The Big Lie At The Heart Of McCain's Ayers Campaign

Yesterday I ran the following on my blog:

Tom Brokaw and every other journalist I have seen or read has neglected the following qualification from Bill Ayers which I have published at least twice before in this blog. It is a crucial qualification and the MSM has been shameful to ignore it. I know I am not in the loop of those blogs which are typically referenced by the MSM. But any of these high-profile bloggers could have found the same information and seen its importance. SOURCE

I'm often quoted saying that I have "no regrets." This is not true. For anyone paying attention--and I try to stay wide-awake to the world around me all/ways--life brings misgivings, doubts, uncertainty, loss, regret. I'm sometimes asked if I regret anything I did to oppose the war in Viet Nam, and I say "no, I don't regret anything I did to try to stop the slaughter of millions of human beings by my own government." Sometimes I add, "I don't think I did enough." This is then elided: he has no regrets for setting bombs and thinks there should be more bombings.

I have since found a MSM reference to the Ayer's blog and this quote -- in an April 17 Washington Post blog piece. SOURCE

So I stand corrected. The truth was out.

Ayers did not say he wished they had bombed more.

We would not expect the McCain Campaign, or its FOX flaks, to care about a crucial and subtle distinction. But heft is what matters in battles over truth. We need pieces now that make the distinction until the likes of MSNBC stop propagating the no regrets about bombing lie.

Ayers has said consistently that he regrets more was not done to end the war. This is a regret all Americans can share. To have this regret is not a sign of being anti-American.

In a deep sense, this election really is about turning the page on the thinking that would divide us by whether we have regrets about Vietnam. Or Iraq. Or war period. When last I looked, there was a right to consciously object and even to refuse to serve.

One can be a conscientious objector and be fully an American and be fully supportive of our veterans and appreciate their sacrifice. Sadly, though, we seem skewed toward an uncritical form of patriotism that would not allow the nuanced statement of William Ayers to rise above the level of a despicable excuse.

Whatever you may think of Ayers' statement, its distortion by McCain amounts to a big lie. The entire McCain-RNC robocall initiative contributes to a venomous sort of polarization that may warm the cockles of the MSM's immature heart, but which can lead to lethal harm. The Weathermen were products of such polarization. It is a supreme irony that the source of such polarization is now the McCain campaign.

Some day there will be a movement to end war that goes beyond a marginal, minority status. When that movement succeeds, our Defense Department will be devoted to defense more than to aggression. And we will not uncritically invest the bulk of our dollars in an effort to fight wars that are essentially unwinnable.

Turning the page means opening up the possibility of a better way, one which sees things as a spectrum rather than in terms of good and bad, black and white. And it means looking at the actions of a William Ayers objectively and not rather than through the lens of political opportunism.

The McCain-RNC robocall initiative moves that sorry aggregation ever closer to the end of the spectrum that leads to the very jaws of hell.

Comments

[Audrey85]

Oh I knew that, I was waiting for someone to stop allowing this lie to be pertuated. I wasn't worried about them sitting on the same fundraising panel. If he was really a terrorist, I would be more concerned about him teaching our children. Duhhhhh! Wouldn't that be the immediate concern if what he was unrepentent?

[mebble]

Thank you for clarifying that.

[BillMelater]

Actually, during 'Nam you could not be a contientious objecter and remain an American. You had to become Canadian or Europian. Either that or you would find your butt in Leavenworth or worse - Vietnam.

[Stephen C. Rose - Huffpost Blogger]

Thanks for this comment -- and to others for theirs. I suspended comments on my own blog in preference to encouraging people to come here and comment. These comments are often worth more than the original piece.

Last night I was watching a bio on PBS of LBJ -- not one of my favorite Presidents.

I had forgotten, if I even knew, that the Johnson lie regarding the Gulf of Tonkin was intimately related to his desire to whop the posterior of Barry Goldwater by proving that he was a "real American" Commie hater and such. This is a disgusting footnote to the present noxious McCain initiative, echoed by Palin, Limbaugh, Drudge and a small but growing list of know-nothings.

When this is all over and Barack is our President, my hope and my faith, we will owe him to the extent that without him our own longings, aspirations and dreams would never have achieved public expression.

That has already been done and that alone would validate and honor his service.

Let us hope the ministers of hate do not succeed in whatever bilious designs they have (or will) put into play.

And let us work as though our lives depended on it to elect Barack.

[chf2go]

McCain's whole campaign has been based on LIES - let me count the ways. I'd like to but there are so very many I am sure I would miss many of them but I will just list the obvious:

Experience counts most - Their entire primary contest was based on the fact that Barack Obama 'has no experience' was only a community organizer and then somehow flew into the senate and landed for about 3 years.

FACT: Barack Obama has a lot of experience starting as a community organizer but also as a Constitutional lawyer and Civil rights lawyer. I cannot imagine any other type of job that would prepare him to uphold and defend the constitution and protect the rights of our citizens. He then was a state senator for 8 years and a US senator for 3 years. That is a substantial career. The legislation he passed was also noteworthy with making government more transparent, ethics reform and securing loose nuclear weapons so they don't get in the hands of terrorists. He was educated at one of the nations most prestigious colleges and got the best potential education, was president of the Harvard Law review.

McCain is a master at Freud's projection - Almost anytime McCain has something nasty to say about Obama, we know he's looking in the mirror at the real target. I'm surprised no one in his campaign is man enough to point this out to him.

[ObamanextPresident]

Beautifully said. Thank you so much. I knew the truth had to be out there somewhere. I sure hope Keith and/or Rachel pick this up. I buzzed it.

[LeBeau59741]

Thank you!
I've been sending out via e-mail and posting everywhere an essay I wrote a few days after Ayers' name got thrown back in to the blender, trying to explain this very thing- for a short while, I thought I was going to be the only person explaining Ayers rather than trying to explain him away.

So, thank you- nice to hear another voice in the wilderness.

[elp37]

I have been wrestling over this issue since the first time I heard Ayes mentioned, did my own research and was quite interested in why he was so well respected.

But what has discouraged me is whether following this line of inquiry at this time would do Obama a lick of good. There's such complexity and inbeddedness of the players.

Look - you have McCain, whose shingle says "I'm a Vietnam POW" and Ayres, who gave up everything to fight an illegal war. And you have a young upstart intellectual, who criticizes the present day war...

And the next thing you know Palin is accusing Biden of hanging out the "white flag of surrender".

Then the economy tanks, McCain's ship is sinking - his only tactic is no longer meaningful. Still, McCain is of a generation, who have a terrible time admitting error or changing course.

Wasn't there a way to somehow interweave past; Vietnam hero, war protester terrorist - with a fear for our future - communist terrorist president?

I wasted time wondering if McCain was trying to redeem Vietnam. It doesn't matter. But it's how he has gotten to where he is. So I think he fears letting it go.

I do believe if Ayres hadn't conveniently shown up McCain would have had to invent him.

We grandstand about educating people around the world, in order to promote democracy, while following a policy of dumbing-down our own citizens to control election outcomes. You can't have it both ways.

[jefflorida]

that last sentence is so true. the republicans kill thousands and claim it is to promote democracy then do all they can to disenfranchise their domestic opponents up to and including illegally jailing the ex-governor of alabama.

[USAFree1]

As a Vietnam War anti-war activist, I agree that we didn't do enough to end the war. I will say, however, that the murders at Kent State and Jackson State had a realy dampening effect on the anti-war movement. Most folks just weren't ready to die for the cause. That said, we did what we could and the war did eventually end. Most saddening is the number of deaths on all sides. Unfortunately, this country didn't learn the lesson from Vietnam. You know, everybody disses the French for not jumping on the bandwagon concerning Iraq, but they warned us about Vietnam and warned us about Iraq. After all, they had their total screw up in Algeria as an example of how such a war and occupation can and will go wrong.

[Smuhamm]

The Truth when brought out must continue to be brought out and a media blizz to all news media with the truth is bound to prevail. We should email them daily with the truth until truth is being reported. A mass media blizz about the true words of Bill Ayers, until they recognize the lies they are spreading, everyone should be accountable.

[poobah]

I was amused by McCain's explanation of HIS association with the urban terrorist, GG Liddy. It was okay because Liddy had served time. HIS associate was guilty of prosecutable offense whereas Obama's wasn't? If that is the logic he uses for his decision making processes, don't let him make them as president.

[SpoxLogic]

Well, isn't obvious that the MSM is NEVER, EVER going to point out what Ayers really meant. They are owned by people who lean heavily to the GOP. And if continuing to help spread lies means more money for them, they will glady spread any lie the GOP wants.

[Stephen C. Rose - Huffpost Blogger]

It is obvious with tiny exceptions like Rachel Maddow to whom I have sent this. The basic hope is that Huffungton Post will serve as a pressure on MSM. Am I dreaming?

[GregJL]

Dunno, but I've emailed MSNBC about it. TOld them this combined with Brokaw's dismal performance as debate moderator has put MTP on my scrap heap along with "This Week" (due to the Stuff-it-upyour-ass performance as a tabloid journalist during the primary debate).

[HeevenSteven]

I don't know if it will work; look how many times ahmadinejad's misquote "wipe Israel off the map" has been propagated. McCain has repeated it so many times I've lost count, and I've never heard a single pundit question it.

[research]

Not till we break up the Murdock empire.

NEW RULE:

You can only own ONE media outlet.

[cynhome]

Please write and call the MSM and have everyone you know do the same. Somtimes a whole lot of phone calls get more attention because they can't be so easily ignored. There' s a real human on the other end of the line! And if enough people threaten to boycott a TV station or its sponsors, they pay even more attention. Believe me, call about slanted information about what Ayers said and also about the AIP while you're at it -- and maybe throw in voter suppression. It is up to us to change things around. The reason I know it works is that a whole lot of people upset with a TV station's show about autism called constantly and got the station to the remove the show! So, if enough people complain, and say exactly what it is that they object to, things can change.