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Sarah Palin is dangerous because she brings out the two worst traits in many of Obama's supporters: reflexive sexism and sneering condescension toward small town people. There are any number of examples in posts on Salon today; both are nicely incapsulated in this screed:
Angry obnoxious condescending bitchBeing a supercilious cunt may qualify you to scream at 9 year olds at the ice rink and jab refs in the chest with your finger when your pre wifebeating asshole of a kid gets a bad call, but it doesn't make you qualified to stand up to world figures, some of whom are pretty fucking nasty and 10x more ruthless than you are, Sarah. Go back to Walrustown where you came from.
-- Cat vs. Roomba
And it's not just online ranters. The Obama campaign's first official statement on Palin made a mistake, I think, by sneering at her history as a small town mayer. This ties into the infamous "bitter" remarks, as Palin made clear in her remarks. We keep hearing about how Obama needs to win over small town, working class voters. He's not going to do it if his campaign and his supporters obviously despise those very voters (Walrustown?).
As for the sexism, well, this has been much discussed already. I'll just say that I've never voted Republican in my life, and I won't start now, but I may go for Cynthia McKinney and the Greens this year. A big part of the reason is that I simply cannot stand how many Obama supporters think it's just fine to call a woman candidate for office a bitch, tramp, or cunt; to obsess about her physical appearance and reproductive organs; and to wallow in sleazy accusations about her parenting skills and alleged inability to be a mom and hold elective office at the same time. I do not think I am the only woman turned off by this, and I would not be surprised if it drove some to consider supporting the McCain/Palin ticket.
