In other news John McCain has consistently snubbed the Native vote, turning down the possibility of meeting with leaders of various tribes (Obama, on the other hand met with tribal leaders this summer) and now he has sealed the deal with Palin who has fought to end or curtail Alaskan tribe's right to subsistence(meaning native villages count on those fish for survival) fishing in order to expand sport fishing. Because we know poor people's right to survive should take back seat to other people's right to make money and have fun. She has also consistently challenged Tribal Sovereignty time and time again.
For those who are not up on their indigenous politics sovereignty refers to the inherent right of native tribes to govern themselves. This has many repercussions, from the rise of wealth from casinos, to the still controversial right of tribal authorities to prosecute non-indians for crimes committed on Indian land.
Let me frame this in terms of what it means in Alaska. Not only does Palin believe abortion should be illegal EVEN IN CASES OF RAPE AND INCEST. She also believes non-Indians who commit rape on Indian land should not be prosecuted by Indian Authorities.
She also has fought to do away Upik language programs as well as translators for Upiks who do not speak English.
Now lets put this in perspective.
In Sarah Palin's state women are two and half times more likely to be raped, that's more than twice, but nearly 30% of those women had no access to victim's services.
Let's break it down a little more. 34% of all rape victims are Native women. 90% of Native women report that their rapists were non-Indians. So, essentially, when Sarah Palin denies the right of Tribal Authorities to prosecute non-Indians she is authorizing white men to rape brown women without fear of legal reprisals.
But what do you expect? She did say she would force her own daughter (14 years old at the time) to give birth to any theoretical rapist's child. From what I can find she consistently chooses to defend rapists rather than the women they assault. If anyone has any evidence of Palin standing up for rape victims let me know.
Economically McCain scares me even more than Palin. Since Palin's economic policies are rather scattered. Her focus seems to be on promoting a sort of Chrisitan equivalent of Sharia Law. She is involved with the most extremist far right Christians who explicitly wish to see the wall between church and state abolished. On the other hand I still recall how early this year, in the wake of the Bear Stearns fiasco, McCain (who had not yet been Karl-Roved into tucking in his horns) said the answer to the banking/credit/housing trouble was LESS regulation not more. That's what McCain means by reform. (From what I can see this would only bring about a return to the days of the robber barons)
I am mind-boggled at the number of reasons to actively campaign against Palin and McCain. Did they think we wouldn't learn this? Did they really think women would support men getting away with rape? What planet do they live on and why do I keep asking the same stupid question? Ack!
GOBAMA!!!!