Sarah Palin's Independence Day and Women in the Spotlight

So why did she do it? That's the question being bandied about both in Washington and -- as the beleaguered former governor herself might put it -- in the pro-America parts of America. Why would a first-term governor with a political resume scarcely long enough to fill a Post-it note and an uncertain political future, chuck her home state just two years in with barely a cursory explanation? One may as well ask why the sky is blue.

Well, the sky is blue because molecules in the atmosphere scatter blue light and, as for Sarah Palin, I don't know. But I do know that her announcement seems calculated to send a message: She is very, very annoyed with the extra attention she and her family have received -- more attention, she seems to think, than most politicians get. The timing, the day before July 4, seems to convey this too. I'm not exactly sure, but I suspect this may be the political equivalent of a Feb. 13 breakup -- and, yes, in case you were wondering, it's definitely not her, it's you.

I hate to accuse Alaska's governor of complaining -- but after all, her own impatience with powerful female politicians complaining of extra scrutiny is well documented. But, can Sarah Palin both criticize minute scrutiny of her own life and family, while also criticizing other women for feeling the glare of the spotlight?

Sure, she can -- but unless she acknowledges that what she's complaining of isn't limited to her, it seems like she's trying to have her cake and eat it too. I think some of the criticism leveled at Sarah Palin was sexist. I think more of it was extremely fair. All the same, I admit I did choke a little on my own Independence Day cupcake -- patriotically decorated with red and blue sprinkles, because that's the way we do it in the pro-America parts of America -- when I heard CNN's Rick Sanchez cheerily speculating on whether pregnancy made her do it.