John Kerry on Afghanistan

September 14, 2006 — Ron Chusid

John Kerry has a post at The Democratic Daily on Afghanistan, pointing out that it is Not A Forgotten War.

Posted in Afghanistan, Blogs & Social Media, International, John Kerry. Tags: , . RSS feed for comments on this post.. TrackBack URL.

12 Comments

  1. 1
    kj says:
    September 14th 2006 at 2:39 pm  

    Right now, I’m slogging through “Ghost Wars” by Steve Coll. True, depressing chronical of “the secret history of the CIA, Afghanistan and bin Laden, from the Soviet Invasion to September 10, 2001″ (2005 Winner of the 2005 Pulitzer)
    And it really is a slog, and it really is a depressing read.

    Of course, depressing hardly covers my feelings after reading “The Bookseller of Kabul” by Asne Seierstad (non-fiction) (My admiration for the bookseller, who managed to keep his store open through the Soviet Invasion and Taliban control, and educate his family (even the women), was also someone I wanted to strangle… for his treatment of the women in his own family.)

    “The Storyteller’s Daughter” by Saira Shah (non-fiction) Wonderful read by an extraordinarily courageous woman. I would love to read more of her real-life stories. My only complaint was the book was too short. This woman has done and seen and knows so much, I would sit at her feet for days if I could.

    “The Kite Runner” by Khaled Hosseini (fiction) A too-the-last-word-gasp novel of hope and redemption.

    Afghanistan fascinates me. Kabul was a gorgeous jewel of a city… and it’s in ruins. Utterly in ruins.

  2. 2
    I_Must_B_Wrong says:
    September 14th 2006 at 5:26 pm  

    Is it just me or does John Kerry look like a bad Muppet? Maybe a living bobblehead. Hmm…

  3. 3
    Democrafty says:
    September 14th 2006 at 5:45 pm  

    A badly-formed Muppet, or a Muppet who like, beats you up and steals your lunch money?

  4. 4
    libgirl says:
    September 14th 2006 at 6:31 pm  

    I agree, John Kerry would be bad as a muppet, but he is a handsome, presidential human. No one who is that classly could look like a muppet. Muppets are pretty silly and foolish looking – unlike John Kerry, who has never looked silly or foolish.

  5. 5
    DynamicDems says:
    September 14th 2006 at 7:23 pm  

    A bad Muppet or a Bobblehead? This particular type of “out of the blue” comment always makes me wonder what the poster looks like. What a gorgeous specimen this individual must be that all others pale in comparison to his or her beauty! However unlikely as this sounds, it must be so, for it is quite obvious that this individual subscribes to a very high standard of perfection and must have the face of a god or goddess.

    Those of us who have had the privilege of having met Senator Kerry in person find him to be a rather handsome, distinguished and extremely presidential-looking man. He is tall, fit and poised and has and intensity of presence that would draw crowds even if he were not an important senator. His countenance reflects integrity, intelligence and compassion. His eyes are deep and kind and his smile is warm. He listens to people with the full focus of his attention and the sincerity of his concern registers on his face.

    Beauty that shines from within enhances outer appearance when you meet such an individual. As an artist, I see the depth as well as the surface when I study a person’s appearance. If perfect symmetry were true beauty would the Mona Lisa have ever been such a cherished treasure?

    When I look at Senator Kerry, I see a man who could have easily stepped out of history, a man who could have as easily been a scholar in ancient Greece or have signed the Declaration of Independence.

    Perhaps, George Washington, the father of our country, would also be compared to a Bobblehead were he alive today. Such is the sad and superficial state of our nation.

  6. 6
    TayTay says:
    September 14th 2006 at 7:34 pm  

    I_must_Be_Wrong is an aptly named guest to this forum. The good and true Senator from Massachusetts does not look like a muppet. He instead looks like an intelligent, personable, capable and sincee man.

    I am sorry that you have never met anyone like that. Perhaps if you stopped frequenting Republican hang-outs you might actually be able to understand those qualities when you see them. Hanging out with Rethugs how exist at the pre-school level is stunting your intellectual growth. I suggest you aim higher, perhaps 1st grade to start, and see if you can broaden your perspectives.

    Yours in concern and hope

    TayTay

  7. 7
    GV says:
    September 14th 2006 at 7:43 pm  

    I_Must_B_Wrong. Well, I don’t agree with your post, but your user name is brilliant!
    Not that it has anything to do with Afghanistan, but I think the Senator is totally hot. Muppet, huh? I just don’t see it.
    kj, I read “The Kite Runner”, and thought it was excellent. I think I’ll look for “The Storyteller’s Daughter”. The other two just sound too heavy. If I want to be depressed, I’ll watch a bush speech.

  8. 8
    Wisteria says:
    September 14th 2006 at 9:10 pm  

    I don’t understand what I_must_be_wrong is trying to say. Maybe it’s the lingo. You know, like bad really means good. For eample, Look at that BAD piece of machinery. So, I suppose what “don’t understand” is saying is a bad muppet is really good, ie cute. So yes, Senator Kerry really would be a cute muppet if in fact he was really a muppet.

  9. 9
    kj says:
    September 14th 2006 at 9:39 pm  

    GV, the others are depressing and except for “Ghost Wars,” mercifully short. I’ve had to put down “Ghost” for awhile, even though my intention is to finish it in this lifetime.

    Let me know what you think of “The Storyteller’s Daughter.” I wish it was longer, she must have many more stories to tell.

    As for the “Bookseller of Kabul,” it ticked me off to see that even the educated, literate bookseller, who made sure his daughters could read and write English, was still such a patriarchial bull. It was one of those books I was glad I had read a month after I read it, but I don’t recommend it to anyone. I wanted to throw it against the wall when finished.

    Also, along these lines, “Reading Lolita in Tehran” is interesting.

    “The Kite Runner”… well, I can’t wait for a year or two to go by so to read it again. It’s almost time to re-read “The Life of Pi.” 🙂

  10. 10
    kj says:
    September 14th 2006 at 9:41 pm  

    John Kerry is a muppet?
    Among all his talents, he’s also a shapeshifter.
    Wow.
    I knew I like that guy. 😉

  11. 11
    Democrafty says:
    September 14th 2006 at 9:56 pm  

    KJ – Please. He’s not just any Muppet. He’s the HOTTEST. MUPPET. EVER.

  12. 12
    kj says:
    September 15th 2006 at 8:02 am  

    Democrafty,

    Of course, of course. *slaps head* I knew that.
    John Kerry: HOTTEST. MUPPET. EVER.

    @;-)

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