So, I'm sitting in our favorite Irish pub last night... must have been about 10 PM EST (that would be about 6 pints in, my time), when my phone chirps and I get a message from Ryan about meeting Ollie and Levin... but it seems Levin wasn't taking pics with the groupies the way Ollie was. Levin probably doesn't look as good in BDU's as Ollie, though... and my buddy, Mick asks who the message is from. I show him your text, and we have a good laugh. We then begin to discuss what it is about people like G. Gordon Liddy and Ollie North (both convicted felons, one of whom did 5 years of pretty tough time) that brooks such fascination in the ranks of conservatives. It can't simply be the fact that each is a decorated vet, can it? Neither held any real position of influence in either of their respective Administrations (North in Reagan's and Liddy in Nixon's), neither were privy to any substantial insight within the government, and both opted to follow the defense of "I was simply following orders..."
So, what IS the deal? How do two convicted felons find the level of redemption that these two have found? More than just these two... John Poindexter had a position in the current Bush Administration, too... some back-office desk-jockey stint for the man convicted of illegally destroying the only documents that actually showed who knew what and when, thus making sure none of the blame ever made it back to Reagan's feet.
I mean, these guys were convicted... found guilty... of felonies, and only had the convictions overturned because of prosecutors' mistakes. Bill Clinton was acquitted of all four articles of impeachment, but is the object of contempt and disdain for every conservative pundit on the face of the earth... including North and Liddy. How does this work? Why are we supposed to simply forget that the man photographed with F Ryan broke the law on no fewer than 3, and possibly as many as 16 times, in violation of the law AND his oath as an Officer and a Gentleman in the United States Marine Corps?
I can even give Liddy the credit of having "paid the price" by pulling his time for his crime... he saw the inside of a prison, but North and Poindexter didn't, and both kept their Federal pensions.
Just wondering... nice pic, though...
2 comments:
Fantatstic post! I was careful to use the "comment" section to respond, less it be my fateful hand that reduces those two STRIKING mugs from the top of the page ... good crop job too.
And the question is valid - these guys have reached folk legend status in the ideological circles with which I mix. I can only say that in North's case that he was seen as a "warrior" for Ronnie, and that inexceribly tied him to Raeagan in a way that was from then on inseperable - a sort of "doing my duty for Ron no matter the cost" way. Also, the Democrat Party's overall post Truman "softness" on communism was being waged as a philosophical argument during Iran Contra. If you remember Tip & the boys were pissed we even gave them boots (the Contras), as Jambo reminded me. So he has that ora (accurate or not, I think yes)that he did the "right" thing (note not legal thing) and stuffed it in the face of political "panzees." Plus, regardless of what you think about his "scandal era", his post scandal career in terms of what he does for active duty military is the epitomy of honorable - NO CORRESPONDENT, and I mean NONE, have had more documented trips nor spent more on the ground time with the guys in Iraq and Afghanistan then Ollie, bar none. And in that rally I was at (of which all the proceeds go to the fallen hero foundation) he noted that Hannitty and Levine think they have the best jobs in media, but he believes he does - because in his post military professional life he's either telling the tales of past soldiers (Fox's War Stories) or spending time with current ones. The man LIVES AND BREATHES military ... and that doesn't hurt him (to say the least) in my ideological crowd either. Plus, he wrote "Happy Mom's Day" to my Mother on the inside cover of the book. And by the way, his autographed book is the only thing MY MOTHER asked for from me for Mother's day - 5 days before I even knew he'd be in town (she saw he'd be in Vegas, online). I think that little tid-bit will help explain a lot in terms of why my politics are the way they are ...he,he ... good ol' Mom.
I'd be remiss if I didn't add this. My Grandfather, whose namesake I bare (the "F" in F.Ryan), sat both me and my sister down and had us watch the Iran/Contra hearings during North's testimony. NOT live, but on VCR tape, propably BETA! Yes, he recorded them (just occured to me it'd be cool if I could find them in the cadre of my family's memoribilia). Not only that, as I've repeated to Jambo often, I distictly remembet looking at checks (no carbon copies, in those days they'd send the actual check back to you after w/drawing the funds), made out to THE OLIVER NORTH DEFENSE FUND. My Grandad served in the Navy in WWII, built his own city contracted private garbage company from one flat bed truck, and thought that Noprth was the consumate patriot - "the communists hate everything we love", he was fond of repeating. He died when I was 16, a sophmore in HS. After that background it is quite surreal to see my picture with North on our publication, very surreal indeed. No doubt he's pulling up the site upstairs (with a sweet internet connection behind the Pearly Gates) and saying, "that a boy."
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