Innnnnnteresting ....

[veronica_rich]

Supposedly, according to McCain campaign staffers, Sarah Palin didn't know Africa was a continent, not a country, and she was guilty of other asorted dumbnesses. Let's break this down:

In defense of the woman - and I cannot believe the text is coming from my fingertips - I know more than one smart person who has made this initial mistake. Including me. Not in the lasting, insistent sense - "Uh huh! Yes it is! South Africa's part of one country!" - but in the initial, unthinking sense when the topic first comes up. Because I've known since I was in at least the fourth grade that there are various and assorted countries in Africa. All I'm saying is, if you've ever heard anyone toss off "the country of Africa" before thinking, or someone reminding them "it's not a country, dummy" and then they go "what'd I say? oh shit, I wasn't thinking" - yeah. So, is this what the staffers are exaggerating? Or is it a case of her insisting it IS a country even after someone says "um ... it's not one country?"

Because I have to say - George Bush went to Yale and Harvard, and frankly, I think he's about as dumb as an actual president can get. (Not knowing the philosophical differences between Sunnis and Shi'ites before going to war is WAY worse than a slip of the tongue on Africa, IMO.) And while his lack of intelligence has been lampooned, spread out over eight years, the fact is that it took a lot longer than three months for people to start pointing and laughing at it. So why with Palin?

Is it - again, I have to wonder at this coming from ME - because she's a woman? Because it very well could be. (Bit of a lesson to the casual fandom pheminists out there: THIS is the sort of shit feminism was REALLY invented to combat. Not your crocodile tears over a fictional character not getting the right man.) Make no mistake about Palin - I don't want her anywhere NEAR my White House, now or in the future - but there are plenty of things to legitimately criticize about her besides lack of geographical knowledge IF it's just being exaggerated as I reference above. (And I suspect this may well be the case. I don't think the woman's the sharpest tack in the corkboard, but I really question if she's THAT ignorant.)

And if she is that ignorant? Well, it's not the fact she's being criticized for it, because certainly basic geographical knowledge is important. It's HOW she's being criticized. (See previous paragraph.) Certainly the electorate has the right to know, just as they should be cautious when listening to her tell a third-grader about the duties of a vice president and getting it out of whack. All I'm saying is, let's watch how we do it, and maintain a healthy skepticism about the extremity of her reported "ignorance." (If she were truly that dumb, wouldn't we be hearing about something far more egregious than the Africa thing? That's what makes me suspicious.)

Comments

[finding-neo.livejournal.com]

Forget the Africa thing. She cannot even speak about Supreme Court decisions with any degree of intelligence. And like Bush not knowing the difference between Sunni & Shi'ite, that is far more telling than the Africa thing.

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=96735163

"Queen of Nascar" ROTFLMAO

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

Precisely. I prefer to concentrate on what matters, and in a fashion that criticizes her in the same way I would criticize any candidate, man or woman. I just sort of get the feeling if she were a man, the criticism would be taking a different tone - don't ask how, I can't answer that. Just a reporter's feeling.

[captsparrow4evr.livejournal.com]

IMHO, the McCain camp wants a scapegoat and Palin is it. Now, that's not saying she isn't "dumb as a box of rocks" but she is going to be reviled for quite a while because McCain lost "because of her." Now, we know that's not the truth. He lost because the majority of voters saw him as Bush v. 3.0 and said "Enough is enough" but that isn't going down well with the right wing. Furthermore, the Republican Party can now use this in the future when someone suggests another female candidate for VP or President.

[porridgebird.livejournal.com]

McCain lost a ton of endorsements over Palin. I lost count of how many articles started out describing how the writer supported McCain until he brought Palin on board. Some were put off by Palin herself, some were scared by the horrendously bad judgment demonstrated in the selection of Palin, some both. If he'd picked someone else, he might have actually had a shot at winning this (imo).

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

Furthermore, the Republican Party can now use this in the future when someone suggests another female candidate for VP or President.

This does bother me. Selection of an incurious man won't stop 20 from being selected later, but one ignorant woman may be all it takes. Which is why I want her hammered for important ignorances that either gender could be accused of. If that makes sense.

[joyful-molly.livejournal.com]

And there I was thinking that Yale and Harvard had some sort of standards - well, beyond the financial ones, I mean.

From an European point of view, I can assure you that we mocked and pointed Bush very early on - four months on into his presidency, maybe. And I can tell you that my disgust for Palin has nothing whatsoever to do with her gender. (If you're interested, here are my thoughts on the matter). I'd hate anybody who seems to be the impersonation of every single negative stereotype about Americans that exists. The "Former Beauty Queen" is just the cherry on the top, just like "Former Quarterback" would have been in a man.

I don't think that "African thing" is more stupid than anything else she's said during the last months. An ignorant is an ignorant is an ignorant, and even if only half of her statements were made up, it was bad enough.

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

You know, Palin isn't much different than Reagan in terms of being qualified or basic intelligence, IMO - he was just a better actor. And look how he's canonized in spite of all the ways he ended up fucking this country over. *headshake*

I figured our international brethren had figured out Bush well before we did. (I use "we" as a collective - believe that there were those of us smart enough not to vote for him the first time.)

[mamazano.livejournal.com]

This isn't surprising, actually. (The geography bit). I once walked around the building I worked in, where 99% of the people were college students, grad students, with most have at least a Masters of Science degree, asking randomly which continent Egypt was in. Surprising, most people did NOT say Africa. Many said the Middle East, which when last I checked, is in Asia.

I am sure that Palin is getting critcized more because she is a woman, but the fact remains, she is definitely not the most astute woman in politics. I cringe to think the Republican party actually saw her fit to be running this country.

I am also sure that whatever Obama does will be under the microscope as well, mostly do to the color of his skin. That is the way this country operates it seems.

[a-silver-rose.livejournal.com]

She wasn't picked to run the country. She was picked to get votes, both from the conservative base and from those disappointed that Hilary Clinton didn't get a spot on the Dem ticket.

[ellie-pierson.livejournal.com]

The thing I found most annoying, was surprisingly not Mrs. Palin, but how the press latched onto the fact that the Republican party had spent $150,000 on her clothing. Why is that important? Would they have ever considered making a comment about how much they spent on a male canidates wardrobe?? Was it to push home the fact that she is just an average mom?

[justawench.livejournal.com]

I think they latched onto that because it was completely in violation of the 2002 McCain-Feingold Campaign Finance Reform Act:

SEC. 313. USE OF CONTRIBUTED AMOUNTS FOR CERTAIN PURPOSES.
(a) PERMITTED USES-

...
(b) PROHIBITED USE-

(1) IN GENERAL- A contribution or donation described in subsection (a) shall not be converted by any person to personal use.

(2) CONVERSION- For the purposes of paragraph (1), a contribution or donation shall be considered to be converted to personal use if the contribution or amount is used to fulfill any commitment, obligation, or expense of a person that would exist irrespective of the candidate's election campaign or individual's duties as a holder of Federal office, including--

(A) a home mortgage, rent, or utility payment;
(B) a clothing purchase;
(C) a noncampaign-related automobile expense;
(D) a country club membership;
(E) a vacation or other noncampaign-related trip;
(F) a household food item;
...


I think in the context that it flew in the face of everything McCain was supposed to stand for, it was a very important indication of her character.

[the-dala.livejournal.com]

Campbell Brown said the same thing, and I disagree with her. It's important because the money came from campaign donations. Cindy McCain's Oscar de la Renta dresses probably cost five times as much as one of Palin's designer suits, but she paid for them out of her own pocket. Same goes for McCain's Italian loafers and Obama's expensive suits. In a time of financial crisis, it was extraordinarily bad PR and the campaign should never have allowed the story to break like that.

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

Actually, it turns out it was more than $150,000. No average mom spends that much on clothes in a lifetime, for herself.

[gloromeien.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was definitely thinking the same thing when I read that article. It does smack of 'Pin the Election Loss on the Pitbull With Lipstick'. And the ways they chose to defame her were classic sexism. She went on a spending spree! She appeared in a towel! She's an out of control, unedumecated floosy! She bedazzled us with her feminine wiles! Please.

Palin served their purposes when they needed her, but now she's suddenly the reason for their defeat. God forbid they should blame the actual candidate! Because honestly if he had been a stellar choice for Prez, her intellectual competency would not be or have been an issue.

Also, doesn't that inevitably reflect badly upon them? She may be dumb - and, whoa, is she ever! - but they were the ones willing to give her the keys to the kingdom. IMO, it says more about their priorities and infantile attitudes than it does about Palin's capabilities.

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

The spending spree, I get - it shows a lack of restraint or budgeting ability. It also flies in the face of her whole "aw, gosh, shucks, Jane-the-plumber" Gomer Pyle put-on.

But I agree about the towel thing - um, they came to her hotel room. It's not something I would've done, but it's not like she was nude or even scantily dressed. Why is that being brought up? I bet if she'd been Jack Palin and she'd met them at the door in a towel around her waist, nothing would've ever been said.

As for the rest, YES. They chose her. She was in a relatively safe position as governor of a state without too many people, where if she screwed up it was easy enough for those constituents to kick her out of office. There were other actual intelligent Republican women they could've chosen if they wanted to try to capture the Hillary demographic. They did not. They got exactly what they advised, they underestimated the masses BADLY, and they should pay for it. Karma works sometimes.

[crevette.livejournal.com]

I think that This says it best.

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

That's something else I mean but didn't say well - why the fuck did they pick her if she isn't what they wanted? Did she do a flipflop and change who she was AFTER she was selected? Was she a bookworm during the DNC and then ignorant after?

I love the people who are all "she should've known her own limitations and not accepted the request to join the campaign." Are they seriously telling me they would turn down being the second most powerful person in this country if they're an uber-ambitious politician, with the excuse of "oh, I'd love it, but honestly, it's just not time yet?" Hell, even I might have thought Hmm, if they're asking me, maybe I AM ready after all ... if they can see it, why shouldn't I?

(Keep in mind I had the same criticism I just cited above, at one time, and I've since thought about it and concluded that it was John's job to pick somebody more qualified. But I will say I'm glad it was NOT Lieberman, either.)

[pir8fancier.livejournal.com]

You know, you weren't running for Vice President with a 72-year old running mate. I think it's inexcusable and these gaffs should be balloyhooed from theh rooftops for the pure and simple reason that it shows she's completely unqualified for the job she was applying for. Combine this with the leaks magnifying her shopping sprees and we have someone who is not only dumb but is venal and self-serving.

Do I wish that all the words spent on Hillary Clinton's appearance were excercized from my brain? Yes. Do I htink that the public spends an inordinate amount of time obsessing over women politicians and their apperance. Obviously. Just as much as people do over Obama being black. The trailblazers are storymakers.

But if you take away that "need" for a story, the bottomline is that her ignorance is so profound that it should be tattooed on her forehead. Because we all know she's running in 2012, thereby potentially eliminating a possible DECENT candidate. I used to admire the Republicans on one level in that I thought they were smart and focused. The radical wing of the GOP are idiots if they think they can parlay this woman into a national candidate. She is made of fail. And four years getting tutored night and day is not going to change her essential nature. Someone who can gas with a microphone and nothing more.

[the-dala.livejournal.com]

Re: your last paragraph - we keep hearing 2012, but I honestly think she'll be on her way out long before that. The Republican party needs to undergo a seismic shift if it wants to regain any sort of power with the American electorate, and I hope and believe that Palin's brand of identity politics and lowest-common-denominator appeal will keep her out of a national race. All this villification after the loss seems like an important step along the way.

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

I think you may be missing my point. To this day, criticism of Clinton was about Monica, NOT about his handling of the Balkans or his signing of NAFTA after he promised to work against it - and those were the actual important criticisms that should be remembered about his term. Palin has more going against her than he did, for the sheer fact she wasn't qualified for the job she was seeking - but there's more to criticize than penny-ante splitting of words. She doesn't know what a VP does. She doesn't read to keep up with the world. She doesn't know a LOT of things she should - and Africa's geographical status is the least of it, but I'm afraid THAT is what people will remember most and in four years, there WILL be those who go "well, that's not so bad, I do THAT ..."

You think I'm exaggerating. I don't have that much faith in people's basic intelligence. I know the only reason Obama won is because we're in such deep shit that we can look UP into somebody's asshole - not because he seems smarter or more qualified than anyone we've had in a really long time, even those who got in during good times.

[a-silver-rose.livejournal.com]

From what I've been seeing since Tuesday, this bringing up the Africa gaffe is part of an ongoing tension (to put it mildly) between the Palin and McCain camps. Frankly, I'd forgotten about it until now. Maybe the McCain people are looking to scapegoat Palin, and using this as one of their many excuses?

[veronica-rich.livejournal.com]

Oh, I'm sure it's scapegoating. That's what annoys me about it. It's going to be done enough on this stupid little shit that people are going to focus on that and forget the true ignorance and incuriosity she has displayed. I don't want it forgotten that she doesn't know what a VP does, or that she doesn't read to keep up with the news, or that she's ignorant about even one or two Supreme Court decisions.

[justawench.livejournal.com]

My personal problem with her is not her lack of knowledge on this particular subject or that one, it's that she is intellectually incurious and that she doesn't see a problem with not having all the information at hand.

She's all about appearances and self-promotion. I don't think she has been unfairly picked on for being a woman. She's worse than Dan Quayle, IMO, and he was mocked pretty relentlessly. I find her *completely* unqualified for VP or President.

The only experience that could possibly qualify her for a higher political office is less than two years as governor of a small (population-wise) state. From what I've read, she achieved this by letting people mentor her, then stabbing them in the back; plus running against an incumbent who was perceived to be corrupt.

I just found this article, which gives some interesting insight: http://www.tnr.com/story_print.html?id=8c130fe3-adab-4cb3-8443-c363f085cf13

[pir8fancier.livejournal.com]

I agree with you completely.

[porridgebird.livejournal.com]

An entirely different story would have been: "When we first met Sarah, she didn't even know Africa was a continent. But we've never seen anyone so eager to learn! She wore us out! You couldn't keep her face out of a book. We had to remind her to sleep!"

But that's not what happened. She resisted and refused coaching and instruction. Then when she got bad press over her ignorance, she cried and threw temper tantrums and blamed the very people who had tried to help her. THEN she spent a king's ransom on clothes. She's not being picked on because she's a woman, she's being picked on because she's bimbo. She lived down to just about every negative female stereotype out there.

[yoiebear.livejournal.com]

The Africa continent/country thing doesn't bother me as much as the story that she didn't know where the countries of the Middle East were located and when they showed her on a map, she was surprised they were so close to Africa and Europe. She also had no idea what countries made up the Middle East. *rolls eyes*

[porridgebird.livejournal.com]

I think the Africa thing will fade from memory pretty quickly, but the "I can see Russia" and the Middle East ignorance will live on forever.

Also that idiotic "fruit fly research" comment. That's the one that changed her from "cute but harmless" to "cute and dangerous" (imo).

[gobsmacked.livejournal.com]

Just a little perspective from outside the US?
To Canadians, the Africa thing was a bit of a cliche, as was the Middle East gaffe. Canadian comedians tend to get a lot of mileage out of the stereotypical American lack of geographical knowledge, so the thing that people focus on is her lack of knowledge about the job of Vice-President.