[ExcelJockey]

Whoa, where did that come from?
Obviously I don't know him, and the media certainly portrayed him as a confused old man, which I thought was not befitting the dignity of his station.
Regardless, I still blame Perot. He should have known that Stockdale would not be able to perform under that kind of spotlight, and he sent him out on that stage like a sacrificial lamb. This has nothing to do with the man's undoubted courage as a combat vet, it has to do with the brutal reality of modern politics. See Kennedy vs. Nixon 1960 for further discussion.

[rlmorel]

Sorry if that seemed directed solely at you, it wasn't.

It just irritates me to no end to see all the posters on this thread saying "Poor Stockdale, Evil Perot"

Admiral Stockdale was not dragged into that election unwillingly. If he did it, he was willing to accept what was involved.

Men like Stockdale are not taken advantage of. If he was going to take hits for his support of Perot, I am sure that he was willing to take them.

There are people on this thread who want to use Admiral Stockdale as a tool to bash Perot. Give it up. Give the Admiral his respect without using him to get your hits on Perot. There are plenty of reasons not to like or agree with Perot or his candidacy, but what he did for the POW's cannot and should not be assailed, and what Stockdale wanted to do for Perot out of gratitude, respect and loyalty was a direct end result of Perot's efforts on behalf of the POW's.

The people who made fun of Admiral Stockdale's "who am I and why am I here" line are the people who were least equipped to understand that the line was a direct result of the philosophical education and training he had received. I am sure the Admiral saw that.

It didn't "surprize" him as I am sure it did some of the posters on this thread who seem somehow sophisticated enough to know what was best for Admiral Stockdale when they infer that he didn't know it himself.