The case of Sarah Palin, and the ongoing drama surrounding her exemplify what's wrong with modern politics. Peggy Noonan has the audacity to question her status as conservative goddess, and her loyal followers quickly descend on the once celebrated Noonan. This McCarthyistic game of persona destruction is not good for the party, definitely not good for the country. Noonan makes a salient argument against further reliance on Palin and party loyalists choose to slander Noonan and her article to avoid addressing her legitimate complaints about the party's beloved candidate.

In her first sentence, Noonan suggests the Republicans have a chance to honestly assess Palin's skills and assets, as well as "let go of her drama." Is this unfair? Since day one, Palin and the party spin doctors play the victim card.

A great example of this Palin drama is the David Letterman joke, terribly unfunny and crass. Palin and her husband separately issue statements accusing Letterman of being a sick pervert, claiming his joke suggested someone commit statutory rape of their underage daughter. It's pure sensationalism and dishonest. The joke is definitely in poor taste. However, the joke is obviously aimed squarely at Mrs. Palin's older daughter, who has become pregnant out of wedlock. This is a flashback of another moment of drama, where Palin's daughter and her daughter's boyfriend are brought up on stage at the Republican National Convention. This sort of awkward moment can easily be avoided by keeping such private matters private. A few liberals may choose to play that card, but the Obama camp leaves it alone and most mainstream press choose to as well. Palin is the one that politicizes her daughter's unfortunate situation.

Whether it's a comment about lipstick on a pig or some other unintended offense, the Palin Republicans consistently latch onto anything they can to show Palin as the victim of hateful liberal elitists, instead of putting her out in public to defend her positions on policy. This game never improves. Katie Couric asks questions that are pointed, and Couric is no doubt a devout liberal. But, Palin is the bulldog with lipstick, the quick maverick. She can't consider herself a serious national contender and fail to answer simple questions like what magazines she likes to read or how she comes to her conclusions on policy. These are basic questions any politician needs to answer. The woman who can't, as Noonan so simply states, isn't ready for the national stage.

Then there is the Noonan elite claim, that Palin benefited from the Party elite and is not a product of bootstraps working class politics. Noonan fairly addresses the difference between someone from a real blue collar working class upbringing and someone who holds a degree from a top university. Palin isn't a blue blooded elite from Harvard, but she's no coal miner's daughter. Both of her parents are white collar, educators, and Palin is a successful white collar achiever herself. Noonan doesn't claim Palin is privileged, only that the party elites picked her to step onto the national stage. And, that point is undebateable unless Senator John McCain, who has held national political offices since 1982, is an outsider or the RNC party leaders are somehow not the political elite of the Republican party. Palin did not ascend to her national notoriety through a grass roots self-propelled campaign. She is hand picked. It's not an unfair point that Noonan brings up about her supposed self-made status as a national figure. When one of the oldest standing party patriarchs picks you, you're not an outsider.

Noonan appropriately deals with a hand full of the famed Palin myths. "she's so working-class," "she's not Ivy League, that's why her rise has been thwarted," "the elites hate her," "she makes the Republican Party look inclusive," "she shows our ingenuous interest in all classes," "now she can prepare herself for higher office by studying up," "the media did her in," and "turning to others means the media won." Each issue is a legitimate poltical debate for Republicans and addressing them is not a personal assault on character but a necessary discussion about Palin's future candidacy.

It's a fair piece and deserves any Republican's careful read. Don't let the talk show power microphones stop you from making your own decision about these complaints. As for Noonan's disrespect, stop your silly whining you childish bunch of cry babies. Noonan didn't say that. I did. In fact, Noonan praises her for academic excellence, dedication, charisma, likeability and showers her with several compliments during her honest dissection of Palin's political viability. Whether she does or doesn't show Palin appropriate respect, her criticism is honest. And, sadly, actually reading her article would take you less time than you invest reading this blog post.