The word maverick comes from 19th-century Texas rancher Samuel Maverick, who defied norms of that time and chose not to brand his cattle. The charitable explanation is he did not want to inflict pain on the animals. An alternate theory is that he was an opportunist who wanted to corral any unbranded cattle.
Going by what’s happening in America today, you may want to rule out the first premise when it comes to Donald Trump and Elon Musk, two billionaires who are incendiary mavericks and are dominating political and social discourse these days. Tender-hearted altruists they are not. Inflicting pain and a keen sense of opportunism is their stock in trade.
Similar personalities: Trump’s reputation as a hedonistic carpetbagger who demands absolute loyalty precedes his presidency. Sidelining moderate elements in the Grand Old Party, he has fashioned the MAGA brand of insurgent Trump Republicans who are credulous in their fealty.
Musk has been rather more reputable, but he is rapidly moving from being a matchless iconoclast with some notable success in his field of engineering, to a reckless egomaniac who believes he has the solutions to all the world’s problems. His train wreck treatment of Twitter involves engineering worker drones who give him 80+ hours a week of unquestioned allegiance.
They are 25 years apart in age, but share several common beliefs and traits. Politically, both were in the Democratic fold and even contributed to the Clintons before heading for the door – Musk more recently – evidently put off by “radical left” policies. Both are aggressive, abrasive, narcissists who demand total obedience. They also believe in crushing all opposition.
This story is from the November 14, 2022 edition of The Times of India Hyderabad.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the November 14, 2022 edition of The Times of India Hyderabad.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 9,000+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Tollywood was happy hunting turf for conman
Kept Database Of Mobile Nos. Of Film Celebs
State-funded Metro to chug into RGIA in 3 yrs
Residents’ Plea To KTR To Extend Other Rail Lines
Rajiv Makhni becomes the face of smart tech luggage with proximity indicator
The VIP SmarTech series, a range of smart travel gear, keeps you connected with your luggage via your smartphone
Rain ruins second ODI
The match was reduced to 29-overs-a-side as the first interruption caused a four-hour break. India were 22 for no loss in the fifth over at that time.
Croatia come in hard, show Canada the exit
After their dour opening draw with Morocco had instigated a post-mortem into whether this Croatia side lacked a killer instinct, Kramaric and Marko Livaja found the net before the break to take the wind out of Canada’s sails.
Denmark calls on Euro 2020, Eriksen experience
Denmark has been here before.
Govt doubles large aircraft wet lease period to 1 yr
Accordingly, IndiGo can now wet lease two twin aisles to operate flights between Delhi/Mumbai and Istanbul for a year.
KCR opens coffers to turn Nizamabad into elegant city
Chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Sunday directed officials to come up with innovative ideas to improve quality of service to people and complete beautification of Nizamabad in two-and-a-half months.
No plans to start a family in the near future, our work schedules are hectic: Rubina
Rubina Dilaik, who is currently seen in Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa 10, recently posted a video celebrating a little girl's birthday.
ED files charge sheet in Delhi excise case
The ED on Saturday filed its first charge sheet before a court here in the Delhi Excise policy money laundering case naming liquor businessman Sameer Mahandru as one of the accused, officials said.
