Why do we care about the Palin family? Why is it that Sarah Palin is plastered all over television and newsprint, when her only notable accomplishment is running on a losing ticket in the last presidential election? She doesn’t currently hold a political seat, nor is she running for one. She’s essentially a highly glamorized political analyst (although calling Sarah Palin an analyst makes about as much sense as calling extreme right-wing radicals the Tea Party). How did she go from unable to garner the female vote in 2008, to suddenly relevant again? I guess if Eliot Spitzer can go from governor of New York to “”Client-9″” to political analyst, why can’t Palin go from governor of Alaska to “”Don’t ya know”” to political relevance?
How is it that Palin’s daughter Bristol is a “”star”” and featured on the ABC show “”Dancing with the Stars””? Who in the world defines stardom and celebrity these days, and exactly when did being the daughter of a former politician make you a star? What happened to the good old days when you had to release a sex tape and/or have a famous parent to ease you into stardom (I’m looking at you Paris Hilton and Kim Kardashian)? The least Bristol Palin could do is date a famous football player or something.
The attention that America pays to these so-called celebrities is embarrassing and flat-out mind numbing. Now Palin has a reality TV show, “”Sarah Palin’s Alaska,”” where she can whip out more classic lines, finger gestures and winks. Has American life become so dull that we subject ourselves to such nightmares? What’s worse is that the baby daddy of Palin’s grandson, Levi Johnston, is also pitching a television show of his own, in which he will seek her former seat as Mayor of Wasilla, Alaska. That’s exactly what I want to watch, a 20-year-old guy with no political experience running for political office. In defense of the show, if Johnston did manage to pull it off, every 19-year-old political science student with aspirations of public office will tune in. If Johnston can win a political position, then most of us 19-year-old poli-sci majors are only one year and a pregnant girlfriend away from a life-long dream come true.
Sarah Palin doesn’t deserve half of the notoriety that she receives. Why in the world is she becoming a source of political thought and discourse? There are plenty of other Republican leaders out there with a higher intellect and a much stronger understanding of the Republican platform. Please allow them to speak and pay them the respect they deserve. America needs to stop with the fanatic behavior and stop paying attention to someone just because they want to hear what ridiculous nonsense they will say next.
When Sen. John McCain first announced that he would have Sarah Palin as his running mate, Republicans scratched their heads and said “”who?”” and Democrats accused McCain of trying to win over Hillary Clinton supporters by running with a woman. Those were the good old days. Let’s return to such a time. Please, America: Allow the Palins to fade into the black hole of irrelevance from whence they came.
— Storm Byrd is a political science sophomore. He is also a student organizer for UA Votes, which is run by Arizona Students’ Association. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.
