Gaining Respect

I have never thought much of Richard Cheney. I actually met the man back in 1990 when he was the Secretary of Defense under Bush the Elder. Dick Cheney had never served a day in the US military. He had dodged going to Vietnam when he was available for the draft. Cheney made no bones about that. He sought deferments and got them. It chapped my butt to have to serve under such a man in the US military. I still recall how his handshake felt. It was like a dead fish.

I was not surprised when George the Younger chose Cheney for a running mate. Cheney was no threat, and he did have political brains. Cheney is nothing if he is not a shrewd political power player. When Cheney shot his friend many were quick to shift the blame to the man who was shot for approaching the hunting group "unannounced".

Today, Dick Cheney spoke on the record. "I'm the guy who pulled the trigger that fired the round that hit Harry.......You can talk about all of the other conditions that exist at the time but that's the bottom line and it was not Harry's fault," Cheney said. "You can't blame anybody else. I'm the guy who pulled the trigger and shot my friend."

I really don't care if the press was notified 21 hours after the fact. This was not a matter of national security. It is only newsworthy as a matter of morbid curiosity. I still do not like Richard Cheney. I do respect him a hell of a lot more now. I'll still decline any vice presidential hunting invitations though.