In today's "Wavy Rule," Paul continues his wine labels series with a kind of northern wine we'd rather not be drinking come November. Click to enlarge!

Paul adds: Like most of America, I had no idea Wasilla ever existed before it became a name uttered by thousands of pundits, voters, orators, and average people in the street. The Wikipedia article on the town has seen a lot of activity recently. And I don't mean the article on the Sarmatian god of the same name. Let's face it: it's a small town, no matter how the Republicans spin it. And there's nothing wrong with small towns. The United States is dotted with small towns, from Stovepipe Wells, California, to Iceboro, Maine. But saying that running a small town qualifies one to run a country is something of a stretch. That wouldn't even be so bad if the corollary of that argument wasn't always added: that Obama is less qualified or experienced because he's never been an "executive." The implication is that an "executive" is necessarily of a higher rank than a "legislator" no matter what, even if that executive is the mayor of a small Alaskan town and the legislator is a United States Senator.

The official website for the town of Wasilla has added a section called Questions & Answers Concerning Former Mayor Palin. The only actual question on the page, and on the bottom of it, is "What are the duties of the Mayor of Wasilla?" If you click on that, you are taken to "Document Central." Click where it says "City Documents--Recently Requested--Former Mayor Palin," and again on the bottom of the page, is a link to a PDF document titled "What are the duties of the Mayor of Wasilla?"

That document is three pages long. A description of the mayor's actual duties fill up one of those pages. A description of the mayor's salary is on page 3. If someone can send me a document listing the duties of a U.S. Senator, I'd be happy to compare the two.

More by Paul Morris: "The Wavy Rule" archive; "Arnjuice," a wistful, funny webcomic; a smorgasbord at Flickr; and beautifully off-kilter cartoon collections for sale (and free download) at Lulu.