Comments on: If Obama's A Celebrity, What's McCain?

Politico: As McCamp Camp Tries To Brand Obama A "Celebrity Politician," It's Worth Considering McCain's Own Media Status

[erichsh]

Nobody is mocking or making fun of mccain''''s service to our Country. Indeed we all should respect that.

Posted by armydog2

Oh yes they are, armydog2 - repeatedly! And if they''re not making fun of his service, they''re making fun of his age, or the very fact he was shot down in the first place. Take issue with his politics all you want, but to substitute issues-oriented debate with baseless, low-balled, slimy personal denigration and juvenile name-calling is just disgraceful.

And as far as jon2012''s non-response, I''m specifically calling out zoe2006''s outrageous allegation that McCain actually sided with the VietCong. Both you and zoe are evading that one, and you''re just making some generic crack about global warming or whatever.

[jon2012-2009]

How important is this celebrity thing? Let''s focus on the big picture: We have a Republican president in George Bush whose record of eight years in office is hailed as a proud achievement of conservatism but for the country it''s been a time of unmitigated misery, disaster and incompetence. McCain, as the Republican candidate, wants another shot. Should a Republican take the White House again?

[missingamerica]

"McCain had roughly 20 hours in combat," explains Bill Bell, a veteran of Vietnam and former chief of the U.S. Office for POW/MIA Affairs -- the first official U.S. representative in Vietnam since the 1973 fall of Saigon. "Since McCain got 28 medals," Bell continues, "that equals out to about a medal-and-a-half for each hour he spent in combat. There were infantry guys -- grunts on the ground -- who had more than 7,000 hours in combat and I can tell you that there were times and situations where I''m sure a prison cell would have looked pretty good to them by comparison."

Posted by liberalme at 11:26 AM : Aug 04, 2008

Ummmm...not to mention, since the grunts in the field had far less propaganda value than an officer and an aviator like McCain, the NVA and VC often simply shot or bayoneted/stabbed them out of hand when they were captured - assuming the NVA/VC were too time-constrained to torture them first.

To quote Rep. Charles Rangel from testimony at http://www.aavw.org/served/pows_cominghome_abstract01.html:

"Where are the ground troops, the enlisted men, who were captured by the enemy during more than 8 years of involvement by American ground forces in Vietnam?"

Regardless, I think you messed up, "liberalme".

In response to such facts, you have left the Republican chickenhawks and their 527 committees no choice but to start a "Swift Boat"-style attack that attempts to convince the American people that there were no infantry or marines in combat in Vietnam.

[jon2012-2009]

Posted by zoe2006 What an outrageous post, zoe. Try to back up one word of your baseless, hate-filled rant.
Posted by erichsh at 11:28 AM : Aug 04, 2008

If I didn''t know erichsh, I''d think here''s a Democrat livid at a Republican''s vicious lies and calling the lies. But a Republican demanding substantiation of wild, disparaging statements! A new world.

Where was any of these Republicans during Swiftboats? The 935 Bush lies about Iraq, in the two years before invasion? The tax cuts for the ''middle class?'' That global warming is a hoax upon the American people?

[mrtutto]

I hope that this waste less spending of money that John McCain is engaging in doesn''t show how irresponsible he is at managing things.

[armydog2]

Nobody is mocking or making fun of mccain''s service to our Country. Indeed we all should respect that. Being a POW for 5 years does not qualify anyone to be president. Consider what the man went through under the best circumstances in a POW camp. Trauma, terror,torture and plain old fear have certainly left scars on him both physically and mentally. These scars never go away, that is what terrifies me should mccain become president. It doesn''t take much to trigger a flash back or whatever in men who have gone through what he did.

[vanesa4]

What is McCain? A war hero of the PAST!!!! We have not heard much more from him than his twisted attacks on Obama, his war-mongering approach to foreign issues and his offensive "humor". If he wants to define himself on the real issues, he is running out of time to do it. During this campaign we have run out of patience with his lack of judgement and his disrespect for people and for the voters who consider voting a serious duty.

[erichsh]

Obviously, McCain lacks humor. McCain is not a good pilot if he got shot down and lost a multimillion dollar plan to the enemy. McCain was too lazy and not smart enough to escape from the POW camp, because McCain was treated better then the other POWs, siding with the Viet Cong all the time.

Posted by zoe2006 What an outrageous post, zoe. Try to back up one word of your baseless, hate-filled rant. McCain not only was not treated any better than other POW''s, he remained a POW for five years because he refused to accept earlier release while others remained in captivity. That''s proven history. And let''s see how good your sense of humor you would have if you were a POW yourself. Pathetic.

[liberalme]

For 23 combat missions (an estimated 20 hours over enemy territory), the U.S. Navy awarded McCain a Silver Star, a Legion of Merit for Valor, a Distinguished Flying Cross, three Bronze Stars, two Commendation medals plus two Purple Hearts and a dozen service medals.

"McCain had roughly 20 hours in combat," explains Bill Bell, a veteran of Vietnam and former chief of the U.S. Office for POW/MIA Affairs -- the first official U.S. representative in Vietnam since the 1973 fall of Saigon. "Since McCain got 28 medals," Bell continues, "that equals out to about a medal-and-a-half for each hour he spent in combat. There were infantry guys -- grunts on the ground -- who had more than 7,000 hours in combat and I can tell you that there were times and situations where I''m sure a prison cell would have looked pretty good to them by comparison. The question really is how many guys got that number of medals for not being shot down."

For years, McCain has been an unchecked master at manipulating an overly friendly and biased news media. The former POW turned Congressman, turned U.S. Senator, has managed to gloss over his failures as a pilot and collaborations with the enemy by exaggerating his military service and lying about his feats of heroism.

[missingamerica]

With his extensive photo opts, it certainly appears that Obama considers himself a celebrity. He is always pandering to the press and the press to him..

Posted by stlouisman3 at 11:11 AM : Aug 04, 2008

And yet you have stories such as "Deep Secrecy in The Obama Campaign" (http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2008/08/03/politics/washingtonpost/main4317674.shtml?source=mostpop_story)

Curious...having your cake and eating it too seems no longer to be an impossibility...