Unnecessary Cruelty

If there was ever any doubt in anyone's mind that Sarah Palin has serious problems with reality, it should be gone now. Although it should have been evident a year ago that she processed the world through a faulty filter, we needed to focus on the prospect of her being a heartbeat away from the presidency. Now that she is sidetracked, let's stop using her for the butt of jokes.
It is always easy to make fun of 'mentally ill' people. Their behavior makes us uncomfortable and embarrassed, but that doesn't mean that we should alleviate that embarrassment by laughing. Instead we should examine the madness of their actions. Not only comedians, but political analysts consider it acceptable to gasp as though in surprise when a mentally unbalanced person acts in unpredictable and irrational manner. We can't afford to do that with people who hold powerful positions.
The media has been unfair to Sarah Palin. Not because she is a woman, but because her brain doesn't process reality. Anyone who saw the tape of the witch-be-gone exorcism knows how ill she is. Do I really have to point out that any person who believes in witches and exorcisms is not fully functioning? Do I really have to point out that it is unkind to make fun of dysfunction?
It is also dangerous. Palin came within a few thousand votes of becoming one of the most powerful people in the world. But she isn't the only charismatic person who is mentally unbalanced. When the media is able to make eye-rolling statements about a public figure's behavior, it is time to ask what that behavior reveals about their mental health.

Nancy Sherer