Are you ready for Sarah Palin on your TV?

She is probably one of the most recognized women in America. She is loved by millions, and despised by almost as many. She is anything but a media darling, yet the media can't stay away from her. And the blogosphere often lives to tout or taunt her.

Sarah Palin.

The best book selling, vice presidential candidate, former-Governor and mom is coming to a television near you. Unless of course you are a die-hard MSNBC loving Liberal. If so, you won't even notice. But everyone else surely will.

Ms. Palin is going to join the pundits and commentators of Fox News today. She will make her first appearance (as a pundit) today on the O'Reilly Factor. And I can already feel the warm buzz of liberal bloggers blood boiling.

Honestly, anyone that can be the target of so many slings and arrows and still be a success impresses me. The fact that she is a woman, in a mostly male dominated arena, that holds her own just adds to her image.

There are a lot of views people have about Palin. Most I find are second-hand regurgitations of political commentators like Chris "I feel a tingle" Matthews and/or quasi-political activists like David "I know a joke about a young girl" Letterman. But it's surprisig how few people really know much more than these tidbits about Palin's career, political views, intelligence, or any other aspect. Especially when you consider that she ran for the number 2 spot in running the nation.

Will Palin be a success? Will this help launch her political ambitions towards the Presidency? Well it can't hurt considering how low the expectations are from the career politicians and most media.

Like every other blogger around, I intend to watch her today and review her performance. One thing is for sure, Liberals will hate her and Conservatives will be mixed. But it will be a ratings coup for Fox News.

Is Newsweek sexist?

The big question of late is all about Sarah Palin. Her book, if she will run in 2012, if she can win. And then there are the controversies.

Newsweek really set things aflame with their cover of Mrs. Palin. And the claims of the cover photo being sexist and insulting have been raised. But are they right?

Well the best way to answer the question seemed obvious to me. Compare the cover photo (taken from an image used by a running magazine some time ago) to a similar photo of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. Or Speaker Nancy Pelosi.

Except that no such photos seems to exist. None.

I searched through 500 images of Hillary Clinton on Google looking for a single legitimate image of her with exposed legs. Couldn't find any. In fact I was hard pressed to find photos of Secretary Clinton in a dress. I know hardcore lesbians that show more cleavage and legs than Clinton has over the decades. (As for Speaker Pelosi, I'm sure there might be a photo somewhere that shows off her legs, but I'm too scared to see it)

So it would seem that compared to her the general media is sexist. They have directly sought to make her an image that is more of a tart than a political figure. And I have to wonder why any woman would allow that without complaint.

Basically isn't Newsweek saying that a mother and independant woman is worthless if she is cute and/or doesn't agree with the editor's views. They are saying that a woman who has achieved success in business and politics - she did run a major State after all - is about as important as a bikini model. Which I would think Secretary of State Clinton might find insulting. (And don't expect N.O.W. to stand up for a woman that exemplifies many of the ideals they are supposed to support)

Newsweek says the image is fair. Ok, then show me a similar photo that was on their cover of Nancy Pelosi, or Hillary Clinton. I couldn't find one. How about Michelle Obama? Why don't they have an image of Michelle Obama in a bikini on the cover while the story in the magazine is about say healthcare. Would anyone find that sexist?

I know, how dare I use examples of the First Lady and Secretary of State (and the Speaker of the House). They are Liberals and Democrats after all. It's a taboo to speak of them as anything but powerful women that are political leaders. Yet, Mrs Palin IS a political leader too. So what's the difference?

If it isn't sexism, then all that is left is a political bullying that says you better think the way we want you to think or else. Is that what we have come to expect from the media? That the ideas they like are the only ones we should have? That the only people we should vote for or listen to are the ones they approve of?

I recall another time when the media told people what to believe. They told people directly to buy only the versions of songs that Elvis sang and not the Black original versions. They said that African Americans didn't need to vote, or to sit in diners, or enter buildings through the front door. I recall when the media claimed that all Japanese in America were spies and traitors. I recall when the media was so afraid of politicians that McCarthy had everyone looking over their shoulder in case they were called a Communist and would be blackballed from their careers.

I thought we were past the days of yellow journalism. But it would seem, as Newsweek has proven, that we haven't moved forward at all.

Should David Letterman be fired?

When I first wrote about the inexcusable comment that David Letterman made about the daughters of Gov. Sarah Palin, I was firmly entrenched in the thought that it was political. And an insult to all women. It was more than just a “bad joke”.

To say it was merely a bad joke is to say that inferring lewd sexual acts between a young woman and a man 2x her age is occasionally good natured. Which I do not agree with. To also have that joke be ambiguous such that it can be related to a 14 year old minor is even worse.

But that is part of my problem with this whole situation. Letterman continues to insist that the joke is about an 18 year old young woman. As if that excuses the whole thing. As if everyone had understood that he was directing the joke at this young woman, as he now claims, that it would have been ok. No, it does not become ok just because one daughter is of legal age and another is not.

But the people now calling for Letterman to be fired are solely focused on the 14 year old. Because it adds fire to the flame. Inferring that an 18 year old is fair game. Which I beg to differ on.

If the calls for Letterman to be fired were solely based on the repulsive nature of the comment, and the fact that it was driven by Letterman’s barely held back hate of Conservatives and Republicans, then I can see its merit. There is little difference in what Letterman said and Don Imus.

After Don Imus publicly insulted the Rutgers basketball team, I was among those calling for him to be fired. Because he attacked a group of young women, without cause, who were non-public entities. In addition the attack by Imus was the kind of racial commentary that led to lynchings in the (not very distant) past.

A public figure, lashing out at non-public figures in a manner that is solely meant to denigrate the attacked is always wrong. And I support the removal of that public figure for such actions. It doesn’t matter if that person is White, Black, Hispanic, Male, Female, or whatever. The public airwaves are a sacred ground with protections that only mean something if we enforce them.

The Palin daughters are not public figures. The Governor of Alaska is. So just in the same way that attacks against the Obama daughters are insanely wrong, or attacks on college teams, or against your family, to attack the Palin’s is the same thing. Something that I find extreme Liberals like Letterman, and much of the major news media, fail to comprehend.

So that reasoning is worthy of firing Letterman. It is the same reason that Embassy Suites pulled their advertising from his show. Insulting women, because of a political belief of the attacker, just to be cruel and vile is hardly worth defending, or supporting with advertising.

Thus the focus really should shift from the claim that this was about a minor. This was a political attack and an attack that covered ANY young woman in a manner we would like to believe does not exist in the 21st century.

So does Letterman deserve to be fired?

Well this was done on public airwaves. It took a week before enough pressure hit Letterman to force him to make a barely sincere apology. In fact in reading his apology it becomes clear that this is more of a tactic to preserve his job than remorse over what was said, or the motivation for what spurred it.

Given how well this lines up to the reasons that Don Imus was rightly fired, I would have to say yes. David Letterman deserves to be fired. It is a terrible way to end a 30 year career, but Letterman knew what he was doing, and he didn’t care as long as he got to grandstand his hate of Conservatives and Republicans – especially in the case of Gov. Sarah Palin.

Will Letterman be fired? I doubt it. He has a huge following. He is a huge political supporter. He has the general support of Hollywood and the media in this political climate. His contempt of Conservative views is lauded across the internet and major media. He will more than likely weather this storm.

But I say again, David Letterman is the same as Don Imus in this situation. Thus I support the same end result. CBS should fire him now.

Eminem's music video "We Made You" hits the mark

Have you seen the latest Eminem music video? I tried to get a copy of it but was unable to find a clean or available version. Still I was able to find the comments of Eminem on the video.



Now I am not usually a fan of modern gangsta rap. I have issues with most of they lyrics and visual representations that are the norm of the industry. But having seen this video I can say that I find it funny.

Television, pop stars, and instant celebrities all get a nice kick in the ass in this video. Something that is really needed. The instant fame and adoration many of the celebrities Marshall Mathers targets is worthy of the ridicule he presents. I’m sure that he will eventually be back in court over this one.

Still there is something really wrong in the world when we have so many media venues pumping out the degradation of men and women for no reason other than 15 minutes of fame. Or worse yet, celebrities and entertainers that are using this media focus to enhance their limited abilities.

The key to this video is the chorus, and also the title, “We made you.” Something that seems to have been forgotten among the entertainers of these days.

Another fun part is the fandom of Mathers when it comes to Star Trek. His play on the original classic’s look and feel is funny, though the constant throwing up of the Asian male throughout the video was too much. He really could have done without it.

And I know some will love his take on Sarah Palin. But I’m not sure that he is making the comment most expect. I don’t see him making fun of her as much as making fun of all those that are so obsessed with her and the media circus that has been placed upon her. She didn’t make herself a sex symbol, the media did that. The video seems to play on that hype.

Overall I think this music video has more going on than just the lyrics. It can be used to make a telling commentary on the state of society, the abuses of fame, the incredulity of how fame is created and dispersed, and the breakdown of an intelligent entertainment. That’s a hell of a lot from a kid with issues that are well known.

I may not like rap, but this music video is an exception to the rule.