All the hysteria over Sarah Palin is an absolute hoot

This will be my last political post for awhile.

Yes, I'll soon be writing about why I still love my Atari and engaging in the typical nonsense that people expect from me. Besides, people take politics too seriously. I've got a degree in political science and, as such, realize that opposing views are essential to a functioning democracy. To that end, taking politics personally ranges from idiotic to downright insane. Got a view that's different from mine? A good exchange of ideas could help get us closer to the truth, right?

So I'll steer clear of politics soon. People tend to get too hot and bothered over them and that's no fun.

For now, however, I just can't help talking about that Sarah Palin some more. Why? Because watching the Democrats go absolutely crazy over the past few days has been a lot of fun.

I do believe they view Palin as a threat for at least one monumentally important reason -- the Republican base is excited again. Believe it or not, a lot of us Republicans simply detest his father. He's been an embarrassment for the past eight years and has essentially destroyed Ronald Reagan's legacy. We Republicans have been able to sit back for years and say, "Oh, yeah? Look at what a disaster Carter was. At least we didn't inflict a Jimmy Carter on the nation!"

Well, we can't claim that anymore. Bush sucks as bad as Carter did and, in some ways, might actually be worse.

Bush's father wasn't worth a damn, either. The fact that we've only had Bush's in the White House since Reagan left is enough to make anyone start thinking that a third party is a great idea.

At any rate -- Reagan. Remember him? He's the one that took the South from the Democrats and had the philosophy that government was the problem -- not the solution -- to problems. Yes, getting the government out of the way and letting individuals excel was key to Reagan's philosophy and voters responded in kind.

Fast forward a few years and you've got the current crop of Republicans who approach the use of power much in the same way that the Democrats do. They use it like a damned club, as something to be enlarged and strengthened so as to further a "correct" agenda. The current crop of Republicans differ from Democrats only in how they want to pound the hapless citizenry over the heads.

In other words, Republicans ought to be about shrinking government, limiting what power it has and giving states more authority. The Bushites have forgotten all about that ideal. Oh, they'll give us tax cuts (we Republicans love those), but the government keeps getting larger, more intrusive and more expensive (what good are tax cuts when you have no intention of shrinking the government?)

So, in comes Palin. She comes across as a Reaganite, a reformer and a straight-shooter. Furthermore, she's one of those middle class folks who made good -- a populist rather than one of the elitists that we're used to seeing run for office. Furthermore, she's an outsider in a year when people are suspicious of Washington insiders who are blamed for the messes we've got springing up all over the place.

In short, people like her. That's a problem for the Democrats.

What has been fun to watch over the weekend, however, is just how the Democrats have chosen to attack Palin. Yes, they're out to smear the girl and they're grasping at straws. Here are some of my favorite attacks:

1. She lacks experience and she's just a heartbeat away from the presidency. Amazingly, lacking experience is somehow less important if you're last name happens to be Obama. The Democrats have been arguing with a straight face that an inexperienced vice-president is somehow worse than an inexperienced president.

The insulting companion to that argument suggests that all Palin has done is become governor of a rural, hick state. Her small-town roots have been bashed and she's been portrayed as a backwoods hick.

That was dirty pool when the Republicans did it to Clinton and it's dirty pool now. Both the "she's not experienced" and the "she's a backwoods hick" arguments will come back to haunt the Democrats.

2. Troopergate. Outraged Democrats have suggested that Palin abused her power by dismissing a commissioner who wouldn't fire a state trooper. The state trooper was the ex-husband of Palin's sister, so there are charges of abuses of power all over the place.

There are two problems with that argument. First of all, the commissioner in question served completely at the governor's discretion. Palin could dismiss that public safety commissioner for pretty much any damned reason she wanted. Yes, she's being investigated and we'll see how it all turns out, of course, but how much do you want to bet there was no wrongdoing found on Palin's part?

Second, it smacks of hypocrisy to hear Democrats jump up and down about an alleged abuse of power. You want to see some abuse? Come on down here to Arkansas and study up on the gubernatorial career of Bill Clinton? Having troopers escorting tarts around and using the state government to crush enemies is what I'd define as an abuse of power.

But, hey, that's how politics goes, isn't it? "It's okay if we do it, you can't!"

3. Babygate. Here's where things get truly, truly strange. There's been a charge that Palin covered up her teenage daughter's pregnancy by claiming that she gave birth to a fifth child. That nasty little charge is being pursued with a zeal that makes those 9/11 conspiracists look sane. Strange.

4. She's anti-woman. Here's another odd one. Apparently, rising to power against a bunch of men in a state like Alaska isn't enough to advance the Great Cause. Unless a woman thinks and acts like a Democrat, she's somehow standing in the way of progress.

And she's a beauty queen, to boot. Uh oh!

I don't quite get that argument, honestly. I was raised by a very Republican woman who put herself through school and, eventually, wound up with a doctorate in psychology. She was viewed as an "uppity woman" in the 1970s in this hometown of mine because she had the gall to establish a career that didn't involve taking notes and answering phones for a professional man. She put up with all of that racket nonsense went on to be a tremendous success.

I suppose, then, she's not someone to look up to because she hasn't adopted the beliefs of the Democratic party. That's nonsense and such sloppy thinking ought not be tolerated. I admire the heck out of my Reaganite mother, and I admire Sarah Palin, too.

Yes, she's pro-life, but I'd be willing to wager that there are a lot of women out there who believe that a fetus is a person and, as such, ought to be protected. Holding that view, evidently, gets someone marked as being anti-woman these days regardless of sex.

5. She was just picked to woo some Hillary voters over to McCain. There may be some truth to that, but what of it? How much do you want to be that Biden was picked, in part, to win over some skittish whites who were uncertain about whether to vote for a black man? What's the difference between that and choosing a woman to run as vice president in hopes of convincing women that McCain is worth a second look?

On the whole, however, it's pretty clear that Biden was picked to balance out the ticket. He has the experience that Obama lacks and has been around for long enough to have a number of supporters. Palin was picked for the same reason -- she's got the youthful enthusiasm that McCain lacks, counters McCain's "insider" status and is being presented as the future of the Republican party. And, of course, she is a Reaganite and that appeals to those of us who are sick of Bush and his crap and have come to view McCain as just another Bush lackey.

Conclusion

I'm truly interested to see what will be used to attack Palin next. Will she get beaten with the same disguised chauvinism that was used to bash Hillary over the head? Possibly, and there's always the chance things will get worse as Palin isn't a Democrat. If history has shown us anything, it's that the Democrats tend to prefer minorities and women with contempt if they dare cling to a political philosophy that isn't in line with what the left is certain is the correct one.

So, good luck to Palin. I do believe McCain made a great choice for a running mate and we'll get to watch the Democrats stew in their own hypocrisy as they dig up whatever mud they can find to fling at her.

By the way...

Apparently, a hell of a lot of people are hopping on Google and searching for photos of Sarah Palin in the Miss Alaska swimsuit competition. Yes, it seems people just can't wait to get a photo of a potential vice president wearing a bikini.

That's funny on a number of levels...

I might not have a photo of Palin in a swimsuit, but I was able to find a very groovy one of a young Bill and Hillary Clinton and have included it here. Enjoy!