…and this is a 
That wacky know-nothing up north, Sarah Palin, has quit her job as governor. She doesn't give a good reason why; in an annoyingly chipper speech, she whines about the way she was being scrutinized for ethics violations, and the fact that she was currently an ineffective lame duck governor, and then announces that she's stepping down from office. It makes no sense at all, and it does say something about the weakness of her character.
Brave Dame Sarah ran away.
("No!")
Bravely ran away away.
("I didn't!")
When danger reared it's ugly shead,
She bravely turned her tail and fled.
("no!")
Yes, brave Dame Sarah turned about
("I didn't!")
And gallantly she chickened out.
Bravely taking ("I never did!") to her feet,
She beat a very brave retreat.
("all lies!")
Bravest of the braaaave, Dame Sarah!
("I never!")
Remember this if (when) she runs for president in 2012. Who wants a president who at the first minor crisis turns her office over to the vice president and runs away?
Politics
Comments
Posted by: naughty savage | July 3, 2009 4:36 PM
Please, sir -- do not sully Monty Python so!
Posted by: Krystalline Apostate | July 3, 2009 4:36 PM
Rumor has it she's looking @ running in 2012.
Too bad the world will have ended by then. ;)
Posted by: Jadehawk, OM
|
July 3, 2009 4:41 PM
if this is the quality of competition for 2012, Democrats will have to commit Seppuku if they manage to lose.
Posted by: daedalus2u | July 3, 2009 4:41 PM
In her case, yes I would want her to run away at the first hint of even a minor crisis. Actually before there is a crisis. Actually, before she is inaugurated, before she is elected, before she is nominated, before she even enters the race.
Posted by: Brad Walters | July 3, 2009 4:42 PM
I'm sorry, Sarah. I can't hear you over the sound of how awesome Barack Obama is.
Posted by: Arnold Facepalmer | July 3, 2009 4:43 PM
I'm sure god told her to.
Posted by: Red John | July 3, 2009 4:43 PM
Good riddance. Hopefully this will be the end of her political career.
Posted by: Tommykey | July 3, 2009 4:43 PM
Palin/Sanford 2012!
Posted by: Hank Fox | July 3, 2009 4:43 PM
She's preparing to become Hive Queen when the Red States stage their secession bid and establish Rushtopia.
Posted by: daveau
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July 3, 2009 4:44 PM
You'd think she'd have to complete at least one term as governor if she wants to run for prez. There must be something else going on. Talk radio? A scandal that we don't know about? Maybe it is just her lack of character.
Seriously, I'd love to see her vs. Obama in 2012.
Posted by: Josh | July 3, 2009 4:46 PM
Anyone wondering if there she did something we don't yet know about...? Another ethics scandal in the wings that hasn't come out?
Posted by: Luke | July 3, 2009 4:46 PM
I just watched her farewell speech on CNN, her usual breathless rambling and impossibly long sentences. The funniest part was at the end when the camera panned around and showed her audience. About six people.
Posted by: Brad Walters | July 3, 2009 4:46 PM
My guess is she's been offered her own show on Fox news. Her show: "Fairly unbalanced".
Posted by: FatherNature
|
July 3, 2009 4:47 PM
I can't wait to hear what Dave Letterman says about this. You betcha.
Posted by: Darren Garrison | July 3, 2009 4:47 PM
"no-nothing"?
Posted by: daedalus2u | July 3, 2009 4:49 PM
In her case, yes I would want her to run away at the first hint of even a minor crisis. Actually before there is a crisis. Actually, before she is inaugurated, before she is elected, before she is nominated, before she even enters the race.
Posted by: Kseniya | July 3, 2009 4:49 PM
We are hopeful.
Posted by: Lynna | July 3, 2009 4:50 PM
Palin said in her speech that in this political climate, with Washington sending millions of your dollars down the drain, she can't effectively govern. So, I guess we add the "blame Obama" ploy to her accomplishments.
Of course, I don't see how her successor can effectively govern, using Palin's "logic," since Obama will still be in office in spite of the fact that Palin has shaken the world by resigning.
Pretty squishy too that excuse that as a lame duck she'd be wasting money traveling hither and thither if she stayed in office. Huh?
Posted by: OurDeadSelves | July 3, 2009 4:52 PM
I've been watching CNN's headline news for the past hour or so and they've just barely mentioned this. Michael Jackson, though, is still dominating the stories.
Glad we've got our priorities straight!
Posted by: AF Comm Guy | July 3, 2009 4:58 PM
I'm thinking she is facing some serious legal issues or maybe a health issue. Keep your eyes open. There is bound to be more that comes out as this story develops.
Posted by: MAJeff, OM | July 3, 2009 4:59 PM
It makes no sense at all
It was Sarah Palin talking...Sarah Palin.
You shouldn't expect a speech from Sarah Palin to make sense.
Indictment, oh please oh please.
Posted by: Pierce R. Butler | July 3, 2009 5:04 PM
Josh Marshall:
If the "family values" Republican governor of South Carolina won't step down after being caught in a flaming international scandal, what could possibly cause the hyperfamily Republican governor of the northernmost state of the Confederacy to cut and run?
Remember this, Liberal Media™ - you won't have Sarah Palin to kick around any more!
Posted by: daveau
|
July 3, 2009 5:05 PM
Palin shouldn't really be a lead story, either. Gee, I wonder if there's anything going on in Iran?
And what was I thinking: "talk radio"? TV, obviously, or you'd be missing out on her strongest asset. Potentially millions of dollars, the spotlight always on her, no accountability, can say anything and the christ-y righties will just love it.
Or, she's pregnant again...
Posted by: Archaneus
|
July 3, 2009 5:05 PM
@21
Indeed, I really hope she goes to jail. Not just because I hate her, calling her a fool is an insult to fools and she is a national embarrassment, no, it's because she is one of the most corrupt and authoritarian politicians in the country.
Posted by: Larry | July 3, 2009 5:06 PM
... and yet, the world still hasn't ended.
Posted by: Chayanov | July 3, 2009 5:07 PM
So rather than finish out her term, she's resigning so she won't be fettered by ethics while she's campaigning for 2012?
She's not the candidate the Repubs need, but she is the candidate they deserve.
Posted by: Don Cameron | July 3, 2009 5:09 PM
That was spot on PZ....
Posted by: Skemono | July 3, 2009 5:10 PM
Quoth Palin:
Ignoring that she has a year and a half left as governor, which isn't anywhere near being a lame duck (I guess she just doesn't understand that term?), apparently Palin considers serving your entire term in office to just be "politics as usual", which she will "always oppose".
Uh, Ms. Palin? You know what else is "politics as usual"? Running for office. Let's hope you oppose that, too!
I like that even the Republicans can't put a good spin on this:
"I think everyone is shocked by this, and I think to a certain extent everyone is going to assume there's another story. You don't just quit with a year and a half to go. You certainly don't do this as a stepping stone to run for president. You finish the job that you're in, and obviously she's not doing that," he said.
But maybe I need to give them some more time.
Posted by: Kseniya | July 3, 2009 5:11 PM
Now that would make my summer!
Dare to dream, man. Dare to dream.
Posted by: OurDeadSelves | July 3, 2009 5:13 PM
Palin shouldn't really be a lead story, either.
I don't agree with you here. A governor resigning for no apparent reason is a pretty big political bomb shell, no matter how well known they are. Yes, we should still be following Iran, but not to the point of ignoring our own politics.
Posted by: FishyFred | July 3, 2009 5:14 PM
@OurDeadSelves #19
CNNHL is complimentary to CNN. They've made their name doing the car chases and entertainment stories. That's not a knock on them. That's just their niche.
Posted by: littlejohn | July 3, 2009 5:15 PM
It can't be this simple. She's getting out of town to duck an upcoming scandal we just don't know about yet. Maybe her daughter, Crowbar, or whatever, is pregnant again. Another shoe is about to drop.
Posted by: CalGeorge | July 3, 2009 5:17 PM
Governor Palin --> Senator Palin ('10)--> President Palin ('12)
The train has left the station, with the help of whatever drug she is medicating herself with.
Posted by: C. M. Baxter | July 3, 2009 5:17 PM
I'd like to think the Vanity Fair piece was the straw that broke the moose's back.
Posted by: Budbear | July 3, 2009 5:21 PM
Goodbye, Sarah. Don't let the door hit ya where nature split ya! You betcha! Also.
Posted by: John Funk
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July 3, 2009 5:21 PM
This is really very strange. There's something big they haven't told us yet.
Posted by: daveau
|
July 3, 2009 5:22 PM
#30-
You are correct. I meant, it should not replace the MJ story with wall-to-wall coverage. Of course it's newsworthy. 5 minutes on Michael. 5 minutes on Palin. The rest of the hour on Iran, Honduras, etc. Oh, and hot dog eating contests.
And WTF? You can't pry Sanford out of there with a crowbar.
Posted by: Mark | July 3, 2009 5:22 PM
Palin did this on purpose on a Friday, before a major holiday after Michael Jackson's death, to bury the story. But she's so vapid she has no idea that this story has just begun.
I read the comments on foxnews.com about this. The right wingers love her decision! They can't wait for her to 'trounce' Obama in 2012 and are convinced she's doing this to run against him. Most of them think liberals are terrified of her and are shaking in their boots about her announcement.
I can't wait for her to run with Jindal. We need a team that is 100% anti-science to run against.
Posted by: robotaholic
|
July 3, 2009 5:22 PM
I bet she's pregnant with nother retard child-
Posted by: CalGeorge | July 3, 2009 5:22 PM
To be completely cynical and horribly sexist, if she's running on her looks, which are a big part of the Palin equation, she's only got a few "good" years left to attract all those randy Republican men.
Posted by: Pierce R. Butler | July 3, 2009 5:24 PM
C'mon people - would you want to try to govern a state like Alaska in a world without Michael Jackson?
Posted by: OurDeadSelves | July 3, 2009 5:29 PM
CNNHL is complimentary to CNN. They've made their name doing the car chases and entertainment stories.
Oh, I know. But I switched over to CNN and they're not really saying all that much about it, either. And they're still leading w/ the "news" of MJ's memorial service. Gah.
Posted by: C. M. Baxter | July 3, 2009 5:32 PM
#35
How about, Don't let the door hit ya where a moose should've bit ya.
Posted by: 'Tis Himself
|
July 3, 2009 5:42 PM
A møøse once bit my sister...
No realli! She was karving her initials on the møøse with the sharpened end of an interspace tøøthbrush given her by Svenge - her brother-in-law - an Oslo dentist and star of many Norwegian møvies: "The Høt Hands of an Oslo Dentist", "Fillings of Passion", "The Huge Mølars of Horst Nørdfink".
Posted by: varlo | July 3, 2009 5:43 PM
Arm the moose, then unleash the moose' revenge!
Posted by: Pascalle
|
July 3, 2009 5:43 PM
I read somewhere after the elections that she was backed by cheney and that it would just really be convenient if the republicans won, the president died and she could get 2 re-elections.
Is there any truth to this? Was she just a straw man?
Posted by: Jadehawk, OM
|
July 3, 2009 5:45 PM
'Tis, just how much did you have to drink today already? :-p
Posted by: Naked Bunny with a Whip
|
July 3, 2009 5:49 PM
Well, at least she's being consistent in her behavior, then.
Posted by: MAJeff, OM | July 3, 2009 5:50 PM
Ah, Jefferson Starship:
Go now,
Don't look back we've drawn the line,
move on,
Its no good to go back in time,
I'll never find another girl like you,
for happy endings it takes two,
with fire and ice, a dream won't come true.
Sarah, Sarah
storms are brewing in your eyes,
Sarah, Sarah
no time is a good time for goodbyes
Danger,
in the game when the stakes are high,
branded,
my heart was branded while my senses stood by,
I'll never find another girl like you,
for happy endings it takes two,
with fire and ice, a dream won't come true.
Sarah, Sarah
storms are brewing in your eyes
Sarah, Sarah
no time is a good time for goodbyes
Hey, Sarah,
Love me like no one has ever loved me before,
hey, Sarah,
hurt me no one could ever hurt me more.
Hey, Sarah,
Sarah,
Hey, Sarah
the way you loved me before
I'll never find a girl like you,
with fire and ice, a dream won't come true
Sarah, Sarah
no time is a good time for
Sarah, Sarah
storms are brewing in your eyes
Sarah, Sarah
no time is good time for goodbyes
Sarah, Sarah
storms are brewing in your eyes
Sarah, Sarah
no time is a good time
no-oh-oh-oh-oh
oh-Sarah
why did it, why did it,
why did it all fall apart?
Posted by: Dust | July 3, 2009 5:50 PM
Don't let the door hit ya where it took millions of years of evolution to split ya!
That's my take on it.
Go back to your roots Sarah, I'm sure there is a moose that needs to field dressing somewhere's....
Posted by: naturalist | July 3, 2009 5:53 PM
Limbaugh will as usual blame this on Obama. Is the GOP in a serious(self made)melt down? The punishment for the evils of BushII are being visited on the next generation!
Posted by: BMS | July 3, 2009 5:55 PM
Republican Governors' Convention, starring Mark Sanford and Sarah Palin, not crossin' that line!
Posted by: Rev. Bigdumbchimp | July 3, 2009 5:56 PM
classy
Posted by: kmeson | July 3, 2009 5:56 PM
Who wants a president who at the first minor crisis turns her office over to the vice president and runs away?
Me. If I live in a country that has somehow elected President Palin!
Posted by: F. Andy Seidl | July 3, 2009 6:02 PM
She actually does give a reason, but any way you spin it doesn't sound very good.
Palin's comments are quite revealing:
"Once I decided not to run for re-election,..." she decided she would simply quit in mid term.
Why? She explains:
"I cannot stand here as your governor and allow the millions of dollars and all that time go to waste just so I can hold the title of governor," Palin said.
Hmmm, that doesn't sound very good, no matter how you spin it. Is she saying that her effort as a governor would be a waste for Alaska? For the country? That everyone would be better off if she would step down so that someone more able to govern can step up? Or is she saying that for her personally, spending time as governor would be a waste of time and that she'd rather be free to go make millions of dollars outside of government?
Posted by: RBH | July 3, 2009 6:06 PM
She used the phrase "on another scale" when talking about 'effecting change' or some such. That suggests she's still aiming higher. Good.
Posted by: F. Andy Seidl | July 3, 2009 6:06 PM
She actually does give a reason, but any way you spin it doesn't sound very good.
Palin's comments are quite revealing:
"Once I decided not to run for re-election,..." she decided she would simply quit in mid term.
Why? She explains:
"I cannot stand here as your governor and allow the millions of dollars and all that time go to waste just so I can hold the title of governor," Palin said.
Hmmm, that doesn't sound very good, no matter how you spin it. Is she saying that her effort as a governor would be a waste for Alaska? For the country? That everyone would be better off if she would step down so that someone more able to govern can step up? Or is she saying that for her personally, spending time as governor would be a waste of time and that she'd rather be free to go make millions of dollars outside of government?
Posted by: allium | July 3, 2009 6:08 PM
Funny thing is I'll be seeing Spamalot in a couple of days in San Francisco. I don't know if Sir Robin's ballad is included in it verbatim, but if they do I'll be sure to listen for any changes in the lyrics.
Posted by: Roberta Tucker | July 3, 2009 6:10 PM
She's a moron
Posted by: Louis | July 3, 2009 6:10 PM
I'd love to see a women as POTUS. I was also aghast at the misogyny rampant in the recent US elections. But by all that is unholy I hope this is the last we hear of Sarah Palin! Please Sarah, descend into anonymity, concentrate on some other aspect of your career and your family.
Anyway let's hope that there's some nice, juicy, titillating scandal behind this. That would = Teh Funneh! Perhaps she's been exercising a Larry Craig-esque wide stance, perhaps she has been making Sanford-esque trips to South America, perhaps she's been faking all along and is actually quitting to set up a women's refuge or something useful.
Louis
P.S. Oh and Robotaholic, dude/dudette the comment about her being "pregnant with a retard child" is in serious bad taste. I dislike the woman's politics but that's over the line don't you think?
Posted by: Pierce R. Butler | July 3, 2009 6:10 PM
It's possible to parse Palin's announcement many ways, but one plausible interpretation is that the "millions" being spent are for investigations of the numerous scandals of her administration.
Whether her resignation will abort those probes is another question.
Can anyone who knows Alaska politics please explain who is the "lieutenant general" now purportedly in line to become the next lieutenant governor?
Posted by: Roberta Tucker | July 3, 2009 6:12 PM
She's a moron
Posted by: Sarah in Chicago | July 3, 2009 6:15 PM
You know, I'm kinda hoping it turns out she has a secret mistress in Argentina ;)
Posted by: BMS | July 3, 2009 6:16 PM
Pierce,
Try The Mudflats, a blog in and about Alaska, its politics, its governor.
Posted by: Awesome Robot | July 3, 2009 6:17 PM
nit-pick!
Don't you mean know-nothing? ;P
Posted by: Josh | July 3, 2009 6:18 PM
MOOSE!
Okay, carry on.
Posted by: NS | July 3, 2009 6:18 PM
It's extremely infelicitous to ridicule someone for her ignorance (in Palin's case, this is fully justified) but then to flub the term of ridicule:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Know_Nothing
Being a no-nothing is a complement in my philosophy. I'm with Parmenides on this one: there is no nothing, only a plenum.
Posted by: Rob Jase | July 3, 2009 6:30 PM
I haven't seen nor heard anyone else mention it - am I the only one who noticed she said she was doing this to benefit Alaskans & Americans?
Last time I looked Alaskans were Americans, not a separate group.
Posted by: Draken | July 3, 2009 6:30 PM
Is there any truth to this? Was she just a straw man?
I don't know what she has for brains, but I'm fairly convinced she's (a) a woman and (b) not made of straw.
She could be made of wood, though. If she floats...
Posted by: Ebonmuse | July 3, 2009 6:31 PM
I concur with the commenters who suspect there's a scandal brewing that we're about to find out about. The only reason you announce your resignation on Friday, on the Friday before the July 4th weekend no less, is because you want the media to pay as little attention to the story as possible. Granted, I don't think that strategy is going to be very successful in this case.
Posted by: Pierce R. Butler | July 3, 2009 6:37 PM
BMS @ # 64 - that "The Mudflats" link looks good, but for some reason it seems their server is totally swamped today...
Posted by: Mr T | July 3, 2009 6:39 PM
Now all we need is for Alaska to secede from the Union...
I kid, I kid...
We should nuke 'em all before Palin ruins Obama's chances in 2012. Because as everyone knows, just before the 2012 election, Obama will crap on an American flag and feed it to a baby bald eagle in a Satanic ritual.
Perhaps in the meantime Sarah Palin will head some kind of right-wing think-tank? You know, like, right next to Russia or something, where they can think about foreign policy and stuff.
Forgive me, I'm really a pretty normal guy. Just the mention of Palin brings back fond memories of all sorts of insane bullshit.
Posted by: MadScientist | July 3, 2009 6:42 PM
What? She didn't blame teh gayz? I guess her plan to pray away the gay must have worked and left her with no one to blame...
Posted by: eNeMeE | July 3, 2009 6:43 PM
Sarah Palin is great! Every time I'm reminded of her, I'm reminded of this genius flowchart and I have a laugh.
Also, post turtle.
Posted by: cicely
|
July 3, 2009 6:44 PM
Well, it would be hard for her to continue "business as usual"...her way...with so many people lookin'. Those ethical violations don't just make themselves, ya know.
I don't remember where I read it, but someone in the last week or so was commenting that, tucked away (from the Big Cameras) up in Alaska, she couldn't wink for the audience, preparatory to making her 2012 run, without being derelict in her duties in AK (because chasing the media and posing for pictures takes time), which dereliction would not look good on her pre-candidate resume. Of course, abandoning her post isn't going to look good, either, but she may honestly not see it.
Posted by: SC, OM | July 3, 2009 6:45 PM
OT:
Repression, meanwhile, continues in Honduras, and international human rights organizations are beginning to take notice.
Here are a couple of articles:
http://www.thenation.com/doc/20090713/grandin
http://www.miamiherald.com/news/americas/story/1125872.html
(The second is particularly telling in terms of the thinking of the military people involved in the coup.)
Posted by: 386sx | July 3, 2009 6:48 PM
Yep they won't have Sarah Palin to kick around any more. Oh wait that was a different President who said that. Sorry!!
Posted by: Otto | July 3, 2009 6:48 PM
Don't be so hard on poor Sarah!
Some people just can't run and govern.
Posted by: Michael Simpson | July 3, 2009 6:53 PM
Sarah Palin lacks the thick skin required of any politician. If you have conviction, not much is going to bother you. There is one bad consequence of Palin's decision–no more Tina Faye imitating Palin. That's a real loss which the Russians across the Bering Straight are going to miss.
Posted by: 'Tis Himself
|
July 3, 2009 6:56 PM
Jadehawk #47
PZ did a parody of a song from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I quoted something from the movie's closing credits (starting about 1:40).
Jadehawk, you've just lost many nerd credits for not recognizing the quote.
Posted by: SEF | July 3, 2009 6:59 PM
It almost sounds as though she's already got hold of the millions of dollars herself somehow and doesn't want to waste any more time hanging around being governor when she could be out spending it on her own behalf.
Posted by: evil is evil | July 3, 2009 7:00 PM
I have no objection as long as the VP is Dennis Kucinich.
Posted by: mr_subjunctive | July 3, 2009 7:05 PM
Hey, Gov. Sanford! Look what all the cool governors are doing!
Posted by: Andyo
|
July 3, 2009 7:08 PM
She has to protect her 14-year-old daughter from the teenage-raping mouth of Letterman.
Maybe she was taking advantage of the vacations TV comedians are taking, hoping Dave will forget... Remember how he made McCain look like a bumbling weak numbnuts with his "I screwed up" appearance, over a minor, otherwise inconsequential, stupid stunt.
Posted by: Katkinkate | July 3, 2009 7:09 PM
She made the news here in Australia. They even had a snippet of her speech. I wonder how deciding not to run for re-election makes her a 'lame-duck' governor though. She's got a job to do governing Alaska right up to the next election, doesn't she?
Posted by: Josh | July 3, 2009 7:10 PM
She also managed to give yet another speech where pretty much every other sentence had something offensive in it to anyone who, well, thinks.
Posted by: SC, OM | July 3, 2009 7:24 PM
She's besmirched the good name of point guards everywhere.
Posted by: gabriel | July 3, 2009 7:26 PM
"no-nothing"?
perhaps you meant "know-nothing"?
Posted by: Carlie | July 3, 2009 7:27 PM
robotaholic, totally uncalled for. Believe it or not, picking on people with physical and mental problems =/= funny.
I think her take on what governors do is interesting:"I thought about, well, how much fun some governors have as lame ducks. They maybe travel around their state, travel to other states, maybe take their overseas international trade missions, so many politicians do that"
Huh. And here I thought they did their jobs. Silly me.
I first thought it was to make her Lt. Gov. an incumbent so it would be an easier election later, but that would make more sense if the term was up this November, not next. I can't imagine it would make for a good senate run next year when she has nothing for the several months leading to the election rather than a successful governing record. Maybe she's in Sanford's little black book.
Posted by: Lee Brimmicombe-Wood | July 3, 2009 7:27 PM
So, she's getting out before the state economy goes tango uniform so she can shift the blame to some other sucker. This leaves her unsullied for a 2012 run. Have I got it?
Posted by: K. Engels | July 3, 2009 7:30 PM
Nope, she's resigning on July 26th.
Posted by: Jadehawk, OM
|
July 3, 2009 7:30 PM
my only excuse is that I've only seen the movie in German.
it's still a better excuse than Palin's
Posted by: Josh | July 3, 2009 7:32 PM
Key to success as a Republican-walk away from your oath before your job has been completed?
awesome
Posted by: Knave | July 3, 2009 7:34 PM
I couldn't help but notice a duck gamboling about in the background whilst she was giving her speech. Perhaps this might actually be the last one she gives with avians (the turkey pardon/slaughter incident) framed in the shot.
Good riddance though, this way she can dedicate herself full-time to embarrassing herself & the Republican party by association.
Posted by: Carlie | July 3, 2009 7:37 PM
I think a lot of her problem might be that somehow, somewhere, sometime, someone toadied up to her and told her how great she was, and she actually believed it.
Posted by: Ganf17 | July 3, 2009 7:37 PM
Perhaps she is going to market organic moose bacon.
Posted by: Tongue of Groucho Marx | July 3, 2009 7:38 PM
LOL: National Review seems to have the most conservatives that are purported to be 'intellectuals', which kind of explains the complete intellectual bankruptcy of the conservative 'movement' in recent years.
Posted by: nmcvaugh
|
July 3, 2009 7:39 PM
Didn't we do that already? 9/11, George goes to his happy place, Cheney runs things. I don't recall it ending well...
Posted by: Tongue of Groucho Marx | July 3, 2009 7:40 PM
Did Bill Kristol seriously just say this?
Hahaha.
Posted by: D. C. Sessions | July 3, 2009 7:48 PM
My take is that one of the major behind-the-scenes kingmakers in the GOP has decided that she's a liability for the Party going into the 2010 elections and has given her a good reason to become invisible.
Posted by: AJ Milne | July 3, 2009 7:49 PM
For some reason, every time I read that, I still break out in cackles specifically at 'Get your crazy ass to a hospital!'...
Ah, good times.
Posted by: Zar | July 3, 2009 8:01 PM
She seemed more panic-y than usual, like she has to get this speech out in under ten minutes or else someone will release the killer mutant robot fruit fly swarm on Alaska.
I can't wait to find out what scandal she's running from.
Posted by: Joel | July 3, 2009 8:02 PM
You guys here just crack me up!!! But anyway she's a quitter and contradicts herself, to quote her, "Life is too short to compromise time and resources... it may be tempting and more comfortable to just keep your head down, plod along, and appease those who demand: "Sit down and shut up", but that's the worthless, easy path; that's a quitter's way out. And a problem in our country today is apathy. It would be apathetic to just hunker down and “go with the flow”."
Posted by: nostrajimmiraybob | July 3, 2009 8:04 PM
Palin - "Real climate change in August."
OK. I will put my money on the long shot. She has been offered the Presidency of a liberated Alaska - in August the allied secessionist forces, lead by radical elements from the Alaska Independence Party, will stage a coup and, if successful, secede from the U.S. and declare themselves an independent Christian republic.
Michelle Bachmann and James Inhofe will immediately push for official recognition and leave on a secret trade delegation to Republic of Alaska. Christian secessionist elements in Minnesota and Oklahoma will take this as a signal and stage coupes.
Glenn Beck will be elevated to Supreme Allied Secessionist Commander.
Fox news and Rush Limbaugh will announce additional widespread victories for secessionist movements in Texas, Missouri, Mississippi, Georgia and South Carolina and declare allegiance to the new United Government of Good Clean Christian Common Sense. White men will be declared emancipated.
Palin, Bachmann and Inhofe will be elevated to Supreme Ruling Trinity of the UGGCCCS. Internal conflict will arise with Bachmann and Inhofe both claiming to be more like the Holy Ghost. Internal conflict eliminated when Bachmann and Inhofe are sent on trade mission to Antarctic ice flow. Augustus Palin now sole emperor.
Pat Boone is drafted to be national music czar.
Chuck Norriss & Ted Nugent lead their Texas forces to victories.
Government and taxes are declared null and void - country to be run by religion. Darwinists are declared state enemies and rounded up - new national science reeducation program instituted, to be administered by AIG (not the insurance company). Katy Couric put at No. 1 on state enemies list - last seen in France seeking asylum. History is declared to be 6.75 thousand years old.
September - giant Putin head loomimg over the western horizon triggers panic. Religious wars break out over doctrinal issues and the question of who's properly Christian enough to be granted legal citizenship. Locusts devastate crops throughout Midwest. Prayer groups dispatched but locust plague remains unabated. Electricity declared likely evil force of Satan - Pastor Hagee commission appointed to study. Medical practitioners are declared sorcerers. Supreme leader Palin calls for Inquisition to purify America and declares, "Heretics and the demon possessed must be eradicated in the name of motherhood." Letterman mysteriously disappears.
By Thanksgiving the nation is plunged into all-out civil war. Mexican and Canadian conservative groups call for the building of border walls - armed-citizen patriot groups patrol border. Mexican and Canadian armed forces put on high alert.
The winter snows begin.
...
What? Could happen.
Posted by: Robin | July 3, 2009 8:09 PM
I think she's leaving to make a bid for President in 2010.
Posted by: catta
|
July 3, 2009 8:10 PM
Interesting. The German magazine Der Spiegel has titled its article on this "Palin aims for higher goals", but doesn't go into what those "higher goals" might be. Bah.
It's a loss to comedy, though.
Posted by: Joe
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July 3, 2009 8:14 PM
Gha! The republicans aren't for smaller governemt! They just like different government! Why resign a position of power when you want to change things? FUCK SHIT FUCK SHIT! I hate her so much.
Posted by: raven | July 3, 2009 8:16 PM
Palin believes and has said on record that the Rapture and Armageddon will happen in her lifetime.
Does anyone sane want someone like that in control of the US nuclear weapons stockpile?
One of these days, xians are going to get sick and tired of making the same failed prediction for 2,000 years, The World Will End "Soon", and decide to help it along.
What does she have to lose? Her family life is a sordid mess. She was never very bright and her brain is going downhill due to normal aging. So are her looks, her (supposedly) one claim to fame.
The last atheist alive can say, "Why do you think they called them Death Cultists!!!" The cockroaches and ants get their turn.
Posted by: Bean | July 3, 2009 8:41 PM
You go, girl!
No, really, go. And don't come back.
Posted by: a_ray_in_dilbert_space
|
July 3, 2009 8:42 PM
Ding-dong, the witch is dead, which old witch...
Posted by: raven | July 3, 2009 8:45 PM
The Theothuglicans are so desperate for leadership, that they grab onto anything the cat drug in.
Miss California, a silicon implant babe who isn't very bright and is so forgetable, I forgot her name already. Fired for being unable to fulfull the Miss Cal. contract. C'mon, how hard is it to stand around and look cute?
Darth Cheney. An evil Sith Lord for Cthulhu's sake.
Rush Limpbrain. A drug addict, sex tourist and paid liar for Hate Radio with all the charm of a cobra and none of the useful ecosystem services.
Sarah Palin. A moronic and scary religious culitist. We already tried elected a moron president and Bush nearly destroyed the USA.
Jindahl. A kook pure and simple.
Sanford. A hypocritical death cult xian idiot. The first thing to do when you find yourself in a hole is stop digging. Sanford just lurches around spouting bible verses and wondering why everyone thinks being a philandering hypocrite and a xian is such a big deal.
Not much to show for leaders out of a nation of 300 million people with 30 of the world's top 40 universities.
Posted by: Dr. P | July 3, 2009 8:47 PM
@ 72,
I'm waiting to see what would come out of that little sewage plant.And I also have to a agree the "retard" comment was a cheap shot, I'd like to think we're better than that.Posted by: Monado | July 3, 2009 8:50 PM
I wonder who has the negatives?
Posted by: Crudely Wrott | July 3, 2009 8:52 PM
Son of post #100 from the Feynman thread:
This from an AP article by Rachel D'Oro a bit less than four hours ago.
Sarah must assume that her dwindling popularity as governor of a state is evidence that she is ready to apply for the chief office of the entire nation. Others must think so, too, given the worship she recieves from them. Aaaargh!
Upon reflection I am reminded of the words of the Apostle John, chapter eleven, verse thirty five.
Posted by: RC | July 3, 2009 8:53 PM
Can we have Tina Fey dressed as Sarah Palin run for president? At least if America is going to look ridiculous, we can have a laugh at the same time.
Posted by: RC | July 3, 2009 8:58 PM
Also, if I were from Alaska, I would be extremely pissed off. She does have the option of being efficient and effective, and not taking trips as a lame duck governor. She could just work hard for the people of Alaska through the end of her term as she promised. But wait, there's no personal gain in that, so why would she?
Posted by: Flex | July 3, 2009 8:58 PM
Actually, while I personally don't believe it's a good plan for her to abandon the governorship of Alaska. She may think, or have been talked into thinking, that to continue her political career she needs to get out of Alaska.
Not for any ethics scandals, although the timing may have been forced on her because of those, but because she is too strongly associated with her run for VP as governor of Alaska.
I suspect she'll do a few months of touring on the lecture circuit, hit a few shows like Oprah and maybe even Letterman and The Daily Show, and try to look and act intelligent, witty and cool. Memorizing a dozen lines for Letterman or Stuart is possible, especially if her handlers insist on knowing the topics ahead of time.
In a year she will have her own political show on Fox News. She'll start a blog, and a twitter feed, mainly operated by handlers.
In two years she hopes to have convinced her constituents that she is not the vapid airhead she appeared during the 2008 election. The right-wing rhetoric will claim that she was always misrepresented by the 'liberal' media, and she really was a good candidate for VP in 2008.
This allows her to run in 2012.
Mind you, I'm a cynical bastard.
Posted by: Richard Healy
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July 3, 2009 9:06 PM
I never forgave her for the comment about fruit fly research.
Good riddance. Don't let the door hit you on the arse as you leave. Don't come back.
Posted by: a_ray_in_dilbert_space
|
July 3, 2009 9:06 PM
Gee, this country would never elect someone who had demonstrated themselves to be an airhead as governor of a large state. Oh... wait. We did that in 2000. My bad. Be afraid. Be very afraid.
Posted by: Rorschach | July 3, 2009 9:07 PM
So she's abandoning her governor post, to go into federal politics and have a shot at 2012.
Not only a lying, hypocritical death cultist then, but also lacking commitment and integrity towards the people who elected her, and got her elected, up there.
Not really a surprise.
Posted by: Badger3k | July 3, 2009 9:11 PM
I heard from Sadly, No, Firedoglake, or Instaputz (I forget where, sorry) that a source says an indictment is coming down, and this is her way of getting out of the political fallout (being impeached, whatever).
Posted by: Monado | July 3, 2009 9:15 PM
Wouldn't abandoning the job of governor demonstrate her inability to be President?
Posted by: Newfie | July 3, 2009 9:18 PM
I'm calling "ghost post" shenanigans.
Cuttlefish wrote this post whilst PZ is in Europe.
Just sayin'
Posted by: Naked Bunny with a Whip
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July 3, 2009 9:18 PM
Good job, Sarah. You just insulted the vast majority of your constituents, the people who go to work day in and day out, grinding out their labor for a meager paycheck just to stay alive, lucky if they get any sort of recognition at all that doesn't cost them their job. It doesn't surprise me in the slightest that you feel like your time is being wasted unless you're the center of attention and the recipient of fawning praise.
A governor is an administrator, a public servant, not a rock star. It's too bad that narcissists are drawn to such positions for the power. It's fundamentally incompatible with the job, but our political system encourages it.
Posted by: MouthyNotMousy
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July 3, 2009 9:23 PM
Speculations:
- A(nother) scandal is about to rear its ugly head and she'd rather quit than be impeached.
- Some right-wing think tank has heaped sufficient flattery to entice her into joining, after which she will be used badly by them and everyone's time will be completely wasted.
- Her gubernatorial successor is deemed more capable of pushing some agenda or other, hence his premature installation.
-North Korea is about to blow Alaska off the map and she's trying to get out of range, after which she will send e-mails from her secret bunker to President Obama, containing such sophisticated political insights as "Neener-neener-neener" and "Toldja so, Bucko."
Posted by: snead | July 3, 2009 9:26 PM
Badger3k:
Bradblog has the... well, it's just a rumor, really, repeated by Kos. It certainly shouldn't be discussed on a SCIENCE blog without proof or... but what the hell! It's just too satisfying. The feds are allegedly just about ready to indict her on alleged embezzlement for alleged cahooting with the building of her house and a sports complex in Wasilla while she was (allegedly) mayor.
BTW: Brad Blog has crashed. Which is further anecdotal evidence.
Posted by: pcarini | July 3, 2009 9:30 PM
I just watched the "press conference", that is some seriously bizarre shit there. Either a scandal is imminent, or she's gone completely off the rails and has stopped listening to her handlers.
Posted by: raven | July 3, 2009 9:32 PM
I agree with people that there has to be something else going on.
She has 5 kids, and one 18 year old with a grandkid and no husband. If nothing else, she probably needs the $100 K + money from the governor's job.
Plus, it is easy. Alaska only has 600,000 residents and the budget is all oil money and federal transfer payments. The news says she rarely even showed up in Juneau, the capital. Instead being a stay at home mom and telecomuting. Or more likely just "phoning it in".
Besides which, what is wrong with being a lame duck? All politicians are lame ducks sooner or later unless they die in office.
As to what the real reason is, who knows. She may have gotten bored with working, found herself in over her head, family problems, a better offer from Fox TV, scandals, indictments, another kid on the way, a girl friend in Argentina, or anything really.
It might come out one of these days. It might not.
Maybe she was one of those others having an affair with Governor Mark Sanford.
Posted by: Mark | July 3, 2009 9:33 PM
SHE'S GONE!!!!!
Posted by: Crudely Wrott | July 3, 2009 9:34 PM
Our Dear Lady of the North has heard The Call, a quiet and plaintive wail from the Past that Just Moves Her So. It has been Made Obvious to Her by a Stronger Hand THAT All Promises Hinge on Her. Doncha' know?
Wait . . . I feel something. I feel a change, a subtle wave that is coursing through the lives of all people . . . something's coming into focus now . . . it's misty and indistinct but I think I see gathering forces and gases and wistfulness. I don't know what it all means. Wait . . . something is gelling in my brain stem . . . this might take a whi
I see much making of excuses and redefining. I see frantic efforts to restate in rational terms what was said irrationally. I see red faces and averted eyes. And . . . and . . . oh, ooohhhh. So much embarrassment. So much regrouping. So much running around and around in pursuit of nothing lost except a grasp of limits and our short existences.
Oh, the embarrassment. All swoon. All die.
Hall edge ullaaaaa! I has seen the truth and the truth is the future and friends and neighbors, it ain't purty for the folks that are pullin' for Sarah.
*awakes from momentary nod with a tear from one eye and a laugh from the other while wondering how to insure my vision's veracity*
Posted by: pcarini | July 3, 2009 9:38 PM
Michelle Bachmann next, please.
Posted by: BMcP | July 3, 2009 9:40 PM
I dunno, there is something more to this, those ethic violations were all cleared so far. I don't think we have the whole story and until we do, I remain skeptical on reasons people think up.
Posted by: skylights | July 3, 2009 9:40 PM
I think you mean "know-nothing." Unfortunate error, that.
Posted by: Naked Bunny with a Whip
|
July 3, 2009 9:41 PM
Remember all those people who kept pointing out that Palin had more executive experience than Obama? While it's technically true, I'm even less impressed now.
Imagine if she'd gotten elected to a second term as POTUS*, an automatic "lame duck" job.
*But not too close to bedtime.
Posted by: D. C. Sessions | July 3, 2009 9:44 PM
Has someone finally noticed that Alaska doesn't have enough money in the State accounts to cover the budget?
Posted by: Crudely Wrott | July 3, 2009 9:59 PM
Thank you, NB w/W. Do you mind if I call you NB w/W for short? Your comments are often worth noting well and you have talent for the lash. Biblical, dude.
I'm one of those blindly determined blue collar bastards that grinds it out. If life was fair I'd be a republican. But it ain't and I ain't. Sarah is going to lose big time (or so my hallucinations inform me) and many will be feeling powerfully self conscious, tender to the least questions . . .
Posted by: Midnight Rambler | July 3, 2009 10:00 PM
Carlie @89:
I agree, but I was also a bit baffled by Palin's statement that "we need more Triggs" and the implications of it. Perhaps it says something about the party's future among people who don't have such problems.
Posted by: genesgalore | July 3, 2009 10:05 PM
huh. maybe the little dweeb has realized she has bitten off more than she should chew. or is it just that the job of gubner of AK does involve gazing for hours westward toward an evil empire.
Posted by: Bean | July 3, 2009 10:08 PM
From Todd S. Purdum's article in Vanity Fair:
When Trig was born, Palin wrote an e-mail letter to friends and relatives, describing the belated news of her pregnancy and detailing Trig’s condition; she wrote the e-mail not in her own name but in God’s, and signed it “Trig’s Creator, Your Heavenly Father.”
Shit. We're in trouble people.
Posted by: Naked Bunny with a Whip
|
July 3, 2009 10:26 PM
Not at all, especially if you're gonna say such kind things about me. ("Bunny" is probably easier on the fingertips, though.)
You're one of the people who keeps the fucking system working, in other words.
Look, I know we need people to rise up and take charge, but the fact is very few people do that, and it's probably best that way. Look at Congress: a bunch of powerful people slamming their heads against each other. They're all strong-willed and ambitious people, all of them with strong leadership qualities, and they can't get shit done!
No, better to have a few managers to direct and let the workers produce. It's not sexy, but that's how things get done, regardless of what self-absorbed people like Sarah Palin think.
Posted by: Alan Kellogg | July 3, 2009 11:02 PM
PZ,
Have you ever been accused of things you never done?
How often have those accusations taken up your time and money defending against them in a court of law or similar venue?
Like you Palin has enemies. Unlike you Palin's enemies have made formal accusations the governor has had to defend herself against in Alaska's state capital. Motivations aren't always as you would like them to be.
Posted by: Paul Lundgren | July 3, 2009 11:03 PM
@72:
None of which was more insane nor bullshitty than McCain naming her his running-babe in the first place.Although her affiliation with that witch doctor, Thomas Muthee (Sp?) comes awfully close.
Posted by: Pierce R. Butler | July 3, 2009 11:04 PM
a_ray_in_dilbert_space @ # 119: Gee, this country would never elect someone who had demonstrated themselves to be an airhead as governor of a large state. Oh... wait. We did that in 2000.
Damnitall, and speaking as a Florida voter - NO. WE. DIDN'T!
Posted by: Darren Garrison | July 3, 2009 11:10 PM
Palin mentioned (near the end of her rambling speech-- I think it was before the long "support the troops" chestnut-- people mocking Trig (just before she said that the need more mentally-retarded children). That incident was that someone was mocking a highly pro-Palin right-wing radio dude, and they posted his head over the head of Trig in a photo. So Palin went apeshit overboard, just like the Letterman incident, and complained about the photo being “desecrated.”
As would have been an obvious outcome to anyone with more brain cells than a tardigrade, people then had lots of fun mocking Palin by further desecrating the photo.
Link:
http://wonkette.com/409505/sarah-palin-will-soon-condemn-bomb-entire-internet
Posted by: Crudely Wrott | July 3, 2009 11:12 PM
Key comment, Bunny:
Too many cooks, and all that.
The solution might lie in changing our predilection to divide ourselves in half into a habit of not dividing ourselves at all. Or to some greater degree. Fat chance. Or, if your on a diet, slim chance.
Could we possibly all conspire to each belong to singular persuasions, one per person, only marginally different when comparing any two and still maintain some world wide cohesion? Could we ever learn that to agree is not to all nod at the same time? Could we find a way to encode wisdom?
A large portion of humanity has been engaged on just such a task by invoking magic to explain the parts they didn't understand some millennia ago. They still don't understand. They have been well whipped by science and just plain old patience and observation, people regarding the world with affection and well disposed toward the notion that we are able on our own.
Damn me if I know.
*that last statement is irrational but familiar to all. see the kind of shit we have to deal with?*
Posted by: JBlilie | July 3, 2009 11:13 PM
Think about this carefully:
You are a state governor (statistically the best possible launching pad for a presidential hopeful). Your best possible move is to quit your job.
Amazing in its banality.
There are only two possibilities:
1. You are terminally irrational (strong possibility in the case of Ms. Palin, a small-town beauty queen who has stumbled onto the national political stage. My nearby mayor, R. T. Rybak, of Minneapolis, has a comparable number of constituents as does Ms. Palin, for a short while longer governor of Alaska.)
2. The ethics violations are just about ready to explode over her silly ass beauty queen self.
There is some reallt big shit lurking here, or she wouldn't be quitting.
The most astonishing thing is: This twit thinks she's presidential material!
I say, if this is the best the GOP has to offer: GOP: Go with God, please! Please pick pretty Sarah!! Did you-all see her performance in interviews last fall?! How does she think she'd fare in a presidential debate with Barack Obama?! It wouldn't even be funny. If Palin in "the future of the Republican Party", then I think we can all gomout and celebrate.
All this just points to the implosion of the GOP and "neo cons" generally. The are running scared. The mask may be off now (ignore that man behond the curtain!) We'll see.
Posted by: Beth | July 3, 2009 11:18 PM
Comment I read on another blog which I can't find to cite:
"So she's the first Palan to actually pull out."
Posted by: Beth | July 3, 2009 11:20 PM
Oops typo - Should be Palin
Posted by: JBlilie | July 3, 2009 11:22 PM
"So she's the first Palan to actually pull out."
Love it!
Posted by: Crudely Wrott | July 3, 2009 11:29 PM
A further prediction based not on any evidence but rather on a sense of history and some vague knowledge of the human state as it might be stated in the state of Alaska relative to the state of the person who is governor of the state. That is, her state:
***When the gun goes off Sarah will have one foot on top of the other. Whether the topmost foot will be the right one is a subject of little interest generally. Predictably, it is a subject of great interest to World News Daily and its devoted subscription base.***
I could be wrong. But I'll be watching. Won't you?
Posted by: dogmaticatheist | July 3, 2009 11:45 PM
The rumor is that she is resigning to try to avoid some kind of scandal, which is about to come out. Since she's a Republican, that leaves 3 choices:
1) Shes a closet homosexual.
2) She had an affair.
3) Both.
Posted by: pcarini | July 4, 2009 12:03 AM
I'll admit, without much embarrassment, that I have no idea what this phrase means.
Posted by: pcarini | July 4, 2009 12:08 AM
I think I have it sorted out... a track & field metaphor, as opposed to a Field & Stream metaphor?
Posted by: Dagger | July 4, 2009 12:12 AM
Same page, different link. Check out Most Read #9. It's not an iPod, but close...
Posted by: pdferguson
|
July 4, 2009 12:12 AM
In what sense, Charlie?
Posted by: Jeremy | July 4, 2009 12:36 AM
"In making her announcement, Palin spoke directly to those
inquiries, saying she wouldn't stand by as taxpayer money was spent to investigate her."
...
Sometimes there's just not enough vomit in the world.
Posted by: Crudely Wrott | July 4, 2009 12:39 AM
Is simple, pcarini.
An allusion to shooting oneself in the foot, two for a quarter.
Try it. Put on foot on top of the other, left over right or cattywampus makes no difference and then carelessly handle a side arm or a point of view that cannot be justified without appealing to emotion.
It is easily done as I can testify.
Posted by: Paula Helm Murray | July 4, 2009 12:41 AM
p Carnini, it is a sports metaphor about making yourself lose.
I, too, am waiting for the other shoe to drop on a scandal. Just sayin...
Posted by: RyogaM | July 4, 2009 12:46 AM
So, Republicans seriously think she has a shot at the presidency? Really?
Because, the phrase, "If you can't take the heat, get out of the kitchen," is ringing in my head.
She's just admitted that she can't take the heat as the governor of Alaska, and Republicans want us to think she's ready to be elected to the biggest goddam kitchen in the world.
Bullshit.
If the problem is that she can't be effective because of the ethics law that she passed taking up time and money for "frivolous" investigations, then the answer is to fight to fix the ethics law, not cut and run like a little bitch. But that takes hard-work.
It completely boggles my mind to think there is anyone in this country who would vote to put this women in the W.H. after this performance.
Posted by: Jadehawk, OM
|
July 4, 2009 12:59 AM
and btw, the absolutely BEST theory of why she resigned comes from Rapture Ready:
ROTFLMAO
Posted by: Kel | July 4, 2009 1:05 AM
That's hilariously sad.
Posted by: pcarini | July 4, 2009 1:10 AM
*snicker* This armageddon / end of the world thing is sure taking its sweet time getting here... am I to take this as a prediction that the rapture will happen before Jan. 2011? How silly. Everybody knows that Jesus doesn't give a fuck for Alaska.Posted by: raven | July 4, 2009 1:24 AM
Oh really? What in the hell does that mean anyway?
Is she going to flee the country? Shoot it out with the cops? Or simply arrange fatal "accidents" for anyone who might testify against her?
Religious fanatics!!! Whatever you do, don't turn your back on them.
Posted by: Hoosier X | July 4, 2009 1:48 AM
Be fair, PZ.
I wouldn't exactly call all those mean bloggers a "minor crisis." Especially considering what an easy target Sarah
wasis.Posted by: CrossJesusOffOnDollars | July 4, 2009 3:41 AM
Please, someone talk me down. Republicans are crazy which makes her a perfect match. Are the Bush hating Republicans still glad they voted for obama? Will they vote for him again? Will obama have to step down to prepare for the 2012 election?
"THE ONLY THING WE HAVE TO FEAR IS FEAR ITSELF" -ME (honest... really, I said that just now)
Posted by: 386sx | July 4, 2009 5:03 AM
Just saw the video. It don't make any freakin sense! Somethings's about to hit the fan, probably.
Posted by: Aquaria | July 4, 2009 5:24 AM
There. Fixed it for you, PZ.
Posted by: Cowcakes | July 4, 2009 5:44 AM
I saw this in the Aus press and I thought, if US politics is anything like ours then they would have to hold a bi election which would cost Alaskans millions of dollars. How can this stupid bitch who is an insult to all intelligent women justify it.
Posted by: JeffreyD | July 4, 2009 5:49 AM
Pulling out before the finish is something Palin's father should have done long ago.
Whatever she plans to do or be, I believe she will be a Trivial Pursuit question for the first 21st century edition. I hope it will be the question that stumps all but the most hard core political junkies.
Ciao and Pax Mamooseoh
Posted by: 'Tis Himself
|
July 4, 2009 6:14 AM
As a general rule, in the US if a state governor resigns, dies, or otherwise leaves office the lieutenant governor takes over as governor. If other elected officials leave office then, most often, the governor appoints a replacement. Sometimes this gets sticky, as when the soon-to-be-ex-governor of Illinois, Rod Blagojevich, appointed Roland Burris to fill Obama's Senate seat. There are a few states which have bye-elections for replacement officials, but not many.
Posted by: Faithless | July 4, 2009 7:12 AM
Hey, Sarah Palin for President, 2012!!
It's a masterstroke. All over the world people will be laughing so hard at the US that the idea of it being a 'great satan' and a political and economic threat will be a joke.
Instantly, the world will be a safer place for American citizens.
Of course, people will snigger at you everywhere you go, but still...
Posted by: Lancelot Gobbo | July 4, 2009 7:15 AM
I'd vote for Neil Innes any day, as long as the rest of the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band are in the cabinet. The BDDDB were the English Roy Zimmerman of the 1960's. Makes me feel old to remember them!
Posted by: JennyAnyDots | July 4, 2009 7:28 AM
Damn, Google ads are weird. Somehow I think they've failed to understand their target audience here. Get your free Good News Magazine on Creationism from PZ's blog!
Posted by: DebinOz | July 4, 2009 8:13 AM
And to think, it was just yesterday when Palin was winning national columnists' awards:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/31720203/ns/politics-more_politics/
Posted by: 'Tis Himself
|
July 4, 2009 8:30 AM
JennyAnyDots #173
I wouldn't know. Adblock is my friend.
Posted by: Carlie | July 4, 2009 9:11 AM
I'm seeing lots of rumors of criminal indictment based on Palin awarding a cushy boondoggle of a construction contract to some buddies who built her house for free. Pardon by the next governor, anyone?
JennyAnyDots, there's an uproar across SciBlogs right now about a recent change to the ad generation and what kinds of ads are showing up. Hopefully Seed will do something about it soon.
Posted by: XD | July 4, 2009 9:44 AM
My guesses:
1. She's been offered her own TV show on FOX. She's an incompetent, who wants to do as little work as possible, for the maximum amount of fame and money. She cares only for herself. FOX viewers will be easy to please, as long as she continues to pander to their prejudices.
As quitting her post to take up a TV show would be perceived as disloyal, she framed her departure in a way which blamed her detractors.
2. Sex tape.
I'm suspecting the former, but hoping for the latter.
Posted by: Chillerguy
|
July 4, 2009 10:20 AM
Maybe Sanford did some "Hiking" in an Alaska as well. He made it sound like Miss Argentina wasn't the only one. They meet at a Governors convention or something?
Posted by: Chillerguy
|
July 4, 2009 10:24 AM
OK, remove the "an" from in front of Alaska. Must remember to proof read!
Posted by: Genecutter | July 4, 2009 11:02 AM
During her announcement, Sarah said: "Um, by the way, sure wish folks could ever, ever understand that we ALL could learn so much from someone like Trig - I know he needs me, but I need him even more… what a child can offer to set priorities RIGHT – that time is precious… the world needs more 'Trigs', not fewer." Is she really asserting that a higher frequency of trisomy 21 wound be a good thing? Is raising a mentally disabled child the only way to learn compassion? It takes religion to screw up someone's thinking to this extent.
Posted by: ivo
|
July 4, 2009 11:07 AM
nostrajimmiraybob #104: theocracy in the US?
A more realistic (and touching) account is in Margaret Atwood's novel The Handmaiden's Tale. But really, the crazy is just as you describe it :-)
Posted by: 1trinity | July 4, 2009 12:06 PM
So very sad...I think you protest too much...many prayers are said for each and every one of you.
Not to worry you guys....Sarah listens and 'gets it'!
What great blessings this country has received on this great day of Independence. God bless America!
Posted by: 1trinity | July 4, 2009 12:14 PM
So very sad...I think you protest too much...many prayers are said for each and every one of you.
Not to worry you guys....Sarah listens and 'gets it'!
What great blessings this country has received on this great day of Independence. God bless America!
Posted by: BlackBart | July 4, 2009 12:23 PM
Smells like shes stepping down before some shitstorm happens that will kick her out of office.
Posted by: raven | July 4, 2009 12:25 PM
That translates from Fundiespeak to English as:
Fuck you atheist assholes. You are all going to hell. If we can find another crazy loser, wind him up, and point him in your direction, that will be shortly after a bullet goes through your brain.
Whatever. I'll pray for you too.
Posted by: blf | July 4, 2009 1:38 PM
Big-Oil-money-for-brains is conducting her idea of a scientific experiment: No plausible, rationale, or even clearly stated hypothesis, no ethics, no controls, ambiguous and probably non-existent planning, lots of free money, and more to come if she gets the right result by a vague deadline.
Posted by: m | July 4, 2009 1:50 PM
Let's hope that quitters never win!
Posted by: Epikt
|
July 4, 2009 2:20 PM
XD:
Yeah, and with more than one moose.
Posted by: Menyambal | July 4, 2009 3:30 PM
Hmm. Scary secrets, maybe? I have noticed that Sarah Palin and her husband, Todd, look an awful lot alike. I made a video out of a comparative slideshow and posted it on YouTube. Maybe the world is starting to notice ... it's up to 130 views.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=csbLDYbyYM8
Posted by: Helene | July 4, 2009 4:04 PM
Sarah Palin on the VP ticket in 2008. The possibility of Sara Palin running for President in 2012. Can anyone say 'Dumb & Dumber'?
Posted by: tim Rowledge | July 4, 2009 4:39 PM
I'm thinking that you probably meant a by-election. Unless Ozzie politics are even more exciting than I had been told....Posted by: XD | July 4, 2009 5:39 PM
Just saw this photo of what looks a lot like Palin giving a guy a blow-job:
Not Safe For Work
What do you guys think?
Posted by: Menyambal | July 4, 2009 5:44 PM
XD, there are thousands of people who look a lot like Sara Palin, including her husband. The woman in your photo has different earlobes, and what looks like a few extra holes in the ear.
Posted by: room101 | July 4, 2009 9:48 PM
PZ says:
Well, she said today that she is leaving for "a higher calling". And when other people leave their posts for "higher callings" they don't get lambasted by the media like she does (she claims).
I think her intentions are pretty clear: She is planning to run for president in 2012. Get ready for it. And you know what? As frightening of a thought that is, it could very well happen. 2012 is not that far away. And if things don't turn around economy-wise, guess what - couple that with the fact that Americans have extremely short attention spans and...
Oh, Christ....I need another jagr shot...
Posted by: jackstraw | July 4, 2009 11:15 PM
Is there some legal advantage to Palin being a private citizen rather than a state employee, if indictment is on the horizon?
And I personally hope she does run for president in 2012. I want to see exactly how she gets treated by Newt Gingrich or other repubs if they see her as standing between them and the presidency. If she thought that the librul media was tough on her, wait til she experiences the right-wing smear machine.
I actually can't wait. Sorry if that makes me a bad person.
Posted by: Azkyroth | July 5, 2009 4:45 AM
Unlikely, since it would be for actions taken while she was in office.
Posted by: RM | July 5, 2009 6:21 AM
I can't wait to see what kind of shots she takes at Mitt's Mormonism to solidify the loving, golden rule right base.
Posted by: Carlie | July 5, 2009 8:51 AM
Is there some legal advantage to Palin being a private citizen rather than a state employee, if indictment is on the horizon?
Couldn't she then get a pardon by the governor? A governor who may be a bit in her debt as to the way he became governor in the first place?
Posted by: Hu | July 5, 2009 3:05 PM
Really? Who'da thunk it?
Posted by: Karey | July 5, 2009 3:16 PM
Aww man, you know she was dying to say it. She's just too much of a maverick to finish out her term.
Posted by: mothra | July 6, 2009 8:07 PM
MN governor Pawlenty was angling for the VP nod in '08. He is planning a presidential bit in 2012. He will be finishing out his term as governor in 2010. Perhaps Palin, in a fit of logic (as only she sees it) is positioning herself to again 'outwit' Pawlenty. /sarc \meds.
Posted by: Pixel | July 7, 2009 12:49 AM
Hey, fellow science blogger from Alaska here.
I grew up in Wasilla, currently live in Anchorage, and am currently vacationing in Juneau. I've met various members of Palin's family through the years, and lived in Wasilla while she was mayor.
Palin's support base in Alaska tends to be in "the valley" (aka the Palmer-Wasilla area) and through various crazy religious groups in Anchorage. People of Juneau hate her because she hates Juneau.
I can tell you, most Alaskans are furious at her for quitting without a reasonable explanation. All of us are mystified, confused, and bracing ourselves for the other shoe to drop. She has already irreparably damaged the reputation of Alaskans, especially people from Wasilla.
I've never supported Palin, and never voted for her. The woman is clueless in ethical matters, and her blatant use of religion and "God" in her politics is disgusting.
She leaves office in three weeks. Her last day in office could not come soon enough.
Please do not use Sarah Palin as an example of what all Alaskans are like.
Posted by: blf | July 14, 2009 2:14 PM
I haven't read it yet (I'm relaxing at the moment and don't want to get all wound-up), but Palin has an article in The Grauniad, Drill, baby, drill. The teaser:
Yeah, sure. (Tries to clean his mind of various thoughts involving an angry moose. I don't want to get wound-up, I don't want to get wound-up, I …)
Apparently, the article originally appeared in The Washington Post (I have no idea when).