Bush Derangement Syndrome never really went away. Nowadays it's directed at Sarah Palin instead.
A good example of Palin's uncanny ability to unhinge liberals could be heard on a recent Randi Rhodes' radio show.
Rhodes, who infamously derided Hillary Clinton as a "big f***ing whore" during the 2008 campaign, was angered by Palin wearing a Star of David pendant during a stopover in New York City on her bus tour. (audio clip after page break).
Here's how Rhodes described it, after initially complaining about Palin keeping her distance from "lamestream media" (audio here) --
RHODES: Why are we gonna ask her difficult questions? And she knows she doesn't ever have to talk to the media and if she wins the primary and gets the party's nomination, then the next time we'll see Sarah Palin will be in a debate. And that is the only time that Sarah Palin will answer any questions. She's going to go through this entire thing without answering any of the 'lamestream media's' questions. That's just a tactic.
But you know what you really should have noticed? The day before she goes to New York, she's a biker chick dressed in black leather from head to toe with a helmet. Then she goes to New York City -- suddenly, she's a Jew! (pause for effect) Did you see she was wearing a giant diamond Star of David around her neck?
CALLER: No, I missed that. Is that when she was eating pizza?
RHODES: Yeah, she's actually wearing a giant Star of David around her neck in New York City. I mean, the nerve of this br-, she is like, she's like a chameleon! She rides with the bikers, she wears biker garb. Then she goes to New York, she becomes an uber-Zionist and she's wearing a Jewish, a giant, giant Star of David.
Never let it be said that size doesn't matter to Rhodes, at least when it comes to Palin's "giant" jewelry.
What Rhodes neglects to mention is the reason that Palin wore a Star of David, as stated by Palin. According to the Jerusalem Post --
Palin, who visited the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island with her daughter Piper, told NBC New York that she was wearing the Star of David in honor of Jerusalem Day, which marks the city's reunification under Israeli sovereignty during the Six Day War in 1967.
Observers have suggested that she wore the necklace in order to drum up support among Jewish New Yorkers for a possible 2012 bid for president.
While it may be more than Rhodes can fathom, devout Christians like Palin have been among the staunchest defenders of Israel for decades and this is unlikely to change anytime soon. Palin did not leave her religion behind by her choice of pendant, any more than a Catholic does by wearing a yarmulke to a friend's synagogue.
Christianbook.com, a site "serving the Christian community for 30 years," sells Star of David jewelry and few among its regular visitors consider this unusual.
Brian Maloney at The Radio Equalizer nailed it in his analysis of Rhodes' remarks --
Combine impromptu stops deep in (forbidden) blue country with (truly forbidden) symbolism and the result is "progressive" derangement.
