Sarah Palin is easily the most recognizable woman in North American politics. While Palin has little experience and few accomplishments under her belt, the former governor of Alaska has become iconic. Despite my love of – nay, obsession with – Tina Fey, I feel that the comedian is partially to blame for the over-exposure Palin has received. For weeks leading up to the 2008 election, I devoured every Palin-impersonation Tina Fey performed. Admit it; you did too. It was pure gold. And just a little bit frightening.  The  more ridiculous Fey’s impersonations became, the closer they seemed to Palin’s actual appearances. It was much like trying to figure out whether it was Oprah or Joel Osteen that coined recognizable inspirational statements.

Recently, Palin hit the headlines again. This time, she’s following in the footsteps of George W. Bush and creating her own words and pronunciations. Check out this clip:

That’s right. The Obama’s are yet to “refudiate” claims that the Tea Party movement is innately racist. Refudiate.

Had the woman any grace or poise, she would have moved on, unfazed, instead of trying to make “refudiate” a word. Instead, Palin tweeted the following:

“‘Refudiate,’ ‘misunderestimate,’ ‘wee-wee’d up.’ English is a living language. Shakespeare liked to coin new words too. Got to celebrate it!”

She actually dug herself deeper into the whole by using a phrase I’ve personally never heard before – “wee-wee’d up.” Such abuse of the English language is enough to convince me that Palin is a harbinger of the apocalypse. Unless Harry, Ron, and Hermione can find and destroy all of Dick Cheney’s horcruxes, this might just be the end of the world as we know it.

But I digress!

I think Palin sends several negative messages to young women:

1. It’s okay to be stupid. As long as you look pretty.
2. Playing down any shred of intelligence you may have is alright. People find stupid women charming!
3. Be more concerned with what you’re putting on top of your head than what you’re putting inside.
4. Never take ownership of your mistakes or accept constructive criticism.
5. Be quick to speak and slow to think.

She’s a terrible role model.  And our world is seriously lacking strong female role models for young girls.

It’s not funny anymore. I can’t honestly say I find a single thing about her amusing. I would really, really, REALLY like the Republican party to front one intelligent, educated, articulate female figurehead just to prove that it’s possible. Until then, we’re stuck with Palin and Coulter. That’s enough to keep my feet firmly planted in the Democrats’ camp.

Let’s all ignore her and hope that she goes away. That always worked in grade school…