You all know that I don't think Sarah Palin's remotely qualified to be president and I surely don't think she's the next Margaret Thatcher. But this Vanity Fair hit job makes me sympathize fulsomely with those who support her simply out of indignation with the snobbery of her critics. Are we really supposed to take seriously the damning indictment that she signs her books with an Autopen? That she jokes about wearing push-up bras to get what she wants? (Find me a woman who hasn't made that joke.) That she makes the same speech over and over? (It's called a stump speech.) That her teenage kids call her a phony? (Whose don't?)
This part, particularly, is preposterous:
Whenever I heard Palin speak on the road, her remarks were scored with code phrases expressing solidarity with fundamentalist Christians. Her talk of leading with “a servant’s heart” is a dog whistle for the born-again. Her dig at health-care reform as an expression of Democratic ambitions to “build a Utopia” in the United States is practically a trumpet call (because the Kingdom of God is not of this earth, and perfection can be achieved only in the life to come).
"Dog whistle for the born-again?" Not only is this obnoxious, it's ignorant. It is indeed a Christian view that the Kingdom of God is not of this earth and that Utopian political schemes are therefore a heresy. But this is hardly a view confined to a conspiracy of sister-marrying snake-handling sub-arctic Pentecostalists who are summoned by means of dog whistles and secret codes. This was, for example, precisely Margaret Thatcher's (non-conformist Methodist) opinion.
Not that I'm saying she's the new Margaret Thatcher. She's not. There are many legitimate grounds to find her a ludicrous candidate for the presidency. But if she were even remotely qualified, I'd vote for her just to spite Vanity Fair, I really would.
Related Conversations
LONG > The Liberal Media Is Angry? Next Step: Bargaining
BERLINSKI > What Could Palin Learn from Thatcher?
CONTINETTI > Palin vs. Gingrich
SAJAK > What's a Rich Liberal to Do?
ELLIS > Would Palin Be an Effective President?
- Comment (44)
- · Quote
- · UnfollowFollow (4)
Comments :
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
I agree Claire but we're probably lucky to have even her to vote for in 2012. Who wants to step into an arena where partisan hatchet jobs like this are so routine? It's possible that Ronald Reagan would not have entered politics if he had to in the Internet 24 hour news cycle era. Margaret Thatcher would have probably hesitated as well. It's too intrusive so the pool gets smaller and smaller. Pretty soon, we'll only have certified freaks that would want to endure all the scrutiny.
Or "nothings" like the President Nemo we have today. That's the best the left can do?Sarah Palin, in this context, doesn't look that bad to me. And she's hot.
Jun '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
What do you mean snobbery? with quotes like this: "anywhere you peel back the skin of Sarah Palin’s life, a sad and moldering strangeness lies beneath." and "supported by organizations that do much of their business under the cover of pseudonyms and shell companies," and "The North Star has long been seen as a symbol for Alaska—and for God. They can both move over now. It belongs to someone else." - it seems like a balanced and nuanced article designed to offer insight into a polarizing political dynamo...
It's fun to watch them get so...what is the phrase again... panties in a bunch?
Edited on Sep. 6 at 4:50pmJul '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Here Ya go, Kenneth. A Palin thread. Go to town...
Aug '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Claire Berlinski:
It is indeed a Christian view that the Kingdom of God is not of this earth and that Utopian political schemes are therefore a heresy.
Claire, although you're right that traditional Christianity regards "Heaven on Earth" as heresy, many leftist Christians do ascribe to making God's Kingdom come on earth, more or less. And there are plenty of leftist Christians who don't seem to mind too much when any non-leftist Christians are caricatured as sister-marrying, snake-handling whatevers.
I'd also argue that, though "a servant's heart" is hardly a dog-whistle, it is instantly recognizable to me as Christian phraseology; however, it's hardly uncommon for politicians of all sorts to use instantly-recognizable Christian phraseology to describe their vision. Note Obama's oft-quoted statement, "It's that fundamental belief — I am my brother's keeper, I am my sister's keeper — that makes this country work."
Edited on Sep. 6 at 5:02pmMay '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Claire - Go back to Turkey, grab the cats and come back to America and run for something. Governor, Senator, the House... you choose. Then, properly seasoned, we'll put you up for the White House. And with our first female and Jewish president, we'll kick some rear and take names.
Jun '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Claire:
ful·some /ˈfʊlsəm, ˈfʌl-/ Show Spelled[fool-suhm, fuhl-] Show IPA
–adjective
1. offensive to good taste, esp. as being excessive; overdone or gross: fulsome praise that embarrassed her deeply; fulsome décor.
2. disgusting; sickening; repulsive: a table heaped with fulsome mounds of greasy foods.
3. excessively or insincerely lavish: fulsome admiration.
4. encompassing all aspects; comprehensive: a fulsome survey of the political situation in Central America.
5. abundant or copious.
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Cas Balicki: Claire:
ful·some /ˈfʊlsəm, ˈfʌl-/ Show Spelled[fool-suhm, fuhl-] Show IPA
–adjective
1. offensive to good taste, esp. as being excessive; overdone or gross: fulsome praise that embarrassed her deeply; fulsome décor.
2. disgusting; sickening; repulsive: a table heaped with fulsome mounds of greasy foods.
3. excessively or insincerely lavish: fulsome admiration.
4. encompassing all aspects; comprehensive: a fulsome survey of the political situation in Central America.
5. abundant or copious. · Sep 6 at 5:08pm
Yeah. Abundant or copious. (I just got an e-mail from a friend about this very issue and defended this very point. He also didn't like my original spelling of "indictment." I ceded on that to go with the mainstream, but the way I had it was also technically correct.)
May '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
I have been a registered Republican since 1978. I have never received my copy of the code book.
Jun '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Claire Berlinski
Cas Balicki: Claire:
ful·some /ˈfʊlsəm, ˈfʌl-/ Show Spelled[fool-suhm, fuhl-] Show IPA
–adjective
1. offensive to good taste, esp. as being excessive; overdone or gross: fulsome praise that embarrassed her deeply; fulsome décor.
2. disgusting; sickening; repulsive: a table heaped with fulsome mounds of greasy foods.
3. excessively or insincerely lavish: fulsome admiration.
4. encompassing all aspects; comprehensive: a fulsome survey of the political situation in Central America.
5. abundant or copious. · Sep 6 at 5:08pm
Yeah. Abundant or copious. (I just got an e-mail from a friend about this very issue and defended this very point. He also didn't like my original spelling of "indictment." I ceded on that to go with the mainstream, but the way I had it was also technically correct.) · Sep 6 at 5:13pm
Claire, I suspect abundant and copious is a recent addition to the list of meanings, because of the frequency of incorrect usage in recent times.
Aug '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Don't immanentize the eschaton has been a mainstream conservative view for quite some time and is hardly a sop to the Christian right. And yes, I'm quite pleased with myself for legitimately squeezing in "immanentize the eschaton" into a Ricochet post. Am I the first? I agree on Palin; I love what she's doing but she' not ready for prime time.
Jun '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
If Palin is speaking to Christians "in dog whistles," then much of Country Music, and most of Bluegrass is all dog whistle all the time. All the people at Vanity Fair proved is that they don't get out to America's boondocks much, or at all.
May '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
The late William Saphire used to pester Colin Powell for his similar use of "fulsome," as in "The foreign minister and I had fulsome discussions..." So Claire, you're in good company. And Cas, so are you.
Jul '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
I only look at Vanity Fair for pictures of celebrities in their underwear, so I missed the article.
As is well-known in these precincts, I am a tremendous fan of Palin.
Piper Palin.
Who I still contend would have made a better Vice President than Joe Biden.
Edited on Sep. 6 at 7:27pmJul '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Mark Lewis: What do you mean snobbery? with quotes like this: "anywhere you peel back the skin of Sarah Palin’s life, a sad and moldering strangeness lies beneath." and "supported by organizations that do much of their business under the cover of pseudonyms and shell companies," and "The North Star has long been seen as a symbol for Alaska—and for God. They can both move over now. It belongs to someone else." - it seems like a balanced and nuanced article designed to offer insight into a polarizing political dynamo...
It's fun to watch them get so...what is the phrase again... panties in a bunch? · Sep 6 at 4:49pm
Edited on Sep 06 at 04:50 pm
Yes, "panties in a bunch" is the phrase, but I've always reserved it for Barney Frank.
Aug '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Cas Balicki
Claire Berlinski
Cas Balicki: Claire:
ful·some /ˈfʊlsəm, ˈfʌl-/ Show Spelled[fool-suhm, fuhl-] Show IPA
–adjective
1. offensive to good taste, esp. as being excessive; overdone or gross: fulsome praise that embarrassed her deeply; fulsome décor.
2. disgusting; sickening; repulsive: a table heaped with fulsome mounds of greasy foods.
3. excessively or insincerely lavish: fulsome admiration.
4. encompassing all aspects; comprehensive: a fulsome survey of the political situation in Central America.
5. abundant or copious. · Sep 6 at 5:08pm
Yeah. Abundant or copious. (I just got an e-mail from a friend about this very issue and defended this very point. He also didn't like my original spelling of "indictment." I ceded on that to go with the mainstream, but the way I had it was also technically correct.) · Sep 6 at 5:13pm
Claire, I suspect abundant and copious is a recent addition to the list of meanings, because of the frequency of incorrect usage in recent times.
Good suspicion, Cas, but wrong. The original meaning was "abundant", whence came the sense "exceptionally abundant", then "excessive", then "objectionable" . See etymology here.
Aug '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Kenneth
Yes, "panties in a bunch" is the phrase, but I've always reserved it for Barney Frank. · Sep 6 at 7:24pm
I prefer "knickers in a twist" or "undies in a bundy" (bundle) myself.
Aug '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
I don't care if you're the first. I'm awed enough. (Also smacking myself for not being clever enough to think of the phrase myself.)
Jul '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Midget Faded Rattlesnake
I don't care if you're the first. I'm awed enough. (Also smacking myself for not being clever enough to think of the phrase myself.) · Sep 6 at 7:52pm
Oh, you wanna play "Steal the Bill Buckley quote"?
Get in line, pal.
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
You know, this is interesting--I post about Sarah Palin, and ... no one's that interested! In fact, the discussion swiftly devolves into a debate on English usage.
I suspect this is significant.
I suspect, in fact, that this marks the moment that Sarah Palin jumped the shark.
You heard it hear first, on Ricochet.
Jul '10
Re: I Wish Sarah Palin Were More Qualified So I Could Vote for Her to Spite Vanity Fair
Claire Berlinski: You know, this is interesting--I post about Sarah Palin, and ... no one's that interested! In fact, the discussion swiftly devolves into a debate on English usage.
I suspect this is significant.
I suspect, in fact, that this marks the moment that Sarah Palin jumped the shark.
You heard it hear first, on Ricochet. · Sep 6 at 9:02pm
Oh, I would have gone for it, Claire, but people are tired of hearing me bash Palin.
I suspect the reality is that the majority of people here are really, really smart and really current. And so they're pretty much in agreement that the woman is a nougat-of-nothing-much, wrapped in a chewy layer of perky.
The Lady GaGa of politics.