Ok, I couldn’t leave this one alone.

As reported on cnn.com, a McCain aide says Sarah Palin is “going rogue.”

Is that really a surprise? I mean, come on, people, she’s a maverick.

Wikipedia says: A maverick is a person who thinks independently; a lone dissenter; a non-conformist or rebel; it can also mean an unbranded range animal, especially a motherless calf.

My F12 popup dictionary widget says a rogue is primarily “a dishonest or unprincipled man,” but its 2nd ranking definition is “a person whose behavior one disapproves of but who is nonetheless likable or attractive (often used as a playful term of reproof): Cenzo, you old rogue!“

So, yeah, we could say that the Republican strategists are hoping to make their voters aware that rogue also means F12’s 2nd definition. But whether it is interpreted that way (probably not) is largely irrelevant in light of the aide’s other relatively harsher words about Palin and her alleged lack of trust, which may also help erase speculation about whether this is some sort of reverse-psychology spin.

I can’t help but feel like I’m watching a story about a dad whose college-aged daughter keeps getting into wacky hijinks, and that he doesn’t want to mention it to his golfing buddies because, while he could kinda faux-laugh it off as being something those crazy kids just do, it’s not too far a stretch to think that the behavior may be partly of his own doing.

I’m not saying that’s actually what’s happening here. Just that I feel like I’m watching a story about it.

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Tags: language & grammar, politics & government // 1 Comment »