The XX Factor: What women really think.

I'm Having a Nightmare ...

... about tonight's debate, and it looks like this. Emily, after reading about your efforts to tamp down the sisterly sympathy for Palin, and then reading about Judith Warner's sudden wave of affection for her ("I saw a woman fully aware that she was out of her league, scared out of her wits, hanging on for dear life"), it came to me clearly. One month ago, Palin sank her teeth into the national scene. She gave a speech that electrified some and terrified others. She was bold and sexy and took on enemies without anyone's help. Women could love her or love to hate her but the furthest thing from their minds was pity.

Now, slowly, slowly, they have sapped her mojo. Who is they? Charlie Gibson, Barack Obama, Katie Couric, us, the president of Harvard, Stephen Breyer—the whole cabal. Joe Biden might behave perfectly tonight—reign in his babalicious comments, his condescension, his pomposity, follow all the Dahlia rules—and still he won't prevent this new image of Palin forming: the new girl who is trying her best but stumbling and then getting mercilessly teased. After all, anyone who does not torture kittens for fun can not help but feel sorry for Palin as she fails to answer the question about other Supreme Court decisions she disagrees with—truly one of the most painful few seconds of television ever.

Even Couric tried to keep her voice as gentle as possible in the follow up—"Can you think of any?" she purred. But still, the new Couric is not so popular. The Couric people—and especially women—adored is the old one, the one who would have defended a woman who had dared to take on the villains of her small town and then been robbed of her glory. Who cares if her favorite philosopher is a columnist from Runner's World? Who cares if she ditched one of her colleges because it was raining too much? The bottom line in the wide world of ex-Couric and Oprah voters is, she's one of the sisters, and she needs our help. 

I realize none of my worries are borne out by the poll numbers. The Palin effect has faded, McCain is down in the polls, etc. But images take a while to jell. And my fear is, the image of Palin as victim, deserving of sympathy, will emerge clearly before the nation tonight.