Sarah Palin, McCain's Unfortunate Choice

Sarah Palin, or as I call her, the Alaskan Bimbo, has been the picture child for all that is perceived as wrong with the McCain campaign. She was chosen without being well vetted, apparently on a whim during a short meeting with campaign leaders. She is given as the reason several top Republicans have forgone McCain in favor of Obama. McCain is seen as one who has made a poor choice for a VP so, what kind of choices would he make should he become president?

Ms Palin was given a $150,000 shopping spree to outfit herself and her family for the campaign and touched up with over $20,000 worth of professional make-up and hair styling work. She has been kept from the press for fear of what she might say and, even after coaching, has made off the wall, and incorrect statements. She hasn't been able to give a knowlegable definition of the VP's duties. The list goes on.

Ms Palin isn't really stupid, as many of us have characterized her. She is inexperienced and unprepared for the job at hand. Thus, her picture could easily be placed in the dictionary beside the word, bimbo. However, is this all Ms Palin's fault? She has been elected governor of Alaska. That fact in itself is no minor accomplishment, though Alaska is no California or Pennsylvania and has the population of a medium sized U.S. city. She was thrust into the national spotlight and immediately put on the campaign trail with absolutely no experience with the national press and an obviously narrow world view. She is apparently not well read, yet three months ago, she probably had no idea that her life was going to change so drastically.

If fault can be placed on Sarah Palin, it would have to be because she accepted the position in the first place. We have all been in that position. An offer has been placed on the table, and we know we really aren't prepared for it, but our egos and our ambitions take over. If we are lucky, we stumble a bit, but we manage to fake our way through and use common sense until we gain enough experience to shine. If we aren't that lucky and we don't have time to lay low until we learn the job, we end up like Ms Palin. We look like a fool and every time we stumble, the spotlight shines brightly upon us. Those around us who, know the real story, watch our every move and report it to others.

The major responsibility for Ms Palin's unfortunate blunders must lie with those who selected her. John McCain made the final choice, so he must live with it. According to those in the know, he may not be happy with his choice at the moment, but he can blame no one but himself. He had a number of choices, who would have complemented his weaknesses. Yet he passed them by. It still isn't completely clear why he chose Palin. Some have speculated that it was because of her religious and socially conservative views. Yet the were other, more experienced persons with similar opinions. Some people are guilty of surrounding themselves with those who pose no threat. They are fearful that they will be overshadowed by a subordinate. McCain has an ego and he appears short. Could it be the Napoleonic Syndrome?

We do not know the outcome of this election. As far as I am concerned it is still very much up in the air. Polls do not vote. If the McCain/Palin ticket wins, the losers will be the American people, especially if McCain were to die in office. Win or lose John McCain will be remembered for the poor choice he made for his vice president. If he wins, we have to hope that he lives until his VP can get up to speed in the world. Then we have to hope that she really isn't as she seems. We have to hope that she isn't a scared rabbit in a den of wolves and that she is, indeed, intelligent enough to become what is still, at the moment, the leader of the free world.