Categories: Politics
September 4, 2008
After last night's speech, here's how Sarah Palin has re-ignited the culture wars:
Sarah Palin = Wassila
Wassila = Small Town, USA
Small Town, USA = the Heartland
The Heartland = guns/religion
Guns/religion = "Bitter"
"Bitter" = Barack
Barack = foreigner
Foreigner = other countries
Other countries do not ≠ America
Wassila vs. The World
Is that math adding up for you?
Wow. You really had to go through a lot to come to that conclusion.
considering this:
Palin's speech = Bush's speechwriter
Bush's speechwriter = Cheney & Rove
Cheney & Rove = fear & lies
fear & lies = elect anyone but a Democrat
yes. it adds up.
No, that math is decidely not adding up for me. Palin's speech sounded bitter and sarcastic to me, with very little substantive talk on policy. Take out all her rhetoric, and I'm left with a big, fat zero.
I invite the reopening of the culture wars. Ms. Palin and the so-called Christian right are neo-Pharisees. They delight in self-righteousness. They walk away from the homeless man by the side of the road, and hope that the Samaritan will have the decency to take care of him. They have little or no regard for life outside the womb. They would never dream of eliminating hunger and poverty. They remain obsessed with protecting the "rights" of the unborn. They are happy to label all those who disagree as "murderers." What happened to "Judge not lest you be judged." Jesus would not claim any of these self-righteous hypocrites, and they might want to read about the "final exam." in their Bibles. As I recall, those who have helped the poor, feed the hungry, clothed the naked, etc. are those who pass the test.
Wow. You folks writting these responses take hate speech to a whole new level!
There was absolutely no substance whatsoever to that speech, aside from the misleading or outright false statements. She said Obama had not authored a single bill. Hello? He authored the most sweeping ethics reform bill in Senate history. Anyone paying attention knows that. The ridicule of Obama's years as a community organizer, from 1985 to 1988 (he was 27 then) makes as much sense as focusing on Sarah's time as a sportscaster at a two-bit TV station in the late 1980s.
The BS about her having more "executive" experience than Obama or Biden? Based on that ridiculous, misleading definition, she left out McCain, as well as John Kennedy. She also left out LBJ, Ford, Nixon, and Bush Sr before they became VP. Does that mean she is more qualified than they were? Of course not, but never let logic get in the way of an insult.
I am also astounded at the blatant hypocrisy from some Republicans in their pronouncement that Palin's speech now clears away all the doubts and shows that she is qualified to be Vice President. The GOP spent 6 months saying that all Obama could do was give a good speech, which showed he was not qualified to be president. NOW, they say that one speech by Palin answers all the questions about her and is sufficient to judge that she's qualified to be president! Do Republicans ever stop and think before they speak? Apparently, not often enough.
Skip that math and pick a side.
Sarah Palin should be the poster child for the "Right to Choose". She has been praised for her "choice" to go to term and keep her special needs son and she stands behind her daughter's "choice" to keep her baby. Without Roe v Wade Palin and her daughter would not have been allowed to make these choices. Their decisions would have been made for them by Washington.
Good post Rebecca! They also believe a good measure of economic hardship and struggle to make it builds character, but it's not in evidence among the alienated American underclass: gambling and shortcuts to cash etc. are now the norm.
As others have noted Palin has the ability to give a spirited delivery of a speech written to excite the base, borrowing a few of Hillary Clinton's hand gestures. However, not much original thought, it was written before she was selected and had to be re-worked a bit to fit her bio. As an Independent I did NOT feel welcomed by the content of the speech nor her delivery, in fact at times I felt rejected and degraded. She discounted the position of community organizer as if it was a do nothing position that required no leadership or managerial skills--seems like a good way to offend all the faith-based altruistic volunteers the Republicans expect to replace government intervention. Many average, working, middle-class people who were hoodwinked by the Republican Party of 'family values' and bought into their 'liberal' bashing eight years ago are now being helped by those same community organizers and 'liberals' at shelters across the country because the economic policies of the last eight years have propelled them into poverty. In my opinion, her speech just demonstrated more of the same hypocritical, divisive, attack, partisan politics. I really wonder if humans will ever evolve to the point where they can agree to disagree without tearing apart the opposition; it seems so juvenile and barbaric at the same time especially when we are facing a worldwide environmental and economic crisis.
I was also offended by the attack on the press, I depend on them to ask the candidates tough, probing questions I want answered, and in fact they have the right and duty to do so. Our very Democracy depends on a free press. Any attempt to silence them by intimidation is an insult to the first amendment. Much of this probing is McCain's fault, he picked a complete unknown to the majority of American voters with a host of personal problems then he expects us NOT to ask questions -Palin and McCain should have anticipated the intense media scrutiny. Obama has gone through the same scrutiny and right wing blogs and right wing radio and TV have done more than their fair share to malign him AND his wife over the past 19 months and continues even today.. His pastor issue was a personal matter and the McCain campaign piled on during this time unlike Obama who is admirably avoiding any disparaging remarks about Palin's family problems. The fact is voters make decisions based on the professional AND personal lives of the candidates, character does matter. As I remember the Republicans and the media made sure we knew every detail of Bill Clinton's sex life before and after the election.
these culture wars have been going on since 1980. Guess which side has won most of them. Neither side is enlighten, one is condescending and the other is self-righteous
I thought that her speech was nasty, sarcastic, and mean. Considering that she is brand new to the national political scene, what gives her the right to tell such horrible lies about Obama? I was rather stunned at the level of her attacks.
Did anyone else notice the irony, when Mitt Romney said "Opportunity rises when children are raised in homes and schools that are free from pornography, promiscuity and drugs; in homes that are blessed with family values and the presence of a father and a mother" while pregnant, unmarried Bristol Palin sat nearby?
Is Palin soft on promiscuity? If she had enforced proper "family values", maybe Bristol would not be unmarried and pregnant?
It's not that I want to pick on Bristol, but let's not have Romney and Palin preaching their religious right "family values" at us, while they are unable to practice those values themselves.
Sarah Palin is obviously a person who feels very strongly about what she believes in. Last night she was singing to the choir. It was funny watching the camera focusing on the 1 black guy in the hall 3 or 4 times.
Here is an interesting equation:
Sarah Palin = populariy - education + pretty face
Popularity - education + pretty face = Brittney Spears + Paris Hilton
Brittney Spears + Paris Hilton = shallow US media
Shallow US Media = "election is not about issues"
"election is not about issues" = McCain's campaign manager
McCain's campaign manager = Rick Davis
Rick Davis = "America is in a mental recession"
"America is in a mental recession" = John McCain asks Sarah Palin to be VP nominee
Sarah Palin = populariy - education + pretty face etc...
That's about the silliest thing I've ever seen. Surely NPR can come with something better than that. The only thing Palin has ignighted for me is anger that a Republican candidate with the possibility of winning the presidency could make such a really ignorant choice for a running mate. It shows his complete contempt for the intelligence of the American voter.
A teenage friend commented to me that there was something about Sara Palin's voice that really annoyed him. While listening to her speech I realized what it probably was and he later agreed. Sara Palin uses the same tone and cadence that "mean-girl" teenage bullies use. I think her speech let the public learn a lot about her, she's a "mean-mommie" middle-aged bully.
Rebecca's post is excellent.
So, I'm a life-long democrat, but this year I'm having trouble with Obama (I fear his lack of experience -- seriously!). I liked Palin's speech, but then I got to thinking -- I don't like the Republican platform. So I went in search of the two platforms. I prefer the democratic platform. So, I'm going to close my eyes and stop listening to the talking heads and make my "choice" based on the party platform. I've got my fingers crossed, but I'm not holding my breath! I wish there could be more discussion of platforms rather than people.
All this fuss about an avg Hockey Mom, with NO political experience aside from PTA, community council, mayor and 18 months as gov. As an woman, I'm insulted, as an Alaskan, horrified. She is bad enough as a gov., but as a VP? Gives me shivers. In her speech, she stretched the truth so many times, she could have been "Elastagirl". Here are some examples: 1. telling those parents with special needs kids that they'll have a ally in the WH. *Palin proposed a reduction in funds for special needs grants to schools in both her budgets -- this at a time when the state of Alaska has been benefiting from record oil tax revenues, which Palin pushe to return to citizens as cash rebates ($1200 govt welfare).
2. Palin has turned a family tragedy -- her 17-year old daughter Bristol's getting pregnant by a local self-described 18-year-old "redneck" athlete from the same high school -- into a virtue by saying that she and her husband will be helping their daughter "keep the child" and raise it.
*Pulleese - What she didn't tell convention hall was that as governor, Palin cut funding for a program that supports single teen mothers and we've all heard how she has opposes sex education in schools -- something her daughter and future son-in-law could have used. Less advantaged single mothers in Alaska and, if elected, in the rest of America, will not have a friend in the White House. She also failed to mention that McCain has voted against funding of teen pregnancy prevention programs in Congress. (thanks to DAVE LINDORFF for many of these insights;he is a Philadelphia-based journalist and columist)
Someone please tell me this is only a nightmare and when we wake up it will be over!
Douglas Grubbs - very good. I like the equation.
You forgot:
Palin = dog with lipstick
McCain = Bush
Bush = economic failure
Economic failure = republican ideology
Republican Ideology = anti-community activism
Anti-community activism = Anti-American
Has anyone considered that Hillary's "sniper fire" was a direct hit on The Big Bush's WMD?
I agree, since when do we ridicule someone for being a community organizer? Doesn't she understand that he basically did what other leaders do, but with no pay? Didn't McCain end his lame speech by inviting all Americans to committ to a cause bigger than themselves? (Kind of like a community organizer would do?) Her sarcasm was a HUGE turn off for me.
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