Thursday, September 4, 2008

Palin drone

ANCHORAGE, Alaska - Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin told ministry students at her former church that the United States sent troops to fight in the Iraq war on a "task that is from God."
In an address last June, the Republican vice presidential candidate also urged ministry students to pray for a plan to build a $30 billion natural gas pipeline in the state, calling it "God's will."
Palin asked the students to pray for the troops in Iraq, and noted that her eldest son, Track, was expected to be deployed there.
"Our national leaders are sending them out on a task that is from God," she said. "That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that plan is God's plan."
"God's will has to be done in unifying people and companies to get that gas line built, so pray for that," she said.
"I can do my job there in developing our natural resources and doing things like getting the roads paved and making sure our troopers have their cop cars and their uniforms and their guns, and making sure our public schools are funded," she added. "But really all of that stuff doesn't do any good if the people of Alaska's heart isn't right with God."
Funny, I didn’t hear any of that last night during her rousing acceptance speech at the big Republican pep rally. I heard a lot of political rhetoric, which is expected, but none of that God stuff, which doesn’t play well with a prime-time TV audience. We’d rather she picked up her skirt and showed some leg than hear about her religious convictions. It will come out, though because it has to. Hey gang, let’s all pray for that pipeline because that’s what God wants – a big steel tunnel funneling natural gas to the people of America.
Among other things, she spouted on about funding coal and nuclear power, sounding a bit more like Wilma Flintstone than a progressive-thinking candidate. Haven’t we had it with junk from underground? Isn’t it time to start looking over our heads and around us rather than drilling more holes and digging up the Earth? They ate that stuff up.
Then of course, it was family night. She introduced all of her strangely-named children and her husband, the “snow machine racing champion” of Alaska. I’m not sure how I felt about dragging the infant out there. Whenever I go to a big event like a concert or sporting event, I wonder why parents would want to bring infants along. They’re little more than excess baggage, since they aren’t taking a thing in and mostly just whimper, fidget and cry through most of it. In this case, I suppose we needed to get the full effect of the baby with Down’s Syndrome, which is sad I know, but I couldn’t help but feel odd watching him passed back and forth between Sarah, dad and daughter so that one or the other of them could wave to the crowd. Don’t they have nannies in Alaska? I felt sad for the child but if we are using Bristol's pregnancy as a thing we aren't supposed to talk about, then why would the baby matter? He doesn't, which is precisely the point. Wave and smile kids, Mom is on TV.
Then, we were treated to her vast political experience which includes 20 months as the governor of the third least populated state and the mayor of her hometown, which I presume she won by default. That and the fact that we are supposed to elect John McCain president because he was a prisoner of war made for a rousing speech full of applause breaks and timed out so that it overlapped into the 11 o’clock news here on the East Coast. They keep saying (and I keep asking myself why) that McCain’s military experience qualifies him to lead the country.
It’s either short-sighted or naïve. There’s a Hell of a lot more to running this country than leading the military, but we’re being sold this whole “Commander in Chief” deal as though it’s the most important qualification. Maybe we’re being sold that because they don’t have anything else to sell us or they’re trying to distract us from the real issues.
I think that’s why Sarah Palin is here to begin with. She looks good on TV, and for now she’s a media darling. Maybe soon we’ll hear her talking about real issues.

10 comments:

Sparky Duck said...

Something is a tad off kilter about her, she named two of her children the same names as characters from Charmed and Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Anthony said...

Interesting. She is an oddball. I've been reading some things about her administration and it's a little strange.
She fired a librarian because she wasn't a supporter and the "Bridge to Nowhere" that she stopped she originally supported.

The Redskins used to call it the "Misdirection Play."

Anthony said...

For the record, that would be Piper Halliwell (Charmed) and Willow Rosenberg (Buffy).

I can find no record of significant fictional characters named Track, Trig or Bristol. Any help is appreciated.

Anonymous said...

I'm glad you, too, think that the names of Palin's children are strange.
As the rights for naming children in the US seem to be the most liberal in the world, I naively thought that you'd consider the names to be chic.

Thanks for feeling sorry for the dragged-along children. It's amazing that although you don't have children of your own, you get it right.
They're part of the show, I guess: Hey, hand me over a child with Down Syndrome and you'll know what a dedicated, aware person I am.

Anonymous said...

The pun of the caption is great too.

Anthony said...

Ah, finally somebody got it. I was hoping I'd see it in a newspaper headline, but they were too busy kissing her ass all day.

And yes, children and animals derive my greatest sympathies because they cannot defend themselves over the actions of adults.

kimmyk said...

I have seen that Palin-Drone comment a ton today and never understood it. So I googled it and now I get it...

I like her but today I saw a picture of her holding the antlers of some huge ass animal with her son and the snow was covered in blood--totally turned my stomach. I mean i can see those that hunt for survival, to feed their families etc...somehow I can't imagine that's why they shot that animal.

Totally made me sick.

Anthony said...

Wait until you read Friday's post.

Anthony said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

i just want to take her hair, and pull it straight down her head...WTF is up with that BEEHIVE??? I mean she's a quasi pretty woman, and is trying to be "modern" so why be a throw back to 1965??? AND those DAG GONE names of her rugrats!!??? HUH??? Anway, "that's all i have to say about THAT" ...