Why Sarah Palin Is Hated

Former Alaska Governor Sarah Palin made her debut as a Fox News contributor this week, appearing on Bill O’Reilly’s Tuesday program. O’Reilly’s first question was about the hatred leveled toward her. “It’s almost funny that these people feel you’re such a threat to them,” O’Reilly stated. “You’re a politician. You’re a mom. You’re an American. What’s the threat?”

Palin answered, “It’s not about me. It’s not about me personally, who I am… They don’t like the message. They don’t like the common sense conservative solutions that I represent…”

That is only the tip of the iceberg. Of all political personalities, Palin is perhaps the consummate focal point around which America contends to define its identity. Palin is remarkable for sharing three traits – she is an American of average pedigree, who has audaciously pursued higher levels of civil service, and kept advancing despite volleys of arrows flung her way. This combination – average, ambitious, persistent – is terrifying to both the established political class and a willful underclass which wishes to be led by a government “smarter” than them.

The central precept around which this nation was formed, “that all men are created equal and endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,” runs contrary to a dominant aspect of human nature. People want to be led. People desire leaders greater than them. It makes them feel safe. It makes them feel cared for. It makes them feel liberated to engage in endeavors of less import than that incumbent upon genuine freemen. This statement, that many folks wish upon themselves tyranny, is politically incorrect in our ostensibly free and democratic society. But it is demonstrably true. Consider, during the 2008 presidential election, Sarah Palin had the greatest amount of executive experience of any other person listed on either ticket. Yet, the chief criticism levied against her was a lack of “qualification.” What manner of qualification is one expected to have for an executive office, if not executive experience? Perhaps we should look to the victor of that contest for the answer. Barrack Obama, a man who proudly boasted among his qualifications time spent as a “community organizer,” sailed to victory on two words – hope and change. He stood tall, chin raised, gaze fixed upon a Utopian future which would manifest from the creative force of his divine vision. He convinced the electorate he was smarter than them, better than them, and able to dictate the direction of the country better than they could.

People wanted to anoint someone great, someone worthy, someone they could trust to steer while they took a nap. These same people, upon beholding an unpretentious hockey mom from Alaska, found themselves utterly terrified. She’s average. She’s *gasp* … representative! If she were to come to power, it would be no better than if a neighbor did. How could they comfortably cede their civic responsibility to someone unable to demonstrate their right to rule through pretense and gimmick?

The other side of the hatred coin comes from members of a political class which regard Palin as a streaker through their secret society. They trembled when she burst onto the scene in St. Paul with her folksy conviction toward principle and inexplicable desire to represent public interest. For that, she had to be shut down. If the public at large began to get the idea they could be led from someone among them, rather than by a demonstrably superior elitist, the entire political-industrial complex from which many derive a tidy stream of wealth at the expense of the taxpayer might be threatened. Thus the masters and many of their slaves found common cause. So they have worked as hammer and anvil to crush both Palin and the potential sea change she represents.

While readers may find this assessment discouraging, there is cause for hope. For all the hatred Sarah Palin has attracted, she has also gained support. As previously stated, she serves as a focal point around which we contend to define our national identity. In reaction to Palin, to her rise, her fall, and her tenacious resurgence, one is left with little choice but to side for or against self-government. Are we to be represented by those among us, who think like us, bleed like us, respect and worship like us? Or are we to be led by a polished image of transcendent royalty?

Here at Fightin Words, the call has gone out to all liberty-minded citizens to actively and relentlessly engage in the caucus process this year, shape party platforms, and provide humble candidates to elect this November. Stepping forward now, regardless of our background or “qualification,” will undoubtedly draw fire similar to that aimed at Palin. The first off the boat to storm the beach are the first to fall. But the cause can and will succeed, as our forebears’ did, if enough of us exhibit that character described by Palin in her Wednesday interview with Glenn Beck.