We were all speechless right from the beginning, not because McCain chose an outrageous or controversial running mate, not because he chose a Pawlenty or a Romney (maybe he just hates Minnesota), or for that matter anyone whose name had been in the press, but because he chose someone no one outside of Alaska (do they have electoral votes?) has ever heard of! We were speechless because we had nothing to say except “Who the heck is Sarah Palin?”

Here’s her bio:
-Mayor of a small town in Alaska, the name of which won’t make a difference if I mention it or not
-Statewide elected official for less than two years
-Social conservative (opposes abortion, do any other issues really matter?)
-Mother of five (probably) children all with ridiculous names
-Hockey mom (roughly Canadian/Alaskan equivalent of the soccer mom, we can all relate)
-Under investigation for the dismissal of persons from government jobs
-Was a member of a political party that vies for Alaskan independence
-Oh yeah, her husband was arrested for drunk driving over two decades ago

Possibly the most startling thing on this list is her daughter’s pregnancy. The McCain people said they knew about this, and I agree it should not be a political issue, but come on! Using the candidates’ families and personal lives as political fodder is a time-honored tradition, despite what anyone, including the opposition, says. Once the National Enquirer exposed John Edwards, it was all over for him. Maybe that would not have been so were he a Republican.

Teenage preganacy is a very serious issue for the mother, the father, and their families, not for the rest of America and the world. It was irresponsible for Bristol Palin’s mother to drag her daughter’s personal issues out into the political forum. Unless they thought it could be used as some kind of political stunt. What kind, I’m not sure.

But the most startling thing not on this list is revelations about McCain’s vetting process. It was so secret, even he didn’t know about it. He first had a sit-down interview with her the day before announcing. No one from his campaign had been to Alaska, interviewed other Alaskan officials that served with Palin or business leaders in the Alaskan community, or been to Wasilla to research her mayorship.

“I started calling around and asking, and I have not been able to find one person that was called,” Ms. Phillips [Republican former speaker of the State House] said. “I called 30 to 40 people, political leaders, business leaders, community leaders. Not one of them had heard. Alaska is a very small community, we know people all over, but I haven’t found anybody who was asked anything.” -The New York Times

I certainly hope people don’t start thinking she knows how to deal with Russia because she’s governor of a state that happens to be geographically close to part of Russia.

One thought: this is all coming out in the same news cycle as analysis of the DNC, Hurricane Gustav, and the severely downplayed RNC. Had these events happened one at a time, it may have been far worse for McCain and the Republicans. Although it is pretty bad.

If these people are elected, I would seriously consider living in a different country. Not because I’d be scared of what they’d do were they in power (which I am), but because I’d be terrified of the fact that every other person I met voted for them. I’m thinking New Zealand.

For reference, the age of consent in Alaska is 16 and the age to marry without parents’ permission is 18.