Ron Kovic and all the other veterans and servicemen and servicewomen today!
You have to love a nation that celebrates its independence every July
4, not with a parade of guns, tanks, and soldiers who file by the White
House in a show of strength and muscle, but with family picnics where
kids throw Frisbees, the potato salad gets iffy, and the flies die from
happiness. You may think you have overeaten, but it is patriotism.
~Erma Bombeck
PAUL HARVEY: AH, GENOICDE AND SLAVERY, NOW THAT'S A GOOD DAY!
Syndicated radio newsman / reactionary pundit Paul Harvey said on
his segment Thursday (heard on WGN-AM 720) that he'd been "choking on
something for weeks" and decided to "get it up and get it out for what
it’s worth."
Now it's our turn to choke on it.
Here's a transcript of what he said, beginning about 12 minutes into a 15-minute broadcast (Audio clip):
After
the attack on Pearl Harbor, Winston Churchill said that the American
people ...he said, the American people, he said, and this is a direct
quote, "We didn't come this far because we are made of sugar candy."
That was his response to the attack on Pearl Harbor. That we didn't come this far because we are made of sugar candy.
And that reminder was taken seriously. And we proceeded to
develop and deliver the bomb, even though roughly 150,000 men, women
and children perished in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. With a single blow,
World War II was over.
Following New York, Sept. 11, Winston Churchill was not here
to remind us that we didn't come this far because we're made of sugar
candy.
So, following the New York disaster, we mustered our humanity.
We gave old pals a pass, even though men and money from
Saudi Arabia were largely responsible for the devastation of New York
and Pennsylvania and our Pentagon.
We called Saudi Arabians our partners against terrorism and
we sent men with rifles into Afghanistan and Iraq, and we kept our best
weapons in our silos.
Even now we're standing there dying, daring to do nothing
decisive, because we've declared ourselves to be better than our
terrorist enemies -- more moral, more civilized.
Our image is at stake, we insist.
But we didn't come this far because we're made of sugar candy.
Once upon a time, we elbowed our way onto and into this continent by giving small pox infected blankets to native Americans.
Yes, that was biological warfare!
And we used every other weapon we could get our hands on to grab this land from whomever. And we grew prosperous.
And, yes, we greased the skids with the sweat of slaves.
And so it goes with most nation states, which, feeling
guilty about their savage pasts, eventually civilize themselves out of
business and wind up invaded, and ultimately dominated by the lean,
hungry and up and coming who are not made of sugar candy.
Harvey's evident approval of slavery, genocide and nuclear and
biological warfare would seem to put him at odds with Disney's
family-friendly image. The media conglomerate syndicates Harvey to more
than 1,000 radio stations, where he reaches an estimated 18 million
listeners. Disney recently signed a 10-year, $100 million contract with
the 86-year-old Harvey.
In 2004, Disney forbid its Miramax subsidiary to distribute Michael
Moore's film Fahrenheit 9/11, even though Miramax was the principal
investor in the film. A Disney executive told the New York Times
(5/5/04) that it was declining to distribute the film because, in the
paper's words, "Disney caters to families of all political stripes and
believes Mr. Moore's film...could alienate many."
One wonders whether Disney executives are worried about alienating
families who oppose slavery, nuclear war and Native American genocide.
ACTION:
Ask Disney why it finds Paul Harvey's nostalgia for slavery and
genocide and his calls for nuclear war acceptable, but deemed Michael
Moore's film unacceptable.
Syndicated radio newsman / reactionary pundit Paul Harvey said on
his segment Thursday (heard on WGN-AM 720) that he'd been "choking on
something for weeks" and decided to "
