Ten reasons to be afraid...

The other day I caught the end of a headline: McCain picks Palin as running mate. It was a bold but masterly decision. Everyone loves Michael Palin and his affable, self-effacing temperament would be sure to win over any voters who were put off John McCain's belicose foreign policy. Also, with his extensive knowledge of different countries, Palin could help the Americans avoid the sort of gaffes that made George W Bush such a liability (remember his speech about the Pakis?).


Later I discovered that it is another Palin who has been selected. In an attempt to woo both the far right and more militant Hillary Clinton fans, John McCain has picked an obscure Alaskan politician called Sarah Palin.

She used to look like this:


These days she has a more business-like image:


Today, Sarah Palin is a respectable, 44-year-old 'hockey mom' of five, who also happens to be the State Govenor of Alaska. Like 99.99% of the world, I had never heard of her and wanted to learn more about this woman who could, potentially, become America's first female President.

Here are ten things I've found out about Sarah Palin:

1. She is a member of the National Rifle Association
2. She does not believe that global warming is caused by human activity
3. Palin is pro-life, opposing abortion for victims of rape or incest
4. She has five children called Track, Trig, Bristol, Willow and Piper (named, I supect, after North Sea oil rigs)
   
5. Palin is very religious and supports teaching creationism alongside evolution
6. She opposes sex education in schools, prefering abstinence-only classes
7. Her unmarried 17-year-old daughter is pregnant
8. Palin is opposed to same-sex marriages or civil partnerships
9. She opposes making polar bears an endangered species and wants Alaska opened up for oil exploration
10. She has been a state governor for two years

Oh dear.

In an ideal world, the American electorate would choose Barack Obama. President Obama would be a force for good both in the USA and the world at large, helping to reverse the damage done by eight years of George Bush. However, the cynical part of me expects Obama to compromise with the more conservative forces in Washington (or run the risk of being assasinated) as Bill Clinton had to, but this would still be hugely preferable to having McCain in the White House.

If elected, John McCain would be the oldest President of the United States and whilst he has displayed a tremendous amount of energy on the campaign trail, the fact remains that there is a very real possibility that he could pop his clogs whilst in office, leaving us with President Palin.

That's a scary thought.

I want to see a woman in the White House, but not this particular one.