Cynicism run amok

The Democratic National Convention's sudden infatuation with all things military Wednesday night was beyond smarmy. As a veteran, I found it manipulative, insulting and cynical. For years, the Democrats held in contempt anything to do with the armed forces; now they pose as its greatest defenders.

Sure, honor the veterans, especially those who served in combat, but the accolades went so far overboard as to insult the millions of men and women who served selflessly and sought no special mention. The Barack Obama campaign is cynically using the veterans' service for the advancement of a political agenda.

And to top it off, PBS reporter Gwen Ifil's obsequious interview of three veterans who support Obama was an insult to the profession of journalism, my profession. She threw away any pretense of objectivity when she said it was an "honor" to have been able to view a Steven Spielberg short video on veterans, produced for partisan purposes.

They're all a bunch of poseurs.