Many of the men broke. McCain broke. These days the military recognizes it and due to the Vietnam experienced changed the training in escape and evasion school from never ever talk, to hold off as long as you can especially first 72 hours.
Many of the POWs went on to have serious mental issues and the suicide rate was higher too. It was guilt over breaking the code.
I actually think part of what ails the Senator is what he did. He has been making that up since he came back home and been seeking to win that war (by proxy) ever since. It is his war, and lord he has a guilty conscience.
Many of the men of the Nam generation never forgave McCain, and thought he escaped punishment and a court martial because who daddy was. And he should have been grounded after plane two. But due to his, and other POW experience, later generations are now trained differently. Ironically it was the Senator who triggered some of that. The switch in training started in the 1970s. But, he would never screen for a star, and the reason was not his POW years, but his performance before he became one.
I wish he was honest with himself and sat down and wrote a pour your heart out memoir. The writer in me would love that. He would make a good template for a few complex fictional characters. And incidentally it would be good for him, but also for historians.
His attacking Berghdahl....is purely coming from a very dark place in him. It is a hell, in my opinion, that I wish on nobody.
I know that empathy and all that. But when you look at what angers the man...he deserved the WH. He honestly believes that. First it was taken from him by a silver spoon who never served in Nam and went AWOL. Then it was stolen again by that upstart from the next generation who never ever made the same sacrifices he did for the country. The first one angered him, the second one it was just an outrage.
Yeah, yeah...motive, it is fascinating.
Not justifying McCain, before anybody says that. But over the years I have been trying to get it, why the flip flops? He desperately wants to lead and fit in, and be one of the boys. And this explains, at least to me, most of John McCain, and I am no longer surprised by him, at all. I should admit to feeling sorry for him though. What a hell to continue to live in.
As to the flyers of the Nam generation, like your brother, no they have not forgiven him for breaking the code...and being the son of a highly decorated Admiral. The rest who broke and were not that well connected, quietly went away.
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