I’ll take your word for it as you sound knowledgeable about it, as do some others who have replied here. Then how did it get on WIKI Answers? There are so many stories out there about McCain during the Viet Man war years that it is very difficult to separate truth from fiction. I guess I’ll just stick to disliking him from when he dumped his first wife who stuck by him through his captivity on.
Man = Nam above.
> “ I guess I’ll just stick to disliking him from when he dumped his first wife who stuck by him through his captivity on.”
That’s pretty much all one needs to know to say that McCain is a very poor character.
The back story is she had quite an illness while he was gone and she had gained a little weight so she wasn’t as pretty as she had been before he left. So when he returned he dumped her and immediately found a younger, prettier and richer wife.
I hate to imagine how she must have felt after waiting for him dutifully for so many years, praying for his safety and his safe return, and then having him return home to dump her for a younger prettier version. There’s no honor, no integrity in this man. And that’s why he gets no benefit of the doubt in any scandal because he’s a known bad character.
It wasn’t so long ago that company executives and bosses judged a man by how well he took care of his family and how well he treated his wife, how well he kept his vows and how well he raised his children.
As the love of my life would say, God has a way of punishing those who intentionally hurt and harm others and are not repentant. In McCain’s case I look at his daughter and think there’s his punishment.
I don't like McCain but a lot of people are going way overboard on attacking his service. Many persons during Nam with any connections at all used them to stay stateside or if deployed they were given non combat safe jobs out of harms way.
McCain chose to volunteer to be a pilot. It is one of the most dangerous jobs in the Navy. Others would be Patrol Boat Gun Crew, & on a carrier a Liquid Oxygen Plant Operator, Flight Deck Crew, and the guys down in what is called The Hole which on the one I was on was the Boiler Rooms and Machinery rooms.
His pilot skills as a LTCDR would have had to have been at least on par with pilots in his squadron. If he didn't have the skills he would have crashed on deck of the carrier and even some of the best still do. Some live some don't.
To his credit McCain could have taken an easier way up the officers career ladder by being a surface ship Deck Officer in a field of something like Engineering or Communications etc. In doing so he would have likely made the same promotions and as a LTCDR been eligible to be Captain of a ship aka the ships commanding officer.
A ships Captain doesn't mean they are an actual Captain in rank rather it is to identify them as in charge of the ship. McCain could have been in a lot safer job and still made his rank. The Navy needs surface officers also.
There is one other thing. Hanoi Hilton was no GITMO. The NVA was ruthless as savage sadist in their torturing methods. McCain they would have believed had special information by talking to his dad and torture would be how they would obtain it that and drugs, sleep deprivation, etc. The higher the rank the more brutal they were because they wanted Intel. An Admirals son especially one in charge of the Pacific Fleet put his life in grave danger.
Also one a person is awarded citations it usually is a brief description. Several reasons for that. The actual event could be classified topping the list. The information to recommend someone for award is where the story is at and it is often not public.
I'll give you an example. A senior enlisted or an officer can see someone do something that was above and beyond the call of duty and recommend then for anything from a Command Level Letter Of Commendation to a service level award. A Command issues Letter of Commendation by the Captain will be the same length in text more or less as a much higher service level award. Also the person being recommended may possibly have absolutely no knowledge of it.
I had that happen. My chief came up to me and we were fixing to have a formal formation of the flight deck with the Captain inspecting and talking to us. I was supposed to be on watch in a machinery room instead or so I was hoping LOL. My Chief said get you blues on and make sure your squared away you gotta go to formation. I thought well somebody changed the watch list to get out of inspection.
I was in formation and they began calling out shipmates names. Most of them I knew some I didn't. That meant too come forward and stand before the Captain. They called mine and I thought great what's wrong. My section leader in Fire Department put me in for a Command Level Letter of Commendation from the Captain. I didn't ask for it or expect it. I didn't even know it had been put in. But it had to do with a fire we had in the shipyards. The description of why I got it was brief and didn't even state the actual fire. That event at the time was classified and being investigated. That is how it usually works.
McCain as some might think didn't just say Dad I want a medal. LOL