Robin Williams gives us all a political attitude adjustment!

If anyone can make an attitude adjustment for us all over this political climate, is Robin Williams.

This is a must see!






This, the 220th entry in bloggoland! Thanks for reading and coming back. I always enjoy the comments, emails and the banter!!


(c)Copyright 2008 Doug Boggs

You Suck, sir!

In an age of the Internet, preserved news bits, and YouTube we still have a mindset in Washington that thinks the world revolves around them.

Bush, Bernanke, Paulson, McCain, and Palin are all in this crowd of leadership. Karl Rove is one as well. But, let's get to some points. Bernanke, as head of the Federal Reserve, he and Treasury Secretary Paulson were the primary architects that reported with Bush on the initial "no strings attached" $700 Billion bailout plan. Well, with Bush attached to that news everyone knew that was going to be a farce. Congress told them to come back with a real idea...

So, their idea was to buy up the toxic mortgages and package them in order to help alleviate the stress on homeowners that are balancing on foreclosure. Well, still with no oversight or strings firmly in place, Congress gave them the money they asked for. Then, immediately, Bernanke and Paulson decided to spend their allowance a bit differently than they had expressed by giving it to all of their white collared friends on Wall Street. Then, something happened on the way to the forum...NOTHING!

The economy got worse, way worse.

The story goes on, but we'll cut to the chase. Bernanke announced an idea yesterday. It seemed as if he thought it was a new idea...It seems to be a similar idea that I espoused to be the program a while ago. He said to bring down the mortgage pricing for those struggling. Bring it down to the 3 percent level for about 5 years or so, with the government helping out on some of the back end.

Wait, hasn't the government already helped out on the back end? I mean, they have given banks hundreds of BILLIONS?!!

Then he came out with a great idea! He thought another option would have the government purchase delinquent or at-risk mortgages in bulk and then refinance them into the "Hope for Homeowners" or another government program that insures home mortgages. Uh, didn't we hear this one before?

Then he called for more action from banks to help in this time of crisis.

Uh, Ya Think?!

How about mandating them to do something. Banks have been taking our future tax dollars and doing NOTHING!

This is insane!?

After his great speech, the Dow dropped over another 200 points. It opened this morning another 150 points lower.

Good job with helping. Let's see, we as a society it seems agree that most of the execs on Wall Street should lose their jobs for failure. Paulson should lose his job for failure, Bernanke isn't doing shit and should go, the heads of the big three could leave and things would be fore the better...oh, and that Bush guy should have been gone a long time ago. In fact, he should go to prison for all that he has done, but that is another story...

Bernanke stressed the importance of curbing the foreclosure mess because it is so inter-linked with the economy's health. "Weakness in the housing market has proved a serious drag on overall economic activity," he said. "Steps that stabilize the housing market will help stabilize the economy as well."

Uh, Ya THink!?

Back to the initial plan that I was touting about a month or so ago. That one plan backed by the now heavily refinanced financial industry, the Treasury would seek to lower the rate on a 30-year mortgages to 4.5 percent by purchasing mortgage-backed securities from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. It's unclear exactly how much the plan would cost. It is possible that Paulson will ask Congress for the second $350 billion installment of the $700 billion financial bailout package to bankroll the effort. Maybe, if the first round of money went into this idea in the first place we wouldn't be needing the second round of money...

But, I said that every loan out there should be able to be refinance into the 4% rate. Some will and some are still in loans that might be fine for them and lower than this, so it would be their choice. It needs to be available for EVERYONE!

Then, Sheila Bair who heads the FDIC chimed in saying, "Getting mortgage rates down is positive, but it doesn't help people that currently have unaffordable mortgages because it doesn't help them refinance. Low interest rates help some consumers, but the ones that really need help and can't refinance are not helped."

Ah, helping everyone! What a great idea!

Paulson has been opposed to tapping the bailout pool to fund a mortgage-relief program championed by the Sheila Bair at the FDIC. The $24 billion FDIC plan would use some of the rescue money to help back refinanced mortgages that would lower monthly payments.

Let's see, Paulson or Bush aren't keen on giving the blue collar folks in Detroit any fund either. Bush...you know that guy. The man with the amazing disappearing act in times of trouble. When the towers were being blow to shit, he kept on reading a book to the children...upside down. I don't think that that specific book was printed upside down either...Now, with the worlds worst economic crisis since 1930's depression, he is working on his library and his public view of his term.

I can give him a hint...You Suck, sir!




This, the 213th entry in bloggoland! Thanks for reading and coming back. I always enjoy the comments, emails and the banter!!


(c)Copyright 2008 Doug Boggs

The poetic prose of Sarah Palin and e.e. cummings!

The right winged network, Fox News reporter Sean Hannity in the exclusive interview with Sarah Palin, done on Sept. 21, 2008 is being labeled as “100 percent pure infomercial”. But it may need a bit more attention as it begins to defy human reality?!...After reading the transcript of this interview I just cannot believe my ears of what words are being employed by her as she manouvers through the questions.

Hmmmm.... Palin, e.e.cummings,, Palin, e.e.cummings...

...Palin's response: "Yes. That's a great question, and being an optimist I see our role in the world as one of being a force for good, and one of being the leader of the world when it comes to the values that -- it seems that just human kind embraces the values that -- encompass life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness, and that's just -- not just in America, that is in our world."

(she got her first passport a few months ago...)

e.e. cummings' poem:

"next to of course god america i
love you land of the pilgrims' and so forth oh
say can you see by the dawn's early my
country 'tis of centuries come and go
and are no more what of it we should worry
in every language even deafanddumb
thy sons acclaim your glorious name by gorry
by jingo by gee by gosh by gum
why talk of beauty what could be more beaut-
iful than these heroic happy dead
who rushed like lions to the roaring slaughter
they did not stop to think they died instead
then shall the voice of liberty be mute?"

He spoke. And drank rapidly a glass of water"


If only e.e. had a line about "not blinking," the poem would have been frighteningly filled with foresight...


WATCH THIS

...

Fey takes on Palin...AMAZING

For those that have missed this AMAZING skit on SNL!!!



Like I say...truth is better than...oh, wait...With Tina Fey and Amy Poehler playing Palin and Clinton helped create the highest rated Saturday Night Live Premiere since 2002. Although, McCain has since come out and blasted the skit as "sexist" and "disrespectful"...boo hoo!

Tina Fey was noted recently as saying, "I want to be done playing this lady on November 5, so if anyone could help me be done playing her on November 5, that would be good for me," Fey added that she was totally resistant in acknowledging her uncanny physical resemblance to Palin until her young daughter turned on the TV and teased ‘that's mummy.’

Robert, Rachel and Bill clear the air!

First I thought that I would include this blurb from Robert F Kennedy, Jr. on Sarah Palin's reading list;

Fascist writer Westbrook Pegler, an avowed racist who Sarah Palin approvingly quoted in her acceptance speech for the moral superiority of small town values, expressed his fervent hope about my father, Robert F. Kennedy, as he contemplated his own run for the presidency in 1965, that "some white patriot of the Southern tier will spatter his spoonful of brains in public premises before the snow flies."

It might be worth asking Governor Palin for a tally of the other favorites from her reading list.



Today in the NY Times, David Brooks writes that Sarah Palin is unqualified for her position. If McCant doesn't see this as clearly as America can, he is unqualified for his position. Karl Rove, the Bush creator, has recently stated that McCain is running the dirties campaign he has ever seen. This coming from the man who has previously run the dirtiest campaign anyone has ever seen...Richard Cohen, of the Washington Post states how far McCain is off if he can stand behind and support this person as the second most powerful person in the world, hereby creating the instability of his decision making for the position of the most powerful person...



As for the following video, I couldn't say any of this more clearly!!

Another day on Wall Street and Just another politician....

I thought that this following article would be a good one to show my readers.

I wanted to get into some of the dynamics of the Wall Street collapse of Merrill Lynch, AIG, and Lehman Bros., but will do that after a bit more research...I can say that one good thing that will come out of that situation is that the interest rates are going to go down, as bonds are rising.

**********
So much for Sarah Palin's claim to be a maverick, someone who doesn't play politics the old-fashioned way. Now she is.

On Monday, John McCain's camp announced that Palin would not cooperate with a bipartisan investigation -- which includes an independent investigator -- of her role in firing Alaska's public safety commissioner.

A McCain campaign spokesman said Palin wouldn't take part "so long as it remained tainted and run by partisan individuals who have a predetermined conclusion."

He was referring to a Democratic state legislator involved in the probe who had said the case might produce criminal charges.

Unfortunately for Palin, she has told the American people she has nothing to hide in this case -- which means she ought to be cooperating fully.

Already, Palin is starting to look like all other politicians. She backtracks when things aren't going her way. She attacks anyone who doesn't agree with her.

And, in this particular case, she's inviting a subpoena for her testimony. If one comes in the next few weeks, Palin could be embroiled in a nasty legal affair touching on her veracity as governor just about the time Americans go to the polls in November.

By Yael T. Abouhalkah, Kansas City Star Editorial Page columnist

**********

Here is a response to the editorial from one of the readers;

I left the Christian Church some years ago. Hypocrisy and a flawed "salvation clause" were the clinchers. Saying they believe in the word of God for example while sending bombs and missles at innocent Iraqis (15,000 or more deaths) was too hypocritcal for me and the "all you have to do is ask for forgiveness" clause and all transgressions are swept under the carpet seemed like a blank check for evil - which unprovoked war, "holy" pedophiles, bigotted pastors, and the vile mud slinging politicians of the right bear out - all forgiven! Sarah Palin is the quintessential Right wing Christian politician - Says she's for transparency in government and tries a cover-up before she's even in office. She lauds family values and turns the child rearing over to nanny's and husband to pursue power. Lies about a bridge to nowhere - what else will she lie about? Don't worry, she's just another perfectly hypocritical Christian - she'll be forgiven. Already is apparently by her minions of like minded red necks ready to go to war with Russia. Geeez.. Wake up goons!

His Audacity of hope...

I give huge cuddos to Obama for doing what he is doing and his audacity of hope. To the capacity of what he has done, and to the character to which he has represented within this campaign. The lies, deception, and mis/disinformation that the McCant people spew is a travesty to the American people, the office for which he is attempting to gain, and the system of politics in general. I am simply amazed at the responses we are hearing from people regarding this campaign. I mean really!...

There was a 27 year old woman in Nevada, that was watching McCant's VP choice speak at her first solo rally in Carson City in front of approximately 3500 people. She is an unemployed barista from Yerington, NV, who held a sign that read "Hunter Chicks 4 Palin" on one side, and "Sarah Killed My Apathy" with a drawing of a deer rifle and a target on the other. She had supported Mitt Romney in the primary, said that she cried the day of McCant's VP's acceptance speech. "I think that it's great that the American people finally have a candidate who they can relate to, with morals," said Tracy, who said the issues she cares the most about are pro-life and the right to bear arms.

I know for a fact that Obama supports the right to bear arms, he just doesn't support the right to bear an automatic weapon that spews hundreds of bullets in a minute time frame. This kind of gun is unnecessary for a citizen to possess. The Constitution that expresses the right to bear arms was written when there was no true military in America. As a militia of commoners was needed at the time, the right to bear arms was a necessity in order to have the minutemen available to protect our freedoms in the early days of our country. This was back in 1770's when the muskets used shot once and took nearly 30 seconds to reload. The right to bear arms should still be a right for Americans, but the need for the automatic weapons on our streets is unnecessary and creates street violence rather than protects citizens.

The Pro life issue is another label of banter brought to the public through the right wing Repugnicants to create public discourse to sway the people's mindset to the far right without using direct religious connotations. It simply allows someone besides the person in need to make a decision for them on their behalf. In a case of rape or incest, as an example, McCant's VP choice states that she feels that the fetus should be born and the right of the woman has no say. I don't see how someone is able to enter the home of a private citizen and have the legal right to tell them they cannot eat this or that food in the privacy of their home, or discuss this topic or that topic at the dinner table, as it is illegal. That you can enter some one's private residence and tell them that they can only do it missionary style and no fellatio, or cunnilingus as it is a "deplorable" act. To be able to make these private decisions as to how they should live their private life, without their involvement. As we all know that religious political lobbying is where those debatable thoughts are coming from, this is NO separation of church and state. Obama, believes in freedom of choice, thus allowing another person the freedom to choose given their circumstance at the time. If a woman has been raped or a child has been involved in incest and is now pregnant, there is no reason that the rapist should have more rights than the female. It was NOT her decision to be in this position. With little to no sex education in schools any longer, and the average family unit has (maybe) two working parents, with little to no time left to parent any longer, as we can see and hear from any American today, it cannot only be left to the family to educate the young on sex. It should also be a part of societal responsibility. These children are to become the future of this country and we are leaving them behind!! They need to be taught to make rational and educated decisions on all aspects of their lives so as to hold a personal debate on their own thoughts and issues in order to summon an individual response. McCant's running mate is the perfect example of her own failed policy on this issue as her underage daughter is pregnant due to the mother's lack of attention to the child in order to educate her in abstinence, to which is the policy that she pronounces to the public as the best policy for sex education. The base that the Repugnicants state that they want less government and the government to be out of the person's life is bullshit propaganda!


How about the retired Republican Marine Corps pilot and LAPD homicide detective reverently invoke the names of Gloria Steinem and Bella Abzug. But Bob Lee, 73, of Reno, praised the VP pick as "the epitome of everything that I used to see Gloria [Steinem] and Bella Abzug promoting -- American women can be all things." He noted, "Sarah didn't make it on the coattails of her husband. Hillary [Clinton] rode the coattails of Bill." I don't see it?! This fact that people are claiming that McCan't's VP choice is like Gloria Steinem or Bella Abzug is absurd. Those women fought hard for the individual rights of women. Those women were true mavericks of their time who paved the way for women to be individual and independent citizens with the same rights and freedom's that men have. Abzug became a Congresswoman stating that, "A woman's place is in the house, the house of representatives!" Her father owned the "Live and Let Live Meat Market". She supported gay rights, women's rights, minority rights...Gloria Steinem is the voice of the modern American woman and an American Woman's rights activist icon. She was a Playboy Bunny, a journalist, and a labor rights activist. I don't understand how someone is able to compare them to this woman VP choice for the Repugnicant party who wants to limit women's rights, ban books, does not support gays or minorities causes. I don't see the correlation.

How about this guy who was having breakfast Friday morning at the counter at Paul's Restaurant in Whitehall, OH. This is a blue-collar suburb of Columbus and he is a retired aircraft designer named Richard Beard. He stressed that he knew all that he needed to know to vote against Obama. "Anyone who won't salute the flag or say the Pledge of Allegiance isn't worth voting for. And Obama doesn't have an American birth certificate or one that you can believe. The one from Hawaii is a fake." An original Ron Paul supporter with an NRA cap, would have been an unlikely Democratic voter even if Obama had been born in Ohio State. Smitten with Palin, Beard said, "She doesn't throw in any of that doublespeak like other politicians." Really?! I guess he is on the bridge to nowhere...perhaps he is hoping to get a financial handout from her earmarked funds she received for the state of Alaska...I'm sure he has experience in the immigration department to validate his statement that Obama's birth certificate is a fake...my god, where do these people come from?! Perhaps he just doesn't want to admit he is a racist! Plain and simple. Let the elephant out so all can see!

This is my reasoning to state that there are many Americans that are blinded by rhetoric and are incapable to think rationally and are part of the lemming society. Sad...

Can history finally teach us...

I have stated many, many times herein that for those that travel outside of the US, (Palin would NOT be one of them) know that the rest of world thinks that Americans are lemming idiots(McCant/Palin believe this to be true based on their continued lies and deception to win the White House). There is much of the time that I can tend to agree. I now can state, that based on the myriad of emails here that this rings so true.

Rome did fall, and history seems to teach us nothing, so perhaps it is America's time to dwindle. The flag waving right wingers will state that I am unpatriotic to say something like that, (although being a true patriot is challenging what our leaders are doing rather then simple saying...ok! Go ahead and fuck me some more...)but I would state back that you get what you vote for. And since America has voted like "stupid" lemmings we are in the mess we are in.

It's historically typical banter and style for the Repugnicants to lie, cheat and steal their way into office to which they fuck shit up during their tenure. Then the democrats come in with the need to raise taxes to save our country from the demise that a previous term(s) of Repugnicants have done. The people come to not see this as saving anything, then get irritated at the situation as soon as the Repugnicants begin again to lie, cheat and steal with mis/disinformation which eventually gets them back in to the White House to do the same shit all over again.

If more of our country learned to and actually read, people would begin to learn about history and the nations ills and why we are where we are at, and just why the rest of the world thinks so lowly of our people.

It is a sad Catch 22, and unless our educational system gets better funding and teachers to educate our decreasing graduating populace, we will continue the degrading of this great country to become the next Rome.

I do have optimism that Obama will rise and the people will wake up in time, in order to help turn a new page in this country's history. If this does not happen in the next 60 days, and our lemmings once again vote "stupid" and we inaugurate the McCant/Pain ticket I then feel that this country has had its last leg...We can see that, more or less of, the rest of the world is hoping that Obama come into office based on the many responses here, the showing in Germany, and more.

The current administration has been pondering their legacy in these last months as they begin to see their exit. What to put into their libraries and such. Maybe these guys just shouldn't have a library, since do to their FAILED "no child left behind" education plan, that has left more uneducated people to our society who can't read what will be in the library anyway...The fact that they should ponder is that they have plundered this country into the ground, continue to run it further into bankruptcy with the bank bailouts by the taxpayer monies, and left it to the dogs, without caring a bit and the world knows it. All the while smiling straight into our faces...Worse than that, the world know that we as an American populace watched it all happen, did nothing during the demise to stop their carnage. That is a shame!

As an American, I feel the urge to apologize to the world for the past 8 years. But, since the beginning of even the thought that Bush/Dick would be in office I have screamed as much as possible for that NOT to happen...but it did. The fact that it did, I apologize for that. Perhaps I didn't scream loud enough?!

At any rate, Obama will come in and begin to clean things up. Perhaps doing well enough for eight years. While we have a Democratic house and Senate we can really make some needed changes to help put not only this country back on a civilized track, but put us inline with the rest of the world to help turn the global community into a cohesive unit that can begin to make the needed changes that the world needs in order to survive. We are at a crucial moment in our planet history and if we do not heed the call not only will this modern Rome die, but it just might take this blue marble down with it...

Vote Obama/Biden for real change, not the fake change filled with lies, deceit, greed and oligarchy!

I guess I'm done for the day...

Just trying to get things straight...

With all of the different lies and misdeceptions and disinformation I am hoping to clear up all of the political madness…

Let me see if I have this straight…..

* If you grow up in Hawaii, raised by your grandparents, you’re ‘exotic, different.’
* If you grow up in Alaska eating moose burgers, you’re a quintessential American story.

* If your name is Barack, you’re a radical, unpatriotic Muslim.
* If you name your kids Willow, Trig and Track, you’re a maverick.

* If you graduate from Harvard law School, you are unstable.
* If you attend 5 different small colleges before graduating, you’re well grounded.

* If you spend 3 years as a brilliant community organizer, become the first black President of the Harvard Law Review, create a voter registration drive that registers 150,000 new voters, spend 12 years as a Constitutional Law professor, spend 8 years as a State Senator representing a district with over 750,000 people, become chairman of the state Senate’s Health and Human Services committee, spend 4 years in the United States Senate representing a state of 13 million people while sponsoring 131 bills and serving on the Foreign Affairs, Environment and Public Works and Veteran’s Affairs committees, you don’t have any real leadership experience.
* If your total resume is: local weather girl, 4 years on the city council and 6 years as the mayor of a town with less than 7,000 people, 20 months as the governor of a state with only 650,000 people, then you’re qualified to become the country’s second highest ranking executive.

* If you have been married to the same woman for 19 years while raising 2 beautiful daughters, all within Protestant churches, you’re not a real Christian.
* If you cheated on your first wife with a rich heiress, and left your disfigured wife and married the heiress the next month, you’re a Christian.

* If you teach responsible, age appropriate sex education, including the proper use of birth control, you are eroding the fiber of society.
* If, while governor, you staunchly advocate abstinence only, with no other option in sex education in your state’s school system, while your unwed teen daughter ends up pregnant , you’re very responsible.

* If your wife is a Harvard graduate lawyer who gave up a position in a prestigious law firm to work for the betterment of her inner city community, then gave that up to raise a family, your family’s values don’t represent America’s.
* If you’re husband is nicknamed ‘First Dude’, with at least one DWI conviction and no college education, who didn’t register to vote until age 25 and once was a member of a group that advocated the secession of Alaska from the USA, your family is extremely admirable.

OK, *much* clearer now.

I wish our press core would get a backbone and simply ask the relevant policy questions to which then all of the personality doodoo would get answered in its appropriate due time (fast) and without all of the fluff that covers everything. But, then we would find the truth so revealing that there would then be no need for a vote. The Repugnicants did quite well with their lies and disinformation during the Bush campaigns, but this is rediculous. If we can see all of the shit that is being thrown around this time the the Repugnicants, what does that show us that would take place in their White House…?

Just get to the basics and the rest will easily take care of itself. Obama and Biden can certainly stand on their own when it is against the truth for both campaign rivals.

Maybe the corporate press will get a backbone someday…

Deepak Chopra on Obama and the Palin Effect

by Deepak Chopra


Sometimes politics has the uncanny effect of mirroring the national psyche even when nobody intended to do that. This is perfectly illustrated by the rousing effect that Gov. Sarah Palin had on the Republican convention in Minneapolis this week. On the surface, she outdoes former Vice President Dan Quayle as an unlikely choice, given her negligent parochial expertise in the complex affairs of governing. Her state of Alaska has less than 700,000 residents, which reduces the job of governor to the scale of running one-tenth of New York City. By comparison, Rudy Giuliani is a towering international figure. Palin’s pluck has been admired, and her forthrightness, but her real appeal goes deeper.

She is the reverse of Barack Obama, in essence his shadow, deriding his idealism and turning negativity into a cause for pride. In psychological terms the shadow is that part of the psyche that hides out of sight, countering our aspirations, virtue, and vision with qualities we are ashamed to face: anger, fear, revenge, violence, selfishness, and suspicion of “the other.” For millions of Americans, Obama triggers those feelings, but they don’t want to express them. He is calling for us to reach for our higher selves, and frankly, that stirs up hidden reactions of an unsavory kind. (Just to be perfectly clear, I am not making a verbal play out of the fact that Sen. Obama is black. The shadow is a metaphor widely in use before his arrival on the scene.) I recognize that psychological analysis of politics is usually not welcome by the public, but I believe such a perspective can be helpful here to understand Palin’s message. In her acceptance speech Gov. Palin sent a rousing call to those who want to celebrate their resistance to change and a higher vision
Look at what she stands for:

* Small town values — a nostaligic return to simpler times disguises a denial of America’s global role, a return to petty, small-minded parochialism.
* Ignorance of world affairs — a repudiation of the need to repair America’s image abroad.
* Family values — a code for walling out anybody who makes a claim for social justice. Such strangers, being outside the family, don’t need to be needed.
* Rigid stands on guns and abortion — a scornful repudiation that these issues can be negotiated with those who disagree.
* Patriotism — the usual fallback in a failed war.
* ”Reform” — an italicized term, since in addition to cleaning out corruption and excessive spending, one also throws out anyone who doesn’t fit your ideology.

Palin reinforces the overall message of the reactionary right, which has been in play since 1980, that social justice is liberal-radical, that minorities and immigrants, being different from “us” pure American types, can be ignored, that progressivism takes too much effort and globalism is a foreign threat. The radical right marches under the banners of “I’m all right, Jack,” and “Why change? Everything’s OK as it is.” The irony, of course, is that Gov. Palin is a woman and a reactionary at the same time. She can add mom to apple pie on her resume, while blithely reversing forty years of feminist progress. The irony is superficial; there are millions of women who stand on the side of conservatism, however obviously they are voting against their own good. The Republicans have won multiple national elections by raising shadow issues based on fear, rejection, hostility to change, and narrow-mindedness

Obama’s call for higher ideals in politics can’t be seen in a vacuum. The shadow is real; it was bound to respond. Not just conservatives possess a shadow — we all do. So what comes next is a contest between the two forces of progress and inertia. Will the shadow win again, or has its furtive appeal become exhausted? No one can predict. The best thing about Gov. Palin is that she brought this conflict to light, which makes the upcoming debate honest. It would be a shame to elect another Reagan, whose smiling persona was a stalking horse for the reactionary forces that have brought us to the demoralized state we are in. We deserve to see what we are getting, without disguise.

Who is Sarah Palin?

This letter from Anne Kilkenny was written to some family members and a few friends on her knowledge of Sarah Palin as Anne is a resident and local of the same small town of Palin and has known her since 1992.

Since the release of this letter she has been interviewed by the NY Times, NPR, and other news organizations regarding this famed letter. We have included it in its entirety below.

******

Dear friends,

So many people have asked me about what I know about Sarah Palin in the
last 2 days that I decided to write something up . . .

Basically, Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton have only 2 things in
common: their gender and their good looks. :)

You have my permission to forward this to your friends/email contacts
with my name and email address attached, but please do not post it on
any websites, as there are too many kooks out there . . .

Thanks,
Anne


About Sarah Palin:
I think that one of the great things America and western democracies have contributed to the world is the ability to distinguish between disliking someone and disagreeing. We all need to work toward being able to agree to disagree. I like Sarah Palin. I disagree with her.

I wrote this letter to friends and family on August 31. It has since circulated throughout the Web.

About Sarah Palin
I am a resident of Wasilla, Alaska. I have known Sarah since 1992. Everyone here knows Sarah, so it is nothing special to say we are on a first-name basis. Our children have attended the same schools. Her father was my child's favorite substitute teacher. I also am on a first name basis with her parents and mother-in-law. I attended more city council meetings during her administration than about 99% of the residents of the city.

She is enormously popular; in every way she's like the most popular girl in middle school. Even men who think she is a poor choice and won't vote for her can't quit smiling when talking about her because she is a "babe."

It is astonishing and almost scary how well she can keep a secret. She kept her most recent pregnancy a secret from her children and parents for seven months.

She is pro-life. She recently gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby. There is no cover-up involved, here; Trig is her baby.

She is energetic and hardworking. She regularly worked out at the gym.

She is savvy. She doesn't take positions; she just puts things out there and if they prove to be popular, then she takes credit.

Her husband works a union job on the North Slope for BP and is a champion snowmobile racer. Todd Palin's kind of job is highly sought-after because of the schedule and high pay. He arranges his work schedule so he can fish for salmon in Bristol Bay for a month or so in summer, but by no stretch of the imagination is fishing their major source of income. Nor has her lifestyle ever been anything like that of native Alaskans.

Sarah and her whole family are avid hunters.

She's smart.

Her experience is as mayor of a city with a population of about 5,000 (at the time), and less than two years as governor of a state with about 670,000 residents.

During her mayoral administration most of the actual work of running this small city was turned over to an administrator. She had been pushed to hire this administrator by party power brokers after she had gotten herself into some trouble over precipitous firings, which had given rise to a recall campaign.

Sarah campaigned in Wasilla as a "fiscal conservative." During her six years as mayor, she increased general government expenditures by over 33%. During those same six years, the amount of taxes collected by the city increased by 38%. This was during a period of low inflation (1996-2002). She reduced progressive property taxes and increased a regressive sales tax, which even taxed food. The tax cuts that she promoted benefited large corporate property owners way more than they benefited residents.

The huge increases in tax revenues during her mayoral administration weren't enough to fund everything on her wish list though. Borrowed money was needed, too. She inherited a city with zero debt, but left it with indebtedness of over $22 million. What did Mayor Palin encourage the voters to borrow money for? Was it the infrastructure that she said she supported? The sewage treatment plant that the city lacked? Or a new library? No. $1 million for a park. $15 million-plus for construction of a multi-use sports complex, which she rushed through to build on a piece of property that the city didn't even have clear title to. That was still in litigation seven years later -- to the delight of the lawyers involved! The sports complex itself is a nice addition to the community but a huge money pit, not the profit generator she claimed it would be. She also supported bonds for $5.5 million for road projects that could have been done in 5-7 years without any borrowing.

While mayor, city hall was extensively remodeled and her office redecorated more than once.

These are small numbers, but Wasilla is a very small city.

As an oil producer, the high price of oil has created a budget surplus in Alaska. Rather than invest this surplus in technology that will make us energy independent and increase efficiency, as governor she proposed distribution of this surplus to every individual in the state.

In this time of record state revenues and budget surpluses, she recommended that the state borrow and bond for road projects, even while she proposed distribution of surplus state revenues: spend today's surplus, borrow for needs.

She's not very tolerant of divergent opinions or open to outside ideas or compromise. As mayor, she fought ideas that weren't generated by her or her staff. Ideas weren't evaluated on their merits, but on the basis of who proposed them.

While Sarah was mayor of Wasilla, she tried to fire our highly respected city librarian because the librarian refused to consider removing from the library some books that Sarah wanted removed. City residents rallied to the defense of the city librarian and against Palin's attempt at out-and-out censorship, so Palin backed down and withdrew her termination letter. People who fought her attempt to oust the librarian are on her enemies list to this day.

Sarah complained about the "old boy's club" when she first ran for mayor, so what did she bring Wasilla? A new set of "old boys." Palin fired most of the experienced staff she inherited. At the city and as governor she hired or elevated new, inexperienced, obscure people, creating a staff totally dependent on her for their jobs and eternally grateful and fiercely loyal -- loyal to the point of abusing their power to further her personal agenda, as she has acknowledged happened in the case of pressuring the state's top cop (see below).

As mayor, Sarah fired Wasilla's police chief because he "intimidated" her, she told the press. As governor, her recent firing of Alaska's top cop has the ring of familiarity about it. He served at her pleasure and she had every legal right to fire him, but it's pretty clear that an important factor in her decision to fire him was that he wouldn't fire her sister's ex-husband, a state trooper. Under investigation for abuse of power, she has had to admit that more than two dozen contacts were made between her staff and family to the person that she later fired, pressuring him to fire her ex-brother-in-law. She tried to replace the man she fired with a man who she knew had been reprimanded for sexual harassment; when this caused a public furor, she withdrew her support.

She has bitten the hand of every person who extended theirs to her in help. The city council person who personally escorted her around town, introducing her to voters when she first ran for Wasilla City Council, became one of her first targets when she was later elected Mayor. She abruptly fired her loyal city administrator; even people who didn't like the guy were stunned by this ruthlessness.

Fear of retribution has kept all of these people from saying anything publicly about her.

When then-Governor Murkowski was handing out political plums, Sarah got the best, chair of the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation Commission: one of the few jobs not in Juneau and one of the best paid. She had no background in oil and gas issues. Within months of scoring this great job, which paid $122,400 per year, she was complaining in the press about the high salary. I was told that she hated that job: the commute, the structured hours, the work. Sarah became aware that a member of this commission (who was also the state chair of the Republican Party) engaged in unethical behavior on the job. In a gutsy move, which some undoubtedly cautioned her could be political suicide, Sarah solved all her problems in one fell swoop: got out of the job she hated and garnered gobs of media attention as the patron saint of ethics and as a gutsy fighter against the "old boys' club" when she dramatically quit, exposing this man's ethics violations (for which he was fined).

As mayor, she had her hand stuck out as far as anyone for pork from Senator Ted Stevens. Lately, she has castigated his pork-barrel politics and publicly humiliated him. She only opposed the "bridge to nowhere" after it became clear that it would be unwise not to.

As governor, she gave the legislature no direction and budget guidelines, then made a big grandstand display of line-item vetoing projects, calling them pork. Public outcry and further legislative action restored most of these projects -- which had been vetoed simply because she was not aware of their importance -- but with the unobservant she had gained a reputation as "anti-pork."

She is solidly Republican: no political maverick. The state party leaders hate her because she has bit them in the back and humiliated them. Other members of the party object to her self-description as a fiscal conservative.

Around Wasilla there are people who went to high school with Sarah. They call her "Sarah Barracuda" because of her unbridled ambition and predatory ruthlessness. Before she became so powerful, very ugly stories circulated around town about shenanigans she pulled to be made point guard on the high school basketball team. When Sarah's mother-in-law, a highly respected member of the community and experienced manager, ran for mayor, Sarah refused to endorse her.

As governor, she stepped outside of the box and put together a package of legislation known as AGIA, which forced the oil companies to march to the beat of her drum.

Like most Alaskans, she favors drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. She has questioned if the loss of sea ice is linked to global warming. She campaigned "as a private citizen" against a state initiative that would have either a) protected salmon streams from pollution from mines, or b) tied up in the courts all mining in the state (depending on who you listen to). She has pushed the state's lawsuit against the Department of the Interior's decision to list polar bears as threatened species.

McCain is the oldest person to ever run for president; Sarah will be a heartbeat away from being president.

There have to be literally millions of Americans who are more knowledgeable and experienced than her.

However, there's a lot of people who have underestimated her and are regretting it.

Claim vs. Fact


* "Hockey mom:" true for a few years.

* "PTA mom:" true years ago when her first-born was in elementary school, not since.

* "NRA supporter:" absolutely true.

* Social conservative: mixed. Opposes gay marriage, but vetoed a bill that would have denied benefits to employees in same-sex relationships. (Said she did this because it was unconstitutional.)

* Pro-creationism: mixed. Supports it, but did nothing as governor to promote it.

* "Pro-life:" mixed. Knowingly gave birth to a Down's syndrome baby, but declined to call a special legislative session on some pro-life legislation.

* "Experienced:" Some high schools have more students than Wasilla has residents. Many cities have more residents than the state of Alaska. No legislative experience other than city council. Little hands-on supervisory or managerial experience; needed help of a city administrator to run town of about 5,000.

* Political maverick: not at all.

* Gutsy: absolutely!

* Open and transparent: ??? Good at keeping secrets. Not good at explaining actions.

* Has a developed philosophy of public policy: no.

* "A greenie:" no. Turned Wasilla into a wasteland of big box stores and disconnected parking lots. Is pro-drilling off-shore and in ANWR.

* Fiscal conservative: not by my definition!

* Pro-infrastructure: no. Promoted a sports complex and park in a city without a sewage treatment plant or storm drainage system. Built streets to early 20th century standards.

* Pro-tax relief: lowered taxes for businesses, but increased tax burden on residents

* Pro-small government: no. Oversaw greatest expansion of city government in Wasilla's history.

* Pro-labor/pro-union: no. Just because her husband works union doesn't make her pro-labor. I have seen nothing to support any claim that she is pro-labor/pro-union.

Why Am I Writing This?
First, I have long believed in the importance of being an informed voter. I am a voter registrar. For 10 years I put on student voting programs in the schools. If you Google my name, you will find references to my participation in local government, education, and PTA/parent organizations.

Secondly, I've always operated in the belief that bad things happen when good people stay silent. Few people know as much about Palin as I do because few have gone to as many city council meetings.

Third, I am just a housewife. I don't have a job she can bump me out of. I don't belong to any organization that she can hurt. But, I am no fool; she is immensely popular here, and it is likely that this will cost me somehow in the future. That's life.

Fourth, she has hated me since back in 1996, when I was one of the 100 or so people who rallied to support the city librarian against Sarah's attempt at censorship.

Fifth, I looked around and realized that everybody else was afraid to say anything because they were somehow vulnerable.

Caveats
I am not a statistician. I developed the numbers for the increase in spending and taxation two years ago (when Palin was running for governor) from information supplied to me by the finance director of the city of Wasilla, and I can't recall exactly what I adjusted for: did I adjust for inflation? For population increases? Right now, it is impossible for a private person to get any info out of city hall -- they are swamped. So I can't verify my numbers.

You may have noticed that there are various numbers circulating for the population of Wasilla, ranging from my "about 5,000" up to 9,000. The day Palin's selection was announced a city official told me that the current population is about 7,000. The official 2000 census count was 5,460. I have used about 5,000 because Palin was mayor from 1996 to 2002, and the city was growing rapidly in the mid-90s.


Anne Kilkenny
August 31, 2008

Come on are you serious?!

Sarah Palin? No offense Sarah, but I feel for you to accept this position is a slap in the face of the people of this country. Perhaps spending a little more time in the political and public arena would be a better move before taking on this position. I do want a woman to be in the White House, but one with some experience. Shit!

When I was listening to this yesterday on NPR I was nearly driving off the road with amazement that this was even taking place. The idea that this hockey mom (no offense to women, but this country needed a woman with some Washington experience not simply experience of being a woman) is ready to go Saudi Arabia or Iran or Darfur and Congo, and deal with the highly political needs of the world and this country and representing the most powerful country on the planet, if John McCain becomes John McCant due to death or sickness, this is a travesty. I am not Republican, but if I were I would be shamed and change my party. This is such a slap in the face to this country and what it means to the job of President or Vice President of the United States. I must say, though, that from political posturing, it is a fairly good move. But this shows a lack of regard for the respect of this country and the power of the position that this is to be filled. A major slap of disrespect to the people of this country due to that.

The fact that the Repugnicants are using her down syndrome child as a point of character for her is another sorry case for this election process. With so many other parents throughout the US that have a Down child, does this make them capable of being in the VP position? They are soccer moms, too!? They have written checks at the grocery store and balance their family checkbook, too! Shit, even McCain doesn’t do that and he’s going for president.

Her being governor for only 18 months of the state of Alaska, and she is already being investigated for misuse of her power makes her a perfect Republican candidate. She is right in there with her party for sure on that!

At least, it was four years ago, when the Democrats introduced Obama to the world stage at the previous convention to which he gave a speech that blew everyone away. Then he went on to be a part of global politics in the Senate. What he stated then, and what he stated the other night exemplifies his passion for this country and the people. This is simply an act that represents this party’s passion for themselves.

Her background in politics is so short it is a joke to this system for the assumption that she is ready for this position. I’m sure that behind closed doors there was a payoff of some sort to her family that she do this, step into the background and shut the hell up. For the Repugnicants to put a woman in power and for her to assume that she will have any power from this party is a joke. Anonz, a republican blog participant from my favorite blog, A Day in the Life... has given us quite the background on these issues previously.

I am blown away by this action. If the public makes this one happen there is literally no more help for this country. The lemmings of thoughtless or no common sensed voting practices of this country will certainly put this country to shame throughout the world to a point to which it will take generations to repair.

What Obama said, that this isn’t about him and it was about the public, should be the mantra at this point forward. What the Repugnicants are doing here is what Bush has done for 8 years is slap everyone in the face while laughing at us as he and the party cronies and elitists have their way with this country and world at everyone else’s expense while the public smiles, bends over, and takes the repugnicants “desired to be” big one up the ass!

This is probably the saddest moment in our country’s history!