What's A Wingnut To Do

Palin backs Obama's StimPak despite howls from Limbaugh and GOP Congress Critters united opposition.

I think this almost assures passage of the Stimulus Package despite filibuster threats and makes for interesting theater as Sarah and Rush vie for the hearts and minds of the Republican Party. New RNC Chair, Steele, already praised the House GOP for uniting against fixing the economy. I see a junior varsity version of Hillary vs. Barack when Palin and Steele inevitably lock horns. Good times.

By the way, Oliver, Pam ... lighten up.

With filibusters off the table, universal health care should be doable once Gregg accepts appointment to Commerce (and they finally swear in Franken), which will leave the Rump Republicans without their greatest obstruction tool. 60 votes by Spring! (Surely Gregg will vote against filibustering his own nomination.)

Oh yeah, Tom Daschle's bid for HHS is running into a snag due to tax problems. I know a lot of folks on the left are ready to hang Daschle out to dry, sick of millionaires not paying their fair share, but I'm a bit dumbfounded how one could be crucifying for not paying taxes on something you received for free. Free is free.

Yes, I guess the argument goes that he should have included the free use of a driver as personal income, but it's not like anyone sent him a 1099 form, did they. Someone paid this driver's salary, presumably paid his withholding and FICA, and paid for the car itself and probably wrote the thing off as a business expense or charitable gift or ... what? Wait, no? Wasn't a campaign contribution, right? If no one wrote it off, thenDaschle is supposed to pay taxes on something that was already taxed and paid by someone else. I call Shenanigans!

Geez, ya gotta marvel at the confiscatory nature of our tax system when accepting a free ride can cost you thousands, hundreds of thousands.

I think he could have fought this out with the IRS, but paid it instead to avoid any problems with his confirmation -- which of course in the Bizzaro World of Versailles on the Potomac had exactly the opposite effect.

But when Tom is confirmed, and in the collegial world of the US Senate where he's being sponsored by his old nemesis Bob Dole, he'll be confirmed -- which will give the wingnuts something to unite against for all the good it will do them.

Nine Terrifying Words

I'm From Alaska, And I'm Here To Help . . . Also.

My Palinfreude™ (Yes Skippy, I coined that word!) sense has been tingling off the charts.  She's everywhere, won't go away, and continues to leave confusion and turmoil in her wake.

Lemme try and help.  This will tax my nascent Jedi abilities, but here goes.

Dear Republican Stormtroopers: 
Sarah is not the Droid Leader you're looking for.

No?  Well I guess I'm not a Jedi yet, but I'll keep practicing, er ... "progressing" my abilities.  (Yes, Skippy, I know there is no try, there is only do ... also.)

We Don't Care, Cuz She's Funny

Red State's Dan McLaughlin makes a noble and convincing defense of Sarah Palin, essentially making the reasonable case that she cannot be as astonishingly stupid as we are led to believe. Essentially, the idea that she doesn't know the countries that make up North America, or that Africa is a continent, or that she is in any way responsible for that $150,000 wardrobe is the result of malicious elements within the McCain campaign who are more interested in deflecting blame for their disastrous campaign and discrediting the Alaskan Governor's future influence on the party.

So what.

Perpetuating this defense, getting into the weeds if you will, only serves to highlight the dysfunction within what's left of the GOP. Culturally she is a laughing stock. Her reputation has reached a punch-line status George Bush and Dan Quayle took years to attain, and she did it within a couple of months. Rehabilitate her at your own risk.

Whether she did or did not know this or that will never erase the moose in the helicopter spotlight look on her face when she couldn't/wouldn't tell Katie Couric what magazines she read.

Should the damage control parties succeed in a partial triage of her reputation, making her palatable enough to remain on the national stage, her baggage will remain regardless of the objective truth or the essential fairness of it all. She wasn't ready, might be some day, but the damage has been done. It's too late.

But that not the whole story. Her politics, the appeal of her core beliefs is so narrowly focused to such a dwindling segment of the population -- on top of a caustic and dangerous tone descended directly from the Gingrich/DeLay style of scortched earth conservativism -- dooms her and her faithful followers to distracting nuisance status, marginalized in an era requiring national unity to address a nation on the brink of several disasters.

No doubt, she'll retain the support of the kooks. And that's fine. All the better to identify and separate them from the herd. See, I personally think that a sane and reasonable conservative opposition is a good thing -- at least compared to what we've been subject to for the last several decades.

As we've seen the last eight years when the extreme right wing gets ahold of the GOP leadership, as repulsive the extreme is to the "center," they do have the ability to capture that 50% +1 needed to foist their poison on the rest of us -- with horrendous consequences. That's a fete the extreme left has never duplicated despite the vile shouts of socialist, communist and liberal-fascists at the mere suggestion of a 4% tax hike on millionaires from basement headquarters that shall remain unlinked. When the great pendulum of the political winds blow right again, in four years or four decades, I'd rather the conservative faction be a reasonable facsimile of sane than the nutbags we've suffered lately.

Sarah Palin does not fit the definition of sane, at least in the sense that her rhetoric permits reasoned compromise or inclusive policies. Bottom line, her brand of parochial and religious based intolerance is unacceptable in a leadership role in a nation as diverse as ours.

That, and she's fucking goofy.

Popcorn Theater Update

Mitt Romney has now been dragged into the circular firing squad in which the likelihood of being kicked out of the GOP tree fort is inversely proportional to your loyalty to Sarah Palin.

What fun to see an anonymous false flag operation smearing the two most likely Republican contenders for the next presidential cycle.  If this keeps up, you know where this is going in 2016 . . .



Thanks Hillary, for paving the way.

The Bull On Barack Killing Coal

Gimme a break.  Obama Loves Coal.

The desperate Wingosphere has latched on to an out of context quote by Barack Obama "discovered" in an interview posted online since January by the San Francisco Chronicle, spreading what no doubt will be a very effective last minute fear tactic designed to influence any vacillating members of the low-info, Appalachian coal mining, don't-need-much-of-an-excuse-to-vote-against-the-black-guy voters in Southern Ohio and Western PA and VA.  (Hidden in plain sight.)

MoveOn.org was livid with Obama because of his stance on coal.  This lie that Obama is anti-coal is so Rovian you almost have to admire the last minute smear attack on what was an Obama weakness that only in Appalachia is a strength.  Genius or dumb luck, this one is really something else.  If there was more time, it's a backfire issue that would reveal Obama at his reaching-over-the-aisle best.  Now it's just a rhetorical hand grenade.

I remember last spring when coal, specifically Obama's flip-flops on liquefied coal technology became a big frickin' deal to a lot of my John Edwards supporting friends in Blogtopia.  So stark the differences between Obama and Edwards, many of the enviro-bloggers were convinced that Edwards would win the primary on this issue alone.  No really, especially since one of Obama's co-sponsors on the bill promoting the use of the dirtiest of all fossil fuels as a transportation gasoline substitute -- guaranteed to make global warming worst, not better -- was Larry "Wide-Stance" Craig. 

That's right, Obama is so opposed to the coal industry, wants to funnel huge amounts of tax dollars to them.  Obama supports of federal money for coal as an "alternative fuel."

Prodded by intense lobbying from the coal industry,
lawmakers from coal states are proposing that taxpayers guarantee
billions of dollars in construction loans for coal-to-liquid production
plants, guarantee minimum prices for the new fuel, and guarantee big
government purchases for the next 25 years¦

Among the proposed inducements winding through House and Senate
committees: loan guarantees for six to 10 major coal-to-liquid plants,
each likely to cost at least $3 billion; a tax credit of 51 cents for
every gallon of coal-based fuel sold through 2020; automatic subsidies
if oil prices drop below $40 a barrel; and permission for the Air Force
to sign 25-year contracts for almost a billion gallons a year of
coal-based jet fuel.

I understand how Sarah Palin and her supporters could miss this obscure bit of news, buried on the Front Page of the New York Times.  They don't read and they don't care.

The Friends of the Earth environmental group endorsed John Edwards, and not Obama or Clinton in no small part because of this coal thing.

Q:   What is your position on Coal to
Liquid technology?   One Democratic presidential candidate cosponsored
a bill to provide taxpayer subsidies for this technology.  Edwards
opposes CtL.  What does using, let alone subsidizing, CtL really mean
for our environment?

A:   Liquid coal is a bad idea for our
country and planet. It contributes twice the amount of carbon emissions
to our atmosphere that petroleum does, consuming an inordinate amount
of water per unit of fuel, and requiring the expansion of ecologically
and socially disastrous mining practices. Unlike Clinton and Obama,
Edwards is the only leading candidate to oppose coal-to-liquid
technology.

We thought this was the ultimate stupid move for someone vying for the Democratic nomination.  You should see my email:

So why then, environmentalists ask, is Obama backing a law supporting the expanded use of coal, whose emissions are cooking the globe? It seems the answer is twofold: his interest in energy independence -- and his interest in downstate Illinois, where the senator's green tinge makes the coal industry queasy.

The coal industry praises Obama's reintroduction, with Sen. Jim Bunning (R-Ky.), of the Coal-to-Liquid Fuel Promotion Act of 2007 last week, which would provide incentives for research and plant construction. The industry says the technology, which converts coal into diesel engine fuel, would reduce America's dependence on foreign oil through a new, home-mined fuel that burns as cleanly as gasoline.

See, Edwards was much more enviro-friendly than either Clinton or Obama, as note at the time by Politico, much to the delight of the green contingent of Edwards' supporters.  I wasn't really all that green for an Edwards backer, but I noted the argument, which is why I know the latest stuff about Obama out to bankrupt the coal industry is pure fantasy.  We were bitching that Obama was in the pocket of Big Coal.

The Edwards website is history, but I'm sure there's evidence in the Way-Back Machine.  Edwards never directly mentioned his opposition to coal-to-liquid; his energy proposal included other means to utilize coal while reducing emissions, that and the absence of coal to liquid are indicated below in some of the Press Releases I saved when Obama's stance on Liquid Coal became an issue.  This was supposed to show a contrast with Obama:

Edwards opposes coal-to-liquid technology as a viable clean fuel alternative.  John Edwards’ energy plan includes utilizing coal in a “major role” so that the U.S. and the world can meet its energy needs, but he has advocated for carbon capture methods so that hazardous carbon emissions are dramatically reduced.  Edwards advocates for coal gasification technology and carbon sequestration technology in energy production, a method supported by the Natural Resources Defense Council to combat global warming.  
 
EDWARDS PROPOSED INCREASED INVESTMENT FOR SAFE STORAGE OF CARBON DIOXIDE FROM COAL POWERED PRODUCTION
 
2007: Edwards Called For New Coal Power Plants To Have Coal Capture Technology So That Emissions Are Stored And Not Released Into the Atmosphere.  “Edwards believes we need to find a way to use coal without heating the planet. As president, Edwards will require that all new coal-fired plants be built with the required technology to capture their carbon dioxide emissions, so plants built today will be able to permanently and safely store their carbon emissions tomorrow. He also committed to investing $1 billion a year in research and testing to jumpstart the means to store large amounts of carbon dioxide safely underground.” [Edwards for President press release, 3/26/07, http://johnedwards.com/news/headlines/20070326-cleaner-coal/]

As you can tell, we actually thought this was a smoking gun kind of issue, that the Al Gore wing of the Democratic Party could not possibly support Barack Obama mainly due to his friendly attitude on coal. For Sarah Palin and her drooling Wingnut circus to claim he's out to destroy the industry is ludicrous.

The Palin-drome

Why does the VP pick matter so much this time?

Surely there's something of a perfect storm surrounding John McCain's gimmicky decision to put Sarah Palin on the ticket.  There's John's advanced years, but knowing the presidency is a high risk occupation no matter who sits in the big chair (they don't assign Secret Service protection to just anyone), that seems the least of the problem.

A lot has been said about the pick reflecting on McCain's judgment, but I think that's overrated as well.  Not that it doesn't show McCain is impetuous and often acts before thinking -- it does.  But we had ample opportunity to see McCain's seat-of-the-pants decision making style without having Sarah Palin's obvious inadequacies hammering the point home.

It really comes down to this.  Palin matters, and matters in a profoundly negative way if you're a fan of either McCain or Palin, because she's so ridiculously obnoxious.

When she came out of the box, echoing Rudi 9ui11iani and slamming community organizers, she pissed a lot of folks off.  She's been pissing more and more of us off every day.

You can compare her to quite a few VP nominees who weren't perceived as ready for the job on day one.  Quayle and Agnew are obvious examples who didn't prevent their boss from getting elected.  Thomas Eagleton didn't exactly help McGovern, true.  But he didn't spend too much time on the campaign trail undermining the party's chances against a nearly unbeatable Nixon reelection machine in 1972.  In fact, Eagleton was only on the ticket a couple of weeks and was gone by August 1st. He was way down the list of reasons McGovern didn't win. 

Besides, no one ever said Eagleton didn't know how to do the job, just that his electro-shock therapy sessions and illegal prescription for Thorazine might be reason to be concerned -- you might say.

Well, you might.

Okay, he was fucking nutz, clinically so.  Dangerously so.  Probably more troublesome than Caribou Barbie -- but she's wasn't drummed out of the ticket like she should have been, like Eagleton was.

No, Sarah is not suffering from any mental health problems.  Her delusions are a deliberate result of religious fervor, rejection of the scientific method, political opportunism and the usual sociopathic narcissism endemic to most compassionate conservatives of the last few decades.  Oh, and her complete ignorance of the Constitution and founding principles of this country add to the perception that she's a complete whack-job.

But that's not the whole story.  It's a personality thing.  She's irritatingly prideful in her role as smear merchant in chief.  You can tell she delights in attaching someone with a foreign sounding name to Barack Hussein Obama, with no clue whether the guy is a bad guy or not.  It doesn't matter to her and the rump of a party she's destined to lead because they simply don't associate with people whose names don't sound like "real America."

It's obnoxious.  The whole race-baiting, anti-intellectual, hypocritical, lying bag of horse dung package is obnoxious.  It's not "mavericky" to call a 4% tax hike on the richest Americans "socialism," it's obnoxious.  When you govern the nation's largest welfare state, you got some nerve bitching about spreading the wealth.  When you're married to a guy who belongs to a political party dedicated to removing one of the states from the union, you are an obnoxious twit to presume you know which parts of the rest of the United States of America are "real" or patriotic enough to tolerate your obnoxious presence.

So as we wade through mountains of post election rationalization for why John McCain lost against the most impressive political campaign history has ever seen, bumping again and again into the Palin syndrome; just remember how obnoxious she is, how much she pisses so many people off, how many women she insults merely for being the token candidate she is -- and how few, how very few of us "other" Americans can ever imagine wanting to do beers with her.

Obama: A Bigger Maverick than McCain (or Palin)

[cross posted at E Pluribus Unum]

Republicans loooooooooooove to ask "Who is Obama, really?" Here's the answer: He's the guy who (for the last two years of intense media scrutiny) expertly ran a $400 million campaign that knocked Bill and Hillary Clinton off their pedestals and secured the nomination of his party -- and more importantly, pulled the party together when it was all over. McCain himself should have the balls to acknowledge that (by his own definition) that makes Obama the biggest maverick of all time -- and someone who has shown that he can "reach across the aisle" (see "Powell, Colin" below). Obama is a force to be reckoned with and hardly a mystery man -- unless you've been hiding in the garage since 2006.

The truth is that the electorate should be asking, instead, "who is Sarah Palin, really?" She showed up 7 weeks ago, having been touted as the person who "stood up" to the sitting governor of her own party (and I defy you to even name him) and somehow this qualifies her to be president. Why? Because she's a maverick and a reformer. But really -- have you listened to her talk? We just got done having a president that talked like Palin. What did we learn? That words mean something and you can judge a person by the words they use. We don't need another president like that.

McCain now says "I am not George Bush." He might as well add "Sarah Palin is."

For the life of me I cannot understand why McCain picked Palin -- the maverick -- when it's obvious that he gave away his biggest argument against Obama in so doing. Think about it: compare Obama's last two years of public life with Palin's last two years and tell me, honestly: who is better prepared to be president? Then when you've got your answer ask yourself this question: WTF was McCain thinking?

Fact is, Palin, in all her mavericky glory, hasn't worn well in the 7 weeks she's been on the national stage. The sad truth is that the more the electorate finds out about Palin, the less they are impressed with her qualifications and (more dangersously to the point) the less they like her. She's tanking McCain's campaign and (judging by the steam coming out of McCain's ears during their joint interview last night) McCain knows it. Colin Powell (and how's THAT for reaching across the aisle?) isn't the only Republican who is shocked that McCain thinks she's qualified.

The good news for McCain? The electorate's #1 negative perception about him is no longer that he'll be like Bush. So, yes, they believe McCain is a maverick. The bad news? The electorate's #1 negative perception about John McCain is Sarah Palin.

Maybe She Should Have Kept That E-Bay Plane

Operative paragraph of a rare incidence of the AP doing it's job (via):

In all, Palin has charged the state $21,012 for her three daughters' 64 one-way and 12 round-trip commercial flights since she took office in December 2006. In some other cases, she has charged the state for hotel rooms for the girls.

No doubt further inquiry will reveal that all of the spots the Palin family visited were exclusively within "Real, Pro-America" parts of the country.  Any suggestions that this behavior might consitute theft in office or tax evasion will be met with the usual IOKIYAR "Tut-Tutting" from the Village media.

Also, now transferred from the elitist Anti-American snobbish parts of the country and forevermore designated "Real Stores" as acceptable to "Real Americans" as Walmart, K-Mart, Sears and Sam's Club:

Saks Fifth Avenue - $49,425.74
Neiman Marcus - $75,062.63

Other stores that are now permissible for "Real Americans" to patriotically do their part to help bail out the economy by shopping till they drop are:

Barney's - $789.72
Bloomingdales - $5,102.71
Atelier - $4,902.45
Macy's - $4,396.94

Not only might this list be expanded, it also may be the Rosetta Stone linking the Grand Unified Theory of Stunning Wardrobes for Minnesota Republicans.

There's So Much Wrong With Palin

So very, very much.

In the course of just one speech, the mind-boggglingly stupid piled on top of the just plain dumb is staggering.

Not only is is unable to name any newspapers or magazines that she reads, she doesn't watch the news -- rather, she's not allowed to.

At those times on the campaign trail when sometimes it's easy to get a
little bit discouraged, when, you know, when you happen to turn on the
news when your campaign staffers will let you turn on the news," she
said, prompting laughter from the group. "Usually they're like 'Oh my
gosh, don't watch. You're going to, you know, you're going to get
depressed.'"

Perfect symmetry.  Low information voter, meet your low information candidate. But talk about your base-play.  Her rallies really are more like tent revival meetings than political discourse.  Check this out.

"But it's at events like these and our rallies that we are so
energized and inspired and we know that we are not alone. We feel your
strength and we feel the power of prayer, so many of you tell us that
you are praying for us and praying for our country and that's why we so
appreciate you being here."

Giving credit to a higher power for the day's poll ratings, the
Alaska governor told the roughly 500-person audience that things might
be changing. "We even saw today, thank the Lord," she said, looking
upwards and raising her fist, "We saw some movement."

So, when she loses in historic fashion, will she blame her god, or will she hear a booming voice in her head that says, "Sister Sarah, something about you just chaps my ass."  Her ability to bring the blather is remarkable.  She claims she begged her speech writers not to make her talk about Joe the Plumber -- as if she isn't a capable adult fully able to simple decide not to bring the guy up.

"And I, I begged our speech writers, 'Don't make me say 'Joe the
Plumber,' please, in any speeches.' And I was asked, 'Just one time,
just at this fund raiser,'" she recounted.

And then she proceeded to parrot exactly what they had written for her to say, going on and on about guess who, Joe.  (Can she call him Joe, too?)

A final and exceedingly bad form piece of work was how she noted "that she loved to visit the "pro-America" areas of the country, of which North Carolina is one."  The WaPost blog notes there was "No word on which states she views as unpatriotic."  Tone deafness, much?  Can't wait for this bitch to visit Brooklyn and bring that shit.

She Cannot Add

Only in Sarah Palin's mind does a unanimous finding by Eight Republicans and Four Democrats that she abused the power of her office in the best neo-con tradition of petty retribution constitute a partisan witch hunt by Obama supporters.

Uhm, Gov'ner?  Eight is MORE than Four. 

Palin's folks had this committee wired.  She's truly a frivolous distraction who is more suited to replacing Vana White than pretending shes worthy of high office.

Tundra Twit Strikes Again

Lemme get this out of the way up front:

Arrrggghhh!

Are--rrrrhhhh Sarah Palin or John McCain fit to lead?  Of course not. Hell, they're unfit to speak.  It must be exhausting being the guy who has to follow after them, explaining what they really meant to say so what they said doesn't sound near as stupid as we heard. 

Remember that skinny Senator with the funny name that McPalin said never accomplished a thing and is too partisan to ever reach across the aisle like the wrinkly white-haired guy and too beholden to the special interests to really hold the government accountable like the Bridge Killa from Wassilla?

Well, the story is that Caribou Barbie wants to "put the government’s checkbook online so that people can see where their money’s going."

Which is cool.  I completely agree with the Republicans on this.  So does Barack Obama.  In fact, Obama likes it so much he already did it.

I guess that proves it.  Moose is not brain food.  Hmph,"hasn't lifted a finger" indeed.

Guys, can we get a ruling on this?

In 2006 and 2007, Obama teamed up with Republican Sen. Tom Coburn to pass the Federal Funding Accountability and Transparency Act, also known as “Google for Government.” The act created a free, searchable web site – USASpending.gov — that discloses to the public all federal grants, contracts, loans and insurance payments.

In June of this year, Obama and Coburn introduced new Senate legislation to expand the information available online to include details on earmarks, competitive bidding, criminal activities, audit disputes and other government information.

Palin might also have noted that her running mate, John McCain, was an original co-sponsor of the 2006 transparency bill that became law.

I dunno who's worse on that team. He's so out of touch, feeble-minded and unprincipled it would be laughable if he weren't so dangerous -- dangerous to the point he and his team would rather risk an international incident than admit being a bit hard of hearing (I can relate) or unsure of the name of the Prime Minister of every NATO ally.  Pride goeth before the fall and all that.

OTOH, she's so out of her league I'd feel sorry for her if she hadn't come out of the box pissing me off. They're both too stupid to breath.

CNN UPDATE: A campaign spokesperson insisted that Palin
was referring not to that specific proposal, but rather to "that kind
of transparency in general."

Whatthefuckever Dude.  Is that anything like "I didn't mean those specific WMD's in that specific country where we must fight those terrorists in general?"

This bullshitting beauty queen ran a PAC for the most corrupt, earmark abusing, indicted Senator they got.  In fact, while Palin was raising money for Ted Stevens and working with him to build a bridge from her tanning spa to Siberia, Senator Tubez put a secret hold on the Coburn/Obama Google for Government bill, before Palin even became Governor. (Props to Steve Reynolds)

Look it up, that's what the GoogleTubes are for. 

In fact, outting Stevens as the secret hold-out was probably the first and certainly only successful colaberation between Right Wing Blogistan and Left Wing Blogtopia (y!sctp).

Prom Queen Appointments

The Wasilla High School yearbook archive now doubles as a veritable directory of state government  (NYT via Pam).

There's more from Pam Spaulding. It seems only the beautiful people need apply -- and black is not beautiful to Sarah Palin:

While meeting with Black leaders concerning the absence of any African Americans on her staff, Gov. Palin responded that she doesn’t have to hire any Blacks and was not intending to hire any.

Hmmm.  That seems telling, no?  But for further insight into the Palin Paradox we have to compare what we know with the known.

It just hit me. Palin's answers to Gibson are PAGEANT answers. I've covered pageants, know the lingo

I covered many, many pageants -- local and state pageants -- as a small-town journalist. And I'm telling you ... the kinds of answers Sarah Palin is giving on ABC are the type of answers pageant contestants (particularly those in the Miss America pageant system) are trained to give on the spot. I'm not being sexist, or advocating some narrow view of what she's capable of. I just know I've heard these kinds of answers many, many times before ... on the pageant stage.

Generalities. Bromides. Hallmark card answers. Patriotic phrases. No real substance ... it just has to have that America-right-or-wrong, peace-on-earth ring to it.

I'm telling you ... she got her freaking interview training on the pageant stage.

What's sad is that while she couldn't fool a panel of judges to give her a crown, there are far too many willing to look at this election as a popularity contest -- or how to "send a message" to anyone who was mean to Hillary.

Survey Says:

Awesome:

Q: What is the number one quality American voters look for in their next President? 

A: The ability to piss off liberals!

Ding, ding, ding.

We have a winner! Under these criteria, Sarah Palin is the most qualified prospect ever.

Low Hanging Fruit

Jill Miller Zimon at Writes Like She Talks agrees with Norm Orenstein:

She had me at hello Charley– had me scared to death. Not a single doubt that she is ready to be president– everyone, no matter how experienced, should have doubts about the ability to take that job. A combination of utter inexperience and utter arrogance is about the worst possible combination I can imagine.

Uh . . . Norm, I take it you haven't been thrilled with PrezNitWit "Dead or Alive" assessing our Russia policy by a good look into Putin's eyes.

I'll go with Lincoln Chafee's shorter take: "cocky wacko."

Did anyone really expect the hockey mom to surprise us with a sophisticated understanding of the nuances of foreign policy?  Of course not. I don't think that comparisons to experts in the field of government are a fair way to assess Palin's character and readiness to lead.

To that end, an overview of Palin's peers reaction to her ascendancy to the covers of every magazine at the checkout line is in order.  And no, I'm not going to sink so low as to compare Palin to Britany Spears or Paris Hilton.  That would be exceedingly unfair since being international celebrities, Paris and Britany have traveled the world and had passports full of visa stamps when Palin was still perfecting her runway strut for the Miss Alaska Pageant.

Or Not . . .

Lindsay Lohan: Palin 'Distracting from the Real Issues'.  Amazingly, this Hollywood brat put's it better than some seasoned politicians.  A quote from her MySpace page:

. . . i would much prefer to hear more about what she can do for our country rather than how her daughter is going to have a child no matter what.

So much for the drunken bimbo vote, but well put anyway.  Much better than Carol Fowler, Chair of the South Carolina Democratic party who expressed the same sentiment a bit less delicately:  Sen. John McCain chose a running mate "whose primary qualification seems to be that she hasn't had an abortion."

Word choice matters. 

Sarah The Impaler -- She's Nuts

First word from of Charlie Gibson's interview with Sarah "The Impaler" Palin shows an intemperance and simplistic bombast that makes Dick Cheney look like the definition of diplomacy. Her naivete of world events and how a nation's leader should present themseves simply boggles the mind.

At least that's how ABC wants this played judging by their headline: "EXCLUSIVE: GOV. SARAH PALIN WARNS WAR MAY BE NECESSARY IF RUSSIA INVADES ANOTHER COUNTRY."

Well, that was the headline according to Politico's Ben Smith. That incendiary tease has now been replaced with
Sarah Palin Defends Experience, Takes Hard Line Approach on National Security. But that really doesn't change the story even if ABC was bullied into changing their slant on it.

The governor advocated for the admittance of Georgia and Ukraine into NATO.

When Gibson said if under the NATO treaty, the United States would have to go to war if Russia again invaded Georgia, Palin responded: "Perhaps so. I mean, that is the agreement when you are a NATO ally, is if another country is attacked, you're going to be expected to be called upon and help.

"And we've got to keep an eye on Russia. For Russia to have exerted such pressure in terms of invading a smaller democratic country, unprovoked, is unacceptable," she told Gibson.

Even pointing out that Palin just got a passport last year tells you about where Russell Goldman, the author of the original piece on ABC's website wanted to take the story versus what parent company Disney deemed acceptable coverage of Caribou Barbie.

No doubt they feared the "HOLY SHIT!" reaction I and so many other rational Americans might have to revisiting cold war memories on September 11th.

Maybe It Is Me

But I think Atrios agrees.

I find any discussion of what goes on in Sarah Palin's church utterly irrelevant to the political discourse, no matter how "weird." I'd go as far as to say I'm completely bored with the subject, uninterested in the questions Rachel Maddow would like to ask Palin about her belief in the Rapture and Alaska being some kind of safe-haven for the "end times," or if she personally ever "talked in tongues," or witnessed or even participated in some form of faith healing.

I don't give a damn. If she believes a God that has a plan, then presumably everything, including the Iraq War, is part of that plan. What's the problem? Just because you or I don't think that way doesn't mean there's something wrong with those that do. Of course truly religious people are going to include a shout-out to their Holy Father when big decisions are on the line.

I haven't seen anything where she said God told her it was a good idea to start a war based on lies and deceptive propaganda. She comes across as intelligent and rational, not someone who goes around saying she's channeling a deity or that she hears voices. That would be cause for concern, but so far I'm unmoved.

I don't like her (and I really don't) because she took her first opportunity to make an impression on me and the rest of America to issue a litany of nasty and insulting bullshit and some already debunked distortions of her record. I don't like her because as far as I know, she presumes I can be convinced that she is a viable pick for the second highest office in the land without speaking about one single issue, one policy plan, or answer questions on the record that all politicians are expected to answer.

I don't like her because she's all about personality and not policy -- and anything that comes out at this late date will be rehearsed talking points and not a window into how she would govern. She turned me off by opening her mouth and shutting down access. I'm actually kinda pissed that all we really have to go on is the tabloid stuff and presumptions about inferences about her faith. I'm unimpressed with her sense of responsibility to the voters -- but in a funny way, not surprised coming from McCain's campaign.

If she want's to pray for something like a pipeline, fine. It can't hurt, and it only diminishes those who make fun of her prayers in the mind of those who do clasp their hands together, close their eyes and make an earnest appeal to a higher power -- or just bow their heads and say grace only on Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter.

It's obvious the woman has a moral code she tries to follow. It's not my code, but I'd no more appreciate her telling me I'm going to hell for my beliefs, or lack thereof, than I find belittling her faith either clever or any of my fucking business. As long as she's not engaging in ritual sacrifice -- whatever. Live and let live.

Do I like mixing religious beliefs with politics? No. I think George Bush's reliance on religious conviction substituting for considered examination of options in policy decisions is at best alarming. But to the extent that someone tries to be a good person and the degree to which they live up to their own ideals -- yeah, that matters. It's the hypocrisy that matters, as well as using God as a way to shirk responsibilities for your actions, not the rituals.

I'd no more be disturbed by Palin for participating in the customs of her church than I'd bat an eye when Afghanistan's President Karzai or Pakistan's newly elected President Zardari invoke the phrase Inshallah as they speak of the future of democracy in their nations. Joe Biden has lit a candle or two. Joe Lieberman clears his work schedules for Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Passover. It's what they do. So what.

As Barack Obama so eloquently said last week: "ENOUGH!" The over-analysis of the hockey mom is starting to bore me and we risk losing sight of the big picture. To the extent her family tells us something about her character, and something about the thought processes McCain did or did not go through in picking her, that's interesting even beyond the mere human interest story and gossipy stuff that piques our curiosity.

The disconnect about respecting the Palin family's reproductive choices matter when the Governor would eliminate some of those choices for others, and it matters a great deal -- especially when Palin has no qualms about putting her family on display. The fact that "WalMart Moms" identify with her is a done deal just for who she is, a strength that is worthy of a frontal assault in the best Rovian tradition. But until I see a Congressional debate or litigation concerning the legality of the "laying on of hands," who cares about the religious stuff.

I fail to see Palin's religious affiliations moving any significant blocks of voters other than those who share her beliefs identifying with her more than they might otherwise. If you're a Democrat and think "exposing" her worshiping ways helps, you're wrong.

All most atheist and agnostics needed to see was the "R" after her name to be turned off. If you think this might sway a significant number of Jewish voters who find the Pentacostal rituals off-putting or silly, would you ask them how stylish they think their Jewish friends look in a personalized Yarmulke or tell Catholics they look strange with dirt on their foreheads on Ash Wednesday. It's just not a place you want to go.

If you think it's time to "get even" for the bashing Obama took over Reverend Wright, leave the retribution to God or Kharma or the Universe's inexhaustible sense of humor. Keep this in mind. No one made fun of way the parishioners Trinity Church worshiped. The issue was the political ideology that emanated from the pulpit masquerading as a sermon that caused the uproar.

Just don't go there. There's no return on the investment of time and brain-power and you'll look petty trying.

The Cost Of Freedom

Time is money:

"If you want to be an informed citizen, you'll have to become obsessive, like hilzoy."

~ signed: hilzoy

Shorter version of a terrific post: Sarah Palin is a waste of time.

I Know That eBay Plane Is No Big Deal

But I need to get this thing untwisted from inside my brain.

We know that Yukon and Yoda are on the campaign trail bragging about one of the GOP VP candidate's greatest accomplishments -- putting up the governor's $2.7 million executive jet on eBay.

We also know that McNasty said she sold it on eBay for a profit even though Ms. Nasty couldn't get a buyer at the price they were asking and ended up selling it for $2.1 million through a broker instead. News has also arrived that they still owe another $50 grand for repairs or maintenance or some such nonsense.

This is the problem. They sell the thing at a loss, costing the State a Six Hundred Thousand Dollars write off plus commission and this maintenance thingy, and brag about it claiming they saved the State money.

"And eventually...a broker came in. We brought the broker in and said, 'Find a buyer.' We found a buyer. It went for 2.1 million bucks. And we did save the state dollars. And that jet, she never stepped in. And we got rid of the symbol of corruption in Alaska."

Huh?

No wonder these dickheads ran the economy into the turf. Must be some kinda supply-side thingy where you piss away over a half a million bucks and call it bargain. Yikes.

I Have Never Done This Before

but I'm going to link and approvingly excerpt something from the American Conservative Magazine responding to SaraCudda Palin being called "the next Reagan."

I’m sorry, but this is getting out of hand. Whatever you think about the substance of Reagan’s speech in 1964, to which some drunken enthusiasts may want to compare Palin’s acceptance speech, there is no comparison between them. Part of this is in the nature of the speeches. Reagan’s speech was entirely focused on policy and the differences between the candidates, it was delivered in a different register, and he said next to nothing about himself, while Palin’s speech was necessarily part introduction and part apology.

[snip]

Reagan’s name has become almost entirely dissociated from the man, and it has simply become an identity marker to be trotted out to sanctify this or that person or proposal. Reagan nostalgia has become an effort to cover up for the distortions and perversions of the last twenty years.

Read the whole thing, there isn't much more . . . something about Hitler and Lenin, the usual folks you think of when discussing old Ron.

The comments are pretty choice though, stuff that would get you banned from Red State or LGF -- like praising Obama and a link to a 2 minute You Tube of Intelligent Design promoter Ben Stein, flabberghasted they are stuck with Palin who he says knows so little about anything important she needs Harvard economists to tutor her and, "She should have Henry Kissinger Babysitting her."

[snark: The mind reels with that image. /snark]

They haven't quite taken the halo of Saint Ronny Ray Gun yet, but it's not shining quite so bright any more since the Bushies forgot to pay the light bill for the city on that hill. Here's a sample from the comment thread:

1. James_Nostack, on September 4th, 2008 at 3:41 pm Said:

   I miss hearing about Newt Gingrich’s quest to name one monument to Ronald Reagan in each of America’s 3000-odd counties, as well as to place his face on the $10 bill.

   If only Newt and the Reagan Idolaters would take the next rational step, and require us to adopt Reagan’s surname. If adopted, this would be some great identity politics in the making.

2. Daniel Larison, on September 4th, 2008 at 3:46 pm Said:

   More appropriate would be renaming the title of the Presidency to an honorific adoption of the name Reagan, as the Romans did with Caesar’s name–that way every new President would be called Reagan as the official form of address, they could begin shouting, “Hail, Reagan!” and that way Reagan could be in charge forever.

Simply Craptastick. A change like this at the freaking American Conservative Magazine is change I can believe in.

Lots A Folks Watched Moose-Girl On Teh TeeVee

Good

Sarah Palin's speech generated 37.2 million viewers, just a 1.1 million viewers short of Barack Obama's record-breaking speech on Day 4 of the Democratic Convention. More impressive was that Palin's speech was carried on only six networks while the Obama speech was carried on ten (including BET, TV One, Univision and Telemundo).

America got a good look at the purty ladee the GOP put on display, and can judge for themselves the stark differences in vision and approach between Barack and SaraCudda.

Those who care and those who were just curious about all the hub-bub saw for themselves the contrasting tone, the degrees of respect, gravitas and realistic proposals each of these competing self-described reformers bring to the table they say they know how to reach across.

I know what I thought, which should be no surprise to anyone. I know you can't get anything done, reach consensus or move an agenda by spitting in the eye of the people you must work with. If by some strange alignment in the heavens (or Diebold algorithms) McCain and Palin reach the White House only to face engaging a Democratic controlled Congress, there'll be a whole lot a pissed off legislators who really won't wanna hear your quaint platitudes, insults and smug attitude when discussing how to fix an economy that lost another 33,000 jobs in August -- something addressed in detail by the Democrats and completely absent in three days of GOP fanfare.

Oh, BTW. Cindy McCain's dress Tuesday cost as much as the average unwed working mom without a high school diploma can earn in a decade -- unless she lives in the Governor's mansion. Out. Of. Touch. Much?