Our democracy is not a self contained law based entity that can flourish in of itself simply by the structure of its constitution and laws. Ben Franklin knew this. While leaving the Constitutional Convention, he was asked by a woman, "What sort of government have we, Mr. Franklin?" His answer, "A Republic, Madam, if you can keep it."

Thomas Jefferson believed that our constitution would only survive and work if we were a moral people. This was echoed by Alexis de Toucqueville in his widely praised book, Democracy in America written between 1835 (Volume I) - 1840 (Volume II). "I confess that in America I saw more than America; "I sought the image of democracy itself, with its inclinations, its character, its prejudices, and its passions."

He realized that our strength came from our ability to resolve issues and inequities voluntarily through communal resolve. If we lost that desire and obligation we would lose our individual powers and rights as the powerful and greedy would usurp control.

These people would not even have to "... destroy, or even tyrannize, but serve to stupefy a people, reducing them to nothing better than a flock of timid and industrious sheep." Enron, Worldcom, Adelphia, Merril Lynch, Pork barrel spending, Campaign finance and special interest groups are but a few examples.

It was McCain who first spoke about a lesson he learned in captivity, having people reach for ideals beyond their own self interest. Bush seems to have decided it was a good enough slogan and incorporated into his speeches, but it was McCain who learned the lesson first hand from hard reality. “I want to help lead young people to believe in something greater than their self interest." That was one of the reasons John McCain gave when he first decided to run for President in 2000.

Henry Kissinger once described the difference between prominence and Heroism this way:

"The political leaders with whom we are familiar generally aspire to be superstars rather than heroes. The distinction is crucial. Superstars strive for approbation; heroes walk alone. Superstars crave consensus; heroes define themselves by the judgment of a future they see it as their task to bring about. Superstars seek success in a technique for eliciting support; heroes pursue success as the outgrowth of inner values."

McCain fights for something Washington insiders hate: honesty, accountability and abolishing the systematic abuse of American citizens by Politicians, corporations, and individuals who put their own self interes tfirst. In his role in the Senate McCain fights unceasingly through oversight comities to confront, expose and correct the unending self serving games played by individuals and business to succeed at societies expense.

Unfortunately the political process grinds mavericks out. Most reformers who genuinely try to tell the truth and help people give up and or become ground round. What sperates McCain are his inner values and his heros journey that will not be ground out or down. He is, like his hero Teddy Roosevelt a man who is "incapable of oppressing the weak, or of permitting their country, with their consent, to oppress the weak." He lives Roosevelt's words:

“All of us who give service, and stand ready for sacrifice, are the torchbearers. We run with the torches until we fall, content if we can pass them to the hands of other runners. The torches whose flame are brightest are borne of gallant men and women, whose sons and brothers and daughters are at the front. These men and women are of high soul. For it is they, and those like them, who have saved the soul of the world ... These are the torchbearers: these are they who have dared the Great Adventure”

It was in a Vietnam prison camp that John McCain became a torchbearer. He realized that what kept him going and mattered most was a commitment to a his fellow cell mates and his countrymen. A faith in his family and a belief in something greater than his self-interest.

,John McCain has fought relentlessly for campaign contribution reform. While some efforts have not acheived their aim the effort goes on. That is blasphemy for most politicians. Lee Hamilton (D-IN), a former member of Congress explained.

"The conversation among members of Congress is so frequently on the topic of money -- money, money, money, and the money chase." The politicians' ceaseless hustle for money mocks every affirmation of our democratic creed." H. L. Mencken put it this way, elections are advance auctions of stolen goods."

The New York Times, in an editorial called campaign raising practices "corrupt at the core," but offered no real solutions. McCain did, and acted on them. He is trying to prevent us from becoming Alexis de Toucqueville's sheep.

Imagine yourself with both arms and your right knee broken after you had ejected from your plane which was shot down. The people who found you in the lake where you fell, beat you, then handed you over to the North Vietnamese

They put you in a cell., your captors have found out that your father was a person of import and decided to let you go. How many of us would stay not only of our own free will, but against the enemies wishes, thus aggravating them even more.

John McCain decided that he was not first in line to leave, so he did not. He attached himself to something higher, something more noble. The scholar Joseph Campbell portrayed the myth of the hero this way.

“The heroes of all time have gone before us; the maze is thoroughly known; we have only to follow the thread of the hero path. And where we had thought to find an abomination, we shall find a god, where we had thought to be alone, we shall be with all the world. The hero ventures forth from the world of common day into a region of supernatural wonder: fabulous forces are there encountered and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man."

John McCain took the heroes journey and returned home. Running for president was about bestowing the lessons and gifts he had acquired after going through the fires.

Robert Timberg in his book "John McCain, An American Odyssey, wrote about the heroes journey this way. "Did you know that a nightingale will never sing its song if it doesn't hear it first?" If it hears robins or wrens, it will never croak a note. But the moment it hears any part of a nightingales song, it bursts into this extraordinary music, sophisticated, elaborate music, as though it had known it all the time. And, of course, it had.

We do have justice in our hearts and we need people like John McCain to bring it out. Heroes matter

H. L. Mencken made a point that should stand as a clarion call to the uninitiated. "The saddest life is that of a political aspirant under democracy, his failure is ignominious and his success is disgraceful.”

In 2008 the nightingales is still singing. John McCain's journey continues. If we open our hearts we can hear him. He has a hard won gift to bestow