I love politics. I have close friends who are politicians. Firstborn is the branch secretary of a political party. I think it’s fun, and if you’ve read my books then you know the game of politics is something I love to mess with.

I follow politics the same way other people follow football. I sit down with popcorn and ice-cream to watch the tally room telecast on election nights. The game that is politics fascinates me endlessly. I love the hedging. The “key phrases”. (Here's a cool drinking game - slam one down every time you hear the word “maverick” coming out of the McCain campaign. Or “change” from the Obama people). I love the spin. And oddly enough, the good intentions — however misguided — of what I believe are mostly good people who start out thinking they can do something useful for their country and often end up doing stuff all, because the system, by it’s very nature, emasculates them. (Peter Garrett anyone?)

Most of all, I live in anticipation of a journalist asking a politician a closed question requiring nothing more than a Yes or No answer and have them actually answer “yes” or “no”.

As a rule, I don’t talk about politics on this blog, because that’s not what’s it about. I am not a political commentator and there are plenty of other sites on the net where you can find a much more qualified opinion than mine.

That said, I feel the need to mention my fascination with the US presidential race, and in particular, Sarah Palin.

I cannot decide if Sarah Palin is a breath of fresh air or a slightly more articulate version of Pauline Hansen*. I think she is amazing to watch. She is clearly an accomplished performer, but so far, she’s doing just that — performing. She is merely delivering the lines written for her (rumour has it) by seasoned Whitehouse speechwriters before she was even offered the job.

I’m not suggesting she doesn’t have the goods to make it as the US VP. She might be the best thing that’s happened to the US in years. Or she might be the worst. It worries me a little, I have to admit, that should the 72-year-old McCain be elected and die in office (20% of  US VPs end up president through either death or resignation, btw)  we could wind up with a leader of the free world whose foreign policy experience is being touted as “she lives near Russia”. That's something of a concern to those of us who live in the, you know... free world.

They say she’s a quick study, and I don’t doubt that for a moment. She is also on record as claiming the war in Iraq is a mission from God. Hmmm.

What amazes me though, is the idea she will attract women voters, simply because she is a woman. What a steaming crock of shit. If you follow that logic, every female candidate who has ever stood for office should have been elected, because women, after all, make up just over 50% of the electorate.

I think people who believe Sarah Palin will attract women voters have been listening to too many Helen Reddy songs. Most women with two legs and, well,  a heartbeat, don’t really care what gender a candidate is. They care what the candidate stands for and how it will impact their lives, their families and their futures. If you disagree with Palin’s pro-life, pro-moose hunting principles, you’re not going to put aside your own beliefs just because she’s a “sista”.

The next couple of months are going to be so interesting. I can’t wait to watch the VP debates. It’s going to be utterly fascinating.

And now I’m going to get on to the Fox News site and try to email Bill O’Reilly so I can ask him that if Jamie-Lyn Spears’ parents are “pinheads” for allowing their teenaged daughter to get pregnant —“I blame the parents” were his exact words — what does that make Sarah Palin and her husband?

PS: People complaining about sexism toward their candidate should probably not do so while wearing buttons like this:

 

 

*For non-Aussie readers, Pauline Hanson is an extreme right-wing politician who enjoyed a brief run of popularity (until she finished up in jail – followed by Dancing with the Stars) a few years ago. She got her start with a speech in parliament claiming we were being overrun by Asians and stunning fiscal policy like “we’ll print more money”.

I love politics, too. That's one of the reasons why I enjoyed Second Sons so much.

I must say I (like everyone else) was surprised with McCain's choice of Sarah Palin. McCain's main argument against Obama has been his lack of experience, but then he goes and chooses a candidate with even less experience. Not to mention a candidate who's for teaching Creationism in the public schools, and against women's reproductive rights, which I find inexcusable.

I heard someone describe her as "Cheney in a dress and makeup." Seems a fitting description to me.

</rant>

I shudder to think of a World with Sarah Palin at the helm of the good ship USA. I believe it would be a death knell for democracy, freedom of religion. Half of American adults already believe the world is only 6000 years old, and don't accept the theory of Evolution. American would become a theocratic state with its finger on the Nuclear button.

Come to think of it I would rather Pauline Hanson as President and I find her despicable.

Sarah Palin is a vote buying strategy. IMHO.

What i find the funniest about Sarah Palin is that she's on record saying she has no idea what a VP does. Oh dear.

John Stewart, from the Daily Show, has some interesting comments to make about hypocrisy in political media commentary (hope the link works, it should if you cut and paste).

http://www.thedailyshow.com/video/index.jhtml?videoId=184086&title=sarah-palin-gender-card

I second the reasons above for my love of Second Sons...I have been trying to keep an open mind about Ms. Palin...but the more I read and hear...well the more I dislike her. Not for who she is mind you...but for every policy she stands for.

As (I believe) George Carlin once said, "I just can't take seriously a person who watches the Flinstones as if it were a damn documentary!"

I suppose you could say she's broken through the glass ceiling... with a bloody great hunting rifle:)

I have to say, I want to like her, but she's getting scarier by the minute

I personally find her terrifying - and I have to agree with you that the notion of a female who has even vaguely liberal leanings voting for her because she's female is a joke. As one of my male colleagues put it, "Does McCain really think that women are that stupid?"

Interestingly enough, most of the people who I've talked to think he made a giant mistake in choosing her over someone infinitely more qualified like Condoleeza Rice - and very few people think that her background was checked as well as the McCain camp is claiming it was checked. There are just too many messy issues there - why borrow trouble when you're already behind?

Beyond that, McCain may have alienated his own base - the bigots who won't vote for Obama because he's black won't vote for Palin because she's presented herself as a strong woman. I'm not complaining about that, mind you - I just find it interesting.

I haven't been really following the presidential campaign, which is inexcusable. But I can't stand either Obama or McCain, and I can't bear to watch my country going down the drain. (I am a self-proclaimed Libertarian.)
But I was surprised when I heard that McCain picked a woman for VP.

why is it that if I said God gives me missions I would be taken to a psychiatrist, but a politician can say it and people just let him keep running the country? Always baffled me.
Also, maybe Im just a bit cynical, but is there any chance all the Sarah Palin backstory was leaked by the Republicans to create interest in their GOP summit? I mean before the proverbial sh*t it the Sarah Palin fan, did anyone care what she had to say and how she would come across?