The above clip is just one of many samples in which Sarah Palin, a master manipulator of the first order, can turn ignorance into an attack. I call this the cartoon theory of politics. Scott Mccloud in Understanding Comics argued that cartoon characters with little detail (such as Peanuts) are attractive to younger kids because they allows kids to fill in the empty space with their own imagination. Less imaginative and older kids dig action comics that are filed with detail because they don’t need space to project a sense of play.

In our atmosphere of infantile politics driven by mass mediated imagery and high fructose sound bites, Palin is perhaps the best example of a caricature of the American political system. She is vague and folksy enough to mask her true beliefs and worldview to allow an uneducated, media saturated public to project their desires, wishes and hopes upon her, just as kids do with simply drawn comics. So in her cartoonish way, she can seem like an innocuous working class girl who hunts moose on the weekend, yet because she is a true political animal and opportunist, she readily serves the interests of her Republican mentors (if you don’t believe me, read Rolling Stone’s demythologization here). In her crafty way she (and her handlers) have figured out how to tap the general anxiety people have about East Coast media elites (as they should), to portray herself as a victim, when in fact she is the perfect (willing) tool of a nefarious fascist agenda. Genius is all I can say. Sleazy, but Genius.

PS

It may seem like I don’t respect Palin as a self-made person. I believe she willingly chooses her beliefs based on a desire to have power over others. We all know and have had relationships with these kinds of people. They are toxic. So though I call her a tool and instrument, I say this with the awareness that social climbers are very good at telling people what they need to hear, and often mirror back to them their desires for the sake of power. I don’t think Palin is a bimbo. A skilled emotional predator is a better description. Thus, I consider her a highly dangerous politician. Watch your back, my friends. Watch your back.