Posted on 10/12/2011 7:47:03 PM PDT by 2ndDivisionVet
Although I fell in love with Sarah Palin in 2008, she had begun to drive me a just a little bit crazy recently, often so inarticulate that I thought she was trying to make Barack Obama without a teleprompter look like Pericles.
All is forgiven. Sarah Palin’s decision not to run for president redeemed her. She did the right thing by her country, her party, and by herself. By not running, Palin preserves her status as a power broker in the Republican Party, which could have been diminished by a bad showing in the primaries. She will be big in 2012, bigger than if she'd launched a failed presidential bid.
In considering the career of Sarah Palin, up to this point, I am going to use a word I generally consider verboten: sexism. It is generally liberals who toss around the sexism charge, but it is worth asking whether, if she had been a man, Palin would have been treated as abominably by the liberal media.
In 2008, we had a man running for the presidency of the United States who was a virtual unknown, yet the media was in Alaska, rummaging through Palin’s trash. Some of the speculation about Palin and her family was downright bizarre—Daily Beast blogger Andrew Sullivan became fixated on whether son Trig was really Palin’s (Sullivan posited that Trig was her grandson).
It should be noted that Palin especially upset liberal women. One of my Georgetown liberal friends and I agreed that we just shouldn’t talk about her. Fine with me, but my friend called with daily bulletins. An itch that had to be scratched, Palin was criticized by my friend for having had “that pathetic baby,” a particularly brutal reference to Trig, who has Down syndrome. Yes, Sarah got my friend’s goat.
But was it sexism? Only in the sense that conservative women face a kind of hostility that is the result of a combination of their sex and their philosophy. Women are supposed to be liberals. You will be punished by the media if you wander off the reservation. But I don’t think this response is fueled by sexism per se as much as it is by something arguably worse: the idea that women are owned by one political party. African-Americans often face the same prejudice.
But I am ready to concede that pure sexism, sexism not based on political philosophy, does exist outside the fringes of society. Ironically, the one instance of this we’ve seen lately comes from what should be an unlikely place: the Obama White House. Ron Suskind’s new book, “Confidence Men: Wall Street, Washington, and the Education of a President,” quotes women who’d worked early on in the administration alleging sexism. I'm afraid it sounds plausible.
“[T]his place would be in court for a hostile workplace ... Because it actually fit all of the classic legal requirements for a genuinely hostile workplace to women," Anita Dunn, former Obama communications director, is quoted saying.
I think the real story here may be that supposedly feminist men often don’t treat women well. Jean Paul Sartre was famous for (figuratively) walking all over feminist icon Simone de Beauvoir, while Dashiell Hammett also treated Lillian Hellman like a human doormat. It’s enough to make you yearn for an old-fashioned male chauvinist pig who’ll stand when you enter the room and refrain from sleeping with your friends!
In the case of Obama & Co., the guys probably felt they had good feminist creds because they were advancing policies designed to curry favor with female voters. These are always big government policies that assume that women are victims of discrimination, even if most of the discrimination we see these days hurts men more. Sarah Palin's offense, the thing that made her so infuriating to liberal women, was that she didn’t buy into this. She believes in small government and personal responsibility. This made her a target. You aren’t supposed to believe these things, Ms. Palin.
It should be said that Palin made the mistake of playing into the media's hands. She appeared on Saturday Night Live, dignifying Tina Fey’s imitations of her. On the other hand, she engaged in an ongoing feud with what she called the “lamestream media.” A little aloofness would not have come amiss (though I can't help feeling that that's just not our Sarah). She became a celebrity rather than a governor, giving up her day job on flimsy pretexts (though it may truly be that she had to leave the governor’s office because the number of ethics inquiries filed against her spelled financial ruin if she didn't start making big money).
Some have suggested that Palin take courses and learn more about history and policy (I am picturing her as Meg Ryan in I.Q.). I don’t see that happening. She is a gut politician. But she could bone up some and learn not to get down on the media’s level. She was probably plucked prematurely from Alaska, but that can’t be remedied.
What is undeniable is that, because she was smart enough not to run, she has a great future. Her analysis of what is at stake in 2012 is on target (oops! Is it okay to say that?):
We cannot afford this fundamental transformation of America, turning it into something that we don't even recognize. Instead, we need to restore this country. We need to restore all that is good, and right and free about America. Our republic is worth defending. We do not need a transformation, we need a renewal. We need a restoration of America.
Could anybody have said it better?
Sarah Palin is one smart gal.
Ditto, gave it up right there.
I agree. She’s need in the field fighting for control of congress and in the states. That’ll be necessary no matter who is elected but absolutely critical when Obama’s reelected.
BTTT
I am different from pure Palin partisans here. I criticized her when I disagreed and I had doubts 3-4 months ago about her running...but I held out hope even as I saw another social conservative Bachmann soar and then collapse in Perry’s jetstream...which made it perfect for Palin yet she declined..
Although inspired early on, I supported her for what I thought she represented and could accomplish...not because she is already the next Reagan...she is not...not even close though I thought she had the potential...she sure had the “it” factor
many..if not most of her supporters here simply are in love with her metaphorically and it’s about Palin as an entity..and all that adoration
I am very disappointed in the fact she kept us hanging to the bitter end and agree with you that I doubt she will ever see the opportunity again she just gave up.
I saw the signs back in the summer she was not running..but was shouted down here.
There is simply no reasoning with many here if one questions anything Palin does, utters or implies.
After the McGinniss crap and then her very very odd Greta interview..I knew we were done....something happened then is my guess
and I was very disappointed and am more so every time I look at what we are left with...I had great hopes in her..this was her time...there is no question
Disappointed sums it up about right. Her detractors here were more correct than her zealots were sad to say...about whether she would run or not
But don’t try to tell them that..lol
But for some it will be like a Beatles reunion or the Lost Cause...
it all reminded me of the Bush halcyion days when being critical of Bush was forbidden
This forum vested in Palin...even though it was anyone but Romney it was very obvious who was favored...I never saw anyone zotted for being critical of any other candidate but Sarah Palin...
so where now I ask?...I see some of the same Palin partisans are now gathering around Cain which means soon he can’t be criticized either even if merited
one last note...we think in an echo chamber or a vacuum here ...take your pick...it’s easy to lose sight of what folks in the world are thinking
no kidding...she still has time...good lord knows we are stuck with crap if she doesn’t run
and at such an important juncture
and a prime opportunity for someone socially conservative to actually win given Dummie is so on the ropes
the planets simply don’t always line up like this
I’m telling ya..she folded after that crazy prick McGinniss...the Greta interview...her first solid tell she was off balance and acting weird..I saw even her diehards here lament they saw same foreshadowing I did...that she was not running...my wife got so upset she boo hooed watching that interview...I was working...just th snippets I saw were painful
McCain/Palin 2012.
Michelle B is better lookin in my opinion.
disagree Strongly
Perhaps you need to broaden your definition of leadership.
I can understand your disappointment, but even you had an inkling months ago that she wasn’t running. I was next to certain as early as last spring. Her negatives were too high, for one thing, in no small part due to the rat ba$tards in the media. I was not for Palin last spring, but for Bachmann....until she suffered from “foot in mouth” disease : ) Cain id flawed but the only one I can vote for from this aggregation of RINOS(Perry & Romney). Talk about slim pickins ......sheesh!
Cash cake.
But seriously, she should be groomed by the conservative wing with all the mentoring and tutoring that W. got in 1999 and 2000, from the senior best people in the conservative wing of the G.O.P. -- people like John Bolton and John Kyl and Dr. Thomas Sowell and Amb. Alan Keyes. People like Newt Gingrich, after he sits down from his current campaign. Like Bill McCollum, who was one of the impeachment leaders against the Stained One.
Sarah's political instincts don't need tuning, but she can always use the additional context and knowledge framework to help her know where the tanglewood is, where the boodlers and boondogglers live, and where she needs to get busy with her flamethrower, burning out the chicken coops to make everything usable again.
Is that right? First I've heard of that one ..... that is pretty sad. Wonder why I didn't hear that from Geraldo and Drudge and Hatey Katie?
The thought that Katie Couric helped enable all that with her witting nastiness ..... </ugly thoughts>
And also in the kitchen, right? And maybe she can help with the Convention decorations and balloons and such?
And when she's got her biscuits in the oven she can get her buns in the bed.
</country song>
“one last note...we think in an echo chamber or a vacuum here ...take your pick...it’s easy to lose sight of what folks in the world are thinking
An excellent and thoughtful post. Thank you, well said!
You are enjoying yourself WAY too much! ;)
The interesting thing to me is that this did not appear to even make Hays think twice. I would rather have no friends than this kind.
That is for sure, the material is endless now. These Palinistas never seemed to consider that she might not really run when they posted all this 'stuff'.
Did you see the comment that #38 was in response to?
“Why do you feel a need to continue being a pr-ck? “ to me at #36
No sense of humor that is for sure.
>>No sense of humor that is for sure. <<
Yeah, I am sort of waiting for the Sun Tzu quote about how smart it is not to get into the battle at all ;)
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