Oh, Sarah.

Readers, it's been too long.  

I've taken a prolonged hiatus in order to wrap my head around my feelings towards Governor Sarah Palin's rising star and why it disturbs me so.  Yet, despite my extended thinking period the only thing that I can come up with that the politicos in the mainstream media have not yet said is this: for the first time, I know what people mean when they say that someone gives them a bad taste in their mouth.  She holds a strong, repugnant taste that I feel fully whenever I see or hear her scripted appearances.  I long for a breath mint, a wave of refreshment, when she repeats the half truths that I am convinced she believes as strongly as the Word of God.  I wonder if one swish of Listerine is enough to eliminate the bacteria that is spreading from the GOP's personality war- and the lack of substance beneath the facade of 'non-blinking clarity'.  Aside from her social platform, which makes me cringe to think about, she believes that the War in Iraq (and really anything else in life, such as environmental crises) are acts of God, doesn't know her Pakistan from her Tajikistan and considers reform more important than governing.  A winning combination of grit and pragmatism she is not, rather a reactionary and caustic leader who feels that an oblique view of Russia's country side provides key insight into the actions taken from the Kremlin.

In my attempts to cleanse my palate from the countless Sarah Palin media spots, I'm struck by two thoughts:, the first being that John McCain is effectively dodging the spotlight and thereby misleading America as to who he actually is.   The second, more shocking revelation is that I get why some people just don't like Barack Obama, the gut feeling that many conservatives must feel when they hear his voice is the same that I feel towards that of Gov. Palin.  Perhaps they just don't believe him, and their completely different stances on social issues reinforces their belief that Obama is not only dangerous but also oblivious to the needs and realities of the Common American.   But I bet that Obama would have been able to voice his opinions on the Bush doctrine, and I hope that he would have said, "Bush didn't blink, but I guarantee you that as president that I would not only blink but any action taken from Oval Office would be given the amount of considered respect that I hold for the American people."