Refudiating Reason: Palin slides further down slippery slope of senselessness

It seems Sarah Palin is one step closer to following in the footsteps of her self-proclaimed "political heroine", Margaret Thatcher.

No, I am not talking about the possibility of Palin getting elected to high office. Like Thatcher in recent years, Palin seems to be suffering from the onset of dementia.


Granted, she did always have a head start. Many of those who have followed her career have long suspected she may have a couple of screws loose. Who can forget her contention during the 2008 presidential campaign that being Governor of Alaska gave her foreign policy credentials because "you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska".

More recently, Palin's credentials as an easy target for ridicule were boosted when she tweeted that "peaceful Muslims" should "refudiate" the mosque being built in New York City near where the Twin Towers once stood. This latest Palin outburst inspired me to draw on my dubious skills as an amateur psychologist (I majored in psychology at university) to diagnose her mental condition. After extensive Googling, I have come to the conclusion that Palin is more likely to be suffering from schizophasia than dementia.

Schizophasia is defined as a mental condition which is characterized by incoherent babbling which is compulsive or intentional, but nonsensical. In most cases, the affected individual will reveal speech that is incessant and quick, derailment of idea flow, thought blocking, and the occurrence called ‘word salad’ wherein the words uttered may be intact, but the general thought is incomprehensible.

For example, take Palin's twitter response to the widespread mockery of her "refudiate" comment. Proudly mistaking her illiteracy for literary genius, she stated: "Refudiate,' 'misunderestimate,' 'wee-wee'd up.' English is a living language. Shakespeare liked to coin new words too. Got to celebrate it!"  

I could have forgiven her for "refudiate" but comparing herself to the bard himself definitely puts her beyond the pale. (By the way, Google says that delusions of grandeur are another common symptom of mental disorder).

Unfortunately, the main difference between Palin and typical sufferers of schizophasia is that her condition seems to be contagious, as attested to by the xenophobic mania that seems to be spreading through America like wildfire.