To say that Bush wouldn't serve during the Vietnam war is ridiculous is not ridiculous. First of all, I wasn't alive during the Vietnam War but I know many people who were alive and there were only a few legal ways to get out of military service. First, you could defer service by going to college but when you got out you could still be drafted or you could join the national guard which assured yourself a ticket for stateside. Everyone knew this and the national guard in almost every state was deluged with applications.
So, to get into the national guard was very difficult, let alone into a high ranking position such as the Air National Guard. Bush use his money and family connections to into the national guard and I don't know why he is ashamed of it. This was a different time period with an unpopular war and many people used similar methods to avoid going to Vietnam.
Why wasn't it an issue during the Election 2000? Well, it came up a little bit but Gore didn't use it because he was only a war reporter in Vietnam, yet another way to get out of actual combat. Bush shouldn't pretend that he did this great service for his country when many politicians including Clinton and Gore used similar techniques to avoid combat. The National Guard back then, unlike today didn't mean you were on the front lines of a combat zone like Iraq. Further, Bush shouldn't issue statements like Bring Em On when he has never truly tasted war for himself.
Kerry did go to Vietnam, would that make himself a better president, not really. Just maybe, he would be a little more hesitant to send people to war though. However, our country has had great military and non-military presidents, so it all just depends. However, I must say, standing next to Kerry does make Bush seam a little weak.