Anyway, there's been a lot of talk lately about the word "maverick" and it's application to politics, and I thought it might be interesting to take a look at what the word really means. Now, if I were still in 6th grade, I might begin with something like "Webster's dictionary defines the word 'maverick' as 'an independent individual who does not go along with a group or party'." I'm not in 6th grade however, so I won't be doing that. But I'm still going to use the definition.
I'm sure that you've heard all the talk lately about how McCain and Palin are the maverick squad in this year's election, and if you haven't than you've probably not turned a TV on for months. Suffice to say, M&P seem to regard themselves as mavericks, which is ok. But I'm pretty sure that being a maverick involves more than having slightly differing opinions than the rest of one's political party on a few minor issues. Being a maverick would likely not involve conceding to the standard operating procedure of one's political party to further one's own political agenda. You're supposed to pride yourself on independence, remember? But most importantly, I'm 99% sure that to be a true maverick, you can't walk around bragging about how much of a maverick you are. Completely ignoring the potential consequence of losing all your maverick street cred (you don't see Bizzy Bone of Bone Thugs 'n Harmony strutting around talking about how much of a thug he is, do you? Of course not. That's why America still thinks he's totally tough.), as soon as you make the rounds of the nation, insisting what a maverick you are, you lose that air of mystery that made you a maverick in the first place. It's that independence and unpredictability that MADE you a maverick, and by bragging about it all the time, you've just turned people on to the fact that you can't be trusted in the clutch. To be a real maverick, you have to maintain that Robin Williams-esque spontaneity that keeps people guessing and being charmed by your swagger, not pound them into mental submission by telling them how "wild and unpredictable" you are. It's akin to telling people to "expect the unexpected" or trying to market a "new" sports drink (which is exactly the same as a previously marketed sports drink) by throwing an X-treme! on the label. For shame.
Sorry McCain and Palin, but you are not real mavericks. You want real mavericks?
Boom.
(Note: This is not to say that I endorse these mavericks for president, either. Somehow I don't think the "I hate Jews" and "I believe in evil pre-historic space monsters" platform would be good for the nation... Not to mention that Roger Moore is British and last time I checked, muscle cars can't hold office.)
