An American Fable - 17 November 2009
With the release of theocrat Sarah Palin's ghost written book Tuesday, and the sheer excitement from the right, it has made me think about the differences in how liberals versus conservatives value women. Liberals view women as an equal part of society. Conservatives think women are baby making machines destined to be subservient to men. Look at the women the left appreciates compared to the right; On the left we admire MSNBC anchor Rachel Maddow, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. On the right, they adore unemployed serial quitter Sarah Palin, unemployed breast implant recipient Carrie Prejean, and fictional writer Ann Coulter(?). Why does the left respect their women? Maddow was a Rhodes Scholar who earned a PhD from Oxford in Political Science, Pelosi is the first female Speaker of the House and Schultz easily won re-election last November while quietly fighting breast cancer. Why does the right enjoy their women? Palin despises women and once won a beauty contest, Prejean despises gays and once won a beauty contest, and Coulter despises liberals and wishes he won a beauty contest. It feels like the country is really at a crossroads. Conservatives want to go back to the days when men were men and women knew their place. They want Christianity taught in schools to force their beliefs on all children. Liberals want to move forward when men can love men and women know their place is as Speaker of the House. Liberals believe your spirituality should remain a private matter, to be taught freely within one’s own home if so desired. The discrepancy between the left and the right is obvious. The left is methodical, open minded, very accepting of equality, change and look forward to the future without fear. The right are reactionary, afraid of change, feel aversion against anything that doesn't look or act like them, clinging to the status quo (and guns & religion) while looking back wistfully at the past. As a progressive woman, I can not relate to people like Palin. How can any woman, especially one with daughters punish a woman who's been the victim of rape? In just one example of her leadership, as Mayor of Wasilla, she directly shifted the cost of the rape kits from the police department to the victims. Sarah Palin represents everything opposite of what I believe in. The fact that blow up dolls with her likeness were being manufactured during the election, and possibly still are, told me all I needed to know about why men were voting for her, but the women? I'm still confused. Some women who supported Hillary Rodham Clinton instead of Barack Obama actually switched alliances to Palin which sickened me. I'm sorry, I hope a day comes when I see a woman President elected, but I will not vote for any candidate without regard to their politics just because they urinate while sitting. That's irresponsible, ignorant and a whole new type of profiling.
Fact Checks - Oh My!
Immediately upon release of her book Tuesday, Facebook politician Palin started complaining about the AP doing fact checks on her book.
Future...and Past, Unknown
The fact that this woman attended 5 different colleges to get a degree makes me think that she had to move on to easier schools each time. The conservative base thinks that, that means, she’s really, really smart! And considering she got her degree in journalism, you’d think she could have written her own book! Instead she chose to tell her fable to far right Evangelical Lynn Vincent to spin the book towards Palin's favor. I challenge any of the Palinites to explain any policy that Palin has spoke of with authority. I mean policy, not opinion. We know how she feels about Jeremiah Wright, Bill Ayers, ACORN, that she’s wants to rule the country with Christianity, she hates gays and thinks women are second class citizens. I dare any of her cult followers to tell me where she stands on issues of national security, world policies, how to improve trade equality, how to create jobs, etc… She has NO ideas and no clue. Conservatives have deemed anyone with an education, an "elitist". When did being educated become a bad thing? If Palin ever did get into the White House, make no mistake, the likes of Karl Rove and Dick Cheney would be running the show with their “pretty little thing” keeping a low profile. Conservative leadership has mastered mass manipulation and discourages individual thought. It seems that if conservatives hear something enough times, it becomes the truth (fair and balanced, fair and balanced). The leadership feels that by keeping the electorate ignorant, excessively reporting distortions of truth from the "left", they will thrive and return to power since undereducated voters are very primal in their beliefs. This is why educating young people is so important. They need to be able to assess a situation themselves instead of being brainwashed by a certain network that only Republicans and conservatives are good Americans. Other countries are racing past us in every facet of life, we must not elect politicians based on false fears or a candidate's alleged "hotness", nor let religion dictate our future or we are doomed to failure. This particular candidate falls into every single one of those categories. We need to think about policy!
Backlash from the Queendom!
I thought I was done writing for this week, but the former Miss Wasilla didn’t let me down! Twittering quitter Palin left a Noblesville, Indiana book signing with many angry (ex)fans who stood outside in a cold rain for several hours to meet their idol. In what shouldn’t have been a surprise, Palin got tired and quit, disappointing hundreds that spent about 3 hours getting wristbands and another 3 hours waiting in line to get their book signed. Some people took the day off from work and walked away empty handed! Borders bookstore had announced that they would give out 1,000 wristbands (1 per book, 2 maximum per person) which would guarantee them getting their books signed and many didn’t even get one signed. The cold, wet, angry crown gathered outside the nice warm tour bus that Palin retreated to, chanting "Sign Our Books! Sign Our Books!" They also shouted "Quitting on the job! Quitting on the job”. This is one way to anger and lose your base. If she can't run a book tour, how can she run a country? I'm sure by Sunday, it will be someone else's fault.
Quick Thoughts: In the spirit of my usual article ender, I thought I’d share some of Huffington Post’s unofficial “Going Rogue” index (because Palin’s book was literally rushed out without one) along with my take, since anybody reading my blog isn’t any more likely to read this dollar store drivel than I am. Here's a few examples: 4 pages (384-388) dedicated to common sense conservatives which I would say is an oxymoron; 10 pages dedicated to smearing Couric (255-256, 271-279), psst Sarah, we have video now and you can keep it on file to view repeatedly!; Creationism vs. evolution (217-219), You betcha The Flinstones were based on a real life family; Debate preparation (281-289) Why prepare when you “weren’t necessarily going to answer the questions asked”?; Election night speech and faceoff with McCain camp (332-337) No VP loser has ever been allowed to speak, but then again, SHE was the reason people voted for that ticket; Ethics attacks, loss of reputation (372-375), that bias liberal media found out what she did and that just wasn’t right. Only Democrats are to be investigated; Getting a D in college once (112), Just once? Really?; Charlie Gibson interview: (270-271) In what regard Charlie? And also too, how was she actually supposed to know what the Bush Doctrine was therefore?; Joe the Plumber, Tito the Builder (305-308) What?! No Rosie the Riveter?; Lobbyist who gave rides to Willow and her basketball team (137) Nothing good can come of me commenting; Obama's mistakes (388-394) 6 pages, 10 months in. Dubyas mistakes would require another book; Pregnant and the birth of Track (50-54)-Track, almost naming him "Zamboni"(53). Early on I joked that she chose her kids' names out of a “snow machine” parts catalog. Who's buying the first round?; Trig, pregnancy results - "Holy geez!"(171-174), Is that folksy enough for you?; Trig, water breaking and delivery (191-196) Everybody knows the best thing to do is get on a 3000 mile, 8 hour plane ride when your water breaks so you can call the kid a native Alaskan.
Take a deep breathe, count your blessings and keep in mind that this woman was 8,538,559 popular votes away from becoming the Vice President to a 72 year old, three time cancer survivor!
Have a great week and keep looking forward!
With the release of theocrat Sarah Palin's ghost written book Tuesday, and the sheer excitement from the right, it has made me think about the differences in how liberals versus conservatives value women. Liberals view women as an equal part of society. Conservatives think women are baby making machines destined to be subservient to men. Look at the women the left appreciates compared to the right; On the left we admire MSNBC anchor Rachel Maddow, Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. On the right, they adore unemployed serial quitter Sarah Palin, unemployed breast implant recipient Carrie Prejean, and fictional writer Ann Coulter(?). Why does the left respect their women? Maddow was a Rhodes Scholar who earned a PhD from Oxford in Political Science, Pelosi is the first female Speaker of the House and Schultz easily won re-election last November while quietly fighting breast cancer. Why does the right enjoy their women? Palin despises women and once won a beauty contest, Prejean despises gays and once won a beauty contest, and Coulter despises liberals and wishes he won a beauty contest. It feels like the country is really at a crossroads. Conservatives want to go back to the days when men were men and women knew their place. They want Christianity taught in schools to force their beliefs on all children. Liberals want to move forward when men can love men and women know their place is as Speaker of the House. Liberals believe your spirituality should remain a private matter, to be taught freely within one’s own home if so desired. The discrepancy between the left and the right is obvious. The left is methodical, open minded, very accepting of equality, change and look forward to the future without fear. The right are reactionary, afraid of change, feel aversion against anything that doesn't look or act like them, clinging to the status quo (and guns & religion) while looking back wistfully at the past. As a progressive woman, I can not relate to people like Palin. How can any woman, especially one with daughters punish a woman who's been the victim of rape? In just one example of her leadership, as Mayor of Wasilla, she directly shifted the cost of the rape kits from the police department to the victims. Sarah Palin represents everything opposite of what I believe in. The fact that blow up dolls with her likeness were being manufactured during the election, and possibly still are, told me all I needed to know about why men were voting for her, but the women? I'm still confused. Some women who supported Hillary Rodham Clinton instead of Barack Obama actually switched alliances to Palin which sickened me. I'm sorry, I hope a day comes when I see a woman President elected, but I will not vote for any candidate without regard to their politics just because they urinate while sitting. That's irresponsible, ignorant and a whole new type of profiling.
Fact Checks - Oh My!
Immediately upon release of her book Tuesday, Facebook politician Palin started complaining about the AP doing fact checks on her book.
"Imagine that," she declared, "11 AP reporters dedicating time and resources to tearing up the book, instead of using the time and resources to 'fact check' what's going on with Sheik Mohammed's trial, Pelosi's health care takeover costs, Hasan's associations, etc. Amazing.”I guess Sarah doesn’t realize that the AP employs over 4100 journalists. So instead of setting the record straight and clearing up any “misinformation”, she chose deflection and her dedicated supporters never even noticed that she didn’t dispute that the book is full of lies, just that she was incensed that it was being reported! Palin relies on the fact that her fans unwavering worship isn’t based on intellectual capacity, it’s based on the presentation. She is going to make a lot of money while laughing behind the backs of her most ardent supporters. Furthermore, if she wrote a truthful memoir, why would she care about a fact check being done? In fact, it’s not just the AP; the McCain campaign staff has virtually and unanimously stated that the book is a complete work of fiction. In fact, former McCain campaign senior adviser Nicolle Wallace told “The Rachel Maddow Show” that Sarah Palin's book "Going Rogue is "based on fabrications," and that the basis for Palin’s depictions of her and former McCain campaign director Steve Schmidt as villains "took place entirely in her imagination.” My take from the excerpts I’ve read, the interviews she’s done and the statements from everyone not Palin is that the ghost written book is how she wants the public to remember her version of what happened/didn’t happen, not as they actually happened. And gosh darn it, if it’s printed, it must be true. I laughed out loud when I read that she did the Katie Couric interviews out of sympathy for supposedly low self esteem Katie. I was never a Couric fan until those interviews, but she’s been on the “tv machine” for a very long time. Sarah, not so much…although it feels like it. I will say though, her fans…they don’t get any more loyal. The fact that the woman is being defended by her followers as if she parted the sea is a true phenomenon of the human condition. I really want to know what she’s done to deserve this admiration. Obama was beat up for his ties to Pastor Jeremiah Wright, but Palin got a free ride over a visitor from Kiambu, Kenya (ironic isn’t it?) named Thomas Muthee. Muthee's popularity took him to Wasilla Assembly of God in May, 2005, where he prayed over Palin and called upon Jesus to propel her into the governor's mansion and beyond. Muthee also begged Jesus to protect Palin from "the spirit of witchcraft." Can you even imagine if Obama had even been in a building with this taking place?! Palin Gets Protection From Witches (Palin "prayer" at about 7:00)
Future...and Past, Unknown
The fact that this woman attended 5 different colleges to get a degree makes me think that she had to move on to easier schools each time. The conservative base thinks that, that means, she’s really, really smart! And considering she got her degree in journalism, you’d think she could have written her own book! Instead she chose to tell her fable to far right Evangelical Lynn Vincent to spin the book towards Palin's favor. I challenge any of the Palinites to explain any policy that Palin has spoke of with authority. I mean policy, not opinion. We know how she feels about Jeremiah Wright, Bill Ayers, ACORN, that she’s wants to rule the country with Christianity, she hates gays and thinks women are second class citizens. I dare any of her cult followers to tell me where she stands on issues of national security, world policies, how to improve trade equality, how to create jobs, etc… She has NO ideas and no clue. Conservatives have deemed anyone with an education, an "elitist". When did being educated become a bad thing? If Palin ever did get into the White House, make no mistake, the likes of Karl Rove and Dick Cheney would be running the show with their “pretty little thing” keeping a low profile. Conservative leadership has mastered mass manipulation and discourages individual thought. It seems that if conservatives hear something enough times, it becomes the truth (fair and balanced, fair and balanced). The leadership feels that by keeping the electorate ignorant, excessively reporting distortions of truth from the "left", they will thrive and return to power since undereducated voters are very primal in their beliefs. This is why educating young people is so important. They need to be able to assess a situation themselves instead of being brainwashed by a certain network that only Republicans and conservatives are good Americans. Other countries are racing past us in every facet of life, we must not elect politicians based on false fears or a candidate's alleged "hotness", nor let religion dictate our future or we are doomed to failure. This particular candidate falls into every single one of those categories. We need to think about policy!
Backlash from the Queendom!
I thought I was done writing for this week, but the former Miss Wasilla didn’t let me down! Twittering quitter Palin left a Noblesville, Indiana book signing with many angry (ex)fans who stood outside in a cold rain for several hours to meet their idol. In what shouldn’t have been a surprise, Palin got tired and quit, disappointing hundreds that spent about 3 hours getting wristbands and another 3 hours waiting in line to get their book signed. Some people took the day off from work and walked away empty handed! Borders bookstore had announced that they would give out 1,000 wristbands (1 per book, 2 maximum per person) which would guarantee them getting their books signed and many didn’t even get one signed. The cold, wet, angry crown gathered outside the nice warm tour bus that Palin retreated to, chanting "Sign Our Books! Sign Our Books!" They also shouted "Quitting on the job! Quitting on the job”. This is one way to anger and lose your base. If she can't run a book tour, how can she run a country? I'm sure by Sunday, it will be someone else's fault.
Quick Thoughts: In the spirit of my usual article ender, I thought I’d share some of Huffington Post’s unofficial “Going Rogue” index (because Palin’s book was literally rushed out without one) along with my take, since anybody reading my blog isn’t any more likely to read this dollar store drivel than I am. Here's a few examples: 4 pages (384-388) dedicated to common sense conservatives which I would say is an oxymoron; 10 pages dedicated to smearing Couric (255-256, 271-279), psst Sarah, we have video now and you can keep it on file to view repeatedly!; Creationism vs. evolution (217-219), You betcha The Flinstones were based on a real life family; Debate preparation (281-289) Why prepare when you “weren’t necessarily going to answer the questions asked”?; Election night speech and faceoff with McCain camp (332-337) No VP loser has ever been allowed to speak, but then again, SHE was the reason people voted for that ticket; Ethics attacks, loss of reputation (372-375), that bias liberal media found out what she did and that just wasn’t right. Only Democrats are to be investigated; Getting a D in college once (112), Just once? Really?; Charlie Gibson interview: (270-271) In what regard Charlie? And also too, how was she actually supposed to know what the Bush Doctrine was therefore?; Joe the Plumber, Tito the Builder (305-308) What?! No Rosie the Riveter?; Lobbyist who gave rides to Willow and her basketball team (137) Nothing good can come of me commenting; Obama's mistakes (388-394) 6 pages, 10 months in. Dubyas mistakes would require another book; Pregnant and the birth of Track (50-54)-Track, almost naming him "Zamboni"(53). Early on I joked that she chose her kids' names out of a “snow machine” parts catalog. Who's buying the first round?; Trig, pregnancy results - "Holy geez!"(171-174), Is that folksy enough for you?; Trig, water breaking and delivery (191-196) Everybody knows the best thing to do is get on a 3000 mile, 8 hour plane ride when your water breaks so you can call the kid a native Alaskan.
Take a deep breathe, count your blessings and keep in mind that this woman was 8,538,559 popular votes away from becoming the Vice President to a 72 year old, three time cancer survivor!
Have a great week and keep looking forward!
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