Will the McCain campaign stop telling America that Sarah-ppalling is “just like you”?
Please! I mean, we don’t want someone who is just like us. “Just like you” does not mean that the “you” is some exalted person. It means that the person who is touted as “just like you” is just average. So so. Nothing special. Fair. Tolerable. Mediocre. Passable.
In any country, the average citizen is a loser. Outside of statistics, the term is almost derogatory. It is not a compliment to tell a host that the food was average.
Consider this. A random Google search leads one to peg the average IQ of Americans at 98. The technical term for a person with an IQ of 70 or less is “moron”. Sure, there is quite a lot of daylight between the two figures, but it isn’t a world apart. Is the McCain campaign telling the American people, “My pick for Vice President is just as intellectually challenged as you are”? Surely they deserve better.
Or, consider the per capita personal income of the average American – $38,611 per year. Again, that is quite some money, but not a lot. While the intention here is not to be patronizing of people who make that much annually, you sure won’t be astounded by that figure.
That is not to say that a candidate running for President or VP should have at least 10 patents against his / her name, two of which were gained while working towards a PhD at Harvard, and half of the remaining were filed during a second PhD at MIT. Oh, not to forget about the annual 10 million dollar-royalty that the patents earn him / her.
Leaders should command respect. They should be inspirational. Either through force of character, or a history of achievement, or something else. For all the criticism that he has come under, there is no denying that John McCain commands respect. A war hero, a veteran Senator, his resume shines. Senator Obama, though a freshman Senator, is inspirational not only through the story of his life, but also through the freshness of his message. Senator Joe Biden has as impressive a CV as any Senator on Capitol Hill.
And Sarah Palin is thrown into this ring, an epitome of Shakespeare’s “… and some have greatness thrust upon them” quote. It is not politics or male chauvinism or condescension when one is led to remark that Governor Palin is uninspiring, even putting-offy.
When was the last time you were inspired by someone who only inspires fear in you? Fear and pity not for yourself, but for that selfsame person.
The stakes are so high, and of the many crises that America is faced with at this moment, the primary crisis is of confidence. An uninspiring, average, er… just-like-you leader is something that the country can do without.
Think, America, think!
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Tags: Barack Obama, Joe Biden, John McCain, Sarah Palin, Sarah-ppalling
Matty on 
October 3rd, 2008 at 4:07 am
Sir, One question, after spending some time in the US you have completely been Americanised? Or become an American citizen?
You piece seems to highlight the fact that you future depends on this election, and you honestly wish for the good of the country you reside in.
“Please! I mean, we don’t want someone who is just like us”
Now since you have become completely american. In the May 2009 elections, what will be your stand? identify with india or act like a foreign television reporter as a third person.
October 3rd, 2008 at 12:33 pm
Vatsan, I am very much an outsider. Not Americanised (or -ized). Not a citizen. I definitely wish for the good of the country I am in, and yes, there is a certain selfishness to it. But well, though America might not (or never) be the commanding force it once was, it still is in a position of leadership. The ripples of the economic crisis in America can be felt across the globe. To that extent, what is good for America is good for the world too.
The line you’ve quoted should be taken in the context of my identifying with the popular sentiment.
As for the general elections in May 2009, I will look at it as an insider, and it certainly holds more interest for me. I have never not identified with India, and I certainly disapprove of foreign television reporters, at least insofar as them labeling the BJP as Hindu fundamentalists. So there you go, you know who I’m going to vote for as well.