44
votes
John McCain has died of brain cancer at 81
@nytimes:
Breaking News: John McCain has died of brain cancer at 81. Once a prisoner of war, he made two bids for president and was a towering presence in the Senate. https://t.co/oWPRrWL6XX
He was a bigoted warmonger, he deserves no respect.
https://i.imgur.com/xRC3Aot.jpg
Edit to give this comment a little more substance: The upcoming worship of McCain is strong evidence of our country's obsession with imperialist wars, to the point that it is basically a national religion.
For a bit more context, he said "I hate the gooks" in 2000, while campaigning for the Presidential nomination.
If he had said it immediately after he was released from the POW camp back in the 70s, I might be willing to cut that statement a little slack, but this was 25 years later and he should have known better.
He also famously sang "Bomb Iran" (to the tune of Barbara Ann) multiple times and seemed to consider it funny.
Agreed, for the most part. While I'm not happy he's dead, and would not under any circumstances celebrate his death, I'm not going to sit here and pretend he was a shining beacon of decorum and grace.
But hey, you know how it goes.
I'm glad he's dead. He was one of the Keating Five, and should have been removed from office and shipped back to Vietnam compliments of Americans who lost their savings in the Savings & Loan crash because of it.
I'm glad you're not in a position of power then. No one should be shipped anywhere to be tortured. You can call for the death penalty for certain crimes and it won't phase me, but to call for someone to be tortured for an alleged wrong is absurd.
Thank you for saying this, my honest thought opening this thread was one of "ugh, here comes the McCain worship" - I can't tell you how lightened I felt by this being the top comment. McCain deserves no respect. Perfectly stated.
I guess he doesn't hate "gooks" anymore.
The man pretty much single-handedly saved my health insurance. I now pay $255 on the exchange with the federal subsidy. Without, it's almost $700. I can't afford that with a mortgage and would have to eliminate health insurance, something that's pretty scary for a man of fifty who already had a heart attack.
I'll always remember this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JIjenjANqAk
Granted, his recent criticisms of Trump were mostly lip service with him voting the party line, but at least they were criticisms from a well-respected, long-time politician and war hero—and yes, he was definitely that. Read up on his military career if you're at all doubtful.
Godspeed, Senator.
I wonder how many civilians he ended up killing on all those bombing missions he flew. It's not like he was a sniper. It's like they say: a bullet can have your name on it, but a bomb is addressed "to whom it may concern".
I pretty much gully agree. I didn’t agree with a lot of how he wanted to run things, but I thought he was an earnest and honest man trying to do what he thought was right. It’s never easy to know when the pain of what you’re going through isn’t worth continuing treatment, and it’s a decision each person has to make for themselves. I’m glad he’s no longer in pain.
I didn't agree with a lot of his politics, but I think the man was a true patriot who cared very much about the nation. I hope he is at peace.
Can you be said to care about a nation if you only care about the citizens of a nation with the 'correct' skin colour?
He cared enough about the nation to not sell it to a hostile foreign government. As low as that bar is, that's what the GOP at large is as it is today.
In that case maybe you guys need to coin the term 'GOPatriot' rather than 'true patriot'. A GOPatriot is someone who is patriotic when held against Trump.
Why do we need to base today's definition on yesterday's reality?
I've never been happy about somebody dieing and I hopefully never will. I really don't respect McCain in any way and I don't agree with his politics in the slightest. He served his country in the way he thought he was correct. I can't deny that. But I will say that his idea of "correct" is so far from human decency that he hurt our country. He was one of the better Republicans serving in congress this year, but that's the lowest bar you can pass and he only did barely.
RIP and I hope our country can follow his example when he was right and learn from the times when he was wrong.
I find some of the sheer toxic hate in here to be rather "alt-leftish." Some of these comments sound literally alt right if you replaced McCain with anyone from Obama's presidency. Rise above people, he was human, where are our kindness and heart.
I’m feeling more emotional than I usually get over the passing of a public figure. McCain represents an honorable and respectful way of approaching politics and serving your country. I hope we continue to uphold his qualities.
It seems that many people are unaware of who John McCain was. When a normal person dies its common for people to remember them for what they did throughout their whole lives; opposed to relating to them in their deteriorating position.
Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act ~ Voted No (Still passed)
Nomination of Elisabeth Prince DeVos to be Secretary of Education ~ Voted to confirm
Use of Military Force Against Iraq ~ Voted for war
Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (Dec 22 2017)~ did not vote on final round, but was a linchpin in getting it to the appropriations committee. Even in the end he supported a boot on the common mans neck.
And you know I can keep going. Its not my fault he chose to live this way and support what he did, but just because he is dead doesn't change history or my feelings about him. Quite frankly I think its disrespectful for people to forget what he spent his life doing, if anything he should be remembered for all of the countless failures and few successes he has backed on the GOP agenda. This is the reason why some people are not worth remembering, but if you do; don't forget who this man was.
Here is a link to his voting record and his actual legacy: https://votesmart.org/candidate/key-votes/53270/john-mccain-iii
Edit That being said, I wish his family well in this difficult time.
He was a legend. Rip
I believe that John McCain was deeply committed to, and representative of, his Arizona constituency, including the bedrock racism, militarism, privileging of mining, ranching, banking and other commercial interests over individual citizens ("small government")...
This is the state where the Republican Party has produced Barry Goldwater, Joe Arpaio, Jan Brewer, and a host of other much worse ideologues. This is the state that invented "Operation Wetback".
Of his kind, John McCain could have been much worse, and it's to his credit that he occasionally refused to enact the worst of the local Party's cruelties.
I'm sorry he suffered, I'm sorry for his family, and I'm grateful that he served the nation as best as he knew how.
Those are the kindest words I can find for someone whose policies I've generally despised.
He did things that I do not agree with, but he was always 100% for America. Which is something a lot of politicians aren't. RIP
God bless his soul.