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Originally Posted by seretogis
As much as you may detest the "flip flop bullshit" it is one of Kerry's weaknesses and will be mentioned time and time again because it is a serious issue. It is easy to tell where Bush stands on issues -- he makes a decision and sticks to it. He has yet to flip-flop on Iraq or Afghanistan. He has yet to flip-flop on gay marriage (as inappropriate as the issue is for Federal government to be involved in) or gun control. Undecided voters should be very wary of voting for Kerry because he seemingly stands for nothing -- he clearly has no moral or value system which he uses to make policy decisions since he changes his mind so often. For someone that values freedom above all else (neither candidate in this case), it is easy to stick to your guns on social issues. For someone who doesn't know what to think or what the people want, such decisions would be more difficult.
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<b>IMO, Mods should hold members accountable who post unsubstantiated and inflammatory messages on poitical discussion threads. I'm citing
MSN Encarta Encyclopedia to rebut the accusations in the quoted post (above), because a credible case can be made that Kerry is the candidate
ideally suited, by past accomplishments with sources cited in links below,
to "take on" and expose the shortcomings and inadequacies inherent in numerous policies and in the record of the present Republican administration,
and to end up prevailing, as he has historically, in political matches, first
against Nixon, and then against Reagan/Bush. I suspect that is why there
is such venom being hurled at him by Rove/Bushco and their supporters:</b>
</td></tr></table><table cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" border="0"><tr>Article Outline</td></tr><tr><td valign="top" class="outline"><a href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761581713/John_Kerry.html#s1">Introduction</a>; <a href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761581713/John_Kerry.html#s2">Early Life</a>; <a href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761581713/John_Kerry.html#s8">Education</a>; <a href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761581713/John_Kerry.html#s3">The Vietnam War Period</a>; <a href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761581713/John_Kerry.html#s4">Early Political Career</a>; <a href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761581713_2/John_Kerry.html#s5">Senate Years</a>; <a href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761581713_2/John_Kerry.html#s6">Kerry’s Second Marriage</a>; <a href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761581713_2/John_Kerry.html#s7">The 2004 Presidential Campaign</a></td></tr></table><div style="clear:left" /><a name="s5"></a><table class="sectiontitle" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0"><tr valign="baseline"><td class="sec2">VI</td><td width="15"></td><td class="sec1">Senate Years</td></tr><tr><td colspan="3"><a class="pseclink" href="http://encarta.msn.com/text_761581713___5/John_Kerry.html" title="View print-ready information">Print Preview of Section</a></td></tr></table><a name="p38"></a><p><font size="2" class="pkey">Kerry arrived in Washington, D.C., in 1985, returning to the forum where he had first come to fame in 1971 as an antiwar leader. Now Kerry was leading the fight against another war: the Reagan administration’s effort to overthrow the <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761573126/Sandinistas.html">Sandinista</a> regime in <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761577584/Nicaragua.html">Nicaragua</a>. Kerry flew to Nicaragua and met with the Sandinista leader, <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761577418/Ortega_Saavedra_Daniel.html">Daniel Ortega</a>. Ortega shortly thereafter flew to Moscow, then still the capital of the <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761553017/Union_of_Soviet_Socialist_Republics.html">Union of Soviet Socialist Republics</a> (USSR), to pick up a $200-million loan. The Reagan White House mocked Kerry for dealing with Ortega, calling him a Soviet ally, but Kerry kept a close eye on the Reagan administration’s dealings with the small Central American country. </font></p><div style="clear:left" /><a name="p39"></a><p><font size="2" class="pkey">Soon, Kerry began to hear stories about secret U.S. assistance to a group known as the <i>contras</i> that was trying to overthrow the Sandinista government. Although President Reagan viewed the contras as “freedom fighters,” Kerry called them a “mercenary army” financed by the <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761568583/Central_Intelligence_Agency.html">Central Intelligence Agency</a> (CIA). In an echo of his accusations about U.S. actions in Vietnam, Kerry charged that the contras had been “guilty of atrocities against civilians.” Kerry’s investigations helped lead to revelations of what became known as the <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761573296/Iran-Contra_Affair.html">Iran-contra scandal</a>, in which profits from secret U.S. arms sales to Iran were illegally diverted to help finance the contras.</font></p><div style="clear:left" /><a name="p41"></a><p><font size="2" class="pkey">As a former prosecutor, and with his war experience providing him with a skeptical view of U.S. foreign policies, Kerry became known more as an investigator than a legislator. Kerry’s investigations included an examination of a banking scandal involving the <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_762504862/Bank_of_Commerce_and_Credit_International.html">Bank of Commerce and Credit International</a> (BCCI), which engaged in fraud and laundered money from illegal drug trafficking. Some of Kerry’s critics charge that his Senate career lacked distinction because of his failure to draft and sponsor the passage of major legislation. But his defenders answer that Kerry was not known for authoring bills because that task was left to his senior colleague, Democratic senator <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761567104/Ted_Kennedy.html">Edward Kennedy</a>. Nevertheless, Kerry did help write and support many key pieces of legislation. Not all of the bills fit the liberal mold that Kerry is known for. Kerry, for instance, joined Republicans in backing a deficit-reduction bill. He was a fierce critic of the abuse of illegal narcotics, working on antidrug issues with some of the most conservative Republicans, including former senator <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761581664/Jesse_Helms.html">Jesse Helms</a> of North Carolina. </font></p><div style="clear:left" /><a name="p43"></a><p><font size="2" class="pkey">Kerry also earned a reputation as a publicity seeker. He was given the nickname Liveshot for his ability to attract news coverage. But he also won many admirers who believed that Kerry was willing to tackle difficult issues. For example, Kerry worked with Senator <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761581773/John_McCain.html">John McCain</a>, an Arizona Republican and fellow Vietnam veteran, on an investigation into whether American soldiers were still being held in Vietnam. The pair determined there was no proof that Americans were still imprisoned, and they stood by President <a class="qv" href="http://encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761564341/Bill_Clinton.html">Bill Clinton</a>’s side in 1995 when the United States announced it was normalizing relations with Vietnam. </font></p> </td><td>