RE: Palin experience compared to Obama experience

Sometimes you find an amazing piece of literature written in such elegant style you're amazed to find out you're related to the author.

Here is one such piece from my sister Jackie.

Date: Mon, 8 Sep 2008
Subject: Palin experience compared to Obama experience

This email is disturbingly biased on so many accounts. However this one is my favorite:

Coolest thing about Spouse:

Tesoro Iron Dog Snowmobile race champion (longestsnowmobile race in the world);In 2008, while defending his championship,wasinjured when he was thrown 70 feet from his machine. He was sent to thehospitalbut still finished in fourth place

Sister of Oregon State University headbasketball coach Craig Robinson

Really? This is all the author of the e-mail could thing of? "Sister of Oregon State University head basketball coach Craig Robinson." How pathetic.

This is how I would rewrite it:

Coolest thing about Spouse:

Todd Palin has taken some college courses and has accumulated college credit -- but does not have a full degree. Palin became a union member belonging to the United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union (United Steel Workers). Cite Note #1

For 18 years, he worked for BP Oil on the North Slope oil fields of Alaska. In 2007, in order to avoid a conflict of interest relating to his wife's position as governor, he took a leave (Cite Note #2) from his job as production supervisor when his employerbecame involved in natural gas pipeline negotiations with his wife's administration. Cite Note #3

Seven months later, because the family needed more income, Todd returned to BP. In order to avoid potential conflict of interest, this time he accepted a non-management position as a production operator. Cite Note #4, Cite Note #5


Michelle attended Princeton University, where she graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts in 1985. She obtainedher Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree from Harvard Law School in 1988.

Following law school, she was an associate at the Chicago office of the law firm Sidley Austin where she first met her husband. At the firm, she worked on marketing and intellectual property. Cite Note #6

Subsequently, she held public sector positions in the Chicago city government as an Assistant to the Mayor and Assistant Commissioner of Planning and Development. In 1993, she became Executive Director for the Chicago office of Public Allies, a non-profit organization encouraging young people to work on social issues in nonprofit groups and government agencies. Cite Note #7

In 1996, Obama served as the Associate Dean of Student Services at the University of Chicago, where she developed the University's Community Service Center.


Now who's the "coolest" spouse? A dog racing under educated union member? Or a highly educated African American woman who has worked inboth the profit and non-profit sectors?