RESPECT

[Kiwon]

Say what you want to about McCain, I'll always respect him for his military service and strength to endure 5.5 years of torture and solitary hell in Vietnam. He had the chance for early release as an admiral's son and he refused it. That's character.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvcuEqGUwmc

He shared in his RNC speech that he was an arrogant SOB before his capture. Being beaten and emotionally broken humbled him and made him learn to depend on others. In other words, this terrible experience changed him and made him a better person.

I remember clearly watching on television the arrival of the plane carrying the returning POWs in 1973 and seeing McCain hobble off. He was a POW celebrity, if you will, and the announcer was waiting for his emergence from the plane. Americans were proud to welcome home him and the other brave soldiers. Later he was welcomed to Washington to meet President Nixon who arranged their release and to thank him.



McCain's not an orthodox political conservative and was/is not a favorite of folks on the Right. However, he's an American hero and I respect the hell out of the guy.

The media and Obama's crew can take all the pot shots at his character they want. They can't change the fact that McCain served his country with honor and distinction. His character is further distinguished by the fact that he sought to heal old wounds and helped to spur reconciliation between the United States and Vietnam governments.

Like I said before, I respect the man immensely and so should everyone else, Republican or Democrat.

[pacfan]

Re: RESPECT

Say what you want to about McCain, I'll always respect him for his military service and strength to endure 5.5 years of torture and solitary hell in Vietnam. He had the chance for early release as an admiral's son and he refused it. That's character.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvcuEqGUwmc

He shared in his RNC speech that he was an arrogant SOB before his capture. Being beaten and emotionally broken humbled him and made him learn to depend on others. In other words, this terrible experience changed him and made him a better person.

I remember clearly watching on television the arrival of the plane carrying the returning POWs in 1973 and seeing McCain hobble off. He was a POW celebrity, if you will, and the announcer was waiting for his emergence from the plane. Americans were proud to welcome home him and the other brave soldiers. Later he was welcomed to Washington to meet President Nixon who arranged their release and to thank him.



McCain's not an orthodox political conservative and was/is not a favorite of folks on the Right. However, he's an American hero and I respect the hell out of the guy.

The media and Obama's crew can take all the pot shots at his character they want. They can't change the fact that McCain served his country with honor and distinction. His character is further distinguished by the fact that he sought to heal old wounds and helped to spur reconciliation between the United States and Vietnam governments.

Like I said before, I respect the man immensely and so should everyone else, Republican or Democrat.

As a Marine Corps veteran, I totally agree with your comments about his service.

I felt the same outrage when McCain was treated like dog shit by the Bush campaign in 2000. I felt he same way when James Stockdale was disrespected in the 1992 campaign. Its more than just democrats who forget the sacrfice of these men and women. These elections bring out the worst in Americans from all sides.

The list of veterans serving this country in political positions is long and they also deserve the same respect, but both parties wipe away those sacrfices for simple political gains. Having actually served in combat, its disgusting the words that are said about our veterans and their service. Especially by those who have never served in our nation's military, in peacetime or war.

[mraynrand]

Re: RESPECT

Say what you want to about McCain, I'll always respect him for his military service and strength to endure 5.5 years of torture and solitary hell in Vietnam. He had the chance for early release as an admiral's son and he refused it. That's character.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvcuEqGUwmc

He shared in his RNC speech that he was an arrogant SOB before his capture. Being beaten and emotionally broken humbled him and made him learn to depend on others. In other words, this terrible experience changed him and made him a better person.

I remember clearly watching on television the arrival of the plane carrying the returning POWs in 1973 and seeing McCain hobble off. He was a POW celebrity, if you will, and the announcer was waiting for his emergence from the plane. Americans were proud to welcome home him and the other brave soldiers. Later he was welcomed to Washington to meet President Nixon who arranged their release and to thank him.



McCain's not an orthodox political conservative and was/is not a favorite of folks on the Right. However, he's an American hero and I respect the hell out of the guy.

The media and Obama's crew can take all the pot shots at his character they want. They can't change the fact that McCain served his country with honor and distinction. His character is further distinguished by the fact that he sought to heal old wounds and helped to spur reconciliation between the United States and Vietnam governments.

Like I said before, I respect the man immensely and so should everyone else, Republican or Democrat.

As a Marine Corps veteran, I totally agree with your comments about his service.

I felt the same outrage when McCain was treated like dog shit by the Bush campaign in 2000. I felt he same way when James Stockdale was disrespected in the 1992 campaign. Its more than just democrats who forget the sacrfice of these men and women. These elections bring out the worst in Americans from all sides.

The list of veterans serving this country in political positions is long and they also deserve the same respect, but both parties wipe away those sacrfices for simple political gains. Having actually served in combat, its disgusting the words that are said about our veterans and their service. Especially by those who have never served in our nation's military, in peacetime or war.

I blame Perot for picking Stockdale. I had the good fortune to meet the Admiral (Bond, James Bond Stockdale to you!) in 1991. He was a terrific guy, and I'm convinced he suffered from PTSD and did have alzheimers, though I'm not sure how advanced it was in '92. Perot picked him as a sort of place holder when Perot was already thinking of withdrawing, if I remember correctly. Should have picked someone else, and Perot should have been serious about running or stay out of the race. Favorite saying: "Do the right thing even if it means dying like a dog when no one's there to see you do it." (That's the kind of thinking it seems to me only a military guy who has been in serious combat, captivity, or both, like Stockdale and McCain, could truly appreciate).

[th87]

Re: RESPECT

Say what you want to about McCain, I'll always respect him for his military service and strength to endure 5.5 years of torture and solitary hell in Vietnam. He had the chance for early release as an admiral's son and he refused it. That's character.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvcuEqGUwmc

He shared in his RNC speech that he was an arrogant SOB before his capture. Being beaten and emotionally broken humbled him and made him learn to depend on others. In other words, this terrible experience changed him and made him a better person.

I remember clearly watching on television the arrival of the plane carrying the returning POWs in 1973 and seeing McCain hobble off. He was a POW celebrity, if you will, and the announcer was waiting for his emergence from the plane. Americans were proud to welcome home him and the other brave soldiers. Later he was welcomed to Washington to meet President Nixon who arranged their release and to thank him.



McCain's not an orthodox political conservative and was/is not a favorite of folks on the Right. However, he's an American hero and I respect the hell out of the guy.

The media and Obama's crew can take all the pot shots at his character they want. They can't change the fact that McCain served his country with honor and distinction. His character is further distinguished by the fact that he sought to heal old wounds and helped to spur reconciliation between the United States and Vietnam governments.

Like I said before, I respect the man immensely and so should everyone else, Republican or Democrat.

Agreed. I couldn't even imagine what he's been through. I'll always respect him for that.

[bobblehead]

rand...i agree with your post 100%. My mother used to have a saying when I would point out others who took "shortcuts". She would say "being right has been good enough my whole life and its going to be good enough for the rest of it." Doing the right thing has nothing to do with what others think.

That said, even though I have immense respect for miccain the person, I hate his politics. I think sometimes he just doesn't get things....and to top it off his nasty campaign against romney showed me that he does have a little bit of a feeling that he is entitled to this nomination and office for his past heroics....and I hate entitlement programs.

[mraynrand]

rand...i agree with your post 100%. My mother used to have a saying when I would point out others who took "shortcuts". She would say "being right has been good enough my whole life and its going to be good enough for the rest of it." Doing the right thing has nothing to do with what others think.

That said, even though I have immense respect for miccain the person, I hate his politics. I think sometimes he just doesn't get things....and to top it off his nasty campaign against romney showed me that he does have a little bit of a feeling that he is entitled to this nomination and office for his past heroics....and I hate entitlement programs.

That entitlement thinking was on display, I think, on Bill Bennett's program where Bill was agreeing with callers that we Owe McCain. Bleech. As voters, we owe McCain nothing. I think he's been a pretty marginal politician, and has run a pretty lousy campaign. The alternative looks a whole lot worse, so that's not a really inspiring reason to vote for someone.

[Harlan Huckleby]

I think he's been a pretty marginal politician, and has run a pretty lousy campaign.

It is easy to criticize a candidate who is losing.

What Republican do you suppose could do better this election cycle? I seen none that wouldn't do worse than McCain has done.

I think McCain has run a reasonable campaign, Palin was a good choice politically. He has not run a particularly dirty campaign, unless you consider that a drawback.

[mraynrand]

I think he's been a pretty marginal politician, and has run a pretty lousy campaign.

It is easy to criticize a candidate who is losing.

What Republican do you suppose could do better this election cycle? I seen none that wouldn't do worse than McCain has done.

I think McCain has run a reasonable campaign, Palin was a good choice politically. He has not run a particularly dirty campaign, unless you consider that a drawback.

I should have used a different word than lousy. Ineffective perhaps? At the same time, I have to admit to being stunned, absolutely stunned at the out and out biased cheerleading for Obama by just about every major news outlet. Maybe that is tarnishing my image of McCain's campaign.

That's a good point about other Republican pols. No one would likely have done better. Giuliani has far better command of the issues, but I suspect he would have would have been more of a hostile, dirty fighter, and I think he would have had enormously high negatives. Gingrich was an option and also has a better core conservative philosophy, but I don't know if he would have been anywhere near as aggressive a candidate as he is as a commentator. High negatives, too? Romney didn't connect with anyone. Huckabee? He looks better from a distance of 6 months.

[oregonpackfan]

A basically good person like John McCain would not have had to endure all those years of torture if the United States had not chosen to enter that senseless Vietnam War.

Remember the fear-based rants of the "Domino theory" that if we did not "win" in Vietnam, that communism would spread throughout the Pacific? Eventually, communist troops would be storming California beaches.

Do you also remember the alleged "Gulf of Tonkin" incidents in August of '64? On two successive days, Vietnamese PT-type of boats attacked American ships in the Gulf of Tonkin. Years later, we discovered it was all a deliberate hoax by our civilian(President Johnson) and military leaders to ratchet up the numbers of American troops to Vietnam.

We lost over 58,000 American service people in that war. Tens of thousands more were wounded. Thousands more still carry the emotional scars of Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome.

We should also add that hundreds of thousands of innocent Vietnamese civilians died in that War.

Unfortunately, we Americans allowed ourselves to be swayed by the deceptions of our President into entering a war with Iraq--an invasion and occupational war based on falsehoods.

Our service people in the military are indeed brave. We owe it to them not to put them in harm's way for wars based on fear and lies.

[Deputy Nutz]

A basically good person like John McCain would not have had to endure all those years of torture if the United States had not chosen to enter that senseless Vietnam War.

Remember the fear-based rants of the "Domino theory" that if we did not "win" in Vietnam, that communism would spread throughout the Pacific? Eventually, communist troops would be storming California beaches.

Do you also remember the alleged "Gulf of Tonkin" incidents in August of '64? On two successive days, Vietnamese PT-type of boats attacked American ships in the Gulf of Tonkin. Years later, we discovered it was all a deliberate hoax by our civilian(President Johnson) and military leaders to ratchet up the numbers of American troops to Vietnam.

We lost over 58,000 American service people in that war. Tens of thousands more were wounded. Thousands more still carry the emotional scars of Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome.

We should also add that hundreds of thousands of innocent Vietnamese civilians died in that War.

Unfortunately, we Americans allowed ourselves to be swayed by the deceptions of our President into entering a war with Iraq--an invasion and occupational war based on falsehoods.

Our service people in the military are indeed brave. We owe it to them not to put them in harm's way for wars based on fear and lies.

This is a piece of shit post, I am sorry I can't let it go. McCain was a sailor/soldier he went where his country told him he had to and he did his job and upholding the constitution. It takes a real man to go through what he did and not be bitter at his country. Instead he turned himself over completely to his country, he knew first hand the terror of the communist and by what means they would set forth for victory.

I think we all know that Vietnam was more of a mistake than successful. I am not questioning that but it is over even for all of you hippies that want to compare the war in Iraq to the one 40 years ago in Vietnam, but this certainly is the place for this post.

Nobody made any comment one way or another about the righteousness of the Vietnam War but for whatever reason you believe that this was the thread express you displeasure and feelings not only on the Vietnam War but the war in Iraq.

I respect your feelings on it, but certainly not in this thread, your placement was highly disrespectful. Next time you want to spread your wonderful opinions and beliefs about how terrible the US intervention in Vietnam was why don't you also state the wonderful things the communist did in Vietnam especially to their own people that they were trying to save from the oppression of capitalism and democracy.

Regardless of your statement made about the men in the military in your last sentence this whole post would make Vietnam Veterans feel worthless. I am sure most of them didn't want to be there, but they believed then and most do know that it was their duty, their country asked them to be there.

For instance I would never tell my Father in Law that that what we did in Vietnam was a mistake. He was there for two years putting his life on the line. How could you tell a person like that after all they went through and put themselves throught that it was a mistake?

[packinpatland]

Re: RESPECT

Say what you want to about McCain, I'll always respect him for his military service and strength to endure 5.5 years of torture and solitary hell in Vietnam. He had the chance for early release as an admiral's son and he refused it. That's character.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvcuEqGUwmc

He shared in his RNC speech that he was an arrogant SOB before his capture. Being beaten and emotionally broken humbled him and made him learn to depend on others. In other words, this terrible experience changed him and made him a better person.

I remember clearly watching on television the arrival of the plane carrying the returning POWs in 1973 and seeing McCain hobble off. He was a POW celebrity, if you will, and the announcer was waiting for his emergence from the plane. Americans were proud to welcome home him and the other brave soldiers. Later he was welcomed to Washington to meet President Nixon who arranged their release and to thank him.



McCain's not an orthodox political conservative and was/is not a favorite of folks on the Right. However, he's an American hero and I respect the hell out of the guy.

The media and Obama's crew can take all the pot shots at his character they want. They can't change the fact that McCain served his country with honor and distinction. His character is further distinguished by the fact that he sought to heal old wounds and helped to spur reconciliation between the United States and Vietnam governments.

Like I said before, I respect the man immensely and so should everyone else, Republican or Democrat.

As a Marine Corps veteran, I totally agree with your comments about his service.

I felt the same outrage when McCain was treated like dog shit by the Bush campaign in 2000. I felt he same way when James Stockdale was disrespected in the 1992 campaign. Its more than just democrats who forget the sacrfice of these men and women. These elections bring out the worst in Americans from all sides.

The list of veterans serving this country in political positions is long and they also deserve the same respect, but both parties wipe away those sacrfices for simple political gains. Having actually served in combat, its disgusting the words that are said about our veterans and their service. Especially by those who have never served in our nation's military, in peacetime or war.

I agree with you both 100% When it comes to McCain's military service and his being a POW. His character in those regards should be unchallenged.

But there are other ways to judge character. Like many other men (and I'm sure a few women too) in politics...Kennedy, Clinton, Edwards......
John McCain had a well-documented affair on his first wife, with his current wife. He has admitted in the books he has written about his life, that he ran around with several different women while still married to his first wife. And don't forget that he left her for a younger, richer woman - multi-millionaire Cindy Hensley who is now Cindy McCain - after she had been severely hurt in a car accident.

John McCain's military record is an umblemished, honorable, commendable one. His personal record.............not so honorable. I guess he should be given some credit tho........he didn't lie about it.

[LL2]

Re: RESPECT

Say what you want to about McCain, I'll always respect him for his military service and strength to endure 5.5 years of torture and solitary hell in Vietnam. He had the chance for early release as an admiral's son and he refused it. That's character.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvcuEqGUwmc

He shared in his RNC speech that he was an arrogant SOB before his capture. Being beaten and emotionally broken humbled him and made him learn to depend on others. In other words, this terrible experience changed him and made him a better person.

I remember clearly watching on television the arrival of the plane carrying the returning POWs in 1973 and seeing McCain hobble off. He was a POW celebrity, if you will, and the announcer was waiting for his emergence from the plane. Americans were proud to welcome home him and the other brave soldiers. Later he was welcomed to Washington to meet President Nixon who arranged their release and to thank him.



McCain's not an orthodox political conservative and was/is not a favorite of folks on the Right. However, he's an American hero and I respect the hell out of the guy.

The media and Obama's crew can take all the pot shots at his character they want. They can't change the fact that McCain served his country with honor and distinction. His character is further distinguished by the fact that he sought to heal old wounds and helped to spur reconciliation between the United States and Vietnam governments.

Like I said before, I respect the man immensely and so should everyone else, Republican or Democrat.

As a Marine Corps veteran, I totally agree with your comments about his service.

I felt the same outrage when McCain was treated like dog shit by the Bush campaign in 2000. I felt he same way when James Stockdale was disrespected in the 1992 campaign. Its more than just democrats who forget the sacrfice of these men and women. These elections bring out the worst in Americans from all sides.

The list of veterans serving this country in political positions is long and they also deserve the same respect, but both parties wipe away those sacrfices for simple political gains. Having actually served in combat, its disgusting the words that are said about our veterans and their service. Especially by those who have never served in our nation's military, in peacetime or war.

I agree with you both 100% When it comes to McCain's military service and his being a POW. His character in those regards should be unchallenged.

But there are other ways to judge character. Like many other men (and I'm sure a few women too) in politics...Kennedy, Clinton, Edwards......
John McCain had a well-documented affair on his first wife, with his current wife. He has admitted in the books he has written about his life, that he ran around with several different women while still married to his first wife. And don't forget that he left her for a younger, richer woman - multi-millionaire Cindy Hensley who is now Cindy McCain - after she had been severely hurt in a car accident.

John McCain's military record is an umblemished, honorable, commendable one. His personal record.............not so honorable. I guess he should be given some credit tho........he didn't lie about it.

Yeah...we shouldn't forget affair in the White House Clinton had with a very young intern and the many others he had. Plus, the affair John Edwards had. Wasn't Edwards wife sick when he cheated. The topic of cheating isn't a smart one to bring up because their are plenty of examples on both sides.

[mraynrand]

Re: RESPECT

Yeah...we shouldn't forget affair in the White House Clinton had with a very young intern and the many others he had. Plus, the affair John Edwards had. Wasn't Edwards wife sick when he cheated. The topic of cheating isn't a smart one to bring up because their are plenty of examples on both sides.

I think you're falling into PIP's moral equivalency trap, as though McCain's behaviour in a failed marriage makes him just the same as all the other pols she listed. John Edwards is a scoundrel through and through. Clinton's personal life was an absolute mess, with multiple rape allegations, etc. not to mention his behaviour in the oral office or during 'Nam. Not that there aren't terrible Republicans, or that McCain is flawless, but the idea of placing McCain in the same moral category as a Ted Kennedy, John Edwards, or Bill Clinton is absurd.

[packinpatland]

Re: RESPECT

Say what you want to about McCain, I'll always respect him for his military service and strength to endure 5.5 years of torture and solitary hell in Vietnam. He had the chance for early release as an admiral's son and he refused it. That's character.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvcuEqGUwmc

He shared in his RNC speech that he was an arrogant SOB before his capture. Being beaten and emotionally broken humbled him and made him learn to depend on others. In other words, this terrible experience changed him and made him a better person.

I remember clearly watching on television the arrival of the plane carrying the returning POWs in 1973 and seeing McCain hobble off. He was a POW celebrity, if you will, and the announcer was waiting for his emergence from the plane. Americans were proud to welcome home him and the other brave soldiers. Later he was welcomed to Washington to meet President Nixon who arranged their release and to thank him.



McCain's not an orthodox political conservative and was/is not a favorite of folks on the Right. However, he's an American hero and I respect the hell out of the guy.

The media and Obama's crew can take all the pot shots at his character they want. They can't change the fact that McCain served his country with honor and distinction. His character is further distinguished by the fact that he sought to heal old wounds and helped to spur reconciliation between the United States and Vietnam governments.

Like I said before, I respect the man immensely and so should everyone else, Republican or Democrat.

As a Marine Corps veteran, I totally agree with your comments about his service.

I felt the same outrage when McCain was treated like dog shit by the Bush campaign in 2000. I felt he same way when James Stockdale was disrespected in the 1992 campaign. Its more than just democrats who forget the sacrfice of these men and women. These elections bring out the worst in Americans from all sides.

The list of veterans serving this country in political positions is long and they also deserve the same respect, but both parties wipe away those sacrfices for simple political gains. Having actually served in combat, its disgusting the words that are said about our veterans and their service. Especially by those who have never served in our nation's military, in peacetime or war.

I agree with you both 100% When it comes to McCain's military service and his being a POW. His character in those regards should be unchallenged.

But there are other ways to judge character. Like many other men (and I'm sure a few women too) in politics...Kennedy, Clinton, Edwards......
John McCain had a well-documented affair on his first wifewith his current wife. He has admitted in the books he has written about his life, that he ran around with several different women while still married to his first wife. And don't forget that he left her for a younger, richer woman - multi-millionaire Cindy Hensley who is now Cindy McCain - after she had been severely hurt in a car accident.

John McCain's military record is an umblemished, honorable, commendable one. His personal record.............not so honorable. I guess he should be given some credit tho........he didn't lie about it.

Yeah...we shouldn't forget affair in the White House Clinton had with a very young intern and the many others he had. Plus, the affair John Edwards had. Wasn't Edwards wife sick when he cheated. The topic of cheating isn't a smart one to bring up because their are plenty of examples on both sides.

Examples to which I cited. Edwards, Hart, Clinton (Kennedy may have if it happened today) paid a price for their indiscretions........has John McCain?
I disaggree about it not being smart to bring up.......it speaks directly to a man's character.

[ThunderDan]

Re: RESPECT

Say what you want to about McCain, I'll always respect him for his military service and strength to endure 5.5 years of torture and solitary hell in Vietnam. He had the chance for early release as an admiral's son and he refused it. That's character.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvcuEqGUwmc

He shared in his RNC speech that he was an arrogant SOB before his capture. Being beaten and emotionally broken humbled him and made him learn to depend on others. In other words, this terrible experience changed him and made him a better person.

I remember clearly watching on television the arrival of the plane carrying the returning POWs in 1973 and seeing McCain hobble off. He was a POW celebrity, if you will, and the announcer was waiting for his emergence from the plane. Americans were proud to welcome home him and the other brave soldiers. Later he was welcomed to Washington to meet President Nixon who arranged their release and to thank him.



McCain's not an orthodox political conservative and was/is not a favorite of folks on the Right. However, he's an American hero and I respect the hell out of the guy.

The media and Obama's crew can take all the pot shots at his character they want. They can't change the fact that McCain served his country with honor and distinction. His character is further distinguished by the fact that he sought to heal old wounds and helped to spur reconciliation between the United States and Vietnam governments.

Like I said before, I respect the man immensely and so should everyone else, Republican or Democrat.

I think it's funny that you bring this point up as someone who is voting Republican. The last veteran to get hammered over his service was John Kerry. The term swiftboated is now in the English vocabulary.

I got the pleasure to meet President Bush and while I dislike his politics I shook his hand and thanked him for being our President. It's a tough job.

I'm glad my past doesn't have to get looked into.

There is nothing wrong with arguing policies and issues but when people start calling canidates "incoherent idiots" and playing down someones position on the Harvard Law Review it makes me sick.

Here are two people who are willing to be President. I am not sure that very few people would ever want that job. Get off of the personal attacks! Let's talk about the economy and foreign policy. Both canidates attack ads make me sick.