Not the Dire Straits album

The Swift Boat Vets flap is about to take an interesting turn with the release of a documentary where John Kerry's former crew mates vouch for his ever-mutating "Vietnam war heroics..."

"Brothers in Arms," a first film by journalist Paul Alexander, features Kerry and four men who served with him on Patrol Craft 94, the last of three boats he commanded during the war and the one from which he won the Silver Star for chasing down and killing a combatant who threatened his crew with a rocket.

I was reminded at once that I had seen this before many months ago. Funny how these things all come together at the same time, isn't it?

NEW YORK, March 1 /PRNewswire/ -- Senator John Kerry, surging past fellow presidential hopefuls in recent weeks, has emerged as the current front-runner in the Democratic race for the White House. Now, people are asking: What accounted for his strong, decisive showing in every political contest since Iowa and why was none of that evident in the pre-Iowa polls? How did Kerry's campaign stage this surprise turnaround? What do voters need to know about what goes on behind the scenes of Kerry's presidential campaign? Biographer and journalist Paul Alexander knows plenty and in his new book he will share with America what he has discovered. Granted unprecedented access to Kerry's family, his campaign team, advisors, and members of his inner circle, Alexander sheds new light on the man who would be president.

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About the Author: Paul Alexander is a former reporter for Time magazine and has written for Rolling Stone, The New York Times Magazine, The Nation, New York magazine, The Village Voice, and the Guardian. Alexander is the author of Man of the People: The Life of John McCain (2002) as well as biographies of Sylvia Plath,J.D. Salinger and James Dean. Until recently, he was the co-host of"Batchelor & Alexander," a nationally syndicated talk radio show on the ABC radio network. Alexander has also directed a documentary on Kerry's Vietnam years, entitled "Brothers in Arms." He lives in New York City.

Either the Kerry campaign had anticipated the Swift Vets attack months ago and had this waiting to counter it or they had planned to run this all along to promote his war record. Or both. Or maybe it's just a freak coincidence that this is premiering now.