Night Of The Long Knives

I laughed - actually laughed - at my wife for believing in the early-September hearsay regarding young Trig Palin's parentage. Rumor had it that his mom wasn't the Governor of Alaska, but rather her eldest (unwed) daughter; Grandma was merely stepping in to protect the family honor. None of this was ever proven (but, as both Mrs. Choker and Andrew Sullivan are quick to point out, it hasn't been disproved either!), and it all immediately seemed to me to be far too good to be true.

So consider that a hedge; if the latest allegations of certain, ah, gaps in Gov. Palin's knowledge - among them the names of the countries in NAFTA and Africa's status as a continent, not a country - turn out to be overblown or even outright bullcrap, let it be known that I didn't fall for every rumor about this weird woman. As it stands, this one feels about right. Even before this news hit, I didn't think that it strained credibility to suggest that Sara-cuda was a bit of a knucklehead. I don't get the impression that she lacks ability to broaden her horizons, expand her mind or learn about the world - clearly, there's at least a light in the attic. But I do sense that she doesn't see any particular reason to do this, nor does she think its a particularly admirable habit for others to take up. That was always part of her appeal, anyway. A Michelle Malkin commentator makes my point very nicely:

I’ve heard it was Romney’s ex-aides who were doing this because they want him to run again in 2012, not Palin.
Anyway, I’ve decided I am not watching any news channels, including FOX for one year. I will get my news from reliable blogs, which are more accurate than any news channel anyway. Screw the MSM.

That'll show 'em! I was promised that my vote for Obama would buy me some internecine GOP strife, and it looks like I won't be disappointed. As you can see, Malkin and her bunch are very upset (best comment so far belongs not to the above-quoted dingbat, but to someone known (ironically) as 'Just a Thought', who not only stands up to be counted ("Let me just go on record here saying that Sarah Palin has my vote for ANY ELECTED POSITION SHE CHOOSES! If I can legally vote for her, she doesn’t need to ask, she has my vote"), but manfully offers to protect the Palin family from all enemies foreign and domestic ("Oh, Todd, if you feel like you need any help keeping your family safe, I’m there. Your wife is way too precious an asset to the world to chance anything bad happening to her.") Wotta guy!), and RedState has announced 'Operation Leper' ("We're tracking down all the people from the McCain campaign now whispering smears against Governor Palin to Carl Cameron and others...It is our expressed intention to make these few people political lepers." Get it?), which will likely have just as much impact as every other 'Operation' carried out by someone other than the military. In terms of value-for-your-vote, this beats a free cup of coffee with a bat.

For eight years I was a real spoilsport about Bush=Hitler rhetoric, primly informing anyone who, say, compared 9/11 to the Reichstag Fire that, not only were they an ignoramus, but they were more than a little disrespectful of the victims of a real authoritarian regime (you'd think conservatives - who usually had my back in that case - might remember that next time they think about calling Obama a 'communist', but I guess now's not the time to expect consistancy). But what better way to celebrate a new administration (not to mention a new AC/DC album!) than to indulge myself at last. It may be a new day for some, but a long night for others.