Great find! This guy is totally unhinged and he’s trying to convince us that he is the one with the temperament to run our country. It would be hilarious if it weren’t so frightening.

From wiki: “The fear of being touched (also known as aphephobia, haphephobia, haphophobia, hapnophobia, haptephobia, and haptophobia[citation needed]) is a rare specific phobia that involves the fear of touching or of being touched. It is an acute exaggeration of the normal tendencies to protect one’s personal space, expressed as a fear of contamination or of the invasion, and extending even to people whom its sufferers know well.[1][2]

Sometimes the fear is restricted specifically, or predominantly, to being touched by people of the opposite sex.
Jim – not to give any brief to McCain — but see my bold faced above: ‘acute exaggeration ..to protect one’s personal space’ and ‘touched by people of the opposite sex’. Both of these are evident in the above story. Let’s be kind to McCain and say that the first is a hold over from his being held as a POW and being attacked/tortured/hit/held in a dependent position, etc. by his captors, esp during the phase where he was injured and helpless. This makes a certain amount of sense. BUT his reaction to this woman and then the whole issue of his arrogance, of exerting his position — the question was not, “Hey, don’t you know I’m a US senator?” but “Don’t you know who I AM?” This holds a huge amount of emotional baggage – not only entitlement (I’m the son of admirals and I’m a war hero), but pain and resentment(I’m a POW and you owe me deference for that), and also the ‘I’m a US Senator and I’ve run for president, etc.” thing. I see McCain as someone who is so filled with pain and resentment (disappointment to himself and his family for lack of a Naval career; disappointment in himself for giving in as a POW and using his name and position to get himself something that no one else asked for OR got; disapointment at not being successful against Bush in 2000..the list goes on and on) — he literally is a human explosive device — our own little suicide bomber.

I have a somewhat contrarian view on this one.

As a gambler I hate being touched when I’m losing. Totally irrational, I know, but there it is nonetheless.

If you go into a casino and put your hand on the shoulder of a Chinese or Vietnamese born person while they’re gambling, they’re likely to hit the roof. It’s considered extremely bad luck.

MCain, however, should have known better than having his hands too low on a dice table, and his outburst reveals an infantile temper unsuited for the presidency.

This is a guy who has “I am the most f**king entitled person on this planet.” written all over him.

Any craps player who thinks he’s entitled to ignore the proper protocol at the table belongs in Gamblers Anonymous, not the White House.

Cliff — thanks so much for that. Not being a gambler(I’m addicted to ‘belt and suspenders’ myself), I did not know those things.

The Joe Pesci character in Casino had an apt phrase for what John McCain is: “They were degenerate gamblers…”

I started out in the gaming industry in 1978, and I can tell you: John McCain is a degenerate gambler.

I was once that, myself. Not a good thing to be, no…

I see McCain as someone who is in it for the risk and the thrill – his entire life seems to be a series of ‘crap shoots’ – I think he gets a big charge out of skating really close to the edge…and then squeaking out. His entire campaign this year has been a series of ‘all or nothing’ events. Crazy stuff — but do we want someone who gets his jollies from ‘playing chicken’ ..esp if it’s with someone like Putin?

Bingo! See, you don’t have to be a gambler to figure him out. He’s all about the emotional rush.

Obama is a pleasure poker player, an entirely different animal. From descriptions of his game I’ve seen, I’d say he’s what we call a “rock.” He probably talks a lot during the game to give the impression of “action,” but he plays tight and has a reputation for rarely bluffing — IOW, he rarely gets caught bluffing.

He has fun with his friends. McCain is driven to break the bank, playing 12-14 hours at a stretch.

I don’t think people realize just how dangerous a degenerate gambler type can be to everyone in his world.

Our world, in this case…

I think McCain doesn’t like to be corrected.

When a guy has so many issues of his own, how can he deal with our issues?

All prisoners have problems being touched its is surprising that John has not done more for American prisons given given his experience.

I think he has not given the same reasons he has not been responsive to POW-MIA groups. He likes to USE his status as “The US’s most famous Viet Nam POW”…but I don’t think he has any sympathy for others who are in the situation.

What amazes me about John McCain is that he has seen up close and personal what a war can do to people. Both from the perspective of people dying and from the perspective of people who have had to live through it, combatants and non-combatants alike.

Yet he still, still, shows no compassion or regard for the people who are the victims in these situations. This means soldiers, living or dead, and civilians who are unfortunate enough to be or have been in harms way.

If I were a soldier and this man was my commander, I would be very afraid, because this is the kind of leader who will get you killed.

I have served in a few wars myself, and I have been very fortunate in not ever having had to serve under someone like this.

I am somewhat ambivalent yet about Barack Obama, and it remains to be seen if when he is elected whether or not he will be the great strong leader we need. But I have no doubts about John McCain.

When I first read the casino story, I thought it might be a superstitious reaction on McCain’s part. Particularly somebody who’s game is craps, which is based entirely on chance. Presidents often have to take calculated risks but we definitely don’t want a superstitious hotheaded crap-shooter in the job.

Regarding his aversion to contact, in addition to it being a gambler’s faux pas, I don’t believe McCain has any genuine empathy for other human beings. He is capable of faking it when he knows that he is on-camera.

OK – let’s talk about what/who a leader is, what the qualities of leadership ARE and what we expect of leaders:
“Being a leader is about being responsible and not passing the blame. True leaders step up,” Wartzman said. “To say you’re acting on the best information available is a failure of leadership that reflects a failure of the system.”
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/…..refer=news
There are a lot of other interpretations of leadership but that is a good one. Other characteristics we expect in leaders are self-control and self-discipline. McCain for his entire life has exhibited a ferocious lack of both and a huge willingness to bend the rules and ‘get away with stuff’ – he has a classic ‘risk taker’ character. The question is, what does the US NEED right now? McCain is not what and who we need right now and I don’t think he’s got ‘the right stuff’ for the future either.

Dugg.

I suspect McCain would be a risky choice even in the most uneventful times, which these are definitely NOT. He possesses many of the same traits that made Bush a disaster, lack of intellectual curiosity, etc., with the bonus of barely contained rage, paranoia, and misanthropy.

Yep – McCain makes Fratboy Slim look like the Dali Lama right now.

Toby, your article has 5 DIGGs, including mine. Why is 0 shown in box above? I also commented (pup34).

All other issues aside, this subject is the most important in this election. There are probably multiple causes of McCain’s inability to govern his own behavior; whatever the cause we must prevent his being in the position of governing our nation. Above all, he must not be in control of the nuclear code.

I have not read his books and have no desire to do so. I have read articles which give excerpts from them. There is one story from his mother which tells that as a toddler and child he would, when not given his way, hold his breath until he turned blue. The parents would toss his in a tub of cold water which made him gasp. This tells me several things: 1) spoiled rotten from day one 2) genetically predisposed to anger and alcoholism 3) Father away most of the time, thus disciplined (controlled) by his mother which could partially explain his abusive conduct toward women. Cindy McCain has reportedly presented herself 3 times for treatment with injuries indicative of spousal abuse, i.e., cracked ribs, bruises about face, arms, body. This trait is also shown by McCain’s shameful performance during the Senate Select Committee on POW/MIA Issue 1992/93 during which he verbally abused witnesses, especially women.

IMO Cindy McCain is the personified Stepford Wife of the 1950s. I am of that generation but, since I read books and thought for myself, I never became one of those – - so glad!

My thoughts on this matter could fill a book but must end here.

Thank you Toby. Please write again and again on this subject. No issue is more important. (in my humble opinion).

I’ve noticed that the Diggs don’t show up on Oxdown pages.