Every time I see a "Palin for President" bumper sticker in a Wal-Mart parking lot, it makes me think how easily she could have grown up right here in Louisiana.   It's not just her spunky independent streak -- it's also her penchant for shooting wolves out of a helicopter, cooking moose chili and hauling in a big net full of fish from the bow of her husband's boat.  After all, if she had grown up Cajun, this woman would be a deer huntin', frog giggin', crawfish boilin', bass boat fishin', rogue goin', tiara wearin' Queen of whatever festival  her hometown happened to celebrate.  And she would still be both revered and reviled by the public while the news media tried to figure out her somewhat unusual hometown culture. 

But let's face it -- the fact that she's got a stomach for blood being spilled in both hunting wild game and skewering political opponents would make her fit right in many a Louisiana hamlet. 

Not to mention, she's got the mandatory family sex scandal with her teenage daughter getting pregnant by a sexy high-school drop-out oil field worker, and an interesting little side story about discovering she was pregnant with her youngest son while on a trip to New Orleans. 

Yes, Sarah Palin is the Britney Spears of politics -- while detractors may wish she was a flash in the pan, rest assured she's going nowhere any time soon. 

She has mastered the fine art of inspiring conservative women and flirting with conservative men just enough to get her way.  Just look how ineffective McCain and his campaign managers have been in saying her book is fantasy.  It certainly hasn't hurt her crowds.

And while Democrats crown her the future of the Republican Party and Saturday Night Live portrays a potential 2012 Presidency as a disaster movie of epic proportions, she's still on the road again in a luxury tour bus like Willie Nelson, still singing the songs they love to hear. 

Her only enemy is herself -- and that is a formidable one.  Calling off a book signing early in Indiana without signing a book for everyone with the requisite wrist band that had been issued for crowd control, she ended up getting booed out of town by disappointed fans.  Even with her carrying her baby in her arms like a shield against their disappointment,  jilted fans got nasty and demanded refunds for pre-sold but un-autographed books. 

You see, Sarah's feisty demeanor gives and it takes away.  They love her for it, and when the tired celebrity in her brushes them off, they are the quickest to turn on her. Even Joe the Plumber has come out against her running for President. 

But why should she?  As a candidate, she will be held to facts and interviewed by serious journalists.  As a political phenomenon, anything goes. 
So get used to those Louisiana Wal-Mart moms with Palin for President bumper stickers -- they just might see a little bit of themselves in her.  Which might just make the next queen of the Etouffee Festival take a look at running for Mayor of Arnaudville.