I’m surprised, as I’m sure everyone is, by Sarah Palin’s decision to resign as Governor of Alaska. It seems as though she made her decision for family-type reasons, and if so I hope people will respect that. It reminds me of when Kish and I had decided to send the boys to Columbus Academy rather than a neighborhood school. Some people tried to talk us out of the decision, and my reaction was: “It’s none of your business.” Decisions about which school would work best for their kids is a personal decision exclusively reserved to parents. Sarah Palin’s decision about what is best for her family is her decision, and not something that others really should question or second-guess.
It would be sad if Governor Palin’s decision were motivated in any material way by the harsh treatment she has, at times, received from the media. Politicians must be thick-skinned, but no politicians should be required to endure mean-spirited comments about that politician’s kids, marriage, and so forth. In a sense, this is the flip side of the Governor Sanford situation. We want him to shut up about his affair; we are entitled to his professional execution of his job, and don’t care to hear his comments about his emotional issues. With Governor Palin, she seemed perfectly willing to be judged on her gubernatorial record, but some people in the media seemed unwilling to leave her personal life alone. By stepping away from the limelight, she can better shield her personal life from that kind of withering scrutiny and comment.
I suspect we have not heard the last from Sarah Palin.
Webner House 