Rating: 
Summary: American Braveheart
Review: The William Wallace character in the movie "Braveheart" says at one point that "Men don't follow rank-men follow courage". How true, how true, and how applicable to the choice the American electorate will soon have. As noted historian Douglas Brinkley so vividly shows in "Tour of Duty: John Kerry and the Vietnam War", Senator Kerry is a courageous man, both physically and morally. He went from being-literally-waist deep in the Big Muddy to rescue a wounded comrade under fire to coming home and assuming a leadership role in the Vietnam Veterans Against the War because he knew the war was wrong and must be stopped. He had been wounded three times. Ponder that for a minute. Three separate times he had been hit by enemy fire. Three Purple Hearts. Three more Purple Hearts than are possessed by the entire student deferred, 4F, national guard weekenders in the Bush administration. Siver Star. Bronze Star. These medals are not given away lightly; they aren't just pieces of tin hanging from a brightly colored ribbon. They represent personal valor and are earned with blood.Mr. Brinkley details how this bloodied warrior had the moral courage to speak out against an immoral war (and to later join his friend Senator John McCain in leading the fight to normalize relations with Vietnam, their old foe) and incurred the wrath of the Nixon administration; they went after him and branded this legitimate hero a fraud. This was always done from the shadows, a hallmark of our most corrupt president. No doubt history will repeat itself during the 2004 presidential campaign as Karl Rove and his henchmen try to make their man's flimsy service record appear better than it is. Fat chance, since there is no there there. John Kerry is a hero many time over; our war president is not. So back to "Braveheart". Recall that William Wallace was a battered, muddy fighter who inspired immense loyalty from his men because he was out there on the battlefield with them, leading them, sword in hand. The lords they fought for were above the fray, never dirty, never bloodied, but my they sure looked pretty sitting on their fancy steeds high on a hill wearing their fancy armor and clutching their fancy, pristine weapons, just like a certain war president who rented a fancy flight suit and bounded out of a fancy fighter jet onto deck of a fancy aircraft carrier. He looked very pretty, too. "Tour of Duty: Hohn Kerry and the Vietnam War" is well-documented and well written. Let's hope that it will be followed by later volumes about President Kerry.
Rating:
Summary: John Kerry, a real American Hero
Review: I read this book with some trepidation. I was not a Kerry supporter at the time, but I have to come to understand him as a person. I myself am a Gulf War veteran with a purple heart, this book struck close to home in the way I feel about War, patriotism, and service to our country. One thing is straight, John Kerry is the REAL DEAL. ... Read this book for yourself and see what a great man John Kerry really is, this is the guy we need to have in the White House.
Rating: 
Summary: John Kerry, Savior of the Nation?
Review: It is regrettable that in our country "the politics of personal destruction" have become routine. When was it (during Nixon's administration, Clinton's?) that we collectively left behind any sense of proportion and prudence in our political passions and returned to the nineteenth century practice of just calling people names? Today individuals running for office are not allowed to be simply human beings but must either be "saviors of the nation" or plain "evil," depending upon one's political agenda. As a "swing-voter" who regularly votes a split ticket, and as one who tries to maintain some semblance of objectivity, I purchased Brinkley's book in the fond expectation that the pattern above would not be followed, and that instead I would learn something of the truth about an emerging political figure. Sadly I was disappointed, but I did learn some things; I learned that Kerry is indeed a "savior of the nation" who always brushes his teeth, is good to the little people, and stands like a valiant sentinel for truth and justice. In short, I was "treated" to two-dimensional characterization designed to draw votes during a campaign. There is no good explanation here of how such a sterling "hero" could then turn around and shamelessly attack and demean his own country while also engaging in such blatant self-promotion - even a scholar of Brinkley's skill cannot reconcile the two very different images - and does anyone really believe that it proves anything that Senator Kerry's war buddies like and support him, eveybody, even a crack dealer, has friends! I wish, too, like the reviewer below, that there was more about the connection to the Kennedy family, but in most regards that is probably outside the scope of this book. Brinkley is a very skilled writer, and that is evident here in the highly readable style. Nonetheless, this is "spin" written to promote Kerry's candidacy, a fact illustrated by its unusually low price. It will convince no one who does not wish to be convinced, and it will only evoke ridicule from those who do not. Surely good history or biography should do more than that? If Kerry becomes president, much better books will be written, if he does not, Tour of Duty will probably not even qualify to be cited.
Rating:
Summary: American Hero
Review: Brinkley's text helps explain why every one of Kerry's crew members in Vietnam, regardless of party affiliation, are supporting him in his quest for the presidency. Brinkley's account describes an especially mature, serious, and thoughtful young man, trying to do what he feels is right for the country. Kerry's enormous courage, integrity, patriotism, and strength of character are on full display here. If you want to get a sense of what type of person John Kerry is, read this book.
Rating: 
Summary: NO Virginia, this is not History
Review: There can be no question that this work is politically motivated. How else does one explain its convenient release during primary season? The author, who (surprise surprise)is a "liberal" historian and academic, had to know that Kerry was planning a run before beginning his research at least a year or more ago. This fact together with the entire tone of the work illustrate that, yes Virginia, it is a campaign book. Missing in action is the probable role that Kerry's privileged position as a friend of the Kennedy Klan played in his "war service" and"decorations" (PT-109 indeed). Also largely absent is a honest assessment of his subsequent efforts to undermind his country while it was at war (opposing a position was one thing during Viet Nam, actively supporting your country's enemies was something else entirely). What emerges here if one actually knows something about Kerry's life and career before starting, is a fairly masterful piece of propaganda, which is why I give it two stars. But let's remember that lots of men (including U.S. Grant, Douglas MacArthur, and Oliver North) have been more geniunely war heroes than John Kerry, and most certainly would not or did not make a good president. This is especially true for a man, like Kerry, who has done everthing inside and outside of office he can to undercut his country's defense (except where absolutely politically necessary). The good news is that if you want to see the President defeated for re-election, you will find enough illusion here to assuage your conscious in voting for a shallow opportunist like Kerry. But don't fool yourself that this book has anything to do with historical truth.
Rating:
Summary: NO Virginia, this is not History
Review: There can be no question that this work is politically motivated. How else does one explain its convenient release during primary season? The author, who (surprise surprise)is a "liberal" historian and academic, had to know that Kerry was planning a run before beginning his research at least a year or more ago. This fact together with the entire tone of the work illustrate that, yes Virginia, it is a campaign book. Missing in action is the probable role that Kerry's privileged position as a friend of the Kennedy Klan played in his "war service" and"decorations" (PT-109 indeed). Also largely absent is a honest assessment of his subsequent efforts to undermind his country while it was at war (opposing a position was one thing during Viet Nam, actively supporting your country's enemies was something else entirely). What emerges here if one actually knows something about Kerry's life and career before starting, is a fairly masterful piece of propaganda, which is why I give it two stars. But let's remember that lots of men (including U.S. Grant, Douglas MacArthur, and Adolf Hitler) have been more geniunely war heroes than John Kerry, and most certainly would not or did not made good presidents. This is especially true for a man, like Kerry, who has done everthing inside and outside of office he can to undercut his country's defense. The good news is that if you want to see the President defeated for re-election, you will find enough illusion here to assuage your conscious in voting for a shallow opportunist like Kerry. But don't fool yourself that this book has anything to do with historical truth.
Rating:
Summary: A great read form a true Hero!!!!
Review: This book was both exciting and educational, Kerry has some brilliant ideas, and the backgroud of service to back them up. An inspiration for anyone who loves America.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Read
Review: This is a thoughtful analysis of what it means to be a Vietnam vet. It is also an interesting look into a major politician's life and career. Kerry is a strange mixture. He was a war hero, a war protestor, a liberal northern politician who has been accused of being an "elephant in donkey's clothes", and now he's making an unprecedented comeback in the primaries. He's a series of interesting contradictions, and this book deals with many of them. The book is well-written, and the subject is fascinating. I advise everyone to read this book or buy it for that uncle who always reads war history.
Rating:
Summary: The Will to Power
Review: John Kerry spent approximately four months in Vietnam. He spent approximately one year active in the leadership of the Vistnam Veterans Against the War. Janus-like he has spent the last thirty years exploiting these two different personas -- war hero/anti-war hero -- in his life-long quest for the presidency of the United Sates. Brinkley is only the latest in the long line of people, friends, family members and comrades, whom Kerry has used to exercise the will to power. Brinkley, in 2002, was given access to Kerry and his memoirs, personal letters, and previous half-heartred tries to write his own biography provided he, Brinkley, publish prior to the 2004 presidential campaign. As a result his fawning biograph totally lacks objectivity. What Brinkley passes off as a personal "War Odyssey" of John Kerry is nothing more that the "Walter Middy" adventures of a self-aggrandizing imitator of John Kennedy, his school boy hero. If Brinkley is considering a sequel to this work covering the thiry years since those fevered days of 1970, he might consider for a catchy title "I'm Just a Giggolo."
Rating:
Summary: Finally some good news about a real American hero
Review: Hopefully America has come to her senses and will restore honor and dignity to the White House. The current occupant is a disgrace to the flag, to the country, and everything Kerry bravely fought for.
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