Well, I don’t get excited about politics and politicians, because I think we have deep cultural problems that aren’t amenable to political solutions. If you want political excitement, visit the political blogs, which are buzzing today with reactions to the speech and with a higher-than-usual level of liberal-conservative Democrat-Republican acrimony. However, I will say that I mostly liked the speech, and I mostly like her. Comparisons have been made to Barack Obama’s early speeches, some of which impressed me, though I later decided that there wasn’t really a great deal of substance there.

She seems to be a reformist small-government social conservative, which I think is what we need, and I hope she stays that way. She also seems to be the kind of citizen-executive that I think the founders intended us to have, so I found myself feeling hopeful and rather Frank-Capra-ish. But my fundamental pessimism remains, because it’s rooted in a gloomy view of the condition of the American people who are, after all, still the ultimate power in this country. Here’s something I posted in a comment on the Caelum et Terra blog a week or two ago:

The right wants an extremely powerful national security state; the left wants an extremely powerful welfare state; the center wants both. No one much wants to pay for either of them.

In this context liberty means the freedom to do and have whatever you want without serious consequences. E.g. sex without marriage or babies or health hazards. E.g. cheap energy without drilling or digging or refining or fission. E.g. perfect health care at no cost. E.g. global military hegemony without loss of American lives. E.g. dirt-cheap merchandise without loss of American jobs or wages. E.g. dirt-cheap labor with no illegal immigration.

In arguing with some objectivists on my blog, I’ve found myself agreeing with them about one thing: reality always has the final word.

America, meet reality. You aren’t going to be friends.

If I start thinking that people like Sarah Palin and Bobby Jindal (governor of Louisiana) represent a trend, I may perk up a little.

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