The Palin Project - Volume 2: Children are Off Limits, Hypocrisy is Not.

While I hate to see the 17 year old daughter of Sarah Palin get embarrassed on a public stage after news of her pregnancy came out, I also cannot believe that no one in the media is pointing to the elephant in the room - the blatant hypocrisy of the Republican Party.

I respect and admire Barack Obama's request to keep children "off limits" in this campaign, but this issue is not about Palin's daughter, it's about Palin herself. This woman has "fired up" the Republican base (aka lunatic Bible thumpers who think we should legislate morality) by being anti-choice, pro-gun and in favor of abstinence only sex education. Well guess what Mrs. Palin? When your own teenage daughter is pregnant, that should be a shining example that abstinence only sex-ed is an utter failure.

The Palins released a statement through the McCain campaign about this issue and it's truly mindblowing just how much the Republicans emphasize "do as I say, not as I do" politics:

Our beautiful daughter... came to us with news that as parents we knew would make her grow up faster than we had ever planned. We’re proud of [her] decision to have her baby and even prouder to become grandparents.

Oh no. No, no no no. You do NOT get to have it both ways - you don't get to preach against abortion - saying it should be illegal even if the person were raped by their own father - while praising your daughter's "decision" to keep her child. A decision that will be taken away from every woman in this country the minute John McCain appoints a Supreme Court Justice, if he's elected President. McCain has said that not only "could" Roe v. Wade be overturned, it "should" be overturned, and with three seats on the Supreme Court likely up for grabs in the next four years, you can guarantee a woman's right to choose will be stripped away. Seriously, fuck you Sarah Palin, you're an embarrassment to have on the national stage.

And you can bet your ass if Barack Obama or Joe Biden had a 16 year old daughter and this happened, the election would be over and the Republicans would win in a landslide. I'm sure all the right-wing nutjobs out there would say something along the lines of "those Godless Democrats have destroyed family values, kicked God out of our schools and taught kids that it's okay to be promiscuous and have sex before they're married!" But since the shoe's on the other foot, conservatives are spinning this to show how the Palins are "imperfect and human, like God made all of us." Republicans, the party of having your cake and eating it too.

I only said "cake" so I could have an excuse for showing this picture again - "Country First" my ass.

I sincerely feel bad for the Palin daughter, not only because her privacy has been exposed for the world to see, but because she has a moral-crusading hypocrite for a mother. A mother so proud of her daughter's courageous choice, but doesn't think you should have the same rights. So yes, I agree with Barack Obama that children are off limits, but the policies of the candidates are fair game. Sarah Palin's contradictory policies speak volumes about her ability to be Vice President and it speaks even louder of John McCain's poor judgment to select her as a running-mate.