Sarah Palin, the former Republican vice presidential candidate for the 2008 election, has released a memoir titled “Going Rogue.” The book covers a wide variety of issues such as the local problems in Alaska and even the mistreatment she received from the McCain camp during the recent campaign.
Regardless of the criticism she has received, Palin has continued to have strong media presence, and despite her resignation as governor of Alaska, she continues to have a strong political voice that is consistently drawing new followers. This writer wonders however, what is the real problem with Palin? If she is so bad, why are people constantly responding to her?
I think that it is time that Palin is reexamined. Palin is one politician who truly personifies the bulk of middle class America. One gripe about Palin is her scattered resume. She didn’t graduate from Harvard or Yale Law schools. Her college career is more scattered than ants at a picnic. But, how is that unlike regular Americans? More and more Americans are taking longer to graduate from college. Just think of how many fifth or maybe sixth year seniors we have here at Prairie View. Do they know less than those who graduate in four years? Are they dumber than their counterparts who graduated a year earlier? What about transfer students? Is it wrong to decide to continue your education at a different university? I would argue that there is nothing wrong with it. Her oldest daughter is a teenage mother. Her oldest son enlisted in the military. As the list goes on, she sounds more and more like a regular American.
People complain that she is a horrible public speaker. OK, so are half the people on campus, but does that mean that they are incapable of leading other regular Americans? I would argue that it doesn’t. Who better to really represent me, than someone who is just like me?
Sarah Palin, just like any other politician, should be judged on her ideas and ideals. If we really sit down and try to understand where she is coming from, we might be pleasantly surprised. What’s the problem with Palin? Nothing that can’t be found with any other politician from Mike Huckabee to Barack Obama.
If we spent more time listening for the truth, instead of listening to disagree, America would move toward a more positive place, no matter what the issue.