From both my parents, I learned to persevere. But my mother’s extraordinary resilience made her the stronger of the two. I acquired some of her resilience and her felicity, and that inheritance made an enormous difference in my life.
Catalog
John McCain
John Sidney McCain III (born August 29, 1936) is an American politician who currently serves as the senior United States Senator from Arizona. He was the Republican nominee for the 2008 U.S. presidential election. McCain followed his father and grandfather, both four-star admirals, into the United States Navy, graduating from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1958. He became a naval aviator, flying ground-attack aircraft from aircraft carriers. During the Vietnam War, he was almost killed in the 1967 USS Forrestal fire. In October 1967, while on a bombing mission over Hanoi, he was shot down, seriously injured, and captured by the North Vietnamese. He was a prisoner of war until 1973. McCain experienced episodes of torture, and refused an out-of-sequence early repatriation offer. His war wounds have left him with lifelong physical limitations. He retired from the Navy as a captain in 1981 and moved to Arizona, where he entered politic
My father, typically, was undeterred by domestic opposition. 'Some people condemned this as an unwarranted intervention,' he observed, 'but the Communists were all set to move in and take over. People may not love you for being strong when you have to be, but they respect you for it and learn to…
Freedom is America’s honor, and all honor comes with obligations.
We have the obligation to use our freedom wisely, to select well from all the choices freedom offers. We can accept or reject the obligation, but if we are to preserve our freedom, our honor, we must choose well.
Glory belongs to the act of being constant to something greater than yourself, to a cause, to your principles, to the people on whom you rely, and who rely on you in return. No misfortune, no injury, no humiliation can destroy it.
Nothing in life is more liberating than to fight for a cause larger than yourself, something that encompasses you but is not defined by your existence alone.
An officer must not lie, steal, or cheat—ever. He keeps his word, whatever the cost. He must not shirk his duties no matter how difficult or dangerous they are. His life is ransomed to his duty. An officer must trust his fellow officers, and expect their trust in return. He must not expect others to…
The most important lesson I learned there was that to sustain my self-respect for a lifetime it would be necessary for me to have the honor of serving something greater than my self-interest.
In prison, I fell in love with my country. I had loved her before then, but like most young people, my affection was little more than a simple appreciation for the comforts and privileges most Americans enjoyed and took for granted. It wasn't until I had lost America for a time that I realized how…
An officer must not confer his responsibilities on the men under his command. They are his alone.
I always had the sense that he was special, a man who had set his mind to accomplishing great things, and had ransomed his life to the task.
The sanctity of personal honor was the only lesson my father felt necessary to impart to me, and he faithfully saw to my instruction, frequently using my grandfather as his model. All my life, he had implored me not to lie, cheat, or steal; to be fair with friend and stranger alike; to respect my…
My father once said 'Some officers get it backwards. They don't understand that we are responsible for our war, not the other way around. That's what forges trust and loyalty.
They told John McCain he could leave if he told them certain things. 'No one would know.' 'I would know. I would know.'
Listen, the joy of my life was the bonds that were forged between me and my fellow POWs. They were wonderful. We fought together. We loved each other. We would tap on the walls to each other. I look back on that experience with a great deal of pride.
If I took offense at everybody who has said something about me, or disparaged me or something like that—life is too short. You've gotta move on.
So live your life that the fear of death can never enter your heart. Trouble no one about their religion; respect others in their view, and demand that they respect yours. Love your life, perfect your life, beautify all things in your life. Seek to make your life long and its purpose in the service…
It is your character, and your character alone, that will make your life happy or unhappy.