As a Female Disabled Veteran (US Army and US Navy), I am asking that each person take one moment to reflect on whether or not you could make it through military boot camp - let alone a war such as Vietnam, Iraq or Pakistan. Now, I don't happen to believe that McCain is a "hero". I do believe he was given differential treatment by his captors for the making of propaganda films. However, since this would be a perfect time for one of the video/films to surface; and none have ~ I have to also consider that my evaluation of him cooperating witht the enemy may be incorrect. But even if the films were not made, I do NOT consider him a Hero - he was just one of thousands of men who were captured. He is just lucky, because one of us is not wearing a POW/MIA bracelet on our wrist with his name on it.
But I know what I went through just in Training Camp. It ain't easy! I enlisted in the Navy during Vietnam. I know that the Navy Boot-camps are considered one of the easier ones....yet I spent the first two weeks crying every day and night, calling my parents and asking them to find a way to get me out of there, and knowing I had made the biggest mistake of my life. Lucky for me, my parents consoled me but ignored my pleas. I became tougher and learned to accept my decision. I trained with rifles, handguns, gas chambers, obstacle courses, and ran like Forest Gump. And I wouldn't trade one day of that camp or my years in the Navy for anything. The only thing I can blame them for is my OCD today where I still fold my socks, underwear, and bras according to Chief Kluckner's way. (lol) And the only reason I left was because I had married and quickly became pregnant. You have to remember that "back in the day" women were not allowed to the in the military and pregnant, so I received an honorable discharge and moved to Indiana with my husband.
After graduating from Ball State in 1982 and being part of the first ROTC program since Vietnam, I made the decision to rejoin the Military (minus one husband) and off I went to training as a Army Officer. This training was easy compared to enlisted boot camp; but still, every day I thought about all the other jobs I could have accepted instead of the path I chose. I will say that some of the training was brutal. Like POW training. We spent two days with fellow Army counterparts; but in this situation, they played the part of the enemy. I was tough back then, and when my platoon and I were captured, the enemy ordered my squad to begin jumping jacks, I told my group, "Stand down. We will take no orders from these people." BAD MISTAKE. At least my squad was not punished, but I was. And when I also refused to give out any information except for my name, rank and serial number, it got REAL BAD. Now remember, these were not REAL enemies, nor were they REALLY going to hurt me. But for the following two hours, you could not have gotten ME to believe it was not REAL. I don't ever remember being that frightened or more cornered in my entire life. For me, IT WAS HELL ON EARTH. And this was JUST training - no real guns, no real torture, no real enemy. But it gave me the idea and the thought and the knowledge, that I NEVER EVER wanted to be captured by the "real thing".
So, this entire soap-box preaching was just to ask you to stop for a moment and think if you could have been in my combat boots; let alone John McCain's in the real situation. And no, I know of no Military Man or Woman who could lose 5 planes, 5 jets, 5 helicopters, 5 tanks or even 5 miles without there being consequences. But we were at War; and errors are overlooked more in the time of War.
I hope no one takes offense by this letter; I have been and will continue to be Devoted to Change....but I think that criticism of McCain during his time in the military needs to be done lightly; and perhaps, only by those that have been there. I know I haven't been in the real war.
Thanks for reading this terribly long and perhaps worthless letter.
1 crazyobamafan,
Kari
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