CSPAN-1 4pm PST: Kerry's 1971 Appearance on Dick Cavett Show

[VeniceBeat]

I don't know if this has been shown before on CSPAN or discussed here but it's on NOW! Fascinating time capsule.

Kerry's debate opponent is John O'Neil (No, not that one!)who went on to clerk for Rehnquist and disappear into the Houston legal world.

Check it out!

[mobuto]

1. O'Neil's an ass

He gets on and he just hurls insults at Kerry. Its just sad. He calls Kerry "a coward," he calls him a liar, then he says there's no difference at all between Kerry and Lieutenant Calley, the US commander at My Lai.

Kerry just smiles and stays on message. How? If I were him, I'd have punched his lights out. Kerry's really doing great.

[never cry wolf]

2. The more things change...

the more they stay the same. This guy won't shut up and keeps on with the personal attacks.

[BootinUp]

3. agreed

I loved the part where Kerry reads a letter from another vet in their unit who says that he doesn't know how O'Neil could think he represents any of the vets in their unit. The audience had a big reaction for Kerry.

[VeniceBeat]

5. The Bad White Suit On O'Neil Says It All

Flood pants! (Sorry, I know it's a cheap shot.) :-)

And yes, this has been posted on DU before:

http://tinyurl.com/2cj4s

[dogman]

30. All I could think of was Ralph Reed.

Same sticking to my lying story attitude.

[Nomad559]

4. John O'Neil Is getting his ass kicked

This Is going to be replayed again at 6:30

[revcarol]

6. I saw the intro:Cavett slandering Kerry and O'Neill saying how he

was in the same unit at the same time, etc. and Kerry was entirely wrong and I thought: SMEAR TIME

You mean this is WORTH watching?

[BootinUp]

7. it gets better, Kerry takes him apart

[VeniceBeat]

9. Well, It's Interesting to See What'll Get You

a Rehnquist clerkship.

I wonder what mendacious activity characterizes O'Neil's career as an attorney?

I was surprised at Cavett's attitude. Who served him the Kool-Aid?

[Maccagirl]

8. I can't believe how much composure Kerry had

at 27 years old. If it had been me, that white suit would have been red from a bloody nose.

[mobuto]

20. 27 years old?

I think at any age, most people would get slightly physical if some punk called them a coward, liar and mass murderer. John Kerry, with three purple hearts, a bronze star and silver star, is a coward? Hell, if I were in the audience I'd have wanted to go right up and slap O'Neill.

[Bandit]

40. And for those that think Kerry's medals were undeserved

John O'Neil said that every single mission their unit went on was under intense fire. Kerry didn't say that O'Neil did and he came much later than Kerry after most of the battles had been fought. Kerry slapped hima hard one when he asked him if he had ever been in a Free-Fire zone and then told him that was against the Geneva Convention and then asked him if he had heard of the Geneva Convention. It was wonderful to behold. I just hope he hasn't lost to much over the years. He was sharp as a tack.

[Sparkly]

33. Very impressive

O'Neil was hostile and clearly trying to goad Kerry; I thought it was great that Kerry didn't let him.

[KoKo]

10. ROFL....this should be an experience for our young DU'ers .....who have

NO IDEA......

[Hippo_Tron]

14. I'm going to have to say, 70's TV is quite different...

But overall I really like what Kerry is saying.

[SCRUBDASHRUB]

24. I was laughing my ass off; after all the tension, Dick Cavett then does

a plug for Calgon?!

I was not even a year old when this show first aired!?

Kerry looked really groovy. Dig that tie! Dig that shag carpet. Dude, we had the same shag carpet in our house!?

That O'Neill was a jackass! Interesting he lives in TX. Makes me wonder if, 33 years later, Shrub and Co., will get ahold of him. From the interview before the show, didn't he say his views hadn't changed?

[KoKo]

11. Thank "whatever" that Kerry has "refined" his Boston Brahmin accent....

because if he still talked like that people would think he was Tom Kean...who was always considered a little weird because of his "accent."

Time does wonders....and "Globilization." :D

[LoZoccolo]

12. This is a real eye-opener...

...to how the climate has degenerated since then. Look how long people get to answer questions. Look how there's no interruption and yelling.

[glarius]

18. You've hit on an important point....It's true...I remember...people were

allowed to answer questions without being shouted over as is the case today in virtually all the shows where there are rival opinions being expressed...Times have changed in that respect, and not for the better.

[KoKo]

13. Amazing the similarities to Viet Nam...isn't it. You "rewind" and you're

there...and one is stuck in a damned "TIME WARP!" Disgusting...

So...why did Kerry vote for going into Iraq when Robert Byrd said: "This is just another Gulf of Tonkin Resolution!"

But...Kerry was running for President...and Iraq Invasion was in play...
:-(

[KoKo]

15. Isn't anyone else watching this? It's really important...

:shrug:

[BootinUp]

16. I am

:hi:

I was too young at the time, and yes it is interesting. Kerry is winning hands down in my opinion.

[KoKo]

17. Kerry is giving very thoughtful answers that are so applicable to Iraq...

and look at his oppostion. A twerp pulling Military Rank because he went to the Naval Academy (like John McCain) over Kerry who enlisted.

So O'Neil is definitely a forerunner of what the RW looks like today.

Dick Cavett's show was a show for the "intellectuals of that time." Yes, there were shows targeted in small timeframes to "intellectuals" and so you could get time to have a debate, unlike today.

But, you can hear from the jeers and claps from the audience that then, just as today, the countr was deeply divided. And, it's been divided since. So, those who think that Viet Nam will die in our memories are wrong. We fight it today and we've fought it since we had to pull our troops out in failure for a war which never should have been fought.

And, we will do it again, and again. Until we "Learn the lessons of Viet Nam." :-(

[BootinUp]

21. What's interesting to me

is that people like McCain respect Kerry today and O'Neil is not in politics, and the country eventually did realize how wrong Nam was. As to applying the lessons to today, the difficulty is the differences in forces, casualties. The pain level is sustainable so to speak. I don't know how long Iraq will go on, but I am not very hopeful that it will work out real well for us.

[Hippo_Tron]

23. True, especially the part about the non-communist regime...

Being unrealistic. I think our best bet with Iraq is require that some constitution be set up but not force Democracy on the people if they don't want it. The point is that we need an effective Iraqi government in place ASAP.

[KoKo]

19. Did anyone hear Kerry mention Peter Arnett? (remember "bombs over

Baghdad, under Poppy) and he, who was fired by National Georgraphic when he made comments during "Iraq War II?" under the current "Chimp in Thief?" de ja vu?

[mainer]

22. I'm blown AWAY by John Kerry's responses!!!

What an impressive, impressive young man he was! I have already sent in my $2000 contribution to his campaign, but it was with a resigned "okay, he's the candidate" feeling. Now I can honestly say that this old, old show of Cavett's has opened my eyes to just how impressive and thoughtful the young Kerry was.

A few observations:

First, Cavett was very good about letting the two men talk for themselves, with very few editorial responses. Why can't journalists today do more of that?

Second, it's interesting hearing, through the retrospective wisdom, how WRONG O'Neill and his pro-Vietnam war people were. He's talking on the show about how well Vietnamization is going, and we can sit here now and sneer at what an idiot he was. Kerry saw it all coming, and O'Neill looks stupid in comparison.

Third, the eerie echoes of Iraq kept coming back to me as I listened to Kerry talk about the failure of Vietnamization, about how men are still dying, about how the only way to keep Americans from getting killed is to get them OUTTA there.

I was a little apprehensive about watching this program, thinking that Kerry would come off as a an anti-war lefty. Far from it. I have come away thinking that Kerry is a far, far wiser man than I ever realized.

[KoKo]

25. Nice observations, but what's wrong with "anti-war Lefties?" Why were you

saying you were aprehensive thinking Kerry would come off as, quote:

"thinking that Kerry would come off as a an anti-war lefty. Far from it. I have come away thinking that Kerry is a far, far wiser man than I ever realized."

[mainer]

26. I meant it as no offense!

Since I'm an anti-war Lefty. But I'm thinking of it from a politician's perspective, and knowing how the rightwing would jump on it as an automatic attack point.

[KoKo]

27. That's pretty sad isn't it...after all these years when we

Anti-Imperialism Dems are still living in fear of being trashed by our own party and the RW... Nothing changes, does it...:-(

[madfloridian]

29. Thinking of things from a politician's view is why we are in such a mess.

We need to look at things from the view of reality.

I was never anti-war,per se,before now. I was anti-Iraq war. After reading and learning more about our country's goals now, I have become anti-war.

I think it is time to stop being politically correct.

[mainer]

32. ah, but from the perspective of old Democratic defeats...

there is NO way to win this election without thinking of politics. I say this as a supporter (and still mourning supporter) of Howard Dean.

Yes, we're anti-war. But we have to learn to express it as patriots, as Americans who support our soldiers. I think Kerry understands this.

It's hard, because I know how passionate we all are. I have to stop myself from the things I really want to say to Republicans. It just doesn't get us anywhere.

[flaminbats]

28. an audience of idiots..neocons were just as rabid then as they are today.

What did Vietnamization mean anyway...unAmericazation?

How unpatriotic!

[dogman]

36. Today it's Iraqiization.

Tomorrow it's Globalization. Brought to you by the Global Oil Project.

[Sparkly]

31. Fascinating

I found it interesting that John O'Neil seemed so personally hateful of Kerry, and continually tried to discredit him with "gotchas" and insults rather than discuss the actual issues of the war. How familiar!!

[dogman]

34. Had to qualify

for his clerk job with Rehnquist. The Nixon administration was just a rehearsal for what we have now.

[zulchzulu]

35. That was such a hoot watching Kerry kick O'Neil's ass

Cavett was way cool too. I loved the bumper music as well.

[TheWebHead]

37. ahh if only we could have had

George W. Bush at the age of 27 in a televised political... errm, sober, debate :)

[mobuto]

41. Bush at age 27

I'm sure he was quite eloquent when asked why he supported Bud over Miller.

[Lauren2882]

38. Great Show ... Made Me Even More Disappointed about 2002 Kerry

Seeing how eloquent this John Kerry was made me so much more disappointed that he voted for the war in '02. If he had just done that one thing differently, I would have a drastically different opinion of him. I probably would have supported him in the primaries even.

[Kathleen04]

39. I watched the show..

I thought it was fascinating..seeing as I wasn't born until about 15 years later, I don't fully understand all the complexities of Vietnam but I thought Kerry's answers were very thoughtful and well delivered.