Read at your own risk; I assume no responsibility for offense caused by the following

Some things never cease to amaze me: how a mass of cells can turn into human consciousness, the infinity of outer space, whether or not god(s) exist(s), how cell phones work, and the perpetual mystery of why there always seems to be room for Jell-o.

But none of these things mystifies me more than how in the holy fuck Sarah Palin can manage to have such a fervent cult following that we're not allowed to say anything about her publicly without the fear of swift retribution? Why does it suddenly feel like Big Brother is listening in, ready to ferret out those who oppose this dimwitted, gun-toting, woman-hating fool whose every word sounds like she just popped in from a dairy farm in East Jesus, Wis-cahn-suhn. I wouldn't be at all surprised to get a knock on my door tomorrow from men in dark glasses "asking" me to stop mentioning her name before they break my knee caps. The woman can't answer simple questions in a simple interview that she had time to PREP for, for crying out loud. It's not like Charlie Gibson caught her on her way into Macy's and asked her what her thoughts on the Bush doctrine were and she fumbled. Oh no, in an interview she prepared for - that I'm certain the proper people tutored her for hours if not days for - she couldn't answer a question that I could answer right now, off the cuff.

There is more animosity in the classroom lately than ever about this subject too. I wish I could elaborate here, but I cannot. Suffice it to say that the first student of mine who decides to start shit with me about my open disgust with this woman better fucking look out. I'm meaner than I look and I won't walk around on eggshells around anyone because someone's church told them that voting Republican is the only Christian thing to do. If you're stupid enough to do anything because your church tells you to, then I can only hope you choose not to breed, but sadly, these are the same people who would have 17-year-olds marry their boyfriends and have babies rather than make a decision best fitting to all involved - most importantly that "blessed" child. So when whats-her-whore Spears has a baby at 17, she's a perfect slut and her mother is publicly condemned. If the mother of a similar pregnant teen is Sarah Palin, it's honorable, and what's even more shocking and leaves me in a state of jaw-on-the-floor awe is how many women I've heard say that they admire how this family is "doing the right thing." Is this 1950?

I'm also not normally a conspiracy theorist, but damn, there has got to be something going on in this election that is at least akin to conspiracy - it seems like such a no-brainer that the majority of Americans would reject this crackpot from the sticks of Alaska almost out of hand. It seems intuitive to not trust a person who supports women paying for their own rape kits, who doesn't think abortion should happen for anyone - not even rape victims - and thinks that "winning" in Iraq is somehow God's will. I can't help thinking that if God is out there somewhere, he isn't also rolling his eyes in complete annoyance of this glorified bimbo doing anything at all in his name. The fact that these things seem so obvious and yet aren't disturbs me on some deep level that furthers the kind of cynicism about the world I try to keep at bay. I simply refuse to believe that this country will continue to be controlled by the foolish and the stupid. It's foolish and stupid to believe in whatever this illusion of patriotic vision is that espouses that we should all be Christian, gun-toting, pro-life ignoramii who continue to be the butt of jokes throughout the world. Look who even gets to be close in the running to run the country - or who HAS been running the country, and it becomes immediately apparent why the rest of the world doesn't like us, or even openly hates us. If judged by the leaders we choose, we deserve the ridicule.