~ by ThoughtRogue ~
What in the heck were the good people of New Hampshire thinking the other night when they cast the plurality of their votes for John "The Maverick" McCain - or were they thinking at all? Isn't it eminently clear that John McCain has staked the success of his 2008 presidential bid on the ignorance and short memories of the electorate??
The liberal media, who have long dallied with him in an on-again-off-again love affair, have endowed him with the 'endearing' moniker Maverick because his political cannon frequently becomes loose, lurches unfailingly toward the Right, and goes off - maiming his fellow partisans and innocent bystanders on the right-wing. These casualties of the Right, over the years, have had some other choice adjectives for this man other than 'maverick' - such as, perhaps, strident, unfaithful, intemperate, petulant, or foolhardy.
Let's take an important stroll down memory lane, sketching a character portrait of this man by examining his improbable career.
The Warrior
John Sidney McCain III was born August 29th, 1936 in the Panama Canal Zone (long before one Jimmy Carter gave away our vital strategic asset) to a U.S. Navy Admiral, who was himself the son of a U.S. Navy Admiral of the same name. Should Mr. McCain be elected President of the United States in 2008, he would the oldest person ever to assume the Office.
Given his lineage, he attended various schools as military assignments caused his family to move about frequently. Not a good student academically, he developed a quick temper and the desire to aggressively compete and to prevail - becoming a skilled boxer and wrestler in school. He graduated from the top private Episcopal High School in Alexandria, VA in 1954, and subsequently entered the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, MD.
His tenure as a midshipman at the Academy was rebellious and lackluster, and gained him infamous status as an inductee to the Century Club for garnering more than 100 demerits each year he attended. He graduated fifth from the bottom of his class in 1958.
< read the rest of Straight Talk here >
One thing about McCain has been bothering me. Tortured and placed in solitary for years just has to do something to a person's mental state. I see someone who is unstable.
Posted by: swatter on January 16, 2008 04:07 PMI would pick him any day of the week over Giuliani or Huckabee or Paul, and many days over Romney too. So fine, you don't like McCain. Who would you pick in his place? Granted, there's Hunter, but he can't win. There's Thompson, but he has a very tiny chance of winning.
None of the candidates who has a good chance is perfect.
I can't read the entire article, but skimming to the end, I see: "The ancient Greeks had a pretty good model for the character needed in a leader, which is summarized by the following four areas of his character: (1) Fortitude (courage, strength..), (2) Temperance (self-discipline, control..), (3) Prudence (judgment, wisdom..), and (4) Justice (goodness, fairness..)."
I think he excels in all four. Fine, he blows his lid once in awhile. Big deal. And I don't always agree with his judgment, but I think it is spot-on more often than not. The few times I disagree with his judgment, it happens to be very high profile.
Romney is the only top candidate who is even close to comparing, in my mind, to McCain's qualifications of a good conservative candidate for President, who apparently has a chance of winning, and he has far more problems in his past than McCain does.
So again, fine, you don't like McCain. Who do you like? Any of the ones who have a chance? Or are you backing someone who doesn't?
Me, I am probably backing Fred. But if Fred is out of it by the time my vote comes around, then I might vote McCain.
Posted by: pudge on January 17, 2008 11:47 AM