Legal Commentary

Karpinski: Palin Would Turn Back Time

By Jeralyn

As Gov. Sarah Palin meets with foreign leaders today and bans the press from attending (Added: and then changes her mind after protests, but only sort-of), here's former US Army Brigadier General (retired) Janis L. Karpinski's op-ed at TruthOut today on how Palin would turn back time:

I know enough about Palin's character to assess her as ill-equipped, clueless and unprepared to take control of our nation in the event of McCain's early demise or incapacitation, much less qualified to serve as the commander in chief of all military forces. Unfortunately for Palin, leadership is not derived by a process of osmosis.

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Palin, however, is a dangerous choice and her style goes against the grain of feminists and women everywhere. We spent years seeking equality, and ask only for a level playing field where we can find credit for our accomplishments and capabilities and the opportunities to compete fairly. Sarah Palin can launch us back in time and remove years of progress, albeit slow and incomplete.

Karpinski swerves into uncomfortable territory, accusing Palin of using her sexuality and gender to make her case. I'm not going to go there, but I agree with her final two paragraphs:

We need and deserve a vice-presidential candidate who offers far more than "skin deep" - her absolute lack of substance on the issues; her lack of experience, particularly in the international and foreign affairs environment; her lack of a sound economic policy to regain control of our national treasure; and her insistence on propelling herself as tough and capable because she can murder wildlife when there is virtually no chance of missing, are the issues of substance. The fact she refuses to discuss any of the issues is troubling. Voters need to take a deep breath and return to reality in the aftermath of the hype created by Sarah Palin herself....

Sarah Palin is amazingly popular and she is dangerous. She is George Bush in disguise, in terms of policies and principles. Karl Rove is in the middle of this and we all know what Karl Rove did for President Bush and what he did to every American. Keep this in mind when throwing support to the ticket of McCain and Palin. The legitimate concerns about McCain being joined at the hip with the president and the potential for four (and potentially eight) more years of the same worthless policies of this administration seem to pale in comparison when considering the strong attachment, admiration and support Sarah Palin gives to this administration.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on September 23, 2008 (boomark / email).