If you missed it, Alaska’s Mount Redoubt had a number of large eruptions over the last week. There are a number of awe inspiring photos of the event you should take a look at.
Make sure you page down and look at photographs 20, 21 ,22… 27 looks like a Rorschach test. What do you see in that picture?
While out reading financial news of the day, I happened to find an article quoting a Russian Professor, Igor Panarin. He is expecting the U.S. to break up into separate nations due to the financial climate facing the U.S. and world economies (kinda sound like Gerald Celente, no?).
Ok, more doom and gloom much like everything else going around these days. Nothing new. While I cannot find any background on Professor Igor Panarin he lost me with the following:
“we could claim Alaska - it was only granted on lease, after all.”
Sorry, Alaska was purchased – not leased. At least he’s not predicting that all front yards will be turned into gardens by the year 2000. Who know, maybe he’s drinking some vodka poisoned by Chernobyl.
Have you had a moment to read the New York Times article discussing the birth of Palin’s son, Trig? Personally, I think the title of the article is misleading as the story really isn’t about Politics; it’s about Sarah as a mother.
There are three things that really stand out in this piece:
But as the governor introduced her son that day, according to a friend, Kristan Cole, she said she had come to regard him as a blessing from God. “Who of us in this room has the perfect child?”
And
But her son has given Ms. Palin, 44, a powerful message. Other candidates kiss strangers’ babies; Ms. Palin has one of her own. He is tangible proof of Ms. Palin’s anti-abortion convictions, which have rallied social conservatives, and her belief that women can balance family life with ambitious careers.
And
Inside Ms. Palin’s room, her daughter Willow, 14, immediately noticed her new brother’s condition, according to People magazine. “He looks like he has Down syndrome,” Willow said. “Why didn’t you tell us?”
This article really makes her look… human, not a politician.
She is willing to accept the flaws in her child, as a mother would. She is balancing life and career, as any FAMILY would. She is protective of her family, as any good parent should be. To me the above shows Ms. Palin as a mother, not as a politician, and this, I believe, is what really helps her connect with both men and women alike.
How does one politically combat this? I mean to say, if this is a driving factor in why someone is voting or connecting to the McCain / Palin ticket, do you attack her for being a mother and Vice President? That would be sexist in every sense. Do you attack her for having a Down Syndrome child? Who are her political opponents to question what is best for her family.
This is the big issue Democrats have to face and it will be interesting to see how they attack it.
I’ve been holding off, no, ignoring, the “story” about Sarah Palin having an affair with her husband’s business partner. Why? Because there was nothing, NOTHING, more than speculation on the part of… well… everyone.
Here is the quick back story - Scott Richter, a Palin business partner, filed a sealing motion in Alaska Court to have his divorce records sealed. All of a sudden some members of the left think Sarah Palin MUST have been the cause. I mean, why else would someone want to have his or her court records sealed?
Left leaning bloggers kept asking the question “why won’t the media pay attention to this story”? Easy, it wasn’t a story. Thus far there is zero proof that anything illegal or questionable has happen. Melissa Clouthier can point us to the answer, which was uncovered by thesmokingun.com:
According to the filing, Richter wanted the documents deemed confidential in a bid to cloak details about his home, workplace, and phone numbers because “reporters and news agencies” were using that information to contact him.
Running for public office, especially on a national level, must be an incredibly stressful event. I cannot even image what Palin and her family is experiencing on a daily basis because of this. You can find photoshopped pictures of her on the Web, rumors of her having an affair, false claims about her daughter…I wonder what the next thing will be… We will have to wait but I think we can call this one closed.
I have a fear - the Cult of Palin.
In the press, around the blog world, and in the streets people are talking about the performance of Sarah Palin. It seems that the Republican Party has a rock star of its own and now people are basking in the feeling.
Stop.
In less than a week Sarah Palin has been able to refocus and energize the Republican Party. The tone switched from despair to unbridled enthusiasm and, all of a sudden, it seems that anything is possible.
It is.
It is, only if you don’t lose site of the goal. My fear is the Party gets so wrapped up with Sarah that John McCain is lost in the background. Remember, this isn’t about electing her President.
What this really comes down to is translating the emotional, and political, capital gained from her speech Thursday night into votes. John McCain, Sarah Palin and the Party need to continue to show why they are the winning ticket and how they will provide change while doing so better than Obama / Biden would. Now McCain/Palin need to sell:
Take the enjoyment and focus it on the cause, winning the election.
Watching Sarah Palin deliver he Republican Nation Convention speech was a thing of beauty. I felt as if I was watching history in the making. After the performance last night, I believe the media will have a difficult time declaring Palin a gimmick. Aside from taking on the attacks of the Democrats and the Media, Palin did something that was lacking, for me, from this election – made a connection to me as a voter.
While I share values that cross party lines, my big complaint of this election, and of the Republican Party, is that I have difficulty connecting to their core belief system these days. The party has turned into a spending power, one that has a hard time describing and clarifying their position, and seems to be growing a bigger government – not smaller. It appears Palin is for smaller government, for giving back to the people, for less frivolous spending and for protecting personal freedom.
Palin doesn’t fit into the current “Republican” definition, the one seen in Washington D.C. today. She is an outsider in today’s political world. I would argue that she is what a Republican truly is, what I want to see in the party, and why I connected with her. But what about others, did they connect?
From the four people I spoke to today, ones who are willing to look beyond their political party, the answer was yes. She inspired and created a sense of community. She connected with these individuals unlike any other Republican candidate this election cycle; however, will that translate to votes? That is yet to be seen. The big problem for John McCain is that he now needs to deliver one hell of a speech tonight.
Other coverage on the net:
Aside from a quick introduction to the world last week, the voting public still hasn’t seen Sarah Palin in action. All of that will change tonight, in prime time no less.
As I previously noted, the reason the attack dog are out is due to the fact that she was a great choice by John McCain. She is someone voters can connect with, she is effective in her position and she has strong family values. Oh, and also, Palin has an extensive public record and, no matter what anyone will tell you, she has more with more executive experience than Barack Obama.
So what if Alaska only has 600,000 people, Alaska’s 2008 operating budget is $11.2 billion. Billion. Furthermore, the state employs roughly 15,000 people. Up until 2004, and this is only because I cannot find records after this period, the most management exposure Obama had as of roughly 700 volunteers and the largest budget was 90 million dollars, which happens to be his current campaign.
How is it that Sarah has no experience yet Obama is qualified to be President?
No, what is going on is the press is focusing on the fact that she is a woman and discounting her accomplishments. The press is holding her to an unfair standard and, tonight, she has the change to truly show who she is and set the record straight. If she manages to pull off a flawless performance she could, potentially, win over a large group of voters.
While doing research for anohter article I am writing, I happend to find a story published by The Weekly Standard, back in July of 2007, on Sarah Palin titled: “The Most Popular Governor - Alaska’s Sarah Palin is the GOP’s newest star“
Take the time to read the article, there is some powerful information (I believe) that speaks to her character.
In the mean time, I am going to continue a bit more research on my next article before I head of to bed.
Much like the residents of 49 of these United States, I know very little about Sarah Palin. My first exposure to her came in April of 2008 when she gave birth to her son Trig who happen to be special needs. The news had coverage of the story, and that she was a rising star within the Republican Party, but I never really gave her much attention after that. Then came Friday, August 29th, 2008.
So, who is she? What does she stand for? What does she believe? I’m very curious…let’s see what we can find out.
The Basics:
Her views:
Controversies:
She is under investigation for the firing of Safety Commissioner Walt Monegan. Palin stated Monegan was released due to not filling vacant state trooper positions, as well as adhering to the budget. Palin offered Monegan a position as executive director of the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Board, which he turned down. Monegan claims he was let go as retaliation for his reluctance to fire Palin’s former brother-in-law, an Alaska State Trooper.
I hope this gives you a good starting point to understand who Sarah Palin is. No doubt, more information will come out within the next 60 days. As it does, I will continue to update.
By now, you may have heard that John McCain picked Sarah Palin for his running mate. Judging by the quick reaction and targeted from the Obama’s team, as well as Democratic supporters, Camp McCain hit a home run with his choice. I am not talking about her qualifications to be the Vice President (more on that when I do research); what I am talking about is purely from a strategy perspective.
Former Clinton adviser Paul Begala says:
“In choosing Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin to be his running mate he is not thinking “outside the box,” as some have said. More like out of his mind…. For months, the McCainiacs have said they will run on his judgment and experience. In his first presidential decision, John McCain has shown he is willing to endanger his country, potentially leaving it in the hands of someone who simply has no business being a heartbeat away from the most powerful, complicated, difficult job in human history.”
“Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama’s campaign on Friday blasted his Republican rival’s choice of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin as a running-mate, highlighting her “zero” foreign policy experience”
“While Palin is a fine person, her lack of experience makes the thought of her assuming the presidency troubling. I particularly look forward to the Biden-Palin debate in Missouri.”
And finally Barbara Boxer:
“The vice president is a heartbeat away from becoming president, so to choose someone with not one hour’s worth of experience on national issues is a dangerous choice.”
Do you notice a pattern with every single criticism of Sarah Palin? They describe Barack Obama exactly. He has no national experience. He is no more politically qualified at this point than she. He is young as well. At least the Republicans have a candidate with the experience running for President, yet the Democrats happen to overlook the fact that their candidate is in the same boat as the Republican’s number two choice. Furthermore, the argument could be made that Sarah Palin has more experience at governing that Obama does.
With a single action John McCain just stole Obama’s thunder and did so without being disrespectful to the Democratic Party (e.g. – announcing his VP choice on the day of Obama’s accepted the nomination). With this choice he also has the press and the general public talking about his campaign, not Obama and the acceptance speech.