The Governor needs new clothes Oct. 22,2008

Our Governor seems to be under the gun today, about both her children's travel, and her new wardrobe. I really think these issues are much to do about nothing. First, the fact that new clothes would be required for Sarah should not be a great shock to anybody. She represents the very best of her party (wow) and has to look the part. As difficult as it is for me to get my mind around why it would be considered not appropriate to dress in Carharts, jeans and long johns....for anything....I do realize that it is not an opinion commonly held. I really do think she deserves a break on this one. As to her children's travel, and her collecting per-dium for the 300+ days she was home, I suppose that could be a reasonable issue for discussion. But this time I find myself siding with Sarah once again (gasp).

Alaska has historically had a very different standard of acceptance for our politicians. Because of the size of the state, and the location of the capital (there are no roads connecting Juneau with the rest of the state), all our legislators and their aide's receive per-dium through out session. Even the 3 Juneau representatives receive per-dium in an effort to equalize the pay for everyone. The issue of Sarah Palin collecting per-dium at home is pretty much a non issue when it comes to the money, as far as most Alaskans are concerned. What has some implications is the fact that she spends so little time in Juneau, where the Governors office is located. She has been a very hands off and absent administrator, and even members of her party were seen wearing buttons during the last legislative session that asked "Wheres Sarah" !
We collectively seem to have a very high tolerance for corrupt governors. For example there have been more than a few governors that were completely in big oil's pocket. No attempt to even hide the fact. For the voters here, it seems to be a bigger issue that we know from the start who owns who, or who owes who. The "at least we know from the start" will actually gain a candidate votes. In the case of Walter Hickel, former Secretary of the Interior under Nixon, the fact that big oil owned him lock stock and barrel (no pun intended) probably won him the 3 way election. Alaskans knew what he was about, and that was good enough. And he actually turned out to be a decent governor, with Alaskans welfare his first priority. As a funny side line, during that same election Alaska voted to re criminalize pot (that's a story in itself) Hickel came late into a 3 way election and was elected by a small margin. In between the governors mansion and the governors office is a short walk. On the building next to the governors mansion, a building that Governor Hickel walked by every day, and looked out his window upon every night ,was written in huge letters "Pot got more votes than Hickel". Walter Hickel was not a man of humor, so that building was a point of contention for his entire time in office. Thinking back, Juneau was kind of proud of that sign. If tourists stopped a local in the street to ask directions, they were always sent by the house no matter where they were going!
Anyway....I think in a way, the most anger generated in Alaska over Sarah Palins VP campaign is that we have no idea who she is anymore. She has said so many things, about the bridge to nowhere, lower taxes, taking on the oil company's, pushed a pipe line through, reformer, things that we all know is pure bullshit. As far as the state is concerned, if you have had relations with a chicken, say you had relations with a chicken, but don't make us find out on our own She speaks in the lower 48 as if her state cant hear her. We may have suspected her lack of substance, but are embarrassed that by the time it became so evident, it was in front of a national audience.