Stop covering Sarah Palin!

Recently I’ve been having a bit of trouble thinking of what to blog about. Today I just said to myself, what do you see in the news that really and truly makes you want to rip your hair out? And then I recalled tuning into CNN last night, watching the follow up to the Ames Straw Poll, and then seeing a segment on Sarah Palin. There we go.

So, if I may, I would like to make a call to legitimate news organizations (Fox excluded for obvious reasons) to STOP GIVING AIR TIME TO SARAH PALIN. We get it. She’s a fame-whoring non-politician who desperately wants to be taken seriously. It’s no coincidence that she magically keeps showing up with her bus in places where events for ACTUAL presidential candidates are taking place. Until she decides to run for president, or does anything actually important, stop covering Palin’s whereabouts and activities.

Don’t get me wrong, I loathe coverage of most of the other extremely right-wing Republicans that are making a bid for the presidency (Perry – frighteningly conservative; Santorum – homophobic scumbag; Bachmann – religious nutter, everything-but-hetero-phobic, and insanely anti-choice with a questionable understanding of American history). But that is because their politics make me cringe. At least these people are open and honest about their political intentions. Palin is just trying to weasel her way into any camera frame she can, and legitimate news sources need to stop indulging her.

Sarah Palin coverage should be left to Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert. We don’t need to get updates on her pathetic attempt at being relevant on news channels.

End rant.

The Continuing Saga of Sarah Palin and Her Star of David Necklace

“They are completely conflicting ideologies, and that does not make you a citizen of the world, it makes you full of sh*t.”

                     – Forgetting Sarah Marshall, 2008

I just can’t stop thinking about Sarah Palin’s terrible abuse of the Jewish symbol – the Star of David – for her own political benefit. It is really disturbing to me. Yet the absurdness of it — a staunchly Christian, “Bible-beleiving” woman wearing the symbol of a people who fully REJECT the idea of Jesus-as-savior — must be pointed out and laughed at. She really knows how to make herself an easy target. I know that some Evangelical Christians claim a strong connection to the Holy Land, but really, come on. I just can’t ignore how offensive Palin wearing the Jewish Star necklace is. So here’s a little follow up of things I’ve been reading, other people’s reactions to the necklace, etc.

Sarah Palin’s Defilement of the Magen David, by Mark Axelrod via Speak Without Interruption

The Audacity of Sarah Palin (and her Jewish Star), by Jeff Pearlman via JeffPearlman.com

Sarah Palin Pandering by Wearing Jewish Star of David, by Mark Berman via Opposing Views

Huffington Post commentors respond to Palin’s Star of David: Here, Here, and Here.

I also liked what commenter Carrie had to say in reaction to my original blostpost on the topic: Palin’s a “Narcissist– pimping out icons one religion at time.”

Now I sit and wait for Jon Stewart to take on this topic. Come on!

The Round-Up: June 6, 2011

Here are my picks for today’s media/blog round up!

Michele Backmann Said What!?: Your guide to the Minnesota firebrand’s most outrageous, outlandish, and out-there remarks. — By Tim Murphy via Mother Jones

Tina Fey’s Sarah Palin Impression Is So Good, Even Fox News Is Fooled. — By Lindsay William-Ross via LAist

Do You Think I’d Be Sitting Here If They Were Called “Empowerment Walks?”: Jessica Valenti appears on MSNBC to talk about her WaPo article on SlutWalks and the future of feminism. — By Vanessa via Feministing

Anthony Weiner’s Tearful, Interminable Sexting Confession: A response to the NY Rep’s press conference today. — By Irin Carmon via Jezebel

Psychology Today Agrees to Remove Controversial Author Satoshi Kanazawa from Website: Journal had published Kanazawa’s study which “scientifically proved” that black women are less attractive than women of other races. — Via ColorOfChange

Sarah Palin Not Backing Down on Paul Revere: Palin sticking by her revisionist history — Via Slate

Sarah Palin and her giant-ass Star of David necklace

Last night while watching media coverage of Sarah Palin’s  publicity tour narcissistic sh**show family vacation, I noticed something…peculiar…around her neck. A Star of David necklace. No, a GIANT-ASS Star of David necklace. Also known as a Magen David or Jewish Star, this pendant is typically worn by Jews and no one else (except maybe Rastafarians). And usually, we wear small, classy ones from the temple gift shop. Why would anyone else wear a Star of David necklace? The simple answer is they wouldn’t. Unless.

Unless they were planning to run for President next year and were pandering to the conservative Jewish population in America who is concerned that Obama is not a strong enough supporter of Israel. Huzzah.

Please take off the necklace, Palin. SERIOUSLY. You look ridiculous.

As a member of the Jewish community (albeit the liberal one), I am fully aware that there are many American Jews who think that Obama has “thrown Israel under the bus” with his recent remarks about Israel’s role in the peace negotiations, and are very likely to vote for a Republican in the next election if Obama doesn’t show his undying, kiss-Netanyahu’s-feet, love for Israel. My heart is full of love for Israel (and I’m also an advocate for a two-state solution), but I don’t think Obama needs to metaphorically j**k off Bibi in front of Congress in order for Jews to believe that the president supports Israel’s right to exist and defend itself against enemies.*

Back to my point, Sarah Palin is aware of this concern in the Jewish community (which is surprising, because I was almost certain that she wasn’t aware of anything). And by strapping that Star of David around her neck Palin is hoping that conservative Jews will see her as a strong supporter of Israel and will vote for her when she magically “decides” to run.

The most nauseating part is that when questioned about her choice of jewelry, Palin purportedly responded: “Today is the 44th anniversary of Jerusalem being reunited. We want to call attention to that.”

Yep, I just threw up in my mouth a little bit. I don’t think this woman could be a more embarrassing representation of American ignorance if she tried. [Update: Surprise! Today Palin expressed her clear understanding of American history by claiming that Paul Revere's ride was to warn the British.]

So Sarah Palin, as a Jewish American, I am asking – nay – begging you – to take off that necklace. Seriously, you look ridiculous.

In closing, the second I saw that Star of David around Palin’s over-publicized neck I knew that she would be running for President in 2012.

Update #2: I never noticed (presumably because I don’t watch Fox constantly), but apparently Palin has been wearing this necklace for several weeks now. Blogger Malia Litman deconstructs Palin’s use of religious symbols for political benefit.

*For the record, the Israel/Palestine conflict is long and complicated and cannot be properly discussed in less than the space of one large book, so I will refrain from going down that controversial road in this particular blog post.