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Dear Readers,
Pundits and politicians have hailed Sarah Palin's surprising selection as John McCain's running mate as a sign that the end of discrimination against women in the workplace is here. Even Barack Obama, McCain's rival in the race for the U.S. presidency, cited her quick elevation to the national stage as "one more indicator of this country moving forward."
Palin herself reinforced the idea: "Hillary left 18 million cracks in the highest, hardest glass ceiling in America. But it turns out the women of America aren't finished yet, and we can shatter that glass ceiling once and for all."
Unfortunately, Palin's selection is more hyperbolic than helpful. Breaking the glass ceiling does not mean elevating women to positions for which they are largely unqualified. During her first few weeks in the limelight, Palin has proven that women can sound tough and look pretty at the same time. I suppose that is some sort of breakthrough for people with limited views of women's strengths. But her behavior as a job applicant - which is comparable in many basic ways whether you aspire to be vice president of a company or of the United States - is littered with gaffes that may further sully the prospects of other women seeking to get ahead.
In her first few weeks in the race, Palin has committed three major missteps - enough to sink anyone's job hunt:
1) Stretching the truth on your résumé.
2) Overstating your skills.
3) Being unprepared to answer interviewers' questions.
Palin's résumé for political purposes amounts to the public recitation of her responsibilities as Governor of Alaska and Mayor of Wasilla. Initial claims about her responsibilities as head of the Alaska National Guard and her political stance on the "Bridge to Nowhere" have been widely discredited. The first was overblown, the second was misleading. Both types of misstatement would raise questions of honesty in any job interviewer's mind.
Observed Donald Trump after Radio Shack and Bausch & Lomb executives lost their jobs over inaccurate résumés: "This is serious stuff. Good executives don't want liars to lead their companies. And you can't blame them. After all, if you don't think twice about lying on a job application, chances are you cheated in school and maybe you cheat in your day-to-day business dealings."
Palin's second misstep is equally foolish, as anyone who has tried it knows. Overstating your skills can hurt you once you are on the job and cannot deliver as promised. Palin's unfamiliarity with foreign policy is better admitted to than glossed over. If her employers - in this case, U.S. citizens - are to trust her judgment, they need to know that she is as honest about what she does not know as about what she does.
Finally, Palin proved by her lackluster responses in her first nationally broadcast interview that she had little beyond scripted answers to tough but logical questions about her record, including her views on the connection between religion and policy. Interviewees must be well-prepared both for expected queries and the inevitable surprises.
Of course Palin was hampered by the short lead time she had to prepare for the interview. But that only underlines the fact that her selection was premature. Rather than pick a woman who has the moxie to crash through the glass ceiling, McCain handed Palin a glass slipper. Over time her fairy tale appeal is sure to vanish as a more realistic assessment of her track record comes into focus. By overlooking the female politicians in his party who are truly qualified to do the job, McCain made more visible the persistent cracks in his - and our society's - own thinking.
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