McCain's War for Security

The New York Times Magazine had a feature story on 
Senator McCain a week or two ago which covered in
detail his personal, military and political history and his
heroic struggle to meet the high standards set by his 
admiral father, the Navy and individual ethics. 

His long imprisonment by the North Vietnamese due to 
a refusal to be released as the well-known son of a 
prominent admiral was cited as an example of his 
duty to to put national interests above his own.

This iconic treatment of a national hero is worth pondering
for the way it reveals what Tim calls "the fix is in."

The imposition of protective measures often occurs through
those with impeccable credentials, especially by appealing to 
the ones who believe that their special role is to rise above ordinary 
struggles and dispense exceptional wisdom, fairness and
justice.

The question on McCain is: has he been sold on the threat to 
national security of cryptography by appealing to his deep 
patriotism, his belief in a special duty to protect the nation, to 
fight its "war" with the day's enemies.

Such feeding of grandiloquence is historical practice of the
Richlieus running the government, raiding the till, commanding 
the academies, distributing authorizations to placate antsy 
kings-in-queue.

The cariacature of this are "banana republics" where
military and political saviors justify coups in the name
of the "public interest," or "the people," fairly well in accord
with threats to authority.

Military, naval and governmental academies worldwide teach this
belief in the special duty of public servants, notwithstanding the
evidence that some graduates reap the not-so-public rewards.

As amply displayed in S.936, the National Defense Authorization
Act for FY 1998, the perennial US banana republic raid on
the till. 

Read it to see who McCain thinks are the nation's enemies and 
protectors and who are the supreme judges of both.

What's not as well publicized about leadership academies of all
kinds is that they also teach (and practice) the Machiavellian wisdom 
of most stringent laws and harshest enforcement for challenges to 
the authority to govern, to tax, to command, to rule. To assure 
"national security" for those who thrive on it.

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Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't there also stuff in the article about
how McCain had been badly stung by some "ethics" problem, which apparently
was not really very serious but disturbed him personally and tainted his
image?

I am remembering vaguely reading somewhere that he felt his integrity had
been impugned (by all accounts he had long been considered above reproach)
and that he was as a result "on the warpath" to restore his image.

If that's a correct remembering, then that sense of a need to restore his
image may have made McCain a perfect target for "a treatment" by a clever
Administration gunning for Pro-CODE (sponsored by Burns, a less powerful
member of the Commerce Committee chaired by McCain, and someone already on
McCain's bad side according to Declan).

Hindsight is 20-20, but it was a perfect fit -- he's the chair of a
committee so he can force a bill through; Burns is on the committee so he
confronts Pro-CODE directly; according to Declan, he didn't get along with
Burns anyway; he wants to reclaim his public crusader image; and he's
always been strong on national security stuff.

Lee

At 12:26 PM -0700 6/22/97, John Young wrote:
>The New York Times Magazine had a feature story on
>Senator McCain a week or two ago which covered in
>detail his personal, military and political history and his
>heroic struggle to meet the high standards set by his
>admiral father, the Navy and individual ethics.
>
[good comments snipped]



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At 11:23 PM -0700 6/22/97, Lee Tien wrote:
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>
>Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't there also stuff in the article about
>how McCain had been badly stung by some "ethics" problem, which apparently
>was not really very serious but disturbed him personally and tainted his
>image?

Are you referrring to him being one of the four or five in the "S & L
scandal"? MCain was indeed one of them, along with Alan Cranston of
California, who elected not to run again, and several others. This was
indeed a big new story, lasting at least two years, and McCain's reputation
was hurt badly by it.

>If that's a correct remembering, then that sense of a need to restore his
>image may have made McCain a perfect target for "a treatment" by a clever
>Administration gunning for Pro-CODE (sponsored by Burns, a less powerful
>member of the Commerce Committee chaired by McCain, and someone already on
>McCain's bad side according to Declan).

And we may speculate that FinCEN and CIA had the goods on him, vis-a-vis
kickbacks, illegal contributions, bribes, and suchlike.

(FinCEN is the new J. Edgar Hoover, having dossiers of all financial
dealings. These dossiers can be used to make Congressvermin more compliant.)

--Tim May

There's something wrong when I'm a felon under an increasing number of laws.
Only one response to the key grabbers is warranted: "Death to Tyrants!"
---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:---------:----
Timothy C. May              | Crypto Anarchy: encryption, digital money,
tcmay@got.net  408-728-0152 | anonymous networks, digital pseudonyms, zero
W.A.S.T.E.: Corralitos, CA  | knowledge, reputations, information markets,
Higher Power: 2^1398269     | black markets, collapse of governments.
"National borders aren't even speed bumps on the information superhighway."