Ok, ok: Just One More

I found this on CBS news. I think it's hilarious!

NEW YORK (CBS) Maybe Jeremy Olson should have practiced with a target before attempting to pelt Sarah Palin with tomatoes at a book signing in Minnesota Dec. 7.

Olson, 33, who police say has no permanent address, was arrested at the Mall of America in Minnesota after one of the tomatoes meant for Sarah Palin failed to hit their mark and landed squarely in the face of a Bloomington police officer, according to Bloomington Police Commander Mark Stehlik. Commander Stehlik said that Olson’s aim was off by "maybe ten feet to the left, it wasn't close to her."

Photo: Mug shot of Jeremy Olson, arrested Dec.7.

As officers were arresting Olson he said that "he wished he had better aim" according to Commander Stehlik.

Olson now faces charges of 5th degree assault on a police officer and disorderly conduct, according to Commander Stehlik.

Olson is currently being held in the jail at the Bloomington Police Department and when question early Tuesday Dec. 8 he refused to give a statement. He will likely appear in court later today or tommorrow depending on when the investigators are able to get the case in front of prosecutors.

Commander Stehlik also told CBS News' Crimesider that Olson had "a bigger tomato arsenal in his pocket that had yet to be deployed" as well as a journal with one entry that read: 'Today i will attempt to pelt Sarah Palin with juicy red tomatoes for her fantastic collection of stamps on the American political piggy sceen(sic)', it is not known what he meant by 'stamps'.

An alternate ID was also found, when he was arrested, with a different name than the one he gave police. "But we are fairly certain that the name we released is the correct one," Commander Stehlik said.

Commander Stehlik said that there were still questions about why he had an alternate ID and that depending on where the investigation leads there might be more charges.

One More (awful) Bit

So I just found this excerpt from Palin's book (because I still refuse to purchase it), and I couldn't help but post it:

I know for sure that I could carry on, like he, and we, have done together all of these years on this long, Iron Dog race of a marriage that is at once grueling and celestial, onerous and majestic.

Can anyone (and I mean anyone) decipher meaning from that sentence. Anyone? I didn't think so. Fingers crossed for Obama 2012.

All good things must come to an end;

Like my blog and Sarah Palin’s book tour:

"Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin has ended her book tour, arriving home in Alaska on Sunday for her final stops.

The former Republican vice presidential nominee visited 24 states before coming back to Alaska, where she ended the tour with signings at Elmendorf Air Force Base in Anchorage and Eielson Air Force Base near Fairbanks.

Palin has sold more than 1 million copies since her book came out in November. HarperCollins printed 1.5 million for the entire first run of the hardcover book that sells for a cover price of $28.99.

It is unclear what Palin plans to do following the book tour, though the former governor has scheduled a number of paid speaking events.

“22-degrees below zero here @ Eielson Air Force Base,” Palin tweeted with her final note from the road, “but so many warm hearts made r book signing event toasty, energizing, welcoming! Thx Frbnks.”

Thanks so much for sticking with me over the past few moments. Researching Palin's silly maneuvers have been enjoyable and entertaining. I hope I have provided at least a few laughs and that now, more than ever, it is clear how dangerous Palin could be to the US. Thanks for reading!

Singing off

-Ashley 12/14/09

The best of Sarah Palin

As the blog comes to a close, I wanted to shared this video which captures Sarah's greatest moments during the 2008 election. I hope that people keep this in mind as 2012 nears:

The Democrats Respond

After hearing Palin's attacks against the Climategate scandle, many Democrats in Congress are responding with force:

“Before Sarah Palin writes a book, she should try reading a few,” said Rep. Jay Inslee (D-Wash.), who followed up with a series of peer-reviewed reports on rising sea levels, air temperatures and ocean acidity.

Palin’s position is “worse than one of denial – it’s one of defeatism,” added Inslee, echoing earlier comments by former Vice-President Al Gore.

“Ex-Governor Palin is at it again, [she] somehow has discovered some kind of smoking gun,” added Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.), who compared Palin’s statements to her support of the discredited “death panel” charges over the summer.

“There is no there,” he added. “And the ex-governor’s state has [suffered] the greatest impact in terms of global warming of any state in the nation…It’s absolutely critical that we not allow the same sort of death panel, swift-boating to occur.”

It's good to see that the Dems aren't taking her non researched, unfounded comments laying down. Good for them for reacting.

Simply Absurd

I found this online today and I have to admit that I am absolutely shock. Shocked. Who would pay over 7K to have "Palin's red jacket." Her followers are absurd.

Radio host Laura Ingraham is auctioning off the red jacket Sarah Palin wore on the cover of her memoir, "Going Rogue." Proceeds for the sale will benefit two organizations that serve American military and veterans.

As of 3:15 pm Eastern Standard Time, the bidding on the jacket had reached $7,050.

Palin announced the auction this morning in a note on her Facebook page.

"It's a privilege to participate in the auction Laura Ingraham is organizing to help our men and women in uniform," Palin said. "Laura asked if I would donate the jacket I wore on the cover of my book, "Going Rogue." I can't think of a better cause, and it's especially fitting because the book is dedicated to patriots and in particular to our women and men in uniform."

Palin also called into the Laura Ingraham show this morning to talk with the radio host as bidding began.

"Now Going Rogue has sold over a million copies…" Ingraham said. "And it drives [the liberal media] insane, because they don't understand why people are rallying to [Palin's] cause, and her ideas, and what she stands for and represents. And I'm telling you it's partly because of her generous spirit. And when I asked her on the spot during our last interview… if she would do this for the troops, for the Wounded Warrior, and the Fisher [House], on the spot, Governor Palin said yes. The auction begins now."

Ingraham also plugged the "Code Red Rally," a protest against healthcare reform that is scheduled for next week outside the Capitol. The event description on Ingraham's website offers a warning to politicians who support the reform efforts: "enjoy your remaining time in the U.S. Capitol because we're coming for your seat." Ingraham referenced the use of the color red to symbolize an emergency.

"People are going to be wearing red jackets," she told Palin. "And you wore red on the cover of your book, but it's an emergency. It's red for the emergency… So I think that's going to be another show of power."

The auction will end at 8:00 am on December 18th. Proceeds for the "Rogue Warrior Jacket" will be donated to the Wounded Warrior Project and The Fisher House.

Palin on the Tonight Show

Palin did make a surprise appearance on the Tonight Show. She talked about her book and showed a sense of humor some never thought was possible.

How much can you pay for a Palin book?

Ok, so confession time.... I'm really interested in reading Palin's book. Yep, that's right, after smashing her all semester I want to read the damn thing. But here's my problem, I REFUSE (did you get that???) to pay her any money in royalties. So, here's what I've figured out:

"So, what can we deduce about Ms. Palin's advance? The book will have a cover price of $28.99. If her royalty is 15% of half that, she gets about $2.175 per book. (It's quite possible her royalty is larger than 15%.) If the $1.25 million amount paid already is half of her total advance, then HarperCollins expects to sell over a million copies of the book. (Either that, or they're throwing a lot of money away for the "status" and "glory" of publishing Ms. Palin's memoir.) Also, Ms. Palin will probably be paying her ghostwriter out of the advance she receives from HarperCollins. " (from http://www.charlespetzold.com/blog/2009/10/Book-Royalties-Advances-and-Retainers.html)

BUT

Amazon is selling the book for $14.50 each. Which is half the cover price. So she must be making more than we think per a book.

SO

I'm figuring that if you are paying $12.00 or more for this book, you're paying Palin (which should be the title of my new book on the Palin influence on American culture).

And then there was my favorite comment

Several people have noted that there is a lot of hatred for Palin. They're right, of course. I don't know why people feel so strongly about her, and I don't particularly care. The bottom line is that she has yet to posit a coherent—much less worthwhile—set of policy objectives. Until she does (and I'm not holding my breath), her admirers will continue to admire her for her personal traits and the slogans she throws around so loosely, and her detractors will continue to seize on her more boneheaded statements and construct straw man (straw woman?) arguments accordingly. It doesn't say much for the state of our political discourse.

Comment by Todd of PA"


Thank god for Todd. He hit the nail right on the head. She has no policy. None. She is just a talking head without a brain. I wonder how many people recognize this...do they care?

I saw hundreds of people sleeping outside in negative degree weather just to MEET Sarah Palin. And they don't know why. What does she stand for? They don't know. What are her policies? "Blah, blah government spendingish." She's a terrible risk for our country.

Comment's part II

I am reading Sarah's book, and I can't figure out why so many people hate her. Let's see, she loves Alaska and America with all her heart. She worked to pay her college tuition and she has always been very hard-working. She has always been frugal. She became a real Christian when she was a young teen. She loves her kids and she chose to have her Down's syndrome child. She had Democrats, Republicans, and independents on her staff as governor, and she is not rigid and intolerant like Obama's side claims. She can have civil discussions with people who hold opposing views. The more I read, the more I admire her. I work with people who hate her and can't talk about her without using abusive language. It makes me sick. The media has spread so many lies about her. I think she's awesome.

Comment by Susan H. of MN


The positive comments are interesting. Like I pointed out in a post below, the positive things people say about Palin include no details. People can say nothing specific because, specifically, Palin's history is terrible:

Palin's Bio in 7 short steps:

5 colleges = 1 degree
She was a mayor
Miraculously she was elected to be governor
Then McCain made his epic mistake
She went back to Alaska
Quit her job
and had someone else write a book for her

I guess I didn't mention the pregnant daughter, Katie Couric interview, or Newsweek cover photo but I don't see anything of praise in that history. And btw, how do you consider the person who spent $150,000 on clothing "frugal."

Comments on the NPR show about Palin's Book

I found these comments below and thought they were really telling. Maybe I shouldn't worry, America knows what type of person Palin is:

"The book is a pretty quick read—interesting when it comes to Sarah's personal life, but snotty the way she comments about the journalists and the campaign people ["Mothers Discuss Palin's 'Going Rogue' on NPR," usnews.com]. I kept waiting for some kind of "a-ha" moment, where she learned something about herself or why she really decided to follow a certain path, but the book was mostly about how she's just better than the people she doesn't like and how they're just plain jealous or mean or both. She's vain, petty, and rationalizes a lot. I didn't care much for her as a politician before the book—too inexperienced, in my opinion, and too reliant on her charm instead of her intelligence. I like her even less now after having read the book. She reminds me of the popular cheerleader in high school who suddenly finds herself a small fish in a big pond when she goes to college and can't believe she's not as important or as talented as she always thought she was.

Comment by Katie Van Winkle of ME

I think Katie recognizes something important about Palin. She's stuck up. Some of her staffers have thought that she might be a case of narcissistic personality disorder. NOTHING is ever Palin's fault, ever.

Palin and Gore are at odds over Climategate

I think this interchange between the two politicians is really interesting:

"Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin hit back at former Vice President Al Gore on Wednesday for calling her a global warming “denier.”

Speaking to MSNBC’s Andrea Mitchell on Wednesday, Gore criticized an op-ed Palin wrote for the Washington Post calling on President Barack Obama to boycott the global climate change conference in Copenhagen.

“The deniers are persisting in an era of unreality. The entire North Polar ice cap is disappearing before our eyes,” Gore said. “What do they think is happening?”

“It's a principle in physics,” Gore said of climate change. “It's like gravity, it exists.”

Palin took to her Facebook page late Wednesday to respond to Gore.

“Perhaps he’s right. Climate change is like gravity – a naturally occurring phenomenon that existed long before, and will exist long after, any governmental attempts to affect it,” Palin wrote. “However, he’s wrong in calling me a ‘denier.’ As I noted in my op-ed above and in my original Facebook post on Climategate, I have never denied the existence of climate change. I just don’t think we can primarily blame man’s activities for the earth’s cyclical weather changes.”

Palin then turned her response to the so-called “Climategate” story as evidence that scientific findings are “flawed, falsified, or inconclusive.”

“Former Vice President Gore also claimed today that the scientific community has worked on this issue for 20 years, and therefore it is settled science,” Palin wrote. “Well, the Climategate scandal involves the leading experts in this field, and if Climategate is proof of the larger method used over the past 20 years, then Vice President Gore seriously needs to consider that their findings are flawed, falsified, or inconclusive.”

“Vice President Gore, the Climategate scandal exists,” she added. “You might even say that it’s sort of like gravity: you simply can’t deny it.”


The scary thing is that Palin is getting better and better. She's becoming more informed and people are beginning to respect what she says. If she doesn't believe in global warming, I bet a lot of her supports won't either.

I also think the Climategate scandal is really sad. There is enough evidence in FAVOR of global warming. We shouldn't have to hide evidence to the contrary. Why give Palin and the other anti-environmentalists ammo?

McCain very "proud" of Palin

I found this interesting article about interactions between Palin and McCain. This isn't something we've heard much about:

"Smiling and sounding like a proud papa, Sen. John McCain said three times Sunday on NBC's "Meet the Press" that he was, well, proud of former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

"I think that Sarah Palin has earned herself a very big place in the American political scene," said the Arizona Republican who carried his party's presidentail standard last year..

He mocked what he suggested were the contradictions of her critics, saying: "'She's irrelevant' -- but they continue to attack her."

Noting that he had just seen the Palin, McCain said he had "a wonderful relationship" with his former vice presdiential running mate.

He didn't mention the defense of the very aides - Steve Schmidt and Nicolle Wallace - who Palin criticized in her book that he offered in a Reuters interview after Palin's book, "Going Rogue," came out."

So I've been promising updates on Levi Johnson

A few things to note about Levi:

-He has completed his Playgirl spread. I'll provide links at some point. From what I have read, he doesn't show anything that isn't PG-13

-He produced a really funny nut commercial:



I think it will be really interesting to see the interaction between Palin and Levi in the next few years. She DID invite him to Thanksgiving dinner on Oprah, but it seemed to be in jest.

Popularity is up

I never thought people would actually like Palin more. But it's happening:

"A CNN/Opinion Research Corporation poll released today (PDF) finds that Sarah Palin's favorable rating has risen to 46 percent. That represents an increase from the 39 percent favorable rating for Palin in CNN polling over the summer, following her decision to resign from her job as Alaska governor.

Palin, the former GOP vice presidential candidate, remains a polarizing figure, of course: 46 percent view her unfavorably, matching her favorable rating. Just 8 percent of those surveyed did not offer an opinion on Palin, who is currently on a book tour for memoir "Going Rogue: An American Life."

The poll also found that former Vice President Dick Cheney, a frequent critic of President Obama, remains unpopular. Cheney's unfavorable rating sits at 53 percent, while 39 percent view him favorably.

Eight in 10 Republicans view Palin favorably, CNN reports, while more than seven in 10 Democrats views her unfavorably. Men are more likely to view Palin favorably than women."

Palin and Graham, the video

So I just found the video for Palin's talk with Billy Graham:


I can't embed the video, so click here to see Palin!

Sarah Palin and...Billy Graham???

A little odd, to say the least.



Palin's recent book tour to Fayetteville, NC was not most widely known for the signings at Fort Bragg, but instead for her dinner with Billy Graham, known evangelist.

The Palin meeting was arranged by Graham's son, evangelist Franklin Graham, who met Palin in Alaska in February. Franklin Graham's organization, Samaritan's Purse, had delivered food along the Yukon River to families experiencing a hard winter.

In the North Carolina mountains, the two families prayed, broke bread and shared stories. Billy Graham autographed two Bibles. The elder Graham said, "I, like many people, have been impressed with her strong commitment to her faith, to family and love of country."

Franklin Graham told The Charlotte Observer that his father has "followed her career and likes her strong stand on faith. Daddy feels God was using her to wake America up."

The two Grahams' remarks have received wide circulation in the religious press. Religion remains a powerful strand in American politics.

Sometimes people for an explanation of Palin's political appeal - she is among the leading candidates for the GOP presidential nomination in 2012. It is not so much about issues and ideology. She was a fairly pragmatic governor of Alaska.

It is about going rogue, as her book title suggests, about class politics, and about the power of religion.

Which is why approving comments from Billy Graham are far more important to her supporters than questions pundits raise about her presidential credentials.

Will she do it? Palin in 2012

A recent article makes me think that perhaps all of Palin's shenanigans might be a clue that she IS planning for a 2012 White House run.

"Sarah Palin fuelled speculation that she will run for the White House in 2012 by doing two things yesterday: poking fun at herself at a famous journalists’ dinner in Washington — a ritual for presidential hopefuls — and visiting Iowa, site of the first nominating contest.

Mrs Palin, last year’s Republican vice-presidential candidate, made a rare appearance in Washington, as guest speaker at the winter dinner of the Gridiron Club of leading Washington journalists. It is a venue at which many presidential hopefuls have appeared, including Barack Obama.

The idea is to be funny and self-deprecating. Mrs Palin, the former Alaska governor, managed both, in addition to aiming a few barbs at John McCain’s campaign staff of last year, with whom she had a now famously poisonous relationship. Referring to her current roadshow across America promoting her memoir, Going Rogue, Mrs Palin said: “The view is so much better from inside the bus than under it.” Several of Mr McCain’s staff last year briefed against Mrs Palin after the Republican ticket lost to Mr Obama, and heaped a lot of blame on her for the election loss.

Mrs Palin was ridiculed last year for saying, in a disastrous television interview, that her qualifications for office included that “you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska”.

At the dinner, she said to much laughter that she liked her Washington hotel because “I came down from my hotel room and I could see the Russian Embassy”. Mrs Palin, who frequently lambasts the Washington media, said: “Sometimes you’ve just got to trust your instincts. And when you don’t, you end up in places like this.”

She added: “It’s good to be here, really, in front of this audience of leading journalists and intellectuals, or as I like to call it, a death panel.”

Mrs Palin could not resist a dig at Vice-President Joe Biden, her counterpart in last year’s election, who has thinning hair and who in the past has tried to slow down his balding by having hair transplants.

Mrs Palin, referring to Going Rogue, said that if the election had turned out differently, “I could be overseeing the signing of bailout cheques and Vice-President Biden could be on the road selling his book ‘Going Rogaine’.” Rogaine is a hair loss treatment.

Mrs Palin also joked that she had originally thought of entitling her book ‘How To Look Like a Million Bucks, For Only $150,000’. In one of the controversies surrounding her candidacy, the campaign spent at least $150,000 on her wardrobe.

Mrs Palin also visited Iowa yesterday as part of her book tour. The state opens the presidential nominating season. No politician arrives in Iowa without realising that any appearance will be seen as evidence of serious consideration of a White House run. A string of potential Republican candidates have visited the Hawkeye State in recent weeks. "

So you want to see the Oprah interview....

After hours of searching, I finally tracked down Oprah's interview with Palin...enjoy

The first book...and now the second

Sarah Palin now has a children book featuring her cartoonized face. “I am trying to let all Americans know that these radicals are killing the American Dream and I want to stop them from hurting people that produce products and provide jobs,” the Palin character consoles the frustrated boys after their business is destroyed by “Marxus Obunduf” who is based on President Obama.

“I used Palin because I wanted to point out that there is nothing wrong with standing up for your values regardless of who attacks you,” DeBrecht, the author, told Foxnews.com. “The book also shows that “Marxus” and his radicals are basically killing the American Dream in their grab for power. I want to tell kids that they can achieve their dreams by working hard and not relying on the government to help them.”

To me, it seems a little absurd to indoctrinate small children into believing that Sarah Palin is a hero. Maybe we should let children explore the news and see for themselves...