I'm a John McCain Democrat

Hell, Why Not?

Before pulling the lever for Kamala Harris, I explained why I didn’t want to vote for her. Still, I felt compelled out of duty for a forgotten ideal best represented by my hero, the late, great Senator John McCain.

Now, I don’t worship at the altar of John McCain. He was a sentient being.

I didn’t particularly like a lot of his work, such as McCain-Feingold and pushing for strikes on Libya. Nobody cares about that anymore because John McCain stood for a former way of politics, where decency and civic virtue were more important than scoring political points.

I wasn’t a big Barack Obama fan. I voted for McCain. But you know what? I was just as proud to serve under him as anybody else. I didn’t like many of his moves in Iraq, Afghanistan, etc. But, I, as JUST a GCV, understand that I don’t know everything. And I was proud of my country for voting for our first Black President—that is important. I was proud that we elected him, even though I fundamentally disagreed with him on so many things.

Writing is art. People often don’t understand that. Sometimes, writers are trying to provoke you into proving a point. Here’s the thing: we’re all shitty sometimes.

Yep. Progs. Libertarians. Center-Left. And even

Grumpy Combat Veteran

s like me are fallible. I’ve been so wrong on so many things that sometimes I wonder why anybody would ever read me.

Nevertheless, last year, I wrote a column called “I’m a Liz Cheney Democrat.” I think Liz Cheney will go down in history as one of the bravest politicians in American history. Now, that doesn’t mean she’s perfect. She’s not. Just like me. I’m a sinner. I’ve done stuff I’m not very proud of. Still, like I tell grumpy combat veterans, we’re all having a natural reaction to dealing with politics in modern-day America after being fundamentally betrayed. But it’s NOT okay to hate these people in our most volatile moments, because they’re what we fought for, love them or hate them. And, I think, I’ve proven the point that it doesn’t matter

And we all, together, have to work to help get our veterans more care — progs, libs, or whatever you identify as. Some veterans love MAGA, hate me, love me, love AOC, and hate her. And, perhaps, if we remember that our armed forces are not a homogenous block, then maybe we can all stop being such assholes to one another.

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So, I’d like to alter my moniker slightly if the judges don’t mind at home (nobody cares, idiot).

I have my blind spots: Afghanistan, Iraq, and, yes, even Israel. If you think I believe the Israelis are like angels sent from above, nothing could be further from the truth.

Have the Israelis committed war crimes during the last nearly 1.5 years of intense fighting? There might not be proof, but it happens constantly in war. Of course, it will happen, but it’s not their doctrine to do so, and they have consistently fired incompetent officers. Please, google is your friend.

I make this point to my left-of-center friends in today’s series of missives because if we’re going to defeat Trumpism, you have to make room underneath the tent.

That means, G*d forbid, Grumpy Combat Veterans who love guns, hip hop, and whatever else. The reason why Democrats lost isn’t because of the progs—it’s because we excluded more people than we included.

So, don’t take stiff jabs personally. I’ve been torn to shreds by superior officers my entire adult life. I’ve been chewed out by women, gays, lesbians, and every other color in between. Believe me, I don’t take it personally.

However, it's a different story if you come at my Afghans personally. We can all support Afghanistan and the Afghans, even if we all disagree politically. Why? Because some things should transcend party lines.

My sincere hope is that we can create a movement led by an Afghan who can finally explain to Americans what we all haven’t been able to do for whatever reason: they’re family.

Zmoongo Andiwalaano, I love all of you. Progs, Libs, MAGA, and everything in between. Why? Because somewhere, there is an Airman who feels like THIS president is the fucking worst guy in the history of America. I would disagree, but I don’t hate that Airman for that. Shit, I’m proud of him for being engaged.

I’ve been writing because I’m going to be taking a step back from GCV and AAVA. I’ve found the two best Afghans to run it, so I can focus on finishing my memoirs. Thus, for the next two months, I’m going to travel across America and speak to everyday Americans.

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen the country I killed for, and I think it will make for a great second book, “The Journey Home: Understanding America After 20 Years at War.” Who knows? Work with me, people.

For nearly 20 years, I’ve been told to write a memoir. Last Summer, I drove into the woods and wrote for 96 hours straight. It was just pure writing. Nothing else. And what came out was good enough for

Benjamin Parker

to say it was good. And that meant the world to me.

So, I’ll be handing this little thing to the Afghans for the next few months to run. GCV isn’t about me, peeps. It’s about all GCVs—gays, LGBTQIA, etc trying to remember that whatever may divide us (and there is plenty), we all fought together for a reason: to prevent another 9-11 from happening.

And guess what? We at least did that. It wasn’t how we wanted it, but it wasn’t our fault!

It was not mine. It was not yours. It was the people in DC who sold out a generation of combat veterans. You may disagree, but if you’re reading this right now, I think you understand.

Until Next Time (and more to follow on my final Fire for Effect tomorrow).