One can understand the human instinct to lie about an affair... They're essentially personal matters that arguably deserve no place in the political discourse to begin with. But military service is the very opposite: a public act, involving a gift of sacrifice for the common good...Interestingly enough, Silver aired these thoughts before the Souder scandal broke. But in comparing Blumenthal's sins to those who lie about cheating on their wives, he unwittingly anticipated a timely issue. What do you think?
Perhaps my gut reaction is atypical. But to Americans a generation removed from me -- the baby-boomers who were most directly impacted by Vietnam and who vote most reliably in midterm elections -- the question of Blumenthal's service is liable to be more resonant rather than less.
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John Hudson



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