Independent UK: A woman to make enlightened voters shudder

[marmar]

Joan Smith: A woman to make enlightened voters shudder

The US press is consumed with excitement at Sarah Palin, the Republicans' gun-toting, creationist vice-presidential hopeful. But in the eight-week countdown to the election, closer inspection of her candidacy could put an end to all this awestruck gushing

Sunday, 7 September 2008



In the heady atmosphere of last week's Republican convention – electrified by Sarah Palin's barnstorming speech as the vice-presidential candidate – a curious fact seems to have been overlooked. On paper, the new darling of Christian conservatives ticks all the right boxes as only a media-taunting, oil-drilling, gun-toting, abortion-hating, creationist mother of five could. Equally at home posing for photographs with her children and dead animals, she sends out an irresistible mating call to evangelical voters who suspect that John McCain is secretly too secular for their taste.

Did his team carry out sufficient checks before selecting an inexperienced state governor no one outside Alaska had heard of until 10 days ago? Who cares, when everyone is talking about this thrilling new player in the presidential contest.

But two months of hard campaigning lie ahead, and it's already beginning to dawn on smarter commentators that Palin is a terrible advert for conservative values. Last week, the Democratic candidate, Barack Obama, responded to the news that Palin's 17-year-old daughter was pregnant with an instruction to his supporters that the subject is off-limits, and a reminder that his own mother was only 18 when he was born.

Ms Palin insisted it was a private matter, although she was quite happy to parade her children, including the pregnant Bristol and her deeply uncomfortable boyfriend, at the convention in Minneapolis-St Paul.

Both candidates got it wrong: Palin, by exposing a troubled teenager to the world's media; and Obama, for failing to raise a legitimate and important issue.

He should have said that while the girl is entitled to privacy, it is clearly better in principle for young adults to finish their education and make decisions about marriage and children without the pressure of a teenage pregnancy; he should also have pointed out that Palin opposes any form of sex education that isn't "abstinence-based". .......(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.independent.co.uk/opinion/commentators/joan-smith/joan-smith-a-woman-to-make-enlightened-voters-shudder-921550.html

[qwlauren35]

1. I'm glad he didn't go there.

I absolutely agree with her view that it is better to finish education first and get pregnant second...

But if teen pregnancy wasn't originally part of Obama's platform, then it would not be a good thing to just shove it in there the way McCain shoved Palin into the VP slot of his ticket.

Obama deliberates and looks at things from many angles before he makes his decisions. Luckily, his "good long look" takes less time than it does for most of us. But I'm sure the idea of discussing teen pregnancy was considered... and eliminated.

[BrklynLiberal]

2. What a fantastic line!!!!

On paper, the new darling of Christian conservatives ticks all the right boxes as only a media-taunting, oil-drilling, gun-toting, abortion-hating, creationist mother of five could. Equally at home posing for photographs with her children and dead animals, she sends out an irresistible mating call to evangelical voters who suspect that John McCain is secretly too secular for their taste.

[Captain Hilts]

3. Ain't that the truth!

ER: Boo-yeah!

[kath]

4. Gee, I wonder when we'll start seeing articles like this in the Murkan press?