SARAH PALIN IMPRESSES ME AND I'M A DEMOCRAT

One day Sarah Palin was introduced as the Republican Vice-Presidential candidate and within hours the Democratic Party's talking heads were expressing their revulsion of her.

It looked as though the Democrats were scared, afraid Democratic women voters who didn't have Hillary to vote for would turn to Sarah Palin. Or, in other words, they didn't trust the political loyalty of Democratic women. That's quite an insult to women, isn't it? That's what it looked like to me.

Yes, there were Democratic women who believed Hillary had been treated badly and had said they were not going to vote for Obama, but there was no reason to believe they'd vote Republican simply because there was a woman on the ticket. But, obviously, the Democrats were terrified that women cared more about voting for a woman, any woman. What a lack of respect that showed.

Personally, I would not have voted for Hillary. Didn't like her as First Lady, didn't want her as President. I always thought it was she, rather than her husband, who was behind the vicious personal attacks while Bill was campaigning and President.

I'm not excusing Bill, I just think Hillary is the bloodthirsty one on that team. She did it, but with his blessing.

I've never pulled the Republican lever in any election. My vote always went to the candidate I thought was the best one, and sometimes that meant a third-party candidate. If there wasn't one I wanted, I just skipped the Presidential candidates and voted for the rest.

I'll admit there were times I regretted my vote for the Democrat. Jimmy Carter is first on that list. My strongest menory of Carter is him more or less telling us the good times were over and we'd better get used to doing without. Put on a sweater if you can't afford to heat your house. That was his idea of being President? Didn't he know we won't accept that? We are not a nation willing to live frugally, we are the land of plenty.

Bill Clinton's White House hijinks didn't surprise me. Most women recognize a philanderer when we see one, and he fit the image.

When the story about the intern blew up and the Republicans ran with it, I personally thought it was pay-back for Watergate.

I understand that Clinton lied, but I don't agree that it was enough of a crime to impeach him.

As you must realize by now, I think for myself and form my own opinions sans political talking heads.

Back to Sarah Palin. She impresses me. It doesn't sound as though her life has been easy. Working on a fishing boat, even with her husband, can't be fun. Think of the smell and the physical labor. The only thing good about it has to be earning money, but that's always an iffy prospect.

She and her husband have obviously worked hard for everything they have. Who can criticize that? Who can not help but admire that?

Do I agree with her politics?

Some of them. I think we should drill in Alaska and everywhere in the country and become independent with our own oil and gas.

Where I don't agree is on social issues. Palin is more conservative than I. To my mind, her stance on birth control and abortion is wishful thinking but not realistic. I'd like to see more emphasis on birth control for young women, more education about the various methods available, and more education about how they can improve their lives if they don't have a child while young and single. When you look at where the early pregnancies are happening, reality says abstinence is not the answer for those girls. Birth control is.

So there's my main disagreement with Sarah Palin, and I tell you this to show I am not in lock-step with her, I am not enamored of her, she doesn't 'thrill' me. That said, I'll tell the truth - I do believe Sarah Palin is the only politician with good ethics and the determination to put our country back on the right path. I'm hoping she'll be able to do that without having to run for any office. A campaign would be too cruel for her and her family.

But WHY is she so reviled by so many?

I think David Letterman has proven he doesn't respect women, and I think he revelled in being able to denigrate one so publicly. It's obvious he enjoys himself every time he launches a new attack.

Since the day she was named McCain's running mate, it's been a shock to me how men and women alike have sunk to even attacking her children. There has never been a child of a politician treated so badly. Never.

It's got to be mainly fear that brought the vultures originally, but there has to be more to it than that. The bloggers, the Twitterers, who attack her do so with such hatred. Why?

I have to wonder: how many men, such as David Letterman, wish they were married to Sarah Palin? And how many women wish they had Sarah Palin's life? Her good marriage, especially.

For me, that's the answer. The haters are jealous of Sarah Palin. She has a good life and she's happy with it. Isn't that what we all want? But not that many of us have that life. What's the divorce rate?

Jealousy is an ugly thing. It's envy. It's being resentful of someone because they have things you don't have. Envy is also admitting our dissatisfaction with our own lives.

Envious people are bitter people, and that's why they enjoy the bile they spit from their hateful mouths.

We all see the same Sarah Palin. Some people hate her because she has what they want, and I admire her because she made a good life for herself and her family. There's the difference. The envious people just can't stand to see anyone happy. They've decided we should all be as miserable as they are.