Setting the record straight...

I would like to start my blog with some political commentary. I have been following the American election quite closely as a political junkie and a voter. It's been entertaining as well as maddening; sometimes I wish I had access to cnn, fox news, msnbc and the rest of the mainstream media outlets that have directed and dominated this election. I want to see the news that somehow brings McCain ahead in the polls and to understand what my parents, my friends, and my brother are seeing everyday that might be influencing them. But on the other hand I'm am supremely grateful that I don't have to endure all of that nonsense as it would surely drive me insane!

That being said, my knowledge of what the mainstream media reports is limited to articles on lefty websites complaining about the poor media coverage and lack of issue-based reporting. These websites have called out the MSM on their subtle insinuations about Obama (for example, the 'terrorist fist jab' moment on fox news). This being my only real exposure to the MSM, I am thoroughly disappointed in the coverage and lack of journalistic standards. This is compounded by the frustration I feel because these 'attacks' seem to actually be working - last week McCain was ahead in the polls (although the credibility of the polls has been called into question). Add onto this the fact that I was talking to a member of my family a couple weeks ago about the election and what they thought - their response was that "Obama scares me... I'm just not sure that he'll really be fighting for us" ("us" in this context meaning a middle class white family from Michigan who has been hit hard by the down turn in the US auto industry. I should also mention that by middle class I do not mean earning $450,000 per year, as apparently McCain judges 'middle class' to be. I'm talking of supporting a family on roughly $40,000-60,000 - the REAL middle class). In light of this statement, I encouraged this family member to really learn about the candidates... for example that McCain doesn't actually understand what the middle class is, that he owns more houses that he can keep track of, and his history with his ex-wife (which I believe tells us something about his character and morality). Further to that, I put together an email regarding his choice for Vice-President, Sarah Palin (the real topic of this post!). So, below is an adaption of that email that looks at why Sarah Palin's "experience" is not what the GOP try to portray it as, and why the attempts to discredit Obama's experience are wrong. But first, you MUST watch this John Stewart clip because it's fantastic (as usual!)

Now, onto Sarah Palin. To begin, in contrast to what Rove stated, while Palin was mayor of Wasilla (1996-2002) the town was NOT the second most populous Alaskan city... in fact it was the 9th largest city in Alaska...

Anchorage - (population in year 2000) 260,283
Fairbanks - 30,224
Juneau - 30,711
Sitka - 8835
Ketchikan - 7922
Kenai - 6942
Kodiak - 6334
Bethel - 5471
Wasilla - 5469

Source

Now, contrast that with the 2000 census for Holly, Michigan - the small town that I grew up in, which people only 30 minutes drive away have never heard of. The 2000 census reports that there were 6,135 people living in the village (source). The republicans like to tout Palin's experience of being a mayor as 'executive experience,' yet one must also take into consideration that everything is relative. For example, just as one may say that Palin is the governor of the largest state, one may equally say that she is the governor of the 47th most populous state. So, she may have the 'executive experience' of being a mayor, however the real question is whether or not that experience is well-rounded enough to prepare her to be the President of the United States (as she will be only a heart beat away). Given that Wasilla is by national standards a small town, my answer to that question is 'No' (and apparently a few months ago Karl Rove agreed with me!).

Palin's time in Wasilla can also be contrasted to Barack Obama's experience as a community organizer in Chicago from 1985-1988. This is a particularly relevant comparison, as Palin herself compared (and then belittled) Obama's time as a community organizer with her time as a mayor in her acceptance speech when she stated: "Being a mayor is kind of like community organizing, except that you have actual responsibilities."
While working in Chicago during his early career, Obama did his 'organizing' within Catholic parishes in the towns of Roseland, West Pullman, and Riverdale. Population data for these three cities reveal that in 1990, only 2 years after Obama left, the population was:
Roseland: 56,493 (source)
West Pullman: 39,846 (source)
Riverdale: 10,821 (source)

Together that makes a population of 107,160 - almost 20 times as many people as Wasilla had in 2000. While understandably Obama wasn't the mayor of these towns, he was in charge of organizing and bringing together the community (a LARGE community); the difference with Palin's mayoral experience is not the amount of responsibility, but the structure of accountability. So, while this alone is not enough experience enough to be president, one should keep in mind my earlier point: everything is relative. Being a community organizer is one small aspect of Obama's EARLY career and he has vast experience beyond this that has helped shape him and prepare him for the presidency. This is unlike Palin's mayoral experience, which is a large aspect of her recent career despite its shortcomings and failure to be adequate preparation for the job she is now nominated for.

Lastly, I would like to briefly touch on Palin's foreign policy "experience." Her assertion that Alaska's geographical proximity to Russia somehow qualifies her as having foreign policy experience is insulting to the American voter. International relations are handled at the national level, and anyone who thinks that Palin has had direct contact with Russia as governor is kidding themselves. She was not even issued a passport until last year. By her standards, I am more qualified in foreign policy, as I am geographically located in another country at the moment. Like it or not, as someone who has travelled in thirteen countries on three continents, I have a more well-rounded understanding of international issues than she does. Not to mention she was apparently unfamiliar with the ideology that has characterized US foreign policy for the past 7 years (that would be the Bush Doctrine - and good on Charles Gibson for calling her out on it!). Her complete inexperience and incompetence in the international realm is frightening... I saw an ad that summarized my sentiments to a T, it stated: "Sarah Palin may not know what the Bush Doctrine is, but hundreds of thousands of Iraqis do." So true, and so sad.

To end this (long!) post, I'll include my favorite clip from the past week - one I have watched repeated and laughed at each time

Tina Fey, you are my hero!

(the full clip is no longer available due to copyright... so this is the best I could find)

p.s. next time I'll try to make it a bit shorter! Sorry!