Your Turn: Twins for Life

I notice the difference in their affect. Elder Palin is selling, and selling hard. Bristol is pulled back, guarded, almost shuttered. The whole thing is creepy.

the juxtaposition of the Palins’ photo with that of skeletal Rachel Zoe (a left-leaning Hollywood liberal?) is rather striking.

I’m glad they “chose” life, too. Great of them to acknowledge that women should have choices!

Trig is Palin’s favorite prop. Bristol is learning quick.

This is about selling Bristol. After all, she just started her own political PR and consulting business.

My take? Creepy and offensive.

The layout is so jam packed that I experienced several misdirections. First, I initially misread the main headline to read “we chose (to) live.” I had to look again for it to make sense. Then even the “correct” meaning did not make sense because it seems to conflate Bristol’s and Sarah’s pregnancy situations.
Then when I came back to look at the whole layout, I noticed the top sidebar header read “dangerous pregnancy” which brings to mind the reason that some women might make a different choice. Is that a rebuttal to the original headline or a sly comment or what? Angelina and Bristol’s heads are even facing away from each other like two halves of the same issue or possibly Janus heads? (If going with the subtle Janus head effect, they might stand in for the one-head-looking-into-the-past & one-head-looking-into-the-future idea. Look up Janus on Wikipedia for more ideas on that.)
From a visual perspective, although the layout is set up as a direct comparison or equation of the two women, Sarah seems in direct competition with her daughter, and determined to come out as the winner. It’s mostly Sarah’s expression and stance, as if she’s saying “I’m cuter! more vivacious! (just as) fertile!) and skinnier! than you!” The strange parallels with her daughter seem as weird as almost anything else these days. Makes me wonder how Bristol feels about her mother horning in on her own stage in life. The bottom headlines further trivialize Bristol. Sarah is Mother; Bristol is Mom. Sarah is finding more patience; Bristol is finding love. I laughed at the bottom header about “heartwarming family photos.” Heartwarming family competition?
Another visual element is that Sarah is wearing a more eye-catching color than Bristol (Bristol just can’t compete!). So even though our eyes will typically follow a layout from left to right, that red just keeps yanking our eyes back to Sarah. Good choice from a designer’s perspective – it keeps us moving around the composition even if the message is rather blunt. Even if Bristol is included, it’s all about Sarah.

Weird how mirror image this is. Were they photographed together or is this a photomontage? They both have the same posture only mirror image. Their legs in blue jeans look like mermaids’ fins.
Sarah’s baby was born in May 2008, Bristol’s in December 2008. They are 6 months apart in age. Yet they both look the same size. What’s up with that? Bristol looks larger and more substantial than her mother.
it looks like a sales ad. “We’re glad we chose life” sounds like “We’re glad we chose Bromo-Seltzer.” Or whatever. Well, of course they’re both selling something.

The baby that Sarah is holding was presented April 2008 but probably born a few months earlier while the baby that Bristol holds was presented February 2009 and probably born the month before. The two babies are more than likely closer to 11 months apart in age.

Where is Dan Qualye when you need him?
Isn’t this the glorification of single motherhood? Isn’t this encouraging teenage, unprotected sex? Isn’t this celebration of “life” really a celebration of the act that creates life, with two women of different generations, both physically attractive, showing the readers of “In Touch” that they, too, can be happy young mothers without men?
(I know Palin is married, but we don’t see that often, do we? And that’s not the emphasis, given that Bristol, in the headline, is already looking for more “love.” )
Unprotected teenage sex can lead to happy, smiling, young mothers on magazines covers! Yea! Let’s go get some!

That screaming yellow font gives off “DANGER!” vibes to me.

Maybe Bristol will ultimately grow up to be much smarter and world wise than her mother. At least that what I had to tell myself when I saw that mag. cover. Certainly, no state or nation needs or wants another Sarah Palin.

I see one “Mom” and three children.

Bristol looks as old as her mom. First.
Second, how easy it is to “choose life” when you can hand the baby off to an aide whenever you have anything to do, or have excellent all day child care, and don’t need to actually raise the child yourself.
However, these women would both deny choice to women whose lives are much more difficult than their own. They can play the happy mom card for all it’s worth. I’m not buying it.

Palin was paid $100,000 for the cover.

Choose life. Choose a job. Choose a career. Choose a family. Choose a fucking big television, Choose washing machines, cars, compact disc players, and electrical tin openers. Choose good health, low cholesterol and dental insurance. Choose fixed- interest mortgage repayments. Choose a starter home. Choose your friends. Choose leisure wear and matching luggage. Choose a three piece suite on hire purchase in a range of fucking fabrics. Choose DIY and wondering who you are on a Sunday morning. Choose sitting on that couch watching mind-numbing sprit-crushing game shows, stuffing fucking junk food into your mouth. Choose rotting away at the end of it all, pishing you last in a miserable home, nothing more than an embarrassment to the selfish, fucked-up brats you have spawned to replace yourself. Choose your future. Choose life…But why would I want to do a thing like that?