Dimwittedness: Sarah Palin, American democracy, and the corruption of the Jeffersonian ideal

By Michael J.W. Stickings

Today's must-read comes from the NYT's Bob Herbert. Here's a taste:

While watching the Sarah Palin interview with Charlie Gibson Thursday night, and the coverage of the Palin phenomenon in general, I've gotten the scary feeling, for the first time in my life, that dimwittedness is not just on the march in the U.S., but that it might actually prevail.

How is it that this woman could have been selected to be the vice presidential candidate on a major party ticket? How is it that so much of the mainstream media has dropped all pretense of seriousness to hop aboard the bandwagon and go along for the giddy ride?

For those who haven't noticed, we're electing a president and vice president, not selecting a winner on "American Idol."

Ms. Palin may be a perfectly competent and reasonably intelligent woman (however troubling her views on evolution and global warming may be), but she is not ready to be vice president.

With most candidates for high public office, the question is whether one agrees with them on the major issues of the day. With Ms. Palin, it's not about agreeing or disagreeing. She doesn't appear to understand some of the most important issues.

The problem is, much of the American electorate seems to find little difference between voting for president (and vice president) and voting for "your next... American Idol."

There are so many serious issues facing the United States -- the Iraq War, terrorism, global warming, health care, the economy, education, the erosion of civil liberties -- and yet the country's democratic process has been turned into one huge popularity contest, with candidates required to prove themselves worthy by pandering to the lowest common denominator.

"I'm one of you, I'm just like you," is the requisite refrain -- and it is certainly Palin's appeal (she is very much the lowest common denominator, just one who has succeeded in being plucked out of the crowd and who has both the drive and the arrogance to succeed) -- but what Americans should want is not one of them but the best of them, that is, those who have distinguished themselves enough to be democratic leaders, who have genuinely proven themselves worthy of elected office. (This should be the case for all democracies, including my own.)

But, again, this doesn't seem to be of much concern to much of the American electorate. The fact that Palin doesn't know anything about anything that is going on beyond America's borders, nor about much of what is going on within those borders, doesn't seem to bother her supporters, including those who chant "USA! USA!" at every opportunity and who delusionally believe that their country is not just the greatest in the world but God's gift to humanity. Apparently it's fine for an ignorant twit like Palin to occupy the second highest elected office in the greatest country in the world. Indeed, for much of the electorate -- Republicans, that is -- it's actually a sign of America's greatness that an ignorant twit like Palin could be vice president.

It's the cult of the lowest common denominator, Republican-style populism, a corruption of the Jeffersonian ideal and its emphasis on common virtue. Palin's popularity, however partisan in nature, is evidence of democracy at its worst, of what is possible when the righteous celebration of mediocrity trumps even basic competence.

Sarah Palin may not have a clue, but dimwittedness can take you a long way.