Pat Dollard | Young Americans

I have more than the same chromosomes in common with “Sarah”. As a kid I was always outside. My Grandparents took me fishing on local lakes in the spring, summer and fall. I didn’t go hunting, however. I grew up with a lot of boys around, neighbor kids and cousins. So we played ‘cowboys and Indians’ and ‘war’ (WWII, Germans and Americans) … Climbed the very tall trees in the woods around our house, and built forts and tree houses. Built a baseball field in the clearing in the center of the woods and played baseball until we fell in the tall wild grass from heat exhaustion. Bikes, skateboards, and Risk and Stratego in the garage when it got too hot to move. I’d go back for a week in a heartbeat … But just for a week.

There are a couple different ‘kinds’ of women/girls. High maintenance with the fear of chipping a nail or mussing a hair. The complete jock that you ‘wonder about’. Eggheads. And Hillarys. Sarah Palin is a little bit of each … sans the “Hillary” one. I like to think we have that in common too.

Something else we have in common … our families. She has five, one of which is extra-special. I have three, one that is extra-special. In her last year of nursing studies in college my oldest daughter became pregnant with her fiance. Both were not ready for the ‘major change in direction in the road’ the two college students were on. There was stress on the relationship, and they fell apart for awhile. My daughter had a difficult pregnancy with kidney problems. She left her apartment and came back home, or she would have had to stop going to school until after the birth … and then would have had to do the entire school year over. But we would NOT let her go that route. She got through the pregnancy and birth, and graduated from college. Wasn’t easy, but both the finishing of school and the birth of her baby were worth it. Over time she and the baby’s father grew back together and married, recently having another child. Sometimes, as in the Palin Family’s current case, ‘a major change in direction in the road’ happens, and most times you just want to crawl off and wish it all away. But you grab what you can take control of, and steer yourself as smoothly and as straight down the winding road the best you can. Nobody’s perfect. But it’s how you handle things that happen … how you take responsibility for yourself that counts in the end.

And how you take responsibility and stand in the face of the fires of opposition … you show great leadership ability.

On her experience as a public servant:

“I had the privilege of living most of my life in a small town. I was just your average hockey mom, and signed up for the PTA because I wanted to make my kids’ public education better. When I ran for city council, I didn’t need focus groups and voter profiles because I knew those voters, and knew their families, too. Before I became governor of the great state of Alaska, I was mayor of my hometown. And since our opponents in this presidential election seem to look down on that experience, let me explain to them what the job involves. I guess a small-town mayor is sort of like a ‘community organizer,’ except that you have actual responsibilities.”

On why she is going to Washington, D.C.:

“I’m not a member of the permanent political establishment. And I’ve learned quickly, these past few days, that if you’re not a member in good standing of the Washington elite, then some in the media consider a candidate unqualified for that reason alone. But here’s a little news flash for all those reporters and commentators: I’m not going to Washington to seek their good opinion - I’m going to Washington to serve the people of this country.”

On energy policies that the McCain-Palin administration will implement:

“Our opponents say, again and again, that drilling will not solve all of America’s energy problems - as if we all didn’t know that already. But the fact that drilling won’t solve every problem is no excuse to do nothing at all. Starting in January, in a McCain-Palin administration, we’re going to lay more pipelines…build more nuclear plants…create jobs with clean coal…and move forward on solar, wind, geothermal, and other alternative sources. We need American energy resources, brought to you by American ingenuity, and produced by American workers.”

On John McCain:

“Here’s how I look at the choice Americans face in this election. In politics, there are some candidates who use change to promote their careers. And then there are those, like John McCain, who use their careers to promote change.”

(h/t Powerline)