Posted on 12/03/2010 8:37:12 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
Whenever people catalog the perceived shortcomings of Sarah Palin one of the most commonly used words is “divisive”, which is just another way of saying some people like her and some people don’t. It never seems to occur to those who apply such labels that not only is this a perfectly normal state of affairs but the absence of it usually means the person in question is either a cult-leader or has nothing to say.
Indeed, in order to figure out who a person really is, it is often instructive to examine the enemies he or she has cultivated – and Sarah has cultivated some of the best. Anyone beaming down from the planet Twilo, knowing nothing about Palin or her politics, could reasonably survey the Mos Eisley Cantina collection of characters who stand in opposition to her and conclude she was worth a second look.
1. The Republican Establishment
Barbara Bush is only the latest in a long line of GOP patricians who have damned Palin with faint praise then suggested, with varying degrees of subtlety, that she quietly depart the stage so the grownups can take over.
This transcends Palin’s presidential ambitions, if in fact she has any. Although this has become the lightning-rod of recent commentary – because her book’s been out a while and there’s only so much you can misrepresent and fabricate – what really exercises her critics (and their name is Legion, though more often than not “Parker” or “Sullivan”) is her general popularity among the hoi polloi and her unquestionable influence in conservative politics. When they say “go away” they don’t mean “don’t run for president,” they mean “go away.”
Scant mention is made of the fact these are the same grownups who presided over the frittering and fumbling away of the same Reagan legacy they rhapsodize about on the Sunday shows – but perhaps the message is: “No, really, this time the grownups have grown up. We can take it from here.”
For those of us with reservations about this particular line of reasoning – like anyone who understands the Zen-like wisdom of Charlie Brown and the football – such assurances only reconfirm the wisdom of keeping Sarah around....
bttt
very enjoyable piece......a nice way to start the weekend.
Benjamin Netanyahu is a smart man....
I know you are a lot smarter than Palin but even the most intelligent among us should look at the byline of any article and get the author’s identity correct. Sheesh.
For those of us with reservations about this particular line of reasoning – like anyone who understands the Zen-like wisdom of Charlie Brown and the football – such assurances only reconfirm the wisdom of keeping Sarah around....
"compassionate conservatism"
“I think that is correct. I am not as sold on Sarah for POTUS as many Freepers, but her enemies just keep making her look better and better.”
I don’t buy the logic of this piece. Just because someone evil is your enemy, and just because you’re obviously not this person we know to be evil because of their evident disdain for you, it doesn’t make you a good person or a good candidate. The argument being made in favor of the Governor here could be made in favor of Curtis Sliwa, but I don’t think he’s all that great presidential material. Bush had the same enemies, and sorry, while I’d take him back over Obama in a heartbeat, neither are the best presidents we’ve ever had.
That said, danged if I know whether Palin’s a candidate I can get behind yet. So far, she’s the best face the party’s got and seems to be the best shot for conservatives based upon what we’ve heard so far. She sure talks like a conservative. I’d just like her to talk about her positions on some of the dividing line issues that separate old guard RNC hacks from conservatives. Building a border wall, birthright citizenship, and immigration pathways for illegals. Federalism as Gonzales v. Reich expounded upon it. The Kelo decision. What she’d do about Roe and the embryonic cell lines under study. I haven’t heard public statements on some of the tougher issues.
That silence might well be positioning to avoid challenge, because the media will savagely distort anything remotely conservative. “Oh, you’re against affirmative action? You must support the KKK, then.” But it might also be the usual silence on those issues, where conservatives get stabbed in the back when the chance comes up (think Bush on amnesty). Given the GOP’s pisspoor record of nominating these silent types and backstabbing conservatives, anyone who won’t take positions through the primaries shouldn’t be the nominee for whom conservatives cast a vote—no matter who their ‘enemies’ are.
It’s interesting that the Rats’ nominees don’t have to talk much about this stuff, either.
Oh, THAT was juicy! And one hundred percent right on the money. They hate her because they fear her, and they fear her because they hate the fear she causes in them. LOL! A good psychiatrist could have a field day with these people.
I had such a hard time choosing the best part to quote in my blogpost that I just linked to the whole thing! This is a great article.
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