How Will the Right Try to Destroy Dr. Philip Butler?
John McCain's temperament, in three acts:
Act I: The way he chose Sarah Palin -- his first "presidential-level decision," as the media framed the choice for months ahead of time -- speaks volumes about his temperament. The consequences of that style of judgment are now playing out in real time.
Act II: Dr. Philip Butler lived across the hall from John McCain at the Naval Academy. A highly decorated combat veteran, he spent eight years at the Hanoi Hilton, nearly six of them with John McCain. What does he think about the POW experience as preparation for the White House? What does he think about the prospect of John McCain as president? Here's the video, released today by Robert Greenwald's Brave New P.A.C., of his answer. And here's an article he wrote explaining why he won't vote for McCain.
The Tuesday theme of the GOP convention is, "Who is John McCain?" Who you gonna believe, America -- Joe Lieberman and Fred Thompson, or Dr. Philip Butler?
Act III: Now that the Swift Boat chickens have come home to roost, the right will try to destroy Dr. Butler. If you want a foretaste of Republican politics in the post-Bush era, just watch this one play out.
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There were a lot of ex- POWa supporting John McCain during the convention, BUT the MSM could only find one lone wolf, and the howl he can come up with is McCain's temperment!!!!!!! Don't wait for the Repubs to attack in force, as one lone wolf can destroy itself and a fly swatter can take care of a fly. If the only thing this left wing, radical, liberal college professor can come up with is John McCAin's temperment, there is no need for battle, one has only to reach for the flyswatter. Dr.(?) Butler sounds like a news junkie and just wants his 15 mintues in the sun. We can give him that and then he can return to brainwashing our children in his classroom on a campus somewhere in a left wing, radical, liberal college that my tax dollars support and the liberals spend.Butl
Yeah, McCain's temperment ain't an issue.
http://www
Did any of these POWs you mention make any statements on behalf of McCain?
McCain crashed 5 planes and would have partied his way out of the naval academy if his dad and granddad weren't admirals.
And, just a guess but you sound like you are a big fan of great conservative scholars like Rush, Sean, Ann, Michelle, and Bill.
See, the problem with your take on this is that Dr. Butler's personal knowledge is consistent with the portions of McCain's military record that have been released. If Crash McCain's military record is his greatest strength, then why won't he sign a full release?
What's he hiding? The TRUTH.
Yes, let's find out about McCain's military experience: http://www
The other day I had a conversation with my mom in which we discussed the theoretical votes of my deceased grandparents. We decided unequivocally that my grandmother would vote for Obama. Then she said that even though my Grandfather had been a card carrying-s
My Dad who is a WW II Combat veteran, and anything but a union man, he is a life long Republican.
Is voting for Obama.
Although he would rather vote for Michelle.
P.S. I have observed that the more combat an individual has seen the less likely he is to talk about it.
My father served in the PTO during WWII. He knew many heroic people.
He never talked about the war except to tell me that it was a "dreadful business."
The only stories I heard was about the heroics of others. He would say things like "I was never a hero - but I served with a lot of heroic people." If that were an exceptional statement, that would be different, but this is the theme that plays out with soldiers, sailors, and airmen again and again and again.
Dick Winters (101st Airborne in ETO during WWII) was the one to really immortalize it in his memoirs http://en.
"One of the most popular quotes from Winters came from his comments at the end of Band of Brothers. When interviewed, he quoted a letter sent to him by Mike Ranney, one of his men: "I cherish the memories of a question my grandson asked me the other day, when he said, 'Grandpa, were you a hero in the war?' Grandpa said, 'No, but I served in a company of heroes'"
What bothers me about McCain's persistent use of his POW status to advance his career or avoid scrutiny is that in this action we see such a stark contrast between McCain and just about everyone else who has worn the uniform in combat.
Methinks he doth exhort too loudly?
Well, I read the post. And nowhere did I see any proofs that Republicans would attack Dr. Butler. Care to lay them out?
Semper fi
It was a speculative piece based on Republican actions of the past.
Blue Skies!
Sort of the way Democrats attacked Robert Bork, Clarence Thomas, George Bush, Ronald Reagan. You mean in that vein??
Semper fi
If the link above to Phillip Butler's article "Why I Will Not Vote for John McCain" does not work for you, try this one - http://www
Sorry, the comma in the URL above truncated the link. You have to copy/paste the entire URL.
The value of "experience" is not the act, but the meaning one takes from the experience. Dr. Kafka rightly pointed out that we can find meaning in all human experiences, even his own in the Nazi concentration camps.
What were the lessons which John McCain took away from his time as a prisoner of war? The propaganda response to Dr. Butler will likely not articulate what those lessons are, or how that would make a better leader. They will likely smear Dr. Butler, and in doing so prove that the lesson McCain learned was the expediency of brute force and power.
John McCain is a man seemingly torn in his beliefs. He both supports and condems torture. He says he hates war and reflexively resorts to it. He and Cindy McCain were deep in the Keating 5 corruption, but he claims to clean up Washington. He is surrounded by lobbyists for special interests and claims the opposite. The contradictions go on and on. In some measure this confusion may have its roots in his experiences, including his time in Hanoi.
The propaganda machine that "framed" the "experience" issue did so to perpetuate the status quo by equating it to time in government-- by which McCain wins. The GOPVP pick is reinforcing that simplicity from the left. Unfortunately, those experiences he touts may get closer examination if the media can't beat this down and drown it out.
Phillip who? Why would Republicans want to destroy a guy who wrote an article nine months ago that no one read or cared about?
Because now he's on YouTube.
They are going to say he wasn't in the same part of the Hanoi Hilton as J. McCain. Across the hall could mean many things...T
He was across the hall from John McCain at the Academy.
Did you watch the video or read the article?
well, for the life of me i dont understand how being a POW is such a plus.
40% of combat soldiers suffer mental illness.
the books are full of studies that show mental illness is far greater in anyone who suffered as a POW.
the idea that mccain should not be approached from that perspective is Terrifying.
You know, I have no idea whether this man is telling the truth or not. He may merely be a vindictive SOB just out to tarnish the reputation of man he dislikes. This video may be pure politics.
But he was a POW. That means his word is unimpeachable and MUST be accepted at face value. To see it as ANYTHING else is an INSULT to all AMERICANS and a SLAP IN THE FACE to all our men and women in uniform.
I mean, that is the established John McCain standard by which ALL POWs are treated is it not? Or is John McCain the ONLY POW who gets that automatic free pass?
Which is it MSM?
It's all opinion (except for the part about health issues and that's easily verifiable), so I don't know how it can be true or not. But it's only opinion.
Want to know more? google "songbird McCain".
Google John McCain's statements for the North Vietnamese while a POW, and one can learn a whole lot about John McCain. Many other POW's endured much more than John, and they never made statements such as he.
Why is McCain's military record sealed?
I'll give ya one guess....
Ok, I give. . .
Why is it sealed? I hadn't heard that it was sealed. What would cause it to be sealed?
I think this video by Dr. Philip Butler is very informative regarding McCain's temperament. His comment about McCain's finding religion at this point, when he never was interested in it before, is sort of telling, in that McCain only wants to do whatever is necessary to attrack that evangelical, Republican base.
Has this video been played on tv networks yet? Will it be?
It is sealed, though. The fact that MSM doesn't seem to want to look into why is very puzzling.
Unfortunately (at least for this getting airplay), unlike the Swiftboat group, he's not making wild-eyed accusations or saying that McCain is a terrible person and a traitor, so except for people passing it around on the internets it will probably sink without a trace.
It is so sad that John McCain shold have to defend himself against these Swiftboat tactics.
What, exactly, in this video makes it not credible and simply "tactics"?
Integrity and fact.
Hilarious how it's all coming back to bite the repugs!!
I'm sure that you felt exactly the same when far more inflamatory things, unprovable as it turned out, were said about John Kerry. I read your profile. I would doubt that you voted for Gore. If you did, I see that you are a recovering Republican at the present time.
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