I no longer see Sarah Palin as a joke

[Stinky The Clown]

I see her as a terrible commentary on our country. The woman is no more a capable leader than Winky Dink. Her life is an embarrassment only in that she continues to be of interest to the citizenry. She is also dangerous in that she numbs us to political extremes. By comparison, she makes Newt Gingrich seem reasonable. And Newt Gingrich is not reasonable in any way, shape, or form.

And that really is dangerous. She makes the *serious and capable* extremists palatable. I say that with no attempt at hyperbole.

The longer this woman and all the various and sundry kooks and crazies in her life continue to be in our news, the more we are diminished for it. Were she some Hollywood or Crazywood personality, a Michael Jackson or Anna Nicole or Octomom or Balloon Dad, she would be a side show. But she is a person who was the vice presidential nominee of a major party and plans to again run for high office.

Can we please be done with her.

[babylonsister]

1. Rec'd. digby has the same concerns...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=389&topic_id=7010321&mesg_id=7010321

What If they Don't?

by digby


Everyone seems too be applauding the "Palinization" of the GOP. Lou Dobbs may run for president. Wingnut firebrand Marco Rubio may beat moderate Charlie Christ in Florida. Tom Tancredo just threw his hat into the ring for Colorado Governor. Liberals seem very excited about this prospect as if it's self-evident that just as NY 23 laughed off that dead doorknob Hoffman, the country will always think these people are fools.

But what if they don't?

In Palin's case I think it's probably true, not because she is a bigger fool but rather because she is a woman and a different kind of right wing celebrity. But I honestly wonder if it's a good idea to not take these people a little more seriously. There are some rather stark historical examples of people assuming that a right wing demagogic movement is so ridiculous that a majority could never back them --- and that assumption being proved catastrophically wrong.

And even if they are a bunch of fools who can't possibly ever be elected by a majority, is it wise to ignore the fact that as this movement moves farther and farther to the right it leaves a vacuum that the political establishment expects the Democrats to fill? Whenever the Republicans move right, the villagers expect the Democrats to do the same. Indeed, with the Republicans taking themselves completely out of legislation, the Democrats have pretty much assigned members of their own ranks to take their place in the negotiations. They have the ability to move the right without the country even realizing it's happening.

I'm not saying that we should panic. These people are politically weak in their own right. But when I see the liberal gasbags on TV blithely dismissing this as if it''s impossible that Americans could ever fall for such lunacy, I feel a little frisson of alarm. I've read too many accounts of people who, 80 or so years ago, complacently made the same assumption. And the whole world found out that under the right circumstances even the most civilized nations can throw in with the crazies.

[Stinky The Clown]

5. Wow. I agree with that completely.

It is also a more articulate way of stating the concern in my OP.

[Electric Monk]

82. k&r

nt

[Joe Bacon]

66. This is 1979 all over again.

I still remember in shock and horror when the Sunday Morning Gasbags pooh-poohed Reagan's entry into the Presidential race. They blithely dismissed him until it was too late.

Palin is following the same playbook and I am scared. :scared:

[Pool Hall Ace]

112. Oh shit. I didn't know that.

1980 was my first election. I wasn't paying much attention to Sunday Morning gasbags at the time, but I didn't expect Ronald Reagan to win.

[Joe Bacon]

118. I remember it all too well

I organized Edward Kennedy's 1980 campaign in Pennsylvania. It was the last time I engaged in organizing and setting up a campaign. Worked my ass off for Teddy because Carter was looking the other way and ignoring the problems the steel industry was having. I was so angry at Carter, I wound up supporting and working for Anderson.

Biggest mistake I ever made.

I remember that Carter and Reagan were dead even a week out until the GOP October surprise involving the hostages played out. In less than 3 days, Carter dropped 10 points behind. I didn't care, I just wanted him out. And Western Pennsylvania paid the price when Reagan let the steel industry die and millions of millworkers lost their good paying union jobs. I was so turned off by what happened that I stayed out of politics until I saw Media Whores Online, Bartcop, Buzzflash, Daily Kos and Democratic Underground spring up on the web. But all those lost years and seeing how Western PA died...

[femrap]

143. Boy oh boy....do I remember that.

I couldn't imagine that a B-rated actor would be elected Prez. The American people couldn't possibly be that stupid. I was living in CA at the time, but hadn't lived there during his Governorship. But I had heard the tales...opening the mental health hospital's doors and sending the infirmed outside forever.

Oh yeah...Americans are a stupid lot. Don't ever underestimate their stupidity and gullibility.

And yes, I see a vacuum of leadership.

Reading John Dean's book about Those with no Conscience made me sit up and take notice! It only takes a small number (22%) of the crazies to takeover if the other 78% do nothing.

GREAT POST. kaandr

[lillypaddle]

90. I agree too

And the race in NY - Didn't the vote wind up REALLY close for Hoffman? I'm not laughing these people off any more, they are dangerous as hell, and Palin has a big following.

[Enthusiast]

96. Digby has it right.

History is rife with the people following bad leaders.

[Blue_In_AK]

196. Excellent point.

I've always said that while we may think Sarah is really amusing and all (which she is), she has some absolutely batshit crazy followers who will do anything for her. All it takes is one look at the comments to "her" posts on her Facebook page to see how Mansonized they've become. They really do worry me.


I think I'm going to start calling her $'error, as one of Mudflats' commenters does. It fits.

[LakeSamish706]

2. Yeah, well guess what... I suspect that Sarah may choose Carrie Prejein as her running mate...

Ugh.. Can you imagine that? We will be screwed big time...

[intaglio]

76. B'Dum Tish!

But will there be a tape of it?

[donquijoterocket]

200. dobbs

Rather than Miss collagen and silicon I can see caribou barbie teaming up with Lou Dobbs, presuming Dobbs has the orbs to put his "beliefs"on the line.That sort of double barreled aggrievement especially with the religious overtones the temptress of the tundra brings would be pure nectar among the residents of lower wingnuttistan.A real twofer xenophobia and rank ignorance on the same ticket.

[UTUSN]

3. I see her as a danger. n/t

[Bobbieo]

26. I have always viewed her as a danger from the moment she came on the scene.

[spanone]

4. sorry stinky, but next week will be a constant palin in the ass

[NRaleighLiberal]

6. She is indeed a poster idiot for these troubled times. Which is alarming.

But we should have seen it coming with the proliferation of micro-second attention span, voyeuristic hit TV shows, American Idol everyone is special mentality. Our country has lost its quality compass. And when someone really worthy like Obama comes along, the masses prefer the easy junk food to true value.

I suspect this type of thing has cycled through human society all through time. I never saw her as a joke - a pathetic individual, yes, but her "popularity" in some circles signaled danger right from the start.

[Enthusiast]

97. Well said.

"Our country has lost its quality compass."

[BlancheSplanchnik]

115. you got both sides of the coin there

very concise:

Our country has lost its quality compass. And when someone really worthy like Obama comes along, the masses prefer the easy junk food to true value.


geez, if I were in the media industry, like on the marketing end, that statement of yours would show me very clearly that there's a huge market open and starving for quality. It would have to be pushed as relentlessly as the crap is, though, packaged for the decayed appetites of the citizens of teevee land.
hmmmmmmmmmm....

[NRaleighLiberal]

117. thanks. I've felt this for quite some time....maybe just a "bell curve" thing -

and marketing always panders to the largest area.

[BlancheSplanchnik]

123. mm hmm. again if I were in marketing,

I'd say a consumer society speaks Consumerism.... therefore, they expect --and require, actually-- that they be enticed. It's all in the packaging.


ok, maybe that's a little simplistic, but it sounds like an idea more suited to the capitalistic world than the alternate idea I've seen cropping up, which suggests wwe should give up and prepare for a sort of second Dark Ages, and pursue the "monk's option", where we collect and store capital C Culture in small individual enclaves, the intelligentsia among us, or bell curve outliers seeing themselves as outposts preserving what's left until the times are right for a new Enlightenment.

That just seems too sad. There must be another way.

I'm thinking that culture is a stream of communication; so why could we not consider what we communicate? Use the common parlance (teevee marketing-ese) -- speak in the common language to convey some higher thoughts.

[spin]

7. My feelings are that the media needs to quit making a big deal...

about how stupid she is.

Many people dislike the media in this country and the more the media slams her and makes fun of her, the more support she gains.

It's fun to ridicule her. However, she has had her fifteen minutes of fame. If everybody ignores her, she may go away.

Unfortunately, it's not going to happen.

[AAARRRGGGHHH]

71. Yes,

Highlighting her stupidity is obviously a bad thing.

What?

You're way wrong if you think we'll ignore her if the media stops talking about her stupidity. She was elected to the highest office of her state without the media calling out how obviously dumb she is.

[spin]

79. Remember, she has two years to get some coaching...

a person can learn a lot in two years or least can puppet the views of people far more intelligent.

Nobody expects her to be a rocket scientist. She can do a lot to defuse the criticism by picking up a little knowledge.

Remember Bush the Junior. Again we had a candidate that wasn't the brightest light bulb in the election when he ran against Gore in the first election and Kerry in the second.

The media also felt the same way. For example:

November 13, 2002

The Whole World Asks: Is It Even Possible?
"Underestimating Bush's Intelligence"

by BEN ROBERTS

Last weekend one of the talking heads on a popular TV talk show announced, "we underestimate Bush's intelligence." I heard this and got to wondering if this was an oxymoron or not. The word oxymoron is defined in the dictionary as contradiction. Is Bush's actions and behavior a contradiction of this quality of intelligence that is being ascribed to him? I went back in my mind to some of the things said by, said of, and done by George Bush to see if we are really underestimating the man's intelligence, or if we have a glaring oxymoron on our hands. You will be left to decide. First things first.

***snip***

Remember that prior to September 11, many leading analysts and critics here in America thought Bush was inept, underexposed, and an embarrassment to the presidency. They said so regularly. Abroad, the Europeans, including the British, could"t wait for him to cross the pond to attack him on issues ranging from trade to his penchant for the death penalty. They did not think much of his smarts and ability. Has Bush proven all of his detractors wrong, or is it an oxymoron to use the name George W. Bush and intelligence in the same sentence? You decide.
http://www.counterpunch.org/roberts1113.html

Public image of George W. Bush

Intellectual capacity

From time to time, Bush's intellectual capacities have been satirized by the media<17> and other politicians<18> leading to speculation about his IQ, of which no official record is known.<19> Though a report claiming Bush had the lowest IQ of any American President of the last 50 years circulated in 2001, the study was later revealed to be a spoof taken too seriously.<20> An article published in the journal Political Psychology, has estimated his IQ to be 125, which is above average.<21> The same study estimated Bush's predecessor Bill Clinton to have an IQ of 149.<20> In an interview, it was noted by the study's director that "Bush may be 'much smarter' than the findings imply" but that he "scores particularly unimpressively for 'openness to experience, a cognitive proclivity that encompasses unusual receptiveness to fantasy, aesthetics, actions, ideas and values.'"<22><23><24>

Detractors tend to cite the various linguistic errors made by Bush during his public speeches (colloquially known as Bushisms).<25> Bush's habit of mispronouncing words has received much ridicule in the media and in popular culture. Even as early as the 2000 presidential debates, this was the subject of a Saturday Night Live sketch (see Strategery).<26> Perhaps his most famous mispronunciation is that of "nucular" instead of "nuclear", although he is not the only American president to have done this, and Merriam-Webster Online considers this an acceptable pronunciation by adding a footnote defending its inclusion.<27>
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Public_image_of_George_W._Bush

Beware of Sarah Palin. The next election for President is a long way off, but there is a lot of political turmoil, discontent and fear mongering happening in our country. Obama was left with an unbelievable mess to clean up from the Bush administration. The Republicans are firmly against his plans and the Democrats are split and fighting among themselves (nothing new).

I have a good track record for predicting Presidents. I scared myself in the last election when I told my family even before the election season that Obama would become the next President. He hadn't even started his run. I seen something in him that I felt would resonate with voters. My daughter and her husband just laughed at me and thought I was just some old fool.

It's way to early for me to make any prediction. Hopefully, Obama will pull off the impossible and things will be rosy for his next election. In that case it matters not who runs against him. But if he falters, I have this strange feeling that Palin might gather support and present a real challenge. She definitely is from the middle class not the elite well educated class that many feel got us into this mess. She's an outsider and she's an underdog. Plus many women might decide to vote for her as she would be the first President.

But then if Obama stumbles badly, it's possible that Hillary is watching from the wings.

These are the thoughts that give me nightmares.

[ingac70]

119. She is way too stupid to train.

Compared to Palin, Dubya was a rocket scientist.

[femrap]

145. Not true.

She has 'appeal' just like W did. Brains don't matter to a country full of stupidity.

[spin]

178. If a person is too smart, people tend to distrust him/her....

If a less intelligent person has charisma and voters can identify with them, they will turn out at the polls.

This woman scares me. Most people would crumble under the attacks and ridicule she has received. She has turned it to her advantage. The more you laugh at her, the more support she gains. She has a "bring it on" attitude.

She reminds me of Muhammad Ali and his rope-a-dope technique.

The rope-a-dope is performed by a boxer assuming a protected stance, in Ali's classic pose, lying against the ropes, and allowing his opponent to hit him, in the hope that the opponent will become tired and make mistakes which the boxer can exploit in a counterattack.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rope-a-dope

Many great boxers played his game fell into the trap and lost

Eventually all the jokes and the ridicule will get old. People will shrug off the fact that she often stumbles and makes mistakes and her family is dysfunctional. Nobody will expect her to be able to win at Jeopardy and if she appears to be a sentient being they will be impressed.

And never forget the beer theory of elections.

If I want to have a beer with you, then I like you. If I don't want to have a beer with you, then I don't like you. If I like you, then I will vote for you.

According to the beer surveys, voters wanted to have a cold one with Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama more than Jimmy Carter, Bob Dole, John Kerry and John McCain.

That's the "Beer Theory" and it works. Likeability wins.
http://www.newjerseynewsroom.com/economy/why-the-person-we-want-to-have-a-beer-with-wins-the-election

edited for the hell of it

[Blue_In_AK]

197. She reminds me of the monsters in the scary movies

that you can't kill. Like the guy in hockey mask.

[spin]

213. Good comparison. (n/t)

[femrap]

217. Hey, Spin....

I agree with you. Can you envision a newt/sarah ticket?

Hopefully the Mayans are right and we won't have to endure this crap!!!!

[glitch]

131. Never underestimate the low cunning of the privileged street thug. Sarah is the new W.

If the elite can use her they will, but she won't be the one directing policy, just the one getting support for it from the masses, which is bad enough.

It is not just Palin that is the problem, it is the rot she represents and puts a fresh face on.

Your nightmares are practical, very sorry to say.

[peacetalksforall]

139. Spin, please remember - Bush didn't win twice, he stole it twice. You said:

Remember Bush the Junior. Again we had a candidate that wasn't the brightest light bulb in the election when he ran against Gore in the first election and Kerry in the second.

He stole it twice and the most significant get-away 'driver' for the theft was the consortium of tv ceo's and lemming employees. Yes, there were people fixing the switches and hiding ballots and tax paid police who set up theft road blocks in certain parts of Florida and all the other tricks - but the press carried if off both times and the press and the Supreme Court carried it off the first time.

If the seven Republican tv networks consent to do it again for Palin, it could happen again.

The Dems have a black man, the Republicans will 'administer' a female.

Even Italians re-elected a wealthy former ceo person of wealth clown.

[spin]

174. As I said...

These are the thoughts that give me nightmares.

If Palin would actually be elected, she would probably be a sock puppet for the corporations and the fundamentalist Christians.

[eagertolearn]

171. The republicans tend to go for how someone appeals to their people.

They know who's there doesn't matter because there will be another group who is running the country (big industry) lead by someone like Dick Cheney. They know their people want someone who is like them, a common folk who is has far right values. They think someone who has their values is all it takes to make our country run well. The others in their party know that the country is being run by the other group (big industry) so their not worried if there are brains there or not. So this is very worrisome. But there are a few people in the republican party who can see through all of this who are not far right religious followers who think that Sarah Palin is an embarrasment and who want to do what is right but the question is how many of these are there?

[spin]

181. Unfortunately there are probably not enough of the people you mention..

especially in the Republican party.

[bjb]

216. I am nervous

My once a staunch Democrat Mother thinks Sarah is the best thing that has happened to this country since apple pie.

[lapfog_1]

8. The Peter Principle at work in an incredibly dumbed down nation. - n/t

[AlinPA]

9. With Limbaugh as one of her top supporters she could very well be the republican candidate for

president in 2012. That won't be funny. It will be scary.

[spin]

14. Damn scary!

[AlinPA]

18. The novel "It Can't Happen Here" by Sinclair Lewis would be played out.

[spin]

24. Remember how Jesse Ventura won the election for governor

in Minnesota?

[peacetalksforall]

180. There is ABSOLUTELY no sameness between Ventura and Palin.

People didn't believe in letting a former wrestler be a Governor, but he was serious about holding to the law and decency. He is miles ahead of her in intellect and knowledge about government. He doesn't drag a barge full of law and family problems behind him.

[Old Time Pagan]

136. As an old timer I was going to bring that novel up

Lewis wrote it back in 1935. His wife Dorthy Thompson had interviewed Hitler several times between 1931 to 1935 and had raised the alarm about him based on her meetings. Lewis saw the economic and social upheaval in the United States (sound familiar) providing the potential for a fascist takeover and wrote "It Can't Happen Here" in 4 months.

I just dusted my copy off and am re-reading it. Last reading was back during Ronny Raygun's regime. Back then it was difficult to follow due to all the references to events in the 30s. This time around with the help of Google it is far more interesting and bit more concerning as I put faces to the names and events.

We've always had these threats and perhaps always will. The price of freedom is indeed eternal vigilance. No shortcuts, no easy way out, we've got to pay attention and take care of the country's business.

Read the book, it will help put today's events into a historical perspective that's useful.

[Warpy]

43. I think she burned her political bridges when she quit as governor

but I agree with the OP that she's dangerous in that she's out there trying to make the Gingriches and Pawlentys seem rational and reasonable.

I think that's why she quit and I think it will make her a very wealthy woman.

Sarah Palin is no joke. Think of her as deodorant.

[BlueMTexpat]

81. Actually, I think of her more as what causes the need for deodorant.

And I agree with Digby's point about how the Dems have generally moved to the right without most having noticed, even though it began happening long before Ditzhead arrived on the scene.
Reagan began mainstreaming the US "banality of evil" phase. Because he "looked" good and spoke in simple concepts, most did not realize how awful his administration truly was at the time (I was one who did and every day was an agony; if only DU had existed then!). It's only when people like * or Palin, who are so clearly off the charts insofar as superficiality, sociopathy and self-interest are concerned, that the majority begins to pay attention. Unfortunately, those examples are only the tip of the iceberg of deliberately manufactured and controlled ignorance by the military-industrial complex and yes, they are VERY, VERY dangerous.

************
That said, I do hope that the media keeps putting out the facts about her lies. She is her own worst enemy, so let's see her destroy herself in her own words and not go underground. Let us NEVER forget the horror that she represents. We came so close to the edge in the years from 2000-2008; we still could tip over. And that is very frightening.

[mwb970]

222. Apparently "her" book is filled with lies. (Big surprise there!)

Hopefully the hoopla over the book's release will be accompanied by "fact check" segments. The fact that Palin is undoubtedly unfamiliar with the book's actual contents will make it difficult for her to defend the points made by the actual author.

[mrs_p]

164. i tend to think of her as just

an attention whore, honestly. i know a few people (~0.5% in my moderate class) that like her, but most everyone else sees her as the opportunist she is...

[TheCowsCameHome]

106. Limbaugh's views won't cut it outside of his demented little world.

Fortunately.

The GOP isn't going to field a sure-fire loser like McCain did.

[AlinPA]

183. His world encompasses most of the republican base. True, McCain made

the nomination without Limbaugh's support, but things are different now. The teabaggers, birthers and Beck-Limbaugh-Bachman-Foxx armies are running their party now. Obama's winning made them crazy and they keep getting worse.

[Not Me]

10. I am more concerned that they will use her distraction

to prep Thune or Romney as their nominee. She will be out there taking the heat, and then at the last minute they will walk (run) from her.

[AlinPA]

13. The republican base would not go along with that.

[Stinky The Clown]

17. You're exactly right

That's my fear.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

11. It's more incredible than the movie "Being There"

In the latter film, through a strange succession of events, no one seemed to notice how incompetent Chauncey Gardner was. In Palin's case, everyone can plainly see that she's completely unfit to even run a fast food joint but a significant number of Americans seem not to worry if that person becomes President and in fact welcome it. It's as though everyone finally realized Peter Sellers was completely out of it but went ahead and considered him a serious candidate for President anyway.

[Auggie]

15. +1

[SammyWinstonJack]

12. Yeah why is she still in the media spotlight? Thanks corporate media whores.

x(

[Ineeda]

23. When one considers the popular vote of 2008

it's pretty alarming. Obama: 66,992,230 to McCain: 58,343,671. That means 46% of Americans voters chose McCain, knowing his running mate could conceivably become President before his first term was up. Over fifty-eight million people bought into her 'just like them' feisty image, disregarding her obvious incompetence. That is terrifying.

[SammyWinstonJack]

54. That is terrifying, I agree.

[Enthusiast]

99. Not only that but

we know for certain the GOP is capable of stealing a close election.

[beac]

153. I do agree that it's terrifying that 46% voted for McCain with even the slightest possibility that

Quitty could end up President, but I do think that many of those voters did whatever mental yoga is required to convince themselves that an elderly multiple-time cancer patient would be able to live through four years of the world's most stressful job with no problem. Sadly, one of those people is a relative of mine. He just WOULD NOT talk about Sarah Palin except to say that "Yes, she was a bad choice, but she'll only be going to funerals and stuff. McCain will live to be 90, like his mom." :crazy:

[spin]

27. That's why she won't go away...

if they would only ignore her.

I wonder if they are promoting her to run in the next Presidential election?

Obama vs Palin would cause sky high ratings and profit for the "media whores". Unfortunately, there's a faint possibility that she might win. Remember Jesse Ventura. Who would have thought that he would win the governors race in Minnesota?

He's still around, but doesn't garner much attention.

[SammyWinstonJack]

55. Is she being promoted for the next presidential election? I think so.

:scared:

[spin]

74. Perhaps I should explain that I was talking about the media...

The Republican party has had enough of her and the upper levels of the party just wish she would ride away on a snowmobile into the sunset to hunt moose.

But the Republican party is in disarray. A new leader will have to emerge and that leader can't point to Bush the Junior's term as President as anything to be proud of. It will probably to be someone different from the previous candidates.

The media loves an interesting campaign. It pulls up their ratings and increases their profits. They would dread a campaign between Obama and say Mitt Romney. We know Obama and the media would have a hard time time trying to say much new about him. Romney may have interesting and detailed plans for his presidency but discussing those plans on a daily basis would be like taking castor oil every morning. The viewers would tune out until just before the election.

But a candidate like Sarah Palin just keeps on giving. The comedians would have a constant source of jokes. The talking heads could interview her and try to get her to trip up. They all could laugh and snicker at her and people would listen daily to see what train wreck was next.

You may feel that this publicity would doom any chances she has, but I feel different. Any publicity is good publicity. The only reason she is in the news right now is that all the bad publicity she has accumulated has helped her to achieve celebrity status.

Do you remember a 1984 VP candidate named Geraldine Ferraro? There are certain similarities between what happened on her campaign and Palins.

Ferraro gained immediate, large-scale media attention.<56> At first, their treatment centered on her novelty as a woman and her rags-to-riches background story and was overwhelmingly favorable.<57> Nevertheless, Ferraro would face many press questions about her foreign policy inexperience, and responded by discussing her attention to foreign and national security issues in Congress.<56> She faced a threshold of proving competence that other high-level female political figures have had to face, especially those who might become commander-in-chief; the question "Are you tough enough?" was often directed to her.<58> Ted Koppel questioned her closely about nuclear strategy<59> and during Meet the Press she was asked, "Do you think that in any way the Soviets might be tempted to try to take advantage of you simply because you are a woman?"<60>

The choice of Ferraro was viewed as a gamble, and pundits were uncertain whether it would result in a net gain or loss of votes for the Mondale campaign.<61> In the days after the convention, Ferraro proved an effective campaigner, with a brash and confident style that forcefully criticized the Reagan administration and sometimes almost overshadowed Mondale.<31><53><54> Mondale had been 16 points behind Reagan in polls before the pick, and after the convention he pulled even for a short time.<50>

But by the last week of July, questions – due initially to reporting by The New York Times<38> – were simmering about Ferraro's finances, the finances of her husband, John Zaccaro, and their separately filed tax returns.<32> (While the Mondale campaign had anticipated some questions, the drawn-out vice-presidential selection process had not fully vetted her on this aspect.<38><62[br />http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geraldine_Ferraro

Ferraro had a brighter political future after her ticket lost than Palin has today. Her chances were doomed in the end by her husband's legal problems and her son's conviction for possession and sale of cocaine.

Geraldine Ferraro was and is to this day an admirable woman.

But Plain has described herself as a pit bull with lipstick. She can fight and take punches and keep coming back. Currently she looks like she going to throw some punches at the Republican party and the way she was treated during he campaign. This might be a shrewd move. The base of the Republican Party despises their leadership. The party leadership will call her statements lies, but many of her supporters will believe her, not them.

The more comedians dis her and the more the talking heads down play her abilities, the more she gains support with a group of Americans who hate politicians and the media and who root for the underdog. Many gun owners and hunter support her. Rush Limbaugh loves her book as calls it "truly one of the most substantive policy books I've read." (Has Rush ever read a policy book before?) Many middle class Americans identify with her and they feel the rich elite look down on them just as they look down on Palin.

I'll sum up what I'm saying. A bunch of people who manage the media are sitting around in their big offices saying, "Can you imagine our ratings if Sarah Palin were to run against Obama?" The real beauty of the situation is that they don't have to praise her at all. All that's necessary is to devote air time on every show to her. If she fails they don't have egg all over their faces, they can merely say, "We told you so."

Sarah Palin is viewed by the media as the hen that keeps laying golden eggs.

[femrap]

146. Remember what happened to

Ferraro during this past Dem Primary? DUers hated her...called her vile names. She had to step down from HRC's campaign.

That's what WE do to admirable women.

Seems the Repugnants hold their women up as fine examples...as the saying goes, 'I'd rather be pretty than smart for the boys see better than they think.'

[beac]

155. Ferraro's behavior during the primaries was a lot of things. "Admirable" isn't one of them. n/t

[femrap]

218. and you

are the judge of admirable behavior? Read the post that I was responding to.

What have you done for America lately?

[beac]

224. Oh, so it's YOU who are the judge of admirable behavior, then?

Good to know.

I READ the post you were responding to before I responded to you. My judgment of Ferraro's behavior during the '08 primaries is unrelated to her own VP campaign or anything else she's ever done. You can do decent things at one point in your life and still behave abominably at another point. Ferraro is a great example of this.

[femrap]

225. Do you

remember Shirley Chisholm and what she said? 'Men are men.' Divide and conquer is a game I don't engage. Good luck to you.

[beac]

226. I'm all for not dividing.

A good way to be not divisive is to not ask someone "What have you done for America lately?"-- just sayin'.

[femrap]

227. You are a young person and

so was I. Shirley Chisholm taught me quite a bit. Do you know who she is?

I believe we have come to an end. Again, good luck and good bye.

[beac]

228. I am not a 'young person.' I know who Shirley Chisholm was and admired her.

Neither of these things make me think any better of Geraldine Ferraro's terrible behavior in the primaries. Peace to you. May your sense of superiority bring you comfort.

[femrap]

230. If only I had an Ignore button IRL. nt

[FatDave]

56. That's the second time you've brought up Jessie Ventura, but there really is no comparison.

Ventura was a joke at first. Ha ha, look at that, a wrestler running for governor. But whether you agree with him or disagree with him (and I did both, depending on the topic) he actually surprised a lot of people by showing that he was thoughtful and competent. He was a far better governor than Tim goat-fucking Pawlenty ever was.

Palin is just an empty-headed, incurious, cardboard cutout of conservatism. She gets media coverage because people like to watch her the way they look at the carnage of an accident on the freeway.

[spin]

75. True Jessie is a spotlight and Palin is a green light bulb...

when it comes to comparing intelligence.

The similarity is in the fact that Jessie was given little chance to win but overcome all the ridicule and did.

Don't overestimate the intelligence of the average American voter and don't underestimate the power of an underdog to garner support.

[Enthusiast]

100. +1, FatDave. nt

[Odin2005]

16. That woman is WACKO!

:scared:

[unkachuck]

19. you're....

absolutely right on palin, Stinky....I must apologize; I hit the unRec button by mistake....you have officially 2 more Recs than the tally shows and that makes you righter....

[Walk away]

20. She has had a whole year to cram her head full of learnin'...

Don't you want to see what that looks like? I am curious to see how she excuses all of her lies. Now that she has put it in writing, people will be shredding her like junk mail for weeks. Once she has written it down and published it she can't pretend it's the evil press putting words in her mouth.

[HughMoran]

21. I've been thinking the same for over a year now

I've been saying the same here for just that long. Apparently many on the left think she's good for this side as she's such a nincompoop. Even if this is so, what about the lowering of the level of intelligent dialog in this country? We're a nation of half-wits.

[pleah]

22. But, but, but, she can see Russia from her house, dontcha know.

Pig with lipstick.

[eleny]

25. Winky Dink

Hey, Winky did some amazing things - with my help!

[SeattleVet]

57. Hey - that could work out for her! Put the plastic on the TV ...

and then you hear, "Quick, citizens! Draw a condom on Levi and keep Bristol from getting pregnant."

[eleny]

142. Or draw a hole in the floor where Palin is standing - whoosh-plunk

[Double T]

28. THEY elected 2 bushes; palin could easily be our next President.

[tblue]

29. I'm not worried. She has a subterranean approval rating and she is lazy as sin.

She does not have the stamina or the gray matter to hold up to the rigors of a years long campaign. She will fall flat on her face again and again and again because people are aware now of her weaknesses, and that makes new examples of them all the more glaring. She doesn't have to say anything really stupid and vacuuous to appear stupid and vacuuous. A handful of people adore her passionately, but there's not enough of them and there never will be again. You heard it here first.

[Iwillnevergiveup]

32. I tend to agree

What is it that's said about stars burning brightly? She may have a little star power now, but she'll flame out. I can't wait to see how she handles herself at Fort Hood - what could she possibly have to offer to that sad, sad story? And, whenever I ponder the millions of votes McCain got, I have to remember how many of those were against Obama? She'll flame out sooner rather than later. You betcha.

[peace frog]

68. +2

She is too weak to survive the 24/7 scrutiny of a long-haul election campaign.

[StarfarerBill]

30. Another dim-witted ex-governor running for the presidency...

Where have we seen that scenario before?

[glinda]

31. We can watch her implode while in the media actually.

:popcorn: :popcorn:

[riderinthestorm]

33. I've been saying this, on DU, since she was nominated. She's dangerous.

We know she's stupid and crazy but the media is willing to persist in their adoration of her. Limbaugh, Hannity and others prop her up. She's got years to perfect her political campaign technique, and practice parroting appropriate rhetoric.

We may wish "we" were done with her but she's only just begun I'm afraid.

[anachro1]

70. Nope.

She's lazy and not smart enough to learn.

[Hoosier]

102. ditto

She doesn't have the ability to learn. And she doesn't see the need.
She relishes her own ignorance.
If they nominate her, they'd nominate a clump of dirt.

[liquid diamond]

154. What scares me is how so many people in this

thread are underestimating Palin. "She's too stupid. She's to lazy." What the fuck was Bush?

[anachro1]

223. An easy question to answer

She is lazier and stupider than Bush.

[MadMaddie]

34. My friend you have nailed it.

She will eventually sink her self, every time she opens her mouth a little more stupid slips out.

She continues to skip out on scheduled events or demands special handling when she has interview.

[Enthusiast]

101. But a large segment of

the electorate don't recognize it as stupid.

[Arugula Latte]

160. Bush did the same thing. Problem was, he sunk the country in the process.

[Canuckistanian]

35. What's scary is SHE KEEPS COMING BACK

Lost the election? Back to becoming a boring Governor.

Oh, wait, there are some scandals in Alaska! But nothing dramatic happens.

Oh no, she resigns early! Well, that's the end of her.

Suddenly, she's on the speaking circuit! But nobody seems too excited about her. Oh, well.

Now there's a book coming out! And she's on a tour! Well, who cares. Typical RWer. Lose, then write a "bestseller"

Oh, now there's a publicity war with Levi! A possible custody battle! Lasts about a week.

Get my point? There's always something to keep her in the news.

This woman has more lives than a cat.

[ChiciB1]

144. Call Me Crazy... But Her Coming Back All The Time For Now Just Might

FADE with time. Her timing just may be OFF! Unless she keeps re-inventing "something" in this very fast paced world, I wonder how long it can last?

I've been wrong before... hey I'm a Liberal and I thought I was a person who wanted to "fight for we the people" only to find out that "my views" are outdated!

But if my views are outdated, then maybe hers will be too!

JMHO, or wishful thinking?

[keep_it_real]

36. Can't blaim you, the repuks are CRAZY and that is not joke!

And there are some crazy repuks that that support her.

[lib2DaBone]

37. Brittany Spears meets Hanna Montana and Runs For President of the Free World..

You can't make this up.. it shows how sick our country is....

[Cleita]

38. Too bad we can't throw mushy tomatoes and cream pies at her

like vaudeville audiences did if they didn't like the act back at the turn of the last century. Run her off the stage every time she tries to peddle her moronic crap.

[nevergiveup]

39. I realize she is presently a media darling

but the reality is that she is dumb as a rock and she will never have a snowball's chance in hell of winning the presidency. Next to her George W looks like an intellectual giant. When I was a kid there would always be a freak show at the carnival and there would always be a line to get in. Sarah is America's freak show and she will never be anything more.

[liberalmuse]

40. America loves it's 'Stupid' porn.

I really would love to be able to sue the McCain campaign for thrusting this atrocity upon us.

[BeHereNow]

42. Sorry to go OT, but THAT is an astounding link!!! Thanks!

And yes Palin's popularity is a very sad and pathetic mirror
of America's collective mind set.
It is APPALLING that any thinking person in this country could
even contemplate her as a candidate for POTUS.
Which is the root of the problem.
We have lost an entire generation of critical thinkers.
BHN

[driver8]

41. Any country that "selected" Dubya twice, will select anyone.

There are enough dimwits out there to put her in office.

[pnwmom]

44. Exactly. She is a THREAT -- and that's no joking matter.

Too many people don't vote out of logic, or even of self-interest. They vote with their gut -- and if they happen to be unhappy on voting day, they vote against whoever's the incumbant.

No one should rejoice if she heads the Rethug ticket, because circumstances could put her into office, no matter how poorly she would be prepared.

[TicketyBoo]

77. Did you forget?

America didn't "select" Dubya twice…we was robbed! Both times! First in Florida, and then in Ohio.

[driver8]

135. Believe me, I didn't forget!!

That is why I put "select" in quotation marks.

The elections should never have been close enough for this to happen.

[Swamp Rat]

83. Bushler was selected, not elected.

[shirlden]

103. Bush with a vagina

There are many similarities between her and Dumb-Dumb George. I didn't take him seriously and never believed the American folks would elect such a creepy nit-wit. Somehow he managed to be elected or selected twice.............I have a gut feeling we need to take the idiot of the North more seriously. The only time I thought she was a joke was when Tina Fey made her one and Fey was brilliant and rolling on the floor funny.

:think:

[femrap]

148. No,

she's W with his small dick. Small dicks have real issues....like to start wars. I don't think too many vaginas do that in the land of Mother Nature.

[Grassy Knoll]

45. Look how small the teabagger movement is......

We would slam her as a quitter. snowball hell thing. NY23 was a clue.

[condoleeza]

46. Done with her LONG ago. n/t

[Politicub]

47. She would make Caligula seem sane in comparison

Can you imagine if the unthinkable happened, and she did become president? Our country would be in store for an unthinkable rein of terror.

The folksy demeanor belies her dark and brutal self.

[HipChick]

48. The day that happens...I am emigrating...

No wonder people think the world will end in 2012

[TicketyBoo]

78. I wasn't here a year ago,

but I suppose you all saw this?

http://www.palinaspresident.us/

[HipChick]

49. Sarah is a red herring...Keep an eye on the Bushes...they are not done yet..Jeb

[cynatnite]

50. I do see her as a joke and that's what makes it so bad. n/t

[NorthCarolina]

51. Can you imagine...If Palin were ever elected it would be like

Mary Hartman, Mary Hartman in the Whitehouse. It is beyond incredible that ANYONE thinks she is qualified...even remotely qualified. Scary.

[akbacchus_BC]

52. McCain is the asshole who shed limelight on this poor excuse of

a running mate. What the eff was he thinking? I cannot believe he thought she would capture the women voters who supported SOS Hilary Clinton. Some people don't do too well in their old age, am sorry for saying this but McCain is the poster boy for an old age idiot!

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

92. People blame McCain, but McCain *did not* choose Palin. She was chosen for him by the

party establishment. He wanted another candidate. I think the party forced Palin on him because she's a woman and she's cute. I can't stand these people. They hate women and put up a weak candidate to represent their side of Hillary Clinton. Then, they put up Mike Steele to shield themselves from charges of racism. They have a history of doing this shit over and over again, and it's disgusting!!! :puke:

[pitchforksandtorches]

53. She's the Baby Ruth bar in our swimming pool.

[The Wizard]

73. That got a snot bubble out of my nose

and is appropriate for several on the radical fringe.
Illiterates like her because she speaks their language.

[FatDave]

58. I understand your concern, but I still do see her as a joke.

She couldn't finish out a single term as governor of an easy-to-govern state. That alone is more than enough ammo from a democratic opponent, especially a popular incumbent president. Plus there's plenty of other ammo.

And consider for a moment what a Palin candidacy would do for democratic turnout.

I am not afraid.

[ChicagoSuz219]

59. I don't think she'll run for anything... for two reasons...

1) she doesn't like to work, and
2) there's no real money in it

[A Giant Slor]

60. Mostly agree with OP

I agree with much of what the OP says. Palin probably does move the Overton Window to the right, so that other right wingers look moderate by comparison. But there are other dynamics at play. One is her effect on the image and makeup of the GOP. Her worship by the GOP base makes the GOP look extreme and scares away moderates and independents. The far-right base then wants ever more extreme candidates running for office, which further alienates moderate Republicans and independents, who may stay home or vote Democratic instead.

Also, as much as Palin is loved by far-right Republicans, she is loathed by an even greater number of Americans.
I think that as a candidate, she would galvanize the electorate, and it wouldn't be in her favor. America will not vote into high office a person as singularly unqualified and unserious as Palin.

All in all, I believe Palin is an indicator of a party and movement in decline, not in renewal.

[Faryn Balyncd]

87. "Why the Right Wing Gets It - Why Dems Don't" . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Moving the Overton Window :

an important discussion of the fundamentals of right wing/corporatist strategy:

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2006/5/9/205251/2950

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Overton_window

[renate]

162. well said!

You should pipe up more often than five times in nine months! :hi:

Another difference between Bush and Palin is that, although Bush is stupid, the old-time Republican establishment was behind him and his family. Palin doesn't have those connections, and the James-Baker-type big names in the GOP are not going to support her. They're probably increasingly unimportant when it comes to policy but I bet they still have a lot of influence when it comes to fund raising.

[mb7588a]

61. Or the better Dems look the longer she's around? nt.

[Hekate]

62. I know. I've felt that way about her for quite awhile now. John McCain did us a terrible disservice

... by elevating this narcissistic, ambitious, egotistical airhead to within a heartbeat of the presidency had he won. Apparently she has always had an enormous sense of entitlement -- and now she thinks she is entitled to the presidency. She won't go away on her own.

Hekate

[Hannah Bell]

190. i doubt he had much say in the choice. she's out there because she has behind-the-scenes support.

the woman has no experience or accomplishments, or personal power. she's dependent on her backers.

that's why they choose her.

[symbolman]

63. The Answer is to Satirize and UnSanitize her

which we have done with our parody "Going Rouge: The Sarah Palin Rogue Coloring & Activity Book", some serious political commentary wrapped in something so simple as a children's book.. with BARBS..

come see it http://www.goingrouge.net

This is not your momma's coloring book. As featured in the WaPost, Guardian, Chicago Tribune, Entertainment Weekly, both mag and online, TodayShow.com, etc, etc..

[BeHereNow]

65. The web site is BEAUTIFUL~

You GOOOOOOOOOOOOO
Symbolman!!!

BHN:kick: :yourock: :loveya:

[Swamp Rat]

84. Exactly

[beac]

157. One of my favs from last year, Swampy. Hope you have something fun planned for

Quitty's book launnch. *fingers crossed* :)

[Monk06]

64. She'll never get serious corporate RW backing. Bush could be trusted to do what he was told

Caribou Barbie is just too unpredictable to
be given any actual power.

[BrklynLiberal]

67. ..your insight into the situation is excellent. She is not to be seen as a

minor distraction. She is a MAJOR distraction, and you are absolutely correct about how she skews the perspective toward others who would have seemed to be the extreme if it were not for her.

[anachro1]

69. All I see is

an incredibly dishonest and shallow woman way out of her league. I say let the old pig have her day in the sun; then we can watch her piss away whatever money she made from this book on her FAILED run for the presidency.

Levi Johnston, god forbid, comes across as having more on the ball than she has.

What's to fear? Really?

[countmyvote4real]

72. Look at the joke Reagan played on us. You are so right.

And these times are even freakier.

I can't believe the fuss over state-side (NYC-you know) open criminal trials for five detainees left at GITMO.

It should have happened years ago.

The Palin/Reagan/Bush phenomena is much more frightening to me.

[tavalon]

80. Yeah, I say we put her on the shelf until 2012

I'm pretty sure she'll be out stumping then, unfortunately.

[Nikki Stone1]

85. I never did.

Welcome.

[Swamp Rat]

86. Palin makes for 'good copy' in tabloid cable media, but her rapture is imminent.

She cannot escape her tenebrious destiny.

[Golden Raisin]

88. I never saw her as a joke.

Dangerous, scary as Hell, and emblematic of the deep and disturbing trouble our system and country is in if she can be considered as a serious and viable candidate for Vice President ("a bullet away"), but not a joke.

[Cartoonist]

94. Sarah as VP

This is where the true danger lies. Even if she can't win the repub nomination, and I'm not so sure of that, she can still be chosen as a running mate because the people have absolutely no say in the matter. Then the Apocalypse is only a heartbeat away.

[TheCowsCameHome]

107. She sunk McCain - will she get a second chance?

[opihimoimoi]

89. SHE is an example of extreme Selfishness and Vanity....A major distraction from ADVANCING

the Nation forward into the Future...

Stuck with a GOPist Mentality of FOOL and RULE...she plods on inbetween gaffes trying to influence and build her base beyond the 2% support she now enjoys.

Yes, dangerous because she distracts progress....her brand, much like the GOPiacs, results in a regression ...not moving forward...

[Liberal_Stalwart71]

91. I never saw her as a joke. I take Palin very seriously. Democrats make fun of her at their own peril

She is a force to be reckoned with. She is another George "Dumbya" Bush. Very calculated and very vindictive. That "hockey mom," "I'm stupid" act is just that. An act. Americans think it's adorable to be dumb. Just like George Bush. KKKarl Rove turned him into a presidential candidate and people confused his 'dumbness' for folky. "Dumbya" made us feel better about being...well...dumb!! If this country *selected* him twice, then I don't have confidence at all that it will not choose someone like Palin. Very sad.

....I'm packing my bags.

[Solly Mack]

93. ayup

[Enthusiast]

95. You make some good points.

"By comparison, she makes Newt Gingrich seem reasonable."

This might be the purpose she serves. It might be the aim of the RW.

[KG]

98. good analysis. but in the end, her major motivation is money and celebrity, not power.

as seen by her quitting AK to 'write' a book and hit the promotional circuit.

punching a clock is not her style, and being a pol at the national level is a 24/7 job.

[DainBramaged]

104. Winky Dink would do a better job of governing

[Aviation Pro]

105. The underlying problem with this moronic bit of tripe....

...is that the "conflict media" must have opposites in order to sell advertising. I say put the Fairness Doctrine back into play and rend news from entertainment.

This idiot woman must never come within sniffing distance of the Presidency again. We painfully learned that lesson in 1999 and it must never be repeated.

[Syntheto]

108. I dunno...

...I hardly see Palin mentioned other than here... She seems to be a non-entity who stands to make a lot of money from her book sales. A lot of people have gone that way, Valerie Plame, for example. Where is she now? We still haven't seen Condoleeza Rice's memoirs or GWB's. They're all going to get on the book and interview circuit and make some serious bank.

But, who cares? If people want to wring their hands and say that Palin is some sort of philosophical touchstone of the worst parts of the conservative ideology, they're welcome to it, but I think she's making some money and sniping at elected officials.

We need about three more political parties in this country, with at least two of them that represent the furthest extremes of political views; that way in a real debate, people will know what exactly they're voting for. I seriously doubt that Palin would be at the extreme far right. Definitely right of center, but not uniformed and jackbooted.

But, again, so what? Her actual power in terms of making policy and voting legislation is exactly the same as yours or mine: nil, other than the placebo effect of getting to vote. So, relax.

[muriel_volestrangler]

109. She was too lazy to complete her term as governor

I find it amazing that she could really be contemplated as a candidate for anything again by anyone. She made Dubya look hard-working and prepared.

Has she really said she wants to runs again for something? Without everyone bursting into laughter? :scared:

[DailyGrind51]

110. Did you read this one from Salon.com?

Monday, Nov 9, 2009 15:10 PST
Broadsheet
Advice to GOP: Quit repulsing women
If the Republican party wants to attract more female candidates and voters, not hating women would be a good start
By Kate Harding

On Friday night, Rep. Pete Sessions (R-Texas) responded to the question, "Why should a woman pay more than a man?" with, "Well, we're all different. Why should a smoker pay more?" Sessions, notes Politico, "runs the National Republican Congressional Committee -- which is tasked with recruiting new female candidates."

And the GOP wonders why it has trouble reaching women. Seriously.

Meredith Shiner and Glenn Thrush spend two pages exploring "the GOP's women problem," which is twofold: The number of female Republican candidates for office keeps dropping, and women voters stubbornly keep favoring a party that at least pretends to care about our needs (not that they're doing a bang-up job on the follow through). "Democrats," Shiner and Thrush write, "have long maintained that the Republican Party is hostile to all but the most conservative women" -- and since I take that to be not a partisan opinion but a verifiable fact, I guess I just don't get how anyone could be confused about why the GOP alienates women who are neither ultra-right-wing nor self-loathing. But apparently, many Republicans are befuddled.

They just can't understand what's gone wrong, apparently, when they even try extra hard to "emphasize the contributions of their female members" -- like Virgina Foxx, whose remarks about the healthcare reform bill began, "I believe we have more to fear from the potential of that bill passing than we do from any terrorist right now in any country." And Michele Bachmann who, in a characteristically paranoid and nonsensical statement, recently called a teabagger protest against that bill "the Super Bowl of our freedom." And Sarah Palin, who... you get the picture.

http://www.salon.com/mwt/broadsheet/feature/2009/11/09/gop_women_problem/index.html

[Orsino]

111. Yes. She is a symptom, and not the disease itself.

A saner country would never have voted her into office in the first place, and if it had, it would have learned that she is not the least bit interested in work.

[Warren Stupidity]

113. Consider emigration.

I am. We are being set up for another round of rightwing world, and this one is going to be much more radical than the last one, which I find difficult to comprehend.

[Pharaoh]

114. The Movie Idiocracy comes to mind n/t

[man4allcats]

116. She is an idiot, and the fact that the media likes to

cater to her makes her no less of a joke to me. If this country is ever stupid enough to actually buy that schlock and put her in the White House after having already experienced the likes of Reagan and Junior, then I say that such an America will be getting what it deserves.

[olegramps]

120. She is so unqualified she makes her Republican opponents appear to be reasonable.

I am convinced that having been born in the 1930's that I have experienced the best of times that this nation has ever enjoyed. There have been some ups and downs, but my generation has on the whole seen good times for the Middle Class created by the New Deal policies.

Perhaps I am being too pessimistic, but I don't hold too much hope that the nation will ever again experience the relative prosperity that was enjoyed by so many of the working class. Primarily I put the majority of blame on the Middle Class who took their prosperity for granted. There is little doubt that organized labor was a key element in bringing about rapid transformation of a servile laboring class into a viable Middle Class that demanded a rightful share of the profits of their labor.

I can't help from seeing parallels between today's tactics by the Republicans and those that took down organized labor. They attacked the unions stressing that they were robbing their members, run by goons, feather bedding, and an assortment of other wrongs. Yes, there was some wrong doing. But wasn't the corporations intent to reform them, but to destroy them. Well the working class bought the management's propaganda and had no recourse when they saw their jobs out-sourced, pensions cut and health insurance canceled.

You can see other parallels. One of the most vocal critics of the Republican's policies is the National Education Association. The Republicans have launched a multifaceted campaign to destroy public education. It includes vouchers for private schools, home schooling, accusations of teacher incompetence, etc., that are solely designed to destroy one of their most vocal critics. Where only a few years ago our public education system was held up as a model to be emulated increasingly the present younger generation has been convinced that it is gross failure. The extreme right doesn't want to improve the system, they are intent on destroying it by exaggerating its shortcomings.

[Piewhacket]

121. Hey I'm still writing my book! "Gettin Rouged : Sarah Palin's Clowning Achievement"

[anachro1]

122. Going Rogue - the Village Voice excerpts

It's the hottest of hot news -- Sarah Palin's book Going Rogue: An American Life and the accompanying tour. There've been some teasers, but our contacts in the publishing industry have leaked us six choice excerpts, which we reproduce for you here:

1. On accepting the Vice-Presidential nomination:

I was sitting next to the stove, patching up little Gopher's North Face jacket, when I got the call, and I figured, gosh-a-mighty, why not? Well, they scoot me down to Dayton -- and let me tell you, that place could use a new coat of paint -- and they tell me I have to talk to this crowd, but I say, "Oh, no -- there'll be big-town reporters there, and they'll twist and turn my words so I look like an idjit," but ol' John, he says, don't worry, they're gonna love you, and then he goes into a room in the back of the place they have there and starts beating on the walls and yelling in a foreign language. So I went out there and sure enough, people were cheering and waving flags like I was Clay Aiken, even before I said a word. They kept on cheering when I commenced to speak, but I don't know what-all I said, because I kept looking over and seeing ol' John picking at his hands, probably to soothe the cuts he got on his knuckles pounding on that wall.

2. On her business career:

If I wasn't so gosh-darned busy raising all my kids, I would have paid better attention to all that entrepreneural jazz. But you mothers know how that goes: you buy a car wash, and then little Plug has a loose tooth and little Geezer lost his mittens and before you know it, guess what -- the darned cars aren't getting washed, and you have to sell the thing off for a profit! And there was Todd so busy building our house out of sticks he found while he was snowmobiling, I couldn't go off playing with businesses. So I said, "Doggone-it, I'm gonna stay right here, mend socks, wipe noses, and such like." But then one day I was clipping coupons for Sunny D and I saw the ad in the paper that said they were looking for a new Mayor for Wasilla, and I guess I just got a wild hair in me.

3. On debating Joe Biden:

Well, I get out there and ol' Joe is grinning to beat the band, so I say, kind of playful like, "You mind if I call you Joe?" and he says "Sure," loud, so the microphones could pick it up, but under his breath and without moving his lips, like a ventriloquist, he says, "You stupid bleep-bleeping hillbilly bleep, I'm gonna bleep your bleeping bleep till it bleeds," and then he goes over to his podium like nothing happened. Well, I've been to Juneau and a county fair, but I never heard anything like that. So I think it threw me and gave me that twitch in my eye which the liberal media had a field day with.

4. On David Letterman:

We get to bed early in Alaska, as we have to be up before dawn to catch and skin moose, so I never saw his show. But when we heard those awful things he said about Willow, I looked up some pictures of him, and sure enough, he was the spitting image of that gap-toothed man I saw years ago when I was shopping with Willow at Out of the Closet, who offered her a Mars Bar and then reached down and rubbed her little butt. I still remember how he ran and jumped into a helicopter while I screamed and several good citizens came at him with sticks. Also, a friend played me the theme music from the show and I would swear to you it was the same music that helicopter was playing as it flew away. Folks, this is the kind of thing we're up against!

5. On Bristol's pregnancy:

When she told me, I said she had to get married, of course, but I wanted to know about the young fella, and she kept stammering and mumbling so bad, I figured I'd wait till she could show him to me. Well, he came over a couple of hours after he was supposed to, and brought his mother, who stayed out in the yard rubbing her teeth. He was trying to be nice, I guess, but he kept shaking his glass like he wanted a refill, and saying he was going to the bathroom when we all saw him sneaking out the back door to join his mom in the shed for who-knows what-all. And he kept referring to the child he and Bristol were expecting as "the little bastard, pardon my French," and when we asked how he expected to support his family, he just looked around our living room, held out his arms, and laughed. Call me crazy, but I thought we could turn him around once we got him to one of Bishop Muthee's services.

6. On election night:

I never heard so many bleepity-bleeps and blankety-blanks as I heard while I was waiting to go out on that stage in Phoenix. It was like I was at a dad-gum fancy-house in Fairbanks instead of a Republican Party event, and I tried to ask ol' John about it, but he was shaking his wife by the shoulders and talking in Vietnamese again, so I couldn't get any relief from him, and his minders were all poking at my family with sticks like they were bears and telling them things like, "Get back in your trailer, you stupid snowbillies." Finally it comes time to go out there and tell the people we lost, and some fella comes up and gives ol' John an injection, and in a couple of seconds he loosens his grip on poor Cindy and goes out on stage with me. It must have been something powerful they shot him up with, but he still looked so mad that I had to keep rubbing my fingers to keep from freaking out.

That's when I decided: I am going to quit my job, go out there among the people, and turn this Party right the heck around!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She's still a joke in my book.

[Piewhacket]

130. Dang! These previews of Sarah's book are gosh darn to heck hilarious!

I only hope Sarah gets her wish and the whole shebang Repuklien
party turns itself right the heck around and follows her
(right into a swamp).

ewwww betcha.

[mrs_p]

167. oh she is sooo stupid

please - only a select FEW would think this "literary" tripe is worthy of brain space...

[LiberalLovinLug]

175. Isn't this from Going Rouge the satirical version?

as opposed to Going Rogue, her actual book?


If not, they sure as gosh dern never needed to write one.

[aint_no_life_nowhere]

191. Hilarious little bits of trivia: "his mother, who stayed out in the yard rubbing her teeth"

Regarding Levi: "he kept shaking his glass like he wanted a refill, and saying he was going to the bathroom when we all saw him sneaking out the back door to join his mom in the shed for who-knows what-all."

I've said it before and I'll say it again; Palin's life would make a great reality show sitcom, more bizarre than Anna Nicole Smith's show.

[Echo In Light]

124. Frightening to consider a phony dim bulb like her can so capture/captivate the US for so long

... well, hold on...I guess there's a long standing tradition of that here, and on numerous levels

[euphoria12leo]

125. Republicans don't even want

Sarah Palin to run for President. But they don't mind pimping her out to raise money for them. It's OK for her to make a robo call for them but don't mention their names. Rick Perry all but knocked her over to remove her from the podium when she was trying to speak to a crowd. I think she might just try to run for President because she has an axe to grind with those from her own base. She's the most vindictive person I've ever seen and obviously her book makes the point from whats being said so for. Rush is saying it's a policy book. Now that's crazy and her crazies out there will believe it because Rush said so. But if by some small miracle (actually cheating again) Sarah won she would never run anything not even her VP pick would have a say-so about anything. Rush Limbaugh would be running things because he is running the Republican party now. Now that's something to fear.

[smoogatz]

126. RW demagogues will always have a big following in this country.

It's in our history and our national character, unfortunately. What I see in the behavior of conservadems in the current congress isn't so much that they're filling a RW vacuum; it's more about showing their true colors. There's still an element within the Democratic party that derides liberalism and dislikes liberals, and because the Democrats are in power these people will inevitably wind up chairing important committees and writing important legislation.

[DFW]

127. The joke is on us

She is a Winky Dink, agreed. So? Winky Dinks are easily manipulated by people who wisely prefer to
remain in the background, consolidating wealth and power while leaving the Winky Dinks in the spotlight,
with the collected Left wondering how in the world something like that could have happened, and how
in the world something like that CONTINUES to happen, when 95% of the world sees right through it.

The only thing I would take issue with is her running for office again. That will only happen if she
agrees to be the straw man (or woman) and take the heat for the money, as W did. Otherwise, she'll
go for what money she can earn on her own, and be content to have her agent grab what can be grabbed
for paid media appearances.

This country should have been done with her long before she was ever nominated as VP. That we are not
is an indication that, as nation, we still suffer from an infection that could yet prove fatal.

[glitch]

132. Well said. nt

[olegramps]

128. Sara Palin exemplifies exactly whats is wrong with the nation.

The nation was on the path to being Third World class when it considered Sara Paliin for the Vice Presidency.

[ecstatic]

129. I'd be concerned if she ended up on a ticket again BUT

I feel, partly due to sexism in this country, that our first woman president will be brilliant and capable. You have to be 10 times better than the men in the race to break that glass ceiling. So Palin doesn't have a chance.

[braunfels]

133. She's a gift

That will keep on giving...to the dems. As long as she claims to be a "conservative" she stinks up the rest of them, even more than they already stink. Then there's her almost son-in-law, Levi who's a bonus in his own right. If the dems have any sense at all, they'll use Palin as a litmus test for repub candidates, asking them if they support her. It's a very simple formula.

[old mark]

134. StC: She never was a joke - she is an insult to the decent people of the US.

That any political party actually consider her fit to run for VP or President is spitting on the nation.

I have always felt this way about her, and I am surprised more people were not actually offended by her and by the GOP for choosing her as their candidate!

Sarah Palin as the head of the US? The Commander in Chief? Authorized to use our nuclear weapons? Representing the people of the US to the world?
The idea is sickening and frightening and the party who proposed her for that high office is criminal.

mark

[swilton]

137. I'm with you

Given that the political issues that I most care about to create a socially just world include peace, quality health and health care for all, environmental stewardship and conservation, and economic justice, I absolve to refrain from commenting on articles about Sarah Palin’s life, career or family or circulating jokes about her for the following reasons:

• News items about Sarah Palin do not affect and distract from the issues I most care about
• Commenting upon such items further polarizes the far left from the far right and not only feeds her ego but makes her a martyr with the far right

[Geek_Girl]

138. She's still a side show in the same vain as MJ or Anna Nicole

unfortunately she still has some political sway ina major political party. But I wonder if she will ever be able to hold political office again. I kind of doubt it.

[existentialist]

140. I think the best way to deal with her is to make fun of her.

I agree that she's pretty awful, but precisely because she could become a serious problem to any intelligent political dialog is precisely the reason to ridicule her.

There's no reasonable debate with her.

Taking her seriously means making something serious out of her. (credit to Nietzsche for the thought)

Really she's still tremendously funny if you look at her in the right light, and can become seriously dangerous only if we don't.

[wial]

141. very good point

I hadn't really considered the Palin effect of normalizing extremists. I'd forgotten we live in a world where Reagan republicans are considered moderate. How did this happen? By what standard are the thoughts of a Reagen let alone a Gingrich considered sane and valid? Indeed Palin is more dangerous than I'd thought. Heaven save us from the GOP's new "good cops".

[Stellar]

147. The *ONLY* thing I find interesting about her is that others

find her interesting. Why? She's an ignoramus. She's too dumb to realize how dumb she is.

I just don't get it!!!

[femrap]

151. Obviously you don't see

the stupidity around you. Americans are not that smart. You get that, don't you? Ever since Raygun, our public education system has been declining. Our 'leadership' requires Cannon Fodder.

[liquid diamond]

149. I used to laugh when

right wingers claimed liberals were afraid of Palin. I ain't laughing anymore.

[Ferret Annica]

150. Palin isn't getting into the White House

She is shallow and wacko, more like hydrogenated vegetable oil then part of this country's cream of the crop politically.

[caseymoz]

152. Palin is not going to lose because anybody makes fun of her intelligence.

Just look at the teabag crowd. Those people have grown a thick skin about stupidity. They forgive it in their everyday lives and expect the country should be forgiving it. Those are "values" voters who think that the country could be run without intelligence as long as it has the right attitude. As they are Judeo-Christian overwhelmingly, is ignorance and stupidity even a sin? They despise people who are rude enough to make fun of it more than people who are inexcusably ignorant.

But then you have the Independents, who waver between favoring "values" and favoring intelligence. Here a lot depends on if the hecklers offend them more than the candidate's stupidity.

In other words, you cannot let the comedians and satirists do the work, and it might be fun sometime, but nothing real is being done by having fun laughing at these people. You do have to do the work for the candidates.

Just remember we have the most votes. This is why the Republicans continually try to suppress the vote. If we work, we win.

[Iggo]

156. But she does have perfect teeth. So, yeah.

She's a terrible commentary on our country precisely because she IS such a joke.

[pitchforksandtorches]

158. RIP may she rest in PIECES

[Better Believe It]

159. She and other right-wing leaders is taken far to lightly by some on the left.

Do so at your own peril.

[marshall]

161. She does seem like a force of nature

Hurricane Sarah--and she just keeps on and on.

[rvablue]

163. I think all of the hand wringing about the power of Palin on this thread is hilarious.

The American public believes she is a dimwitted know-nothing -- that is a fact.

The poll numbers show it.

She doesn't even win the top spot when the pollsters only ask Republicans who they think the next nominee will be.

The fact of the matter is, Palin will have to go up against some seasoned and learned (I know, I know...) GOPers in the primaries. Hillary had the policy chops to do it. Palin will fail when she is forced to debate Romney, Pawlenty and Huckabee.

This meme that "Americans are stupid enough to do it" is a common projection theory in academic communications studies. It's been largely proven that a candidate cannot win national office without the majority of independants behind them.

Palin might -- and that is a big, big IF -- win the GOP nomination. But, I highly doubt it. However, if she does, we will see a much larger percentage of the electoral votes going to Obama next time around. Palin might win Alaska, Wyoming, Idaho, and the deep red South, but that would be the extent of it.

Her only support now -- despite the stupidity being bandied about that she is "popular" -- are the same 20%ers who still supported Bush when he left office. With her out of the governor's mansion, she has NO platform to make that grow.

Will we have to be exposed to her for years to come? Probably. But it will be only talk. Her aspirations will now be focused on accumulating as much coin as possible for her PERSONAL bank account.

[mrs_p]

166. i completely agree with your assessment. nt

[mrs_p]

169. one more thing

my hubby's up in alaska working on fishing boats. word on the street is that she is a joke there too and many people are pissed at her. i doubt she could even win alaska.

[silver10]

179. I hope you are right...

but we had shrub for 8 long and horrible years, and I put him on par with palin. Shrub was joke who pretty much destroyed our country for a small minority to reap the benefits - he destroyed and maimed innocent people after starting 2 wars, destroyed the economy, destroyed our reputation as a credible country in the world's eyes. There's what, 4 or 5 books just based on his misquotes and malapropisms alone, maybe more?

The U.S. voted for him, and his ignorance and their ignorance is startling, so I am not poo-pooing people's feelings here.


George W. Bush, Former U.S. President (2001-2009):

“Our enemies are innovative and resourceful, and so are we. They never stop thinking about new ways to harm our country and our people, and neither do we.” –Washington, D.C., Aug. 5, 2004

“See, in my line of work you got to keep repeating things over and over and over again for the truth to sink in, to kind of catapult the propaganda.” –Greece, N.Y., May 24, 2005

"Rarely is the questioned asked: Is our children learning?" --Florence, South Carolina, Jan. 11, 2000

"You work three jobs? ... Uniquely American, isn't it? I mean, that is fantastic that you're doing that." --to a divorced mother of three, Omaha, Nebraska, Feb. 4, 2005

"This is an impressive crowd -- the haves and the have mores. Some people call you the elite -- I call you my base." --at the 2000 Al Smith dinner

[rvablue]

186. Palin is not the Shrub and 2012 will have little in common with 2000.

Think back to 2000. I would guess not even 30% of the American public were online on a daily basis. They were fed news by the cablecritters who many times (including Tweety) parroted the RW smear machine talking points.

They were same tactics that worked against Carter to get Raygun elected.

So, comparisons drawn between Raygun and the Shrub, and a possible Palin candidacy just don't work. In 2000, there was no Daily Show (and if there was, it was before Stewart and nobody watched it), no DU, no KOS, no Keith, no Rachel, no Ed, no David Shuster -- basically nothing that was cutting through the RW noise machine that had been carefully honed for the three decades previous.

In 2000, George Bush was governor of Texas. Bible Spice is governor of nothing and quit. Americans don't like quitters, no matter what type of BS spin they try to decorate it with.

George Bush is largely known as a bumbler NOW. He surely wasn't known as that to the broader, American electorate back when he started his campaign in 1999 -- he was branded the "compassionate conservative."

Doesn't matter what kind of rebranding the GOP tries to do on Palin. She is already a well-known name and what first comes to mind when many hear that name is public sparring with her teenage ex-son-in-law-to-be, quitting her elected office, tit-for-tatting with Letterman (who continues to make her look like a clown on the weekly basis) and grifting on the campaign trail for expensive designer duds.

They don't think "leader." No changing that. And she only continues to seal the deal on that fate with her daily and ridiculous postings on Facebook. So glad to see her back on Twitter, too. William Shatner and Conan O'Brien will have a lot of new material.

And, if the American people are so "ignorant," how is that President Barack Obama is sitting in the Oval office? The GOP brand is very, very badly damaged at present -- that was not the case in 2000.

[silver10]

199. Obama was elected because he is a great man and...

things were and are so, so bad, Americans needed hope and change.

And Shrub was known as a bumbler even in 2004 and was still re-elected. And he is NOT a great man like Obama.

I never meant that all Americans are ignorant, but let's face (education is not a top priority in America) and if someone like Shrub was elected and re-elected, no one can predict the future - no one, no matter how smart they think they are. That is why we need to remain vigilant and assume nothing.

And everyone is entitled to their opinion and to express it in America.

[rvablue]

208. Silver10, your final comment is weird

as you seem to be implying I was trying to stifle your free speech with my response to your response.

I did it and I'll do it again -- this is a "discussion" board after all.

And, of course, we all have the right to exercize free speech -- even when it is disingeneous, vapid and trite!

That has been and will be evidenced over the next month as we will be exposed to the do-nothing, know-nothing Quitter from Wasilla!

:rofl: :hi:

[silver10]

214. rvablue, your reply is weird too ; )

[rvablue]

209. dele. double post. n/t

[Blue_In_AK]

202. It's doubtful she would even win Alaska at this point.

Our eyes have been opened. She is not at all popular here. She is a joke, and a huge disappointment to almost everyone who supported her as governor.

[unaffiliated liberal]

165. All thanks to John McCain who turned his search for a running mate

into some kind of malignant reality show that won't go away.

[noel711]

168. It's all about appearances....

That's why Palin is still in the spotlight...

She's 'porn' for all the males who see her,
and when the boner is engaged, the rational mind
goes out the window. Who care what she says?
They've never seen a politician like her-

That's true for Carrie Prejean too.
doesn't matter a whit what she says or does,
but to see her parading clad in that bikini from that
pageant video over the airwaves every time her name
is mentioned, the industry gets a hard-on for Carrie.

Until physical appearance isn't the only way women are judged,
we have a long way to go.

Remember all the bull hockey Hillary took (and still takes)
because she isn't a fashion model.
Whenever the media or public goes after a woman in leadership,
there's usually a commentary on her appearance or her demeanor.
Not on her accomplishments, her intelligence or education.

I've heard men say how wonderful Palin is... and these are
educated, accomplished men who are not red necks or skin heads.
They are missing the point, and until our culture changes
its view of women's value to society, we will have contend with the Palins
and Prejeans who will leech their time in the public for as long
as they can.

If Palin looked like Susan Boyle (whom I adore for her talent)
no one would pay any attention.

[cadmium]

170. Huffington post seems to love her. Her face and a prominent

article about her is on their front page almost every day. Even when they are critical they promote her as an important figure.

[Nothing Without Hope]

172. "She makes the *serious and capable* extremists palatable."

I believe that is one reason why she is being constantly piped into our living rooms, the more nuts the better.

K & R for a long-overdue insight on a very important matter.

[Hubert Flottz]

173. I never did think she was funny either.

I think she might be Hitler's next life...

[Uncle Joe]

176. I agree.

Kicked and recommended.

Thanks for the thread, Stinky The Clown.:thumbsup:

[stopbush]

177. She's a joke. You're wasting time worrying about her. She won't even

run in the primaries. Her GOP opponents will see to that. They've got enough dirt on here to sink her like a stone, and there aren't enough brain-damaged people in the R ranks to get her anywhere.

Forget comparisons to It Can't Happen Here. Think Elmer Gantry instead.

[AlinPA]

182. The "base" that elected Buzz Windrip in It Can't Happen Here were similar to the base of

today's republican party. They were gullible about getting their cash distribution, yes, but they had the same intellect of most of today's republicans and teabaggers. IMO Palin is close to the character Windrip in stupidity.

[rd_kent]

184. Great Post. Says it all!

[Fire1]

185. As far as I'm concerned she will always be a "side show."

Personally, I think you're overreacting but you're concern is duly noted.

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

187. two major unknowns...

Todd and Levi.

how will Todd handle all this?

what does Levi know that he hasn't revealed yet?

[Blue_In_AK]

203. Interesting that Levi isn't mentioned once in the book

despite earlier reports that she was devoting a great deal of attention to him. I firmly believe that he has the goods on her. and that she was advised by "someone" to retract her claws where Levi is concerned.

[hootinholler]

188. Are you asking if the promotion of Palin like persons is a strategy?

Is it really a conscious attempt to make Newtonians look better? Are they that smart?

-Hoot

[Hannah Bell]

189. Obama's failure to deal with jobs spawns reaction; palin to figurehead

reactionary third party.

it's my speculation lou dobbs quit to join the party-building effort.

[NICO9000]

194. The Palin Party?

I also think she'll become the figurehead of some new 3rd party. I heard that "Conservative Party" than ran Hoffman in the 23rd District in NY has been around for a long time there, but I don't think it's a national party. If it isn't, I can't imagine it would be all that hard to make it one and she'd probably be number one in line for them at least right now. She'd probably have to start begging for money by the beginning of 2011, but she's such a lazy, entitled jerk I don't think she'd want to do any actual work. I still believe she has little appeal beyond the 20% idiot base that loves her so much and if she were on the ballot, she'd draw more votes from whatever POS Rethug she's up against than (presumably) Obama. And she definitely doesn't have the Bush-type connections to get her on the top of a GOP ticket, as an earlier poster said.

There's a story in the L.A. Times today about her book with an interesting revelation from an unnamed source about election night 2008. You probably recall that she wanted to give a concession speech after McCain and was "disappointed" that her huge ego wouldn't be accommodated that night. However, this source says that after McCain left the building, somebody saw her in the wings and thought she was gonna make a run for the podium. McCain's campaign manager quickly had the stage lights turned off to thwart her efforts.

I've noticed that her M.O. all year long has been to make sure she gets in the news maybe once a month or every six weeks at most. Of course, the media is happy to have her and unfortunately, so are we. Even though I hate her with a passion (and McCain for being such a pussy by having her forced on him and us), I have to admit she's a fascinating villain. For someone who's about as deep as a thimble, she's just perfect for this BS reality show-lovin' culture we now find ourselves in.

[Hannah Bell]

201. good to know i'm not the only one who thinks so. she wouldn't be making the news so often

if she didn't have heavy hitters behind her.

if you want to limit someone's public appeal, reducing their visibility is better than most bad press.

[rvablue]

207. Well, if that's the case, I haven't heard such great news in awhile!

I hope he's right front and center.

Should ensure a landslide.

[valerief]

192. If only our military could fight the REAL enemy. nt

[liberal N proud]

193. I see bu$h X10

If she manages to run in 2012 and gets enough idiots to fall for her folksy bullshit, they GOP could steal a 3rd election and she would make bu$h look intelligent.

[WinkyDink]

195. I could do WAY better! ----------------------------------------------------------------->

[keepCAblue]

198. The country thought Bush was a joke in 1999 when he announced his candidacy...

...all throughout his campaign, Bush was the butt of everyone's jokes -- dumb, inarticulate, coke-head alcoholic who butchered both the English language and the state of Texas during his governorship. And he had a reputation as a quitter (AWOL from service) and business failure -- destroyed every company and venture he involved himself in. Yes, the nation laughed, made fun of him all the way to polls. And then he won (with the help of rigged Diebold and ES&S voting machines and a corrupt Supreme Court -- Thanks especially to Justice Sandra Day O'Connor)

The strategy behind Bush's (s)election was formed through the unholy alliance of Ralph Reed, Darth Cheney and KKKarl Rove. Together, they realized that if Bush could gain the Evangelical demographic as his base, he could win the election. So suddenly, GWB was promoted as a born-again, Jesus-lovin' Xtian who appealed shamelessly, often through special code words, to the vast religious rightwing dimwits of red-state country.

Reed, Cheney and Rove knew if they could get the Evangelicals to vote GWB within 5 percentage points of Gore, they could feasibly flip the numbers at the polls, courtesy of Diebold and ES&S.

Reed, Cheney and Rove are grooming Palin for the same fate. With Palin, they once again have their brainless puppet who draws a die-hard loyalty from redneckers and religions nutcakes, alike. Palin, with her anti-woman, anti-choice, anti-gay platform will galvanize the religious base just as did Bush...and Reed, Cheney and Rove will promote her--either as a presidential candidate or as Jeb's VP running mate--in an effort to regain control once again.

Palin is Bush is Palin is Bush. Same stupid but highly marketable pig -- with a different shade of lipstick.

[Wapsie B]

204. That is why I encourage any real Republicans to take their party back.

The gop she represents is so far removed from what I grew up with it's ridiculous.

[Faryn Balyncd]

210. The "real Republicans" have become independents & Democrats.

[Wapsie B]

215. I know I sure did.

[hay rick]

205. They are who we think they are.

During the campaign, I was berated here when I referred to Palin as trailer park trash. I have an ongoing sense of vindication. It should have been obvious to all early on. I also believe that the revelation that she was incompetent was the single most important factor in determining the outcome of the election. It demonstrated that McCain was impulsive and raised the specter that he might be catastrophically inept a la Bush.

That said, 46% of the electorate still voted for Palin and the fool that nominated her. I see her as a logical successor to Bush in an America that continues to tumble downhill.

[Rosa Luxemburg]

206. If the media didn't run anything on her then she would fade away

for the media they love that type of thing.

[defendandprotect]

211. Agree . . . but after W getting the presidency . . . where's the r-w limbo stick now????

[defendandprotect]

212. Someone mentioned a PALIN/DOBBS ticket -- Schultz radio?

[donco6]

219. Why haven't the Repubs done to her what they did to Katherine Harris?

I can't figure that out at all.

[Stinky The Clown]

220. I don't think the repubs did her in. I think Giant Headed J.E.B. did her in.

[Major Hogwash]

221. Only 19% of those polls self-identify as Republicans in this country now

So, I'm not that worried.

Ross Perot ran for President and he thought he had a serious chance of getting elected.
Perot was a pretty sharp businessman who had made a fortune before he tried to run for President.

On the other hand, Palin is just riding out the wave, trying to cash in while the iron is still warm. When it's over, it's over, for her.

The fact that people take Huckabee seriously in this country as a viable candidate for President is much scarier to me than thinking Palin has a chance in hell.

[HipChick]

229. She'll never declare that she's running..

She milk it up to the last moment, once she's declares not to run, the attention will be off her..
I don't think she's running for anything. She's out making money selling a book. From what it sounds like she burned just about every bridge in the process of writing it. There will be a momentary groundswell of excitement around it, as there always is with these "tell-all" books, and then after all the appearances and the hoopla dies down about a week and a half from now there will be several days of people picking the book apart and there will be a about a week of backlash and that'll pretty much be the end of it. She turned around and stabbed people in the back that help propel her from obscurity to the national stage, if you're serious about running for office, you don't hand to those who've reluctantly supported you something that gives them the perfect excuse for no longer doing so....the only place she is a maverick is in her own mind...