David Frum is reading Palin's new book. He focuses on this line:
But from what I’ve read, family life at the time of the founding was a lot like family life for Americans today: full of challenges, sure, but also full of simple pleasures.
Frum wonders how Palin could fail to mention American slaves:
Palin is a candidate who habitually qualifies some Americans but not others as “real Americans.” That subdivision is a crucial element of her mental architecture, maybe the single most important element of her mental architecture. As I’ve written before, it’s that mental architecture that those who dislike Palin most dislike about her. Often and repeatedly, she writes huge numbers of people out of the American story. In that one throw-away sentence, she did it again.
It’s not a big deal in itself. But it reveals something, and not for the first time or the second time or the third time even. And it’s that something that her words reveal that is a very big deal indeed.
Pareene also reviews the book:
It is called "America by Heart: Reflections on Family, Faith, and Flag," although if the leaked excerpts are any indication a lot of it seems to be "reflections on stuff Sarah Palin saw on TV."
Like "American Idol," which is a symbol of decadent liberal elitism. And, for some reason, "Murphy Brown," because inviting Dan Quayle comparisons is a really good idea. And the films "Knocked Up," "Juno," and "The 40 Year Old Virgin," which Palin likes because they are pro-marriage and pro-babies, even though godless Hollywood liberal elites made them.