I’VE KNOWN HEATHER FOR A LONG TIME NOW, so I know it’s not often that the two of us agree on any political issues. I’m a Democrat, she’s a Republican. And so it had been, till the Spinner of the Years said “Now!â€Â on Friday, when John McCain announced Sarah Palin as his running mate in this election.
Heather doesn̢۪t think it̢۪s a good a decision, and neither do I.

Maybe I should be happy about the decision. I̢۪m not going to be voting for McCain, and I̢۪d rather see him lose.

But I̢۪m strangely ambivalent about the decision. Strange, because I would have never thought that someone like Mitt Romney, even though I like him less, would have been more personally satisfying than Palin.

When the decision was announced, McCain̢۪s choice was proclaimed as either brilliant or as foolish by most pundits.

Brilliant, because it could (ostensibly) help siphon some of the jaded Clinton supporters from the Obama camp.

Foolish, because I̢۪ve been writing for this paper longer than she̢۪s been governor. As Heather says, very little experience.

But what is most upsetting for me, I think, is how transparent a political maneuver it seems. Most of the commentary I̢۪ve seen seems to focus on the choice itself rather than the candidate, this column included. This in itself is not entirely remarkable. But in this case, the effect that this will have on voters is really all there is to discuss.

Do these two complement one another? Does Palin contribute to the ticket in any ideological way?
The simple answer: no.