He hadn't worn any of his nation's uniforms for awhile, but boy-oh-boy did he arrived decked out in full military dress. Evidently someone advised him that showing himself in a military uniform would speak louder to the American people than the nebbishes in suits and ties who were members of the Congressional panel that had summoned him to testify.
The visual cue took the day. There he was, in his uniform, holding his hand up to pledge allegiance to The Flag, and embarrassingly enough, THOSE VISUALS (pardon the pun) trumped any other signals or messaging or the catchiest sloganeering on parade. It was an unforgettable front-page/magazine-cover visual. And he made sure to wear his best facial expression to signal "I risked my life for my country and here you sit, smearing me and trashed me when I shed blood for you". When I watched that, live, before whatever House or Senate committee hearing, I Could Not HELP seeing the subtext that was being messaged. It hit me in the face like a flying cream pie.
And America swooned over him, and those heartless inquisitors DARED to torture this faithful red-white-and-blue fighting man by asking him questions. ANY misdeeds he carried out or had a hand in that any of those lawmaker panelists wanted to ask him about, it ALL went right out the window. Nobody cared anymore. The very vision of him standing ramrod straight with his hand held up to swear in just completelly deep-six'd any facts that might have come out, or testimony that might have sealed his fate in the wrong direction. Just GONE. He was the beleaguered, put-upon war hero-fighting-for-your-freedom and facing death FOR YOU. They almost freakin' canonized him. It was awfully hard to watch.
IMAGING.
VISUALS. (The vast majority of Americans process information visually.) The visuals told you this was a victim, who'd shed his very blood to keep YOU free, standing up to the Devil himself so you wouldn't have to, the closest thing a contemporary poseur/media manipulator could come to Dying-on-the-Cross-for-YOUR-SINS. The visual manipulations just dropped my jaw.
And it worked. America, you've been HAD. ROYALLY HAD. He became a hero and pop-culture figure by now, probably with an agent making sure he could get that seven-or-eight-figure book deal and his mug on TV as often as possible. And he's never paid much of a price for it.
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