Can we focus, please?

During this year's campaign for the big chair in the Oval Office, there are many issues that are sure to have a strong impact on who we elect. I am sure most people have an opinion as to which topic they feel should and will be the deciding factor in who becomes president. \nBut guess what -- it really doesn't matter which topic we, as the American people, want to address, because the media and the two campaign leaders have already made that decision. This election will be about a war. Before you start guessing as to which great American war I am referring to, rule out the epic battles in the "War of nouns" (you know ... drugs, poverty, and everyone's favorite, terrorism), and the wars against Middle Eastern countries that have invisible weapons of mass destruction. The particular war I'm referring to is the one war that one would think that the American government would want us to forget -- the Vietnam War.\nWith all of the important issues that confront the American people today, the media seems to continue to make an issue about what happened 30 years ago. This throwback campaign movement all started during mid-summer when a group called the Swift Boat Veterans for Truth began releasing television ads suggesting John Kerry didn't deserve his Purple Heart. While that issue should have been a very small topic, and really should have been over within a week, the media managed to make that a bigger issue than anything else, including the Iraqi war. It has managed to become the most over-hyped news story since the exposure of Janet Jackson's milk jugs. Instead of spending key days during the beginning of his campaign notifying the American people of his campaign platform, he spent those key days defending his record and actions over war that's 30 years old.\nJust when you finally start believing that maybe the American media is finally starting to get over that, some mysterious memos appeared on the desk of Dan Rather of CBS's "60 Minutes," suggesting that President Bush skipped a physical and that his commander felt pressure to soften his duties because of pressure from his father, who was at the time a congressman. During the past few days since the memo has come out, arguments over it's legitimacy has brought everyone's favorite war back into the public spotlight.\nTo begin, can someone please explain why this war is something that the American government and the media continue to push back into the American consciousness? Considering the cloud which surrounds the great American war of today, I wouldn't want to remind people of a past war or lies. Also seriously, why does it matter who shot who or who took a physical or didn't take one. That has nothing to do with the fact that Osama bin Laden is still hiding and probably planning another attack on America. It has nothing to do with the poor economic situation our economy is in right now. It has nothing to do with the huge loss of jobs over the past four years. It has nothing to do with the fact that Kerry still has neglected to inform the American people that he will do a better job than the incumbent. It would be really sad to see this election, which considering everything that's going on in our world right now, could quite possibly be the most important election of this generation, decided over a American war that really is a black eye on our history.