The rumors that Trig Palin was actually the son of Bristol Palin were started last spring by Republicans in Alaska that don't like Sarah Palin. None of the well-trafficked left-wing bloggers ran with this rumor. It appeared in diaries submitted by users and on lower trafficked blogs that are not usually associated with the blogosphere. We used good judgment and respect in not racing off to push unfounded rumors affecting a 17-year old girl. Andrew Sullivan is not a part of the left-wing blogosphere. He is a reformed Republican.
But more offensive than this false charge that the 'leftosphere and their pals in the MSM' pushed this rumor is the idea that 'decent Americans of all political stripes [should] respect their wish to keep the young couple out of the news.' It is the Palins that decided to put the young couple in the news. And not just the news. This will become a topic of discussion in every country in the world. Everyone will now know that Bristol Palin had underage, out-of-wedlock sex, and became pregnant. They'll know it in Buenos Aires and in Khartoum. They'll know it in Ho Chi Minh City and they'll know it Saskatoon. That's not the fault of the 'leftosphere' or the fault of Andrew Sullivan. It's the Palins fault for accepting the nomination to be vice-president. Bristol Palin is going to have a baby in December or January. Did they think the world wouldn't notice? . . . .
This is an invasion of stupidity into the body politic. John McCain probably never asked whether Bristol Palin was pregnant because that would be rude. He probably asked, "Is there anything else that you can think of that might embarrass the campaign?" And the Palins probably furrowed their brows and thought very hard and then said, "Nope, nothing we can think of."
But even if they did tell John McCain that their seventeen year-old daughter was pregnant and then decided to wait until Hurricane Gustav made landfall to divulge that information, it still isn't our fault that sheepherders in New Zealand will know all about little Bristol's premarital sex. That's their fault for not protecting their daughter.