Palin, in other Words

I don't necessarily want to write much about politics, but I think that if we women don't speak out about this presidential race, the menfolk will continue to assume that we focus on identity politics, rather than issues. In other words, we'll vote for a candidate just because she's a woman, and not because of the candidate's position on issues.

I supported Hilary Clinton because she had one of the best platform positions on universal health care. In addition, I felt she had a good grasp on what it would take to turn this country's economy around. I was also saddened, angered really, at the condescension shown towards her at times by the seemingly liberal males in the Democratic party. We have a long ways to go before the Democrats are truly a party based on "equality".

Having said this, I find that in most issues, especially the important ones, Clinton and Obama share the same views—particulary the view that we need to focus on problems within this country, as compared to some seemingly never-ending threat elsewhere. Because of this shared viewpoint between Clinton and Obama, I am just as happy to vote for him, as President. His being black is an added bonus, but is not the reason I'm voting for him. Clinton being a woman was an added bonus, but not the reason I voted for her in the Primary.

Sarah Palin is no Hilary Clinton, and neither is she comparable to Joe Biden. Joe Biden may be a white male, but he and I share the same beliefs, interests, and concerns across the board. Palin and I are both women, and were both born in the Northwest; here the similarity ends. Ends abruptly, in fact.

If you line up all Americans and asked me to pick who I would want as a VP candidate—and potential president— Palin would be in the last few thousand: just before Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly, Phyllis Schlafly, that red neck with the confederate flag in the back of his truck window who cut me off on the freeway last week, and any remaining members of the Bush family.

I do think that McCain's choice justifies our concerns about McCain's age. You can't look at Palin only as VP—you have to think of her as potential president. To be blunt, she doesn't have the experience to be any kind of a good leader, and I'm not talking about foreign experience. All she knows is her little corner of Alaska. From all indications, she's rarely visited the Lower 48. She certainly doesn't understand the diversity that is America.

More importantly, she has no experience dealing with a government that isn't lushly sponsored by a single resource: oil. As it is, her own government in Alaska is frustrated with her because she's not taking care of business, even in a state with only 670,000 people.

Now, for other views:

Blogher has an interesting debate on Palin [1]. The site has both conservative and liberal readers, so you'll find a fairly even debate in the comments.
Editor & Publisher is publishing a series of articles on getting to know Palin, featuring editorials from, and interviews with, the Alaskan media. Parts I [2], II [3], and III [4].