“Before her meteoric rise to political success as governor, just two short years ago Sarah Palin was the mayor of Wasilla. I had a good chuckle at MSN.com’s claim that she had been the mayor of ‘Wasilla City’. It is not a city — just Wasilla. Wasilla is the heart of the Alaska Bible belt, and Sarah was raised amongst the tribe that believes creationism should be taught in our public schools, homosexuality is a sin, and life begins at conception. She’s a gun-toting, hang ’em high conservative. Remember — this is where her approval ratings come from.

Don’t tread on us!

“There is no doubt that McCain again is making a strategic choice to appeal to a particular demographic — fundamentalist right-wing, gun-owning Christians. And Republican bloggers are already gushing about how she has ‘more executive experience’ than Obama does!
“Above is a picture of lovely downtown Wasilla, for those of you unfamiliar with the area. Behind the Mug-Shot Saloon (the first bar I visited when I moved to Alaska long ago) is a little strip mall. There are street signs in Wasilla with bullet holes in them. Wasilla has a population of about 5500 people, and 1979 occupied housing units. This is where your potential Vice President was two short years ago. Can you imagine her negotiating a nuclear non-proliferation treaty? Discussing foreign policy? Understanding non-Alaskan issues?
“Frankly, I don’t even know if she’s ever been out of the country. She may ‘get’ Alaska, but there are only a half a million people here. Don’t get me wrong. I love Alaska with all my heart. I’m just saying.” — from “What Is McCain Thinking?,” a piece by “AKMuckraker,” the author–proprietor of Mudflats, an Alaskan-perspective blog written by a semi-native (i.e., a guy who’s lived there since ’91).
Sidenote: Former porn star April Flowers (retired since ’05) grew up in Wasillia.