Cashman: I'll take your points. First, let me state that it's not conservatism that I'm against - I just think Palin is the wrong person to take up the banner. It's like how the GOP was *salivating* over the prospect of Hillary as the Democrat nominee since she was so easy to beat in an election - there was so much to use against her. One could be snarky and say that she was so easy to beat that a junior senator from Illinois with no experience beat her.

Can you expand on that? "Conservative Values" cover a *lot* of ground and, if that were the case, the 'conservative' candidate would win with, presumably, 75% of the vote. Now, mind you, I'm going on my own experience here, but it seems to me that the candidate most likely to 'catch fire' with the public is one who has a touch of both. I'll explain.

Fiscal Conservative - we all want our tax money being spent wisely, not on bridges to nowhere. Oddly enough, despite all the discontent, we are apparently the envy of the world when it comes to compliance rates when paying our taxes. We want to know that we're getting our money's worth and, I think most of us here would agree, there's a lot of waste out there. Heck, my own job has waste in it. But the government appears to want to convert my position from a contractor to an 'organic' position - which means instead of a defense contractor getting paid and paying me, the government will pay me directly - and save a LOT of money in the process.

Social Liberal - By that I mean the sense that we have in this country of "you have your business, I have mine - and we keep our noses out of each other's private matters". In other words, it doesn't matter if I have a gay couple living next door. Doesn't affect me in the least. It doesn't matter if other people are doing things THAT DO NOT IMPINGE ON MY RIGHTS. You know, the old "your right to swing your fist ends at my nose" sentiment. But with that should come PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY (something that seems to be lacking all too much in today's Professional Victimhood ethos).

Maintain a basic social safety net as a TEMPORARY helping hand to people who have fallen on hard times and provide services that promote the general welfare (defense, transportation network, justice system, etc) and you have a good mix.

She's never had her values tested - not as governor. She kept the oil money flowing as welfare checks to the citizens of Alaska, right wrong or indifferent. You could *almost* be a trained monkey and run Alaska because of the oil revenues.

Means nothing. Northern Ireland was just about 100% Christian and look what it did for them until recently. What kind of Christian? Perhaps the Seventh Day Adventists who came from a following that believed the world was ending in the 1800s? The Jehovah's Witnesses who've had several end-of-the-world dates? Catholic (which I was raised) who protected and promoted child rapists while telling me I would go to hell for eating a hamburger on a Friday? Any of the evangelical sects that have the head preacher railing aginst various evils, then checking into motels at night to perform those same said evils?

ALL countries are based on a Constitution. Ever read the one for China? It's a fascinating read. George Bush said he believed in the Constitution yet repeatedly violated it (in different ways than people say Obama wants to violate it). Palin won't get to be judged on this, though.

Any sane person does. Even the most flaming liberals I know believe that. It's just what you do with said private sector where the arguments start. Do you let them run free and unregulated in some sort of Objectivist Utopia? The financial collapse showed the folly of that. Most people I know might not agree with everything the FDA does, but they want someone inspecting the meat so that we find out problems that result in meat recalls, not people dying and THEN having an investigation start.

We've managed to do exactly that to several hundred terrorists. They're behind bars and aren't escaping. If there's one thing we're good at here in this country, it's building prisons.

Look, I agree with MANY conservative principles. I just think Sarah Palin is the WRONG person to be leading the charge. A lot of people will dismiss her because of the things she's done. She's no Ronald Reagan.