Buzzflash
del.icio.us
Digg
Facebook
Mixx it!
RedditSome political moments require no analysis or commentary, even from those of us who cover the madness in real time. Despite the briefings, coaching and research, behold Gov. Sarah Palin's stunning ignorance of the Supreme Court:
And don't forget that other hardball from Katie Couric, either. Palin could not name a single newspaper or magazine that she reads:
Share this article
- Atrios
- Arts and Letters Daily
- The Caucus
- Campus Progress
- Crooks and Liars
- The Daily Gotham
- Daily Kos
- Echidne of the Snakes
- Ezra Klein
- FAIR
- Feministe
- Feministing
- Firedoglake
- Glenn Greenwald
- Gothamist
- In these Times
- Hendrik Hertzberg
- Huffington Post
- Hullabaloo
- Matthew Yglesias
- Media Matters
- Mother Jones
- My DD
- New York Review of Books
- Openleft
- Pam's House Blend
- Pandagon
- Political Wire
- The Progressive
- RaceWire
- Real Clear Politics
- Roberto Lovato
- Romenesko
- Swing State Project
- Talking Points Memo
- Ta-Nehisi Coates
- Tapped
- Tech President
- Tompaine
- The Washington Note
- Utne Reader
- Wonkette
- ZNet
RSS
Awwwwwww.....I'm sure it's just an act to make Biden feel over-confident.
I'm sure of it....
well, 90%.....
okay, say 75%....
half sure....
maybe....
possibly......
oh, boy! Tomorrow's goin' be good!
Posted by Maskdelta at 10/01/2008 @ 7:41pm
Or spin the other way: Brown v. Board was a great decision! Gore v. Bush was pretty dang good too!
"I don't always agree with it, but of course I read the NY Times online."
I mean, there are not real gotcha type questions. Maybe they should see if she could pass the new US citizenship test....
Posted by EvelynU at 10/01/2008 @ 8:14pm
Posted by Zero at 10/01/2008 @ 7:54pm
She is a really bad liar. Like really really bad. She couldn't even come up with a believable lie it would seem.
Posted by Cccomfo1 at 10/01/2008 @ 8:18pm
I hope so much that she is better than she is letting on. To think that our country has devolved enough that someone with this vast lack of knowledge can get into the Vice Presidency is worrying. Someone who can't even name a SCOTUS case or a major publication...
Posted by Cccomfo1 at 10/01/2008 @ 8:20pm
Posted by EvelynU at 10/01/2008 @ 8:14pm
I agree these aren't even close to gotcha questions. Hell I would say the questions they are showing here are softballs meant to just let the person talk about themselves.
Posted by Cccomfo1 at 10/01/2008 @ 8:21pm
Appalling.
ZERO, man, there have been times I'd get down on my Dad for hating Americans, hating Low Church Christians (not Catholics), hating non-Spanish-speaking people, for a lot of his old country Russian-Jewish prejudices about "gringos trayfim de la kurvats" that he converted very easily into Span-Yiddish.
I see Sarah Palin and I wonder "how was it the Old Man was able to learn so much in the past 8 years?"
Posted by DexterManley at 10/01/2008 @ 8:38pm
What would have been VERY interesting if Couric had asked her what Justices she would like to see "President McCain" appoint...
and of course she'd rattle off "Alito", "Thomas", "Scalia"....
and then Couric would ask "What decisions by those Justices leads to you say that?"
And it'd be "Hamma-na, Hamma-na, Hamma-na!"
Posted by Maskdelta at 10/01/2008 @ 8:51pm
I think I'd be careful about making too much about this interview. Most Americans can't name a single Supreme Court decision -- Palin is no different. And raising this one as an issue could easily backfire.
Remember, McCain has already dropped the "gotcha journalism" (most likely to directly preempt the fallout from this particular interview) - and it's effective, at least in this case. Anyone beating her up on this subject will be portrayed as elitist (rather than educated) - and this will be effective with the general public too.
I'd stick with highlighting her answers in the other interviews. Just my two cents.
Posted by eric72 at 10/01/2008 @ 9:09pm
I think I'd be careful about making too much about this interview. Most Americans can't name a single Supreme Court decision -- Palin is no different.
--- eric72
Well, but most Americans aren't asking their fellow citizens to elect them to the country's second highest office of government! Not expecting the VP candidate of a major political party to know more than the average American on crucial issues concerning the Supreme Court sounds to me like setting the bar WAY too low.
Sheesh, when did having merely an average citizen's understanding of governmental procedure and history become widely regarded as a QUALIFICATION for election to office, rather than a disqualification? I wouldn't vote for somebody for dogcatcher unless I believed that, at the very least, they knew more about dogcatching than I do.
Posted by klp at 10/01/2008 @ 9:37pm
I really think it's important to remember that McChaff selected her. The focus should be on his judgement and reasons as opposed to her.
Posted by cumchu at 10/01/2008 @ 9:44pm
Posted by cumchu at 10/01/2008 @ 9:44pm
A key point.
McCain's "experience" and "judgement" led to him picking THIS person to be a heartbeat away from the Presidency.
Posted by Maskdelta at 10/01/2008 @ 9:56pm
You on the left are all in a snit about Vice-President Elect Palin not citing favorite publications to read.
Read what? The New York Times? The Washington Post? The Los Angeles Times? Newsweek?
What is accomplished by reading a daily fix of lib bias?
The New York Times is good for one thing, and one thing only. When a person gets a new puppy, you may choose to purchase the New York Times to lay down on the kitchen floor until the puppy is trained to wait until it is taken outside to do it's business.
That is the only thing it is good for. You on the left (and this really applies to the national lib columnists and news anchors/reporters) seem to be flummoxed when you come across somebody who does not live in awe and wait with baited breath for whatever it is you say.
Posted by sjchermak at 10/01/2008 @ 10:03pm
Posted by sjchermak at 10/01/2008 @ 10:03pm
SJ, why couldn't she simply say....The Weekly Standard?...the National Review?....the American Spectator?....the Washington Times?....or the AMERICAN THINKER?!?!??!
Posted by Maskdelta at 10/01/2008 @ 10:27pm
"You on the left (and this really applies to the national lib columnists and news anchors/reporters) seem to be flummoxed when you come across somebody who does not live in awe and wait with baited breath for whatever it is you say."
It's "bated breath" (as in abated). Sorry, it's just a pet peeve of mine.
Also, you're a total jackass.
Thanks, bye.
Posted by jlister at 10/01/2008 @ 10:29pm
The problem is that so very many Americans can relate to a person who does not read the local newspaper ( which for Palin would be the Alaska Daily News) or the Wall St Journal or Forbes or Time, because they don't either! Those folks are the ones who empathize with Palin and may well vote for her.
Unfortunately, these Americans are victims of our country's decades-long neglect of our education system. They were left out and they feel it, which is why they consider educated folks to be "elite." For many of today's adults - particularly those who were in secondary school in the 60's and 70's - educating themselves on the complex issues of today is simply overwhelming. If it were easy for them, or even only moderately difficult, we would not be in the mess we are in today.
We are fixing it but it takes a long time to turn things around, and even longer for those better-educated children to grow up and become informed voters. The new generation of voters is far ahead of their elders. I am very impressed with our young voters. They will change this country for the better.
Posted by bjl at 10/01/2008 @ 10:54pm
Keith Olberman and Jon Stewart were particularly right on this evening with some salient excerpts from the interviews. Strangely, I laughed my ass off, but afterward it's beginning to be a little (ok, a lot) scary that someone with so little qualifications could actually be considered for vice-president/president of the United States........ or governor of Alaska, .......or even mayor of Wasilla. What have we come to?
Posted by Freewheelin_Franklin at 10/01/2008 @ 11:18pm
We should be talking about MORE RELEVANT things. America we need an explanation for this report from the Guardian in the UK: "Revealed: oil-funded research in Palin's campaign against protection for polar bear". Please go The Guardian on-line and you'll find this. Pass it on! Why is the MSM not talking about it? THIS IS SIMPLY OUTRAGEOUS! One more reason to support the Obama-Biden ticket! PLEASE READ AND SHARE: REPORT ABOUT SARAH PALIN FROM THE GUARDIAN (UK)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/01/sarahpalin.climatechange
Greenpeace website also talks about this too, link here:
http://members.greenpeace.org/blog/exxonsecrets
Posted by HyperDF at 10/01/2008 @ 11:20pm
Palin is qualified because of PTA experience? Granted I can't skin a moose, but I've at least chaired committees with actual responsibilities and been to foreign countries! Heck, I could be a running mate if the cut is that low!
http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/696/
Posted by leftofcenter at 10/01/2008 @ 11:39pm
CHAUNCEY GARDNER/LEONARD ZELIG '08
A Team America Can Believe In!
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/01/2008 @ 11:50pm
Posted by sjchermak at 10/01/2008 @ 10:03pm!
bonk!
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/01/2008 @ 11:53pm
What about Miranda vs. Arizona? Somebody should just tell her she has the right to remain silent.
However, on the Newspaper question--is it "couldn't" or "wouldn't" name one. Perhaps she doesn't want to be perceived as endorsing a paper --an in effect be giving them free advertising.
You're not buying that?? That's ok. Just a thought.
Posted by musique at 10/02/2008 @ 12:00am
FUCK THE BEARS!
One co-author of the paper, Willie Soon, completed the study with funding from ExxonMobil - which has oil operations in Alaska's North Slope - as well as from the American Petroleum Institute. Soon was a former senior scientist with the George C Marshall Institute, which acts as an incubator for climate-change scepticism. The institute has received $715,000 in funding from ExxonMobil since 1998.
http://www.guardian.co.uk
/world/2008/oct/01/sarahpalin.climatechange
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/02/2008 @ 12:04am
Somebody should just tell her she has the right to remain silent.
Posted by musique at 10/02/2008 @ 12:00am
•◡•
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/02/2008 @ 12:15am
@ You on the left are all in a snit about Vice-President Elect Palin not citing favorite publications to read.
Read what? The New York Times? The Washington Post? The Los Angeles Times? Newsweek?
What is accomplished by reading a daily fix of lib bias?
Not the point, dude. I'd have no problem with her answering: NATIONAL REVIEW, WEEKLY STANDARD, COMMENTARY, WSJ EDITORIAL PAGE, THE WASHINGTON TIMES, and ANN COULTER'S blog.
A self-governing country needs a vigorous, well-informed debate between left and right (and I use those labels very loosely). I'm not eligible to vote. And I belong to no party in Panama, either.
I have the world of respect for a lot of "right-wing" thinkers like Buckley, Buchanan, Breindel, Rabinowitz, Becker, Posner, Coase, Milton Friedman, Kevin Phillips, Paul Craig Roberts, Bruce Fein, Ayn Rand and I could go on...I don't have to agree with someone to respect someone's point of view and their intelligence, research and the style with which they present their ideas.
Palin is different. She reads NOTHING.
Posted by DexterManley at 10/02/2008 @ 12:22am
FZ:
No me jodas aca, oiste?
Posted by DexterManley at 10/02/2008 @ 12:36am
Palin is different. She reads NOTHING.
Posted by DexterManley at 10/02/2008
but she looks at the pictures...
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/02/2008 @ 01:00am
Dred Scott, Katie, now there was a decision I could agree with. Pity about that one, Katie.
C'mon, the divine Sarah is just plain folks & like just plain folks she ain't going nowhere.
It's over, relax, the fat lady is gargling. Feel superior.
The GOP has kept its redneck core in the corral, resentful & pumped, for '12 ... to rise again. Sarah has served her purpose & she will be rewarded.
A board seat on BP or Shell, when she leaves the guv's mansion? Move over, Tony Blair.
Now there's a pair. Maybe she can teach a joint seminar with Tony at Yale, training future Ws.
Posted by sloper at 10/02/2008 @ 01:30am
Wow... Palin's interviews almost make one want to revert to Plato's totalitarian sophocracy--a rule of the wise... and she's also a walking 'talking' (or whatever you call it) reductio against William F. Buckley's suggestion that it would be better were we ruled by the first thousand names in the Boston phonebook than by the faculty at Harvard University. If the first thousand names in the Boston phone book are anything like the first 1000 Alaskan hockey moms... we're s-c-r-e-w-e-d.
Posted by argentinagnome at 10/02/2008 @ 01:32am
The right wing has evolved into a frightening electorate characterized by irrationality and incompetence. The fundamentalists place more value on ideology than intellect, ability, or qualifications and place the country at great risk.
I am waiting for them to proclaim that medical school is elitist and doctors should be judged on their values not their medical training or skill.
Posted by SandyFeet at 10/02/2008 @ 01:38am
It's too funny to watch the craziness of an electorate that actually wants a 'lowest common denominator' approach to vetting candidates for 'high' office...I mean, I like the average nincompoop that sits at the end of the bar as well....for entertainment purposes, it's fun to listen to the wild rantings of the cognitively challenged...but, when that person finishes their drink and walks out the door, you don't really want them heading over to the oval office do you?...do you?
Posted by haveone at 10/02/2008 @ 03:39am
When asked what newspapers / magazines she reads she answered that she reads them "all"
Let's examine that on the surface. The number of magazine widely circulated in the US is about 2000 and in total ALL magazines is more like 10,000.
http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0EIN/is_2005_Sept_21/ai_n15402401
Number of newspapers (per Wikipedia) "As of May 23, 2008, the United States has 1,422 daily newspapers and 6,253 weeklies."
So as neither is even close to possible, this - like most other answers given by this senseless ideologue - is meaningless and non-factual. I would posit like Dubya, the number is closer to "0" I would guess her reading list might include things like:
Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman (the Wasilla paper)
Juneau Empire
Moose Hunter Monthly (OK, I made this one up)
Garden & Gun (a real magazine)
Fur Fish & Game
Bible-Science News
Creation Research Society Monthly
Posted by leftofcenter at 10/02/2008 @ 07:50am
Stunning Ignorance, Eh?
Seems like the Nation's writers used that phrase back when Palin first was nominated.
Guess they've been blasting her SO long that they are running out of things to say-Starting over again.
I'm thinking the articles are already written for tomorrows blogs, several variants, of course.
Its a shame only the surface shit is looked at in determining a candidates qualifications. I seem to remember George Patton was an absolute bust when talking with the press and was about as diplomatic as a lech at a girls prep school, but when it came to doing his job, he was the best.
Posted by CHIP THORNTON at 10/02/2008 @ 08:06am
"I agree these aren't even close to gotcha questions. Hell I would say the questions they are showing here are softballs meant to just let the person talk about themselves. Posted by Cccomfo1 at 10/01/2008 @ 8:21pm"
When you ask questions regarding Federal Law of a Non-lawyer, who's running against 2 lawyers, that's a gotcha question.
It'd be like asking Biden what he would take for menstrual cramps.
Posted by State17 at 10/02/2008 @ 08:20am
And in two weeks that pick moved the polls 10 points in his favor. Seem like pretty good judgement to me. Now, the financial uncertainty has moved them back.----Posted by Darin_the_Troll at 10/02/2008 @ 08:37am
Oh, polling, huh? Okay....
"By BETH FOUHY – 45 minutes ago
NEW YORK (AP) -- Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin enters her debate Thursday night with Democratic rival Joe Biden as many voters harbor serious doubts about her readiness for the nation's highest office.
An AP-Gfk poll released Wednesday found that just 25 percent of likely voters believe Palin has the right experience to be president. That's down from 41 percent just after the GOP convention, when the Alaska governor made her well-received debut on the national stage."
((Hint--Here's where you change the subject AWAY from polling.))
Posted by Maskdelta at 10/02/2008 @ 08:52am
How do you generate the intense rage you do for a complete stranger?
Posted by Darin_the_Troll at 10/02/2008 @ 08:37am |
You mistake scoffing, incredulity and even contempt for rage...or else you just call it rage in an attempt to somehow paint Palin as the victim.
Posted by Balrog at 10/02/2008 @ 08:59am
http://www.nomenugget.net/20080925/page02.pdf
One of the more delightful reads this lower 48'er has discovered in his surfing over the years. It makes me want to visit the great and beautiful state of AK
Posted by A_Pax_On_Your_Houses at 10/02/2008 @ 09:01am
And in two weeks that pick moved the polls 10 points in his favor. Seem like pretty good judgement to me. Now, the financial uncertainty has moved them back. Posted by Darin_the_Troll
Not totally true. Palin has given a couple interviews that have KILLED her ratings. I don't think any of us HATE her here, we just think she is incompitent to lead this country.
Posted by throwin at 10/02/2008 @ 09:02am
I have to agree with "throwin." There's near-zero credibility on the part of SP to be the VP. While I'd like to think (as my wife) that JM selected SP on account of her stance toward "core" GOP voter values (abortion, same-sex marriage, sex education), there's something deep in the back of my mind (for which my wife has strongly chided me) that says JM chose SP for the ticket in order to reach out to disgruntled HRC supporters...I repeated the assertion in a slightly less-diplomatic manner and said something to the point of: "JM put SP on the GOP ticket because she is a woman."
She's not hard on the eyes. But she's hard on the brain.
Posted by javaman222 at 10/02/2008 @ 09:43am
Posted by javaman222 at 10/02/2008 @ 09:43am
Maybe. And I think they expect she will be "tough on scum," as well. Scary.
Posted by A_Pax_On_Your_Houses at 10/02/2008 @ 09:49am
Posted by CHIP THORNTON at 10/02/2008
chip!
ms. palin is not qualified. she's mean-spirited and shallow.
you're well educated. how can you defend such nonsense?
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/02/2008 @ 09:51am
Posted by State17 at 10/02/2008 @ 08:20am
uh, right.
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/02/2008 @ 09:52am
My initial reaction when JM picked Palin as a running mate was brilliance. Then after catching my breath and stepping back from the hoopla, I looked at it for what it was. He was talked into picking her. He doesn't share the same values as her. Remember, JM isn't a Right Republican. He never has been. That's why the Republican party never thought much of him. Now he pretends to be a far right Republican just like Palin. It's all fake. I used to like JM, but after seeing this run by him turned me off. Heck, he even admitted to lying in 2000 to the state of S.C. just to get their vote.
Posted by throwin at 10/02/2008 @ 09:54am
Posted by Darin_the_Troll at 10/02/2008 @ 08:23am
Well, since you felt fit to cross post, I hope all with excuse my similar response:
ts different by virtue of a little thing that we in the "reality based community" call evidence. Follow the URL below and it give the name of the Evangelical video wherein Pastor Muthee speaks about his hunting a witch in a town in Africa.
http://tinyurl.com/4n5m8j
Would you agree that this is a bit different than accusing someone of collusion with a neighbor because they're, well...neighbors?
And sure, Obama had a "pastor problem" as well, but he did the right thing too by severing ties with the church and the words of the Rev. Wright. While Palin doesn't go to that church now, I don't see her issuing any statements against the ideology of this nut-job. Instead we see a recent video where he is protecting Palin from "witchery". We'll leave the guest preacher (the noted anti-Semite) of that church out of it for now.
While we're at it though, as I recall old McSame has some preacher issues as well. Seems you guys' moral fly is open...
As to Palin's reading list - she invites this derision by not naming even one publication and follows it with idiotic generalities.
Posted by leftofcenter at 10/02/2008 @ 10:13am
i bet she's reading this blog right now.
HI SARAH.
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/02/2008 @ 10:38am
Frosty,
More likely she's watching Bullwinkle re-runs in anticipation of the Fall moose-hunting season.
Posted by leftofcenter at 10/02/2008 @ 10:49am
We should be talking about other RELEVANT things. America we need an explanation about this report from the Guardian in the UK: "Revealed: oil-funded research in Palin's campaign against protection for polar bear". Please go The Guardian on-line and you'll find this. Pass it on! Why is the MSM not talking about it? THIS IS SIMPLY OUTRAGEOUS! One more reason to support the Obama-Biden ticket! PLEASE READ AND SHARE: REPORT ABOUT SARAH PALIN FROM THE GUARDIAN (UK)
http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2008/oct/01/sarahpalin.climatechange
Greenpeace website also talks about this too, link here:
http://members.greenpeace.org/blog/exxonsecrets
Where is the WWF and PETA????
Posted by HyperDF at 10/02/2008 @ 11:06am
And my all time favorite "GENERAL ELECTRIC V. GILBERT". The United States Congress actually showed some testosterone and took that one on head on. Wow the good old days when corruption only smelt a little bit. Buckley v, Valeo wasn't all that stellar, however.
Posted by lachatte at 10/02/2008 @ 11:23am
They do this because for the left war is merely a theoretical exercise.
Posted by Darin_the_Troll at 10/02/2008 @ 11:00am
More right-wing mythological bullshit.
Just as many from the left have given their lives in defense of this country as have the right. For those who gave "the last full measure", it wasn't theoroetical at all.
Posted by Balrog at 10/02/2008 @ 11:27am
darin-Both sides,equally,do the smear thing and where did you get the idea that for the left war is a theoretical exercise even though many are combat veterans and many on the right aren't even veterans.
Posted by i'm nobody at 10/02/2008 @ 11:32am
scratch, darin, scratch.
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/02/2008 @ 11:36am
"Barbara Duffield of the National Association for the Education of Homeless Children and Youth says a homeless liaison in a large metropolitan area told her of about 20 homeless high school students who had been denied enrollment. Administrators at the schools were worried that those students would drag down test scores and make it harder for the school to avoid sanctions under the No Child Left Behind law."
I have a question, isn't bush s h i t t i n g on us actually HELPING GOP, now he is disenfranchisng voteres without five forms of ID, something somebody who was just evicted or foreclosed on (which overwhelmingly affects lower income) would not have, in order to vote...
same thing with new "conceptual" citizenship test in effect today, oct. 1, 2008, something people with english as second language, not to mention most americans, cannot pass....
same thing with schools, easiest way to deal with unwnted, lower income, minority, don't even allow them to go to school..so NCLB only applies to those in upper middle class...everybody else ironically is purposely getting left behind to create endless supply of servants...meaning 99% of us to serve upper 1%...
where is the outrage?????
why is everything in this country too late or reactionary????
STOP THIS NOW!!!
START PROTESTING NOW!!!!
no major media shows daily protests in alaska surrounding palin and her lies and NONE WILL!!!!
go to ireport.com
go to talkingpointsmemo...
if you are undecided to go fightthesmears.com or kerry's website...
find the truth......
if you can, VOTE NOW!!!!
this country relies on popularity....if somebody has a lead before nov. 6th most will already assume they have won...when in rome......don't fight the powers of persuasion, go with the flow, vote NOW
Posted by jrs112 at 10/02/2008 @ 11:52am
Posted by Darin_the_Troll at 10/02/2008 @ 10:55am
Obama's brother isn't preaching about witchery in Alaska - Muthee is. Nice to see that in your right-winged world 1 + 1 still equals green, or cheez whiz, or 850 billion...
Posted by leftofcenter at 10/02/2008 @ 12:04pm
The left lectures the right on torture. "You can't beat an enemy if you lower youself to using their dispicable methods." They do this because for the left war is merely a theoretical exercise.----Posted by Darin_the_Troll at 10/02/2008 @ 11:00am
So you support torture? Odd, even McCain SAYS he opposes it? (being a receipiant of it) But you're in favor???
Posted by Darin_the_Troll at 10/02/2008 @ 11:58am
And, what percentage of the failed mortgage loans were CRA loans, Darin?
Posted by Maskdelta at 10/02/2008 @ 12:28pm
Back to Supreme Court decisions: it's a bit troubling that while McCain campaigns against "activist judges" Palin can't think of a specific case to disagree with. What is more troubling is that she didn't think of the decision she criticized only 3 months ago -- Exxon Shipping v Baker. The Supremes cut the punitive damage award for the Exxon Valdez oil spill.
Palin was "very disappointed" with the decision - it was "a huge disappointment...it's not right, I don't think that it is fair."
She doesn't think well on her feet, obviously. She's not stupid, either -- just out of her league.
Posted by wpeltz at 10/02/2008 @ 12:41pm
Since when does ignorance have any "bearing" on politics?
Posted by bleedingheart at 10/02/2008 @ 12:44pm
I had 2 different experiences recently with Palin supporters. One was while waiting for my car to be inspected, and the other in a doctor's office. In both waiting rooms, Fox "news" was on. (For some reason most businesses & doctors' offices seem to turn to Faux News in their waiting rooms.)
In the first case, the Palin supporter declared that Obama is a Communist and NOT a patriot, as if anyone who "won't" wear a flag on his lapel is a Communist.
In the second, the guy promoted the notion currently making the rounds on the Internet that the government should use the 700 billion to give $450k to every citizen over 18. He said he didn' tlike anyone until Palin hit the ticket and HE still believes Obama is a Muslim. No matter what anyone says.
Do the math: 700 billion divided by 350 million is 2,000. If there are 4 people to a family, it's still only 8k per family, not 450k.
And if Obama is an Islamic Communist or Communistic Muslim, the entire world has just entered the Twilight Zone.
Palin might not be stupid , but apparently many of her supporters are. They can't do math, don't know what a Communist is, are oblivious to religions other than their narrow form of Christianity, (like Palin) mostly don't read newspapers, don't know how our government works, and haven't a clue about any Supreme Court decisions other than Roe v Wade - which they probably don't quite understand anyhow.
Our education system really and truly is dreadful; the grammar, spelling, and punctuation on almost any blog is horrible. Many Americans don't seem to know that "it's" is not a possessive and "Clinton's" is not a plural. I can't exaggerate the number of times I've seen someone refer to "succeeding" from the union. Kudos to jlister for the comment about "baited" breath.
Posted by LeeAnnG at 10/02/2008 @ 1:14pm
They do this because for the left war is merely a theoretical exercise.
Posted by Darin_the_Troll at 10/02/2008 @ 11:00am
Really, Darin? It's your chickenhawk side that backs endless war - as long as your asses aren't on the line, of course. Doesn't get more "theoretical" than that. By the way, Palin's been on the national scene for a bit over a month, and she's revealed herself as a typical right-wing Republican - another Bush/McCain. Ignorant, intellectually lazy, spiritually bankrupt, ethically corrupt and a coward. No wonder Republicans like her.
Posted by jmusolino at 10/02/2008 @ 1:23pm
The ignorance is bad enough - indeed bad enough to disqualify her - but the inability to ad-lib a credible answer shows the true depth of her ignorance and shallowness of intellect.
Uh, she couldn't even lie and come up with the Wall Street Journal? Sheesh!
And then the completely inane: "I read all of them." Wow, she must be one hell of a speedreader. She must really enjoy The Nation, BTW.
Choosing this featherweight twit may in the end be the final nail for the McCain campaign - if ticking-off Letterman wasn't. We've seen the calamitous effects of combining ignorance and decisiveness with the current Administration; Palin must not be a heartbeat away.
Posted by JazzyJake at 10/02/2008 @ 2:09pm
Regarding THROWIN's: "I don't think any of us HATE her here, we just think she is incompitent to lead this country."
You could be wrong: anyone who would force a woman to have the child of her rapist pretty much has my hatred.
Posted by JazzyJake at 10/02/2008 @ 2:19pm
Posted by LeeAnnG at 10/02/2008 @ 1:14pm
than again if ewe understand me r talkins been a sucksess.
words are but collection of sounds.
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/02/2008 @ 2:26pm
Posted by madlib at 10/02/2008 @ 1:31pm
thu inglish langwij iz sooper dum.
eezee grammer, bad spelling.
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/02/2008 @ 2:27pm
i mean,
think of how much money is wasted teaching spelling.
and all those hours in all those offices spent spell-checking.
dumbbbbbbbb.
Posted by frosty zoom at 10/02/2008 @ 2:28pm
madlib - Yeah, you're right. I must be a complete Communist Muslim Elitist to think it might be nice if Americans could speak and write their native language. After all, ignorance is so... so... so... oh, I don't know... patriotic!
I loved your comment about the "English first" people who slam the Mexicans and other "furriners" who corrupt our way of life with their Spanish gibberish.
Isn't it also amusing that many of the same people who are indignant about foreigners owning "all the shops and businesses" in our cities are Republicans who don't seem to have a clue that it's Big Bidness and international corporations creating much of this situation. Large corporations are no more patriotic to America than Vladmir Putin except for the ways in which the US is willing to support the "free market" on their behalf.
As Molly Ivins put it, I don't want to be lectured on patriotism by those who keep their finances in off-shore locations to avoid paying taxes. (Paraphrased, of course.)
Oh, well. Hypocrisy isn't limited to the wingnuts and regressives. It's just so much more obvious than it among many others.
Anyhow, thanks for the feedback. It made me chuckle.
Posted by LeeAnnG at 10/02/2008 @ 2:37pm
"Kudos to jlister for the comment about "baited" breath."
I always like to see this one. It gives me a mental visual of a worm hanging from someone's mouth.
Posted by FLaim at 10/02/2008 @ 2:40pm
Frosty - you are correct when you state that our conversation is a success if we understand each other. And there are those who believe that grammar, spelling, and punctuation are artificial impositions and unnecessary limitations.
Of course, this is a valid point of view, whether or not I agree. I grew up in a family that loved the language, and my parents were insistent upon good grammar. Using good grammar does not make one a good person, as I am well aware, nor does it have to interfere with communication.
I have never particulary been a rule follower or lover of authority, so it's a bit of an anomaly for me to be so obsessed with the language and its rules. Nevertheless, it does get on my nerves when it's misused. It especially irritates me when it's a school administrator who is the culprit. I deal with many educators, and very, very few of them can write more than two sentences together that don't make me cringe.
Perhaps it's simply my own love of the language and the way it all fits together that informs my way of thinking. Why it's so bothersome to me when other people speak or write badly is another matter; I don't usually impose my beliefs on anyone else. I know it's none of my business, so I try not to let it drive me nuts.
Having said all this, speaking well does not make one an elitist, but perhaps believing in American exceptionalism and the righteousness of English only might be. Oh. Right. I forgot. If English was good enough for Jesus, it should be good enough for me. Sorry.
(I did catch a typo in my last post. It annoys me that I can't go back and change it. I thought I'd proofed it more thoroughly.)
Posted by LeeAnnG at 10/02/2008 @ 2:59pm
Posted by Darin_the_Troll at 10/02/2008 @ 2:26pm
Darin, you don't live in Michigan, do you???
heheh
Posted by Maskdelta at 10/02/2008 @ 3:02pm
There are only 2 scenarios for tonight. SP is either well coached and unlearned, or she is poorly coached and unlearned. You cannot cram for scholastic curiosity, you either have a hunger for it or you do not.
Posted by rc9286 at 10/02/2008 @ 4:58pm
Didn't McCain slay Able?
Or at least the requirement for "ability".
Posted by d2milleraz at 10/02/2008 @ 6:07pm
"Didn't McCain slay Able?"
:-}
Posted by JazzyJake at 10/02/2008 @ 9:48pm