'McCain'                                                     [The Times, U.K.]

O Globa, Brazil

John McCain and the Military

'Espirit' of the United States …

"In a country where one of the worst offenses is to be called a 'loser,' it's useful to pay attention to that espirit (there is no better expression) that emphasizes combat, soldiers and veterans, which is something that one doesn't see in other Western countries."

By William Waack

Translated By Brandi Miller

January 31, 2008

Brazil - O Globo - Original Article (Portuguese)

It would be incorrect to call American society “militarized,” but for those who have lived in the United States for even the briefest period of time, one's attention is drawn to how much military jargon is a part of everyday language. One example is to say that so-and-so is “flying under the radar” - an old aerial combat expression used to describe someone behaving in a furtive manner.

Another example is the idiom, “going over the top (superando o topo),” which is widely used to describe someone when they have taken the initiative. The “top,” in this case, are the walls of a trench, when an infantry soldier leaves its relative protection and is forced to confront enemy fire and go on the attack.

The Americans build many monuments and nurture many myths of war. To be a veteran from any [military] campaign - and virtually every generation for past 60 years has seen a major American military campaign - means, again, to be respected. The period when those who returned from Vietnam were regarded with suspicion or even with contempt, ended long ago. Those in Iraq are now admired.

Forty years ago the Americans experienced a military trauma that continues to have political consequences today. In January 1968, in a complex, sophisticated and well-planned action, the Vietcong and the army from the former North Vietnam launched the Tet Offensive (so-called because of the three day Vietnamese New Year holiday at the end of January ). The surprise was total and the Vietcong guerrillas managed to invade even the well-defended United States Embassy in Saigon.

From a strictly military point of view, the Tet Offensive ended up being a catastrophe for the Vietcong, who in three months of fighting lost nearly two-thirds of their soldiers (and would never again recover their former energy and initiative, from that point the initiative being carried by the North Vietnamese army). But the Americans, who didn’t lose a single major confrontation in Vietnam, in January 1968 suffered a political defeat that they, too, would not recover from. Instead, January 1968 was the beginning of a reversal that ended with complete withdrawal seven years later.

John McCain, the man who leads the race among Republicans for the nomination as its candidate for the presidency, is a veteran of that era. As a Navy combat pilot he was shot down over Hanoi in 1967, broke both arms and a leg, was tortured, and when offer the chance to be released, he said he would go only if the other war prisoners went with him .

In American society, there is the cult for the individual hero, the undaunted leader and, in particular, the idea of loyalty and patriotism under any circumstances. It is a political-psychological factor of the first order, and if McCain ends up being the American president, he will return as a representative of a generation of politicians who know perfectly well what a war means to the White House (George W's father, Bush Sr., was a war pilot who was shot down in Japanese waters in 1945; John Kennedy too saw combat in the same conflict, to say nothing of Eisenhower).

McCain allied himself with Bush's decision almost a year ago to reinforce the number of American soldiers dedicated to security in Baghdad. This isn't just a military lesson (the American commander in Vietnam, William C. Westmoreland, demanded and received more troops several times, but with fewer results each time ). McCain understood the political meaning of “pacifying” Baghdad (no matter how long it lasts, evidently) as being far more important than the resistance of the American electorate of having more people die in an unpopular and disastrous war.

It doesn’t stop being odd (or tragic, if the reader prefers), that one of the questions most asked of American voters in opinion polls is the famous, “who do you think is better prepared to be Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces?” And that in a time of economic crisis, the polls indicate - and this is no paradox - that most voters prefer someone who is capable of showing leadership, and not just someone who has great knowledge about the economy (as is the case with McCain’s main opponent amongst Republicans, millionaire businessman Mitt Romney).

There are great, wide-ranging issues that carry enormous weight in the American election: race, religion, national security, social security. But in a country where one of the worst offenses is to be called a “loser,” it's useful to pay attention to that espirit (there is no better expression) that emphasizes combat, soldiers and veterans, which is something one doesn't see in other western countries.

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[WORLDMEETS.US POSTED Feb. 3, 2008 5:35pm]