Living in the Bubble

I figure the experience discussion has pretty much been played out. If you think 13 years of government experience for Sarah Palin that covers city council, mayor and governor, plus a year as director of the state oil and gas conservation board, can't compete with 10 years in the Illinois legislature and a year and a half in the U.S. Senate before abandoning the post to run for president, then there's not much that one can say to change your mind. You're one of those whose cultural bias is too strong for logic to impact.

Matt Damon is one of those people who lives so deeply in the bubble that he doesn't see how ridiculous his position is - as is liberal consultant Dan Payne, who does occasional op-ed pieces in the Boston Globe.

What's noteworthy about these two is that they represent a group that seems oblivious to the reality that Palin has 1) more years of service, 2) more executive experience, 3) a larger variety of experiences, and has 4) shown more leadership than Barack during those years.

Damon is baffled about how someone with as little experience as Palin is in the running for VP. He doesn't realize it wouldn't have been possible if Barack hadn't lowered the experience bar so far for the top position.

“I know she was a mayor of a really, really small town. And she was governor of Alaska for less than two years. I just don’t understand... You do the actuary tables and there’s a one-out-of-three chance, if not more, that McCain doesn’t survive his first term and it will be President Palin . . ."

He's just so confused!

“ ‘I’m just a hockey mom from Alaska.’ And she’s the president,” he continued. “And it’s like she’s facing down Vladimir Putin and using the folksy stuff she learned at the hockey rink. It’s absurd. It’s totally absurd.”

An absurdity made possible by the idea that a motivational speaker with no evidence of any leadership abilities on his resume is the Democratic nominee. Then there's Dan Payne, a liberal who is offended by the notion of women and blacks being given a shot.

Sarah Palin is Clarence Thomas, completely unqualified but cynically chosen for being a member of a demographic group that usually votes Democratic. No wonder so many women are insulted by the choice.

Let's see - Sarah Palin was chosen because she would help accentuate McCain's maverick brand, and Biden was chosen to cover up the fact that Barack is unqualified to be president. Which is more cynical? And isn't every VP candidate chosen for cynical reasons?