Farce.

Farce.

Lies Of Palin: We HAVE Seen This Before

Peggy likens the Palin saga to a Jacobean tragedy, filled with lies, deception, and metaphorical bloodshed. And to be sure, the last few weeks certainly have been filled with lies and deception. The reversal that Peggy speaks about, the personal above the public, has been very real. Her family has been paraded in front of us as evidence of her personal virtue all while the McCain campaign struggles to keep out any talk about her public virtues, or lack thereof. Their belief is that the personal IS the public, and that's all the voter needs to know. This race is not about the issues.

But Peggy is being too kind. The most famous author of Jacobean tragedies is, of course, Shakespeare. He is well spoken, fluid, and coherent. His works are considered masterpieces. The characters involved often create or redefine their own archetype. You cannot say any of these things about the McCain campaign.

Rather, I would liken the campaign to a Benny Hill farce. The pick of Sarah Palin is just one example. It seems as though McCain picked her on a whim, with very little vetting. And for the last month, McCain and his senior staff have been chasing after Palin, "Yakety Sax" blaring in the background, trying to cover up her lies and misleading statements, with the occasional stop motion to allow a McCain aide to call the media sexist. When Palin finally did speak, it was clear that she did not know what current US foreign policy was or what John McCain's stance was. Cue "Yakety Sax" and Palin chasing the McCain campaign.

I don't blame Peggy for wanting to compare McCain's campaign to Shakespeare, or any sort of great literature. But the sad truth for McCain is that the campaign isn't mature enough to be considered a Jacobean Tragedy. No, that designation should be left for all time greats such as Richard Nixon. Farcical is the only word to describe what the McCain campaign has become.

How Far Is Too Far?

Is it fair of the media to target Sarah Palin the way that they have? It makes sense to me. Granted, there seems to be a lot of useless and simply inflammatory information going around, but I suppose that is to be expected when nobody knows anything about the woman. She was a virtual unknown before being chosen as she's only been a statewide elected official for two years in a small state that is not directly connected to the US. She had no prior national exposure, and there's been little reason to give her any, save for her innitial support for the Bridge to Nowhere.

She was a surprise and ridiculous pick. She brings very little to the ticket in terms of governance. She's not widely seen as an expert on much of anything, despite McCain's claim that she knows energy policy better than anybody in the country. She has no foreign policy experience or even any interest in it, as evidenced by her reponse to Charlie Gibson's question about the Bush Doctrine.

So no, the press isn't overstepping its bounds by "targetting" her. She was a blank canvas up until three weeks ago, and Americans deserve to know who is going to be their Vice President and potential President. It isn't the press's fault that the McCain campaign didn't vet her enough to prepare for all the stories that have come out since she was anounced. Its the press's job to inform Americans, and her being unavailable for questioning prevented the press from getting any straight talk about who she is and they've filled this vacuum by writing story after story after her. More over, it's their duty to expose her for what she is: an unqualified liar. Both her and McCain have ramped up the lying to an almost pathological level. Reporting this isn't media bias. It's reporting facts proven nearly every time either speak.