Scary Thoughts

The following was written by me in response to an article entitled:

This is the reason why the left is scared to death of Sara Palin

I am a Liberal and I can honestly say that I am very scared of Sara Palin! With the country's current anti-intellectual, anti-government political vogue that places rhetoric and ideological orthodoxy over rational discussion and pragmatic solution we should all be scared! Given the recent history of eight years of blatant governing incompetence and mismanagement predicated on a strict adherence to right wing orthodoxy, we have a great deal to fear. The fact that this country could even seriously consider Sara Palin a credible leader and spokesperson for one of the two dominant American political parties tell us we are in terrible shape as a nation.

Here is a woman whose basic qualification as a national leader is that she is a "Rogue". While being a rogue is hardly a qualification for anything, it does have a certain currency among many in the working class who see the government as disconnected and unresponsive to their concerns. They see the educated, articulate, and sophisticated who are involved in government as being the source and cause of their problems. They also distrust the science and statistics they get from these isolated government connected individuals and institutions, and they also distrust the scientist and number crunchers that tell them that they need to change their lifestyle in order to avoid a dizzying array of pending or potential catastrophes. They see issues like Global Warming and Pollution as at best based on questionable facts, and more likely a plot by liberals to scare them into unnecessary and harmful changes. The deeper their suspicions and doubts the closer they are drawn to Palin.

Palin's wears her ignorance of basic political policies as a badge of honor. This serves her well politically among those who long for and believe that there are simple solutions to the complex problems that face us. The fact that see is totally clueless to so much of the scientific, economic, and political discussion in the media only serves to endear her to them more. When Palin can say that she was "blindsided" by Katie Couric asking her questions on her reading and policy positions during her campaign interview, and she can be still taken seriously as a political force speaks volumes to the current condition of American politics. The simple fact is that Palin offers what many want in difficult times; simple solutions, based on a nostalgic view of the past. They identify with her distrust of the intellectual, the politician, and the scientist. The fact that she provides all this wrapped up in a visually attractive package gives me a real reason to be scared.

Put aside that Palin is a polarizing force who from her first appearance on the nation scene has been a divisive political force: She has sided with the Birthers, accused Obama of terrorist associations, spoke of death panels, and "taking our country back".

What in Palin's political history, educational background, or worldly experience gives any indication that she is capable of leading this nation (and thereby the world) in a time of rapid technological, sociological, and geopolitical change?

A woman who was incapable of handling the challenges of governing one of the smallest states by population, is somehow expected to be ready to content for the position of chief executive of the greatest nation in the history of mankind. I think not. However, the fact that there seems to be a growing and vocal minority that disagrees with me gives me reason to be afraid, very afraid.

One of the most important parts of proposed Stimulus/Recover plans put forth by the President involves repair of infrastructure. Our roads and bridges are in desperate need of repair and upgrading. This however is not a new condition or one that should not have been anticipated. After years of right wing policies that made infrastructure spending a low priority, the crumbling bridges and roads of America have become the proof of a legacy of neglect.

As the daily reports come in documenting the failure of key bridges around the country, a couple of thing seem to be unavoidable. There needs to be a major commitment to repairing and improving our infrastructure, and it needs to be done now! While there can be no doubt about the necessity for working on our infrastructure, the need for taking this opportunity now has become a political issue for those who oppose the President on philosophical grounds. They often speak of the debt we will be passing on to our children and the danger that a commitment to large scale infrastructure development could pose to our immediate and long-term economic health. They often raise the specter of "Big Government", using all the old stock phrases. They do this while ignoring that the problems we now are forced to address have their legacy in the Reagan era's policies that have guided the direction of domestic policy for the last three decades.

Because of the three decades of Reaganomics inspired policies the country has lacked the necessary commitment of resources to modernizing our infrastructure. We stood pat as the rest of the world moved forward, and in some cases caught up and moved ahead of us in areas where we had long been leaders. A general feeling that we didn't need to spend supplanted the recognition that spending on the infrastructure is an investment in the country's future.

Obama faces many problems but also has before him a great opportunity. As we are about to begin the second decade of the 21th century, the necessity of making major changes. We need to change such things as in the way we generate and use energy. We have to also incorporate new technologies in order to address problems with our environment and climate change. Fundamental changes in every aspect of the nation's on-going development are needed to address problems that threaten our quality of life. The Reagan legacy of neglect must be addressed with a long-term commitment to repairing our infrastructure while incorporating new technologies. The government must take bold steps based on a philosophy of moving America to the lead in technological development. To do this will require that we invest in the future. Failure to start that investment now will be catastrophic to our future. ]]>