Frank Schaffner – 12/1/04

This page was last updated on December 4, 2004.

Telling it like it is; Frank Schaffner; Beaver County Times; December 1, 2004.

Below is a detailed critique of the subject letter.

“Here’s the truth.”

[RWC] For a letter proclaiming to present “the truth,” it’s a tad fact-challenged.

“1. A 100,000-vote difference in Ohio and U.S. Sen. John Kerry would be president with a 3.5 million-vote difference going for Bush. The electoral system failed us miserably again.”

[RWC] How did the electoral system fail us, before or now? The candidate with the most electoral votes won. That’s how the election is supposed to work.

Does Mr. Schaffner believe the votes of elected representatives always reflect how the general population would have voted on an issue? If not, isn’t that also a “miserable failure?”

“2. This country is not the blue states vs. the red states. If you use counties, you don’t see black and white. Oh, I’m sorry, red and blue.”

[RWC] If you use counties instead of states, there is even more red area because liberals tend to be concentrated in urban areas. What’s Mr. Schaffner’s point?

“3. Fifty-two percent of Americans believe the Iraqi war to be a righteous war. I don’t care if the military fighting this righteous war is voluntary. You don’t ask any 18-year-old through 26-year-old to do more than one death-defying tour.”

[RWC] Why not? Did World War II servicemen serve only one tour? Don’t get me wrong; I’d rather have no one in harm’s way and I don’t want anyone in war longer than necessary. Using Mr. Schaffner’s approach, however, would ensure that only inexperienced soldiers would be in harm’s way. What sense does that make? I have no military experience, but I would expect the most effective soldiers are the most experienced. I also suspect the casualty rate is lower for experienced soldiers than it is for rookies.

“If our country is fighting a righteous war, all 18-26-year-old males and females should be eligible. Why Dubya’s two daughters aren’t front-line soldiers, in this volunteer army, makes me think of one word - hypocrisy.”

[RWC] What is Mr. Schaffner writing about? Everyone meeting the age restrictions is eligible to volunteer. The idea that a President’s children must serve is a lame claim. On a side note, since I believe all members of the First Family receive Secret Service protection, I’m sure the Secret Service wouldn’t be real fond of the idea.

Did Mr. Schaffner make this claim about Chelsea Clinton when Bill Clinton unilaterally got us into Kosovo? Chelsea Clinton was 19 at the time. What about John Kerry’s children? Remember, Kerry voted for the Iraq War Resolution.

“4. The Vietnam War is very similar to the war in Iraq. Two theories prove this point accurately.”

[RWC] Theories never prove anything because they themselves are unproved. A proved theory is no longer a theory; it is fact.

The only similarities of the Vietnam and Iraq wars are that both are wars and a group of anti-American Americans tried/are trying to defeat us.

“* In the 11-year war in Vietnam we lost about 1,200 troops per year in the beginning years.

“* In both the Vietnam War and Iraq, we heard and are hearing this was in all probability going to last a lot longer than originally planned.”

[RWC] I don’t know where Mr. Schaffner gets his information, but the United States escalated its involvement in Vietnam in 1961 during the Kennedy administration so the Vietnam War was closer to 14 years long. Total casualties for 1961 – 1964 were 393, nowhere near 1,200/year. Annual casualties didn’t exceed approximately 200 until 1965 when the figure jumped to nearly 1,900.¹

No one ever said Iraq was going to be easy. This is one of those cases in which people like Mr. Schaffner bash the Bush administration for statements they never made.

“5. The abortion issue is big now and will be huge over the next four years. My message to the anti-choicers: Quit adopting newborn children. There are 7 million to 9 million 3-17-year-olds in the system. There are 7 million to 9 million unwanted children in our penal system, foster homes, legal limbo and highly abusive homes.”

[RWC] Huh? How would refusing to adopt newborn babies address contraceptive abortion and/or older “unwanted children?”

1. U.S. Military Casualties In Southeast Asia; Vietnam Veterans Memorial Website.