Forever the Victim - Sarah Palin

I'll admit it, politically speaking, my beliefs coincide with Sarah Palin's about as much as the GOP loves the ACLU. But, my disdain for Ms. Palin has nothing to do with her politics. We don't agree on much. Oh well. I don't agree with a lot of politicians on a wide range of issues. No, what drives me crazy about Sarah Palin is her seeming obsession about being in front of the camera, of being a top story in any and every news cycle and when things don't go her way, her need to wave the victim card in front of our faces.

Sarah Palin wasn't very well known until she become Republican presidential nominee, John McCain's, running mate for the 2008 election. Before then, she was well-known in Alaska, but not many other areas. There was an initial curiosity in Palin, due to the fact she's a woman and could be the first female vice president in U.S. history and also because not much was known about her. Due to this, there was an initial wave of excitement, both among Republicans and women. But, as it happens often times when we get to know a person, that initial wave of excitement can wear off rather quickly to the point where we lose interest all together and head elsewhere. This is what happened with Palin in the run-up to the 2008 election, as women overwhelmingly approved of her until they got to know her a bit and that approval dropped faster than someone's IQ after watching a Jean-Claude Van Damme movie.

This is when the victim mentality first made its presence known nationally in the world of Sarah Palin. As she was a surprise to many in becoming McCain's running mate, most people were curious. Who is this Sarah Palin? From where does she hail? What does she believe? What has she done? Does she hunt wolves while flying around in a helicopter? Etc.? But, of course, as we soon discovered, this questioning wasn't so much based on the fact that we knew little about her and wanted to find out more about a person whom would be one step away from becoming president. No, these questions were asked by the liberal media in an attempt to make Sarah Palin look inexperienced and unqualified for the vice presidency. It was sexist, because the media didn't treat Democratic running mate, Joe Biden, in the same manner.

Not many can forget Sarah Palin's interview with CBS Nightly News anchor, Katie Couric. Following this interview, Palin and many Republicans alike, called Couric's interview "gotcha journalism," that Couric threw "gotcha" questions to the Alaska Governor.

This has been a growing trend in the world of Sarah Palin. When a Democrat used the word "retarded" to describe a person, Palin too offense to this and spoke up on behalf of all mentally handicapped person's to score some political points and paint herself as a victim. This happened again not long ago, when Palin received criticism following the tragic shootings in Arizona. Critics pointed to Palin's violent rhetoric ("up in arms" and "reload") and a site which pictured crosshairs located across the United States map at locations where Democratic nominees had to be taken down, politically speaking, of course. So, again, she used her life-time guaranteed membership victim card and used this to turn the tables back onto the Democrats.

Doesn't anyone get a little tired of this? In the run-up to the election in 2008, the reason Joe Biden didn't receive the questioning that Sarah Palin received is the simple fact Biden has been around Washington for quite a while now. People know him and what he's about. There are many more knowns than unknowns regarding the former Delaware Senator. That wasn't the case with regard to Sarah Palin. Most of the country was unfamiliar with her. There were many more unknowns than knowns, so questions were asked to learn more. The same held true for the two presidential nominees. John McCain has been around for 273 years, while Barack Obama has been around for just a couple. Due to this disparity in age and time in Washington, Obama received more questioning and curiosity than McCain. Does this mean the media was out to get Obama? That they were pro-McCain? No, not at all. If I know a great deal about automobiles, but don't know much about home building, am I going to focus more time on learning something I'm ignorant about (home building) or something I've already mastered (automobiles)? Unless I'm a complete idiot, I'm going to try and expand my knowledge of what I know little about.

As far as Katie Couric's interview went, that was about as "gotcha" as a blind police officer running down an Olympic track star. Let's look back at some of Couric's questioning. She asked Palin to name one, just one Supreme Court case she disagreed with (besides Roe v. Wade). The Alaska Governor said she'd have to get back to Couric. The CBS news anchor asked Ms. Palin about what types of newspapers and/or magazines she read. Palin's response, "All of 'em". These were not difficult questions. Couric did not ask Sarah Palin to recite the first 39 digits of Pi. She did not give Palin a pop quiz on world geography. She simply asked to name ONE, just one Supreme Court case she disagreed with and to name one newspaper or magazine she went to for news and information. These are softball questions Stevie Wonder could handle with ease.

Now, Sarah Palin would have had a better reason to oppose the use of the word "retarded" (the "R" word as it's become known) if she didn't later contradict herself on the matter due to whom the source was. Sure, she laid into the Democrats for a person uttering that word, yet when conservative talk show host, Rush Limbaugh, used the word retarded when referring to Democrats, Sarah Palin was asked about this and she said, "Well, that's different." She said that Limbaugh used the word as satire, when the Democrat whom spouted the word was just using ugly, discriminatory, hate-filled wording. Yeah, that's right. It's okay for someone she may agree with politically to use the R-word, but if someone on the other side uses it, then it's dishonorable to all and he/she should apologize to the world! If she had spoken up about Limbaugh's use of the word, I'd give her credit for standing up for principle, as opposed to going both ways due to politics. She went both ways, so I don't respect her stance on principle, when it's obvious there wasn't a very strong base and foundation on which to stand.

I have the most sympathy for Palin with regard to her being lambasted in the wake of the Arizona shootings. It wasn't the Fox News host's fault. But, again, she had the opportunity to look like the mature adult in the room and she failed worse than if I took a test in Arabic. Instead of taking the high road, Ms. Palin talked about how her detractors will not silence her, that she will not be brought down by those on the left and that the real reason for the killings in Arizona was not of any political persuasion, but because the man was a lunatic. That sounds sane enough, right? She then had to continue talking, though. Her intent was to not make this incident political, yet she said the Arizona shooter is a left-leaning person. Wait, back up a second. So, again, there's a double-standard. It's a disgrace to affiliate the right with this shooting spree in any way, shape or form, because this guy was a bit loony, yet due to one or two books he's said to have read, it's perfectly fine for the right to make the claim that he's a lefty. Also, Ms. Palin, she really wants to drag this out, doesn't she? The victim card hasn't served her well in the past, except for with the die-hard conservative base of the party. She really said that the left will not silence her? A woman whom has her own reality tv show, has her own show on Fox, is able to make a guest appearance on any other show that Fox presents in the course of a day and whom seems to find a way to make a news story of even the most miniscule of events, is saying she will not be silenced? Yeah, and a guy writing a blog is going to receive all the media attention in the world due to this. ::rolls eyes:: I don't think so.

So, what will Palin next suggest? What will she use her lifetime victim card on next? Will it serve her any good? Will it fire up the base? Will it aid her in some feeling sorry enough for her that it'll prompt her to the Republican nomination for president in 2012? Will there be odds and bets made in Vegas with regard to when Palin will use the victim mentality nationally again? What it will entail? My prediction? She will use this victim card in another two weeks, blame Democrats for it, receive a lot of airtime on Fox "News" and receive such a frequency of eye rolls from 74% of the public, that the day this occurs, it will become known as Linda Blair Day.