Gampie McSane goes off the deep end

I love politics, and I love women--hell a woman even gave birth to me. And since I love politics and women so much I would be remiss if I did not point out the completely transparent and utterly dangerous choice Gampie McSane (John McCain for the uninitiated) just made. Sarah Palin???????? That growing cacophony you hear is a collective "who the hell" coming from the mouths of millions of Americans.

Why is this pick transparent?

Invariably Democratic and Republican Presidential candidates say that the first quality they look for in a running mate is someone who could be President if the need so arises. And for the most part, they do make this their first priority. Second, of course, they look for some sort of political advantage i.e. a leg up in a crucial battleground State, or someone who can help mask a weakness of the person at the top of the ticket. Today John McBush went solely for the second criterion. He chose the Governor of Alaska, Sarah Palin. A woman who has held this position for less than two years. I know what you're thinking...."Guru, surely she had more experience than this, what are you hiding from us"? And the Guru responds........"folks I was being nice". Because before her short time as Governor, Sarah cut her teeth in the rough and tumble world of Wasilla, Alaska politics. She served on the city council, and as mayor of this thriving metropolis of 8,000 people. Now many of you may be asking, well how did someone who was mayor of a city of 8,000 become the Governor of a State? Consider this, Alaska only has about 680,000 people, or about 1.2 people per square mile (by far the least densely populated state). Put simply, it has about as many people as Charlotte, North Carolina and fewer people than cities like Columbus, Ohio, Jacksonville, Florida or Austin, Texas. Moreover, when you factor in the fact that all of the aforementioned cites have much larger metropolitan statistical areas (MSA) that they draw from to help swell their populations and economies (Charlotte has about 2 million MSA) you realize that she has been in effect the mayor of a small to medium sized American city for less than two years. What would you say if the Mayor of Greensboro, NC who was just elected in 2006 decided he should be President? So why did Gampie McSane make this pick? This pick is a failed and very transparent attempt to appeal to Hillary Clinton voters. The problem is this: say what you will about Hillary Clinton (and she was never my candidate), but by any objective standard she is qualified to lead this nation. This reduces the remarkable candidacy embodied by the Junior Senator from New York to nothing more than a fanciful social experiment. Hillary's supporters liked more than the idea of a woman being President, they were excited because they had a candidate who they felt comfortable with managing the pitfalls inherent in the Presidency. Dan Quayle with a ponytail, not so much, sorry that actually does a disservice to Dan Quayle, who was a a heckuva lot more ready that Sarah. Many women are offended by this pick--and rightly so. The brave feminists, along with other civil rights leaders, did not fight for an unfair advantage for women. Nor did they fight to have some out of touch, angry old white man appoint an unqualified woman to the second highest office in the land to pacify them. But that is exactly what John McCain did, and it is the quintessence of condescension. It is said that the Vice Presidential pick is the first chance we get to see an executive decision made by the person who wants to be President. If so, what does this say about John McCain's judgment? It is non-existant!

Why is this pick dangerous?

I will be brief and fair. John McCain will be the oldest person to ever take the Presidential oath. He has had Cancer twice. The idea that something could happen to him in office (god forbid) is real. Now ask yourself this, do you really want the former Ms. Wasilla (she actually was), Alaska answering the phone at 3 A.M.? I hope not.

Out!