The Monster Has Been Hatched

We Americans have been frightened out of our wits by monster films where the gestation of a serious menace to the human race occurs within a fraction of time. The one that stills sends shivers down my spine is the Alien. With a simple infection, a horrible beast rips its way out of its host to devour all in its path. I can attribute to that film my aversion to all horrors flicks. But for those of us who have watched with amusement at the development of Sarah Palin maybe in for that moment when all hell breaks loose. Ms. Palin having been fed and incubated in bowels of the Republican Right is now gaining in strength and soon she will burst upon the American electorate. The Rovian accolades have been nurturing this creature and to their delight it is coming along just fine.

It is not too off base to conjecture, given the sad campaign McCain has waged, that this election cycle might just have been scripted so that a “true” neocon Republican could be groomed. What better stage to develop a rising star then a presidential election. Think about it! Your party is facing eight years of an administration so bankrupt that its favorable ratings have hit rock bottom. Take with that a Congress only two years out of office that was simply corrupt. Consider the national debt. Examine the abuses of power in nearly every executive office. Note the office of Vice President that had a criminal indictment and needed a presidential pardon. Realistically, how could the party get a new president elected? Now, find a candidate, a bull headed opinionated die hard cantankerous old man facing his last hurrah and sell him on the idea that now is his time. And give him the outdated apparatus that couldn't sell any candidate again. Now put besides him the hope of the future in a photogenic pliable parrot who will learn her lines and wink and nod and get the great middle class energized with her babble of god, country, real Americans and no taxes. Seems far fetched doesn't it? Or does it?

How else can you explain the gaffes in the McCain campaign? It would take a blooming idiot not to have recognize that something was amiss with the economy. So, who gave McCain that astute observation that the fundamentals were basically good? McCain certainly didn't think of that. Heck! He admitted he didn't know much about economics. Who would allow the candidate to move through the election cycle without a rudder only sparking when he stole the positions of Obama? Some operative must have known it would only reinforce the position of the opposition.

Seeing Ms. Palin now in the closing days of this campaign one can see she is in it for the long haul. I think that those who pulled strings on her selection knew she was going to be a detriment. But in the final accounting, it is the top of the ticket that will take the onus of defeat. As Palin so tellingly informed the public, “she isn't in this for naught.”

No, there is a bigger agenda here. I think McCain is getting his come uppence. He sold his soul, but like anyone who sells his soul, he is left without a shred of moral turpitude. What a most ingenious payback? Strip a man of all that he ever really prided himself of.

Palin has been hatched. Every applause, every shout, everyone who attends her rallies are the sustenance to grow her into a force. Unfortunately, this is a force without a moral underpinning. It is a force who gravitates towards power for it that which sustains her. She, like all infections, is opportunistic. She is in the fight for herself and she will survive. It is up to the electorate to discover the true force in this election cycle. She needs to be contained and shown for what she is. She speaks easily out of both sides of her mouth. She is coy and winsome and glib. She speaks of things for which she hasn't any knowledge and believe her when she says there are two Americas. Hers and those who need to be controlled. To really appreciate her you need to see her with her Dick Cheney and I do believe there are any number of them waiting in the wings.

Palin and the Real America

The real Americans according to McCain and Palin are those folks who subscribe to the politics of the right wing. You know guns and god and good ol' free enterprise. These traditions are all new to the American experience. They certainly weren't handed down from the likes of Thomas Paine, Abraham Lincoln, or Teddy Roosevelt. No, they were concocted in the minds of ad men who saw the relationship between brand and choice. With a slight of hand, these hucksters have re-defined what it is to be American so that it fit their sales plan. We find ourselves in a world now dominated by politicians as well as products forced upon us by folks who don't give a hoot about the stuff they sell. Their only concern is the sell.

How can a person who attempts to hold the the Vice Presidency not understand its constitutional role? To hear Palin, one wonders if they even teach a civic class in the Alaskan schools. But then again isn't that so like a true American? Belief without facts is the hallmark of a true believer -- buying into the product without any information whatsoever. Then, feeling the horror of the buy and knowing it just wasn't what was needed or desired.

When you look upon the vast expanse of the American electorate, one wonders if our world is so shallow that any anomaly stands out as significant. Joe the Plumber becomes iconic only because the press and the politicians can only see what is right in front of them. There is no real depth to the news. In fact, I would wager that most television reporters spend more time in make-up and on camera then they do on the news. One can see the lack of depth in the almost childish banter and comments of these personalities as they fill in their alloted time lots with blather. In fact, on a given day, they, regardless of the broadcast, repeat the same story over and over. It is as if the entire audience has lost its collective senses and memory. And the funny thing is that is what we must want it. Heck, doesn't the “Enquirer” sell more its paper than any other paper legitimate or not.

In some Orwellian nightmare, we have all become captive of the media moguls and their minions of ad men who give us stuff we just don't need or want. Take for example baseball. A storied American tradition is in the firm grasp of snake oil salesmen who determine when the game is played. As a child, I remember the excitement, nay the tradition, of sneaking a transistor radio into school to catch snippets of the unfolding classic. The score was circulated in a fashion that was Bond like. Now, youngsters fall asleep as the game scheduled for prime time rolls on with commercial after commercial. Why? So revenues can be maximized. And if a national pastime time can be stolen, is it no wonder that our elections have been as well?

Fortunately, in this election cycle, people seemed to have risen above the all encompassing reach of “Madison Avenue.” The old tried and true has been reduced to a song that has long lost favor with the public. Of course, the Bush presidency has shook the electorate from its rut. When Palin speaks of the real America, she must be referring to those sleepy little hamlets that the Republicans could always count on for support. We can only hope that like the rest of this country the alarms in these community are sounding the need to awake and to face the challenges that have been thrust upon us. The public was sold an inferior product that did not have a money back guarantee. And as Bush could never master, “fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me.”

Palin True Calling

What struck me most about Palin appearance on Saturday Night Live is the ease at which she handled her lines. She was smooth and calm and demonstrated a presence seen in only seasoned professionals. She was in her element. Juxtapose that performance with her interview with Katie Couric and you are left with the impression that the performing arts are her forte not public service.

Contrast the stumbling bumbling neophyte who couldn't identify a news source for her biases with the smooth bouncing hip hop momma who was rocking through a rap. Indeed, Palin is definitely a good performer. She is just not a suitable candidate to ascend to the presidency.

When she is talking theatrical nonsense, she is poised. When she is on the political stump she is a fear mongering, right wing pandering “no-nothing” who confuses patriotism with partisanship. She is iconic only in the sense that the far right is starved for anyone who can put a pretty face on the foolishness that passes as policy. Yet, there is something redeeming about her. She has a future in the world of make believe. She can saddle up along side Fred Thompson and become a prosecutor on law and order. She can even be the President as long the script is well written and her lines are clearly spelled out.

What has happen in 21st Century American Culture is that fantasy and reality have merged into one blur. In a world where a no-talent rich heiress can become a celebrity and a supposed legitimate newsman like Chris Mathews can assume a role in a movie, there is no differentiation between the real and the unreal. Consequently, everything dissolves into the surreal. We can call a dozen folks living in the world of survival a reality show and we can assume that proximity can be counted as foreign relations.

So, this is how Sarah Palin arose from the tundra to the national scene. She was selected by Central Casting. It was the talent scouts of “Rovian” persuasion to see the potential in a winking hockey mom. Yes on SNL, she was in her true element. Notice that there wasn't a single tongue tied moment. No brash claims of executive experience, no answer to be scrutinize. There was just this likable bumpkin acting her part.

Funny that the last great iconic Republican was an actor. I can see the wheels spinning in the minds of “neo-cons” as they retreat under their rocks to plan for the next great emergence of the silent real America. With a mixture of religion and no nothingness and a measure of false patriotism, the elephant can again be tamed to march across the civil liberties why the super rich continue to hoard the treasures of this country in pursuit of their excesses.

We can only hope that MGM puts Palin under contract to spare us from this next debacle.

Waxing on The Financial Crisis

Watching Soros on the PBS news hour, I was struck by what he had to say about the current financial crisis. One of the major points he made was that this nation's and indeed the developed world consumption days are near the end. A line from one of Jackson Browne songs came to mind: “Perhaps a better world is drawing near. And just as easily it could all disappear.” As I thought about it, a fear gripped me. Could it be that the world was in fact spinning out of control. But then it came to me that all this progress, all this madness that characterizes this age of consumption and waste is built upon a planet that has an infinite capacity to replenish itself. That the madness of more like any other human mental illness can be cured with behavior modification.

The “throwaway” society needs to be transformed. Humans can survive for this world renews itself with each cycle. What needs to be done is to live in harmony with the ways of the world. The idea that we need to get our food in a printed cardboard box is sheer folly. The practice of receiving our purchases in plastic bags is madness. The fact that we need to slave away reshaping natural resources into plastic stuff so that it can be useless fill in our dumps borders on the insane. In short, whatever so called modern day so called conveniences that have been pushed upon us, transported to us with diesel trucks will need be eliminated. Same goes with cars that basically send us into corridors of time wasting jams. A new way will be needed, a way compatible with the world.

When you think of it, it might just be the destiny that will sustain us as a species. The idea that the world was an infinite supplier of resources only to be used once and then cast aside flies in the face of the natural order. Indeed, the earth has always been a renewable source of life sustaining gifts. Our presence on this planet is short in comparison to other species. We certainly have the wherewithal to begin to go back to the fundamentals and grow and even prosper. That is certainly in contradiction to the slogan, “Drill baby drill.” In short, there has to be a new world view of what is good and what is bad. And what is good for us is the reshaping of habits, expectations, and culture.

Thus, it always comes down to choices. Currently, in this election cycle, we have the old and the new. The old will tell us that we are the greatest gift to the planet with a government that is the model for all to follow. This proposition ignores the injustices that have been undertaken under this cloak of righteousnesses. It will tell us that experience and traditions are more important than vision. It will extol what we know and believe for what we dream. In the end, all the rhetoric that spews forth from conservatives will only lead us down a road clogged with outdated transportation. We will choke and die in the exhaust of wastefulness and consumption. For drill baby drill is a call from a time that has long passed.

The idea that we can begin a process whereby we can draw our energy from renewable sources, that we can become responsible stewards of this planet, that we can sustain ourselves on a world that has an infinite capacity to provide all that we need to live is an idea whose time has come.

We are now facing the question of human survival because of our consumption. Like all binges of the human spirit it will be a difficult transition. But like the drunk who puts down the drink and stumbles and shakes his way into a responsible person free of his addiction, the growth to this new way of existing just might bring us humans to a place where life is valued above property and the human spirit can flourish as it once meant to flourish in harmony with each other and the world itself.

Dumb and Dumber

I asked who vetted Palin and now I know. It was none other than McCain himself. If you carefully listen to McCain, you will note that his logic is circular. He, like his running mate, is incapable of grasping or for the matter speaking about complex issues. He stammers, hems, and haws with nearly every issue. His constant use of “my friends” is an attempt at establishing a connection with the audience so as to allow himself to become trusted in the absence of any proof to what he is postulating. I would think that the only thing separating him from his running mate is time in public office. His gaffes are as pronounced.

McCain is a man of convictions. It is also clear he is not comfortable with anyone questioning his positions. He has taken on his role as a war hero and played it for all it is worth. He stands before the public and pronounces with certitude that he was right about the surge. He ignores all previous miscalculations and pronounces that his support of the surge qualifies him to be commander in chief. He claims that he knows how to get things done, but underlying support for the claim rests only with his words. Thus, the constant use of “my friends” is the proverbial slight of hand of the magician. While you are listening to his endearments, he is slipping his message to you. Shazam! My proof!

There is another matter about McCain that bears scrutiny. His mannerism would suggest not only physical issues – the stiffness and all gross motor movements, which of course, is of no matter, but his almost arrogant presence. The “that guy” comment is the bubbling up of the rage that percolates in him. His petulance is seen in banning reporters. His almost condescending attitude towards his opponent is indicative of a rogue who doesn't “cotton” to newcomers. He comes to stage with his experience cloak about his superficial understanding of issues. He ingratiates himself as a commoner only for the purpose of promoting himself. His presidency would be but another imperial one.

Behind the facade of congeniality lies a man who is obviously bitter and angry that he needs to run for office. After all, a man of his dedication should be attending his coronation not discussing issues with “that guy.” Perhaps, McCain greatest chink in his suit of armor is dullness. He is not a student of history. It is clear that in questioning about his desired dinner dates that he is a sports enthusiast. Which is quite all right. But underlying the question about who you would like to have dinner with is the subtle but certainly telling character of the person. The question is designed to probe for models of behavior. McCain's answer reveals that he is not a person of depth but a man of limited thoughts; hence he can only think of things in his limited world of influence. Petraus and Phelps come out his mouth. And you got to wonder if this man who wants to be president wouldn't like to talk with someone who could expand his world. Importantly, the question throws him because outside of his world, there is little. His delusion is that he is a man of destiny when he is little more that a footnote to it. He chose Sarah Palin because in her he see himself. Bluster and entitlement are all this ticket brings forth to the electorate. Any serious question posed to these two will only get you sound bites. The long election process has served its purpose. McCain has proven to be an out of touch militarist who feels the presidency is but another job – a job only a man who is entitled to it deserves. His first act as a potential president is reflected in his choice of Vice President. Sarah Palin is an example of the type of people John McCain wants around him. Because when you are small and of limited intellectual prowess, the only way you can seem important and knowledgeable is to have a person lesser than you about.

Bad Logic -- Mud Slinging -- How American

The grand tradition in American Politics to denigrate one's opposition is alive and well. Thank god we no longer have to endure half-truths and spin. Now, we can have good old fashion American mud-slinging. In fact, this tradition dates back to 1800 and the Jefferson/Adams election. When you think of it, it is what makes this country what it is. We revel in slime as a nation and as individuals. How else to describe our irrational desire to read the Enquirer or our morbid curiosity at the site of a horrific car accident or the popularity of inane horror flicks.

Now, Sarah Palin, the linguistically challenged Alaskan Governor, took off the gloves and threw the first bare fisted punch. How appropriate! The rifle totting, wolf slaughtering, god fearing, heavenly directed savior of conservative democracy steps up to the plate to call a spade a spade. No, racial slur intended and Obama people better not bring that up or McCain and his surrogates will call it playing the race card. It is “la-la” land to be sure.

One learns in logic class that ad hominem arguments are “ always invalid in syllogistic logic, since the truth value of premises is taken as given, and the validity of a logical inference is independent of the person making the inference.” ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem). I am sure that Governor Palin probably missed that lecture while attending college. One can hear the wheels spinning in her head: “Heck, the mean spirited 'gotcha' press will probably ask a question like that. Heck, Joe six-pack and hockey moms don't care about logic. That's for those high-fluttin liberals who went to elite college and learned all that stuff. In small towns, we know what we know and know how to say it.” Wink, wink.

As a young boy my mom cautioned me that “people in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.” Well, now that the gloves are off I guess it's okay to talk about McCain's involvement in the Savings and Loan Scandal. While one has to employ the notion of six degrees of separation to tie Obama to anything negative, we have a senate panel chastising McCain for his association with Keating. It is ironic that McCain is directly tied to a felonious larceny charge while the other connection, the Ayers thing, relates to a person who has made some honorable contribution to society. Of course, to a small minded person a university professor might not be as creditable as say a gun dealer. And Jesus may forgive but I won't.

But, what the heck, this is America and why not slam the other guy. Who wants to talk of things that matter when we can create lies and bake half truths into a terrorist soufflé? It is American to go into matters not related to anything to make the point that you shouldn't vote the other guy into office. But there is an underlying element to this campaign and that is Americans are really that dumb that they can look at the crisis facing the country on so many fronts and ignore all that and believe that “the barracuda” will save us from those things that she can't even articulate. For the second time in this blog the quote attributed to Lincoln is in order, “You can't fool all the people all the time.”

This election is a pivotal one for many reasons. First, there is a minority of color running for president. This is pivotal because it at once takes the promise of our constitution into the next millennium. The actual elimination of the color barrier at the highest elected office of the land fulfills the promise of a free society. Second, this election also reverses the creed popularize by conservatives that government is bad. The people of a land only has its government to protect them from the savagery of unscrupulous and immoral and unethical thugs who steal and murder and degrade the laws of humanity. This notion that government is bad is paradoxical. Because only with a government can a free society exist. Without government, you have the law of the jungle.

Government in the hands of small minded people is a government that is a danger to all. We need only look at the current administration to know that the time for no nothing, do nothing politicians is over. Responsible government is important. But government is necessary without it no one would take the bad and the dumb to task.

Sarah's Big Night

Well, well, the vice presidential debate is over. The pundits and operatives are weighing in. It isn't too hard to tell who favors who. One astute observer noted that if you turned off the sound, it was clear Sarah Palin was the winner. Interesting observation to be sure. But who tunes into a vice presidential debate and turns off the sound. It is perhaps the most absurd if not ludicrous comment one could make. I guess the intent was to observe how important body language. One cannot never never underestimate that absolute nonsense that passes as insight in this age of tabloid news.

Then, there was the obvious claim by the Republican surrogates that Palin again communicated to the American People. “She looked right into the camera and connected.” Well, the only people she could have connected with are those who already buy into her brand of populism. “Golly Gee, I'm Sarah Palin and Me and John are going to change Washington and get rid of greed on Wall Street because me and John are reformers and we know how to reform the things that need reforming.” Wink. Wink. Smile. Smile.

Oh yeah, she certainly strutted her stuff. The person who couldn't name a newspaper or a magazine didn't really answer a single question. The build up to this event was cast as high drama when in fact it turned out to be nothing but a farce.

Sarah is likable but she has no depth. She was plucked from no where and thrown on the national scene. Her credentials are thin. There is no way to make this woman's experience for anything other than what it is. Who actually vetted this woman? What were the questions that was posed to her? Did anyone listen critically to her responses? Perhaps the disciples of Rove and Atwater believe that their tactics will in the end be the deciding factor in this election regardless of the knowledge base or skill set of the candidate. Heck, they sold George W. Bush to America.

As these tacticians carve out demographics and put their operatives to work stripping election roles and employing fear tactics to scare the voters to their candidates, one can only ask if these same unethical efforts will win the day.

Sarah Palin seems to be a good hearted giddy conservative. I don't agree with anything she has to say. Quite frankly, I don't even understand what she is saying. I realize I am not one who buys into slogans generated by professional politicians of the ilk of those professed by “neocons.” It is a very disturbing sign of the time that we are facing critical issues on many levels and that the person selected to be the Vice President is without an understanding of those issues. It is perhaps telling that John McCain doesn't get it either. He didn't understand the economy until it came crashing down. He doesn't get Iraq was a devious adventure brought on by unethical people who placed their misguided values ahead of common sense and more importantly the national interest. It is appropriate that he is linked with Sarah Palin because there is no clearer evidence that this guy doesn't get it. More important, however, is the realization that the lack of depth on one side and stubborn bullheadedness on the other is simply frightening.

Let's raise the bar a bit and expect the candidates to have an awareness of the country and the world and all its complexities. We have had enough of simplistic answers to complex issues. We have had enough of politicians who decry people who talk in complex sentences. Simplistic solutions to complex problem leads us to nowhere but where we have been. Oh, by the way, Ms. Palin's cute little remark about it is not time to look back but look forward. There was a wise philosopher who observed that those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it.

Tom Delay! You got to be Kidding

I have commented on the press in earlier blogs. Beyond the limits of any acceptable principle, MSNBC has gone so far off the scale as to make their attempt at full coverage ludicrous. Turning on the tv, there in all his splendor was Tom Delay. Tom Delay, the disgraced Texas congressmen, who personally redefined usury who made a mockery of the one man one vote rule. There he was giving his opinion on the fiscal fallout and the activity of the presidential candidates. One cannot find a more disgraced and unethical person who used his office as his personal trough to garner capital slop from any source. He and his buddy, Jack Abramoff, demonstrated what the Reagan revolution was really about. Double talking snake oil salesman the likes of Delay should stay under whatever rock they hid under.

Who is making the decision to get a disgraced politician to comment on anything save their own crimes? Is the pool of talking heads so diminished as to cause network executives to lift up stones in search of someone, anyone? Is there no moral or ethical standard applied to those allowed to get on the air? Lewis Carroll is the only one who could explain the state of tv journalism. Perhaps some executive might consider having someone like Ted Bundy comment on blind dating.

We are awash in pundits who pontificates so they can glow in the lime light and garner another fifteen minutes of fame. We are faced with the depressing future of seeing one after another of these so called authorities explaining events to us. Where are the real grungy reporters who don’t sleep and don’t shave as they follow every lead to get at the truth? We need more reporters like Dana Priest and Anne Hull to replace these made up models who read the first paragraph of a paper so they can “report” on the topic they are assigned. I don’t think any of these supposed reporters ever break a story. They get exclusives which is to say they get another vapid interview form another supposed expert resulting in a report with the depth of a rain puddle. What we don't need is to put the camera on another has been. I would bet that someone does all the research and these so called tv reporters only get to babble about it. These presentations are so contrived animated characters could do the job. Schabb is doing it with his commercials. Why not bring it to these cable news programs? Just think of all the money the bean counters could save on hair spray and pancake make-up.

We are told we are living through a most serious time politically, financially, and globally. We have a crisis in confidence in our president. We suspect the motives of the folks in Congress. At times, it would appear that the future of the human race hangs in the balance. Madmen, fanatics, idiots, demagogues, thieves, dictators, all are pushing us and this planet into a spiral of destruction. Given all that, it is time to get rid of this tabloid mentality in the news. It is time for the press to take on the responsibility that the founding fathers placed with them. We don’t need another pretty face to tell us what we already know. We need dedicated men and women to take their credentials and get to the bottom of all this craziness. Please no more stars, no more personalities, no more superficial analysts who will read a paragraph or two and then bore us with their take on it. And for god sakes, will someone wipe the smile of their faces? Giddiness has it place and that it is in preschool. Mostly, we need to charge the offices where decisions are being made on these twenty-four seven news channels and throw the executives out. They have single handedly reduced the venerable fourth estate to a joke!

These are serious times and Ken and Barbie dolls or loud mouth ex-political operatives are not what we need. We need journalists who are dedicated to the ideas of a free press. We don’t need would be stars who travel about in chauffeured cars looking for some hack to fill their allotted five minutes of time. We need to get back to the days when reporting was reporting. Currently, our tv news is nothing but a playground for a collection of pundits who are more impressed with their own persona than the dire events we are facing. Freedom of the press is a serious responsibility. I am sure the framers of the constitution didn’t carve this principle into our constitution so the network can parade these clowns in front of us.

BS, Lies, and Spin

In an episode of Seinfeld. George, the consummate liar, was instructing Jerry how to beat the lie detector test. His admonishment, “if you believe, it isn't a lie.” That is the deal today. Has any candidate or their surrogate said anything other than the talking points of the campaign? The prime rule is to stay on message and ignore any inquiry that might lead to the actual facts. In modern day parlance, it is known as “spin.” It isn't a phenomenon of just the campaign. It is also the hallmark of all public pronouncements. In fact, public and private entities have a public relations specialist. Only when the proverbial crap hits the fan does the public get a modicum of the truth.

This current financial meltdown is as much a product of the unadulterated crap that came out of Bush White House. If you recall, the fundamentals of the economy were always strong. We are lead to believe that almost any major negative aspect on this globe is nothing to worry about. Thus the most horrific act of inhumanity can be massaged into a statement that makes the victims appear to be the responsible parties for the mayhem. The whole world is awash in “bs.” The sad thing is when the legitimate press attempts to ferret out the truth the liars get even more time to fill the air with their spin. You never get anything but talking points. No one believes this crap. Even if a reporter insists on the truth, it get them no where. How this nonsense continues defies reason. We are creating a world that even Orwell would find it difficult to write about.

The problem, in a nutshell, is as much or more time spent crafting a position than dealing with the truth. We live in a world where responsible parties are sticking to talking points. Thus, a conservative or a press representative can get on the air and talk about whatever it is that will cast the issue in a positive light. No matter the issue or the problem, we get spin and little else. As for McCain, he rails against greed while conveniently forgetting about the Savings and Loan corruption and his role in creating it. He castigates Obama for his lack of experience and yet defends his choice of Sarah Palin. “The most popular governor in the country.” “The chief executive of the largest state.” “The proximity of Alaska is sufficient experience in the area of international issues.” And all of this said with a straight face and a demeanor than lets anyone know that to question him is to be subject to his wrath.

What bugs me about this simplistic and devious projection is what the candidate carries forward to his administration. The most striking thing about the presidential debate for me is the arrogance of this old and tired man. He is a difficult, cankerous, opinionated frat boy who is hell bent on proving to his dead father than he can cut the muster. This Oedipus complex is again rearing its tragic head again in our lives.

As for McCain being a Maverick, one has to look a bit deeper into the meaning of this word. He is a maverick all right: a wild and untamed beast that carries a great deal of aggression. He doesn't attempt to reason with a person. No, McCain's way is to misrepresent the facts and to portray himself as some grand patriot and gift to the nation and the world. When in fact, he is petty, argumentative, and pugnacious. He is dangerous because he believes he is right. And for Sarah Palin? Well, she speaks for herself.