Post by goldeneagles on Feb 13, 2008 18:46:10 GMT -5
U.S. Navy Concludes John McCain is No Hero
Before we look at the conclusions of the U.S. Navy, let us be clear about what is the truth regarding this Mirage of Hero Worship that surrounds John McCain. It is a falsehood and a fabrication promoted by the Liberals in the Mass Media who form this shield of Illusion around John McCain for one purpose, to give the luster of unimpeachable veracity to the liberal causes, their causes, which John McCain champions, behavior which has caused the lips of so many genuine conservatives to whisper the word "traitor" under their breathes, and in some cases out loud.
In this, I have spoken the truth, all the facts validate it, and history will so judge.
Now let the U.S. Navy speak the truth, perhaps not in so many words, but certainly, and like many national trumpets, by the actions they have taken in regards to the Naval Career of John McCain.
As to the background of what the U.S. Navy would like to have done, truly with all of their hearts, for the Naval Career of John McCain, is to be found in his family history. His Grandfather, John McCain Sr., rose through the ranks from ensign, to the rank of Admiral in command of an Aircraft Carrier task force in the Pacific in World War II. His command performed in the most distinguished manner. His father, John McCain Jr. rose through the ranks to become an Admiral to again command all U.S. Forces in the Pacific during the hottest portion of the Vietnam War. I would like to quote the following excerpt from a bio on the POWNETWORK website. These two men are very much honored in the tradition of the U.S. Navy:
John McCain III, graduated from high school in 1954, and entered straight away into the U.S. Naval Academy. His entry into the U.S. Naval Academy, you can be sure, was not based on any evidence of fitness that others must show and have on the record, prior to being accepted. No, he was given entry into this prestigious institution because his father was a highly respected and admired Admiral, and so too his deceased grandfather. That was his ticket in. And it was to this path he was destined, or so he thought. From the very onset, he would walk in the footsteps of his Father and GrandFather, determined to summit the highest mountain of Naval Accomplishment, to enter into the lofty abode of the naval gods, the admiralty as they refer to it. Certainly omnipotent and all wise in their domain. From his own words, we see that he is out to make history, to be part of the first family ever to produce two high achieving U.S. Navy Admirals, and to increase the number to three.
From the very beginning a golden ladder is set before John McCain III. But we see, that personal ambition alone does not a golden achiever make.
John McCain graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1958. Out of a total class size of 900, he graduated with a Class Ranking of 895. Five up from the very bottom of the barrel. Out of those 900 men, 894 of them were considered smarter than John McCain III.
Did John McCain heroically hit the books, and strive to be an example among his classmates, an example that would do his father and grandfather proud? No. I understand that this question would not be valid for anyone attending the University of California at Berkeley for example. But here we are talking about the U.S. Naval Academy, a very specialized institution, where they are training men and women not just to become warriors at sea, but training them to become the officers who lead men into battle at sea. Did he inspire his fellows to high achievement? No. Did he provide an example that his commanding officers thought laudable and constructive to the mission of the U.S. Navy? No. They left their judgment on the record, according to their evaluation of 4 years of direct experience. They gave him a class ranking of 895 out of 900. Therefore, we have the first empirical judgment of the U.S. Navy. John McCain is no hero.
When you read my next point (in the following paragraph), you will understand why the following scenario, which I will lay out in this paragraph, is within the realm of the possible. John McCain III was not officer material. And this was obvious to everyone. But being the son of a highly respected living Admiral, John McCain Jr., and the grandson of a highly respected deceased Admiral, John McCain Sr. (passed away in 1945), both with lustrous records out of World War II, this live-for-the-moment party-animal could not possibly be booted out of the Naval Academy. This would shame his living Father, and actually impact his authority and promotional status within the Naval Ranks. They wanted to do what they could to keep this black mark from falling upon the honorable father. So, what the Naval Brass did was keep in four other very low achieving midshipmen whom they would have otherwise booted out, yes, they can thank John McCain for their survival (!), so it could be said, with the appearance of some truth at any rate, that John McCain did not graduate at the bottom of the class, and they passed him on into the life of the U.S. Navy for this one purpose, that his father not be shamed, and that his son somehow be given an opportunity to redeem himself. I suppose you could say the U.S. Navy owed the father and even the grand father that much, which is probably true.
If the reader does not buy this common sense conclusion, come back and read the previous paragraph again, after you read the next point. I think, that after you read the next point, you will see how both the former, and the latter, combine to make a harmonious whole.
Now, you would think with a low class standing like that, that McCain would get assigned to a duty station which is at a correspondingly deep end of the barrel. In other words at the bottom of the barrel in terms of glamor and opportunity. Perhaps as a laundry officer assigned to a tug boat at a naval base in the Antarctic. Really, that's how the navy sends messages to its underachievers. They want their officers to have a realistic sense of their current state of excellence and motivation. If you want to get out of here, you must start getting your act together! But this is where his family ties come into play again. John McCain III was given a coveted berth at a U.S. Naval Air Station to be trained to fly Navy Aircraft!
This was certainly an audacious move on the part of the Navy Leadership that would create dissension and resentment around McCain everywhere he went. It is not good for morale to give a person a jewel of an opportunity for no other reason than his Father and Grand Father were admirals. And especially when it is too obvious that the person does not deserve it one bit, based on his performance and skills. Remember, 895 in a class of 900. Think about that. Every other pilot had to sweat blood to get to where they were. And here is this arrogant son of an admiral who is seated on this throne of excellence with them, for no other reason than his father is an Admiral. Human nature does not allow people to feel good about that, or to reconcile themselves with that. It is a constant source of resentment. And it is the worse, because these resentments are not allowed to come to the surface in a natural release, like a pressure relief valve on a pressure cook, because if spoken about, that would ll cast a shadow upon one's own Navy Record, and career advancement opportunities. Now, think about this. Perhaps that rocket on the Forrestal, which set of a conflagration which killed 134 sailors, was not released by accident after all, that it was pointed right at McCain's jet, intentionally, now that certainly is an interesting thing to contemplate.
Therefore, you can see that if the Navy Brass could be so shamefully up-front about giving this underachiever one of the most coveted spots in the entire navy, for no other reason than he was the son, and grandson of two famous admirals respectively, you can see that it is also possible that in order to save the honor of his father, they would engineer a way to keep him in the Naval Academy, and allow him to graduate, when everyone knew the truth, that he was not officer material.
And so it was, that John McCain III, in way of saying thanks, crashed one of those very expensive training jets in his first year of flight training (1958). And the Navy said, no harm done John, we graduate you from your flight training school (1960).
And so it was, John McCain III, in way of saying thanks, when deployed to the Mediterranean, he crashed an even more expensive fighter jet, flying it into some power lines in the Italian countryside. And the Navy said, no harm done John, we will send you to McCain Field, named for his Grand Father, at the Meridian Mississippi Naval Air Station, and we will make you a flight instructor. That's right.
Though, this was a double edged sword, in a manner of speaking. This promotion sent a message. Deployed to McCain Field, remember your roots and start getting your act together. Returning from its Mediterranean deployment his squadron returned to its home base at the Pensacola Florida Naval Air Station, a cush deployment spot, with all that sun, surf, and pretty girls. He was moved out of that cush spot, to Meridian Mississippi. There is no comparison, in terms of a status duty station. But most importantly, being deployed to a field named for his grandfather was intended to send a message. Remember your roots. Get your act together. Do something to honor your forebears, please.
And so it was, that John McCain III, flight instructor, in way of saying thanks, crashed another one of those very expensive training jets, on an important solo flight to Pennsylvania, on his way to see the Army-Navy football game. Isn't that amazing, that he would use a navy jet for that purpose in the first place, and then to underscore his foolhardiness by crashing it? And the Navy said, no harm done John, we will send you back to an operational squadron floating around in the sunny Mediterranean, on the U.S.S. Forrestal (1966).
Another one of those interesting Navy Brass pat-on-the-back, and a kick-in-the-butt, messages. The Navy Brass new this aircraft carrier would be deployed to Vietnam soon, and McCain should've taken this as their message to him, that he is going to be thrown into the war, and it is here that he is expected to make the choice, whether he will sink or swim. Both his father and grandfather earned their laurels in combat. So the son, who has so far showed no signs of having the military character so abundant in his father and grandfather, is now going to be thrown into the thick of it, well, from a high altitude, to see if that would finally bring the hero out of the man (that his father hoped was there).
And so they said to him, come out of this an honorable hero, or die an honorable death in combat, if for no other reason than for the sake of the honor of your father and grandfather whose memory you have so far shamed. One or the other. But John McCain III did not come out a hero, neither did he die an honorable death. No the worst nightmare for his father was only beginning. His son came out as a traitor as you will see, and the U.S. Navy so concluded by their actions in relationship to him.
And so, the U.S.S. Forestall was assigned to the Vietnam theater of operations in 1967, and that is where his plane, parked on the carrier deck, was fired upon by an aircraft awaiting launch, the incident mentioned above. Can you imagine what the Navy Brass was thinking then, about this son of an admiral who they were doing their level best to lead up to the summit of the admiralty where he could join his father and grandfather in the honorable embrace of genuine achievement? I am sure they shook their heads in disbelief. This guy was really jinxed. Talents, skills, moral character, fortune, nothing was going his way. That was the fourth plane that he lost, and for the reasons stated above, about the boiling resentment of his peers, whose to say that this missile was not fired intentionally, straight at the plane of the son of the admiral, who keeps getting cush jobs, no matter how much he telegraphs to everyone that he is totally incompetent, indeed pushing the benefit-of-the-doubt equation well past the breaking point, all to save the father from shame.
John McCain III is assigned to another aircraft carrier, USS Oriskany, also operating off the coast of Vietnam, and in 1967, his fifth aircraft is shot out from under him. He safely ejects, floats down, and lands in a lake. And he becomes a POW.
At this point, I am going to skip over any details about what McCain did as a POW over the years 1967 to 1973. I will let the U.S. Navy speak on the question of whether they saw him as a hero or not.
All POW's are carried on the active duty roster, and all of them received promotions during their time in captivity unless there was a reason to believe that the soldier or airman in question was not doing his duty. During this period of captivity, McCain should have received at least one promotion, from Lt. Commander, to Commander. But he did not receive that promotion. If the U.S. Navy Brass had any sense that John McCain III conducted himself in a heroic manner, no not even that level of excellence would have been required, if he had just done his duty, even in a mediocre manner, during that period, you can be sure, they would have given him that promotion. Finally something they can put on his record that would shed some light of honor upon his father the Admiral. But this was not to be. No, it was their conclusion, from the evidence, that John McCain III could not even meet the mark of duty performed, that he fell below that, further shaming his father by collaborating with the enemy. And this was public knowledge, something they could not keep in the closet, and McCain is heard via international shortwave, giving military significant information to the enemy, which was used as propaganda against the U.S. And thus, the record speaks. McCain did not receive a promotion.
And in this we have the second documented testimony of the U.S. Navy, telling us that John McCain III was no hero. But there's more. There is one more point of testimony that the U.S. Navy placed on the record, their third statement that John McCain III was no hero.
When John McCain III was released from captivity, he was swept up in the universal hero-worship that settled like a golden crown upon every returning POW. To maintain what level of morale remained in the American population, it was decided, probably at the highest presidential level, that no POW would be court-martialed for collaboration with the enemy. McCain could have been so court-martialed, the case was there, as his acts violated sections of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. And this along with many others. But the leadership of this nation was in the process of closing out this chapter, with Nixon's Peace with Honor withdrawal strategy taking form at the Paris "Peace" Talks. Indeed the kind of "peace" that settled upon the whole of Vietnam in 1975, when it was overrun by North Vietnamese tank divisions.
Perhaps the presence of an admirals son in the mix helped Nixon to make this decision, again to spare the honored admiral the shame of such a trial. Certainly, this argument would have been made at the highest levels. And thus, it could be, that just like the Naval Academy Scenario, the guilty survived with their honor intact, because of the presence of this admirals son, and the need to save the honor of his father.
With the closet door shut on this whole subject area, the Navy Brass was willing to given John McCain III one more chance. He was given a slot at the prestigious Naval War College, restored his flight status, notwithstanding his permanent disabilities (accured when his plane was shot down over Vietnam) and after that, assigned to the post of executive officer of Replacement Air Group 174, whose mission was to train airmen for carrier duty, and soon thereafter was elevated into the top command slot of that group. And still like a pack of angry dogs, the resents of favoritism still nipped at his heels wherever he was assigned. But all of this was done for the admiral father. Somehow his son had to be redeemed, for him to retain his own honor. And so, they were giving him another chance. Will this guy finally come around, and give the heart of his father some peace?
If he finally came around here, to some semblance of professional behavior, he could then be moved to an executive officer position, or a command position, in a directly operational sea deployed squadron, which would maintain the career path to the admiralty. He had to become the hero here, at last, and finally.
I am not going to get into the details of McCain’s behavior while in command of RAG 174, or into the details of his performance. I am going to defer to the judgment of the U.S. Navy. A judgment of the U.S. Navy that is on the record.
If the U.S. Navy had any sense that John McCain was a hero, they would have continued him on the operational track to the admiralty. But they did not.
What they did, in 1977, was give him another one of those pat on the back,(for the sake of his dad) and kick-in-the-butt "promotions", clearly saying, YOU HAVE FAILED, which took him off the operational path that could have led him into admiralty. He was allowed to wear his new Captain bars as second in command of the U.S. Navy Liaison office on Capitol Hill. His Father, and the Navy, saying to him, you can't make it with us, perhaps you can do better among those of your own kind.
His father, the Admiral, died in 1981. With his high placed advocate clearly gone from the scene, the son finally understood that his Naval Career was over, and later that year he resigned form the U.S. Navy (to pursue a political route to the top of the heap that he could not gain in the U.S. Navy, no matter the number of helping hands extended to him by the friends of his father.)
The U.S. Navy has spoken.
True enough, all along the way, the Navy Brass was doing their level best, for the sake of the father, to help McCain become a hero, if he had it in him. But at these three crictical junctures, the U.S. Navy, and his father, placed on the record, the fact that they had failed in their efforts, and they had to admit, that there was nothing in the character of this John McCain that would have made him a hero. No one had been given more of an opportunity to prove himself than John McCain, and no one had failed more spectacularly in this than John McCain, the son, and the grandson of famous admirals.
Indeed, the U.S. Navy has spoken three times, with the same message very time, that John McCain III is no hero. And against the backdrop of all the ways the Navy Brass tried to help him for the sake of the honor of his father and his grandfather, in these three statements, placed upon the record for all time, not only did the U.S. Navy say that John McCain III is no hero, they said loudly and clearly to the world, that the Naval Career of John McCain III was a tragedy, which broke the heart of his father.
How far from the truth are they, who parrot the illusion created by the media, that this man is a hero. When the truth is, that he is a walking tragedy, and one who is full of hate for those who grabbed the golden ring out of his hand. How could the media be more than this, this flock of colorful parrots, who squawk their familiar refrain, pieces of eight, pieces of eight, pieces of eight, whose only knowledge of gold could come from the pirates, and the treasures they have stolen from others?
Before we look at the conclusions of the U.S. Navy, let us be clear about what is the truth regarding this Mirage of Hero Worship that surrounds John McCain. It is a falsehood and a fabrication promoted by the Liberals in the Mass Media who form this shield of Illusion around John McCain for one purpose, to give the luster of unimpeachable veracity to the liberal causes, their causes, which John McCain champions, behavior which has caused the lips of so many genuine conservatives to whisper the word "traitor" under their breathes, and in some cases out loud.
In this, I have spoken the truth, all the facts validate it, and history will so judge.
Now let the U.S. Navy speak the truth, perhaps not in so many words, but certainly, and like many national trumpets, by the actions they have taken in regards to the Naval Career of John McCain.
As to the background of what the U.S. Navy would like to have done, truly with all of their hearts, for the Naval Career of John McCain, is to be found in his family history. His Grandfather, John McCain Sr., rose through the ranks from ensign, to the rank of Admiral in command of an Aircraft Carrier task force in the Pacific in World War II. His command performed in the most distinguished manner. His father, John McCain Jr. rose through the ranks to become an Admiral to again command all U.S. Forces in the Pacific during the hottest portion of the Vietnam War. I would like to quote the following excerpt from a bio on the POWNETWORK website. These two men are very much honored in the tradition of the U.S. Navy:
"John McCain's grandfather was a gaunt, hawk-faced man known as Slew by his fellow officers and, affectionately, as Popeye by the sailors who served under him. McCain Sr. played the horses, drank bourbon and water, and rolled his own cigarettes with one hand. More significant, he was one of the navy's greatest commanders, and led the strongest aircraft carrier force of the Third Fleet in key battles during World War II."
"Rear Admiral John S. McCain, who, as Commander Aircraft South Pacific Forces (COMAIRSOPAC), controlled all land-based aircraft in the South Pacific Area, including those of the US Army Air Forces (USAAF)."
"Born at Carroll County, Mississippi, August 9, 1884, the son of John Sidney and Elizabeth-Ann Young McCain.
He was a student at the University of Mississippi, 1901-02 and graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1906, from the Navy War College in 1929, from Flight Instruction School, 1936. He married Katherine Vaulx, August 9, 1909. Their children were: John Sidney, James Gordon, Katherine Vaulx.
He was commissioned an Ensign, 1906, and promoted through the grades to Rear Admiral, 1941; Vice Admiral, July 1943. He served as Chief of the Naval Bureau of Aeronautics, September 1942-July 1943; Deputy Chief of Naval Operations for Air, July 1943; Commander, Carrier Task Force 38. Planes under his command took part in action over Peleliu, Leyte Gulf, Philippine Sea, Mindoro, Luzon, Formosa, Ruyukyus and the Japanese homeland. His planes once sank 49 Japanese ships in a single day. Between July 10 and August 14, 1945, his aviators located and destroyed 3,000 grounded enemy planes. He witnessed the Japanese surrender aboard the USS Missouri in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945.
He died on September 6, 1945 and was buried in Section 3 (Grave 4356) of Arlington National Cemetery, among other family members, including his brother, William Alexander McCain, Brigadier General, U.S. Arlington National Cemetery Biography"
"John McCain's father followed a similar path, equally distinguished by heroic service in the navy, as a submarine commander during World War II. McCain Jr., was a slightly built man, but like his father, he earned the respect and affection of his men. He, too, rose to the rank of four-star admiral, making the McCains the first family in American history to achieve that distinction. McCain Jr's final assignment was as commander of all U.S. forces in the Pacific during the Vietnam War."
"Admiral John S. McCain, Jr., submariner, became Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Command (CINCPAC) in July 1968, a position he held until 1972. As such, he directed all U.S. military operations in the vast war theater during the Vietnam war, exercising command through CINCPACFL (Commander-in-Chief of the Pacific Fleet) and CINCPACAF (Commander- in-Chief of the Pacific Air Force). He exercised command over ground and air operations in Vietnam through CONMUSMACV (Commander-in-Chief of the U.S. Military Assistance Command Vietnam), U.S. Army General Creighton Abrams. Admiral John McCain Jr. died March 24, 1981."
John McCain III, graduated from high school in 1954, and entered straight away into the U.S. Naval Academy. His entry into the U.S. Naval Academy, you can be sure, was not based on any evidence of fitness that others must show and have on the record, prior to being accepted. No, he was given entry into this prestigious institution because his father was a highly respected and admired Admiral, and so too his deceased grandfather. That was his ticket in. And it was to this path he was destined, or so he thought. From the very onset, he would walk in the footsteps of his Father and GrandFather, determined to summit the highest mountain of Naval Accomplishment, to enter into the lofty abode of the naval gods, the admiralty as they refer to it. Certainly omnipotent and all wise in their domain. From his own words, we see that he is out to make history, to be part of the first family ever to produce two high achieving U.S. Navy Admirals, and to increase the number to three.
From the very beginning a golden ladder is set before John McCain III. But we see, that personal ambition alone does not a golden achiever make.
John McCain graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1958. Out of a total class size of 900, he graduated with a Class Ranking of 895. Five up from the very bottom of the barrel. Out of those 900 men, 894 of them were considered smarter than John McCain III.
Did John McCain heroically hit the books, and strive to be an example among his classmates, an example that would do his father and grandfather proud? No. I understand that this question would not be valid for anyone attending the University of California at Berkeley for example. But here we are talking about the U.S. Naval Academy, a very specialized institution, where they are training men and women not just to become warriors at sea, but training them to become the officers who lead men into battle at sea. Did he inspire his fellows to high achievement? No. Did he provide an example that his commanding officers thought laudable and constructive to the mission of the U.S. Navy? No. They left their judgment on the record, according to their evaluation of 4 years of direct experience. They gave him a class ranking of 895 out of 900. Therefore, we have the first empirical judgment of the U.S. Navy. John McCain is no hero.
When you read my next point (in the following paragraph), you will understand why the following scenario, which I will lay out in this paragraph, is within the realm of the possible. John McCain III was not officer material. And this was obvious to everyone. But being the son of a highly respected living Admiral, John McCain Jr., and the grandson of a highly respected deceased Admiral, John McCain Sr. (passed away in 1945), both with lustrous records out of World War II, this live-for-the-moment party-animal could not possibly be booted out of the Naval Academy. This would shame his living Father, and actually impact his authority and promotional status within the Naval Ranks. They wanted to do what they could to keep this black mark from falling upon the honorable father. So, what the Naval Brass did was keep in four other very low achieving midshipmen whom they would have otherwise booted out, yes, they can thank John McCain for their survival (!), so it could be said, with the appearance of some truth at any rate, that John McCain did not graduate at the bottom of the class, and they passed him on into the life of the U.S. Navy for this one purpose, that his father not be shamed, and that his son somehow be given an opportunity to redeem himself. I suppose you could say the U.S. Navy owed the father and even the grand father that much, which is probably true.
If the reader does not buy this common sense conclusion, come back and read the previous paragraph again, after you read the next point. I think, that after you read the next point, you will see how both the former, and the latter, combine to make a harmonious whole.
Now, you would think with a low class standing like that, that McCain would get assigned to a duty station which is at a correspondingly deep end of the barrel. In other words at the bottom of the barrel in terms of glamor and opportunity. Perhaps as a laundry officer assigned to a tug boat at a naval base in the Antarctic. Really, that's how the navy sends messages to its underachievers. They want their officers to have a realistic sense of their current state of excellence and motivation. If you want to get out of here, you must start getting your act together! But this is where his family ties come into play again. John McCain III was given a coveted berth at a U.S. Naval Air Station to be trained to fly Navy Aircraft!
This was certainly an audacious move on the part of the Navy Leadership that would create dissension and resentment around McCain everywhere he went. It is not good for morale to give a person a jewel of an opportunity for no other reason than his Father and Grand Father were admirals. And especially when it is too obvious that the person does not deserve it one bit, based on his performance and skills. Remember, 895 in a class of 900. Think about that. Every other pilot had to sweat blood to get to where they were. And here is this arrogant son of an admiral who is seated on this throne of excellence with them, for no other reason than his father is an Admiral. Human nature does not allow people to feel good about that, or to reconcile themselves with that. It is a constant source of resentment. And it is the worse, because these resentments are not allowed to come to the surface in a natural release, like a pressure relief valve on a pressure cook, because if spoken about, that would ll cast a shadow upon one's own Navy Record, and career advancement opportunities. Now, think about this. Perhaps that rocket on the Forrestal, which set of a conflagration which killed 134 sailors, was not released by accident after all, that it was pointed right at McCain's jet, intentionally, now that certainly is an interesting thing to contemplate.
Therefore, you can see that if the Navy Brass could be so shamefully up-front about giving this underachiever one of the most coveted spots in the entire navy, for no other reason than he was the son, and grandson of two famous admirals respectively, you can see that it is also possible that in order to save the honor of his father, they would engineer a way to keep him in the Naval Academy, and allow him to graduate, when everyone knew the truth, that he was not officer material.
And so it was, that John McCain III, in way of saying thanks, crashed one of those very expensive training jets in his first year of flight training (1958). And the Navy said, no harm done John, we graduate you from your flight training school (1960).
And so it was, John McCain III, in way of saying thanks, when deployed to the Mediterranean, he crashed an even more expensive fighter jet, flying it into some power lines in the Italian countryside. And the Navy said, no harm done John, we will send you to McCain Field, named for his Grand Father, at the Meridian Mississippi Naval Air Station, and we will make you a flight instructor. That's right.
Though, this was a double edged sword, in a manner of speaking. This promotion sent a message. Deployed to McCain Field, remember your roots and start getting your act together. Returning from its Mediterranean deployment his squadron returned to its home base at the Pensacola Florida Naval Air Station, a cush deployment spot, with all that sun, surf, and pretty girls. He was moved out of that cush spot, to Meridian Mississippi. There is no comparison, in terms of a status duty station. But most importantly, being deployed to a field named for his grandfather was intended to send a message. Remember your roots. Get your act together. Do something to honor your forebears, please.
And so it was, that John McCain III, flight instructor, in way of saying thanks, crashed another one of those very expensive training jets, on an important solo flight to Pennsylvania, on his way to see the Army-Navy football game. Isn't that amazing, that he would use a navy jet for that purpose in the first place, and then to underscore his foolhardiness by crashing it? And the Navy said, no harm done John, we will send you back to an operational squadron floating around in the sunny Mediterranean, on the U.S.S. Forrestal (1966).
Another one of those interesting Navy Brass pat-on-the-back, and a kick-in-the-butt, messages. The Navy Brass new this aircraft carrier would be deployed to Vietnam soon, and McCain should've taken this as their message to him, that he is going to be thrown into the war, and it is here that he is expected to make the choice, whether he will sink or swim. Both his father and grandfather earned their laurels in combat. So the son, who has so far showed no signs of having the military character so abundant in his father and grandfather, is now going to be thrown into the thick of it, well, from a high altitude, to see if that would finally bring the hero out of the man (that his father hoped was there).
And so they said to him, come out of this an honorable hero, or die an honorable death in combat, if for no other reason than for the sake of the honor of your father and grandfather whose memory you have so far shamed. One or the other. But John McCain III did not come out a hero, neither did he die an honorable death. No the worst nightmare for his father was only beginning. His son came out as a traitor as you will see, and the U.S. Navy so concluded by their actions in relationship to him.
And so, the U.S.S. Forestall was assigned to the Vietnam theater of operations in 1967, and that is where his plane, parked on the carrier deck, was fired upon by an aircraft awaiting launch, the incident mentioned above. Can you imagine what the Navy Brass was thinking then, about this son of an admiral who they were doing their level best to lead up to the summit of the admiralty where he could join his father and grandfather in the honorable embrace of genuine achievement? I am sure they shook their heads in disbelief. This guy was really jinxed. Talents, skills, moral character, fortune, nothing was going his way. That was the fourth plane that he lost, and for the reasons stated above, about the boiling resentment of his peers, whose to say that this missile was not fired intentionally, straight at the plane of the son of the admiral, who keeps getting cush jobs, no matter how much he telegraphs to everyone that he is totally incompetent, indeed pushing the benefit-of-the-doubt equation well past the breaking point, all to save the father from shame.
John McCain III is assigned to another aircraft carrier, USS Oriskany, also operating off the coast of Vietnam, and in 1967, his fifth aircraft is shot out from under him. He safely ejects, floats down, and lands in a lake. And he becomes a POW.
At this point, I am going to skip over any details about what McCain did as a POW over the years 1967 to 1973. I will let the U.S. Navy speak on the question of whether they saw him as a hero or not.
All POW's are carried on the active duty roster, and all of them received promotions during their time in captivity unless there was a reason to believe that the soldier or airman in question was not doing his duty. During this period of captivity, McCain should have received at least one promotion, from Lt. Commander, to Commander. But he did not receive that promotion. If the U.S. Navy Brass had any sense that John McCain III conducted himself in a heroic manner, no not even that level of excellence would have been required, if he had just done his duty, even in a mediocre manner, during that period, you can be sure, they would have given him that promotion. Finally something they can put on his record that would shed some light of honor upon his father the Admiral. But this was not to be. No, it was their conclusion, from the evidence, that John McCain III could not even meet the mark of duty performed, that he fell below that, further shaming his father by collaborating with the enemy. And this was public knowledge, something they could not keep in the closet, and McCain is heard via international shortwave, giving military significant information to the enemy, which was used as propaganda against the U.S. And thus, the record speaks. McCain did not receive a promotion.
And in this we have the second documented testimony of the U.S. Navy, telling us that John McCain III was no hero. But there's more. There is one more point of testimony that the U.S. Navy placed on the record, their third statement that John McCain III was no hero.
When John McCain III was released from captivity, he was swept up in the universal hero-worship that settled like a golden crown upon every returning POW. To maintain what level of morale remained in the American population, it was decided, probably at the highest presidential level, that no POW would be court-martialed for collaboration with the enemy. McCain could have been so court-martialed, the case was there, as his acts violated sections of the Uniform Code of Military Justice. And this along with many others. But the leadership of this nation was in the process of closing out this chapter, with Nixon's Peace with Honor withdrawal strategy taking form at the Paris "Peace" Talks. Indeed the kind of "peace" that settled upon the whole of Vietnam in 1975, when it was overrun by North Vietnamese tank divisions.
Perhaps the presence of an admirals son in the mix helped Nixon to make this decision, again to spare the honored admiral the shame of such a trial. Certainly, this argument would have been made at the highest levels. And thus, it could be, that just like the Naval Academy Scenario, the guilty survived with their honor intact, because of the presence of this admirals son, and the need to save the honor of his father.
With the closet door shut on this whole subject area, the Navy Brass was willing to given John McCain III one more chance. He was given a slot at the prestigious Naval War College, restored his flight status, notwithstanding his permanent disabilities (accured when his plane was shot down over Vietnam) and after that, assigned to the post of executive officer of Replacement Air Group 174, whose mission was to train airmen for carrier duty, and soon thereafter was elevated into the top command slot of that group. And still like a pack of angry dogs, the resents of favoritism still nipped at his heels wherever he was assigned. But all of this was done for the admiral father. Somehow his son had to be redeemed, for him to retain his own honor. And so, they were giving him another chance. Will this guy finally come around, and give the heart of his father some peace?
If he finally came around here, to some semblance of professional behavior, he could then be moved to an executive officer position, or a command position, in a directly operational sea deployed squadron, which would maintain the career path to the admiralty. He had to become the hero here, at last, and finally.
I am not going to get into the details of McCain’s behavior while in command of RAG 174, or into the details of his performance. I am going to defer to the judgment of the U.S. Navy. A judgment of the U.S. Navy that is on the record.
If the U.S. Navy had any sense that John McCain was a hero, they would have continued him on the operational track to the admiralty. But they did not.
What they did, in 1977, was give him another one of those pat on the back,(for the sake of his dad) and kick-in-the-butt "promotions", clearly saying, YOU HAVE FAILED, which took him off the operational path that could have led him into admiralty. He was allowed to wear his new Captain bars as second in command of the U.S. Navy Liaison office on Capitol Hill. His Father, and the Navy, saying to him, you can't make it with us, perhaps you can do better among those of your own kind.
His father, the Admiral, died in 1981. With his high placed advocate clearly gone from the scene, the son finally understood that his Naval Career was over, and later that year he resigned form the U.S. Navy (to pursue a political route to the top of the heap that he could not gain in the U.S. Navy, no matter the number of helping hands extended to him by the friends of his father.)
The U.S. Navy has spoken.
- In 1958, by graduating John McCain at the very bottom of his 900 member class, the U.S. Navy said, John McCain is no hero.
- During the years 1967 to 1973, by refusing John McCain a promotion during his captivity as a POW, the U.S. Navy said, John McCain is no hero.
- In 1977, by refusing to continue John McCain on the operational path to the admiralty, by giving him an assignment that was tantamount to returning him to civilian life, the U.S. Navy said, John McCain is no hero.
True enough, all along the way, the Navy Brass was doing their level best, for the sake of the father, to help McCain become a hero, if he had it in him. But at these three crictical junctures, the U.S. Navy, and his father, placed on the record, the fact that they had failed in their efforts, and they had to admit, that there was nothing in the character of this John McCain that would have made him a hero. No one had been given more of an opportunity to prove himself than John McCain, and no one had failed more spectacularly in this than John McCain, the son, and the grandson of famous admirals.
Indeed, the U.S. Navy has spoken three times, with the same message very time, that John McCain III is no hero. And against the backdrop of all the ways the Navy Brass tried to help him for the sake of the honor of his father and his grandfather, in these three statements, placed upon the record for all time, not only did the U.S. Navy say that John McCain III is no hero, they said loudly and clearly to the world, that the Naval Career of John McCain III was a tragedy, which broke the heart of his father.
How far from the truth are they, who parrot the illusion created by the media, that this man is a hero. When the truth is, that he is a walking tragedy, and one who is full of hate for those who grabbed the golden ring out of his hand. How could the media be more than this, this flock of colorful parrots, who squawk their familiar refrain, pieces of eight, pieces of eight, pieces of eight, whose only knowledge of gold could come from the pirates, and the treasures they have stolen from others?