Sarah Palin Resigns, and Her Predictable Critics Lashes Out

Eight months ago, Sarah Palin, the current governor of Alaska, was nominated the GOP vice presidential candidate for the 2008 Presidential Election. Prior to this, she was unknown to millions of Americans in the Lower 48 States. However, immediately after she “hit the campaign trail” she and her family became the target of vicious verbal and written attacks, all throughout the campaign.

 Prior to the campaign, the governor was facing an ethics violation of a personal nature, for which she was later, cleared. However, since then, at least 14 others were filed, all of which were thrown out except one, for which she agreed to make restitution. The cost of her total defense was reported to be approximately $500,000 personally, and to the state, approximately $2 million. Since the campaign ended, and her return to Alaska, she has remained a very polarizing figure, with the extremes of those who love her and those who hate her.

Her recent resignation as governor has done nothing to stop the criticism. In fact, it appears to have gotten worst. The media, rather than keeping the focus on the economy, which continues to spiral downwards, (the 9.5 percent unemployment rate, the 565,000 persons filing unemployment claims this week, the 34 czars employed by the Obama administration over the past six months without congressional approval or oversight, and the 10000 stimulus checks sent to people who have been deceased, one man deceased over 30 years ago) they spend more than 60 percent of their time either writing or speaking about Sarah Palin, calling her a quitter, among other names, and attacking her children, including her baby, Trig who has down-syndrome. As journalists and bloggers, why not spend time debating the economic issues, even if these issues relate to governor Palin, rather than attacking her personally. This is political assassination and a politics of personal destruction. What has happened to journalistic ethics? It seems to have gone awry, and hijacked by ideologues.

The excitement that governor Palin’s resignation have stirred in her detractors will be short-lived. The governor explained at her press conference that she would speak more on the reasons why she made this decision, closer to the time of her departure. However, rather than waiting for this disclosure the “rumor mill” was brought into high gear, and resulted in the assumptions that she resigned to head off a criminal investigation. In an extraordinary move, the FBI had to announce that there were no current or impending investigations on her. It was even suggested by one anchor on cable television that she must be pregnant, and only two nights ago, David Letterman in one of his lame jokes, suggested that she wants to be “Octomom”. He must be really desperate to boost his ratings over Conan. An advice to the media, “don’t take out the champagne just yet”.