If you google "Sarah Palin" and "elite", you come up with some interesting results.
For example:
A book on Amazon: "The Persecution of Sarah Palin: How the Elite Media Tried to Bring Down a Rising Star"
A report on MSNBC: "Palin fires back at media, ‘Washington elite’"
And then we also have a short clip on youtube in which Sarah Palin gives her own interpretation of what it is that defines the elite:
A book on Amazon: "The Persecution of Sarah Palin: How the Elite Media Tried to Bring Down a Rising Star"
A report on MSNBC: "Palin fires back at media, ‘Washington elite’"
And then we also have a short clip on youtube in which Sarah Palin gives her own interpretation of what it is that defines the elite:
In Sarah Palin's world, "everyone who thinks that they are, I guess, better than anyone else, that’s my definition of elitism".
Well, let's make a reality check then.
Somebody once said that Sarah Palin doesn't approve of reality and also doesn't approve of satire, so a reality check already feels like a revolutionary act, as far as Sarah Palin is concerned. ;-)
According to a report by ABC News which was published today, Sarah Palin earned about $ 12 million since she resigned as Alaska's Governor in July 2009.
Does this make her part of the "elite"? Well, not necessarily, according to Sarah's own interpretation. So, we have to keep looking.
Coincidentally, there was more fascinating news today. Some clever students at the California State Stanislaus University today discovered in a dumpster parts of Sarah Palin's highly controversial contract with the "Stanislaus Foundation".
Fortunately, it didn't take long for the document to appear on the internet. We just love original documents! :-)
Let's have a look at some highlights from the contract:
1) First-Class flight or private plane: Sarah likes it very comfy!
2. Hotel: Make it "deluxe", baby!
3. A wooden lectern and bendable straws for the lady, please!
4. All Press & Media coverage needs to be pre-approved by Sarah Palin!
5. All questions have to be pre-screened and have ONLY be asked by a moderator! Sarah doesn't like nasty surprises!
6. Any liability? No, thank you!
7. Confidentiality: The lady likes her secrecy, and in case there are some pesky disclosure laws around - can we redact the contract, please, before you give it to the authorities? That's awfully nice, thank you very much!
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Ok, Sarah, I will make it short - listen:
If you...
a) Demand to fly first-class or alternatively per private plane
b) Demand a deluxe hotel
c) Demand an Obama-like wooden lectern and bendable straws that reportedly also Maria Carey loves
d) Demand that all press and media coverage has to be pre-approved by you
e) Demand that all questions have to be pre-screened and have ONLY be asked by a moderator
f) Demand that you will take no liability for nothing whatsoever
g) Demand that your confidentiality ranks higher than state dislosure laws
...then...
...you belong to the "elite", because you think you are better than anyone else!
Congratulations, Sarah Palin!
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UPDATE:
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UPDATE:
A brand-new video has just gone up, and it's truly chilling: California State Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) has given a press conference on the issue Sarah Palin's contract. He finds very, very harsh words for what has happened. Amongst many other things, he calls the shredding of the contract by the Stanislaus Foundation "unconscionable and reprehensible". He says that some people have been "deceiving the state of California and obfuscating" and through their actions bring "the democracy into trouble".
State Senator Yee says that CSU Stanislaus has "thrown their principles out of the window and shredded them".
The University "was shredding the documents that they said they didn't have".
The University first claimed, according to Senator Yee, that "no records are available", and then afterwards the Stanislaus Foundation tried to destroy the contracts.
In the clip, the two female students who found the contract also tell their version of events - very interesting indeed!
This is turning into a major political scandal. Not surprising - when Sarah Palin is involved, bad things are bound to happen. Many people had to learn it the hard way in the past already.
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"CSU Stanislaus Office of the President last week denied public records requests made by Yee and Californians Aware to disclose how much Palin is getting paid for an upcoming speaking engagement as well as documents and correspondence regarding the university’s 50th Anniversary Gala.
The responses from Campus Compliance Officer Gina Leguria state, “The University has no documents that are responsive to your request.”
CSU officials have often declared foundations as separate private entities even though the CSU Stanislaus Foundation is entirely located within the public university:
• the foundation chair is campus president Hamid Shirvani, a state employee who makes upwards of $300,000/year;
• the executive officer, the treasurer, and the secretary of the board are all employees of CSU Stanislaus;
• every staff member listed on the foundation website are CSU Stanislaus employees, with the exception of one;
• the foundation’s website and the Palin Gala website are located at the taxpayer-funded www.csustan.edu;
• the Palin fundraiser solicitation and information line is a university telephone number at the university advancement office;
• the foundation’s offices are housed within the campus administration’s building and fully staffed by university employees;
• the work of the foundation is conducted using CSU Stanislaus email accounts, telephones, computers and other taxpayer-funded resources.
“There is not a fine line or even a blurry line between the foundation and the public university; there is absolutely no line,” said Yee.
Prior to denying the CPRA request by Yee and Californians Aware, CSU Stanislaus officials stated that they could not release Palin’s compensation due to a confidentiality term in her contract. State law, however, specifically prohibits a state or local agency from allowing an outside entity to control the disclosure of information that is otherwise subject to the CPRA. In addition, a 2001 case involving Fresno State required the university to disclose documents they held regarding the operations of their foundation."
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The responses from Campus Compliance Officer Gina Leguria state, “The University has no documents that are responsive to your request.”
CSU officials have often declared foundations as separate private entities even though the CSU Stanislaus Foundation is entirely located within the public university:
• the foundation chair is campus president Hamid Shirvani, a state employee who makes upwards of $300,000/year;
• the executive officer, the treasurer, and the secretary of the board are all employees of CSU Stanislaus;
• every staff member listed on the foundation website are CSU Stanislaus employees, with the exception of one;
• the foundation’s website and the Palin Gala website are located at the taxpayer-funded www.csustan.edu;
• the Palin fundraiser solicitation and information line is a university telephone number at the university advancement office;
• the foundation’s offices are housed within the campus administration’s building and fully staffed by university employees;
• the work of the foundation is conducted using CSU Stanislaus email accounts, telephones, computers and other taxpayer-funded resources.
“There is not a fine line or even a blurry line between the foundation and the public university; there is absolutely no line,” said Yee.
Prior to denying the CPRA request by Yee and Californians Aware, CSU Stanislaus officials stated that they could not release Palin’s compensation due to a confidentiality term in her contract. State law, however, specifically prohibits a state or local agency from allowing an outside entity to control the disclosure of information that is otherwise subject to the CPRA. In addition, a 2001 case involving Fresno State required the university to disclose documents they held regarding the operations of their foundation."
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