The YDN Embarrasses Itself

The YDN published a column yesterday about Sarah Palin wearing a black bracelet with her son Track's name on it. Apparently doing so conclusively demonstrates her "horrifying contempt" for those who have made the ultimate sacrifice for America:

This brings me back to my issue with Palin. The name on her black memorial bracelet — one, like the gold star, a demonstration of a friend or associate who was killed in action — is that of her oldest son, Track. Track served honorably in Iraq, and both he and his parents should be thanked for his selfless service to his country. He is also alive.

Commemorating Track’s service by wearing a a black memorial bracelet which is reserved for those dead or even a red bracelet for those missing in action, demonstrates a horrifying contempt for those who gave their last full measure of devotion or an almost unbelievable ignorance of the importance of symbols in American history.

Unfortunately, given Palin’s reputation and frequent public statements, I assume it is the latter.

Take that Palin! You're unbelievably ignorant and you hate soldiers! Then again, maybe not. As Hot Air explains, black bracelets actually can be used to honor a loved one who has been deployed. Perhaps more to the point, her bracelet isn't even black! Mary Katharine Ham reports that she was given the bronze bracelet by the founder of a website called HeroesBracelets.org. The author of the piece, Eric Robinson, has added a correction to that effect:

In my column in the News Wednesday, I criticized former Alaska governor Sarah Palin for wearing a black memorial bracelet with her son’s name on it, as Track returned unharmed from Iraq last fall. However, Sarah Palin's bracelet was not black; instead, it was a dark brown "DeployedHero" bracelet worn by those who have loved ones currently serving in the military. The bracelet is different from the black one associated with men and women who are killed in action overseas. Recognizing this, I apologize to the governor and to any reader who might have been misled by my piece. I hope that this serves as an important lesson for anyone interested in the importance of these symbols.

That's a remarkably bland apology for a piece that made such overblown charges against Governor Palin. The last sentence, however, amuses me. Does Robinson really think that the lesson here has to do with the importance of symbols? I think that the real story here is Yalies like Robinson and the YDN editors allowing their distaste for Palin to lead them to make embarrassing mistakes. The "Sarah Palin is ignorant" narrative is a favorite on campus; add to that a line about Sarah Palin's "horrifying contempt" for fallen American soldiers and you have an article that could slip through the YDN's fact checking process. After all, nobody seemed to consider that (a) Sarah Palin would have no reason to deliberately wear the wrong kind of bracelet and (b) as a military mother, she probably knows a little about military symbolism. I respect Mr. Robinson for his service in Iraq and Afghanistan, but the real lesson here is that if you assume that everyone who disagrees with you is an idiot, sometimes you'll be left with egg on your face.