"George Romney undermined his presidential campaign by telling an interviewer he had been “brainwashed’’ by US generals in Vietnam"
"Lynch reverses field on Afghan mission; Congressman’s visits turn hawk into critic" by Bryan Bender | Globe Staff, April 07, 2012
WASHINGTON - During one of Representative Stephen F. Lynch’s early visits to Afghanistan, a crush of angry protesters had to be forced out of the path of his convoy with rifle butts. When his plane approached Iraq in the weeks after the 2003 invasion, enemy mortars were still striking the runway.
The South Boston Democrat, who won his seat in a special election on Sept. 11, 2001, has traveled to the war zones in Iraq and Afghanistan 21 times, more often than almost any other member of Congress.
That is eerie.
He has often been the only Democrat in the visiting delegation. The fact-finding missions - often into savaged neighborhoods, his blood type written on his body armor in case of attack - helped make him much more supportive of the decadelong war effort in Afghanistan than his Bay State colleagues.
In a wide-ranging interview late last month, Lynch said his evolving view was prompted by recent visits and one-to-one talks with service members.
Interviewed him late last month, huh? Keep tht in mind, readers.
Matters were made worse by the violence sparked by the accidental burning of Korans by US service members and then the slaying of 17 Afghan civilians, reportedly by an Army sergeant.
Related: The Lone Gunman of Afghanistan
Pissed-Off Afghans
Seriously, can you blame them?
The Obama administration, for its part, insists that the current strategy is working.
Are they on drugs down there or something? I thought the American people got a change in administrations.
The key is to stay on that mission, Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta said after meeting last month with Karzai, who has also called on the United States to speed up its withdrawal plan. “We’re on the right path. I’m absolutely convinced of that. But the key right now is to stick to that path.’’
Stay the course, 'eh?
Lynch, meanwhile, stressed that if he believed Al Qaeda would flock back to Afghanistan after a US withdrawal next year, he would have a different view. He said he is confident that by next year the Afghans will have enough tools to prevent that.
Sorry, but the old "Al-CIA-Duh" bugaboo has been soooooo played!
His evolving position brings him more in line with his fellow Massachusetts Democrats, according to Representative Jim McGovern of Worcester, a longtime critic of the war who has traveled to Afghanistan twice.
“More and more people here, with each passing week, are having reservations about continuing in Afghanistan,’’ he said. “Afghanistan is a failed state, and when we leave it is going to be a failed state.’’
We don't just have reservations, Jim; we despise the damn thing.
Of course, expecting truth and war crimes trials and all the other things that would make up a beautiful world is not to be expected here.
More than 1,900 US service members have died in Afghanistan since 2001. Including partner nations, the coalition death toll has been about 3,000, according to icasualties.org, which compiles tallies.
Afghan deaths: unknown
Lynch’s more hawkish views - particularly his 2002 vote to use force to overthrow Saddam Hussein in Iraq - have come under fire from some constituents. In 2010, as he faced a primary challenge from a more liberal Democrat, a website called SteveLynchsBadVotes.com singled out his stance on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Lynch’s district has been redrawn to now include Quincy, Weymouth, Hingham, Cohasset, Hull, and Abington. This fall, as he is seeking a fifth full term, he faces a challenge from 30-year-old Republican and Iraq war veteran Matias “Matt’’ Temperley.
Oh, this all about reelection positioning, not principle.
Temperley has criticized him on a host of issues, from the economy to entitlement spending. On the war, he believes US troops must remain to “accomplish the mission.’’
And what is the mission, exactly? To keep the place profitable for warlords and drug production that benefits banks and black budgets?
But Lynch insists that the facts on the ground now call for a reassessment. He has logged more trips than even Massachusetts’s senior senator, John F. Kerry. The chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee - and former presidential candidate - has been to Iraq and Afghanistan 17 times, according to his office....
Related:
“I think that in the next days, the government of Afghanistan’s response to anticorruption efforts are a key test of its ability to regain the confidence of the.... American people [who] are prepared to support with hard-earned tax dollars and with most importantly, with the treasure of our country — the lives of young American men and women.... and say, ‘Hey, that’s something worth dying for.’ ’’
Is it, American?
Are all the lies really worth dying for anymore?
Lynch, who was in Afghanistan in November, has insisted on speaking with service members alone - without their commanding officers present - to get their unedited impressions.
“I heard a lot of negative in terms of progress of operations,’’ he said....
Meaning the GENERALS, the White House, and the AmeriKan media have lied, lied, lied!!!!!!!!!!!
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And remember that end-of-the-month interview?
"Lynch finds a privileged space in parking wars" March 30, 2012|By Stephanie Ebbert
Every morning before dawn, residents of Dorchester Heights in South Boston scurry out of their homes to move the cars they had parked in desperation the night before in a school parking lot nearby.
The tow trucks, they know, will be prowling just after 6 a.m.
But this week, one sport utility vehicle did not budge two mornings in a row. And the tow trucks steered clear.
The Chrysler Aspen with the distinctive license plate, USA 9, is owned by US Representative Stephen F. Lynch, who lives in the neighborhood, which is notorious for its paucity of parking spots.
The SUV had been parked in an unlined, sloped corner of the South Boston Educational Complex parking lot since at least Wednesday morning. On Thursday about 6 a.m., as other residents raced out to save their vehicles from being towed, a tow truck passed by Lynch’s SUV. The vehicle was moved Thursday afternoon, after the Globe called his congressional office in Washington.
In a statement issued through his spokeswoman, Lynch said: “The vehicle was inadvertently left in the parking lot past the allotted time in the morning. When my wife went to move the car, it had been partially blocked in by another vehicle. That may also be why it wasn’t towed. I sincerely apologize if I have caused anyone any inconvenience.’’
He did not, however, address why his vehicle was parked there on both days.
I'm glad the Globe is all over him about a parking space, aren't you?
That same SUV drew scrutiny for the Ninth District congressman six years ago, when he bought it with a $10,000 down payment from his campaign account. His campaign committee assumed the $766 monthly payments and his $6,437 annual insurance premium, the Globe reported at the time. Although other members of Congress often use vehicles leased by their campaigns, Lynch’s personal ownership of a vehicle paid for by a campaign was unusual.
Parking is scarce in the neighborhood of carved-up triple-deckers, and the parking lot at the former South Boston High School provides a welcome, off-street reprieve for motorists who grow tired of circling the streets, looking for an available spot. But a sign featured prominently on an entry fence warns that parking is banned during the school year from 6:15 a.m. to 5 p.m., and the tow company is quick to haul off vehicles.
“I think they tow every morning,’’ said Greg Neville, who lives across from the lot. “I always hear the car alarms going off. They wake me up.’’
A Globe review of city towing records last year found that the school lot was one of the busiest sites for tow trucks across the city. The South Boston Educational Complex lot ranked about 15th among all locations in the city for the number of cars towed between 2009 and 2011.
The company that handles the school parking lot, Robert’s Towing, is also known for being particularly aggressive. The Globe reported last year that the company attracted more complaints to the state and the Better Business Bureau than any other tow company in Boston.
See: Parking It For the Night
But owner Robert Kopelman said that he typically would not tow a car that has a government or political plate from school or government property. He would assume the person was there for official business.
“If it’s a government-type building, it’s a no-brainer that they have something to do there,’’ Kopelman said.
What if they just have to find some place to park for the night and forgot to move it in time?
He would tow the vehicle, Kopelman said. But only if somebody called to complain.
“If the Boston schools had an issue with it, we would tow it, for sure,’’ Kopelman said.
Spokesman Matthew Wilder said the School Department did not issue any directives to the towing company, and Kopelman said his company received no calls about Lynch’s SUV this week. The company did not end up towing any other vehicles from the school parking lot Wednesday or Thursday.
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I'm going in reverse when I read a Boston Globe.
