Friday, January 02, 2009

On Palin and Thatcher

By Michael J.W. Stickings

What a great start to 2009. I have the flu, or something very much like it, and I've been in bed for most of the past two days.

But I did want to mention that my latest piece at The Guardian was posted today:

Hockey Mom, you're no Iron Lady.

It's a response, first developed in this post, to the ridiculously silly assertion by some on the right -- notably John O'Sullivan -- that Sarah Palin is (or could very well be, given how allegedly amazing she is) the second coming of Margaret Thatcher.

It's just the sort of delusional craziness we've come to expect from conservatives.

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posted by Michael J.W. Stickings at 5:00 PM

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6 Comments:

  • The meaningful similarity is not between the two politicians, but between the constituencies that they pander to.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 6:09 PM  

  • weeping jesus on the cross! is there no one that sarah palin isn't compared to? that we continue to have to talk about her at all mind blows me. sigh.

    By Blogger billie, at 6:35 PM  

  • You make a good point, Frank, but, even there, the two are different. While they both pandered to the rich, Thatcher also focused on the ailing middle classes at a time of great insecurity and instability. We may disagree with her approach, and her ideology, but she sought to empower individuals by shifting power away from the state. Palin no doubt shares some of that, but it's not like she's as committed to such a radical agenda. She just doesn't like government. Also, she panders to the theocratic right in a way that Thatcher didn't (mainly because Britain doesn't really have one).

    So, yes, in terms of their various anti-government views, there is some similarity between the two. But where Thatcher was a serious-minded ideologue/reformer, Palin just regurgitates the usual right-wing talking points.

    By Blogger Michael J.W. Stickings, at 6:54 PM  

  • I love seeing your name in print over there. Good post. Hope you feel better soon.

    By Blogger Libby Spencer, at 10:31 AM  

  • Thank you, Libby. I feel a bit better.

    By Blogger Michael J.W. Stickings, at 12:58 PM  

  • I see the problem now: you are giving Mrs. Thatcher too much credit. She was just another politician.

    Her panderees were yobs and Paki-bashers -- there's the similarity with Governor Palin.

    You really need to think this through. No politician ever thinks a thought, speaks a word, or performs an action of their own. As individuals, they do not exist. Every single one of them is a pure figurehead. Therefore, every reference to them is a metonymy for their panderees. Never look at the storyteller. Always look at the audience.

    By Anonymous Anonymous, at 5:47 PM  

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