Yesterday, I ran into a friendly (and quite attractive) acquaintance. After greeting each other, I asked him about his plans for the weekend. He told me he would be seeing W, the Oliver Stone hit-film maligning the incumbent Republican President of the United States.
His eagerness to see the film reminded me how many of my peers in the Hollywood area harbor harsh opinions of Republicans.  How much easier it would be socially to hide my opinions (as I once tried to do) or to subscribe to theirs.
Experiencing that exchange shortly after completing my post on Peggy Noonan’s column attacking Republicans in general and Sarah Palin in particular, I wondered if this Manhattan-based writer had, as if by osmosis, absorbed the anti-Palin prejudices of her New York City peers.
So much of her criticism of conservatives seem lifted from the talking points of the left.
Not just that, the woman who faults Palin for not understanding the lines in her own speeches (where does she get that nation?) had not too long ago noted the emptiness of Obama’s rhetoric. She observed that when you read the transcript of his speeches, “that is, when you remove Mr. Obama from the words and take them on their own–you see the speech wasn’t all that interesting, and was in fact high-class boilerplate.”
So, I wonder if Peggy’s associations with a left-leaning set have caused her to forget her past criticisms of Barack Obama and focus on the flaws of the latest bête noire of her peer group?
UPDATE: Over at Ace, a must-read response to Peggy. Read the whole thing!
How can you be gay and conservative at the same time??
You should take a walk on San Francisco baby!!!!!
Sam Schulman has written an absolutely excellent analysis on class and style. His question is: “Why is Bill Ayers a respectable member of the upper middle class and Sarah Palin contemptible?” It is at The Weekly Standard.
Please, read it!
I definitely feel that a lot of these so-called “conservative” commentary writers have to write some of their more questionable pieces in order to mollify the social circles in which they swim. I’m sure they get asked questions at champagne and caviar parties about “just how can you justify Palin.” And in those situations, it’s not easy to stand your ground. It’s not easy in life in general. It’s much easier just to agree with people. Hence we see all these concessions by Brooks, Noonan, Parker. Does anybody else wonder just who the heck decided Andrew Sullivan ever knew what he was talking about? I find him the most hypocritical and arrogant and just willfully ignorant.
Ayers: Anti-American Elitist.
Palin: Working-class patriot.
That explains it.
Keegan,
Well said. 100% spot on.
I don’t think it has anything to do with left v. right. She (and her compatriots) is a Tory. Joe the Plumber is okay, because he’s not running for national office, and other citizens running for local or state, or even Congressional, seats is okay. But a citizen, and not a member of our professional ruling elite, on the Presidential ticket is too much for her to bear.
When the election is over, no matter which way it goes, look for citizens to turn their anger against the Tories. It was likely with PDS. Joe the Plumber made it inevitable.
Where was Oliver Stone and Michael Moore during Clinton’s last year in office, and where are those movies?
(Crickets)
I rest my case.
Regards,
Peter H.
#7 – And speaking of which, “W” came in fourth behind, of all films, “The Secret Life of Bees” and “Beverly Hills Chihuahua.”
How fitting.
Regards,
Peter H.
I heard W is getting bad reviews, one and a half stars, that type of thing.
Isn’t Peggy referred to as “Athena” at this blog? So Noonan’s the gatekeeper, is she? Palin is attractive, smart, and so far shows she has a shallow understanding of policy. But policy is fairly easy to learn and anyone can eventually learn to write; Palin has skill and talent Noonan has never been able to acquire. Noonan is masking her envy with the pretense of disdain.