Sister Sarah and the Celebration of Ignorance

It does not surprise me when I read that Sarah Palin has helped to tilt the election towards John McCain. She is a major force to contend with, and contend we must. Let me cut to the chase. I believe that the election of McCain and Sarah Palin would be a political tsunami that can bring down the house that John Adams and Thomas Jefferson built; a house that George W. Bush systematically attempted to tear down, brick by brick, lie by lie, but at this date is still standing, a little worse for wear. And I fear that McCain and Palin will come to power by their lies, and through the cult of celebrity, the very celebrity that McCain demeaned in Obama.

I admit that this woman scares me mostly because I can see her great attraction. She's a fine orator despite the hard "r" that reminds me of Margaret Hamilton in The Wizard of Oz, the lady famous for her warning Dorothy, "I'll get you and your little dog too" only with Palin I hear the subtext of "I'll get you and your environment too." Palin is quick in delivering a snappy line; she is a mistress of insult, a rabble rouser, and perhaps, just perhaps, a true believer which makes her all the more dangerous. She certainly believes in herself, but then all candidates must, but her belief in self is based on a set of prejudices and a celebration of ignorance, rather than a lifetime of achievement. Most of all she's a good actress, attractive enough with a winning smile, all helpful as a fine manipulator of people and ideas. All these qualities make her a power to contend with, and the Democrats better recognize that now. The fact that she is the enemy of every woman who will vote for her with the exception of Cindy McCain makes her rise more dangerous for Americans, particularly for working women; more dangerous than any other candidate who has ever vied for public office. This is the woman who could, and probably will succeed John McCain if health and age prevent him from remaining in office. This woman may well be our not so far off President Palin. Drop the l from her name and we know what's ahead for America.

The closest we have seen to Sarah Palin in America is not Hillary Clinton or those stand-up, speak-out women who have fought for Women's Rights and Civil Rights but Amie Semple McPherson, the great woman Evangelist of the nineteen twenties. This was the woman upon whom Sinclair Lewis, the novelist, based the character of Sister Sarah in Elmer Gantry. The real life Amie could bring the crowds to their feet, pick their pockets, and make them believe that she was doing God's work and theirs, as she became rich from fleecing the poor who revered her. Lewis, a prescient novelist, once wrote that fascism won't come to America wearing jackboots as in Nazi Germany, but acting like a good ole boy. He meant Huey Long, but it applies as much to Sarah Palin. Perhaps fascism will finally come to America wearing lipstick and high heels, smiling warmly while raining insults down on her enemies.

We now have a woman who is a living sound bite, perfect for an electorate with a short attention span. She is our very own Republican MTV, appealing to an America that is starving for authenticity but which swallows whole the fake candidate who churns their resentments by demeaning the opposition with a sassy manner. She, like McCain, is a member of the party of elites of this country, those who have profited most from it financially, yet she and her fellows use the term "elitism" as a pejorative, almost a curse. They want to stir up resentments, turn the audience against those who have the nerve to rise from poverty and write for the Harvard Law Review. It is government by resentment, something perfected by fascism, and later by Carl Rove in our time, and Ms. Palin is a master practitioner of it. Trust me I do not throw the word fascist around loosely.

It's taken a long lifetime for me to spot a con man or a con woman. In the course of my early life I have been charmed by and taken in by several tricksters, and I have in my later years developed a special sense when faced by the political and emotional crook, and I see one in Sarah Palin. The debates with Joe Biden may not reveal the fake beneath the homespun rhetoric. She will be well rehearsed. If Biden listens to the sexists who think that women cannot be held accountable for what they do or say, and chooses to treat her gently for fear of appearing as a bully, she will demolish him. It's time for gloves off, truth on politics. This lady understands rough, not gentle. And we can expect very little help from the press who prize celebrity above authenticity. Who cares if the woman is a danger to our democracy? She's great copy.

I am not looking for some rumored sexual scandal in The Enquirer to bring her down the way it brought down Edwards, or the way a sex scandal brought down Sister Amie in the twenties, but I am hoping for what the Evangelicals called a Great Awakening. My awakening would mean that Americans open their eyes and ears and look and listen carefully at what the candidates are actually saying and what they have done in the past. Here is a woman who attempted to censor a local library as a Mayor, and tried to fire her ex brother-in-law, a state trooper, because of some Palin family dispute. For one who speaks forcefully against the intrusion of government into our lives she has no sense of the proper limits of power. And she will undoubtedly attempt to impose her own political and religious views on others if and when the opportunity arises.

This is a Governor who ransacks the US treasury for support of her oil rich but otherwise poor state, yet will slap the same government in the face when it appears expedient to do so. She is running a campaign that is allegedly pro women while attacking the very government that has done so much to advance the rights of women. Sure, she has a fine gift for making and naming babies and husbands, Truck, Track, Trick, all of it MGM Tab and Rock cute -- but I can smell a con a mile away and this woman is in the great tradition of the American trickster. This is not a female Huck Finn, but a descendant of the con men Huck meets while traveling on his raft down the Mississippi. Palin would no doubt have named one of her children Huck, if she wasn't so suspicious of that great book.

There are two opposing traditions in America regarding the life of the mind. On one hand we revere expertise, honor intelligence, and desperately want our kids to go to college in order to develop their skills, which means developing their minds so that they can have good lives. On the other hand we honor frontier American virtues; self-sufficiency, simplicity, and authenticity. Sometimes we respect down-home sense over book learning; the cracker barrel philosophy over the carefully reasoned argument. Occasionally, they come together in an Abe Lincoln or a Harry Truman, but mostly one or the other prevails. Sarah Palin can only succeed by exploiting the American affection for that frontier past, and making intelligence and achievement appear to be the enemy of the down-to-earth voter. Anti-intellectualism can be as vicious as racism, and in Obama's case they have a perfect target. In case you've missed my partisanship so far, I find Barack Obama closer to Abe Lincoln than any other candidate of my lifetime. But it is Lincoln the log splitter and not Lincoln the thoughtful reader and intellect that Palin's Republican party reveres. We can't expect a recession economy or a costly war to save us from a Republican victory, not if Palin's charges go unanswered, or ineffectively anwered. We need truth squads ready to speak out at all times and answer the tricksters and the con men who control the Republican party. Yes, I have a deep personal interest in this election. I have three young granddaughters, a three year old who just began kindergarten this week, and twin girls celebrating their first month on this endangered planet. I care deeply about their future and the opportunities this country will offer them in life, and I see it threatened by this woman. If she comes to power she won't be splitting logs; she will be busy cleaving our democracy.

Comments

[gez]

Is it any wonder Palin took so long to get her first passport. As a creationist she would know full well that the World is flat and if you travel too far you will eventually all of the edge!

[bobbyrobby]

As a Canadian I have to say that the last 8 years under Bush has been something I have watched in dismay, but also awe. How could the leader of the free world elect such a man TWICE! And now comes along Palin! Oh my god what a joke, but such a sad joke in the sense that a major party would choose her to represent the American people to the world as VP!

We have free health care up here, and the man who put it in place was voted the number 1 "best Canadian" of all time. I hope the USA can realize that there are actual issues out there; ways to make their lives better.

If McCain is elected, I really will have no choice to dismiss the American population as straight out ignorant.

[LizM]

...and that would be you being extremely kind...the­re are Canadians dying in Afghanistan as a direct result of the incompetence and ineptitude of the Bush administra­tion...a McCain administration will not represent improvement.

[trinidadgirl]

Hear,hear. Too sad again!
but the fact is Americans love hype and drama. So good luck with whatever befalls them after!

[Miravanguild]

If Palin is this pit bull with lipstick then the gloves should come off.. We all should be as tough on her as we'd be on any man.. If she is this gun packing moose shooting pit bull of a hockey mom, she will be able to take it.. We should let her try... NO DOUBLE STANDARDS.­... If she wants to play rough, then there should be no tears if she breaks a fingernail or gets a body blow... If Obama cannot hide behind his race and gets nailed even when it is obvious that he is being attacked on race, then punches shouldn't be held back when she goes under the looking glass.. If she won't stand up to real intense interviews from reporters same photo ops like the one ABC is about to do, come on, follow her around the state she is so popular in for a couple of days... How many hard questions are going to come out of that? Then the press and media should be screaming instead of full of praise that this is a smart move... Please let's get off this trival gamemanship and get on with the issue.. The American People deserve better from you guys.

[definitelyNOTmisterRIGHT]

don't worry! smokin' joe biden will bust her chops and expose her for what she is! a great big fraud! i can't wait for the debates! bring 'em on!

[Elitnaurista]

One thing everybody is missing in the "Troopergate" was the high regard many in this state have for Walt Monegan. We were all shocked to hear about his dismissal last July. He comes from out here in western Alaska, and started his law enforcement career here in Bethel. Bethel people were proud of their home town boy doing well in the city. He was known nationally for innovative programs when he was Police chief there. From comments I've seen from the Troopers he was respected by them. He was knowledgeable about law enforcement problems in Bush Alaska, and being a Native Alaskan himself was in a unique position to make our lives better.

Jim Vait
Bethel, Alaska

[MM216]

It's time to take off the kid gloves and go after Palin, IMO. So, she's a woman. So am I and I say "go for it". She's a politician and she can't hide behind her children and "Hockey Mom" status forever. If people...a­nd women, in particular­...are naive enough to fall for the facade instead of looking at the issues, then I REALLY do despair of the electorate.
And, especially, of women.

[wandering girl]

I agree. you can't just spew hatred and lies the way she has, then claim to be too delicate to get scrutinized. so far, she's been able to have it both ways, thanks to the GOP Mean Machine.

[sonshine]

You make so much sense. While other bloggers cry out against attacking SP you recognize that to topple her is to topple McCain.

[paulita]

Is America really still so racist that they would let the whole Republic -- the closest thing to freedom in the history of the world--collapse under the weight of this Republican oppression that has blanketed the country for over 8 years, rather than to elect an African American who may help to put things back on track, and make us the country we can be and that our, and let me emphasize our, that is all of the people, Constitution says we should strive to be? I am sorry I just think that is pathalogical.

Ms. Palin and her pal (oh sorry, forgot they just met a week ago), are going to take her high heels and stomp all over the Constitution, our freedoms, our rights, and our democracy.

How many mean spirited, "awe shucks" talkin, smile and stab the country in the back, war mongering leaders do we have to have before the people WAKE UP?

And more to the point, how do we get the message to the people who need to hear, and need to be made to THINK, before it is too late?

[silverball]

the most frightening aspect of this is that they are even this close.....­..no wonder the rest of the world thinks we are ....."diff­erent"....

[trinidadgirl]

Yes to the first question..­.and yes to the rest!

[definitelyNOTmisterRIGHT]

paulita, i swear, you are speaking not only for the majority of americans, but the majority of the world that must be paying attention to this possible catastrophy! it makes me feel ill that these hucksters have a legitimate shot at the white house! people, wake up! now is not the time to lay idle!-----thanks and keep up the good word!