Either really good news, or really bad news

Sarah Palin has resigned. Whether this is good news or bad news depends on what her reasons were:

Some have speculated that Mrs Palin, who is popular with the Republican Party base, might be preparing to make a bid for the White House in 2012.

But a report on NBC news suggested that Mrs Palin intends to get "out of politics for good".

(from BBC News)

Hmmm... The scary thing is, she just might have a shot at beating Obama, depending on how the next three years go. Obama has been a bit of a disappointment so far to those hoping for rapid reform and an unequivocal repudiation of the Bush era policies. On the other side of the aisle, the conservative base is in complete Make Shit Up mode, and you know some old ladies are going to fall for it. ("That scary black man in the White House doesn't even have an American birth certificate!" You know, even though he does...) Anyway, a Palin presidency is one of those things that just might make me start thinking "aboot" moving North a few dozen miles, "eh?"

Even just having Palin run in 2012 would be bad for the country, in my opinion. She is the epitome of the modern demagogue, parroting factless talking points designed to rile the ignorant and the prejudiced, while relying on her good looks to capture the loyalty of the conservatives who don't fit those categories.

Far worse, though, was her habit at rallies of implicitly encouraging cries of "Obama's a terrorist" and "Off with his head!" with a wink and a nod and a "You betcha!" I have heard some suggest a connection between this kind of subtle endorsement of violence by conservatives, and the recent shootings of Dr. George Tiller and at the Holocaust Museum. I think that's a little over the top, but certainly this sort of thing has got to have a powerful negative effect on both the level of political discourse and on our culture as a whole.

So let's really hope we're not looking at a Palin 2012 ticket. Even if she loses, that would be bad for everybody.