Today, Maureen Dowd goes onto the attack against Palin: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/31/opini ... wd.html?em
After comparing her to Sandra Bulluck's character in Miss Congeniality, she compares Palin to Quayle and the current President, if only to unabashedly push criticism unbefitting of Palin unto her. Why not compare Palin to Bill Clinton or Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama? Palin's resume looks more comparable to those three than to the objects of Dowd's criticism.
Dowd then ponders:
(Why do men only pick women as running mates when they need a Hail Mary pass? It’s a little insulting.)
Seems to me that the rhetorical question is more insulting than anything else, particularly when comparing Palin's nomination to the last woman nominated as a Veep candidate: Geraldine Ferraro. Here, Obama just finished his acceptance speech to a bounce that is by all accounts modest, the GOP has yet to put on a convention, and the election is still very much in doubt. This is no Reagan-Mondale.
This chick flick, naturally, features a wild stroke of fate, when the two-year governor of an oversized igloo becomes commander in chief after the president-elect chokes on a pretzel on day one.
I know you're making a point, Maureen, but your insults only diminish already-questionable ability to write a piece that doesn't wholly and unreasonably hate on your political opponents.
The movie ends with the former beauty queen shaking out her pinned-up hair, taking off her glasses, slipping on ruby red peep-toe platform heels that reveal a pink French-style pedicure, and facing down Vladimir Putin in an island in the Bering Strait. Putting away her breast pump, she points her rifle and informs him frostily that she has some expertise in Russia because it’s close to Alaska. “Back off, Commie dude,” she says. “I’m a much better shot than Cheney.”
Then she takes off in her seaplane and lands on the White House lawn, near the new ice fishing hole and hockey rink. The “First Dude,” as she calls the hunky Eskimo in the East Wing, waits on his snowmobile with the kids — Track (named after high school track meets), Bristol (after Bristol Bay where they did commercial fishing), Willow (after a community in Alaska), Piper (just a cool name) and Trig (Norse for “strength.”)
“The P.T.A. is great preparation for dealing with the K.G.B.,” President Palin murmurs to Todd, as they kiss in the final scene while she changes Trig’s diaper. “Now that Georgia’s safe, how ’bout I cook you up some caribou hot dogs and moose stew for dinner, babe?
As if to really throw herself over the top, am I alone in thinking that Dowd just back-handedly slapped every woman who had the audacity to seek a career and family life?
Personally, I am not sure it serves her candidate of choice to levy attacks in this manner, and find her entire op-ed as one which hurts her cause more than to help it.
