She's as funny as a clown's pratfall, but she's also as fascinating as a head wound. I hope she'll vanish from the public discourse, but here I am, at the same time gawking over her latest inanities.
Remember how she was caught looking at really trivial notes written on her hand? She's got a new excuse. God does it, too, and if it's good enough for him, it's good enough for Sarah. It's in the Bible, in Isaiah 49:
15Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. 16Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. 17Thy children shall make haste; thy destroyers and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee.
This is one of those stories where God tells the poor oppressed Israelites that he really does love them, and will take care of them, and will deal with their malefactors appropriately. And in Old Testament terms, "appropriately" means in as grisly a fashion as possible.
25But thus saith the LORD, Even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered: for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children. 26And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.
That Jehovah. Keeps track of his loved ones by scribbling their names on his apparently very large hands, and punishes their enemies by making them eat their own flesh and drink their own blood.
And if that isn't enough Palin stupidity for you, look at this: she hates that socialist health care, but she admits that she would regularly hustle across the border to take advantage of Canadian health care. I think it's really cool that she so willingly identifies herself as a parasite, a thief, a hypocrite, and a good Christian.
Now…can we have Canadian-style health care put in place here in America? It's good enough for Sarah Palin, so it must be good enough for God, so it must be the right thing to do.
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Dumb as a box of rocks.
She's comparing herself to god? This won't end well
Preferably not. Canada's system is almost as badly broken as the American. Maybe France or England?
Sarah Palin is dishonest and has a wildly inconsistent moral compass?! Somebody stop the press!!
I'd say like NZ, but I'm reasonably sure free full coverage for all citizens would bankrupt the US in a week or so.
Isn't it ironic...don't you think?
A little too ironic. Yeah, I really do think:
It's like getting healthcare from a socialist state.
It's like oil money when the economy tanks.
It's the free ride from Senator McCain.
And who would've thought...it figures.
That woman loves attention, doesn't she?
Oh, and she can send her cheque for the health care services she used to the Canadian federal government at her leisure. Canadian universal health care isn't free. It's paid for by Canadians who pay taxes.
I wrote a long essay on the incompatibility of Science and Religion a while ago. This may interest/entertain some of you.
Hum, I meant to post this in "That incompatibility problem". Feel free to delete the above (and this post).
Geez, that woman is like an epidemic of viral stupidity.
Obviously, you are not familiar with the people who worship and endorse Sarah Palin.
There's no way to open their eyes to this woman's hypocrisy and insanity.
and when not stealing Canada's state health care she's abusing the US indian health services.
you know, her hubby is 1/8 native, and it's been documented in the custody/child-support battle that her kid bristol has been using the Alaska Native Medical Center in Anchorage for her son's health care since his birth, because the 1/32 native grandson of a millionaire who lived in his grandmother's home for much of his life (bristol may now have a place in anchorage, off of the palin compound...) is surely someone most in need of the IHS's limited budget......
sarah's children have had the option of state sponsored health care all of their lives, either by way of their dad's 1/8 native blood or their mom's time as a government employee.
Sarah Palin's grandson benefits from government-run healthcare through the Indian Health Service. Death panels mysteriously fail to materialize.
I much prefer TWLOHA.
Excuse me… Excuse me. I’d just like to ask a question… What does God need with a Post It Note?
luna1580, that is not abuse of the Indian Health Services for her husband or children to use the Alaska Native Medical Center. Her family members are legitimately Native Alaskan. It is hypocritical, though, given her political posturing.
@3 lordshipmayhem: A system that's "almost as badly broken as the American [system]" is still a better system, right? I'd like an upgrade to one that's NOT as badly broken.
As someone who has traversed the U.S. health care system as an uninsured indigent, I can assure you that it is a very uncomfortable place to be. Do you know what it's like to be told by your surgeon that your shredded knee will not be repaired because you can't afford it? Or that the hospital (the only one within 100 miles) will not allow you to be seen for a different injury, for the same reasons?
If you happen to be among the fortunate insured, your fate may be even worse. I have had fabulous medical insurance, by today's standards, through MRU. Yet last year alone, I spent over $3000 for additional medical expenses for my family.
I would trade my high level of health insurance for Canadian single-payer in a New York minute.
@7
Health care in Canada is handled by the Provincial governments rather than the federal.
@18
It is managed by the provincial governments, but a large portion of the funding is federal. Since it's almost certain she went to a hospital in the Yukon, the vast majority of the funding would've been federal (70% of the territory's income comes from transfer payments). I doubt she would've went to BC because the nearest major hospital would be very far away (probably Prince George).
That is an insult to the rocks and their box.
aratina cage-
i am aware that the IHS in AK doesn't have a blood quota requirement, but it also doesn't have an infinite budget...
so yes, having little tripp receive services there is not illegal, and if he were the kid of a normal unwed, unemployed teen mother he might be in monetary need of using that system. but bristol palin is not a normal teen mother, she has very wealthy parents and her own "consulting company" a single-member limited liability corporation known as BSMP LLC, and is set to appear on a sitcom.
so while not illegal, it seems unethical for her 1/32 native son to use health care also needed by 100% native kids in bush villages without running water or flush toilets when the budget for such care is limited. to me, that seems like abuse of the system....
Palin is supposed give a speech at a Hamilton, Ontario, hospital benefit.
Last I heard, there were tickets still available.
In all fairness, I'm pretty sure she was talking about her family going to Canada for healthcare when she was a child. It's hard to tell, but that's what it seems like in context. Still a stupid thing to admit to, though.
We are talking about a woman who claimed that she's a foreign policy expert because you can see Russia from parts of Alaska but apparently the melting glaciers are invisible. Why does anyone care about her opinion about anything? Oh yeah, she's actually smarter than the people who call themselves "conservatives". The tea baggers look to her for guidance.
How about "as sharp as a bowling ball and twice as dense"?
Wow, that god is the product of one seriously deranged passive-aggressive. I can just imagine the wretched creature in his tent, seething with hatred and wishing there were a god who'd come along and do that to everyone else on the planet.
By the way, "Good enough for god" and "the right thing to do" are rarely and only purely accidentally in agreement.
My sister pays $1000 per month for supposedly decent health insurance.
She got sick. Not life-threatening, just a chronic, annoying, "can't figure out what the fuck is the problem" kind of sick, couldn't keep food down, lost weight, etc.
Her $1000 a month health insurance covered some costs, but there were a lot of tests.
My sister's co-pay? $20,000.00
That's TWENTY THOUSAND DOLLARS.
For a non-lifethreatening illness. WITH GOOD INSURANCE.
Of course, since she was sick, she couldn't work, though shes back to being able to work part time now. Still paying the $1000 a month for the insurance, and in deep financial shit, savings gone, etc.
If you have so-called good insurance and an illness that isn't even life-threatening can fucking bankrupt you, there's something criminal going on as far as I'm concerned.
I want single-payer, I want health insurance companies to go the way of steam railroads.
luna1580, I disagree. It is not unethical. Tribal enrollment is determined by the tribes themselves and Bristol is a member of a Native tribe AFAIK as is her son and as such are entitled to usage of the ANMC. Running water and flush toilets may seem common if you've never lived outside of the "big" cities in Alaska, but they are never guaranteed, not even for non-Natives, so I don't see what the point was in mentioning that.Also, I think it is important to consider that Bristol may not get much help or financial support from her mother.
Bigger than Jesus, more agile than the death panels.
Is anyone else having trouble reading the font used for Bible quotes? It's showing up as a big blocky thing that's really annoying to read on my system.
@3 lordshipmayhem Your link doesn't work but I wouldn't have to read it anyway. It is utter bosh. Health care systems could always use more funding but I know of no one in Canada who wants to give up universal health care. Recission, job lock, denial of insurance for pre-existing conditions? None of that happens here.
PZ, that microscopically tiny italic script that you're using for the bible verses is awfully hard to read!
It's an experiment. I'm using the "fantasy" key word in the style, which should use a font your system has defined as the one to use. It's too variable -- it's very readable on my mac in all my browsers, but your system probably has defined an ugly default.
PZ, it's showing up as TrueType Algerian, which is an unbelievably ugly, all-caps, display font usable only for flyers put out by clueless kids who want to announce their latest sword-and-sorcery game. As such, it appropriately describes what you're using it for, but it is bordeline illegible on computers running IE.
Let's not forget her biblical justification for writing speaking notes on the palm of her hand.
I still wish she'd pay more attention to 1 Timothy 2, particularly the part about being quiet.
A PC? Running IE?
OMG, you have my sympathies. I won't do it again -- you suffer enough.
That font is marginally acceptable on my broken-down macbook.
Which is unusual; what with different DPI standards/defaults and the obsession some people have with using small fonts, I have to expand the typeface on a good fraction of the blogs I visit these days.
"Fascinating as a head wound" is very apt.
My next thought: "If you keep picking at it, it'll never heal."
It's my work laptop, and I am, at the moment, avoiding work. :)
well, my computer has decided to render the bible quotes in Papyrus (or something very similar); I find that very appropriate :-p
Re: 36
I don't know if you changed it already, but it looks fine on my Firefox'ed PC
PZ, for the love of doG, bring back Comic Sans!
Sarah Palin = idiot.
Altho i too have no like for Palin, could we a least make quotes from the Good Book readable.?
Besides, using the fancy font someone might mistakenly think you rever the Word. Plaintext is fine.
I officially retract anything I ever said in defense of her writing on her hand.
I am embarrassed to have said anything that may be perceived as defending her.
jafafahots @27:
I have no words. I'm sorry for your sister.
Fucking, FUCKING A.
Funny, my first thought was, "is it an open head wound?" and an urge to poke it with a stick....
@luna1580: This business about 1/8 native and so on is quite senseless. Do you have 1/8 American? But there are some funny definitions built into law. Personally I believe a person should only be considered a native American if (1) they are accepted by such a group, and (2) they identify with that group and are actively involved with them or maintain relationships within the group - failing (1) and (2) the only other legitimate claim would be if a person had at least 1 parent who is a member of the group meeting those criteria and who knows the culture and had been part of the culture. So it shouldn't matter if a person has 20 white ancestors and only 1 native ancestor in the family tree; that alone should not establish whether a person is native American or not since that is largely a cultural distinction. I'm reminded of one of Steve Martin's lines in "The Idiot", but it would probably be considered too offensive these days.
@MadScientist
Yes, it is nonsense, but unfortunately we are stuck with it. Blood Quantum Laws.
As soon as I read the first two paragraphs, I predicted there would be an astroturfin' republican anti-healthcare troll within the first ten posts . . . and at #3, there it is. Look, these guys are paid to surf the net looking for mentions of healthcare, then they post their lying bullshit.
Born in Canada, lived in Canada all my life, my son and my mother saved by about $1,000,000 worth of the finest doctors and hospital care. And out of those two incidents, nothing out of pocket, no loans need be taken, no raises in the premiums, no denial of service in the future.
I'll tell ya, #3, despite our problems (no system is perfect) you'll get our universal healthcare when you pull it out of our cold, dead hands.
Yet another lame excuse for Sarah. Also, she is as dumb as God itself.
Thought the humbly-evolved cephalopods in these parts might appreciate some holy inanities from deep in the heart of Texas.
Liberals and atheists ... more evolved than others?
Be polite, now; it's Texas.
--IANVS
Reading comprehension.
Palin was telling a story of how her parents brought her brother to a hospital in Canada. It was a short drive away from where they were. They paid money since there was no socialized healthcare in Canada at the time. Even if it was socialized healthcare it was her parents who took her brother there -- not her.
What is actually written on God's hands.....
God's Right Hand:
Enemies
Satan
Foreskin
Iron Chariots
Jane Fonda
God's Left Hand
To Do List
Flood Earth ✔
Sacrifice self to self to appease self ✔
Laundry ✔
Confess to humanity that I let evil and suffering exist because it's fun to watch
Also, can someone explain to me why writing notes on your hand is so scandalous? Why is it so scandalous to say that God did it too? It wasn't like she was using it as a real excuse. She was joking around with the audience about the hand notes thing.
@49
I'm not sure they're paid to do that. I'm pretty sure there are a large number of misguided individuals who are doing this for free. At least he completely messed up his link attempt.
Frankly, I don't think I've seen a good summary of the Canadian medicare system from a US publication. Either they gush about how great it is, or it's a tirade about how socialized anything is evil incarnate and communism. Our system has benefits (fewer people dying of preventable illnesses, reduced chance of financial ruin during illness, etc) but also some downsides (long waiting periods for high demand elective surgeries, long delays in getting some test results, hallway medicine, etc). It's no wonder people are polarized about it. Who can tell the myths from the facts?
What I can tell you is that the vast, vast majority of Canadians like Medicare, and would not trade it for the American system under any circumstances. Most would not trade it for the "hybrid" systems like the British have. Aside from some loudmouths who want the ability to jump the queues, I don't see us changing anytime soon (US companies have been threatening us with possibly filing claims that Medicare violates of NAFTA, but nothing has come of it yet).
For jojame:
She's still around?
Damnit.
This delays the day when I'll never have to hear another painfully contrived, EXCRUCIATINGLY unfunny "drilling in Alaska" joke again :(
Don't confuse jojame with facts.
BS
I think the only question left is 'Is every Republican a lying hypocrite or just every one I've ever heard of?"
jojame,
First of all it shows her hypocrisy since in that very same event she mocked Obama for using a teleprompter. Second, what she had written down wasn't some random figures or esoteric knowledge. It was some fairly elementary things: Energy, budget tax cuts, Lift Americans spirits. That she can't even remember these VERY basic talking points speaks badly of her.
@Blind #58
Okay, are we reading the same thing? What aratina posted backs up what I said.
You know, she's been hired to appear at highway freight trade shows. And asked to not speak. Just sign the fliers, that'll be plenty. Please, don't talk. To truck drivers. And she signed on, too.
We already have two fliers posted at work from two different shows we've attended signed, "Hey, baby!".
The "fantasy" and "cursive" generic fonts are pretty poorly defined. Don't expect to get a consistent, or even readable result out of their use.
On my system, "cursive" maps to Comic Sans, and "fantasy" just comes out as sans-serif -- I guess the browser can't find a font that matches its requirements for fantasyness.
Decent font handling is very difficult on the web. Your safest bet is to specify a list in order of preference: a specific font (preferably widely distributed with a common app, such as Word), then one of the Microsoft core fonts (which, due to a licensing quirk, are readily available on most platforms), with a final fallback to serif, sans-serif or monospace. I wouldn't bother with fantasy or cursive, they just aren't reliable.
@Feynmaniac #60
I don't think a few words on someone's hand equates to using a teleprompter. Many people use notes for public speaking since it's easy to forget a few things you want to mention. A few words to serve as a reminder helps when you can be caught up in a dialogue with someone.
jojame, I think it is pretty obvious she is telling another little, white, snow-crusted whopper. The Calgary Herald dug up an alternate version of the story here. It appears the story of the hospital trip conveniently changes to whichever side of the border she is on when she is giving a speech.
The words are at a level of basicness analogous to "feed it," "put it down to sleep in its bed," and "check its temperature if it fusses." Wouldn't you say needing to be reminded of these things is a sign that one is a poor parent?
You're being deliberately obtuse, aren't you?
The Bible quotes are in the Impact font on my Firefox/Ubuntu setup, which is pretty hard to read.
@aratina #65
Or she misremembered a story that happened over 40 years ago and told a reporter wrong information when asked about ferries. She just finished her book and probably found out the story was different. I don't know what actually happened but this sounds plausible to me. I wouldn't jump the gun and say she made up stuff about the burned foot story to fit her purposes.
I'm pretty much convinced* that someday soon a Sociology professor is going to come out and announce that Sarah Palin is part of a mass social experiment to expose the cult-like political idolation inherent in the religious right. Surely it's nothing more than a test of the extremes one can put themselves out as being stupid and embarrassing themselves on the national stage while still gaining support. Just how much of one's own faults can they blame on the "liberal media" and smear campaigns, and how much can be forgiven purely by calling God on your side? Yep, all one huge social experiment...
*this is a rhetorical device
@Azkyroth #66
You've never brainstormed for a paper by writing a bunch of words down? The words themselves don't hold a lot of information but they serve as a refresher for what you want to talk about. You can talk for a while about taxes but forget that you also wanted to talk about energy too. It's a basic technique. Not everyone uses it but what works for her works for her.
Somewhat OT but it involves Alaska (and maybe socialized medicine for parts of the US!):
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB123051100709638419.html
n.b. The civil war breaking up the US, and returning Alaska to Russia, did not happen as predicted last fall. We must have been too apathetic to get out the torches and pitchforks.
jojame #68,
I guess that is possible, but in my view of her as a person without integrity, I would think it more likely that she made it up on the spot the first time and can't remember how she told it then (or why). Too bad for her it was recorded both times. "Which newspapers do you read?" "All of them!" I welcome her to clarify which of the stories is true. Both of them, perhaps?? ;)
@70
It obviously does not work for her; she is an appalling speaker. Maybe she can cover the various talking points her handlers want her to, but she has nothing intelligent to say about any of them, only a mess of jingoistic jibberish and lies.
I'll tell ya, #3, despite our problems (no system is perfect) you'll get our universal healthcare when you pull it out of our cold, dead hands.
... and given the documented live extension benefits that accrue from universal health care systems, that could be quite some time. Take a magazine.
But on her hand? I mean really. Good for shopping lists and phone numbers, not so good for political talking points. If you've got a downer on autocues, note cards are acceptable...
And is "lift American spirits" a talking point that even needs addressing, let alone a reminder?
This lady has presidential aspirations. It's not really appropriate for a dignitary to come away from a handshake with a smear of Palin Hand Poetry on his palm.
Cooperation
Tariffs Free trade
Compliment his shoes
How on earth can an educated person like yourself call someone who was a five year old child at the time that she needed medical care a "parasite and a thief:". You have lost all sense of proportion and decency in your ridiculous fanaticism over Palin.
Her father explained today (and that he paid for the care-it was not subsidised) that there was no other option because of transport etc difficulties but even so what has that to do with a child who has no say in the matter.
You should be ashamed of yourself-you need medical help yourself in my opinion
I don't see anything wrong with Sarah Palin writing down notes on her hand. However, given that she aggressively attacked Obama for using a teleprompter (the much superior, high tech version of notes-on-your-hand), it does illustrate that she is a giant hypocrite.
Seems to me there is an older article somewhere - where Sarah describes Mommy taking her bro to Juneau on the ferry for the burn incident.
She lied to the the Canadians. Like lying is a valued trait to these shysters.
Found It:
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/palin-in-hot-water-for-anecdo…
Ms. Palin's memory is flexible. The Washington Post pointed out that, in 2007, she told a similar story, only the family travelled by ferry to Juneau rather than by train to Whitehorse for treatment.
Perhaps she will clear up the contradiction next month. Ms. Palin is scheduled to speak in Hamilton in April.
Another Sarah Palin brain cramp (lie).
While any one or two of these incidents or observations can, for a given value of can, be rationalized, you seem to be going to great lengths to miss the broader pattern into which they fit.
...possibly because you're bending so far backwards to try and find an interpretation of said observations that isn't unambiguously unflattering to Palin that you've lodged your head in your ass.
PZ @ 36
Illegible on this work computer, however Bible Quotes are not safe for work for me, they make my hooves burn, it's a terrible stench
one can only hope the rcmp will arrest her before she leaves the country. it is very much illegal to simply come here and rip us off. more to the point, it's not easy, there must have been use of phony identifications. mind you one supposes it's likely fairly easy for the governor of alaska to have some canadian health cards whipped up.
by the way, she's likely armed, if she offers any resistance, pretend she's a polish immigrant!
Agreed, if Palin's parents 'hustled' over the border to steal Canadian healthcare on behalf of their children, that might be something anyone would understand, possibly (and especially if there was actually a millionaire in the family - excuse me for not knowing the minutiae)without condoning it.
But really - she ought to be a) apologising, b) repaying Canada, and in particular c) stopping her 'I'm wonderful' whistle-stop tour of the universe to see if, when it gets quiet and still, she can understand why she is making the unanswerable argument in favour of nationally subsidised healthcare provision.
Reading post #69:
That flashed me on to a brilliant realisation! Remember that reverse-scam operated by The Amazing Randi in Australia when he taught a couple of guys the tricks of the trade and everyone bought them, hook, line and sinker, for several years until they revealed the hoax?
Stand up, TAR, and take your bow. Sarah Palin is all your own work, right?
Oh, and the people who are riffing on Palin's Redneck PalmPilot should remember the notes were NOT there for her speech; they were there for her (feed-me-a-ridiculously-simple-)question and (I'll bat-back-a-fatuous-)answer session with some interviewer.
She didn't know the questions beforehand? Unlikely. So we are dealing with someone who cannot trust herself to 'trigger' the answer she is going to give in the questions that were probably written by her own staff.
Sad to say it but I think, like our dear Pauline, you'll have to wait until Sarah gets a shot at the title before she fades away properly.
So strap yourselves in.
I see I was mistaken-I thought there were intelligent people on this site but Mulder is batshit mad (and illiterate) "identifications".
Arrest someone who was a five year old child when they received treatment which was paid for? To hold to that is insanity.The same applies to defides with the ludicrous"stealing healthcare".
You and most on this site are so petty,sophmorific and childish and have sad lives attacking someone who is not an office holder
(and most likely will never be).Palin derangement syndrome has driven you mad and your leader Myers is the worst afffected because educated thus no excuse.
Some of the comments above are absurd. Are you seriously suggesting that Palin should be arrested for something her parents did on her behalf when she was a small child? Do you think a five-year-old has any choice about where to go to receive healthcare?
I'm certainly not a fan of Palin. She's a blithering moronic idiot with reactionary views. But there is fair criticism (plenty of it, in her case) and unfair criticism.
[meta]
Walton, you fit the Paladin archetype.
I have to agree with Walton @ #88 on all counts.
Posted by: ckitching | March 8, 2010 10:30 PM
Back home in Texas (*sigh* yes, I'm Texan.), we have a saying:
She doesn't have sense enough to pour piss out of a boot with instructions on the heel.
Walton you let yourself down with your ridiculous invective,You may disagree with Palin's views as is your right but to use terms like "bilthering
moronic idiot" is just silly and childish.
How can a person who was a governor,mayor and commissioner be an idiot? Grow up and try and join serious debate about policy or philosophy
and leave the rubbish alone.
Er, what? I tried googling this, and just found a lot of stuff about roleplaying games. Please explain.
I was perhaps imprecise. To be fair, Palin does clearly have a certain amount of political savvy, and is good at manipulating people. This, in itself, is a kind of intelligence. So she's not exactly "stupid", as such.
But at the same time, she is not a deep thinker, nor is she intellectually honest. She repeats discredited talking-points which appeal to the least enlightened instincts of her audience, as with the "death panels" nonsense. She is willing to dissemble where doing so will advance her political career, and she has no real commitment to an ideology; she professes to be for smaller and more efficient government, but as mayor and governor she put a lot of effort into getting more pork-barrel spending for Wasilla and Alaska respectively.
And her education in political affairs is particularly lacking. Her degree (which she completed after going to no fewer than five mediocre colleges) is in journalism. She has demonstrated a very shallow and superficial understanding of economics, foreign policy, and the world outside Alaska in general. (And yes, I am well aware that she never actually said "I can see Russia from my house.") If you watch the various interviews from the 2008 campaign, it is reasonably apparent that she's simply out of her depth in national politics. I'm sure she was fine as a city councillor and mayor in a town of 6,000 people, but she is completely at sea in national politics.
Maybe Walton has heard her speak. Having heard her speak myself I can quite understand why someone doing so could come to the conclusion she is an idiot. The reason is very simple - she says idiotic things and says them repeatedly.
Being an idiot doesn't disqualify one from attaining political office in the US. Hell, for the Republican party it may even be a prerequisite.
Politicians often end up in power more for their PR skills, adherence to ideology, and ability to please the rich and powerful than for their ability to think. Seriously, just listen to any House session and you'll hear some pretty dumb shit. If thinking is required it is usually done by the advisers.
[OT]
Walton, heh.
Yes, you got it. Do-gooder for a cause. :)
You're still seeking your cause, but your alignment is clear.
--
All the world's a stage, and all the men and women merely players: they have their exits and their entrances; and one man in his time plays many parts, his acts being seven ages.
(William Shakespeare)
Then why not use notes instead of writing on your goddamn fuckin' hand like a 5th grader cheating on a test?
More important, I think, is that she needed notes for a sympathetic crowd and a questioner asking rehearsed questions*.
_____
* She was asked "What are the top three things that got to be done?" and just happen to have three things written on her hand.
I don't think it bars one from political office anywhere, and for those on the right it seems to be a positive advantage, if not actually mandatory.
cable,
Yes, and judging all commenters on a site based on one person's silly remark is something an intelligent person would do.
She is not an "office holder" because she quit. She apparently thought she could better serve the country by giving $100,000 speeches and becoming a Fox News correspondent than by holding elected office.
In any case, she has put herself in the national spotlight and will probably seek office come 2012. Attacking her is fair game.
One can only hope.
____
Matt Penfold,
That's probably true.
You know, it's not the non-existent sadistic malignant sky-father that bothers me so much as it is all the stupid malignant shit that gets done "in his name" and how "in God's name" is some kind of excuse to be a fucking nutter bastard.
The list of things Sara Palin would do in the name of her Allmighty Crib-Note maker . . . I'll leave it to your imagination.
I wouldn't jump the gun and say she made up stuff about the burned foot story to fit her purposes.
#
It's how she operates. Always. She's mendacious and will tell a lie whenever it suits her. It's not "jumping the gun" it's recognizing patterns.
And, damn, but your a worthless idiot, jojome. It's like Palin rushing to defent Rush using the word "retard." Anything the Wasilla wingnut does is ok cause "she's one of us and sticks it to them Hollyweird elites nycuk nyuck."
Shorter cable:
LEAVE SARAH PALIN ALOOOONE!
You forgot:
YOU BIG MEANIES!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kHmvkRoEowc
just to make sure everyone gets it and is properly annoyed with having to hear that:)
You obviously haven't been paying attention.
maybe "blithering moronic foolish stupid daft gormless brainless cretinous doltish asinine imbecilic dimwitted idiot" would be better to describe Sarah Palin?
Going for the low-hanging fruit here...
A size 5 shoe on a size 5 foot...
...um, by being elected to it?
Are you honestly saying that, in your opinion, elective office is proof positive one is not an idiot?
As soon as the rubbish stops trying for a place on the global policy-making stage, I'll leave it be, I assure you.
But she's still around.
On a more serious note, I suspect the primary reason many of the locals here (including our esteemed host) are bent out of shape is pretty simple:
Mz. Palin is telling a 'had to walk to school uphill in the snow' story about the problems of lacking health care..
...while at the same time, doing all in her power for a spot in the primary force in this country that is attempting to deny just that to most of her fellow countrymen.
So, it's possible that the's a liar, or a hyopcrite, but it's kinder to just assume she's sorta stupid.
Dude, I'm from Alaska (though I'm in Ohio right now). I have relatives that have lived in Wasilla since before John Stein was mayor. My sister-in-law has dealt with Palin before, when Palin was on the city council. So, from someone who knows Palin, I have this summary: "She's pleasant enough, but DAMN! is she stupid."
Here's how someone gets to be mayor of Wasilla: by running a campaign. Wasilla only had 9,000 people, fer cryin' out loud. It's not like she's mayor of Anchorage (which currently has an idiot for a mayor).
Alaska is not known for its brilliant choices in leadership. We've had some good governors (Hammond, Knowles, and Egan [who was before my time]). We've also had some not-so-bright governors (Wally Hickel [twice!], and most notably, Palin).
Sarah Palin has made it as far as she has on her looks and her ability to give good soundbites without ever really saying anything. Listen to her: I bet you can't describe even one policy position with any kind of practical detail. Further, I bet you can't list a single accomplishment during her term as governor. (While mayor of Wasilla, she did manage to push through an expensive sports arena, after it had been voted down by the citizens of the city.)
She's a chronic liar (Andrew Sullivan has a nice long list of outright lies she spouted during the campaign). She's mostly uneducated about things she professes to be qualified to govern. She's a quitter -- she never finished her term as governor. She's a hypocrite (if Levi Johnston is to be believed, she hits on teenage boys). She is a denier of both evolution and AGW, despite the incontrovertible evidence of the former, and the overwhelming evidence of the latter. She is willing to sacrifice Ketchikan (the original "bridge to nowhere") and pods of whales for her own sparsely-populated landholdings (for a new "bridge to nowhere" over Knik arm).
Cable, you have no fucking clue what you are talking about. Your defense of Palin is weak ("She was governor, so she can't be an idiot! You all suffer from Palin derangement syndrome!"). You have not presented one example of Palin's intelligence, outside her ability to manipulate people. Further, your zealous defense makes me think you suffer from Palin Fantasy Syndrome.
I would agree that Palin's parents taking their children across the border 30 years ago (before the provincial health plans were in place) was not "stealing healthcare" from Canada.
But many Americans have "stolen" Canadian healthcare.
It used to be that I could go to my dr's office, give them my file number and get treatment. They and the hospitals you used regularly would have you health card number on file and pull it up. Some twenty years ago, that all stopped. You have to show your card every visit. Why? Because so many Americans were using fake numbers (or possibly, bought cards from Canadians who didn't need to show them) and stealing services. The worst offenders were women who entered hospitals in labor - by the time the billing department found out their coverage was invalid, they were checked out & back home.
Knowing this, it burns my butt when the talk show Con artists whine about "If socialized medicine is so good, why do so many people come to the US for treatment?" It isn't a one-way street, Bozo.
I know a woman with good insurance who was left with a bill for $90,000 as her co-pay after her treatment for a brain aneurysm - her co-pay was 20%.
Well, well, well, Palin's father is actually backing up her "Hustling to Canada" story this time:
Wow!
I didn't think it was possible for stupidity to have no bounds. I really hope this dolt is the next republican candidate for president.
"I still wish she'd pay more attention to 1 Timothy 2, particularly the part about being quiet."
Since there's quite strong evidence that Timothy is a forgery, several divergent lines (all of them troubling to fundies) arise.
The font: a Star Wars all-caps font that does weird things to the actual uppercase letters (I becomes 'H, O becomes 'N…) in IE8, what must be Papyrus in Opera for Mac.
I smell a big fat translation mistake.
All one would need to do is get enough of the more idiotic to vote for you. You've heard of identity politics, haven't you?
" In the land of the blind, the one-eyed man is king" - Dutch proverb
Hey God? Could you please write "See other side" on the palm AND back of Sarah Palin's hand? That should keep her busy for a few months.
cable:
If she believes much of the demonstrably untrue gibberish she spouts, she is indeed stupid. If she doesn't, she's pathologically dishonest. Which is your preference?
Congratulations. You're the first person I've ever read that has used the phrase "serious debate" when talking about Sarah Palin. Or were you being subtly ironic?
My computer is rendering the bible quotes in some form of barcode. Anyone have a scanner I can use to read them?
Walton, Extra Special Dumpling of Awesome wrote:
One of those was the University of Idaho, at Moscow. It is certainly not 'mediocre'.
However, I do understand that you were making a general point that they were not Ivy League or of that stature, so I'm not terribly offended. Palin is an idiot.
Two corrections to above posts:
1. In her Canadian speech, she said they received FREE medical care. When she related the story about going to Juneau on the Ferry to get her brother medical help, Sarah was Governor and addressing a group, and explaining why she supported the expansion of the ferry system.
2. Todd is 1/16th Native--not his mother is 1/8. The reason the Native classification is so important isn't only because of the free medical care--it is also because this entitles his family for special Government fishing rights in August of each year--when he reported an income of over $45,000 for the month of fishing. This might not be important now that Sarah is receiving about a million dollars a month for her $100,000 speeches and book money. But if Natives win settlements against the Government for giving up their land and losing income for all the resources, the Palins will benefit.
Just like in her book, Palin doesn't care if she tells the truth or not. The goal is to make money and to set her up for more money on the second book that she is whipping out. Whether or not she presents accurate information or even knows anything about Canada, Sarah is getting money and she can now list on her resume that she has spoken in front of another foreign country. She is bigger on fluff than fact.
It's OK for god to grave an image on your hand, but it's not OK for you, Sarah. (It's in a commandment somewhere.) Oh wait, it's probably a stigmata, and hence the words are divinely inspired.
As one of the retired generals said about Bush, "We tried electing a moron and that didn't work."
Rule #2. Those who don't learn from history end up repeating it.
and no matter how bad anything is, it can always get worse. There is no bottom.
If Palin ever got elected president, I would just assume the US people have chosen the route of national suicide and give up.* If GWB can get elected twice, anyone no matter how stupid or evil can.
*Probably wouldn't move out of the country although that is an option. The family owns a retreat on the north coast outside of any fallout patterns in case Palin decides to start the Rapture herself.
Sheryn,
I don't think so. Go back and look at the press reports again. While that implication may have been the immediate takeaway, it doesn't appear to have been said.
---
Could you provide a source for this? The Anchorage Daily News does not corroborate your data (link):
---
I'm trying to think of what special fishing permit you mean. Tribes are sometimes permitted to subsistence fish, but you cannot sell your catch in that case. State commercial fishing permits are not issued solely to Natives, either, last I knew. The Anchorage Daily News reports his income was:
There is nothing there about special government fishing rights.
I disagree. Bush was hopelessly inarticulate, and was certainly not intelligent or well-read enough for the presidency, but he was far better-educated, far brighter, and had a far greater range of life experience than Palin does. For a start, he completed both an undergraduate degree and an MBA at Ivy League colleges; while it's true that he was originally admitted to Yale as a legacy student, he did achieve passable academic results in a very competitive environment. And (contrary to popular misconceptions) he was actually quite well-travelled before he was elected president. Palin was not: apart from one visit to Alaskan troops in Iraq, she had never left the United States at the time when she ran for VP. She has zero background in world affairs, foreign policy or economics. She was elected in Alaska as a protest vote against an institutionally corrupt administration; she's quite savvy and quite good at manipulating people, but she just doesn't have the intellectual weight or educational background to be taken seriously.
Bush certainly wasn't bright enough to cope competently with the presidency - but neither am I, and neither are the vast majority of the population. It's a job that only the most exceptional people can actually do well. But Bush was never actually stupid or uneducated, by the standards of the general population. He does have a problem with communication, which increased the popular perception during his presidency that he was stupid. But this is something that has been somewhat exaggerated in the popular imagination.
When Sarah Palin is the president-elect (shudder), she'll have "He's Got the Whole Word in His Hands" sung at her inauguration.
Next time we get someone claiming that the biblical god is omnimax, can we point out that he apparently has to write stuff on his hands to remember it? Not exactly omniscience.
I live in Arizona, and all morning long I've been seeing John McCain ads on television. "We know what he's endured. Fighting for the little guy. Reduced the size of government. Blah blah blah."
That fucker still owes this nation an apology for putting Sister Sarah on the national stage.
Yes, there are things wrong with Canadian health care (in particular, the wait times for elective surgery). But there are many things that are right.
I'm a grad student in the sciences. I work very hard and I barely clear $12000 (Cdn) a year after my tuition. Obviously I have enough to survive on, but only just, and I have substantial debt from my undergrad. My parents are members of the working poor: they pay taxes and live paycheque to paycheque.
A few weeks ago, my bike slipped on the snow and I broke both bones in my lower leg. I spent 4 days in hospital, and had surgery to implant a rod to hold my shinbone together. My total bill? $26 for a pair of crutches I get to keep.
Yes, this is an anecdote. But if I or my family had to pay for that surgery and hospital stay we would all be bankrupt. I hope that when I'm finished my training that I'm enough of a contributor to society to pay back for this.
cable - was merely working with what i have to work with, the link to jezebel, if you have information that would make ms. palin come off in a better light, by all means lets have it.
the rest of your fekking nonsense though leads me to believe that you're merely a mouthy arsehole. "identifications", yep, that's exactly correct, look it up fektard.
striking out at someone who isn't a public official? oh puhleeze, yeah, technically that's true one supposes, but guess what dipshite, myers and i aren't public figures either, yet you seem to have no trouble whatever flinging your feces our way.
Sarah Palin is further proof that you can't argue with crazy.
But you can vote against it, can't you?
I got really sick of the whole Tea Party movement when, about 4 hours after Obama took his oath, they were already asking, "So, how's that hopey-changey thing working out for you?".
Sure, let's completely disregard the size of the mess Obama inherited. That makes sense. That massive, illegal war that has claimed the lives of hundreds of thousands of civilians? Obviously Obama's fault. The deepest recession we've experienced since the Great Depression was obviously Obama's fault.
Tea Partiers lap this crap up, you know.
I really wouldn't worry about Palin that much, though. I'd say the "smart" GOP money -- if there is such a thing -- is now on Mitt Romney. That's the real battle, right there.
MikeM
cable! what you say seems to be true. took me almost no time to find the ap release which backs up what you say.
hey, it was after 3am, i have jaundice, wasn't exactly at my best, and was certainly ill informed; but by no means provide information, just spew.
regardless, it doesn't exactly serve to endorse her stance on universal health coverage, does it?
i apologize for posting without doing a better job of fact checking, clearly she ought not be arrested, merely scorned.
by the way, there really is a grammar mistake in my last post, you're quick to jump on non-mistakes, can you find a real one?
again, are you going to stick to the notion that only public-officials are fair game for criticism, you'll recant that, yes?
The way it looks now a palin presidential run is the only way Obama can get a second term.
Im from Alaska, I am also an enrolled member of a tribe. The medical care that is provided to the Alaska Natives was in exchange of the oil, land and other mineral rights we sold you. Remember the treaty that purchased Alaska specifically stated that native land claims were excluded. In 1973 you wanted a pipeline and the tribes wanted to get a land settlement. Palin's Husband is an enrolled member of a tribe so him or his decendants are entitled to free health care.
On Palin, she is a republican from wasilla, never ever vote for a republican from wasilla.
They have one unique characteristic, fill their own wallets as fast as they can before being tarred feathered and ridden on a rail. I think that Sarah has shown that bit to be true. She is no intellectual giant but neither was reagan who wasnt that bad a president. It bemuses me tho how many republicans loathe her with the same intensity as a leftist radical.
My brother lives in Palmer, just a short drive away from Wasilla. The locals call the residents of Wasilla "the Wasilla Cowboys" because they have a frontier mentality that gives them (they think) the right to run roughshod over rules. There's a group that owns machine guns, and they have been known to use those guns to mow down trees. They ignore rules put in place to protect sensitive habitats, like wetlands. They dismiss the "cowboy code" of honesty and adopt only the fightin', drinkin' and shootin' part.
Oh, yeah, and they dump old cars, broken snowmobiles, busted ATVs and car batteries on public lands. They turn some public lands into dumping grounds.
broboxley says, "She is no intellectual giant but neither was reagan who wasnt that bad a president."
Now wait just a wee minute. It was Ronald Reagan who pioneered what GHW Bush called VooDoo economics and the "starve the beast" philosophy. It was Ronald Reagan who told people they should expect government services without paying for them. It was Ronald Reagan who decimated the civil service so that the next time we had a really weak Pres--who turned out to be the son of his VeeP--we found we were in fact fucked. It was Ronald Reagan who traded arms to Iran nominally for hostages, but as it turned out, for nothing. It was Ronald Reagan who utterly punted on the federal response to AIDS. It was Ronald Reagan whose approach to drug abuse was to "Just say NO." It was Ronald Reagan who gutted alternative energy programs and left us dependent on foreign oil and vulnerable to economic shocks of Peak Oil.
Want me to go on, Bro, because I can. That senile bastard was the one who really started the rot.
@a_ray_in_dilbert_space #133 keep going it amuses me to watch you make shit up. You forgot to include pygmy goats and air deregulation
A_ray_in_dilbert_space did not make up a thing, broboxley. Your ignorance is not a convincing arguing point.
Alright! :) Glad to see another Alaskan on Pharyngula. Your post was very informative on the Native healthcare system that somehow became a topic of this thread, and I agree with you for the most part on Palin and her political type.Lynna, your perception seems about right to me, too. That mentality is certainly held by some, but I didn't know there was a particular name for such a group in Wasilla.
Broboxley, Exactly what in my post do you dispute, or do you prefer to talk out of alternative orifices?
#135 JMOFMA
have a link to a speech or executive order that proves that?
RIF time, the next pres did the same with the army. It was the benefits of "winning" the cold war.
that little debacle can be squarely laid at the feet of his veep, ex head of CIA
he did? didnt have anything to do with $9 a barrel oil when the alts were the equivalent of $118 a barrel. Then at the end he proclaims him senile, if he is senile he cannot be blamed for anything logically
Ray, you got your answer.
Well, as you well know, a moral compass isn't totally accurate. Instead of pointing to true neutral it actually points to magnetic neutral. And up there in Alaska that difference is more pronounced.
"She is no intellectual giant but neither was reagan who wasnt that bad a president."
Bullshit, the Soviet Union didn't fall 'til 1991! Civil servant pay fell far behind the private sector under Reagan. The old pension system went away and was replaced by FRS--a situation that breeds conflict of interest. Moreover, by saying "Government is the porblem," Reagan painted a target on federal workers.
Of Iran-Contra Bro says: "that little debacle can be squarely laid at the feet of his veep, ex head of CIA "
Only because Ronnie was too senile to remember.
What better time to plan for the end of oil than when oil was cheap.
Bro: "if he is senile he cannot be blamed for anything logically"
Perhaps not legally, but he sucked as a president.
Even I remember that Carter had solar panels installed in the White House. Reagan had them removed. The symbolism of the action speaks volumes about where RR's priorities were situated.
It's highly, highly unlikely that anyone in an analogous position to the Palin family, as described, would have received "free" health care from Canada.
Non-nationals are not covered by the single-payer system. They would have been charged by the Canadian hospital. Either they or their insurance company would have to pay.
They may have benefited from any systemic advantages (if such exist) engendered by the system, with respect to hospital and staff quality, equipment availability, etc (On average, thanks to the universalized system, there is less variance in hospital quality across Canada, even in remote areas, whereas hospital quality in the U.S. can range from superb to godawful).
But the only possible financial benefit they might have obtained is if, for some reason, the Canadian hospital charged less for the same set of services as an equivalent American one.
(Unless, after receiving the bill, they refused to pay it and fled to some foreign haven where they either couldn't be or it would be to troublesome to pursue, and forced the hospital to eat the cost.)
nope... so I guess if you were in a coma for the past 30 years and just woke up and haven't actually noticed this exact effect of his policies, you might not be aware if all you have to go on is the transcripts of his speeches and executive orders.
I'm glad you've awakened, though, either way.
Rrrrright... poor Ronny had no idea what was going on.
These aren't arguments, broboxley... they're week apologetics.
Lest we forget "The Great Communicator":
http://www.thirdworldtraveler.com/Ronald_Reagan/Ronald_Reagan_Myth.html
@janine #142
he didnt remove them trivially
http://www.answerbag.com/q_view/1900764
Oh, Broboxley, that makes me feel so much better. He just didn't see the value of alternative energy.
Yup! Apologetics. When what the country really needs is an apology.
"Fascism was really the basis for the New Deal."
--Ronald Reagan, quoted in Time, May 17, 1976
Glenn Beck? Is that you?
Removing the solar panels because a limited resource was, at that time, cheap is the very definition of a trivial reason.
Anecdote time: my mother and her best friend both had their gall bladders removed. My mom is a US citizen living in the US with pretty good insurance - she's retired from a health insurance comapny. Her friend is a Canadian citizen living in Canada. My mom waited two weeks for her surgery to be scheduled. Her friend waited one day.
I see you are unfamiliar with American politics.
Cable, I'd like to introduce you to Dubya.
Dubya, Cable.
Cable, you obviously have the years from 2000 to 2008 to catch up on!
Azkyroth @ #80
FTW!
She's as funny as a clown's pratfall, but she's also as fascinating as a head wound. I hope she'll vanish from the public discourse, but here I am, at the same time gawking over her latest inanities.
You don't like Sarah Palin PZ, do you ?
Now…can we have Canadian-style health care put in place here in America?
A British style one would be far better.
Did you know I have 5 consultants and 2 specialist nurses looking after me ? If I take ill all I have to do is turn up at the RVH's casualty unit and I'll be provided with a bed, even if the hospital isn't on take in, and I don't have to worry about filling in health insurance claims forms.
Still, maybe that's too much to ask.The US isn't ready for anything as radical as the NHS I'm afraid.
Sarah Palin was doing it wrong! She should've written the names of her husband and children on her palms.
Claiming that "they paid for it, so it's not relevant they used Canada's public healthcare" is a red herring.
"Socializing" medicine allegedly destroys the healthcare system, resulting in sub-standard care for everybody. Yet it was good enough for Palin's family to cross the border to use and still pay for it...
Excellent point, Kagato. I also somehow doubt she would look kindly on a family from Tijuana crossing the border to use a hospital in San Diego.
broboxley,
With his superficially sunny disposition and a ruthless political strategy of exploiting white-male resentments, Ronald Reagan convinced millions of Americans that the threats they faced were African-American welfare queens, Central American leftists, a rapidly expanding Evil Empire based in Moscow, and the do-good federal government.
In his first inaugural address Reagan declared "government is not the solution to our problem; government is the problem."
When it came to cutting back on America's energy use, Reagan's message could be boiled down to the old reggae lyric, "Don't worry, be happy." Rather than pressing Detroit to build smaller, fuel-efficient cars, Reagan made clear that the auto industry could manufacture gas-guzzlers without nagging from Washington.
The same with the environment. Reagan intentionally staffed the Environmental Protection Agency and the Interior Department with officials hostile toward regulation aimed at protecting the environment. Dubya Bush didn't invent Republican hostility toward scientific warnings of environmental calamities; he was just picking up where Reagan left off.
Reagan pushed for deregulation of industries, including banking; he slashed income taxes for the wealthiest Americans in an experiment known as "supply side" economics, which held that cutting rates for the rich would increase revenues and eliminate the federal deficit. Over the years, "supply side" would evolve into a secular religion for many on the Right, but Reagan's budget director David Stockman once blurted out the truth, that it would lead to red ink "as far as the eye could see."
While conceding that some of Reagan's economic plans did not work out as intended, his defenders still argue that Reagan should be hailed as a great President because he "won the Cold War," a short-hand phrase that they like to attach to his historical biography. However, a strong case can be made that the Cold War was won well before Reagan arrived in the White House. Indeed, in the 1970s, it was a common perception in the intelligence community that the Cold War was winding down, in large part because the Soviet economic model had failed in the technological race with the West.
The American Dream also dimmed during Reagan's tenure. While he played the role of the nation's kindly grandfather, his operatives divided the American people, using "wedge issues" to deepen grievances especially of white men who were encouraged to see themselves as victims of "reverse discrimination" and "political correctness."
Yet even as working-class white men were rallying to the Republican banner as Reagan Democrats, their economic interests were being savaged. Unions were broken and marginalized and free trade policies shipped manufacturing jobs abroad.
Meanwhile, unprecedented greed was unleashed on Wall Street, fraying old-fashioned bonds between company owners and employees. Before Reagan, corporate CEOs earned less than 50 times the salary of an average worker. By the end of the Reagan-Bush I administrations in 1993, the average CEO salary was more than 100 times that of a typical worker. (At the end of the Bush II administration, that CEO-salary figure was more than 250 times that of an average worker.)
Despite the grievous harm that Reagan's presidency inflicted on the American republic and the American people, it may take many more years before a historian has the guts to put this deformed era into a truthful perspective and rate Reagan where he belongs -- near the bottom of the presidential list.
Lots of misconceptions here...
Sarah Palin isn't an idiot; she's an actress playing the role of an idiot. (A lot of politicians do this. They're called "populists" and the smarter ones can get a lot of support.)
Her flaw is that she's lazy, and that her staffers aren't good enough to compensate for it.
Pick any successful politician at the national level, sneak up on him while he's asleep, and scream in his ear, "Yes or no, have you stopped beating your wife?!?!" Without waking up, he'll say, "I've never beaten my wife who is the most wonderful woman in the world but domestic violence is a problem for many American families due to the failed policies of the opposition party which is why I am a co-sponsor of the bipartisan Stop Beating Your Spouse or Heterosexual Domestic Partner Act of 2010 about which details are available on my web site next to the 'Donate' button." They've drilled on this until it's instinct; they know it the way that we know our multiplication tables.
There's a lot of stuff to memorize, but none of it's technically complicated so almost anybody can do it if they're willing to put in the effort. Sarah Palin's clearly not willing to put in the effort; she's memorized some of the talking points but not enough to get her through a debate or a free-form interview.
Now, that's a disadvantage, but it's not a career-killer. George W. Bush had the same laziness problem, but he worked around it by surrounding himself with smart people like Karl Rove and Dick Cheney. (Unfortunately they were the evil sort of smart people but that's another story for another day.) All you need to do is make sure that you're never in an unscripted situation, and that one of your staffers has given you index cards with the unmemorized talking points that you'll be using.
If the index cards haven't been prepared in advance, then that's a failure on the part of the staff. And if the staff can't even find any blank index cards to write on at the last minute...well, all I can say is that I hope the blank index cards were around and that Palin wrote on her hand as part of her "populist" act.
aratina cage-
i think people are getting confused about having an alaska native ancestor vs. being a shareholder in an alaska native tribal/regional corporation, and the different degrees of this based on birthdate. i might be wrong, but i think there is a legal distinction.
your ADN quote confirms what i've read about todd's ancestry. but this is further comment on why the palin's embracing of "nativeness" when if affords their offspring healthcare seem bizarre/hypocritical.
http://alaskareal.blogspot.com/2008/09/todd-palin-on-his-heritage-serie…
clearly todd is not a subsistence fisherman, but i had the impression that his status a shareholder in -i think 2?- native corporations was somehow tied to his fishing activities. if you know more about this i'd be very happy to hear it.
luna1580,
You can read the Wikipedia article on the Alaska Native Claims Settlement Act, ANCSA, (link) for a fuller background, but basically the corporations control the land and the tribes are quasi-sovereign entities that govern the people of the tribe (not non-tribal members) separately, aside of, or in conjunction with the state and federal governments. Different tribes have different rules for membership, but when ANCSA was enacted, it set up several regional corporations and hundreds of village corporations. So a Native Alaskan can be a member of a regional corporation, a village corporation, and a tribe at the same time. The determination of who was a Native by their "blood quanta" was a messy political process, but it was required for everyone claiming original shares in the regional and village corporations. Some people, like Todd's grandmother Lena, did not get "full" Native ancestry status; Todd's grandmother did not because one of her parents (her father) was an immigrant to Alaska, but she was still "Native enough" for her and her children and her grandchildren to be allotted shares in the Native corporations at the time of ANCSA.One of the corporations that Todd may belong to is the Bristol Bay Native Corporation due to his grandmother Lean growing up near Bristol Bay. Todd also fishes commercially in Bristol Bay each summer, but his fishing permit likely has nothing to do with the Bristol Bay Native Corporation. The confusion over names is worsened by the fact that Todd worked for the oil giant BP, aka British Petroleum.I hope I got all that right and hope it helps clear up some of the confusion. In the end, it seems to me that the Palins have every reason and right to identify as Native except for Sarah Palin herself. Another thing to take into account is the high level of racism directed at Natives in Alaska; what some see as a false embrace may be proud or, alternatively, tepid acceptance.
What evidence is there that it isn't an idiot?
What it has said, how it has behaved, and the known bits of its background mostly or entirely suggest it's not only lazy, but is amazingly stupid—an idiot.
Kogato you are and idiot or deliberately distorting thinsg READ HER FATHERS STATEMENT.It is as clear as day he didn't WANT to use the Canadian system (which he paid for) HE HAD NO CHOICE because of travel/weather circumstances in an emergency.TRY and look at things logically not through the blood misted eyes and foam specked mouth that lefties get when they hear Palin's name.
Mulder of course I accept your apology it would be churlish not to. I regret the delay but unlike the kiddies here in their jim jam's in their parent (most would be from single parent families I am sure) basement I am in the real world. You also have the excuse of being misled by Myers who should not be within a 100 miles of students and is a discredit to his profession with his disgusting distorted invective.As if a 5 year old was,by her own volition crossing into Canada for socialist medicine and 41 years later was taking a different stance-only a fool would state that. In answer to your question yes of course public figures whether in or out of politics are open to criticism-what I object to is leftists using lies and slander.
O.K. let's deal with the other loudmouth's;
Nigel.Anyone who quotes a drug ridden,pot smoking pillow grabbering Aids infected party switcher (Sullivan) or a 19 year mullet head who poses nude for gay magazines as his proof of any limitations on Palin's abilities(or that of Mickey Mouse)is seriously deficient in brain cells themselves.As for naming "One accomplishment she had as governor"-this from factcheck (not pro-Palin) Whetsell claim: Now, even with her much-ridiculed "gosh and golly" mannerism, she also managed to put together a totally new approach to getting a natural gas pipeline built which will be the biggest private construction project in the history of North America. No one else could do it although they tried. If that doesn’t impress you, then you’re trying too hard to be unimpressed while watching her do things like this while baking up a batch of brownies with her other hand." And this from an"idiot" ?
Truthspeaker-yes I amf amiliar with American politics having been a campaign worker for the Democratic party in New York City and voted the Liberal Party ticket (Dubinsky's Garment Workers Union platform).
Walton."She went to 5 mediocre colleges" Nothing speaks louder of the crass leftist elitism which people in the flyover country loath than your statement.It would never pass your mind that perhaps she moved through these colleges for personal,not academic difficulty reasons.As for decrying journalism-Edward R. Murrow/Cronkite and others of that ilk would not meet your standards one would assume. Let me know which college the leftist icon Harry Truman graduated from by the way you jerk.
i apologize for posting without doing a better job of fact checking, clearly she ought not be arrested, merely scorned. Yeah, mulder took back what was written, alright.
So much densely compacted crap there. Please provide proof that the majority of people here are unemployed and living in basements. You do know that people have computer access at their jobs and their schools. And some people are able to post on their phones while using public transportation. Honest. Also, nice crack about the worth of people who came from single parent houses. Once more, please provide proof that these people have less worth.
Two questions here. How do you know what PZ Myers' as an educator is? Please provide proof. Second, how do you know that mulder (As well as everybody else.) are getting their political cues from PZ Myers?
The real problem is that Sarah Palin tells very different stories about this according to her audience.
No, you are objecting to people calling Sarah Palin on her lies and slanders.
And the question for all of you -how IS that hopey changey thing working out? Do you like supportng a President who has one of the worst declines in poll ratings in history? Are the voters of Va/NJ/ultra-liberal Mass all wrong (by incredible margins)? How is the new era of open government working out-did you enjoy the promised HCR debate on C-Span or Pelosi saying what Rangell did "really hasn't hurt America" after promisng before the election to have new high standards in the house? How is the 8% promised unemployment looking? Do you like bailing out the Wall St. tycoons and ensuring they get multi-million dollar bonuses? How about the bribes to Nebraska and Louisiana for HCR? And for Myers-could Palin do any worse than the empty suit I said would do exactly what he has to this country? Lets see you justify it.
Cable, you are mistaken in your assumption of who Walton is, where he is from and what his party affiliation is. I am actually looking forward to reading Walton's dismantling of you.
Janine are you blind???
"Two questions here. How do you know what PZ Myers' as an educator is? Please provide proof."
....................................
PZ Myers is a biologist and associate professor at the University of Minnesota, Morris
IT IS RIGHT AT THE TOP OF THE PAGE
If that is the best the left has to offer I am putting pearls before swine
Alright asshole. I dropped a couple of fucking words! How do you know how he is as an educator?
Answer that you shit speckled moron!
(See you are not the only one to make baseless accusations. Only I will say it is because I am teasing you. You seem to believe the vomit you spew.)
Janine the real problem was:
" And if that isn't enough Palin stupidity for you, look at this: she hates that socialist health care, but she admits that she would regularly hustle across the border to take advantage of Canadian health care. I think it's really cool that she so willingly identifies herself as a parasite, a thief, a hypocrite, and a good Christian." but now it has morphed (as the rubbish above was destroyed) into "telling two different stories."
You are like a hydra-each time a head is cut off another pops up in its place-each one uglier than the previous.
As for Walton or anyone-bring them on I say-I would love to see how anyone can justify this admin-let alone thesmal list I placed above.
N.B. please enu,maate all the "slanders" Palin has told (and don't start with the "palin around" one which is truth not slander. Give me a list of say about 10 for a start. (crickets)
Also, cable, your post at 168 is a pure case of moving the goalpost. This was not about Obama. But instead of answering my questions, (I liked how you jumped all over the obvious mistake and dismissed the rest.) you go on a pointless tangent. Most of the people here were not that high on Obama, that is because he came off as a centralist more than anything else.
But, hey, you have your assumptions about who the people here are. Reality be damned! You have your invectives and insults to spew.
I may be blind but I am not wallowing in your intellectual mud pool.
I do enjoy when someone uses ad hominem in its true form. Not as insult, but as "this person is wrong for these unconnected reasons." It lets me know when to watch and laugh, as opposed to engaging with hopes of fruitful discourse.
Someone already pointed out that Palin has told different versions of this story. She really should fact check her life story.
And, no, you stupid pile of shit, I am not getting in a wrestling match about Obama. I do not agree with him on politics. Besides, like I said earlier, that is about you moving the goalpost.
And, please enlighten us about how you know who and what we are. You make a lot of charges about the people here, I would like it if you backed up your claims, asshole.
cable,
Walton is British and last time I checked supported the Conservative Party (albeit, reluctantly).
Your exact statement was: "You and most on this site are so petty,sophmorific [sic] and childish and have sad lives attacking someone who is not an office holder". It mentions nothing of "lies" or "slander" and is not consistent with the belief that those out of politics are open to criticism.
I, and many others, realized it was just a stupid slogan. However, he's still better than Bush and better than a McCain administration would have been. (Also, stop stealing Palin's sound bites.)
[Citation needed]
In any case, Bush had the lowest approval rating in the 70 year history of Gallup polls (see here). Obama is currently at ~50% approval rating, which isn't that bad.
All of those elections were for local office and didn't really have much to do with Obama. The Republicans won Mass. more because of Democratic incompetence than anything else.
No, but then again it started happening under Bush and McCain would have likely done something similar.
Yes, much much worse. Judging from her previous executive experience she might quit the presidency to become a CNN anchor.
cable writes :
Well, thankfully how to run the USA is not decided by plebiscite or poll but by elected officials.And poll rating is a measure of quality of policies now? What a nonsense.
Not great, because your mob is essentially just saying "No" to everything, and in a 2-party system that is the end of the political process, unfortunately.
Ad hominem argument missing any substance or evidence.A picture starts to emerge.
There's one MILF (mother I'd like to forget) I can do without. You betcha!
Since she doesn't have the good sense to shut up OR go away, at least she's giving her "fans" ammo and time to realize they should be embarrassed.
Google knows: sarah palin quote
I'd like for cable to explain Palin quitting the governorship to go be on fox tv instead. She had an incredible responsibility to her state, the chance to make government work the way she thought best, had used the goodwill and efforts of hundreds of people who believed in her and worked hard to help her get to that position, and she...quit. Because she wanted to be on tv instead or something. Sarah Palin, the woman that for some unfathomable reason Republicans think has something relevant to say on the matter of politics and government, walked away from being the elected leader of an entire state. No, not walked away: she tossed it in the trash via a rambling and incoherent speech that sounded like it was a decision she had just made with as little forethought as what to eat for breakfast.
Sarah Palin is a quitter. And she's the worst kind of quitter: the kind who quits for no other reason than she feels like it, who in doing so leaves an entire state of her own citizens in the lurch. She put the government of an entire state in jeopardy due to a whim. Regardless of her proudly ignorant stupidity (which is impressively enormous), no one should ever listen to a single thing she has to say about politics again solely on the basis of her decision to quit governing in the middle of her term. Defend that, cable.
Money, get back.
I'm all right Jack keep your hands off of my stack.
Money, it's a hit.
Don't give me that do goody good bullshit.
I'm in the high-fidelity first class traveling set
And I think I need a Lear jet.
cable, tell us how you really feel.
---
@luna1580, I misspelled Todd's grandmother's given name the second time. It is "Lena".
Palin appeals to the low IQ uneducated, idiot demographic. Half the population has an IQ below 100, the median. Cable is one of them.
Most of us get our information from a wide variety of sources of which Myers is a small part. This is a blog, not the central committee of the globe spanning Pharynguloid Party.
I doubt if you have even been within 100 miles of "students" or a university.
Cable is just babbling now. Next up AGW is a scam, Obama is a Kenyan Moslem terrorist, Grey Aliens are abducting him and sticking anal probes up his ass, the earth is 6,000 years old, Fox News is actually real news, and Palin and Bush aren't really, really stupid and evil.
Personally, I think it is a mistake to assume Sarah Palin is stupid. She is proudly ignorant and has the morals of a hungry baracuda, but stupid people like that are precisely the ones who outmaneuver smart people--particular, if they get a smart handler they trust.
American populist politicians have a very long history of making ignorance work for them. Google the Know Nothings.
Mark my words. Palin will be Pres someday. And then all the smart people can petition for asylum as a repressed minority.
Well, she isn't very bright. But that isn't much of a handicap these days for a politician. For a right wingnut, it seems to be mandatory.
If Bush can get elected than Palin could too.
I doubt if she will ever be president, but not enough to put money on it. People thought the same thing about Bush's reelection.
But if it happens, it happens. All civilizations end. Toynbee pointed out that 18 of 22 fell from within, committed suicide. Someday it will be our turn but I keep hoping it will hold together for my projected lifespan. That is looking a lot less likely these days.
cable@168 memorized and mindlessly regurgitated (good boy, cable!):
"And the question for all of you -how IS that hopey changey thing working out?"
Granted it hasn't been perfect but it could have been much, much, much worse. McCain and Palin could have won. Someone clueless enough to pick an unvetted person on a whim and her being a chronic and perhaps compulsive liar whose brain power seems to be limited to two brain cells fighting for air. A rock with lipstick, if you will.
Can't say I like the Palin but as far as ".. she would regularly hustle across the border to take advantage of Canadian health care."
Would it make a difference to point out that she was 6? Did she actually choose to hustle on over to Canada or just the nearest city (Canadian, a term used loosely there) to get looked at, you know, with her parents?
There's plenty to criticize Palin about, or aboot, but avoiding trivial stuff like this one would help the more serious criticism stand out. Fortunately, the chattering class attempt to raise the profile of the Palin doesn;t seem to be working.
It's not going too well is it ? Feeling dazed and confused? You had 8 years of righteous indignation against Bush (who somehow managed to get re-elected-must be the millions of idiots you look down on and the pesky Diebold machines).
Now the shoe is on the other foot and you have a Dem admin-and what a shambles. Put in an unknown position of having to now defend instead of criticise you are all at sea and in frustration at having to defend what can’t be defended lash out childishly at a woman who holds no office and is unlikely to hold any in the future.
That, as an alternative suit of clothing for the Emperor with no clothes won't work.
As for why Palin quit the governor's job
Being governor wasnt going to get her rich, she is a republican from wasilla, its a me first state.
Having said that, Alaska has been trying to get a gas line deal done for about 25 years. Palin was the first one to get the deal signed off by all parties. Not an easy thing to do with rabid enviro's on one side and foaming oil crooks on the other paying off the politicians in the middle.
I hope she doesnt become president because it will look a lot more like a huey long presidency than even the current occupant, he is bad enough
Yeah, but that's mostly because I just finished reading your post.
Well I blame the millions of idiots and the Supreme Court, which pretty much voted along ideological lines in Gore v. Bush.
Well, yeah things are a mess. The previous guy fucked up everything he touched.
I have criticized the Obama administration, so has PZ and so have many commenters here. I have no interest in defending them when they fuck up (and they have).
She only holds no office because she quit and then went on to put herself in the public spotlight. She appears regularly on Fox News as a "contributor" and even appeared on the Tonight Show. Personally, I prefer she does what the title of this thread tells her to do: "go away".
Cable, can you stop stroking yourself long enough to explain how you know the character and lifestyles of the people here? Can you take enough time from your oh so busy schedule to back up your claims?
For all of you who were led over the cliff by Myer's rabid knee jerk article-here is the truth.If you had waited a day,or were not to lazy to think for yourself and investigate you would not be now in the position of being made to look like fools.
http://www.esquire.com/the-side/opinion/sarah-palin-canadian-health-car…
No digrsssion please.This Myer's posting was about Palin being "a thief"-how do you like Myer's now?
If only she'd had some way to know that before she ran. That's too bad really.
Janine sweetie-to quote the bible (shudder)
A tree is known by the fruit it bears
@janine MOTFMA #192 dunno about anyone else I am an old fart with a day job and suspect there is a few more on here as well
Cable et al.,
You guys don't get it. The point is that Palin is now decrying a health care system that was just fine for her when she was a kid--a system she benefitted from.
It is the hypocrisy of saying "Oh it was fine for me, but it would be a disaster for the country."
In Canada, nobody goes broke because they can't pay the medical bills. You don't have a third of the country unable to go to the doctor and another third afraid to do so.
In the US, health care bills are the leading cause of personal bankruptcies!
Cable says, "A tree is known by the fruit it bears"
Judging by her "fruit" I guess we can conclude here tree is quite fertile and doesn't use protection.
@Kopd #94 when she ran she had no idea she was going to end up on the veep ticket and get all that publicity. Best hope was just trying to get the free pension as governor. Not cheap to live in Alaska and full time employment can be scarce unless you work in government or the oil bidness
If she had waiting until her term was over the spotlight would have been shining elsewhere and the opportunity lost.
@bro
I think I see what you're saying now. Bigger and better things came along, so she said "screw you Alaska."
Errr... whatever. FYI, I'm not American, nor am I particularly leftist. One doesn't have to be left-wing to realise that Sarah Palin is a fool, just as one doesn't have to be right-wing to realise that, say, Michael Moore is a fool. A fool is a fool, whatever his or her political orientatio.
And yes, I think a person who wants to be the chief executive of the most powerful nation on earth, with all the complex range of responsibilities and duties which that job entails, should have a rounded education, a strong academic background and demonstrated intellectual ability. If that makes me an "elitist", then so be it.
Furthermore, the problem with Palin is not just her personal dearth of knowledge or accomplishment; it's the fact that she suffers from the Dunning-Kruger effect, and seems entirely incapable of recognising her own areas of ignorance. No politician can be expected to know everything about everything; but an intelligent and competent politician will have the sense to listen to expert advice in areas where he or she is ignorant. This is what most presidents have done, but Palin, so far, shows no signs of doing this. Instead, she seems to assume that her own limited worldview represents reality, and seems to vastly over-estimate her own understanding of economics, the sciences, and a range of other fields. (Remember her scathing remarks about "fruit fly research", when it would have taken her five minutes of research to find out that research into the genetics of fruit flies actually has a range of useful medical applications?)
I should also be clear that I was not attacking journalism as a profession. Journalists are essential to a functioning liberal democracy, and plenty of great political figures have a background in journalism. But I am old-fashioned enough to question the value of a vocational journalism degree. I think it's far more useful for a journalist to have an academic grounding in the field that he or she writes about, and to have a deep understanding of the material on which he or she works, rather than simply being trained in how to communicate. Modern journalism tends to be very superficial; most journalists are not specialists in the fields they write about, and most newspaper reports, especially when it comes to economics or the sciences, tend to be inadequate and/or inaccurate. IMO, simply training people to be journalists, rather than educating them and instilling a deep understanding of an academic field, contributes to this superficiality.
Well she of course has the right to make that choice and go for the big payout. However, she does not have the right to not be criticized for it.
And her pretending she was "doing it for Alaska" is a joke.
Whitehorse is nearly the same distance from Skagway as is Juneau. Perhaps the hospital in Whitehorse is closer... but by how much than one in Juneau? Sorry... I'm not buying the story that they had to go there.
Well, Cable, let's see the original post:
So maybe not a thief.
But a hypocrite? Hell yes.
You quote mine with the best of them, Cable. The Disco'tute is looking for people like you.
And the article you linked? It tells us that the hospital choice was a question of geography. So why do you think there wasn't a hospital closer to Skagway on the U.S. side of the border? Because it was not profitable to build one there.
It is also not profitable to have a hospital in Whitehorse. Why was there one there anyways? Because profit is not the driving force, thanks to the Canadian healthcare system.
The shit speckled moron would rather quote the bible at me instead of explaining how he knows how the charges he puked out about the people are true. He cannot even understand that most of the people here were not that high on Obama. Look up lesser of two evils.
Here is a fresh fruit for a rotting vegetable.
Janine you are too easy to get a rise out of so I will ignore your potty mouth attempts at serious discussion. I see your hero Walton has arrived to take me down and rescue the unfair maiden.
I was expecting some horrible fiery discourse but am delighted to see a person of intelligence in contrast with the majority of silly posters here.
He raises some points and instead of the knee jerk lefty response action taken on this site I will consider them and reply anon.
Cheerio
Right, you shit speckled moron, why should you have to defend what you accuse the people here to be.
And you just provided a great bit of comedy here. Most of the regulars will get a good laugh about Walton being my hero.
The next time you want to argue with the voices in your head, be kind and keep it to yourself.
You might change your mind about that if you ever had to use the ferry to get from Skagway to Juneau in an emergency. Many things can go wrong for a ferry that would prevent departure, and the ride probably isn't as fast (31 km/h for a ferry) as taking the train to Whitehorse would have been (just look at a map of the area to see how much of a difference it would make in a time-critical situation).
Bwahahahaha.
Cable and serious discussion are an oxymoron. Emphasis on moron.
Oh gee. Blaming your parents for your substandard brain are you?
Maybe you can get a refund or at least sue them.
Fundies are cute when they try to think but after a while it gets boring. Cut to the chase.
Tell everyone they are going to hell and then start spouting bible verses like a defective tape recorder. It should be amusing for 5 minutes or so.
as an aside, for any who've done the inside passage in Alaska recently...
last time I hit Skagway/Juneau/Haines/Ketchikan was in the summer of 1984.
How much has changed since then?
Sorry raven you are barking (mad) up the wrong tree.Firstly you don't understand irony-the quote had (shudder) next to it to make it clear that quoting the bible to potty mouth was dangerous.
Secondly the expression has moved into common language and is an alternative to "the fruit doesn't fall far from the tree"
Thirdly,although you thought you had a bone to gnaw on and could dismissively sterotype me as a "fundy" you couldn't be more wrong.
I am a liberal (i.e. non-practicing) Jew and no not a end days rapture pro-Israel fanatic.Try another tack.
BTW Nerd that childish bwahaa etc is so last decade
The shit speckled moron feels the need to defend itself from baseless charges yet cannot understand why the foul mouth one asks him to defend it's own baseless charges.
Maybe if I said it was wearing it's pajamas while sitting in the basement of it's single parent's house...
A very peculiar thing to say. If you mean liberal in a theological context, most such liberal Jews in the United States (where you said you've lived) are Reform, and Reform Jews are certainly not non-practicing. If you mean liberal in a political context, which you apparently do not since you have terrible things to say about liberals, there's still nothing about being a political liberal that implies one is religiously non-practicing. Either way, your comment makes very little sense. One wonders if you have any clue what you're talking about.
Either way, whether theologically or politically liberal, why is a supposed liberal making anti-gay comments? You insulted Andrew Sullivan as "pillow grabbing." (Well, actually you said "pillow grabbering" since you're only semi-literate.) There's nothing wrong with Sullivan being gay, but you used it as an insult. You also suggested that his HIV status has anything to do with whether he should be taken seriously. This is bizarre, and coupled with your previous anti-gay comment, suggests that you have serious homophobic issues.
You're a terrible person, but a lovely example of a Palin fan.
I'm sure Sarah Palin's mother hasn't forgotten that her child sucks.
#214. The surest indication of someone with a weak argument is that they go to the typo's which demeans them-I know how to spell grabbing and if I am semi-literate I would struggle to imagine what a fully literate mind would be like (incidentally I scored in the top 90% "superior" in English in an employment profile test.
Jews love to examine the schisms but you missed my point.I was trying to explain to non-Jews that I did not take a religious standpoint and was "liberal" i.e. secular and not a "Brooklyn Cowboy"
The various Sullivan items go to show that they have affected his mind.If you agree with him that Palin named her son Tri-G after the scientific name of affliction he has and Trig is really her daughters child then you are as bonkers as he and the rest of the "Trig Truthers" are.His sexuality,as it affects his mind (anyone who advertises for gay sex whilst knowingly has Hiv/Aids has an affected mind)is worthy of comment-as is any heterosexual sex which unbalances judgement as Olberman so sneeringly implied when announcing Sanford's indiscretions."Supposed liberal" now you have really cut deep-that is the last thing I am- and also I am not homophobic.Lets cover all the bases actually-not a fundy,not homophobic (my lovely niece is a lesbian as a matter of fact) nor racist ( I know you couldn't imagaine an anti-Obama person not being so but try) my other niece is half Haitian-a semitic/Haitian princess and as lovely as that combo implies.#213/5-Go away.
cable,
#216
#87
But he was batshit mad and illiterate-he admitted it saying he was very ill at 3 a.m. with jaundice and apologized to me (quite right).
C'mon-you have to do better.
And that somehow addresses your hypocrisy in complaining about the very thing which you had done earlier in the same thread, regardless of the circumstances?
Ummm... no. He really doesn't have to do better. That pretty well sums it up. Go away, Palin fan-boy.
I really hope you tell us you are a member of MENSA next.
Or how well he scored on his PSAT's...
It's starting to look like IQ tests should come with a disclaimer on the front saying "Warning: only quote your IQ as a credential if you have no real qualifications or abilities".
It wouldn't change the usage, but we'd know where we stood.
I always find it ironic that those who keep declaiming they want intelligent conversation/discussion fail to hold up their end.
Still proving my point Cable. Sometimes silence is the best way to prove how smart you are.
Cable says "and if I am semi-literate I would struggle to imagine what a fully literate mind would be like"
You know, somehow the idea of you struggling to imagine something, hell anything is not a struggle at all.
Cable: "incidentally I scored in the top 90% "superior" in English in an employment profile test."
Gee, guess those Readers Digest "Build your Wordpower" exercises really worked out for you, huh?
I agree with the Rev.: Please, please, please, tell us you are a MENSA member. Pretty please.
*facepalm* No, cable, you are homophobic and not liberal. Stop being an asshole troll and pretending otherwise when it is so fucking obvious.
Cable, I'm still waiting for you to say something about how you feel about Sarah Palin QUITTING HER JOB AS GOVERNOR.
Cable is as liberal as Sarah Palin is capable of competently running a government office.
But he was batshit mad and illiterate-he admitted it saying he was very ill at 3 a.m. with jaundice and apologized to me (quite right).
strange, I have the very same affliction, it's 5:00am here, and I say you are a complete fucktard.
*checks watch*
I don't expect to need to apologize for a correct description of you, ever.
I scored in the top 90% "superior" in English in an employment profile test.
and yet, I'll bet you're unemployed and on beer benefits?
Really? They must have lowered their standards tremendously. Look:
Again, liberal does not mean secular. So it's rather misleading to say "liberal, id est secular," as you do. If the phrase "liberal Jew" didn't already have a well established meaning, you'd merely be wrong if not especially misleading. But it does have a well established meaning, and you're distorting it.
I know you're not capable of admitting such a mistake in public, but this correction is for the benefit of the readers who you might otherwise mislead.
You're reaching far beyond credulity now. First, the problem was not that Sullivan advertised for gay sex. The problem was that he sought bareback gay sex, without disclosing his HIV status. Had he disclosed his status, allowing people to take informed risks, there would have been nothing deceptive about his actions.
But that indicates nothing about his mental state. It simply means he's sexually irresponsible, like so many other people in the world. Humans are hardwired to fuck, and we are all capable of making some pretty convoluted excuses for fucking irresponsibly. Do you also insist that there is "something wrong with the minds" of straight teenagers who keep on fucking when they run out of condoms? If you don't, then you're a hypocrite; if you do, then you have very little experience being human.
In any case, if you wanted to use his sexual irresponsibility to claim he was generally untrustworthy, you could have done so without using anti-gay insults. You instead chose to go for "pillow grabbing," insulting his sexuality directly, insulting him simply for being gay. To choose those anti-gay words was your own anti-gay choice. Don't try to evade your own responsibility now by claiming you didn't mean what you said.
Well, that's the literacy issue again. Don't call yourself a liberal if you don't want people to call you a liberal. This ought to be obvious.
I'm glad to hear that you love your niece. So I'm especially disappointed to hear that even though you love your niece, you choose to use anti-gay insults against gay people you have disagreements with, when you could have just addressed the substance of those disagreements.
See, when you make the problem about Andrew Sullivan be that he is "pillow grabbing," you're making his gayness the problem.
Would you think it's acceptable for someone who has a legitimate disagreement with your niece to call her a fucking dyke who just needs a man to turn her? I surely hope not. That would be diverting attention from the real disagreement, and focusing on her sexual orientation as the problem. That would be anti-gay.
But that's exactly what you've done with Sullivan. Your actions here are overtly anti-gay. You can say you're not homophobic, but it is our actions that define us. If you don't want to be anti-gay, then you ought to stop saying anti-gay things. This too ought to be obvious, but you're not the first person who needed it spelled out explicitly.
I hope you'll consider that you do your niece no favors when you insist, by your actions or your defense of those actions, that it's acceptable for people to use anti-gay insults as though they constituted legitimate criticism. Your own actions are making the world a more hostile place for LGBT people. Please stop.
#229. Nit picking on liberal Jewsihness.Again I was trying to explain to non-Jews which is a challenge.It is better to err on the side of simplicity.There is no point in discussng such a minor point any further.
Re;Sullivan "A tree is known by the fruit it bears".I said his condition has affected his mind and gave an example of his holding a belief (Trig is not Palin's son and she named him after his affliction) which borders on madness.
You chose to attack my description of his sexuality,which,in living that lifestyle, has led to his disease, but totally ignore the point at issue-he holds to a delusion which is mad.If we define madness as continuing to hold on to an insane belief in the light of all evidence then he fits the bill.
Address that issue (his mad belief) please. N.B. If my niece held to this belief I would pay for her treatment.
If cable is going to start talking about his qualifications, will he next mention who he went to school with and whether or not he wants a camera?
Now that Myers has been disposed of let us now look at some of the reasons why Palin should be supported.
1.She is a woman
I hold with Puglia (Sex And Violence, Or Nature And Art) that the sublimation of the male Dionysian to enable society to function has led to specific aspects of male superiority and the rise of the Apollonian e.g. in the arts. However the Dionysian can’t be held in check “there is no female Hitler or Beethoven” and the negative aspects-war, date rape etc break through.
I believe society will only reach its true heights when the feminine principle is dominant in our political structures (with a majority of seats in Congress etc) and reflects the superior qualities of 51% of the population .I applaud the Scandinavian and Indian governments who have legislated a minimum number of parliamentary seats for women. I will never forgive the Democrats for what they did to Hillary, whom I voted for-it is America’s loss this astute woman is not President instead of the empty suit incompetent with his equally incompetent advisors. It would be silly to vote for any woman just because of her gender-obviously I believe Palin has the right gender and the right qualities, one of which is;
2.She holds to the sanctity of life.
It speaks to her moral character that she has held to her beliefs, when others might falter, and carried her child to full term-nobody can take that away from her. I don’t agree fully with her stance on abortion but lean to preserving life if possible. In this age of duplicity I respect her values and her living them. I respect that she believes in counselling and not legislating against further abortion controls.
3. She has a personal moral compass-she doesn’t have affairs, she tries to be a good mother.
She is upbeat and uplifting, she has character and a love of ordinary folks. She has more qualifications than Truman but is cut from the same cloth.
4.The beltway east/west coast elites hate her. The ivy leaguers (including G.W. Bush) who got America into Vietnam/Iraq who love the great unwashed in the abstract but look down their noses at them as individuals are no more guarantors of economic or any other sort of stability than a common sense person (who has proven achievements) and who is connected to the people.
Paglia
cable - being a woman means fuck-all for why she should be supported. In fact, the policies she supports are adamantly anti-woman, anti-family, and anti-disabled. She does lip service to them and then supports policies and legislation that will hurt the majority of people in those categories.
And you are studiously ignoring my question - how do you feel about the fact that Sarah Palin QUIT BEING GOVERNOR?
that's a dumbass reason to vote for anyone. She's unqualified for the job, and she still would be unqualified for it if she were a Black Native American Jewish Lesbian In A Wheelchair. Also, there's no such thing as a superior sex/gender. sexism is still sexism, even if it's made to look positive :-/
shes against women's right to bodily autonomy; unless she's also for mandatory blood, marrow, and organ donations, that makes her a sexist hypocrite.
"tries to be a good mother" is a hella low bar; virtually all mothers do that. As for the moral compass... she's a liar, has been at the heart of a whole bunch of abuse-of-power scandals, and has prematurely quit the job she was elected to do. If that's a "moral compass", I think we should only elect people without one.
another dumbass reason to vote for someone. she's not qualified, which is the only important part. "she's a woman" and "she's an outsider" are the sort of bonus points one can use to choose between qualified candidates; they're not qualifications in and of themselves, and neither are they sufficient substitutes for qualifications
oh yeah, forgot to add:
if you think this describes Palin even remotely, you're a clueless idiot. she's not "connected to the people", she's merely another right wing populist who knows how to make said people think that she gives a fuck.
There is only one reason I can see for ever voting for the incompetent quitter Palin. I am too gaga to know who I am voting for, as almost anyone else would be a far, far lesser evil. But then, if I was that demented, I probably wouldn't be voting in the first place.
This is just sick, vile hetero trash talk. We don't need to hear your moralizing. I ask that you cease your gay-bashing. If you have a problem with Andrew Sullivan, take it up with him. It doesn't belong on this thread or on this blog.
What kind of "treatment" are you talking about. You come off as such a cruel person, possibly a control-freak when it comes to women.
You're too stupid to succeed at simplicity. In that very first statement, you already said "non-practicing." You had explained what you meant, and you should have left it at that. You made it more complicated by introducing the term "liberal." There are a lot of liberal practicing Jews who don't appreciate you spreading misunderstandings about them. How hard is it for you to simply admit that you were wrong?
No, you have no evidence that his HIV status is related to his strange interest in Palin's family. That is your own unsupported slander. For you to bring this up now in defense of your anti-gay comments is unconscionable. Like I said, you are a terrible, terrible person.
I don't give a shit what Sullivan thinks.
Whatever is wrong with Sullivan's opinions, it doesn't have anything to do with him being gay. Whatever is wrong with his obsession with the Palins, it doesn't excuse you using anti-gay insults against him.
To make this clear, just for the sake of argument, I'll say that Andrew Sullivan is a bad person who has been unfair to Sarah Palin.
Now, two wrongs don't make a right. Homophobia is not acceptable just because the particular gay person in question is an asshole. Attack him for the substance of what he's said, fine, but don't attack him for being gay like you did.
You are choosing to be anti-gay, and now you are choosing to defend being anti-gay, because your ego does not allow you to admit that you did something wrong.
You are a terrible person, an unrepentant homophobe, and a brilliant example of a typical Palin fan. I'm glad you came here to show off what a terrible person you are, but you've done your job and now it's time for you to be on your way.
Oh! Now I see. Cable is one of those disgruntled Hillary voters who, while supporting a member of an historically oppressed minority for president, somehow couldn't shift gears to support a member of a different historically oppressed minority for president. (Or maybe not. I'm not sure Cable is on the level anyway.)
Now, this is part of the problem:
and
to which I say, "Who gives a damn?" Within certain limits*, I don't care if she's an alcoholic with a tendency to get tattoos when she's drunk, likes to have sex upside down on a trapeze with the neighbors (all at once), and smokes enough weed to make Jeff Spicoli look like a Mormon in comparison. If she has a solid record of supporting legislation that helps improve the lives of her fellow citizens while keeping her nose of their own "personal moral compass(es)", of being able to understand the complex issues of the day and seek out the advice of experts when she doesn't, seeks always to serve the people, rather than her own hubris and greed, and doesn't engage in outrageous hypocrisy - well, that's all the moral compass I need.
*Well, admittedly, some of those things would likely make her a less-than-effective public servant, but the opposite is possible.
I'm a fan of Andrew Sullivan; though he can be a little OTT at times, his political views are not far from mine.
And I agree with strange gods that cable's homophobic comments are absolutely vile, as are his remarks about Sullivan's HIV status. cable seems to have run out of substantive arguments, and is just digging himself deeper into a hole.
Wow... :-)
Walton, I'll be honest: Each of those things I mentioned would be a positive BOON in my eyes.
I cannot believe I just read that. I have seen innumerable examples of such unreconstructed homophobia, but some how each new example still has the power to shock me.
Cable, you are aware that heterosexuals can also contract and transmit the HIV virus through sexual congress? Do you not see how offensive it is to try to draw a direct causal link between homosexuality and AIDS, and by oblique implication suggest that somehow this man, and commensurately all homosexuals, somehow deserve to suffer the ravages of this terrible disease?
It is exactly this attitude of linking personal revulsion for a lifestyle (that its critics do not understand and make no attempt to empathise with) to temporal consequences of disease via some 'just deserts', 'wrath of god' pseudo-logic that lays the groundwork for the oppression of homosexuals in society at large, the unjust denial of their fundamental rights, and even violent expressions of homophobia.
I know it is not my place, but I think that you should seriuously re-examine your positioon on this point. Consider the consequences of the stance you currently espouse and ask yourself; do I really want to be party to this?
It's certainly possible. I have encountered a few racist white people who voted for Hillary Clinton in the primaries but would not vote for Obama because he was black.
We had no particular reason to think that cable was a racist, until #216 with the "I'm not a racist but" line. That's your cue; if you have to bet one way or the other, you're very likely to win betting that cable is a crazy racist.
Maybe you should establish the Booze, Inventive Sexual Positions and Marijuana Party of America, and run for president in 2012. You'd probably get more votes than Dennis Kucinich, anyway. :-)
Walton, I might at that - but unfortunately they'd most likely be Ron Paul voters, and I'd rather go anonymous, don a red shirt and venture out with the landing party than be their standard bearer.
Curs'd typos! Apologies all.
cable:
Just what treatment would be good for the contemptible, execrable views lodged in the defective, malodorous pustule which passes for your brain?
Sigh…Sisyphus himself would gladly pick up a burden 10 times bigger than the one assigned rather than try to attempt to break through the brick wall of the fixed ideas of you lot. Since there are limits to what even I can stomach (and frankly you are boring) I will conclude after tying up some loose ends. I can only hope you have learned your lesson about following the knee jerk article by your mentor and to think for yourself after doing research. #234.I didn’t say women were superior I said they had some superior qualities. It is a fact that men and women are different brain function. As for the quitter thing-I am surprised you would even pursue this but since you press the talking point when you get your next job ensure that the competitors and some random nutcases take endless, unwarranted legal action against you (each one of which gets tossed out) and the legal costs are more than you earn. Also let their constant harassment stop you from serving the best interest of your customers. Take the positive step of ensuring your assistant holds the same views you do and when you have to quit to stop being bankrupted hand over the reins to ensure your customers get the best service. Palin said all this simply and clearly-which is why, those on the left especially who are not used to unvarnished truth, just don’t get it.
You all get into a froth of righteous anger over the category you have finally settled on “a Hillary lover who is a racist and a homophobe“. You are laughable ! Yes I admit it, I admire Hillary but racist that is ludicrous-my race is the most oppressed minority (btw women are an oppressed majority) in the history of the world which fact lays upon me a burden of opposing racism at all times. I didn’t vote for Obama because I had the prescience to see that would turn out exactly as he has.
Homophobe don’t be stupid, homosexuals were put in the same gas ovens as my people and I also carry that thought as part of my life view.
Now Walton at #201 my dear old chap.I didn’t say you were an American you assumed I thought that just as you assume Palin has a limited world view-assumption is not a good basis for discussion. You advise that a chief executive should have a well rounded education and a strong academic background.
I don’t know how you could come to that conclusion which reflects elitism. Again, when Truman took over the (elitist) comment was “that goddamn ward heeler is President” ( no space to advice what award heeler is-Google Prendergast machine St.Louis) and he seems to have managed without a well rounded education and having been a failed hat salesman. Closer to your home Prime Minister Callaghan was a school leaver and Bevin, the darling of the left and creator of the NHS had very limited education. When King George asked him how he knew so much Bevin replied “plucked from the hedgerows of experience”
I hope these examples disavow you of your admitted elitism. Experience and common sense can trump high education (e.g. Jimmy Carter/Obama).
And finally sir I see you are a medical practitioner with years of psychiatric experience. This has given you the magical ability to diagnose Palin at a distance of 5000 miles without ever having met her and based on your media impressions. My brother,who is professor of clinical psychology in New York ask me to tell you he awaits your paper on that with much anticipation and bows to you..
And with that adieu.
Quit deflecting. Your words made you appear to be a homophobe and don't think for a minute that being in a minority that was similarly systematically executed by the Nazis means that you can't be a wretched homophobe.
Yawn, still nothing cogent from Cable. Proving that for some people, it is better to remain silent and have others think you are stupid, than to open your mouth and prove them right...
So, cable, your answer is that it's better to cut and run and leave your state in the lurch when you're under investigation for doing unethical and borderline illegal activities than to stick around and defend yourself (since you think you have nothing to hide, right?).
@carlie #253 I am going to assume that you are not from alaska when you made that statement.
alaska is a fun place where for merely pennies you can lodge complaint after complaint against a state politician and the state government is obligated to spend a pile investigating the complaints with political malice aforethought as the agency is made up of folks on both sides of the aisle. After a complaint is made the opposition goes baying for blood. The incumbent lawyers up and attacks back. Lots of misery for any incumbent and Sarah saw a way out and a big payday.
Most of the complaints were sponsored by a palin hater and neighbor. Most were unfounded but there is no consequences for a complainant in alaska. Thats why they refile on something else often trivial and the game starts anew.
Odd I know but the winters are long and people get bored
Cable says: "And with that adieu."
Promise? Cross your heart and hope to die?
Closer to your home Prime Minister Callaghan was a school leaver and Bevin, the darling of the left and creator of the NHS had very limited education. - cable
Callaghan was bloody useless - his incompetence landed us with Thatcher. You're confusing Ernest Bevin (Foreign Secretary from the Labour right) with Aneurin ("Nye") Bevan - you mean the latter. When Bevan grew up in early 20th century South Wales, you could be as bright as possible and still be unable to get much formal education. Bevan did get to the Central Labour College in his early 20s, sponsored by the South Wales Miners Federation. Throughout his life he pursued self-education. Palin, in sharp contrast, carefully maintains her ignorance.
KG, your mentioning the Central Labour College led me to Google it, along with Ruskin College.
Someone has vandalised the Ruskin College entry on Wikipedia. Margaret Thatcher, Idi Amin and Sarah Palin as listed as alumni!
However much you "carry" it, you obviously don't take it seriously, as it hasn't impacted your behavior at all.
The facts here are that you chose to use anti-gay insults against Sullivan, you were given the chance to reconsider how your overtly anti-gay actions make the world a more hostile place for gay people, and you instead decided that you would rather hurt gay people than admit you were wrong.
Forgive the slightly rushed "drive-by" comment, but my interest was piqued on two points of contention that I admit are particular bugbears of mine.
1. Re: Cable's assertion that he couldn't possibly be expressing homophobic views because, hey, he's a Jew and we all know what they did to Jews back in the day, amirite? I discovered long ago that knowing one's ancestors were part of an oppressed minority does nothing whatsoever to dissuade most people from oppressing a different minority. See: Every anti-immigration American person who has a post-colonial immigrant ancestor (which is a lot of them).
2. The usual throwing around of the term "elitist" as an insult. Why, pray tell, should we wish for the elected leader of what is arguably the most powerful country in the world to be anything less than one of the elite, i.e. the best? It baffles me regularly that anyone should hold this view. You are damn right that I want the president and his advisers to be very fucking elite. It's a very fucking elite position. Dig?
I try to get out but the keep pulling me back in. Since you ask…
Thank you #254 for shutting up #253.
#256 Yes you are right,I of course meant Bevan not Bevin, thanks. The point is still the same-neither man had a “rounded education…strong academic background” so beloved by #201, and thus not acceptable to him as an admitted elitist.
You are dead wrong about Callaghan whose Social Contract if allowed to happen would have laid a solid basis for prosperity. What happened to bring on Thatcher was not his incompetence but the communist ridden, pig headed “I’m all right Jack” (see the Peter Sellers film) trade unions who went on endless strikes, stopped exports and let rubbish pile up in the streets. The same communist led unions who also destroyed the Wilson economy which Roy Jenkins had done such a great job in stabilising.
Whatever one thinks of Thatcher it is to her eternal credit that she smashed forever the power of the unions (exemplified by the horrid Arthur Scargill the final destroyer of union credibility) to hold Britain to ransom. This led in due course to the final purging of the old line socialists/nut case leftists
and the creation of New Labour.
# 241/4/9/251/8 Now if I had said about Bill Clinton that he was an old goat priapic muff diver in relation to something he had done or said there would not have been a word out of any of you about my attacking his heterosexual lifestyle.
It is o.k. by your standards to satirize someone who is sexually hyperactive if he/she is straight but not if they are gay and by their own admission sexually very active. It is part of their persona, not their sexual nature which is being satirized. You are all hypocrites.
#259.If you are a Jew you are flat-out wrong . If you are not then when you have your Godfather show you a wall of photo’s of his entire family who were murdered in Treblinka then you can state with authority what I or any other Jew thinks or feels.
You obviously don’t understand what is meant by elitist. Jefferson, Madison, Monroe, the Roosevelt’s were by any definition members of the elite. They loved and supported the common person and did not look down their noses at them or their heralds e.g. Palin like you on this site do. Carter was a member of the elite, highly educated, a wealthy businessman and achiever in the service. He was a total flop as President and was slaughtered in his attempt to be re-elected by a man of the people who went to an ordinary college (without a well rounded education or a strong academic background) and who won re-lection by winning every state but one.
I did not realize that this site was so strongly gay centered, if not a gay site (nothing wrong with that of course).I see now the reason for it and the seeming obsession with the church and gays and lawmakers coming out of the closet in that your mentor expressed his repressed fantasy of hunky men who caught his eye “of body-builders. It is a little surreal to stroll by all the protein supplements and people with giant necks and bulky bodies to join my fellow nerds. I'm tempted to taunt them with math problems, but I'd rather not get wedgied and swirlied.”. Tee hee.
Palin may have come from a modest background, but if she were to hold office her policies would very much be in favor of the (economic) elite at the expense of the middle and working class. She may be of the people, but she definitely isn't for the people.
cable likes New Labor? this is just getting more and more ridiculous.
still would have been a pointless ad hominem, still wouldn't actually be an argument, still would have made you look like an idiot. The only, but important, difference is that heterosexuals aren't an abused and repressed minority
Reagan? A "man of the people"? wow, you're really impressed with shitty acting and horrid rhetoric, I see. Few men fucked the people over more thoroughly than Reagan.
right; because only gay people care about gay issues. nice bit of projection there
Jadehawk, that's not fair.
it's fairly accurate, from the POW of Americans. Few men have had a worse effect on the American people than he did.
Comparing Reagan to Palin is just silly. It's true that Reagan was from an ordinary background, and didn't have a great education or an outstanding academic record. But he was bright enough to know his own limitations, and surrounded himself with advisers who were brighter.
In any case: Reagan internalised two relatively simple concepts of political philosophy - "government is the problem, not the solution" and "Communism is bad" - and governed according to those. This may well have been the right thing in the 1980s, when Communism was a major threat and when statist policies had created a weak economic situation. But these wouldn't necessarily be the right approaches today. The problems we face in the modern world - such as climate change, the impending energy crisis, or the need to reverse the systematic destruction of civil liberties under the Bush and Obama administrations - are very different from those faced in the 1980s, and a "Reaganite" approach would not necessarily be the right thing. Certainly, Sarah Palin will do nothing at all to restore civil liberties (she's as authoritarian as the rest of them), and her obvious ignorance of science and economics will not help in resolving the very real problems that the world faces.
I'm not at all defending the Obama administration; they're authoritarians too, and have continued the Bush administration's policy of systematically eroding individual liberty and due process. But the mainstream Republican Party is not a decent alternative at the moment.
Walton,
How's that not fair? When the Reagan administration wasn't fucking over the middle and lower class of its own country the were conducting a massive terror campaign in Central America.
Also, most people aren't movie stars. However, even if you accept that he was "of the people" (he wasn't) like Palin he definitely wasn't for the people.
Meh. My head hurts, and I'm aware I'm not making a lot of sense. Apologies.
I think the comparison is apt. To link back to our previous discussion, Reagan was basically just a figure head. It was said he couldn't even explain many of his policies. His job was basically to get elected, make public speeches, and let others take care of things. If Palin were to be president (flying spaghetti monster forbid) I imagine she'd play a similar role.
These were problems 30 years ago as well. Scientists recognized it. Carter recognized it. Since then the evidence has only gotten more conclusive and the situation more dire.
Wow. What a creep. Say, cable, why don't you fuck off and not come back? That would save you from having to well up in tears over our assessment of your precious Palin and spare us from your detestable anti-gay snipes.
I see Cable is incoherent as ever. Cable, why not just STFU, and stop showing us how stooooooopid you are. Palin is even stoooooooopider than you, which is difficult, since you set the bar really low....
aren't you silly to read many comments? why not do something productive (fix breakfast, paint car, wash hands, take naps, tv)?
shut up, bobbyDavids! Gosh!! PPl like u make me sick!
No, i won't shut ups. keep you loud mouth filthy comment to youself. Sari Palin for 2013!!
Talking to yourself isn't very clever, and if you make a habit of just dumping comments like that to old threads, it can get you banned as a nuisance.