RacerX
Sep 27, 2008, 04:37 AM
I, like many people, can make any number of arguments against Sarah Palin for the Vice Presidential spot... so I won't.
No, at this point in time I think we should address a far more disturbing aspect of this... and I'm not talking about things like the witch hunter stuff or her religious views, I've been looking at a much more down to earth, human issue here.
In a very real sense I think the McCain campaign has damaged this woman. And in a real (though not literal) sense she is being abused. And it has nothing to do with her being female, the same thing could have been done to someone who is male as well (and to a degree, the same thing was done to Dan Quayle).
From what I can tell, Palin was a hard headed governor who loved the spotlight, and loved a fight even more. Her positions on the issues (frightening as they are) aside, she wouldn't have backed down from anything thrown at her before this.
What changed?
Lets face it, the people you have around you are very important to your self image. If you have supportive people, you can bounce back from any mistakes. Bush's bubble is a perfect example of people basically shielding a person from their own failures. Bush could screw up and bounce back as if nothing had happened (even if the country wasn't able to).
Palin not only doesn't have this anymore, she has the exact opposite now. She is surrounded by people who are showing her that they have no faith in her at all. They have effectively destroyed her self confidence. And in making up for their own missteps early on, she has been saddled with defending bizarre talking points (like the foreign policy/proximity argument). Now she has a dear in the headlights look in almost any situation she finds herself in, ready for the worst to happen.
From what I can tell, she wasn't like this before. She could sit down and give an interview without seeming like she had just recently learned english. In fact, it seems like she was originally rather quick on her feet.
Her handlers in the McCain campaign did this. And it shouldn't have been unexpected. Hiding her from the media (which was her strongest area before) has made her constantly second guessing and doubting herself. Why is she rambling on in her answers? Because she is listening to her own responses trying to avoid mistakes.
To a degree every person who finds themselves in a VP spot on a ticket is going to have to make adjustments. Biden has been his own person in politics for years and now finds himself having to echo someone else's talking points.
Is he going to make mistakes? Sure.
But like falling off a horse, you have to jump right back on or the seeds of doubt will be firmly planted. Palin should have been in front of the press all this time. She should never been made to defend the bizarre talking points put forward at the GOP convention about her foreign policy experience. And by instilling a fear of the press in her, her handlers have done far worse than damaged her for this campaign... I'd be willing to bet that she will have a hard time getting back to where she was after this is all over.
No, at this point in time I think we should address a far more disturbing aspect of this... and I'm not talking about things like the witch hunter stuff or her religious views, I've been looking at a much more down to earth, human issue here.
In a very real sense I think the McCain campaign has damaged this woman. And in a real (though not literal) sense she is being abused. And it has nothing to do with her being female, the same thing could have been done to someone who is male as well (and to a degree, the same thing was done to Dan Quayle).
From what I can tell, Palin was a hard headed governor who loved the spotlight, and loved a fight even more. Her positions on the issues (frightening as they are) aside, she wouldn't have backed down from anything thrown at her before this.
What changed?
Lets face it, the people you have around you are very important to your self image. If you have supportive people, you can bounce back from any mistakes. Bush's bubble is a perfect example of people basically shielding a person from their own failures. Bush could screw up and bounce back as if nothing had happened (even if the country wasn't able to).
Palin not only doesn't have this anymore, she has the exact opposite now. She is surrounded by people who are showing her that they have no faith in her at all. They have effectively destroyed her self confidence. And in making up for their own missteps early on, she has been saddled with defending bizarre talking points (like the foreign policy/proximity argument). Now she has a dear in the headlights look in almost any situation she finds herself in, ready for the worst to happen.
From what I can tell, she wasn't like this before. She could sit down and give an interview without seeming like she had just recently learned english. In fact, it seems like she was originally rather quick on her feet.
Her handlers in the McCain campaign did this. And it shouldn't have been unexpected. Hiding her from the media (which was her strongest area before) has made her constantly second guessing and doubting herself. Why is she rambling on in her answers? Because she is listening to her own responses trying to avoid mistakes.
To a degree every person who finds themselves in a VP spot on a ticket is going to have to make adjustments. Biden has been his own person in politics for years and now finds himself having to echo someone else's talking points.
Is he going to make mistakes? Sure.
But like falling off a horse, you have to jump right back on or the seeds of doubt will be firmly planted. Palin should have been in front of the press all this time. She should never been made to defend the bizarre talking points put forward at the GOP convention about her foreign policy experience. And by instilling a fear of the press in her, her handlers have done far worse than damaged her for this campaign... I'd be willing to bet that she will have a hard time getting back to where she was after this is all over.
