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Post your thoughts about the HBO Documentary Films production MR. CONSERVATIVE: GOLDWATER ON GOLDWATER.
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Posts:
1
Registered:
2/11/08
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(12 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Feb 11, 2008 11:05 AM
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I became a member of YAF in early 60's and as a student in High School, I supported Barry Goldwater and became a very active Conservative.
I graduated High School in May 1966 and entered the USAF in May 1967 DEP and active duty on my mom's birthday 07-19-1967.
I had been told by the guy at the Draft Board in St Louis that I could be 4F due to badly flat feet. I told him that I was volunteering for the USAF and not to 4F me.
After joining the USAF I got my assignment to Electronics School due to my high AFQE scores.
I was in the top 10% of my classes and as such I got my request to attend Electronic Warfare Electronics and again I was in the top 10% of those classes.
I received a special assignment to USAF Security Service as an Airborne Maintenance Technician and went through more schools.
I volunteered to take the place of a friend whose wife was pregnent and he was going to Vietnam and me to Japan.
They sent both of us to Vietnam.
I was cleared for Top Secret with Crypto Access and we actually worked for the NSA/CSS.
I was a crewmember in Vietnam with the 6994th Security Squadron at Pleiku and later DaNang on the EC-47.
While there, I was able to make calls via the MARS station there to my parents in the USA. These calls were routed through Barry Goldwater's Amateur station in Arizona and he paid for the phone calls after we connected.
To this day, I value the love that Barry had for the members of the military and especially for us who were shunned and attacked by the Liberals who hated us!
I even got a ham license bak in High School because I knew of Barry's ham interests!
My parents started me off as a Conservative and it was Barry who kept me there and Ronald Reagan not only kept me there, but he gave me the spark that keeps my life going as a Conservative!
I know that Liberals are terribly upset by Conservatives and that men who violate our beliefs feel that their hate for the military and our way of life is their way have no idea what it is like to have positive values!
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Posts:
5
Registered:
10/11/06
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(11 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Oct 11, 2006 12:47 AM
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I'm one of the few who voted for Sen. Goldwater in 1964. I was a liberal at the time, but I was impressed with Sen. Goldwater's reputation for honesty and telling it like he saw it. Possibly another Pres. Truman. I was living in California and the exit polls for the East and Midwest had already reported the Johnson landslide. I had planned to vote liberal, but I couldn't stand the thought of someone as good as Sen. Goldwater being completely trounced, and I thought that my vote wouldn't matter because Johnson was the winner no matter how California voted.
I think what Johnson capitalized on was Goldwater's hawkishness when it came to use of SAC and its nuclear arsenal. People were fearful that he would get us into a nuclear exchange. They didn't realize that the Soviets were also fearful of a nuclear exchange and tough talk would enhance our bargaining position. Ironically, President Reagan's later hawkishness supposedly contributed to the collapse of the Soviet Union. The Soviet economy could not support his "Star Wars" escalation of the arms race. (We couldn't either, but we had a better credit rating and other nations and private bodies were eager to lend us the money through purchase of Treasury bonds.)
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Posts:
1
Registered:
10/7/06
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(10 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Oct 7, 2006 3:45 PM
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I grew up in a hotbed of Goldwater Republicans. I remember my mom, aunt and grandmother carried big purses with 'AuH2O' on them during Goldwater's presidential campaign. I've got a copy of a letter my grandfather wrote to Barry Goldwater during that time; he found much to admire and agree with in Goldwater's ideas.
I consider Barry Goldwater to be the father of libertarian thought in this country.
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Posts:
1
Registered:
9/21/06
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(9 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Sep 21, 2006 3:13 PM
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I had the great privilege back in the middle '60s of being chosen at the age of 16 to serve as one of the amateur radio operators who handled phone patch traffic between men and women in Southeast Asia and their loved ones back home from his beautiful house in Paradis Valley. It was during that time that he sort took me under his wing and became a mentor. He taught me many valuable lessons, perhaps the most valuable of which was that I am not gifted for political service.
One treasured memory I have of him was when I was sitting in the terminal at Sky Harbor Airport waiting for the flight that would take me to Navy Boot Camp in San Diego, thereby beginning my own time in the military during the Vietnam War. As was staring off into space when a hand gently touched me on the shoulder. I looked up to see that broad grin that had become so familiar to me. He was sporting about three days of beard growth, a western shirt, jeans and black cowboy boots. We sat and talked for a bit. He told me how important it was to keep my locker neat, and make sure that when I made my rack up in the morning that the sheets were tight enough to bounce a quarter in the air. He said that, "everything after that is noise level, Rich. Do that, and you'll get along fine with your Company Commander."
How amazing it was that he would be so thoughtful to take the time to drive down the the airport to see me off, but that was just the man that he was.
Not only was he passionately compassionate toward those who were in need, but he also had an amazing gift of recall. He had only met my mother once in the years I volunteered for him. One day while I was off in the Service, he stopped by the high school where my mother worked as the bookstore clerk. He was walking across the campus to give a speach to the student body at an assembly and noticed my mother walking in the other direction. He looked over her way, waved and said, "Hi Bev! How is your son doing in the Navy?" She said she just about fell down.
Maj Gen Barry M Goldwater was one of a kind. Often misunderstood, he nevertheless pushed forward with his devotion to bless people and make a difference in the world. That he did with extraordinary character.
Thanks CC, and HBO as well, for this documentary.
Dr. Richard Olsen
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Posts:
1
Registered:
9/19/06
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(8 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Sep 19, 2006 10:28 PM
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I had worked as a photo journalist at local TV station in Phoenix in the late 1970s and early 1980s. I had been to Senator Goldwater’s home on occasion for news conferences. He was always gracious toward the media. One event I will always remember was the time TV crews met Senator Goldwater at the airport to video tape the Bill of Rights which the Senator had brought to Arizona for public display. It was in a wooden crate and no one present had a phillips screw driver to open it. I remembered that I had a Swiss Army knife and I gave to the Senator to open the crate. He was appreciative and made a comment about how well prepared I was. I still have that knife and it is very special to me. Thank you HBO and all those involved in the documentary for telling the story of this great American.
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Posts:
1
Registered:
9/19/06
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(7 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Sep 19, 2006 2:44 PM
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> Post your thoughts about the HBO Documentary Films
> production MR. CONSERVATIVE: GOLDWATER ON GOLDWATER.
I was deeply involved in NJ politics in 1964 and was an elected member of our delegation to the GOP convention. I tried to forward dozens of photos from that event with an email, but this window doesn't seem to want to accept images. Is there a site I can post them to?
Frank Betz
andyzane@aol.com
And in the photos below, Webster Todd, Goldwater speaking to us;
Next row: two photos of NJ Senator Clifford Case;
NJ Delegates - State Sen Charles Sandman on right;
2nd row Chancellor interviews John Lodge; House Majority Leader Cong. Gerald Ford (long before he was President);
3rd row, Sen Leverett Saltonstall from Mass seated next to House Speaker Joseph Martin. Lower right was Charles Hallek, Majority Whip.
Next page, top row: George Romney visits NJ delegation; and, I believe, NJ Congressman Peter Frelinghuysen addresses convention.
2nd row: floor shots
3rd row: NJ Delegation members
1st row" California Delegation lead by Sen William Knowland; John Lodge
2nd row: US Sen Candidate Bern Shanley under NJ standard
Next on right: Gabe Pressman interviews NY State GOP Chairman (I think)
Bottom left: Sen Ev Dirksen composes his own address to the convention
Next page, first row: Cigar chomping Philip Hoffman, J&J Chairman and Very BSD in NJ politics behind the scenes; On right Eric Severied (?) doing an interview with Kansas Freshman Congressman Robert Dole;
Next two are shots of NJ delegation members - Cong. Frelinghuysen is recognizable;
Bottom right is humorist Marvin Kittman, who was campaigning to be our Presidential nominee.
Next page: Sen. Dirksen spellbinds the delegates in support of Goldwater;
Second row: Is this Joe Gonzalez on right sketching? (He was in attendance)
Bottom row: Gov. Mark Hatfield also wanted to be our candidate.
Next page: Gov Scranton addresses Delegates at private reception. Larry Newcomb of Scotch Plains was a key Scranton campaign aide;
At this event he introduced me to fellow delegation member Tom Kean Sr. and told me to keep my eye on him because he would one day be NJ Governor.
Middle row: Street scenes in SF: at Mark Hopkins; on cablecar.
Bottom: Joe Gonzalez with the Goldwater Girl Squad
Below, Sen Goldwater meets NJ delegates at our reception. Just past him NJ GOP Chairman Webster Todd is whispered something by his 18 year old daughter, then known as Christine, but (much) later as NJ Gov. Christie Whitman. On the right, Sen Dirksen addresses the convention.
And that's all, folks for today!
Frank Betz
And in the photos below, Webster Todd, Goldwater speaking to us;
Next row: two photos of NJ Senator Clifford Case;
NJ Delegates - State Sen Charles Sandman on right;
2nd row Chancellor interviews John Lodge; House Majority Leader Cong. Gerald Ford (long before he was President);
3rd row, Sen Leverett Saltonstall from Mass seated next to House Speaker Joseph Martin. Lower right was Charles Hallek, Majority Whip.
Next page, top row: George Romney visits NJ delegation; and, I believe, NJ Congressman Peter Frelinghuysen addresses convention.
2nd row: floor shots
3rd row: NJ Delegation members
1st row" California Delegation lead by Sen William Knowland; John Lodge
2nd row: US Sen Candidate Bern Shanley under NJ standard
Next on right: Gabe Pressman interviews NY State GOP Chairman (I think)
Bottom left: Sen Ev Dirksen composes his own address to the convention
Next page, first row: Cigar chomping Philip Hoffman, J&J Chairman and Very BSD in NJ politics behind the scenes; On right Eric Severied (?) doing an interview with Kansas Freshman Congressman Robert Dole;
Next two are shots of NJ delegation members - Cong. Frelinghuysen is recognizable;
Bottom right is humorist Marvin Kittman, who was campaigning to be our Presidential nominee.
Next page: Sen. Dirksen spellbinds the delegates in support of Goldwater;
Second row: Is this Joe Gonzalez on right sketching? (He was in attendance)
Bottom row: Gov. Mark Hatfield also wanted to be our candidate.
Next page: Gov Scranton addresses Delegates at private reception. Larry Newcomb of Scotch Plains was a key Scranton campaign aide;
At this event he introduced me to fellow delegation member Tom Kean Sr. and told me to keep my eye on him because he would one day be NJ Governor.
Middle row: Street scenes in SF: at Mark Hopkins; on cablecar.
Bottom: Joe Gonzalez with the Goldwater Girl Squad
Below, Sen Goldwater meets NJ delegates at our reception. Just past him NJ GOP Chairman Webster Todd is whispered something by his 18 year old daughter, then known as Christine, but (much) later as NJ Gov. Christie Whitman. On the right, Sen Dirksen addresses the convention.
And that's all, folks for today!
Frank Betz
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Posts:
1
Registered:
9/18/06
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(6 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Sep 18, 2006 10:51 PM
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Once when I was quite young, I was in a suburban Washington Radio Shack with my father. A man came in wearing a bathrobe, grabbed a bunch of parts and dumped them on the counter.
My father, who worked on Capitol Hill, saw me looking at the man and said "That's Senator Barry Goldwater." At that time I did know that about his interest in electronics and radios....but I instantly like him.
I was fortunate to have the Senator as my high school commencement speaker years later. I have always had a fondness for him and the HBO special brought it all back for me. I appreciate his kind of conservatism and politics.
Thanks CC for this great tribute to your grandfather.
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Posts:
1
Registered:
9/18/06
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(5 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Sep 18, 2006 10:40 PM
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I cast my first vote for president for Barry Goldwater and while today, I classify myself as a moderate I do not regret my vote. He was a class act. I know of no politician today that can match his integrity, his honesty, his civility, and his love of his country.
Congratulations to Ms. Goldwater and the rest of the crew for the excellent documentary. It is a wonderful opportunity for the younger generations to learn about this truly great man. Thank you for your great work.
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Posts:
1
Registered:
9/18/06
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(4 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Sep 18, 2006 11:23 AM
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In 1966, while I was visiting my cousin in Phoenix, she related the following story. (Recall that in those years, overseas telephone calls were unreliable and very expensive.)
One evening, she got a call from a ham redio operator who said he would patch her through to a call from her husband, who was in Finland on a long term business assignment and whom she had not talked to in several weeks.
At the end of her conversation, she offered to pay the ham operator for his time and effort, but he refused. She insisted that she would like to send him a small gift. Reluctantly, he gave his name and spelled it out for her: "Barry G-o-l-d-w-..."
Until then, I had only thought of Mr. Goldwater as a somewhat "uncompassionate conservative." I have often retold this story as an example of how a person's public persona may not reveal his true heart.
I hope that this story gives Ms. CC Goldwater and her family one more reason to appreciate grandfather.
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Posts:
1
Registered:
9/17/06
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(3 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Sep 17, 2006 11:54 PM
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I met Barry Goldwater in his Senate office when I was in high school in the 70's. I was so impressed I could barely speak.
He was a complicated man. He wasn't a kneejerk conservative living on slogans as is often the case today. While he wasn't the right man for president in 1964, I bet he would have been following Nixon's resignation. Goldwater was one of the powerful, ethical Republicans who told Nixon it was time for him to go. Too bad he never got his chance. I look forward to seeing the documentary.
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Posts:
1
Registered:
9/16/06
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(2 of 12)
Re: Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Sep 16, 2006 2:41 AM
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I was 5 years old when Barry Goldwater ran for President, and I still remember my mother -- a "Goldwater Girl" -- taking me to see him ride by in a campaign parade. It was raining and I held up a cardboard sign welcoming him to Milwaukee.
Years later, Goldwater's libertarian political philosophy is closer to my own than almost any current politician (with the exceptions of people like Congressmen Ron Paul and Jeff Flake and former New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson).
I wrote about Senator Goldwater when he passed away, a tribute that focuses on his ideas more than his very, very active life.
I look forward enthusiastically to watching Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater.
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Posts:
65
Registered:
4/22/01
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(1 of 12)
Mr. Conservative: Goldwater on Goldwater
Aug 24, 2006 4:19 PM
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Post your thoughts about the HBO Documentary Films production MR. CONSERVATIVE: GOLDWATER ON GOLDWATER.
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