Blowing Things Out of Proportion

Just when you might have thought it was safe to talk about Alaska without having to mention Sarah Palin in the same sentence then the latest brouhaha finally blows over. What happened you ask? Well about two weeks ago, late night TV host David Letterman made a joke with regards to Sarah Palin and her daughter Bristol (although it ended up that the daughter in question was the younger daughter Willow) and New York Yankee Player Alex Rodriguez. The joke alluded to the fact that A-Rod had apparently 'knocked up' Palin's daughter during the course of the game. Now under most circumstances I don't think it's fair for comedians to go after the families of politicians but in this case I think it's something Palin and her family brought upon themselves.

Now before I keep going, let me just say that I found Letterman's joke to be a bit.... odd. I got what he was trying to imply but I think it was a little off kilter and shouldn't have been made. Be that as it may, I'm surprised at the reaction that some segments of the public have had with regard to David Letterman. Conservative segments of the public who are still ga-ga over the Alaskan governor have started protesting Letterman and have been demanding his firing by CBS. I highly doubt that this will happen but I guess you can't blame them for trying. It's like a court case in many ways. Sure a lawyer's objection may be overruled but at least it gets on the record.

But getting back to the matter at hand. As I stated, I think it's wrong for comedians to go after the families (especially children) of a politician in their schticks. If you'll recall (for those of you who are old enough to remember) when Bill Clinton was elected to office in 1992 there were jokes aplenty directed towards Chelsea Clinton but when the White House requested that media respect her privacy she was more or less left alone and for good reason. She didn't need to be in the spotlight in that way. Same with the Bush twins when W. took office in 2000. Certainly they made their share of headlines (and not always for the best of reasons) but when the media was requested to curb their jokes against the girls they by and large complied though not 100%. Still, they were left to their own and managed to still make the occasional headline thanks to their conduct.

So what makes the Palin kids (Bristol in particular) so different? Well nothing really but Palin seems to want to have things both ways. When her candidacy as Vice President was announced last year during the run up to the election, she was out there promoting her core conservative values and the values she instilled in her children (whom she lovingly introduced to the public at every opportunity). But when it was revealed that her 18-year-old daughter Bristol was pregnant out of wedlock then suddenly there were calls to respect her privacy and to leave her be. But then shortly thereafter we started hearing about how she was learning to take on responsibility at such a young age. There was talk about her impending wedding to would-be father Levi Johnston and her rise to prominence as a 'model' teen.

Flash forward to an election loss later and Bristol has delivered her child and has called off her engagement to Johnston. Plus now she has become an advocate for teen abstinence? How hypocritical is that? Is that supposed to be a ploy to prove that she and her family truly have conservative ideals and that her pregnancy was a mistake? To me that's like robbing a store, getting caught and then becoming a spokeman for anti-theft activities. I'm not saying that she shouldn't be an advocate nor am I saying she should be a target for jokes but when she is constantly being thrust into the public limelight as a poster-child for so many issues, it seems hypocritical to me again to say that people shouldn't talk about her in any terms but awe and appreciation. I guess some people truly believe that they can have their cake and eat it too.