Bad Politician! Bad, Bad, Politician!

Whoa! I don't know just what crawled into Ms. Parker's knickers, but she has a devilish itch for - something:

Undoubtedly and understandably, Palin is weary of the fray. The crucial turning point was the attacks on her family. No one can honestly make the case that the Palins didn't take more heat than other public families. That said, it isn't difficult to avoid media attention. All one has to do is go to Alaska and stay put. But Palin, like the giddy Icarus, seems drawn to heat and light.

Yeah!

If you don't like seeing your family savaged, investigated, smeared in every tabloid (and many tabloidish-conventional papers) - well, missy, you just get yourself back to Obscurity, AK, ASAP!

Christians and the Golden Rule

As usual, Francis Porretto knocks one out of the ballpark.

A short excerpt:

1. "Do Unto Others As You Would Have Them Do Unto You."

This is one of the most important things Jesus said during His time on Earth. It's also the most inaccurately applied.

How is Smith to know how Jones would like Smith to treat him? Is he to proceed solely from Jones's words, or is there "a more reliable authority?"

I would go by Jones's actions. An honest man's words and deeds will run in concert. A dishonest man will lie with his lips but speak truth with his hands. When words and actions disagree, the better course is to trust the actions.

For some years, the actions of the Left have been entirely aggressive and venal. Leftists are uninterested in rational discourse; they want power and will do whatever it takes to get it. Since the opposed movement of the Right is founded on rational discourse, they silence us when they can and shout us down when they can't. Since we're taught to respect the established "rules of the game," they seek to write the rules in a fashion that will predetermine our defeat. When that's not possible, they position themselves as enforcers, but with a blind eye toward offenses by their own camp and an infinite readiness to assume the worst about ours. When one of ours becomes prominent, and starts to win the admiration of the body politic, their jackals swarm around him and nip at his flanks until loss of blood should bring him down.

That's the way they treat us. Why not use the Golden Rule's inferential power? Why not conclude that it's how they'd like us to treat them?

This all started with a post about how to respond to the savaging of Sarah Palin.

It's not about vengeance; it's about the well-verified history of bullies. If you don't respond, they don't think "WOW! A Christian acts in this gentle way - I know, I'll do the same."

Instead, the bully thinks "WOW! A patsy! I can do anything, and they won't defend themselves or others." And then, the bully proceeds to beat up on everyone in sight.

Until someone hits back. The bully then whines "you HIT me! I can't believe that a Christian would HIT someone! You're not a real Christian! You don't follow the Golden Rule."

Today Show interview with Sarah Palin

I caught the video of the show; Sarah came off very well, I thought. Matt appeared to imply that Sarah owed Letterman an apology for implying that her daughter was not safe around him.

I not only disagreed, I contacted the Today show (do so, also, would you?) about Matt's evident bias.

Check out the interview yourself.

Hit Letterman Where It Hurts!

Follow this link for instructions on how to contact David Letterman's sponsors.

Why is this so important? After all, it was just a thoughtless joke.

No, it wasn't. Here's the chronology:

First, he made the original "jokes".



Then, he continued the Palin daughters' trashing the next day, by suggesting that Bristol Palin is a prostitute.



Here's his "apology" - I put the word in quotes, because he never apologized, just excused himself for targeting the "wrong" Palin daughter.



In these hard economic times for all media outlets, the last thing they can afford is an advertiser boycott. I strongly suggest anyone reading this start writing to the sponsors - information about how to contact them, and who to send letters/phone calls to, is at the top of this post.

When even the notoriously leftist and anti-Republican N.O.W. is offended, you know you've stepped over the line.


Further contact information is at Conservatives4Palin.

BTW, no, I am not a supporter of Palin for President. I think she has some work to do before she might be a choice - she is too new to the national stage. OTOH, she apparently has been an effective (and honest) governor, which might make her a reasonable candidate in the future - NOT 2012. My only concern now is to keep these vicious, partisan attacks on politicians' families from spreading.

Slo-Mo Day

I'm lounging around this morning, thoroughly enjoying NOT having to get up early.

I'm on my own this morning - DH is in Cleveland, visiting his doctor. As the air fare was too much (more than $350, one way), I opted to stay in SC by myself. While I enjoy the company most of the time, every once in a while, it's fun to give in to total selfishness, and eat what I want, sleep when I want, and, generally, do anything I please.

One thing I enjoy is NOT having the TV on. On my own, I either have nothing, or some jazz on the radio (often Internet radio - I'm especially fond of the Pandora station). I have my own stations - Billie Holliday, Miles Davis, and Jazz Fusion.

I've been reading Ari Kaufman of the Pajamas Media, who is analyzing the chances of the swing states swinging for Obama. I was struck by a phrasing I've noticed in many commentators, on TV, radio, newspaper, and Internet: he talks about Obama, but then uses the phrase McCain/Palin.

Think about it - Palin is considered influential enough to be an integral part of the ticket, mentioned in one breath. So, Obama, as planned by McCain, is running against 2 people - no wonder he looks tired lately.

Has anyone noticed they almost never mention Biden the same way?

The VP Debate

Just finished watching the VP debate, and Palin looked good. Smiling, confident, able to think on her feet.

Michelle Malkin thinks Joe Biden looked tired. I guess, thinking about it, he did.

What I really want to know is, did Biden have advance warning of the last question?

Ifill: Can you think of a single issue that you were faced to change because of changed circumstances?

Palin's answer was OK, citing her desire to have made greater budget cuts, but admitting she had made some necessary compromises. She finished by saying she hadn't compromised on major principles.

But, Joe?

Biden has a ready answer. He’s talking about a judicial pick, cites his opposition to Robert Bork…cites his judiciary committee chairmanship.

I'm sorry, that question was not one I'd have expected him to have anticipated. Did he have advance warning of it? His answer was way too ready.

PBS Poll on Palin

Go over and hook a sista' up, would you?

Even with the leftward bias on PBS, Palin is comfortably on the positive side.

The Passport Issue

Whoops! Forgot to mention the link that took me to the article that prompted this post - Kim du Toit.
http://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gif
I've been reading criticism about Sarah Palin for the last few days, and one that I just don't understand is the fact that she didn't even possess a passport until a few years ago.

Neither did I, until this year. I didn't need one. I traveled to Canada & Mexico before passports were required. This year, to attend a meeting of the American Association of Physics Teachers, in Edmonton, CA, I finally went through the process - it wasn't cheap ($ 85), and it took 2 trips to the county courthouse.

This isn't Europe - y'all can travel quite a distance without ever entering another country. In that travel, you can cross climate zones, go from below sea level to a mile above, see plains, savannahs, mountains, valleys, seashores, deserts - the range of terrains is broad - and mix among residents speaking a variety of languages - most of them English, in all the varied dialects we Americans use.

So, what's so magical about a passport? I think it stems from the Bad Old Days, when a properly educated university graduate would cap off that education, before taking his rightful place as Lord of the Manor, with a European tour. Discussion of travel abroad is a way of verifying that a newcomer is One of Us - the elite who have the time and money to aimlessly wander.

I doubt that Sarah had those luxuries - especially after she married and had kids. The point is, when she needed to get a passport, to do her job, she did.

Aside from using his travels to sneer at America, and bask in the glow of foreign players, what has Obama done with his passport?

Has he initiated new legislation? No.

Has he negotiated foreign policy? No.

Has he stood up to human rights violations? No.

Has he used his pulpit in foreign countries to promote the interests of American? No.

Having that passport didn't seem to be all that useful for him, or for the country, did it?

Blogs for Borders Blogburst

Jake takes a lookhttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifs at Sarah Palin's position on immigration.

This is really getting tiresome.

Found this link on Sexism Watch (ya gotta bookmark it):

Most women in all occupations, including ones of great power and influence, routinely take maternity leave, a minimum of six weeks. It's considered to be best for the mother and the baby. This is an incredibly important time for mothers and their babies to bond. What does it say about a woman who goes back to work on day three? Is this okay because she brings her baby with her? You cannot care for an infant at the same time you run the state of Alaska. You are either paying attention to the baby or to the state. Multi-tasking is not an asset here.

Have these people not got a CLUE?

Sarah Palin gave birth before her due date - about a month before. It's fair to say that she wasn't completely ready to go on maternity leave. She probably had loose ends to tie up.

So, she did what any responsible person would do if they found themselves unexpectedly sidelined - she took herself into work (probably NOT a full day), and started clearing off her desk. I'm guessing that she did that several times in the first week, then, realizing that she was healing faster that she anticipated, worked shorter hours, but continued going in.

I know about showing up at work while sub-par - I did so this week, still putting in a full day, despite having abdominal cramps, and a queasy stomach.

You do what you have to. You let people know you're not at top performance level, minimize movement and unnecessary activities, and chug along. Fortunately, I have WONDERFUL students this year, so it wasn't too bad. I managed.

Heck, I've worked through bronchitis, laryngitis, a BADLY sprained ankle (massive bruising and swelling - and my job involves a LOT of walking), car accident-caused back damage - happened on the way to school, can't get a sub that late, etc. I'm not unusual. A lot of life's work gets done by people who don't feel well.

Has it occurred to these hot-house flowers that MOMS do their work, whether they feel well - or not?

I'll bet Sarah Palin knows that.

As for that columnist's second point - that the new babe needed his mom. Yeah, duh! That's why Palin and women like me nurse - you have to be there, taking care of the baby. She's lucky to have a large family - unlike the Obamas.

Did you see the kids and husband step up to the plate during the convention? Trig was held in loving arms the entire time. That's what a family does. Any member can sub for another in a pinch (well, except for that nursing mother thing).

Wasn't that the feminist ideal?

Before they lost their way.