PRINT ADS

Two years ago on a trip to Seattle, I was standing outside the original Starbucks across from Pike Place Market, with mocha in hand, and listening to a couple of street performers playing violin and bass. These near-virtuoso string players on the street were compelling not so much because of their raw talent, but by the unconventional raw materials used to make the bass.

The bass (I kid you not) was made from car fenders. Amazingly, the timbre of the unconventional bass rivaled that of one made of wood.

Over the past few days, I have been comparing in my mind the string playing duo I heard in Seattle with a couple car fenders welded together to make a bass and the Republican presidential ticket.

John McCain has shown himself to be an accomplished player of the heart-strings. I’m not saying he’s wrong to keep playing commercials talking about his 5 ½ years as a POW. I’m proud of McCain and his service to our great nation. I’m just skeptical about some of his plans for the next four to eight years.

The main reason why I think McCain is accomplished at playing the heart-strings is his choice of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate — an unconventional choice by most people’s standards. She’s not steeped in the Washington, D.C., establishment. Palin is a high-energy working mom of five (the youngest with Down syndrome), a former beauty queen, high school basketball star, city councilwoman, mayor and the one person in Alaska who could say “no” to Sen. Ted Stevens’ “Bridge to Nowhere.”

I was deeply intrigued by McCain asking for Palin’s political hand in marriage. In the back of my mind, I wondered if McCain would choose her as veep instead of Mitt Romney or Tim Pawlenty. My sister woke me via cell phone last Friday with the news.

Will Palin’s presence on the ticket bring in disgruntled Hillary voters? How would she fare as second in command of the greatest nation on earth with perceivably next to no experience in the area of foreign policy? (Sorry, dealing with Canada isn’t enough).

I don’t doubt her talents and abilities, but I am skeptical. Just as skeptical as I was when someone in Starbucks told me to check out the street performer playing a bass fiddle made out of car fenders. Besides, being skeptical isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

Perhaps Palin will be like that bass fiddle I saw that was made of car fenders. I was pleasantly surprised that an instrument that long had been made of wood was cut from material cut for a different purpose and still made such sweet music.

With that, I think McCain managed to decrescendo the dissonant chord of criticism from people the right side of the aisle who claim he isn’t conservative enough, and merrily pluck the heart-strings of centrists once again.

Columnist Tim Gray, a West Salem resident, can be reached at tim.gray.matter@gmail.com.