Palin-drone

A man, a plan, a canal—Panama! Sit on a potato pan, Otis...

No, these were not Sarah Palin's references to her understanding of foreign policy (though it may very well be - we still do not know), or a put down of Joe Biden. They are, in fact, palindromes... letters or expressions that can be spelled or used backwards or forwards.

How is this relevant to last night's Vice Presidential debate?

Sarah Palin's programmed coached expressions... her "verbiage" as she likes to say... were basically just that: backwards and forward, regardless of the question her answers were rote and simplistic enough they could be recited backwards and forward:

McCain and me are Mavericks, Mavericks are me and McCain.

Repeat ad nauseam.

Finally, Palin's statements, like most palindromes are utterly nonsensical.

I'm not saying that Palin's performance was a total disaster. She did make it through the debate without stumbling. Still, is that really the bar we've set for the Vice Presidency? I hope not, it's a pretty low standard. Besides, as Slate journalist Fred Kaplan points out: she still knows nothing about foreign policy!

So take heart, Democrats. McCain was the big loser. While Palin didn't implode as she did in the embarrassing Katie Couric interview(s) below, Joe Biden clearly won the debate. He was knowledgeable, restrained and Presidential. Safe to say that if those were the options available to describe Palin on a multiple choice exam she would be... none of the above.