Going From Zero to Hatred in One Second Flat

Stories of liberal hatred toward Sarah Palin are becoming legion, and Jay Nordlinger offers a couple of personal examples:

Then there is continuing amazement over the sheer hatred that Palin has aroused: “I am almost 60 and come from Massachusetts. In all my years, I have never seen anything like this, and don’t want to see it ever again. I have a friend who is both feminist and left-leaning. I asked her why they hate Palin so much. She said, ‘Because she’s had it all: family, career. And she did it without a man like Bill Clinton helping her. She did it on her own.’”

I have said it before: Hillary Clinton’s husband was president of the United States. Sarah Palin’s works the night shift in an oil field. Who is the feminist hero? Bien sûr.
I myself have a tale to relate. An episode left me kind of shaken, honestly. Last week, I was talking to a friend of mine — a very warm and humane woman. We’ve been friends for years. I had been away, and we hadn’t talked politics — but then, we never do. We never had. She’s a liberal, of course — virtually everyone here in NYC is. And I never, ever bring up politics (with pretty much anyone — not worth the trouble) (and, of course, I do it professionally).

But she said to me, out of the blue, “What do you think of Sarah Palin?” And while I was drawing breath to answer, she said, “I hate her.”

That kind of took my breath away — because this friend of mine is no hater. But she said it with firm, horrible conviction. She said it with true emotion in her eyes. Frankly, I was too taken aback to reply, other than to say, “Well, my feeling is the exact opposite.”

I can see how you might disagree with Governor Palin — she’s a conservative, after all. I can see how you might find her unprepared even for the vice-presidency. But hate? Hate a woman who rose from a modest background to be governor of her state? Who is obviously a warm, civic-minded, talented mother of five?

Hate?

It must be abortion, religion, and culture. If she were pro-choice, went to a mainline church (only on Christmas and Easter), and didn’t hunt, she’d be okay. At least less attacked. But then, she wouldn’t be herself, would she?

I consider myself a very patriotic person, and I have been teased or damned all my life for my pro-American views — particularly in academic settings. But, I’m sorry, this is, in many ways, a sick country.

So, what do you think are the reasons for the instant hatred she evoked in so many people? Let me offer some possible reasons:

• Conservatism - We've seen more and more that just the mere presence of a conservative idea or policy can set the left in spittle-flecked rages.
• Religion - Sarah Palin is an evangelical Christian. And, to make it worse, she not one of those 'caricature' Christians who spend their time preaching and condemning people for their sins. Her Christianity is carried lightly, and not as a burden. In the past most liberals treated Christianity as a mental illness and generally treated it with condescension or sarcasm. Of late, however, Christianity is likely to set off rages among those people who are petrified that there might be something in this universe bigger than them.
• Trig - How can a little 4-month old boy inspire rage among people, and especially among women who you would think might still have a vestige of a maternal instinct? Guilt. On the night of Palin's acceptance speech I posted a picture of Palin holding little Trig on the stage in Minneapolis and I included this comment: "How many women who had chosen to abort a Down Syndrome child saw that scene and felt a dagger in the heart? Can anyone look at that little boy and seriously claim that Palin made an error in not 'choosing' to abort him? If you want to argue in favor of abortion, just look at that little boy. " Palin walked the walk on the pro-life issue and that has created some moral conflicts for many liberal women. To many liberal women any woman who doesn't toe the line on abortion is a traitor to her gender.
• Attitude - When you see most liberal women interviewed on TV, do you see happy people or angry, bitter people? Palin has shown a consistently optimistic and cheerful demeanor, and you just know that drives the angry left absolutely crazy.
• Game Changer - This may be the most potent of the possible causes for lefty hatred. Their guy was the Obamessiah, The One who would bring peace, love, happiness and racial harmony to the land. It was the will of the gods that he should be anointed president. Sarah Palin came along and instantly energized a morose Republican base, motivating not only Republicans but Independents to flock to the GOP ticket. Her announcement, coming just hours after Obama's Greek Temple speech, completely took the air out of the Dem convention. McCain surged in the polls, and although that has faded, the surge of hatred has not.
• Education - Palin has worked her way to the top without a vaunted Ivy League education. In fact, she took a road commonly traveled by lots of real people and attended a number of schools before getting her degree.
• Skirts and Cute Shoes - We all know that the standard dress code for the powerful liberal woman is the pantsuit. Women wearing skirts and cute shoes must not be taken seriously.
• Experience - Believe it or not, the Dems who have managed to ignore the inexperience and flimsy resume' of their presidential candidate are suddenly outraged to think the GOP could choose a VP candidate with no Washington experience. They look at Alaska as a backwater outpost where the average tooth count among residents is 3. They actually believe that experience as a small-town mayor and big-state governor is less important than spending 3 years as a "community organizer". The fact that Palin took shots at Obama's experience just rubbed it in.
• Self-Made Woman - As mentioned in Jay's example above, some women are furious that Palin has "had it all" and did it without relying on a powerful man. Hillary Clinton can't say that.
• Hillary - Many Hillary supporters have come over to McCain because of Obama's decision to choose Joe Biden over Hillary. McCain decision to choose a woman for VP just jumbled their world. For those who just can't bring themselves to vote for a Republican, the cognitive dissonance they feel over being rejected by Obama, and being forced to reject a woman candidate to vote for Obama, is just sending them around the bend. Their rage is really at Obama, but is being projected on Palin.

I'm sure there are other reasons, and I may even expand this post as they occur to me. However, it has become clear that the system of politics in this country is seriously ill. Will we ever see the day again when there is a majority and a "loyal" opposition? Or are we doomed to a system of ever-increasing vitriol and hatred, dirty tricks and lies?

It doesn't look promising. For another eye-opening article on the hatred coming from liberal women, check out this NY Sun piece. If McCain-Palin win, there will be a dramatic upsurge in psychiatric admissions and suicide in liberal enclaves like New York City.