palin: lowering the standard

[catherine]

Wow, "Al Guardian" writes a piece highly critical of Sarah Palin, who would have imagined!?!?!? That's about as shocking as Rolling Stone slobbering all over Obama.

It isn't just the Guardian that is commenting on Sarah Palin!! Both conservatives and liberals in the UK feel the same way about the debate. DH is constantly having to explain that SP is not represenative of the majority of US politicians!! I was suprised by how many people over here actually knew about the debate and had bothered to think about it and form an opinion!

 

[FinallyBoughtDVC]

I literally cringe when she speaks. I don't want to cringe. I want to know what the hell she is talking about, but it is all so circuitous that it makes no sense. The folksy stuff really wouldn't bother me all that much if the rest of what she was saying was logical.

SP is exactly my age.

When I was in High School - I could NOT stand the dumb girls. The ones who played all cute and didn't have a clue what they were talking about. The football players loved them - the girls would giggle, wink, flip their hair, etc. The average girls wanted to be like them. Not me. Couldn't stand them. They were phony - a facade - an empty shell of cuteness.

I can't stand dumb. It's inexcusable. And, when you're in your 40s - it's no longer cute - it's pathetic. This woman is absolutely uneducated. She scares the living hell out of me. I want to know when being smart (which, apparently, is now called elitist) became a bad thing? When did being average, stupid and folksy become something to aspire to? Why even send our kids to college if this is the level of idiocy to which we want them to achieve?

I want brilliance - clarity - an absolute grasp of the world and its history. I may not always agree with the solutions - but I want to know someone brilliant is leading this country.

I am so angry at McCain for putting this country at risk by selecting this overgrown dumb girl as his running mate and as our potential POTUS.

Great article - it really summed up how I have felt about her from the moment she first opened her mouth to the American public.

 

[LuvDuke]

Who would have thought, after GWB, that there would be any danger of "lowering the standard"?

No joke.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Who would have thought, after GWB, that there would be any danger of "lowering the standard"?

I know...just when you thought it was impossible.

 

[FinallyBoughtDVC]

Oh give me a break. This is the same old liberal schtick that gets pulled out on every Republican candidate -- that somehow they're not "smart enough."

For eight years liberals ranted about what a stupid, unqualified buffoon Ronald Reagan was.

Then George Bush Sr. was a doddering fool, totally out of touch with the average American.

Then George W. -- you can't find a name in the book they haven't called him.

And now Sarah Palin. A woman who's such an idiot that she rose from hockey mom to Governor of her state? Wow, she must be a real moron. Yeah, that winking will clue you in every time.

EDITED TO ADD: This is the liberal equivalent of conservatives saying that Democrats aren't "patriotic enough." That's total BS, too.

If I hear one more person say that Democrats aren't "patriotic enough" or that Republicans aren't "smart enough" I will really go over the edge. Both arguments are cliched, tired, old and untrue.[/QUOTE]


There are many, many smart Republican women. Sarah Palin is not nor will she ever be one of them.

She was the mayor of a town with a population the same as the village where I live. Idiots get elected in my village too. You should see our current mayor. Yikes! She's the governor of a state which is massive geographically, yet has less people living there than in my town (we have a village which is within a town).

So, I consider her governorship to be nothing more than that of my local Town Supervisor. Her budget is smaller, her populace is considerably less, her responsibilities are no where near those of my local Town Supervisor. And, honestly - we've elected a couple of "winners" for that position.

I have no problem understanding how she was selected the governor of her state. I also have no problem understanding how insignificant that experience truly is - no matter how many times they tout her "executive experience."

She's a local yokel who's on the national stage and it has nothing to do with Republican or Democrat - she's an idiot. She's a moron. She's an embarassment to this country. And, McCain should be ashamed at the risk in which he put this country he nearly died for by selecting her to appease to the religious and conservative right.

 

[disneyjunkie]

SP is exactly my age.

When I was in High School - I could NOT stand the dumb girls. The ones who played all cute and didn't have a clue what they were talking about. The football players loved them - the girls would giggle, wink, flip their hair, etc. The average girls wanted to be like them. Not me. Couldn't stand them. They were phony - a facade - an empty shell of cuteness.

I can't stand dumb. It's inexcusable. And, when you're in your 40s - it's no longer cute - it's pathetic. This woman is absolutely uneducated. She scares the living hell out of me. I want to know when being smart (which, apparently, is now called elitist) became a bad thing? When did being average, stupid and folksy become something to aspire to? Why even send our kids to college if this is the level of idiocy to which we want them to achieve?

I want brilliance - clarity - an absolute grasp of the world and its history. I may not always agree with the solutions - but I want to know someone brilliant is leading this country.

I am so angry at McCain for putting this country at risk by selecting this overgrown dumb girl as his running mate and as our potential POTUS.

Great article - it really summed up how I have felt about her from the moment she first opened her mouth to the American public.

 

[SteveInBrooklyn]

Oh give me a break. This is the same old liberal schtick that gets pulled out on every Republican candidate -- that somehow they're not "smart enough."

For eight years liberals ranted about what a stupid, unqualified buffoon Ronald Reagan was.

Then George Bush Sr. was a doddering fool, totally out of touch with the average American.

Then George W. -- you can't find a name in the book they haven't called him.

And now Sarah Palin. A woman who's such an idiot that she rose from hockey mom to Governor of her state? Wow, she must be a real moron. Yeah, that winking will clue you in every time.

EDITED TO ADD: This is the liberal equivalent of conservatives saying that Democrats aren't "patriotic enough." That's total BS, too.

If I hear one more person say that Democrats aren't "patriotic enough" or that Republicans aren't "smart enough" I will really go over the edge. Both arguments are cliched, tired, old and untrue.

There are plenty of smart Republicans. Nixon, Kissinger, William F. Buckley and many other National Review people, those guys that published Commentary Magazine. Cheney is a very bright guy. The list goes on. Reagan and Bush Sr. weren't intellectuals, but they were no dummies either. Sarah Palin on the other hand, is a dolt. Un utter dimwit. She knows nothing, and she has no interest in learning. Why do you think they keep her away from reporters? Katie Couric exposed Simple Sarah's ignorance and stupidity, imagine what the Sunday Morning crowd will do with her????

 

[Judy from Boise]

SP is exactly my age.

When I was in High School - I could NOT stand the dumb girls. The ones who played all cute and didn't have a clue what they were talking about. The football players loved them - the girls would giggle, wink, flip their hair, etc. The average girls wanted to be like them. Not me. Couldn't stand them. They were phony - a facade - an empty shell of cuteness.

I can't stand dumb. It's inexcusable. And, when you're in your 40s - it's no longer cute - it's pathetic. This woman is absolutely uneducated. She scares the living hell out of me. I want to know when being smart (which, apparently, is now called elitist) became a bad thing? When did being average, stupid and folksy become something to aspire to? Why even send our kids to college if this is the level of idiocy to which we want them to achieve?

I want brilliance - clarity - an absolute grasp of the world and its history. I may not always agree with the solutions - but I want to know someone brilliant is leading this country.

I am so angry at McCain for putting this country at risk by selecting this overgrown dumb girl as his running mate and as our potential POTUS.

Great article - it really summed up how I have felt about her from the moment she first opened her mouth to the American public.

I am a registered Republican.....first voted for Regan in 1980, I loved that man. Voted for the first Bush also.But I totally agree with your post, that is exactly how I am feeling.

 

[yeartolate]

I would like to make one thing perfectly clear , I really do not think on the whole she is a stupid person, She certainly has said some very stupid things, but that is because she is unprepared for the job she is applying for.

I am an Intensive Care Unit nurse, but if I was placed in Labor and Delivery, I could dodder around and get some things right, but on the whole, I would not be ready for the task at hand. Does that make me stupid? No. When I was confused, I would be open to do whatever the REAL labor and delivery nurses told me to do.

What concerns me is that when Palin is placed in these situations, when she dodders around, she will be very open to whatever those around her are telling her to do. That is more of a puppet, really.

So when you are in labor and delivery, having your baby, do you want the real labor and delivery unit nurse or do you want someone like me, who could dodder around and get some things right, but really depending on others to feed me information.

I usually suck at analogies, but I think I got one spot on.

 

[rgf207]

Exactly! If, God forbid, Sarah Palin ever reaches the oval office, we will be looking back at the GWB administration as 'enlightened times.'

Amen to that

 

[NY Disney fan]

I am a registered Republican.....first voted for Regan in 1980, I loved that man. Voted for the first Bush also.But I totally agree with your post, that is exactly how I am feeling.

What's even worse is that McCain absolutely would have overtaken the Polls under different circumstances.

 

[bicker]

Definitely. If McCain chose Tom Ridge, I think we'd be looking at a completely different situation today, with Obama on the ropes.

 

[FinallyBoughtDVC]

I would like to make one thing perfectly clear , I really do not think on the whole she is a stupid person, She certainly has said some very stupid things, but that is because she is unprepared for the job she is applying for.

I am an Intensive Care Unit nurse, but if I was placed in Labor and Delivery, I could dodder around and get some things right, but on the whole, I would not be ready for the task at hand. Does that make me stupid? No. When I was confused, I would be open to do whatever the REAL labor and delivery nurses told me to do.

What concerns me is that when Palin is placed in these situations, when she dodders around, she will be very open to whatever those around her are telling her to do. That is more of a puppet, really.

So when you are in labor and delivery, having your baby, do you want the real labor and delivery unit nurse or do you want someone like me, who could dodder around and get some things right, but really depending on others to feed me information.

I usually suck at analogies, but I think I got one spot on.

I think it's a great analogy. I just don't think it applies to her.

I honestly think she's a faker. She's managed to use cunning & charm to get where she is. There's just nothing there. And, at her age - in her position - she should be much, much more knowledgable about a lot of things. She's not smart - she's not worldly - she's nothing but a show. And, that scares me more than anything.

I believe that truly brilliant people surround themselves with other truly brilliant people. I believe that a well-educated intensive care nurse is brilliant enough to know to call in the experts in labor & delivery when that is what's needed.

I don't agree with Mitt Romney's politics - but I think he's brilliant. I don't agree with Condie Rice on many affairs - but she is absolutely bloodly brilliant. Sarah Palin is not even average - she's below average in her knowledge on many things.

The best way to learn what she knows (or actually, how little she knows) is to read what she says. Take out the voice, the winks, the ever-present smile and just read the words that come out of her mouth.

Pretend Margaret Thatcher was saying the words. Pretend Rachel Ray or Martha Stewart were saying the words. Pretend a sixteen year old high school student was saying the words - you'd absolutely think the person was a complete idiot.

I do not think she's smart enough or brilliant enough to surround herself with people smarter than she. I think she'll surround herself with people who are just like her - just as she's always done.

And, that is truly, absolutely terrifying.

 

[NY Disney fan]

The reality is, whether you think Palin is smart or dumb, she doesn't reflect America as a whole. MCCain picked her as a VP running mate b/c he was trying to appeal (pander) to the red state mentality (God & Guns) but he went far and beyond by choosing unwisely: a woman who is leader of a wilderness state with a small population. Like Bessie May who runs the Feed & Seed. America is well beyond this.

 

[bicker]

I wouldn't be so sure that American is "well beyond" this. There are still lots of people who revel in the prospect of having their religious beliefs imposed on society as a whole. If anything, the trend over the last eight years has been growing myopia and self-absorption, and less long-range vision and tolerance for others.

 

[freckles and boo]

I would like to make one thing perfectly clear , I really do not think on the whole she is a stupid person, She certainly has said some very stupid things, but that is because she is unprepared for the job she is applying for.

I am an Intensive Care Unit nurse, but if I was placed in Labor and Delivery, I could dodder around and get some things right, but on the whole, I would not be ready for the task at hand. Does that make me stupid? No. When I was confused, I would be open to do whatever the REAL labor and delivery nurses told me to do.

What concerns me is that when Palin is placed in these situations, when she dodders around, she will be very open to whatever those around her are telling her to do. That is more of a puppet, really.

So when you are in labor and delivery, having your baby, do you want the real labor and delivery unit nurse or do you want someone like me, who could dodder around and get some things right, but really depending on others to feed me information.

I usually suck at analogies, but I think I got one spot on.

I like your analogy, but I think you give her too much credit. Smart people KNOW when they are in over their heads. Smart people know they don't know it all. She may have some frontier-style "streetsmarts" and she certainly has a bizarre charisma that probably works for her as governor of Alaska. However, she appears outwardly to lack any intellectual curiosity. Smart people read. They study the world. They ask questions and they become informed BEFORE they say "Sure, I would make a great VP, doggonit!"

 

[eliza61]

The debate in effect was her one and only job interview with the American public. I have interviewed for many jobs, and I can swear that I never once winked at my possible employers! It is almost the antitheseis of professional behavior.

What was up with the winking I kept thinking I ready to slap the 1st guy who winks at me or calls me hon. God, talk about setting professional women back 40 years. Was she trying to be cutsie?
I feel like she's the girl who is trying to be dumb on purpose just to be popular, then again I use to think that about GW and lord knows he's done his best to prove he really is stupid.

What's that saying about staying quiet and people only think you're a fool, open your mouth and people know you're a fool.

 

[LotsOfQuestions]

wink, wink Sarah

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=znxGveGrSTg&feature=related

 

[LotsOfQuestions]

I believe that truly brilliant people surround themselves with other truly brilliant people.

And that is what scares me so much about McCain. Brilliant people surround themselves with other truly brilliant people. So, instead of a backup quarterback who knows the playbook (whether male or female), he chooses the head cheerleader as second string?

You are right. Condi Rice is one incredible, brilliant woman. I don't agree with many of the decisions she makes with her knowledge, but at least I am assured she has the knowledge to make a decision.

There are so many bright Republicans out there that he could have chosen. So many that had knowledge that would have bolstered his weaknesses. I am beginning to think that McCain is so egotistical he couldn't stand for his VP to appear to be smarter than he is in any area, so he chooses the dumbest person he can find, but one who can clearly spout the religious rhetoric needed to bring in the religious right.

 

[LotsOfQuestions]

It almost looks like a sneer and she has to work hard to even come close to a wink: