Who would have thought the confession — media-wise as the debut of a new luxury SUV — by former Senator Bob Kerrey that he was responsible for the massacre of at least 14 Vietnamese women and children would evoke so much sympathy?Well, there’s ol’ Killer Bob himself, for one. Whose grizzled mug appeared on the cover of Time magazine with a caption: “His sadness, shame and decades-long silence remind the rest of America of the war’s wrenching ambiguity.” Which is to say, isn’t it awful that terrible things like the Mekong Delta massacre could happen to such a nice guy? This is exactly the way Kerrey wanted it played when he made his cold-blooded and pre-emptive (according to accounts in both Inside and Slate) disclosure just days before the scathing New York Times account by Gregory Vistica appeared. Kerrey’s defensive ambush was surprisingly effective — many who read the Kerrey version skipped the real thing.
Source: Killer Bob | L.A. Weekly