佩林传记已出中文版，有朋友约我写了一英文书评——基本上是原来一书评的翻译：

The expansion of Chinese colleges a few years ago seems to have produced more graduates for the market to absorb. As students are desperate to find their first jobs, why wouldn’t some of them start by working in factories that are in bad need for workers? Most parents wouldn’t want their children to start their lives that way. Instead, they would expect their kids, often single children in the family, to be brought up the V.I.P. style, for bigger accomplishments, pursuing bigger dreams.

Fair enough.

However, the road to V.I.P. often begins from Very Insignificant Places, say, a dirty parking lot. I know a woman just like that. She is from an ordinary family who started her first job by sweeping parking lots and apartment buildings, bringing home thirty dollars a week. She loved sports, funding her trips to out-of-state events by raking leaves, babysitting, or whatever odd jobs that came her way. She dreamed of becoming a sports reporter some day. With some twists and turns in fortunes, she landed a job as the governor of Alaska, then candidate for the Vice President of the United States, and now a possible candidate for Presidency in 2012.

Yes, that is Sarah Palin.

Palin’s recently released biography had been rather popular in the United States. “Going rogue,” means doing something mischievous or not playing by rules. In 2008, when John McCain, then Presidential candidate for the Republican Party, nominated Palin as his campaign partner, one of McCain’s aides complained to CNN that this is “going rogue.” The phrase stuck. It went on to become the title of this book, suggesting that Palin is still unique and green, untainted by the clichés and corruption of Washington politics. Not a bad label to be stuck with when the whole nation is chanting the songs of change.

Before emerging into public awareness, Palin had been governor of Alaska, the largest state in the United States. She was doing pretty well for herself as the governor in this state. In the midst of the current Mexican oil spill crisis, some of Palin’s political feats may still ring a bell for Americans. She once was faced with a similar oil spill in Alaska. Adopting a populist position, she managed to bring big oil to its knees through a marathon lawsuit spanning two decades. In this autobiography, she talked passionately about energy independence, moral reformation, and other topics favored by conservatives. The book offered a glimpse of how it all happened, how an Alaskan girl in the middle of nowhere could move to the center stage of Alaskan and then American politics, especially in the somewhat melodramatic developments in 2008, culminating in her Vice President candidacy.

The book also presented a fascinating view of her family and her personal life back in Alaska. Palin is a mother of five, with the oldest son serving in Iraq and the youngest having severe physical difficulties. She could be anybody or nobody. Her eventual rise is a story of success for someone from a small town in America. Some places read like youth lit to me, with girly details that might fascinate female readers, for instance her coming-of-age story, her love, her first kiss, her childbirth. Her love story is especially interesting - her friend is a 50% Eskimo and 100% fisherman, as his fathers and father’s fathers have been. The two eloped and went on to register their marriage. Court clerks required them to have a witness for such registration, so they went to the Senior residence across the street, pushed a wheel-chaired senior to be their witness and sworn themselves into marriage. The registration clerk, being first time at the job, cried while reading their wedding vows. After their marriage, they left a note at the doorway of Palin’s mom. The mom cried too, this time out of anger.

In any case, the biography is actually a rather typical American story with the familiar moral lesson: a hero is a hero no matter where he or she is from. The story went from the past to present and is bound to move on, gathering some momentum with her candidacy and this book. Years ago, when she was competing for the Miss Alaska title, one of the judges asked her if she’d believe women can become a Vice President. She snapped: yes. The judge went on to ask if she would vote for such a female candidate. She said she would rather cast her vote based on political views, not gender preferences. That must have impressed the judges then and there. A quarter of a century later, things said in those days seemed to have become footnotes of what actually happened. But she writes that she does not believe in coincidences. She believes all things happen for a reason and lead towards a grander purpose: Palin is a Christian.

Palin’s story describes stories of many Americans -- plus the politics of course. Like many middle class Americans, her growth involves sports, Bible classes, 4H camps, girl scouts and all such good old American activities. It should not have surprised so many that McCain chose her to be the campaign partner. People want a girl-next-door kind of figure to represent them in Washington. Besides, she seems young, fresh, full of energy, in many ways - I wouldn’t name which - contrasting McCain. There is a good balance in the tightrope walk towards the center of power. Americans who support her would find it easy to consider her as “one of us.”

Like many conservatives in the United States, Palin has high respect for President Reagan, a big advocate for small government and less tax. Reagan believes that the United States is a force for good. After Watergate and the Iran hostage crisis and all such drama, Americans started to have doubts about themselves. Reagan cheered them up and injected a new hope in the collective psyche of America, making Americans believe once again that they can be the light on the hill. Reagan helped America to win the cold war without actually fighting a battle. Palin said that the Iran crisis had lasted 444 with the Carter government clueless on what to do, resulting in huge humiliation for America. When Reagan came to power, the problem came to a quick solution. Based on what we read in Chinese books, it is a scandal of Reagan swapping weapons for hostages. However, Palin offered a different interpretation of what happened that year. She said the main reason is that Reagan has a “steel spine” without which weapons would not be of any use, even if you offer nuclear weapons. From the Republican perspective, Democrats (at least some of them) have a little chiropractic problem, a weakness that Democrats do not really want to be associated with in such gross generalizations. However, generalizations are sometimes useful for foreign readers to understand the confusing political forces at play in a different country. You can discern the finer differences later on when there are some basic understanding what these two-party system is all about.

Palin seems to suggest that the Republicans do not have a spine problem. When President George W. Bush was in power, he became a laughing stock for late-night talk shows. However, in spite of all the doubts about his intellectual sophistication, few people made fun of his moral clarity. If he believes something to be right, he really persists, with sincerity and often zeal. The democratic President Barak Obama, however, does not impress the Chinese as having such moral clarity. In his first visit to China, he seemed rather ambivalent on many issues, so much so that a Chinese blogger Hecaitou coined a term calling him “xinima”(meaning a horse staying at the same place muddying things over). For instance, he did not use phrase such as "I am against censorship" which Chinese audiences would love to hear as this is something the masses struggle with. Instead, President Obama uses a much weaker phrase saying he is a big supporter of non-censorship. China did not return his ambivalence with favor. On his first trip to China, Mr. Obama did not actually accomplish much, not even the change of his Chinese name. Chinese calls him 奥巴马，while the US Embassy in China wants that changed to “欧巴马”. Chinese media, from Xinhua News Agency to Xinjiang Daily, just went ahead ignoring that wish. In terms of moral clarity, Palin seems to indicate that she inherited the best from the Republican patriarchs. This probably is a tactic to address doubts about her intellectual powers, something that media, her party and her opponents sometimes fault her with.

With much hype building towards the launch, the book became an instant bestseller in 2009. In order to write the book, Palin spent weeks in San Diego with her ghostwriter, the famous Lynn Vincent. The book was first released in 1.5 million copies, as many as the autobiography of Ted Kennedy. It soared to the top of best-selling lists. Palin then resigned from her governor's post, possibly to help in the promotion of this book. Around the time of the book’s release, there was much news about or from her, including allegedly inappropriate dress on the Newsweek cover, and doubts about Obama’s birth certificate. No matter what you think of her and how the media treats her, one thing is sure: it is now hard to ignore her importance after the September 3, 2008 nomination at the Republicans’ national convention. In America, books seem to add to political weights. Writing a bestseller is one good way to speak to the public about where you are from and what you are all about. Think of Obama and the Audacity of Hope.

I hope this book can provide a unique perspective for Chinese readers to understand US politics, the Republican Party, conservative values, or perhaps, what US school sports, hunting and first kisses are all about.

And alas, if only we had a guy or girl going rogue about our politics in this unsettling and costly pursuit of a harmonious society!

英雄莫问来路

而今据说国内很多大学毕业生找不到工作，但工厂招人困难。适龄工作者大多是独生子女，家长舍不得让他们去工厂做事，要“贵养”。 可是大部分贵人，是贱养出来的。美国有个普通人家的女孩，从小就给停车场扫地挣几个小钱，给附近的楼打扫卫生，每周挣30元。她爱好体育，为了去外州打比赛，她自己筹款，给人扫树叶，带小孩，什么都做。她打工，玩体育，选阿拉斯加小姐，自给自足挣钱上学。她希望有朝一日成为体育记者。结果一不小心成了阿拉斯加州州长，美国副总统候选人，2012问鼎白宫的人选之一。

没错，这人就是莎拉?佩林。

佩林新近出版的传记是美国现在最走红的一本书。书名Going Rogue本意为不循规蹈矩，去干坏事。2008年，当共和党总统候选人麦凯恩宣布佩林为竞选伙伴时，麦凯恩的一位助手曾向CNN抱怨这是“going rogue”。意思是选她这叫啥事儿，压根儿事不按规矩出牌嘛！此书索性以此为名，暗示佩林在政坛是一独特者，新鲜人。

在进入公众视线以前，佩林是阿拉斯加州长。阿拉斯加是美国最大的州，在阿拉斯加州的时候，她就是一个出色的政客。在墨西哥湾原油泄露之际，她的一些政绩可能美国公众记忆犹新：她曾经站在民众立场，让泄油污染后一直没有担负责任的“大石油”俯首称臣，让一场打了二十多年的马拉松官司告一段落。在这本回忆录里，她谈到了能源独立、品德改造等保守派的常见话题。

此书记载了佩林从小的成长，在阿拉斯加的叱咤风云，以及最终闯入美国政坛核心的经历。佩林是五个孩子的妈妈，长子曾去伊拉克服役，幼子有残疾。书中谈到了她在阿拉斯加的家庭和个人生活。 这是一个女政客的故事，却也是一个小城普通美国成功者的诚恳记录。有些地方写得有些婆婆妈妈挺八卦的，我想女孩子一定喜欢看，比如她的青涩年华，她的恋爱、初吻、结婚生子。她的恋爱故事很有意思——— 男友是一个有一半爱斯基摩血统的人，正业是世世代代从事的捕鱼，两人后来私奔，一起去登记结婚。结婚需要证人，他们没有证人，于是去对面老人院，找了推着助步器的、坐轮椅的老人来证婚。办结婚证的官员是新手，第一次办这事，看他们俩念的婚誓，哭了，那是感动的；婚后，他们留了个条子在佩林家门口，佩林她妈一看，哭了，那是气的。

自传就记录了这个小学老师的女儿，如何从一个鸟也不下蛋的阿拉斯加小镇，一路闯过来。这是一个“英雄不问来路”的经典美国故事，从过去到现在到未来，似乎一脉相承。当年在竞选阿拉斯加小姐的时候，裁判曾经问过她一个问题：“你认为女性可以当副总统吗？”她当机立断说当然可以。裁判又问：“你会因为一个候选人是女性而选她吗？”她说不会，她不会因为性别，而会按照政见来选。她自己说回头看这四分之一世纪前的一段对话，似乎和后来的现实成了一巧合。“但是我不相信巧合。”她相信冥冥之中这一切皆有安排：莎拉?佩林是一虔诚的基督徒。

佩林的成长经历非常符合很多小镇美国人自己的经历。她和大多数美国中产家庭的孩子一样，参加各种各样的体育活动、查经班、4H营地活动、童子军。麦凯恩选她当副总统候选人也不怎么奇怪，要的就是这种“邻家大姐”的感觉，以她的新鲜与活力，冲一冲自己的老气。“她是我们的一员，”(She is one of us.)很多美国人这么说。

和很多美国保守派一样，佩林的政治偶像是里根。里根崇尚小政府，少税收，坚信美国是一股“替天行道”的力量。在水门事件、伊朗人质危机一系列事件之后，美国人一度自我怀疑，是里根重新让他们振作精神，重新看到美国可以继续像灯塔屹立在世界之巅。是里根不发一枪一弹，赢了冷战。佩林说伊朗人质危机持续了444天，卡特政府束手无策，让整个国家蒙羞。里根一上台，问题迅速解决。从我们当年学的时政上看，这是里根“以武器换人质”的丑闻。但据佩林的阐释，问题的解决，关键是里根有“钢铁一般的脊梁”(steel spine)，不然的话，武器是没有用的，哪怕你送的是核武器。从共和党的立场来看，民主党（至少是其中一些人）似乎有点脊椎毛病，脊梁骨不直，这是民主党的一不愿意被贴的一个标签，事实上也是一个笼统概括，可是对于了解一个外国政治的人来说，有时候这种笼统概括又是有帮助，因为日后我们总可开展更为细微的辨别。 小布什当政八年，被各大脱口秀节目笑了八年，大家觉得他没有头脑，可是大部分美国人都知道，他缺乏智力上的精细，却有道义上的黑白分明，认准的东西他会认真地甚至狂热地坚持。民主党总统奥巴马，在中国人心目当中，似乎就没有了这种道义上的清晰感。他到了中国，在很多问题上很含糊，以至于和菜头称他为一“稀泥马”。可是中国人并不对他的含糊给以好的回报。他的一次中国之行没有多少实质收获，连名字都没有改成，中国人叫他奥巴马，美国大使馆想改成欧巴马，可是不管是新华社还是新疆日报，媒体没怎么理睬这一要求。在道义感清晰的方面，佩林自认为她继承了前辈的衣钵。这或许也是要扬长避短，规避媒体、党内和对手对她的傻大姐的攻击。

此书可以算美国2009年最受关注的一本传记，被炒了好久。为写作此书，佩林曾“潜伏”至圣地亚哥，与著名的“影子写手”林恩?文森特 (Lynn Vincent)合作了好几个星期。此书首印150万本，与参议员特德?肯尼迪传记印数相同。书刚出来后，立刻登上各排行榜的前列。佩林辞去州长职位，在一定程度上就是为了配合此书的促销和宣传活动。出书前后，关于佩林的新闻很多，一会儿是她抗议自己穿短裙的“性感照片”上了《新闻周刊》封面，一会儿是她呼吁彻查奥巴马的出生证。无论她如何折腾，舆论如何对待，作为政坛新秀，自2008年9月3日在共和党大会上的演讲之后，没有人可以再忽略她的重要性。在美国从政要增加影响力，写畅销书也是个好办法。一本回忆录的介绍，会直截了当将一个候选人的来龙去脉直观地推到选民面前！没有《无畏的希望》，也就没有今日的奥巴马。

此书可让国内读者，从另外一个视角，去认识美国共和党、价值观、政治体系、美国学校体育、选美、狩猎、以及初吻到底是怎么一回事。

在这片面追求和谐以致开始僵化的社会，我们也来个单打独斗者多点新鲜空气多好啊！

China Daily