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By JOHN G. NASH

Of Cabbages and Kings

Published: February 8, 2008

A recent column of mine pointed out, among other things, that Sen. John McCain's performance, while on active duty in the Navy, appears to have been less than stellar. I received more feedback from that piece than from any other I've written in recent memory.
Most of those e-mails were critical of my comments about McCain; many were irrational and harshly critical of my assumed lack of military service and/or seemingly questioned that my parents were ever married.
If the facts I then presented were emotionally rejected, out of hand, by so many, this one may turn their faces purple with rage.
There seem to me to be three significant reasons why McCain is one of the least qualified persons we could possibly consider as a candidate for any public office — let alone the presidency. First, his training and experience are inadequate and inappropriate. Secondly, he has, almost throughout his entire life, reportedly demonstrated a very short and hot temper, along with a proclivity to act unpredictably and irrationally. And finally, his relatively advanced age and reported inability to deal with stress, when exacerbated by the extraordinary demands of the Oval Office, cause one to wonder if he'll survive even four years in that hot seat.
McCain's selection of a running mate will be unusually critical; if he makes that decision as he did the one to join arms with the most infamous politician I know of (Ted Hiccup Kennedy), to sponsor a disgraceful bill granting amnesty to illegal aliens, we could be in a very risky position.
No, I don't want to see a socialist elected to our highest office; on the other hand, I fear having someone with McCain's demonstrated, critical flaws, making major decisions affecting this nation and the world — nor with a shaky finger posed above the launch button. Let's look again, from a slightly different perspective, at McCain's worrisome profile.
McCain came to political office because, and only because, of his having suffered terribly as a prisoner of war. He was widely seen as a hero, but except for having endured years of barbaric treatment by North Vietnamese captors, McCain's military experience is somewhat less than commendable.
That is not just my "bigoted" opinion: A feature story in the Feb 11 edition of Newsweek magazine reported that McCain was difficult to predict or control as a child; that he was a troublemaker while in the Naval Academy, unpopular with his classmates and graduated, just barely, near the bottom of his class.
As an "average pilot," he "sacrificed careful (i.e., professional) preparation for more time at the O Club bar." He was captured when shot down during a combat mission over Hanoi, and suffered several broken limbs at that time. However unacceptable it may be, you should be aware that his injuries, subsequent suffering, loss of a multi-million dollar aircraft and loss of his service to his nation appear to have been avoidable.
As Newsweek reported: "(while on a bomb run over Hanoi) a (surface-to-air missile) locked on to his plane….he should have jinked to evade the missile, but out of stubbornness, or a mad kind of bravery, he flew straight on…the missile blew off the right wing of his plane." That, folks, is not a quality we can tolerate in our commander in chief!
McCain is widely and frequently reported to be pig-headed, unwilling to change even the most demonstrably erroneous opinion. On top of that there are legions of those working on Capitol Hill who are ready and willing to recount personal incidents in which McCain lost control of his well-recognized temper, frequently lapsing into foul-mouthed insults to his contemporaries. For example, it is reliably reported that when Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas, tried to amend McCain's astounding bill about illegal immigration, McCain finally shouted a vulgar profanity in front of some 30 witnesses. Presidential? I think not!
If elected, McCain will be the oldest man ever to take that demanding office. As Anna Quindlen (with whom I almost never agree on anything) recently pointed out: (If we have) "age limits for jobs like airline pilot or police officer, the kinds of jobs that require some of the same skills as the presidency — unwavering mental acuity and physical energy (why not also for highest office in the nation?)"
McCain is a high-risk nominee. The alternatives of Obama or Clinton are, in different, but equally dangerous ways, just as unacceptable as is McCain. Since we generally vote based on subjective emotion, rather than based on facts and common sense, our future looks bleak indeed. Did I just see the sky tremble a bit?

John Nash is a widely traveled and experienced journalist and photographer currently based in West-Central Florida. He welcomes comments sent to john@have-eye.com.

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