"Enlightened statesmen will not always be at the helm." --James Madison
rə
si/ [hi-pok-ruh-see] –noun,plural-sies. "The public cannot be too curious concerning the characters of public men."
The New York Times summarizes Blumenthal's time in the military as:
“He obtained at least five military deferments from 1965 to 1970 and took repeated steps that enabled him to avoid going to war, according to records.
The deferments allowed Mr. Blumenthal to complete his studies at Harvard; pursue a graduate fellowship in England; serve as a special assistant to The Washington Post’s publisher, Katharine Graham; and ultimately take a job in the Nixon White House.
In 1970, with his last deferment in jeopardy, he landed a coveted spot in the Marine Reserve, which virtually guaranteed that he would not be sent to Vietnam. He joined a unit in Washington that conducted drills and other exercises and focused on local projects, like fixing a campground and organizing a Toys for Tots drive.”
The three sides of Richard Blumenthal - and this BEFORE he went to Washington....
"It is of great importance to set a resolution, not to be shaken, never to tell an untruth. There is no vice so mean, so pitiful, so contemptible; and he who permits himself to tell a lie once, finds it much easier to do it a second and a third time, till at length it becomes habitual; he tells lies without attending to it, and truths without the world's believing him. This falsehood of the tongue leads to that of the heart, and in time depraves all its good disposition." --Thomas Jefferson, letter to Peter Carr, 1785
One is reminded of the following quote "It stands to reason that where there's sacrifice, there's someone collecting sacrificial offerings. Where there's service, there's someone being served. The man who speaks to you of sacrifice, speaks of slaves and masters. And intends to be the master." when reading the the following by Rep. Steny Hoyer: http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704671904575194113752103610.html?KEYWORDS=shared+sacrifices+will+solve+the+debt+crisis