When John Kerry became the Democratic Party nominee for president, he discovered he had a large problem. In a post 9/11 world, a world where national security and the war on terror were the number one issue, some say the only issue, Kerry had a dismal voting record. Not only had the democrats been weak on national security for half a century, but Kerry's own voting record, speeches and foreign policy trips were a veritable catalog of appeasement for all to see. His Senate votes against numerous weapons systems and votes cutting the intelligence budget are well known. The media also had his 1971 Senate testimony and an appearance on The Dick Cavett Show on video, documenting his smearing of Vietnam veterans, referring to their "atrocities" as widespread.

 What to do? Kerry was in a dilemma. He could forget Vietnam as a campaign issue and concentrate on his record as a mature adult and as a sitting US Senator. But who would want to run on such a record, post 9/11? No, he would cast himself on the other horn of the dilemma. He would run on his Vietnam service after all. He would tout his record as a war hero as a qualifier for commander-in-chief, to convince voters of his trustworthiness on national security, despite 20 years in the Senate that might suggest otherwise. He would differentiate himself from President Bush who served in the National Guard.

 But there was one thing John Kerry did not plan on. He didn't count on the fact that there were other people who served in Vietnam, people who served honorably, both with him and near him, who might correct the record. John Kerry didn't count on the fact that these men might want to talk about the same events. Many of them have resented him for years for mischaracterizing their service. Now they are telling their side. At best, Mr. Kerry's account seems misleading.

 John Kerry has seriously "misunderestimated" the reactions of his swiftboat compatriots and what this path is costing him. When Bill Clinton was running for President, Kerry stood on the Senate floor and proclaimed that whether someone served in Vietnam or not should not be an issue in the campaign. He should have taken his own advise.

 George Bush is not Kerry's opponent in all this, as much as Kerry would like to make it so. No, Kerry"s opponents are other veterans, ordinary people, who are sick and tired of his embellished record and lies about their service. John Kerry chose the wrong message to campaign on. Unfortunately, the consequences are now out of his control.

  John Pendleton