Tuesday, October 07, 2008

Maverick has another meaning

True Mavericks say McCain is not a maverick and are offended Republicans are using the term. Check out the New York Times article. Politics aside, it's an interesting history lesson.

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From the New York Times - October 4, 2008
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/10/05/weekinreview/05schwartz.html is the direct url but I copied it over in case they take it down.


Who You Callin’ a Maverick?



Published: October 4, 2008

There’s that word again: maverick. In Thursday’s vice-presidential debate, Gov. Sarah Palin of Alaska, the Republican candidate, used it to describe herself and her running mate, Senator John McCain, no fewer than six times, at one point calling him “the consummate maverick.”


But to those who know the history of the word, applying it to Mr. McCain is a bit of a stretch — and to one Texas family in particular it is even a bit offensive.


“I’m just enraged that McCain calls himself a maverick,” said Terrellita Maverick, 82, a San Antonio native who proudly carries the name of a family that has been known for its progressive politics since the 1600s, when an early ancestor in Boston got into trouble with the law over his agitation for the rights of indentured servants.
In the 1800s, Samuel Augustus Maverick went to Texas and became known for not branding his cattle. He was more interested in keeping track of the land he owned than the livestock on it, Ms. Maverick said; unbranded cattle, then, were called “Maverick’s.” The name came to mean anyone who didn’t bear another’s brand.


Sam Maverick’s grandson, Fontaine Maury Maverick, was a two-term congressman and a mayor of San Antonio who lost his mayoral re-election bid when conservatives labeled him a Communist. He served in the Roosevelt administration on the Smaller War Plants Corporation and is best known for another coinage. He came up with the term “gobbledygook” in frustration at the convoluted language of bureaucrats.


This Maverick’s son, Maury Jr., was a firebrand civil libertarian and lawyer who defended draft resisters, atheists and others scorned by society. He served in the Texas Legislature during the McCarthy era and wrote fiery columns for The San Antonio Express-News. His final column, published on Feb. 2, 2003, just after he died at 82, was an attack on the coming war in Iraq.


Terrellita Maverick, sister of Maury Jr., is a member emeritus of the board of the San Antonio chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union of Texas.


Considering the family’s long history of association with liberalism and progressive ideals, it should come as no surprise that Ms. Maverick insists that John McCain, who has voted so often with his party, “is in no way a maverick, in uppercase or lowercase.”


“It’s just incredible — the nerve! — to suggest that he’s not part of that Republican herd. Every time we hear it, all my children and I and all my family shrink a little and say, ‘Oh, my God, he said it again.’ ”

“He’s a Republican,” she said. “He’s branded.”
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Tina Fey Does Sarah Palin - Again

It's amazing how accurately Tina Fey is portraying Sarah Palin. What's really funny is that apparently Sarah Palin has been Tina Fey for Halloween before. Is that life imitating art imitating life or is it art imitating life imitating art or is it something else all together?

Here are some you tube clips of the last three shows. Regardless of one's political affiliations, you have to give Tina Fey credit for a spot-on impression. Frankly, I'm pretty impressed with Queen Latifah's impression of Gwen Ifill too.

Tina Fey doing Sarah Palin on SNL - the VP debate

Tina Fey doing Sarah Palin on SNL - Couric Interview

Tina Fey doing Sarah Palin on SNL - Debut (one snippet)


________________
Check www.patsyterrell.com for the blog, art, and more. Friend me on Facebook.com, Follow me at Twitter.com.

I am looking for book clubs willing to read and critique my novel when it's completed. If your book club is interested, please email me at patsyterrell@gmail.com. Thanks!