Paying homage to our favorite Presidents. A comparison of writing styles.

In a rather bizarre coincidence both our President, the esteemed Barack Obama, and some chick living in the meth capital of the world, posted articles honoring their favorite Presidents on the same day.

Our current President's article turned up in the Atlantic, a well respected magazine with high journalistic standards, while this other person's musing were posted on Facebook, a place where teenage girls complain to their friends about the zit on the forehead that totally appeared right before prom.

Let us compare them shall we?

Here is a portion of what the President wrote:

Lincoln is the President I turn to often. From time to time, I’ll walk over to the Lincoln Bedroom and reread the handwritten Gettysburg Address encased in glass, or reflect on the Emancipation Proclamation, which hangs in the Oval Office, or pull a volume of his writings from the library in search of lessons to draw. 

Always thoughtful, always eloquent, Lincoln’s writings speak to me as they speak to so many Americans, reminding us what is best about ourselves and the Union he saved: that though we may have our differences, we are one people, and we are one nation, united by a common creed. 

That, I believe, is why, a century and a half after he took office, Lincoln is revered by the American people. Such reverence is richly deserved, but it comes at a cost. The Lincoln who holds a place in our national memory is less a man than an icon—a face carved in black hills, a marble giant towering over us on a mall. 

Abraham Lincoln, photographed by Alexander Gardner on February 5, 1865.

 What makes Alexander Gardner’s print so resonant, then, is its humanity. Here is Lincoln as he was, his eyes weary, his forehead wrinkled, wearing an expression, wrote a poet, of “deep latent sadness.” But Gardner also captures something else. An eyebrow, arched. An upturned lip. The faintest hint of a smile. There is, in the photographer’s print, something of his subject’s spirit.

Exceedingly well written, this article captures the essence of the man that Obama admires so much, while separating him from the trappings of the idolatry which keeps us from recognizing, and accessing, his humanity.

Clearly the President has a deep and abiding affection for our 16th president.

Now let's hear from the Lunatic on Lake Lucille.

I had the privilege of coming of age during the era of Ronald Reagan. I like to think of him as America's lifeguard. As a teenager, Ronald Reagan saved 77 lives as a lifeguard on the Rock River, which ran through his hometown of Dixon, Ill. The day he was inaugurated in 1981, a local radio announcer famously declared, "The Rock River flows for you tonight, Mr. President." 

The image of the lifeguard seems to represent what Reagan was to America and to the freedom-loving people of the world. He lifted our country up at a time when we were in the depths of economic, cultural and spiritual malaise. We were told that we must accept that the era of American greatness was over; but with his optimism and common sense, President Reagan held up a mirror to the American soul to remind us of our exceptionalism. 

We are all so grateful for his courage and leadership; and like President Reagan, we believe that our best days are yet to come because “there will always be a bright dawn ahead” for America.

(The rest of the post was an orgy of self congratulatory back patting, for articles Palin had others write for her, which are beneath notice and only useful in convincing the paint chip eaters that she is still relevant. That is why I focused on the portion about Reagan.)

Written by a ghostwriter last year, and cut and pasted into yesterday's Facebook post, this reads like a middle school history paper written by a D student after quickly skimming Wikipedia to learn about her subject.

And rather than lend a sense of dignity to her supposed idol, as Obama so carefully did for his, she instead conjured up an image of a damp skinny kid wearing a ridiculous swimsuit.

Not exactly the image that cries out for a place on Mt. Rushmore now is it?

I know it is unfair to compare an intellect as sophisticated and multifaceted as our President's to one that can barely remember how to get a wig to fit properly on her head, but if you are going to present yourself to the world as a political pundit, you invite comparisons with people who make you look as if you are still moving your lips when you sound out the words to "One fish, Two Fish."

By the way, I have every confidence that the President wrote every word of his article, whereas the Grizzled Mama undoubtedly sent a barely coherent text and then took credit for the hard work of RAM, the saddest little Palin-bot of them all.