President Sarah Palin?

Today marked the tumultuous return of "Governor" Sarah Palin to Minnesota. At the Mall of America, she was greeted by throngs of devotees, all waiting in line for many, many hours to have her sign (no more than two) copies of her (ghostwritten) book, Going Rogue.

Let's start with the predictable disclaimers. Sarah Palin is a narrow-minded demagogue. She's about as deep as the Los Angeles River, and has about as much gravitas as an ostrich feather. Having said that, I must grit my teeth and say something that is anathema to liberals: Sarah Palin could indeed become our next President.

Heretofore, we have determined that Ms. Palin is simply too inexperienced and too much of an idiot to be elected to higher office. A colleague of mine at work would be pleased if Palin were nominated in 2012, for that very reason--i.e., in his mind, she simply doesn't have enough broad appeal from people with brains to be elected, so let the Republicans nominate her! But I had to remind my friend of one thing: this is America in the 21st century.

In this modern/postmodern age of media celebrities, Sarah Palin fits in pretty nicely. Many people like her, and many others simply adore her. She's down to earth and she makes sense, in their view--and she's not too bad on the eyes, either. In 2009, that's about all you need. There's a reason why both Jesse Ventura and Arnold Schwarzenegger were elected to be governors--they weren't "typical politicians" and people liked their style. We live in a Cult of Personality, and darn it, Sarah's got that in spades.

So, let's hope the Obama Presidency is reasonably successful. If it isn't, look out! Persistent economic problems and a losing effort in Afghanistan could propel people to once again look for "change." And if you think Sarah is unqualified, just give her a couple of years. In our media-saturated culture, exposure = credibility. Palin was regarded as unqualified because nobody had ever heard of her. But give her a couple of years on newscasts, talk shows, and magazines, and a little grooming from a few advisors, and voila!--suddenly she is way more legitimate than before.

Gosh but it pains me to say all this! I pray to all Higher Powers that I am dead wrong.