 Other American POWs were similarly tortured and maltreated in order to extract " confessions " and propaganda statements . Many , especially among those who had been captured earlier and imprisoned longer – such as those in the " Alcatraz Gang " – endured even worse treatment than McCain . Under extreme duress , virtually all the POWs eventually yielded something to their captors . There were momentary exceptions : on one occasion , a guard surreptitiously loosened McCain 's painful rope bindings for a night ; when , months later , the guard later saw McCain on Christmas Day , he stood next to McCain and silently drew a cross in the dirt with his foot . In October 1968 , McCain 's isolation was partly relieved when Ernest C. Brace was placed in the cell next to him ; he taught Brace the tap code the prisoners used to communicate . On Christmas Eve 1968 , a church service for the POWs was staged for photographers and film cameras ; McCain defied North Vietnamese instructions to be quiet , speaking out details of his treatment then shouting " Fu @-@ u @-@ u @-@ u @-@ ck you , you son of a bitch ! " and giving the finger whenever a camera was pointed at him . McCain refused to meet with various anti @-@ Vietnam War peace groups coming to Hanoi , such as those led by David Dellinger , Tom Hayden , and Rennie Davis , not wanting to give either them or the North Vietnamese a propaganda victory based on his connection to his father . McCain was still badly hobbled by his injuries , earning the nickname " <unk> " among the other POWs , but despite his physical condition , continued beatings and isolation , he was one of the key players in the Plantation 's resistance efforts . 
