Philosophy and Sarah Palin

Being a little crazy really helps if you're taking philosophy.

I'm not kidding. Philosophy is such a mind-boggling area of knowledge that it's almost necessary to have a flexible brain to understand anything.

"Suppose a scientist were crazy enough to try to observe your experience of tasting chocolate by licking your brain while you ate a chocolate bar."

The best part of that quote is the visualization of the act of licking a brain. I mean, can you imagine a scientist licking a person's brain as that person sits and eats a chocolate bar? Absolutely absurd.

And yet, hysterically funny.

In order to pay attention, I draw cartoons of all the vocabulary words in class. Yes, I realize that typically, doodling signifies a lack of attention towards the subject. In my case, however, I tend to pay much better attention when I draw. And my cartoons are quite entertaining, at least to me. I have Descartes-Zilla, who has come for your mental being. I have the Fire-Breathing Philosophy Monster. Cartoons make philosophy make sense.

And now, in another direction completely.

Sarah Palin has confirmed that she will, indeed, be a regular contributor on Fox "News."

I personally love Sarah Palin. She makes it easy to be a comedian. She symbolizes the large conflict the GOP faces- part of their numbers want a more moderate figurehead for the party, and part of them want a more radically conservative one.

Sarah Palin symbolizes this division because she is so radically conservative that while most of the country thinks she is a joke, there is a small contingency of people that genuinely look to her as "the future of the GOP."

This viewpoint, while entertianing as long as its believers stay in small numbers, is dangerous if it is given a large amount of support. I have nothing really personal agaisnt the woman- sure, she claims she hates vegetarians, but let's face it, I can't stand most of them either- but even Republicans have to admit, she has no real experience. And I know, there are plenty of people out there that claim Obama has no real experience either.

To some degree, we must concede the point. Obama is a young guy with a limited amount of experience. What he has that Palin lacks, however, is an extensive education. Obama has gone through an immense amount of learning to be where he is today. He's gained the respect of his colleagues by knowing what he's saying.

And I'm sure the term "Elitist" comes to mind when I mention his knowledge and education. Obama is an Elite, but he isn't under the ring's definition of an "Elitist."He comes from just as humble a background as most of us, even more humble than some. He is American through and through- a self-made man. Taunting him for being well-educated and intelligent is little more than grade-school taunting. What is so bad about bieng well educated or smart? Why is that such a stigma in our society?

And now, people gather around figures like Sarah Palin because they believe them to be "Average." But in this country, is there really such thing as "average?" Leaders become leaders because they are extraordinary, not because they're average. Sarah Palin is not a leader. She put her rather large family through the pains and publicity of a national election. She caused her pregnant teen daughter to suffer unnecessary scrutiny. She publicly demonstrated her lack of global knowledge time and again, and rather than apologize for her mistakes, she remained aloof about them.

Anyone who cannot own up to their mistakes does not deserve to be a leader. Leaders must be respected to do their job, and a person who will not admit they were wrong will never earn respect.

Believe me or not, I do not mean to "burn" on Mrs. Palin. I have never met her personally, and I have no reason to attack her personally. All I know of her is her political and public track record. Personal attacks are like arguing solely on opinion- it doesn't change anyone's mind, and it doesn't make you appear any more intelligent. I will never want her to lead my country because she is not a leader.

And now, Fox "News" has her signed up to be a part-time journalist. Being a journalist once meant something. Real journalists go to school, and are supposed to adhere to a set of rules. Sarah Palin is no more a journalist than she is a leader. The media isn't aprticularly "liberal" or "conservative," it's all become generally biased. News isn't based on fact any longer in America, it's based on the opinions that the viewers want to hear. Fox "news" is popular because they cater to their viewers. MSNBC runs liberal-leaning programs because they draw in a certain group of people. Unfortunately, on both sides, many people make claims that are not based on any kind of fact, but rather, upon speculation.

Palin isn't a reporter. I doubt she has done any kind of real journalism in her life. She cannot possibly serve as an "expert" because she seems to know very little about the public world. There are plenty of people who are brought on to talk shows and asked to give opinions on matters they do not know.

And that includes bloggers. I'm not sure what it is, but something about the world wide web makes people feel entitled to make absurd claims. Worse still, numerous others will site those bloggers as "reliable sources." Who knows how many times tabloids and HLN "News" have based their claims on rumors written in blogs. And I include myself in that. I'm not writing an article here. I'm not a journalist, and my thoughts have no official merit. In fact, I write this crap mostly just to vent. I'm not interested in someone using my opinion to back up their claims. Blogs shouldn't be about trying to prove a point, or be right, or whatever. You get to be whoever you want on the internet. I could claim to have three doctorate degrees. And that, my friends, would be a load of bullhonky.

So yes, I am fully aware that philosophy and Sarah Palin have little to do with one another. But don't you just love the juxtaposition?