President Ford

[remicks]

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. Gerald Ford , the 38th President, (for two and a half years of the disco era) has passed away at age 93.

Thanks President Ford for your service ....
.... I wish modern day Presidential candidates possessed to the same degree your character rooted in integrity and decency..... maybe then I wouldn't have to hold my nose when voting .

R I P


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[DiscoMan]

Agreed.

With the stroke of his pen he ended Watergate. I remember the very moment he pardoned Richard Nixon and thinking to myself "That's it. Watergate is ended. No trial, no blood. Nixon will not be drawn and quartered. The democRats will not be appeased."

Nixon's pardon set the country up for that traitor Carter.

You know the thing about the way the press currently is writing all kinds of glorious pieces about how great a President Gerald Ford was, they were vilifying and ridiculing him while he was in office. The parallels with G.W. Bush are amazing... And the press absolutely loved Jimmy Carter... As they do Osama Obama today...

I turn my nose up when I read an American newspaper these days.

[paul]

Well, my sentiments are no where near as glowing.
While no way near as bad as bush jr., he does share the fact that he was also unelected. Ford's pardon established the bad precedent we are experiencing with the bush crime family. Criminal activity that may get you impeached could ultimately be pardoned. By the way, the usual suspects, Cheney, Rumsfeld, etc served in those rethug administrations back then.
Ford wasn't exactly a choirboy either.
Anyway DM, you should be happy for the failings of Ford and Carter because this led to your hero, Reagan. This nation has been under that dark influence since, despite 8 years of Clinton.
So should I be surprised that you aren't supporting Obama!

[Nano]

Anyway, comparing Jimmy Carter to Osama seems a bit too much!

I don't get it with U.S. politics... It seems the same guys who wanted Clinton impeached had no problem with Nixon being forgiven. I dunno...

[remicks]

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Personally I think resigning from the highest office in the land is punishment enough .... and i' ll even give Nixon kudos for doing so. He saved the nation a lot of ongoing grief by doing so . And it was for that same reason Ford pardoned Nixon. Ford's presidency was getting bogged down with lawyers and issues concerning Nixon. He simply swept the issue from his Oval office desk by pardoning him so he could move on.
What more did we wnat anyway ? A President sitting in jail ??

Ford did one other great thing with a mere stroke of his pen Discoman . He unconditionally foregave all those that went to Canada in objection to Vietnam and let them all come home.
He also vetoed over 50 items that came upon his desk (Current Bush vetoes : ONE !) --- a record for any president .

He worked with Russia and China traveling to both . During his meager two plus years he did far more than our current guy ...who .. well, what can we say about him beyond ... IRAQ , IRAQ , IRAQ .

BTW , I just saw two special hours about President FORD displacing their regular programming on : PBS !
Did the highly regarded FOX network do anything similar ??

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[paul]

Well, as I type the major networks are doing a death watch for Saddam! In this context would jail seem harsh for those Presidents who deserve it?
Anyway, I believe it was Carter who forgave the guys who fled to Canada!

[remicks]

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OOPs ! Good catch Paul !

It was indeed (our last great President) Jimmy Carter who signed off on their coming home. Almost the first thing he did as President in fact.... one more reason I liked him .

Ford supported the idea .... but didn't enact on it ....

Ford also nominated a so-called semi "liberal" to the Supreme Court .... Stevens .... but that "mistake" may be a reason he gets a bad rap from some circles ...

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[DiscoMan]

He unconditionally foregave all those that went to Canada in objection to Vietnam and let them all come home.

Jimmy "The Traitor" Carter pardoned the cowards who saved their yellow asses by fleeing to Canada ( '77 or '78). Piss on him, them and their "legacy".

Myself, my pals (some of whom got drafted and went to the 'Nam) were "1-A", Citizens of the US of A and believed in our Civic Duty to serve if drafted even if we didn't agree with the war. We didn't want to go to Vietnam but we couldn't run away to Canada either and took Carter's pardon of the chickenshits who did run to Canada as a personnal insult. We understood that pardon to be a statement that told us were fools for our willing to serve our country and go to Vietnam. I despise Carter and his apologists.

[remicks]

Originally Posted by DiscoMan

He unconditionally foregave all those that went to Canada in objection to Vietnam and let them all come home.

Myself, my pals (some of whom got drafted and went to the 'Nam) were "1-A", Citizens of the US of A and believed in our Civic Duty to serve if drafted even if we didn't agree with the war. We didn't want to go to Vietnam but we couldn't run away to Canada either and took Carter's pardon of the chickenshits who did run to Canada as a personnal insult. We understood that pardon to be a statement that told us were fools for our willing to serve our country and go to Vietnam.
.

You said it ..... I didn't !!!

[DiscoMan]

Just don't forget who pays the price for your "comfort" and...

[dfc99bb]

President Ford was decent man. He was even liked by those who voted against him in 1976. I was one of those. What a mistake that was. My vote helped give us the inept Jimmy Carter. I was but a young college student back then and didn't know any better. But at least I corrected that mistake by voting for Ronald Reagan in 1980 and 84. Carter was the only democrat presidential candidate I've voted for.

[remicks]

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Originally Posted by DiscoMan

Just don't forget who pays the price for your "comfort" and...

Likewise.
You ain't got nothing over me.... I served just as many days as you did.
And any particular reason your "Yes sir, Mr. Government" ....

"1-A", Citizens of the US of A and believed in our Civic Duty to serve "

clan had to wait to be drafted to be so patriotic and civic minded ? Reminds me of the current crowd of young Repuglicans .

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[DiscoMan]

At least I wasn't one of your chickenshit heroes who ran away to Canada and then pardoned by Jimmy Carter. And I didn't burn my draft card. And I would have served if called.

[remicks]

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Originally Posted by DiscoMan

At least I wasn't one of your chickenshit heroes who ran away to Canada and then pardoned by Jimmy Carter. And I didn't burn my draft card. And I would have served if called.

wudda wudda wudda .

You know that was no small decision to uproot one's entire life at such a young age and move off to Canada ....an unknown land and future uncertain.

But they did it for a simple reason : Principled conviction . They didn't believe in that war and they weren't going to let the government tell them they had to.

They did this while your proud crowd hung out at the neighborhood street corner waiting to be forced into providing your strongly felt patriotic duty.

If you had anywhere near the conviction of your own claimed principles as those that went to Canada ...... you'd have done The Hustle right down to the nearest recruitment stand (and they were everywhere ) and unchickenshittedly caught that next outgoing plane to 'Nam.


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[DiscoMan]

They didn't run to Canada out of "principled conviction" they ran to Canada out of pure cowardice. And they should have stayed there.

Remicks; were you one of those pardoned by Jimmy "I've never met a foriegn despot who hates America I haven't liked" Carter?