I have to disagree with you on this on this one, Belinda. I think as near to natural is more appealing. All that makeup clogs pores and is disastrous in the long term. I’m no raving beauty at 45 (far from it! lol) but I use a little eyeliner and mascara, a light moisturizer…and maybe a light cover-up for those distracting imperfections that pop up on occasion. But hey…that’s just me. Your picture shows a beautiful woman with fabulous skin! I should be so lucky! I still think that too much of ANY good thing can turn bad.

"She remains, by far, the most attractive woman in U.S. politics," writes Leonard Doyle in the Sunday Daily Telegraph." 

(Sarcasm rant ahead): And, of course, this is the most singular reason of all for Amercian’s to vote for her, or any female candidate. As a woman, I TOTALLY think this is a solid and responsible thing for a male reporter to  say in print. While we’re slipping back into the 50’s, let’s also remind everyone that she’s probably a "great little cook", "feisty in the bedroom"….I bet that little gal can vacuum and dust like there’s no tomorrow, too! And, even more, she has like 5 kids..so being a hot mom CLEARLY qualifies her, or any other hot mom, for ANY office of her choosing. 

(Reality) Ok…I am hell and gone from being a hard core feminist, but does ANYONE else find it just a tad chauvinistic in THIS day and age to categorize a public official in this way? Or is it just me being oversensitive? If Sarah were offended by this, as she probably should be, she’d be fighting back. She’d remind this guy of the qualities she believes carry more weight than a beauty queen crown.

I’m not a fan of Sarah Palin. However, I don’t think it’s complimentary for anyone, man or woman, to make that statement. Is that how we’re voting for the President now? If the candidate is too ugly, the pretty girl wins by default…doesn’t matter if the ugly one has a brain and speaks 5 languages, with degrees out the ying yang…get that Barbie Doll in here by God, and put her pretty ass behind the big desk marked "President" on it!

Say it isn’t so, Leonard.

I applaud your response……a concise, simply state opinion.  Very well thought out, Belinda!

I am no fan of Sarah Palin, I don’t hate her, she just isn’t my cup of tea, as it were…and I couldn’t care less about her parenting style….no one is perfect, she is allowed all the mistakes the rest of us make. However, what struck the chord with me in your post was what I have been questioning since Day One: she insisted that hew family be off limits, asking that they not be dragged into the political drama that abounds during a national convention. Then, her actions take a complete 180, amd she parades them around on stage and drags them to every single event, smiling and waving. All the while, her daughter is being displayed in public as one of the millions of unwed pregnant teenagers, being informed in public by her mother that she and her boyfriend are to be married soon. We all have a clue that THAT was not planned long ago by those kids…it was a mopup. For all the detailed reasons you qouted, Sarah persisted/insisted in throwing her family to the proverbial wolves called the Media, without first thinking about the loads of familial baggage she was about to display to millions of strangers around the country. 

She is a purveyor of saying one thing, and then claiming to have said something completely different when called out (even when there is proof positive of what she said). I find it hard to believe she is THAT forgetful, having such a lousy memory as to not remember praising her future son-in-laws attributes so staunchly. Sounds like "Change That Tune", to me…."I can change my mind in 3 seconds or less, Bob".

I don’t put much faith in what Levi says, but he may turn out to be more honest than the whole bunch of them put together. Wouldn’t THAT be a kick in the head?

Hi Sandy B…I have to say that I think you’re wasting your time talking to brick walls lol  "Strong dislike"… yes, hate…no. I don’t "hate" anyone, not even  my ex husband from 20 yrs ago..and he tried to KILL me!

Thanks for your input…seems like you can see someone elses side of the coin, even if you don’t agree with everything they say. Interesting concept huh?

I’m sorry, but uh…what are you replying to??? I never mentioned Joe Biden in my post, nor have I ever mentioned him in ANY post I’ve written….ever. I never indicated or implied any "class bias" either. I clearly stated my opinions about John McCain, Sarah Palin, and diction. I find it equally interesting that you chose to pick out certain phrases (those I made and those you apparently fabricated) and kind of turn them around for your own needs.

I’m very direct when I state an opinion (which is exactly what I stated: O-P-I-N-I-O-N, not fact). I also never claimed to be a die-hard Democrat (I’ve voted GOP several times in my lifetime), you do not know my education level, nor did I claim that anyone is less deserving BASED on education level. I come from a blue collar family, business owners, who have worked hard all our lives.

I have to wonder if you can read, since you are saying things that were never mentioned by ME, only conjured up in that narrow mind of yours. If that’s NOT the case, then you clearly get off on twisting people’s words to suit your own selfish needs. You seem to miss entire points of what people post in their OWN comments. You took my post and completely turned it into some class warfare that doesn’t exist. Who ARE you? LOL  I can’t even lump you in with Palin Fans, or with those who are politically hopeful about the world….you are most definitely in a class all your own dear…or perhaps I should say world , as I doubt any other rational human being would read my comments and draw a conclusion that I am, or have implied: "racial bias", that I ever mentioned Joe Biden, have any reason to be "scared" of accents (clearly the most stupid thing you’ve ever said to date btw), or that uneducated, or less educated, individuals are undeserving of help or further /continuing education.

When someone such as you takes comments out of context, it typically signifies ones own fears, insecurities, and inadequacies. You stand in judgment of every written word that conflicts with your own. You can’t even acknowledge when an opposing point is made that is actually INTERESTING, and see it as fun to challenge rather than picking on someone else (and I am not referring to my own posted comments).You viciously attack every poster on this site who has the gall to say something that does not ring true or "fair" with YOUR opinion. You make it horrible for others to want to be here and post THEIR opinions, because everything you write is dripping with vindictiveness and misrepresentation of the facts. You cannot see others points of view…nor can you even bend just a little to give someone else a chance to state an opinion without you telling them how very wrong and uniformed they are. Who gave YOU the right to tell everyone else how THEY should feel about Palin, politics, or anything ELSE? You would be a much better person if you could see that there is ALWAYS two side to every coin…but I don’t think that will ever happen, as you are too far gone…"out there" that is. 

I can happily say that this will definitely be my last response to anything you write, because I cannot waste anymore of my precious time on someone who is so closed minded and ignorant to the feelings and words of others. You are a disturbed young woman who really needs to get a life outside of the defending Sarah Palin, someone who, I expect, would likely prefer to NOT have YOU on her side. Perhaps taking a walk into the world and seeing that there are other people out there who are also entitled to THEIR opinions, and should be able to state them without being constantly criticized for them at every turn by YOU. 

Good luck in your little world, sweetie. And God help the rest of those who stand against you……we can only hope they will one day be abe to live their lives as perfectly as YOU do. 

What could POSSIBLY be INAPPROPRIATE about an 11 year old kid wearing a t-shirt with a PEACE sign on it????????? Maybe they were on some free time, or perhaps they wanted to actually take a little break and have some fun together, or maybe she believed she was just being a kid and enjoying the day with mom, who was wearing (GASP!) a sundress!! The nerve! Showing her shoulders! And in PUBLIC! (sigh) This is without a doubt, one of the most stupid observations I’ve come across in this thread thus far.DO you work for the Fashion Police? Do you get off on criticizing kids clothing? Oh Wait…this is Obama’s children, so this must be sticks-and-stones time on the playground right? 

Malia is not representing the US, she’s a kid. And dare I ask what should she be wearing….pearls and chiffon? If the eldest Palin daughter wore the same shirt and shorts you’d be praising to the high heaven’s and oceans would part. This is beyond really pathetic….lol…..it’s is such a stretch into the twilight zone I’m starting to get a little nauseated…dress your kids your way, and let Michelle and Sarah and all the other mother’s dress their kids dress the way they would like.

I’ve never seen someone run their mouth so much about inconsequential things as you do, dear…you criticize everyone and everything…no matter who or what it is. How do you so easily pass judgement on SO MANY people without coming up for air once in a while?

PS to all the whiners who cry about not "playing fair": GROW UP. This is the real world, and in the real world life is brutal, and those tough enough to hang in will make it through because of their thick skin…they let things slide off their back, and go to work. Can all the crap about how unfair everyone is to poor little Palin. Is she REALLY so FRAIL that she can’t handle herself in the proverbial kitchen without pouting about some Monster in the Evil Press Brigade calling her uneducated or inexperienced, or whatever the latest stone is that’s being thrown her way?

If she were tougher I would have voted GOP in a HEARTBEAT! And not because of HER, but, as a registered Democrat, I happen to have thought John McCain was more qualified to be President. I liked him a lot-he’s smart, educated, and quite articulate! But then he brought Sarah on board…Sarah with her "You BETCHA" and the wink and a thumbs up thing, the "beer drinkers of America Unite-you have nothing to lose but your wife beaters!", and talking like some valley girl at the prom…she lost me the moment she opened that inarticulate mouth of hers…and so, sadly enough, did Mr. McCain. That was the case for MOST people who ended up voting for Obama. People were terrified of her possible having the chance of taking over the country and turning it into some banjo playing Deliverence White House.

Wrong. She met with each network separately dear. This was very recent too. Even FOX was part of it. She was wearing wadders and on the beach with each of them separately and gave the same "speech" about leaving because of finances, and saving Alaska, and how she’s not a quitter, but a fighter.         Bull.

I’ve worked in retail for 27 years and I never quit a job because the going got tough. I’ve run multimillion dollar companies,   and high stress jobs, 70 and 80 hour work weeks, but I never quit…I stayed until the job was done. I also did it all without "wasting" anyone’s money.She punked out…plain and simple. Hell, I would respect her a HELL of a lot more if she jus tsaid "It’s just not working out anymore. I’m going to finish my term and get out of the crappy political arena and work on a local level where I can make a difference as a private citizen"…Clear, concise, and to the point. All this ‘fighter’ crap and whining about the media is just more of the same Sarah copout drama.

I hate the press too…but she gets treated as poorly as the shmuck who gets caught screwing around  in the Senate. The press smells blood and will go after anyone they can make a buck ff of. Sarah ain’t no special kinda girl who gets extra attention…she’s just the flavor of the week darlin and the press is golden cause she fuels the fire.

Your Brother in law is clueless…..

 Is this all you know how to do? Attack someone simply because they don’t agree with you? I think you need serious help, because that kind of reaction borders on the very "whack job" mentality that has been repeatedly talked about here. Why do you feel the need to demean someone who is simply giving an opinon.

THIS is what I see here all the time for those who think they have the only answers. I can only imagine you are all also a religious rights activist who believe that yours is the only right way to live despite the hundreds of OTHER religions out there who deviate from yours, and that you should be able to walk into my home and take my guns away, take my right to choose with whom I have sex, and whether my  brother is competent enough to make a comment of his own free will about another human being? My goodness….you and yours must have halo’s and walk white flowing robes.I can’t imagine what it must be like to never be wrong, to know what’s right for ALL human beings, to think for all of us and know that you are leading us all into a better life of…..ignorance.Gee, thanks a bunch for that salvation thing. I’m sure you’ve set your heavenly fate in concrete, being that you are so open minded to others’ opinions. That IS the Christian way.

Oh puhLEASE! Are you serious with that whole "threw herself on the sword for the Alaskans" routine??? Talk about nonsense drama and total "bull crap". Did anyone actually HEAR her statement to the press on Friday, announcing that she was "leaving" office? My God, she made no sense at all. She was rambling on about not being a quitter because quitters don’t fight, that she is a fighter and fighters don’t quit. What the hell is THAT?

She gave five (yes 5!) interviews to all the major networks (oh yes, she called THEM) telling them the very same "fighter" story. For someone who hates the media and thinks they are out to get her, she sure as hell spent a lot of with them. And not just with her Fox Network, but with CNN and MSNBC also. I’m surprised she didn’t call TNT, CMT, TBS, ESPN, TCM, and the Disney Channel.

Websters Dictionary defines quitting as: to depart from or out of; to leave the company of; give up. See, that LAST one kinda says it all. Fighters don’t give some lame ass excuse about spending the tax payers money, or being a lame duck. Those in office who know they are not headed for another term routinely finish out their term with dignity and pride, they do not run away with a year and a hlaf to go.

Just ONCE I would like to her from one of her supporters who can actually see the scenario for what it is and admit, YES, she sometimes sounds like she’s confused, or YES she is making a mistake and should carry out her duties to the end and leave with grace and style, or YES, she plays the blame game a little too well and often. 

For those who support her, I don’t condemn you, I just don’t get how you can be so blind to the facts that everyone else can see…and by everyone else I don’t mean Democrats…I mean EVERYONE else. It’s sad. 

Last thing: You jump someone because they comment that "they don’t care" by asking "the why are you here?. I have to say dear, that is the most utterly witless question I could imagine someone asking in a forum such as this. The story might be about Sarah, but the debate is not open only to her supporters. If it were, then this would be a Sarah-loving-palace with pretty pink flowers and rose colored glasses. The ones who defend her without facts are the ones who will ultimately cause her political demise. And as far as women go…I’ve never been so ashamed as when I hear one woman state to another that Sarah is a woman and a mother and that makes her the perfect person for the job! Sorry, but being a woman and having kids is hardly what I look for in a President…so, good luck with that in 2012. By then she will have been turned into a quitter dream.

I, fortunately, can see things from both sides of the proverbial coin…and, it seems, you can too. I think there are far too many extremists in this country…those who only see THEIR side and "damn those who disagree!". The religious groups who think they know what’s best for all the rest of us sinners, the anti abortionists, who are not God but want to play Him. The Palin freaks who refuse to admit faults. The Obama freaks who think he’s the 2nd coming.

Yes, there are FAR too many uneducated opinions, especially from those who troll the online columns (and yeah, I have been caught on occasion posting without all the facts myself).  But then again, these are merely opinions (and ya know what they say about OPINIONS), and something that we are all entitled to. What casts serious doubt and shows lack of consideration are those whack jobs, left AND right, who cannot see the forest through the trees. All they see is their way, their ball, their game, their rules…nothing else.

For those of us (again, left AND right) who are fortunate enough to see things from BOTH sides of that lovely coin, we will note and possibly conceed that the current candidate isn’t perfect, but that’s who is running the show for now and we all have to live with it and adopt a wait and see attitude. I seriously doubt that the world will come to an end, or anything so extreme will occur (too bad for those extremists out there huh!). Next time around, well, who knows what will happen, right?

Nothing wrong with being proud of your kids…did I say that there was? Nope. But you can’t have your cake and eat it too. You can’t work in the public eye and want the fame, and yet decline to answer the hard questions that are being asked by the media of ALL politicians (yes, even Obama, who is not MY hero either). My God, these are people we trust to run our country responsibly! They are expected to be held to a MUCH higher set of standards. The old addage is STILL very accurate today….If you can’t stand the heat, then get outta the kichen." 

 Harsh but a very real fact.

See…knowing the true brutality of politics, and how harsh the media spotlight can be, I probably would have thought about it more than a few minutes and wondered if I really want to put my family through that kind of wringer. I would have thought about the history of my family members and wondered if there were any skeletons I had to worry about. I’d also ask myself if I could offer solid, coherent, honest answers (not excuses, mind you) to the really tough questions that the public has a right to ask, considering that fact that I am thinking about running for the VP of the Free World.  I would wonder if my educational background gave me the right to ask the American people to put their lives in my hands.

Lastly, I would have to make sure my skin is thick enough to differentiate between the "I know you are but what am I" and the Talk Show types of verbal attacks, and those of the more serious nature from the Press, who want to know where my money comes from, am I an American citizen and can I prove it, and what my family values are (all the while not hiding my pregnant daughter).

I think this is an excellent question! I also wonder how much thought every other politician puts into his/her thought process before taking on such a feat. If the answer is "Oh, it took me all of….5 seconds!" then that person has absolutely no business in Politics, because he/she wants the fame and fortune, and has no investment in the realities of the job, nor will they care what the repercussions will be.They want their 15 minuntes of fame at the price of the people of this country.

(Note: BTW…while I do not ‘like’ Sarah Palin, nor do I believe that because she is a woman with kids this makes her qualified to run the country. However, I also do not hate the woman. I don’t respet her because she seems to jump before looking into the proverbial pool. That might be fine for a CEO or The head of a franchise, but not for the President or even Vice President, who must be able to take the heat at all levels, and not play the blame game…that’s getting old and very annoying. She has a lot of potential if she’d stop the whining and just suck it all up for once. Admit to mistakes, take credit for a job well done, and keep your mouth shut about personal issues for as long as possible.)