Letter to the Editor

I found your September 7th editorial on John McCain’s “shotgun marriage” to Sarah Palin interestingly ironic. Within the article you boldly point out McCain’s “preference for gut instinct over facts”, yet I found no instance in your own writing of accusations backed up with proven facts or evidence of research.
I find myself perplexed, not by your unconfirmed accusations or your twisting of information, but by your constant questioning of who Sarah Palin really is. My question to you is- why not go research it yourself? So far, you and many others have defined Sarah Palin solely by unproven allegations made against her by her opponents. At first, I thought you were taking a step in the right direction by actually asking who the real Sarah Palin is. However, it then became apparent that you never had the intention of answering your own question. My guess is that you know behind all the superficial gossip, we will find Sarah Palin to be an honest hard working woman, who is very capable of being a Vice Presidential candidate.
And yes, maybe then you can finally stop wasting our time questioning whether she actually shot a moose.
I think your constant unanswered question also leads us to a deeper issue- your inability to do credible research. I will admit that I don’t know the truth about Sarah Palin’s past but how do you? Frank Rich, writer for the New York Times, how do you know more about Palin’s indiscretions than even the FBI? I am almost positive that not even they have confirmed the statements that you hold as facts in your article. Therefore, my argument with you is not what I believe Sarah Palin did or did not do, but where in the world you did your research or lack thereof.
Once again, you bring up the issue of Palin’s vetting process, I ask you- where’s the beef? You claimed that Sarah Palin’s biological details were “invented for her”. I searched the paragraph over and over and found that your only indication of proof was that “the Times had it right”. According to whom? Which FBI agent volunteered the information that Palin never got a background check? I’m not looking to prove one thing or another; however, I find that issues concerning our next president or vice president should be backed up by more than “because the Times says so”.
You so brilliantly ended your article with the statement “America loves nothing more than a new celebrity face”. Well Mr. Rich, I think I agree with you. But even more than that, I think we like our ability to take a good person and magnify every little flaw, until that good person no longer exists in the public eye.
Any writer can spread gossip in an effort to prove a point or entertain. However, it takes a courageous writer to use only what he can prove.


Authors Note:
This is definitely my first draft of writing. It's pretty much what came flying out of my head and onto a piece of paper yesterday when I sat down to write.

I'm not sure that I like how the article sounds yet. I'm happy with the content and what I am arguing just not how I go about it so far. When re-reading it I found that it sounds very judgmental and harsh and I don't think that's how I want it to come across. I think in the next draft I'm definitely going to edit a lot.

Any grammar suggestions (because I know I'm horrible at that) and any suggestions on rewording or how you think I should make it sound "nicer" would be greatly appreciated.