Photo by Flickr user lylamerle. Used under a Creative Commons license.
Mark Kleiman of The Reality-Based Community addresses the popular meme that Senator McCain is above criticism because he was a prisoner of war (POW.) While you’ll want to read the whole post here are some points relevant to topics we discuss here.
McCain was a former POW when he cheated on his wheelchair-bound wife and then dumped her for the younger, prettier, able-bodied heiress to a beer fortune.
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McCain was a former POW when he said (as a “joke,” of course) “You know why Chelsea Clinton is so ugly? Because Janet Reno’s her father.” And he was still a former POW when he apologized to Bill Clinton but not to Hillary Clinton, Chelsea Clinton, or Janet Reno.
McCain was a former POW when he screamed an obscenity at his wife in public.
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McCain was a former POW both when he denounced the “agents of intolerance” and when he embraced them.
McCain was a former POW when he denounced Swiftboating and attack ads, and remains a former POW as he embraces them.
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McCain was a former POW when he reversed his positions on abortion, tax cuts for the rich, and immigration reform.
I’d add that it’s not John McCain’s post-POW responsibility that members the press prefer ride on the tire swing at one of his estates (the Sedona one I think) instead of taking him to task. That would be their responsibility.
Submitted by 2360 (not verified) on Fri, 2008-08-29 07:31.
What exactly do people think is so honorable about having been in the military? I, for one, am much more likely to vote for a candidate (for any office) who never chose that path.
[There's nothing specifically honorable being in the military -- it's what you do *in it* that makes it honorable. Or manifestly *not!* There are some pretty cool people who've done it, while others who haven't (say, virtually every prominent 'winger *except* McCain -- starting with Bush, Cheney, and Sarah Palin) are significantly *uncool.* In other words it's a data point and that's about it. But I totally take your point, Sabina. Thanks. --fl]
Submitted by 2360 (not verified) on Fri, 2008-08-29 08:59.
Indeed. Maybe my privilege is showing, but I was raised to see the military as a choice for people who can't get into college. My parents would have been terribly upset if I'd joined up, and my peers who enlisted were mostly from the "loser" classes at my high school. These were not the kids with the brains.
My family was and is, as red-state as they come. A bunch of middle class rural white people. I don't understand why they'd respect someone for military service, when they wouldn't want that for their own children. But somehow they do. I think maybe they associate old white guys who are veterans, with WW2 hero movies. But they associate actual serving soldiers, with white trashy neighbor kids who drink too much and never got decent grades in school.
[Heather Corinna draws some lovely parallels between military service and prostitution, where some people are conscripted against their will, others do it because they have few other options, and still others are born or called to it. And yeah, that two-faced attitude towards people helps explain why, for instance, the dirty Reds fetishize the military on the one hand but also neglect things like body armor and veteran's benefits. Thanks, Zilla. --fl]
Submitted by 2360 (not verified) on Fri, 2008-08-29 12:44.
I think risking your life to defend the country (which yes, isn't the only thing the military gets used for these days, but it's still the reason we have one) is pretty damn honorable, actually. I work with a lot of former and reserve troops and they're fine people, neither trashy nor stupid nor violent.
However, I don't think service is so honorable that it should override voters' judgment of what a candidate plans to do with the country in the future; McCain's policies and current actions should matter more to the election than his past does.
[I agree it can be honorable work but honor is an ongoing state, not a one-time event. Being an honorable POW doesn't inoculate one from later being a jerk. Evidently. (Can't believe the butthole apologized to *Bill* Clinton but not to the two... *three* women he actually insulted!) Thanks, Holly. --fl]