I can't stop chuckling about, "Putin rears his ugly head and flies into our airspace!"

Putin is defintiely a ruthless thug with way too much power, but this quote makes it seem like he is a fire-breathing dragon who rears his ugly head and flies over Alaska scorching villages! I can see Palin standing there with a Bible in one hand and the Magical Sword of Freedom in the other, fending off the evil Putin-dragon! "Begone foul beast who rears his ugly head! I am on a mission from God to send you back to your reeking lair!"

But all joking aside, does Palin actually have any responsibility for defending Alaskan airspace from Russia? I'm not sure even what the real point is that she is trying to make here. It's some colorful imagery, but what does it even mean?

I know I don't want her as VP, but now I'm not sure I even want her as governor of Alaska! What the hell is she doing up there? "Hello, Mister President? Sorry to bother you, but I thought you should know that I scrambled some Alaska Air National Guard fighters today and had 'em shoot down a Russian spy. Yeah. I think it was Putin rearing his ugly head and coming into our airspace again! Okey-dokey, have a nice day!"