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McCain’s reputation as a war hero rests on the sum total of 20 hours in combat. That’s right. McCain spent only 20 hours in combat in the entire war. He flew 23 missions. He got 28 medals. In other words, he got more medals than he had missions. Not bad. It should be noted that none of McCain’s medals related to anything he did in combat. They were given for the supposed bravery he displayed after he had been shot down and captured.

It’s appropriate to ask whether McCain’s shoot-down was caused by bad luck or simple incompetence on his part. Of course, there is no way to answer definitively. But we can form an assessment based on the rest of McCain’s military record. At the Naval Academy, McCain graduated almost bottom of his class. He was 790th out of 795. McCain lost many aircraft over the course of his military career – five in total. Most pilots who lost aircraft at the rate McCain did would have been kicked out of the service. But McCain had protection from up on high. His father was an admiral. He was an untouchable. So McCain blundered his way through his military career until he was finally shot down.

Incompetent & Unlucky - not the best qualities in a fighter pilot.

"McCain’s reputation as a war hero rests on the sum total of 20 hours in combat. That’s right. McCain spent only 20 hours in combat in the entire war."

This is appalling to me. How long do you have to spend in combat to be considered a hero? There were plenty of young American heroes who died on beaches in places like Normandy and across the Pacific that spent a some total of 2 seconds in combat. Personally, I don't think it's "appropriate to ask whether McCain’s shoot-down was caused by bad luck or simple incompetence on his part." That is, unless he's going to be flying his own Airforce One if elected. His combat service speaks to his willingness to serve his country, and his captivity to his courage and resolve. His judgment on issues that he would affect as president can be gleaned, and has already been demonstrated by his leadership on the surge. The rest is just a bunch of meaningless armchair generaling by people who weren't there, and feel they can pass judgment on someone who suffered enormously on behalf of his country.

That’s right. McCain spent only 20 hours in combat in the entire war. He flew 23 missions.

Gee, a "mere" 20 hours in combat. I'm sure I do not know how you distinguish "combat" hours from "waiting to get shot at" hours. Say loss rates "in combat" are 1 per hundred hours. That means you have about a one in five chance of being killed during those mere twenty hours. How may people would sign up for a job like that.

In World War II bomber crews were rotated home after 25 missions. I'm not sure Vietnam, with radar guided missiles and a period when MiGs actually out performed U.S. fighters was a whole lot less stressful.

This discounts the hazards not related to combat, like the chance of getting killed in a fire on the deck or when landing or taking off from a ship at sea.

Hey Tex, do you know what they call the person who finishes last in his class at Medical School? DOCTOR!

Last in the class at Harvard Law? You get the idea. I also know men who were shot down with less than 23 missions. He was awarded those medals for his courage, bravery, and honor. It takes courage to strap on a fighter, knowing that it might be your last flight. Have you ever done that?

Also, the sons of Flag Officers that I knew in the Air Force were not “untouchable”. They had to work hard to achieve because of carrying the “legacy” burden. Blundered?

I don’t care where he was, even anchormen(last in class) he was able to be accepted out of all those that applied. An admirals son has to make the grade to get in Annapolis. It is a lot more than most people do. My husband wasn’t at the top of his class, but he still is a hero to most who wanted in and couldn’t get there. I admire anyone who went through the four years at USNA and made it through. Plebe year was tough back then.