The Palin family are no strangers to controversy. It was only September of last year that they were involved in a drunken brawl at a party in Anchorage, Alaska.

This time around Sarah Palin herself has posted photos on Facebook showing her six year-old son Trig, who suffers from Down Syndrome, standing on the back of the family’s Labrador in order to reach the sink.

Palin failed to see how the pictures might raise a few eyebrows, commenting:

May 2015 see every stumbling block turned into a stepping stone on the path forward.

Trig just reminded me. He, determined to help wash dishes with an oblivious mama not acknowledging his signs for ‘up!’, found me and a lazy dog blocking his way. He made his stepping stone.

The post has so far garnered over 12 000 comments, with some praising her son’s ingenuity and others lambasting her for allowing the dog to be stepped on.

Whilst I’m sure most of us would agree it is all relatively harmless, I struggle to understand how she wouldn’t be aware of the inevitable backlash that will follow. Must be the thin air up around them parts.

Huffington Post has the full story here.