Some went to Canada; Some went to Jail; Some went to the National Guard.

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John Kerry offered this about the president's enlistment in the Coast Guard during Vietnam:

“People made their choices:

Some went to Canada;
Some went to Jail;
Some went to the National Guard.

In an article introduced by WiseMen, Bush was quoted as saying that:

"I was not prepared to shoot my eardrum out with a shotgun in order to get a deferment. Nor was I willing to go to Canada. So I chose to better myself by learning how to fly airplanes."
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4114162


But the fact is that Bush had a minimal risk of going to Vietnam. He must have known that when he chose the Guard. Everyone else did. It was tough to get in. He must have known that also.


In the Vietnam War:

9.087.000 military personnel served on active duty during the Vietnam era (Aug. 5, 1964-May 7, 1975).

8.744.000 Gls were on active duty during the war (Aug. 5, 1964-March 28, 1973).

National Guard: 6,140 served; 101 died

Reservists killed: 5,977.


In the present conflict

More than 174,000 reservists and National Guardsman are currently on active duty and 34 of them have been killed.


Stats from VFW: http://www.ojc.org/NL/march/warriors.htm

[sventvkg]

1. join the Guard now and guarentee yourself combat and 2 years active duty

????????????? Who wants to join?????

[bigtree]

2. Question kick

Why doesn't Bush respect the National Guard and cut back on reserve and National Guard deployments? The Guard has never endured this level of deployment before.

Not when Bush chose the Guard. Shouldn't he be made to explain why he thinks the Guard shouldn't have the same reserve status that they had when he sought them out?