I don't like Sarah Palin, and I never have. From the moment she burst upon the public's consciousness (that is, the public outside of Alaska), when she was announced as McCain's choice for Vice Presidential nominee, I said, That woman is a bimbo, a bozo, and a fruitcake. And I have never seen any reason to change my mind.
Once the McCain-Palin ticket was defeated in November, I hoped that Palin would quietly slip from the radar screen and return to that obscurity that she so richly deserves. That she has not is the fault of the media, and of the public as well. The media always insist on milking any story for all it is worth. When someone of note dies, we keep hearing about that person for days or a week afterward. It is not enough to run an obituary and suitable eulogies; they cover any funeral, etc. The person may be dead, but he or she is not gone (from our TV screens) and certainly not forgotten. We are destined to go on hearing about Micheal Jackson for a long time, it seems.
And I say it's the fault of the public because of a phenomenon akin to what has been termed the "Hollywoodization of America." There is a truly bottomless interest in any celebrities, whether political, entertainment, or sports (evidently they used to call this "hero worship").
Are celebrities larger than life, or a special class of beings? The image that they are goes back probably to the 1930s or 1920s when the Hollywood movie studios started publicity departments to keep their stars in the public eye. These publicity departments managed to conjure up larger-than-life personae for these movie stars. The stars were given glamorous clothes and glamorous settings for their publicity photos, whether the setting was a movie premiere or a Riviera resort.
These efforts were very successful in creating in the public eye the idea that these celebrities were not ordinary human beings. Maybe we all need idols or demigods. But it ought to be clear to anyone who thinks about it for a bit that many of these people are not superior beings. Typically they are not smarter than the average human being. The move stars can't maintain their marriages. Many seem to have died of drug abuse. Many times (look at sports "stars") they run afoul of the law. To be charitable, some of the problems these individuals seem to exhibit are that they can't handle fame or its concomitants such as continually being in the eye of the public, being in the lens of the paparazzi, and so forth.
Anyway, back to Ms. Palin: Far from my being able to forget about her, she seems to crop up everywhere. As revenge for my having a poor opinion of her, and having said nasty things, she's haunting me. I see her face where it is not. Photos of so many women look to me, for a moment, like Sarah Palin. Oh, how I want to beseech her, Sarah Palin, please just go away!
Copyright © Richard Stein
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Sarah Palin is going away. She is a quitter and has ethics probes up her Nieman Marcus covered Wassilian wazoo. You mean you haven't been enjoying the Hollywood freak show? Didn't you know that Al Sharpton ordered you to show respect? Maybie we should all do like Dolly Parton and have our smiles stretched over our face from ear to ear so it can never be wiped off. Also who says we can't have an hour glass figure at 86? Someone should tell Elizabeth Taylor that with the marvels of science that she doesn't have to go around looking like a tuna boat. The governor of South Carolina can have it all: love, life, wife, celeb status, soul mate, and even extended walks along the Appalation trail if he is so inclined. Anna Nicole Smith got to mimic Marilyn Monroe even to the point of death. Michael Jackson showed us all how it can never have it too safe with young kids and prescription drugs in the house. Hey c'mon man and enjoy our free American freak show.
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