We interrupt this column for a Generation X moment of silence. One of the greats of my youth, host of MTV's Remote Control, Ken Ober passed away this week.

With him went perhaps the last piece of my teenage life.

The Invincible Man

With President Obama's poll numbers in the tank, the economy still sputtering along with little hope for improvement, and the dollar slowly shriveling, is there any American impervious to the slings and arrows of our current fortune? Sure thing, but you have to be watching NASCAR to see it.

Apparently, Jimmie Johnson is Superman.

An unprecedented fourth straight title will be handed to him Sunday.

Maybe he ought to run for office. No matter what happens to him, he still comes back to win.

Don't call it a comeback

Sarah Palin was all over the news this week, and I'm tired of her. I don't think she's a worthwhile national candidate and her nomination certainly would be an admission that the GOP is conceding an eight-year presidency to the Democrats. But with the GOP's religious faithful, she's a darling.

That's enough to keep her in the spotlight and make me more than skeptical of her.

If my choice is between Obama and Palin in 2012, then my streak of voting Libertarian in presidential races is not under threat.

More harm than good

Palin's doing herself more harm than good if she really wants to compete for the GOP nomination in 2012. The book Palin just released is more about settling scores than shoring up her great weaknesses, so now she just looks bitter. If Palin wants to be taken seriously, she needs to write a book on policy, because she never showed the slightest bit of policy knowledge while on the trail. Establish your bona fides as a government executive officer, Sarah Palin, and then opinion about you might change.

Until then, you're just famous for being famous, one step above Kate Gosselin.

Chapman Rackaway is an associate professor of political science at Fort Hays State University.