Ctrl-c is NOT equivalent to ESC. Yes, it lets you switch modes but you loose out other important actions. See :help for more details.<p>Edit:
Here's a short explanation of the options
<a href="http://stackoverflow.com/questions/5030164/whats-the-difference-between-ctrlc-and-ctrl" rel="nofollow">http://stackoverflow.com/questions/5030164/whats-the-differe...</a>