SARAH PALIN: A LIVING COMMENT ON AMERICAN LEADERSHIP

What's the Big Deal? ( It's Leadership)

So Sarah Palin wrote some notes on her hand and got caught looking at it in a speech at an appearance at the National Tea Party Convention. So what's the big deal? Put it into context, and you see what the big deal is. Leadership.

While being asked what the top three things are that must be done when - or if - Republicans win the majority of seats in Congress this year, Sarah looks at her hand while answering. She couldn't do it off the top of her head.

Think about that for a second. The woman who would lead America as the Republican President in 2012 couldn't pull that off without notes.

For goodness sake, she was free to ad lib. She was among friends, or at least an enthusiastic crowd. She could've picked anything and they would've liked it. Lower taxes. An end to spending. Smaller government. How hard is that?

(The exact moment is between 45:00 and 47:00 minutes on this video).

Of course, the problem with all of this goes way beyond Palin's knowledge of what might put America (and the Republicans) back on track.

This is a strange time. It's a time when we ache so badly for honest leadership, we now refer to prior experience in government as a bad thing. We distrust articulate, experienced, educated candidates so much, we think it's a good thing when a candidate "frankly" admits his or her ignorance or lack of sophistication on matters involving national or global problems. We criticize the media who questions the newbie too harshly. We don't like it when they challenge the political newcomer with questions the newcomer doesn't know. A newcomer deserves sympathy. Not an exposé.

We want someone who is clean, untarnished, heroic - yet approachable - attractive but not conceited, and a whole lot like us - without the contradictions, family problems, and bad habits that we all have. We want that shining example of what we all think we are - or should be.

We ache so bad for good leadership, we want someone who actually does not exist.

So instead of reacting with concern over what Sarah Palin doesn't know or may never fully understand, we embrace her and her "no thanks" / "awe shucks" attitude. We blame the media and her political adversaries for calling attention to her lack of knowledge. We fawn over her appearance. We applaud her stated commitment to motherhood. And we remain hopeful that a hero will one day rise up and carry us far from the mess we've made.

This is a strange time.