“I cried my eyelashes off.”
Reported quote by Oprah Winfrey when she witnessed Sen. Barack Obama’s acceptance speech at Invesco Field in Denver.
I couldn’t cry my eyelashes off when I saw Gov. Sarah Palin appearing with Sen. John McCain in Dayton on Friday, but it did make my heart happy. For the record: I have never worn false eyelashes and buy one tube of mascara every year and use it once.
I can say I finally understand what it’s like to see someone who truly represents me and what I believe. This feeling, understandably, may apply to a very small segment of Americans. For me, a person born in the mid 60s and raised in a rural area, there’s a connection.
If Gov. Sarah Palin can manage to translate the impression I have to voters on the fence, this could be a very close election in a year that would seem unlikely. Republicans find themselves as popular as fruitcake these days and it’s a hard sell to get the American people to embrace their philosophy these days. However, along comes Gov. Palin, a female Davey Crockett who kills her own food and makes her own clothes out of bearskins. Well, not quite, but she does enjoy a bowl of moose stew and has a menacing bear hide on the back of her office couch. Who could resist her story of going from the PTA to city council to the mayor office to the governor’s mansion? This narrative demonstrates the power of one. Maybe that’s where my admiration increases. Gov. Palin, mother of five and corruption fighter, makes many of us who work and have a few kids look like slackers. Her story makes me believe that the activism many citizens believe is a useless pursuit can actually shake things up. The tale of her fight against the establishment of Alaska is cause for celebration in Northeastern Pennsylvania, which could use a giant broom and dustpan to take care of some of the shenanigans we’ve been hearing about for months. If Gov. Palin could do it, why can’t we? Well, maybe the answer is, “Yes, we can.”
I became a Republican at the age of 18 because it was something my grandmother wanted. She was a tough, no-nonsense individual who worked, raised two boys and volunteered in her older years. A proud woman, she campaigned tirelessly in the largely Democratic area for her beloved Republican party. Her efforts paid off and she had two keys to the city nailed to the back of her front door, both from Republican victories.
I thought of my grandmother, as I often do, on Friday when I watched an unassuming woman grace the stage with a senior senator to state her case for one of the most coveted jobs in the land. As I watched, I felt the GOP once again had a shot at wooing like-minded individuals back to its lonely corner of the ring. I wasn’t the only one. America speaks with its wallet and people began to give money to this cause in impressive fashion.
I told the GOP several years ago I wasn’t interested in supporting them financially. I told them they still had my vote, but I couldn’t see throwing good money after more bloated and untamed government. I have to say I’m pulling out my checkbook now. The opportunity to shrink government, derail insidious spending and keep the Democratic congress in check is priceless to me.
Corbett
E-Mail
Print
