A Christian God in the White House?

OzMud posted this video, one of our readers drew my attention to it and I would like to repost it here, adding a couple of videos I put together.



These people would take their beliefs into the White House and promote policies based on them, affecting a great number of people who don't share those beliefs:



They advocate freedom from government when it comes to services and "entitlements." They want to keep government out of people's lives when they need help from the government. But they would have no hesitation in bringing the full force of the government into people's lives when it comes to sexuality and women's wombs.

They would also open the door even wider to the extreme religious fundamentalists who preach that all aspects of society should be infiltrated by their God, a trend started by GW Bush.

Considering that these people "quote" the Constitution ad nauseam, it seems clear that they don't understand it all!

[H/T to Sleuth]

Sarah Palin's religious confusion (and cynical opportunism)

Sarah Palin's love affair with the Star of David is bizarre.

In her 1996 mayoral campaign against John Stein, her former mentor, rumours were circulated that Sarah Palin would be "Wasilla's first Christian mayor," implying that Stein was Jewish. Her campaign used Jew as a "smear" against a Lutheran whose surname sounded Jewish.

Sarah Palin's most consistent religious home has been the Pentecostal church. Though her family left the Wasilla Assembly of God in 2002, just before she launched her campaign for lieutenant governor, Sarah Palin has returned again and again. The now famous prayer to protect her from witchcraft took place during a visit in 2005, three years after Palin's official departure. She returned in June 2008, making reference to that earlier service and crediting the African pastor's prayer with leading her to gubernatorial victory. And when she worked from the state capital, Sarah Palin attended the Juneau Christian Center, an Assemblies of God congregation.

Muthee, on the day he prayed upon Sarah Palin, advocated for Christian bankers and bashed the Jews:

Muthee gave a short speech, during which he advocated that the Christian church should "infiltrate" seven key sectors of society (including business, government, education, and media). During that speech, Muthee claimed that "Israelites" "run the economics" of America.

In June 2008, Sarah Palin addressed the congregation of the Assemblies of God church in Wasilla. She made a reference to Pastor Muthee right at the end of this footage, saying he's bold. [The video is not directly connected to Jews, but I included it because it's a classic.]



A few weeks later, already the Republican VP candidate, Sarah Palin tried to distance herself from the Assemblies of God. She told Katie Couric:

"I don't have a church, I'm not a member of any church. I get to visit a couple of churches in Alaska when I'm home, including one, Wasilla Bible Church."

In mid August 2008 she had attended a talk at the Wasilla Bible Church:

David Brickner, the leader of Jews for Jesus, was invited to speak to the faithful at the Wasilla Bible Church, Sarah Palin's fundamentalist congregation. In his talk at Wasilla on August 17, 2008, with Palin in the audience, Brickner described terrorist attacks on Israelis as God's "judgment of unbelief" on Jews who have not converted to Christianity.

In November 2009, Sarah Palin was interviewed by Barbara Walters:

Walters asked, "Now let's talk about some issues - the Middle East. The Obama Administration does not want Israel to build any more settlements on what they consider Palestinian territory. What is your view on this? " Palin responded, "I disagree with the Obama Administration on that. I believe that, um, the Jewish settlements should be allowed to be expanded upon because the population of Israel is going to grow. More and more Jewish people will be flocking to Israel in the days and weeks and months ahead."

Sarah Palin's views Israel in the context of the Rapture, not as a friend of Israel. As far as she's concerned, a good Jew is a Jew for Jesus.

Another handy accessory:
The crucifix

She uses the Star of David as a fashion accessory, in the same way she used the Israeli flag to decorate her office in Juneau. This screenshot is from footage taken in late February 2008. A few weeks later, in early April, Elan Frank arrived in Juneau to film Sarah ("I don't believe in coincidences") Palin for a documentary. He's Israeli.

Recap: She used Jew as a smear against a political opponent, was prayed over by a guy who wants to get rid of "Israelite" bankers, chose to attend a talk by the leader of Jews for Jesus and seems to believe (reformed) Jews will flock to Israel to be saved.

The following celebrity was lambasted for daring to wear a Star of David to please her boyfriend:

[Sarah Palin will appear at an event with Glenn Beck on October 3. His rally in Israel seems to be running into trouble.]

Dominionism: We should be worried

Reader fromthediagonal suggested highlighting Leah Burton's two excellent posts about Dominionism, written in the light of the events in Norway.

Norwegian Dominionist Slaughters Innocents
Dominionist Ties to Norway Terrorist Clear and Convincing

In the second article, Leah goes to great lengths to explain the use of the term "Dominionism" and how it encompasses many Christian denominations.

Here's a video relating to Sarah Palin, where the goals of the Dominionists are clearly explained:



Pastor Muthee says that they need to infiltrate and influence seven areas of society, but goes on to list only six:

Spiritual, economics, politics, education, the media and the government. Muthee left out the military, but somebody had that covered: US rifle scopes in Iraq and Afghanistan featured bible verse citations.

The plan is clear, but pastor Muthee is only one of the proponents of the takeover of all aspects of society by religious fanatics. There are many others. Donald Rumsfeld exploited George W Bush's evangelical beliefs to further the pro-war agenda, a number of GOP politicians place their religious beliefs at the centre of their policies and one political celebrity wears them as fashion accessories.

These are the public aspects of the infiltration pastor Muthee mentioned in the video. What worries me is the pernicious infiltration that must go on behind the scenes, how several groups trade influence and make deals that have a far reaching effect on ordinary people's lives. Leah Burton's website explores this topic in detail.

[Please read the articles about Sarah Palin and religion on the talk2action website.]

Sarah Palin's god of wealth

Many people believe Sarah Palin is true to her word, that she leads a life dedicated to God. Yes, she does, but the name of her god is Mammon.

It's OK, her chosen church embraces Mammon:

Prosperity theology (also known as prosperity doctrine, the health and wealth gospel, or the prosperity gospel) is a Christian religious belief whose proponents claim has tens of millions of adherents, primarily in the United States, centered on the notion that God provides material prosperity for those he favors. It has been defined by the belief that "Jesus blesses believers with riches" or more specifically as the teaching that "believers have a right to the blessings of health and wealth and that they can obtain these blessings through positive confessions of faith and the 'sowing of seeds' through the faithful payments of tithes and offerings." In the words of journalist Hanna Rosin, the prosperity gospel "is not a clearly defined denomination, but a strain of belief that runs through the Pentecostal Church and a surprising number of mainstream evangelical churches, with varying degrees of intensity." It arose in the United States after World War II championed by Oral Roberts and became particularly popular in the decade of the 1990s.

Sarah Palin stepped up the use of religion as a marketing tool and accessorizes accordingly.

Just to be on the safe side, she sports a Star of David as well.

The God she invokes gives her assurances, the certainty that she was chosen for something special, from being the mother of a child with Down syndrome to leading the country. He also made her very rich.

Many politicians have jumped on the religion bandwagon, seeking power and prosperity.

Is it a coincidence that the very same politicians will go to any lengths to protect the corporations, the modern day personification of Mammon?

What would God and Jesus think?

Yesterday I let my imagination fly and asked what would the Founding Fathers think about being used by unscrupulous politicians and celebrities who peddle a distorted, abridged version of their document.

Today I'll ask the same question, but the aggrieved parties are God and Jesus. Please don't take offense at the sometimes irreverent tone of this post, I'm on God's side on this one.

I'm an atheist, but I take an interest in the bible to help me understand where some people are coming from.

The Old Testament is quite spectacular compared to the New Testament. God didn't mess about when dishing out punishment in the old days. Plagues, people turning into pillars of salt, people suddenly not understanding each other, floods... When God was in a bad mood, he didn't beat about the bush. He lost his patience with the bickering tribes of Israel on a number of occasions and the Egyptians suffered ten different plagues!

The New Testament shows us a mellowed God and he chose to speak through his son Jesus, a very amiable guy. Jesus very seldom lost his temper, but he really took exception to the merchants in the temple. "My house shall be called the house of prayer; but ye have made it a den of thieves."

Now, the GOP and a bunch of people say they speak for God, others speak to God and one even sends out letters from God! Evangelists sell salvation on TV or pretend to give relief to the less fortunate while they line their pockets.

These people are like celebrities who endorse products they wouldn't touch with a barge pole. They themselves don't buy the product they're selling, they don't believe in it. Their actions and their behaviour confirm their lack of belief. They seek to persecute people in the name of Jesus. The things they preach and the values they defend would make Jesus weep.

They're lucky the God of the Old Testament keeps a low profile these days, or they would be punished in very spectacular style. A certain Sarah Palin would have no place to hide for saying that the war in Iraq and her pipeline were ordained by God. "You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not acquit anyone who misuses his name." Oh, and she would be in deep water for casting aspersions on Joe McGinniss: "You shall not bear false witness against your neighbour."





As for Jesus, he would regard them in the same way he did the merchants in the temple: Overturn their tables and oust them for the blasphemous hypocrites they are.

The woman was arrayed in purple...

The constitution and the bible are mere props these opportunists use to further their vicious agenda and fatten their bank accounts.

God and Jesus would not be impressed by what is said and done in their names or how their teachings are distorted and mangled for personal gain, financial or political.

Sometimes I wish I had faith so I could take some comfort in the knowledge that these people are going to rot in hell for all eternity...

Refudiating religious bigots

I received an invitation to join a project aimed at dispelling misconceptions about the Muslim community. I will highlight the project, but the topic also caused me to go into a rant about a number of other things, so bear with me...

The voiceover in this video is directly at odds with the images we see. There are many angry Americans to whom the productive, peaceful Muslim community is invisible.



When Sarah Palin coined the Shakespearean word "refudiate" she showed her profound ignorance and came across as the bigot she is.

Since President Obama took the oath of office (and before that, as a matter of fact), one of the main "insults" aimed at him is that he's a Muslim. It says a lot about these blinkered people that being a Muslim is considered an insult and a threat. The Declaration of Independence refers to a Creator, but doesn't specify a particular entity.

"We hold these truths to be self-evident: That all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness."

All men are created equal, not just white, Christian Americans.

The First Amendment is also quite clear regarding freedom of religion:

Congress shall make no law respecting the establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

The Constitution of the United States doesn't specify the Christian faith as a requirement to serve as President of the country.

Qualifications. The President must be a natural born citizen of the United States, at least 35 years old and a resident of the United States for at least 14 years.

It doesn't mention religion at all. The President could be Jewish, Christian, Bhuddist, Muslim or any other religion. He could be an atheist! If the Constitution protects the rights of all citizens in the free exercize of their religion, I expect it would protect such rights in the case of the President...

Is there an unwritten Amendment to the Constitution that requires the President to be, say, Evangelical? The Tea Party and the likes of Sarah Palin seem to believe so, although Sarah Palin chooses to accessorize depending on which group she thinks she's pandering to: big crucifixes for certain venues, or a big, shiny Star of David for others.

If Sarah Palin is going to dish out signed copies of the Constitution and decorate her bus with images of it, I suggest she takes some time to read and understand it.

This unwritten requirement to serve in public office creates a very divisive and pernicious narrative which has infected the political discourse in the US. Different groups of people are targeted as being the "enemy," some politicians think they have the right to legislate over women's reproductive organs and so on and so forth, all based on certain extreme Christian values.

The reluctance to accept a diverse society is not a problem unique to America. It can be observed around the world, but is more noticeable in affluent countries that attract economic migrants.

We have a couple of choices. We could reject whole sections of the population, as the voiceover in the video suggests, ignoring the actual images that speak for themselves, or we could embrace diversity and coexist in peace, we could celebrate our differences and appreciate the contributions each group makes to the cultural fabric of our countries.

I choose the latter.

And I firmly believe that religion should be left out of politics altogether. Why should the population at large be at the mercy of a particular group of religious zealots and abide by laws that serve their very narrow agenda? Why should wars be started because of religion? Why should certain groups be singled out as enemies of the state? Why should some segments of the population lose their freedom over their own bodies? Why should some beliefs be considered better than others and the views of people who embrace them imposed on the rest of the country?

Where does it stop?


Please find out more about the "My Fellow American" project and add your name to the list of people prepared to fight prejudice and ignorance.

Sarah Palin and gay-hater Lou Engle - Another religious extremist in Sarah's camp - Vanity Fair reports - UPDATE: BREAKING NEWS FROM ALASKA

Vanity Fair today revealed a previously unknown item from Sarah's past: An email from Lou Engle to Sarah, which he sent to her, according to Vanity Fair, "as a last-minute exhortation just before she took the stage for her vice-presidential debate against Joseph Biden on October 2, 2008."

Vanity Fair writer Michael Joseph Gross explains: "The message was handled by Palin’s advisers with a gravity (subject line: “URGENT Fwd: From Lou Engle – Urgent for Sarah to read...”) that suggests it was a message they knew Palin would want to see."

The email reads:

"Dear Sarah,

Many thousands are fasting and praying for you. I know you’ve heard it, but I believe this is an Esther moment in your life. Esther hid her identity until Mordecai challenged her to risk everything for such a time as this. Your identity is “Sarah Barracuda”. Esther removed corruption from the Persian government and Haman fell. She didn’t have experience, she had grace and favor. Sarah, don’t hide your identity tonight. There will be questions given to you that you don’t know, and I have been weeping over you. I believe the Lord would have you be real. If they ask you a question that you don’t know, don’t be ashamed to say: “I don’t have the experience of 30 years of politics like Senator Biden, but what I have is character, truth, and integrity, and I haven’t been seduced by 30 years of political and moral compromise like these men in DC. I believe America is not looking for more knowledge, they are looking for more character and more truth, and that is who I am. I refuse the politics of neutrality. I will stand for the family, I will stand on foundations of truth and this nation will be better for it.

Sarah I’m sure you’re doing this, but take a moment to still yourself before the Lord. The Lord is a shield about you. To those who have no strength, the Lord will show Himself powerful.

Sarah, I could be wrong, but I’ve been praying for five years for an Esther, with dreams of being a Mordecai to that Esther. I believe you’re the one and I think you’re even wearing a life band. Tonight don’t be ashamed to plead for the life of the unborn and all the wounded woman who have gone through this holocaust. You can throw this email away, but I have 50 young people fasting and praying day and night who are shouting tonight: “Grace, grace to you!”

We love you,
Lou Engle"

We all know by now that Sarah Palin is in love with the Queen Esther story. She mentioned it several times in the past, for example in her "Women of Joy" speech in Louisville, Kentucky, in April 2010 (transcript and video on Palingates).

But who exactly is Lou Engle?

He is one of the apostles within the extremist "New Apostolic Reformation" (NAR), and also the founder of an anti-gay and anti-abortion organization called "The Call." Another apostle within the "New Apostolic Reformation" is for example Mary Glazier (video), who also has very strong ties to Sarah Palin. Sarah Palin's infamous witchhunter Thomas Muthee of Kenya is the director of the NAR East Africa Spiritual Warfare Network. See the excellent article by Bill Berkowitz on Alternet for more details.

Bruce Wilson writes about Lou Engle's role in the NAR:

"Lou Engle belongs to a little known but rapidly emerging tendency within Pentecostalism and charismatic Christianity that by 2000 was estimated to encompass 295 million Christians worldwide. Perhaps the leading super-denomination within this emergent tendency is the “New Apostolic Reformation.”, which seeks to radically restructure the faith by placing believers in pyramidal authority structures under its apostles and prophets. NAR founder C. Peter Wagner has declared his movement is leading a second Reformation."

There are other, very disturbing parts of Lou Engle's activity. He received a lot of attention also because of his support for Uganda's infamous anti-homosexuality legislation, which includes death penalties for homosexuals. He visited Uganda on May 2, 2010, in support of these measures.

Bruce Wilson wrote in May 2010 on Alternet:

"Last Sunday May 2nd, TheCall Founder Engle took the stage at a prayer rally at Makerere University in Kampala, Uganda’s capital, and, according to a New York Times story, praised the “courage” and “righteousness” of Ugandan leaders and politicians backing the Anti Homosexuality Bill before Uganda’s Parliament. In its original form that bill would allow execution of HIV positive Ugandans and create an Orwellian antigay police state in which citizens would be required to report suspected homosexual activity or face up to three years in prison.

Why should Americans care about Lou Engle and or human rights in Africa ? Beyond altruistic moral considerations, Lou Engle is a leader in a rising sector of Christianity that’s beginning to reshape right-wing politics in America."

Lou Engle has strong ties to other GOP-politicians as well, although there is only very little media coverage about this connection, as Bruce Wilson notes in his very detailed article:

"Last December 2009 Engle led the Family Research Council’s Prayercast on Health Care Reform, a telecast event attended by GOP Senators Sam Brownback and Jim DeMint and Republican Congress members Michelle Bachmann and Randy Forbes. Lou Engle claims he was Kansas Senator Sam Brownback’s roommate for seven months, and his association with GOP politicians doesn’t stop there. During summer 2009 Engle blessed and anointed former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee and former GOP Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich.

More recently, Engle led a session on “prayer and revival” at the April 2010 Freedom Federation ‘Awakening 2010′ conference at former Moral Majority head Jerry Falwell’s Thomas Road Baptist Church in Lynchburg, VA. Attending the event were Virginia’s Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli, Virginia Governor Bob McDonnell, Texas Governor Rick Perry, Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, Congressman Randy Forbes, Former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, and Reagan Administration Undersecretary of Education Gary Bauer.

Media coverage of Lou Engle’s religious tendency has been almost nonexistent, and that’s striking given there’s evidence the movement has already fielded a vice presidential candidate and is now fielding a GOP gubernatorial candidate."

Let's take a look at Lou Engle in action, spewing his hate against gays:

Another clip about Lou Engle and "The Call", documenting a huge anti-gay event organized by "The Call" in San Diego on November 1, 2008:

Lou Engle's visit in Uganda in May 2010 was also reported by the New York Times:

Though not originally linked to the Ugandan legislation, Mr. Engle has long been a controversial figure in the United States for his views on homosexuality. During California’s referendum on same-sex marriage in 2008, he called homosexuality a “spirit of lawlessness.”

Before arriving here last week, Mr. Engle came out with a statement condemning the harsh penalties proposed in the bill, and said that his ministry could not support it. But when he took the stage late on Sunday afternoon, with Ugandan politicians and pastors looking on, he praised the country’s “courage” and “righteousness” in promoting the bill.

“NGOs, the U.N., Unicef, they are all coming in here and promoting an agenda,” Mr. Engle said, referring to nongovernmental organizations. “Today, America is losing its religious freedom. We are trying to restrain an agenda that is sweeping through the education system. Uganda has become ground zero.”

The excellent clip explains some of the shocking details of Uganda's anti-gay bill:

From the description in Wikipedia it seems that the discussions about the bill are still ongoing, and that it's possible that the bill will be dropped, due to international pressure.

More details about Lou Engle's "war" against gays can be found HERE, and more about his activities in Uganda HERE, where Lou Engle's hypocrisy regarding the situation in Uganda is being exposed ("Lou Engle & TheCall Respond to Critics with Lies and Distortions").

Lou Engle is another dangerous and extreme religious figure who seems to have a deep influence on Sarah Palin.

However, we are fortunate. Sarah Palin has made it abundantly clear in an interview with Bill O'Reilly in November 2009, referring to Barack Obama's "association" with Reverend Wright that "it's not off-base or negative campaigning to call someone out on their associations."

I guess that Sarah Palin now can only plead insanity.

Sarah Palin and her dominionist friends Mary Glazier and Thomas Muthee - "The second weakest link"

Sarah Palin has more than two "weak links". But as she has turned into "teflon-barbie", it's time for us to "zoom in" closer into Sarah Palin's two "weakest links."

The top spot will always be "babygate", and we will soon return to our favorite subject, Sarah's faked pregnancy.

The second weakest link in our opinion are Sarah Palin's religious associations. Fortunately for us, Sarah Palin herself boldly declared in the past that it's not unfair to call other people out on their associations, referring in particular to Reverend Wright, who dared to harshly criticize America - and offended Sarah, who never fails to praise her "exceptional" country.

It seems that Sarah had forgotten, or thought that nobody would remember, that she herself is associated for many years with religious extremists - for example with the dominionist Mary Glazier or with the Pentecostal Wasilla Assembly of God. And let's not forget witch hunter Thomas Muthee, who first delivered a radical dominionist sermon in 2005 and then anointed Sarah Palin afterwards in the Wasilla Assembly of God, so that she will be protected from "witchcraft".

It's also very lucky that Sarah's connections to religious radicals have already been extensively researched - in particular by Bruce Wilson, who published his extensive material for example on the website "talk2action".

First, we would like to present two videos which complement each other. The first video was created by the youtube user "Oilwellian", and is simply brilliant. It demonstrates convincingly why Sarah's tight connection to a dominionist like Thomas Muthee is incredibly dangerous.





The second video was created by me and uses some material from clips previously published by Bruce Wilson. A few weeks ago I presented the first version, and thanks to your suggestions, I managed to greatly improve the video. It deals with Sarah Palin's long-existing relationship to dominionst Mary Glazier, whose belief that Alaskans are the chosen people apparently deeply influenced Sarah Palin - at least that's my impression.

Some of Mary Glazier's teachings are documented in detail in the following clip. Sarah Palin joined Mary Glazier's prayer group when Palin was 24. According to reports from other dominionists, Sarah Palin was a member of this prayer group for many years. Palin called Mary Glazier in 2008 to pray with her over the phone, and afterwards had Mary Glazier as a guest at the Governor's prayer breakfast in 2008.

Apart from that I would like to recommend the following videos for further viewing:

"Witchcraft and War" with more material regarding Thomas Muthee and the Wasilla Master's Commission.

A promotional video about Thomas Muthee with more info for example about his witch hunting activities.

The complete sermon by Thomas Muthee in 2005 with Sarah Palin present in the audience - explaining how the Christians should infiltrate all areas of society, and, well, push all the other people out, basically.

Thomas Muthee's sermon in Wasilla from 2005 is based on the "seven mountains strategy" - this concept is explained in Bruce Wilson's excellent clip "Sarah Palin Seven Mountains":

Regarding Mary Glazier, there is some material available for further reading - for example here and here.

An incredibly important article about Sarah Palin and Mary Glazier was published in the issue January 2009 of Charisma Magazine. The original article is not available any more, but the article has been cited in full length with additional info here: "Sarah Palin's Faith: Pentecostalism & Politics".

An invaluable resource for everything surrounding Dominionism is Leah Burton's blog "Gods's Own Party."

Finally, an overview regarding Bruce Wilson's articles and videos is available on talk2action here.

Sarah Palin, we haven't forgotten your long, close associations to these nutjobs who want to infiltrate all areas of society, who reject the separation of church and state and who want to displace non-believers - just to mention a few things. How could we forget?

.

Sarah Palin, The Great Divider

Sarah Palin has the knack to upset and alienate several different groups of people.

Women

Sarah Palin appeals mainly to white middle-aged men, flaunting her sexuality as a weapon. Older_Wiser summed it up very well when she commented on the NRA thread:

"And if it seemed $P was in her element, I have a theory. This event was probably 75-80% male, all of them more than likely considering themselves "alpha males"--the kind of man Daddy was, the person she always talks about and was taught to emulate, the person who tried to raise her like a boy, with not much input from her mother, a seemingly weak person who went along to get along, deferring to Chuckles in all things, really. $P connects more with men because she caters to them, wants to be one of them. She is what we feminists used to call a "male identified" woman, not one who relates easily to other women, nor who understands the female perspective, nor has much empathy with women, just gives women's lives lip service at best. To her, most women are "weak" because they don't emulate men; she will tolerate women but only if they don't compete with her, only complement her. She has no real women friends, only the hired help. She really does see women as the "weaker sex"--except herself, of course. Caring for children is weak--even though you're too ignorant to use birth control (and use "religion" as an excuse--but I question her maternal history), you can birth a few but let others take care of them or let them raise themselves--no TLC for those kids or much interaction.

Her goals have always been much larger. Her persona is carefully crafted--the "sexy" image which insinuates hard f*cking, not tender lovemaking. Is there any wonder how easily she was mocked in a porn film? She never really talks about her kids in a normal mother's voice; there's no protective instinct there, for chrissakes, she uses them as props for her own agenda.

During my working career, I met a few women executives who she reminds me of, the kind who loved it up there with the power males and who treated the female "help" like shit. They also wore those male-inspired "power suits" except with the short skirts just like she does (face it, pants just are not sexy enough, they make you seem less open to sexual contact; in fact, I worked for one attorney who forbade us to wear pants and he engaged often in sexual harassment and taken to court for it--all the younger women were game). Those women used sexual promise as one of their tools in their climb, aggressive and negative in their approach to women, using their power over others no less than men do.

Notice her speeches to groups with lots of women and on issues women really care about--special needs kids, reproduction, etc. She simply repeats rightwing talking points in a canned way, tells inappropriate jokes or talks about herself, no real preparation, just there to collect the money because she disdains her own sex. Of course, she does this with predominantly male groups, too, but they are more easily tricked by her complicatedly constructed persona which flatters them. Even though she may not have been paid directly for this NRA gig, she was in her element--as twisted as it might seem.

I know this may seem pretty simplistic to some, but this is the way I see her--she's no friend of women, and the polls themselves reflect this, with much fewer women admiring her than men, and I would venture that those women don't really think for themselves but just follow the male lead."

Sarah Palin, the beauty queen, is a feminist in name only and had the nerve to criticize Hilary Clinton for whining.

Environmentalists

Sarah Palin loves to call the studies on climate change "snake oil science". Her "Drill Baby Drill" mantra is well known and although she loves blowing her own trumpet about regulating the oil industry in Alaska, the reality is very different. She taxed them, yes, but the oil companies simply saw it as paying it forward. It was a good investment, as they had the governor of the state fighting their dirty battles with the "Feds", as she affectionately calls the federal government. The state of Alaska initiated law suits against the government regarding the listing of polar bears and Beluga whales as endangered species. Regulations and safety measures were routinely ignored or cheating in the tests went on, before during and after her half-term as governor.

She took her governor's hat off to make a mockery of the Clean Water Act when Pebble Mine paid millions of dollars in bribes to corrupt the outcome of a ballot that, if won by the environmentalists, would have prevented them from polluting Bristol Bay and threatening the livelihood of salmon fishermen in the region.

Sarah Palin rejoiced when the Supreme Court sided with Kensington Mine in another mockery of the Clean Water Act, risking the delicate eco-system of Berners Bay.

Animal lovers

Sarah Palin's stance regarding endangered species was already covered above. Which leaves her predator control programs...

She offered a bounty of $150 for each wolf's left paw when she was in office. In the NRA speech, she said that there is no aerial hunting of wolves. That's correct, it's not hunting, it's extermination, pure and simple. She joked about smoking a pack. She attacked Hollywood little starlets and wildlife groups, saying that they don't respect people and put the lives on Alaska Natives at risk. Sarah Palin played the race card in the most cynical way. She doesn't want to preserve moose and caribou herds for the natives, she wants to protect the interests of commercial trophy hunters.

On a less political note, there are stories about how she hates cats and how her family couldn't control a dog gifted to them by the Menards so they had to return the dog Agia to the Menards. Now she's talking about her dad and her own family getting Labrador dogs to find antlers or something like that. Poor dogs!

Over half a million people took the time to sign a petition protesting Discovery's decision to buy her Sarah Palin's Alaska series.

Special needs community

Sarah Palin addressed a special needs event in Alabama, where she offered the usual platitudes about how Trig was a blessing from God and the best thing that ever happened to them. She couldn't find anything meaningful to say about how they're investing in Trig's future independence through early intervention programs or how much faith she has in the work of advocates for people with special needs. She chose instead to bash what she calls "Obamacare" and repeat her death panels negative message.

We all saw how Trig was paraded during the book tour, at all hours, poorly attired for the weather conditions, rarely wearing his glasses. We saw her "reading" him a book during an interview and how she quickly got rid of him when he became fractious with her flicking the pages in front of his nose. The prop misbehaved, get him out of here! Grandma Sally and auntie Kate attempted to force feed him solids, Piper helped him take a stroll for the delight of the fans, Trig was carted out to pose with other children with Down syndrome, was passed like a sack of potatoes to Franklin Graham, Jason Recher or anybody who would take him off Sarah's hands when she needed to yield a microphone to address the adoring crowds.






We had the Family Guy incident, when Sarah Palin used Bristol to issue a Facebook rant, showing this family's ignorance about special needs. Andrea Friedman, the actress who voiced the character in that episode of Family Guy, showed the Palins what people with Down syndrome can achieve when their families are truly supportive and provide them with the necessary nurturing (instead of carrying them around like a loaf of French bread). Many parents of children with special needs commented or contacted us to say that Sarah Palin doesn't speak for them.

Christians and non-Christians

People who follow the real teachings of Jesus Christ are absolutely appalled by Sarah Palin's version of Christianism. God speaks to her and through her. She's not charitable, not forgiving, not anything that could be found in the hearts of a true Christian.

Jewish people can only laugh at her tales of Queen Esther and are very suspicious of her praise of Israel. When she said the Jews would flock to Israel in the coming weeks and months (to Barbara Walters), defending the expansion of Israeli territory, sensible Jews heard alarm bells. What was she on about? It seems to be related to the Rapture, when all Jews who don't convert to Christianism will be destroyed.

Sarah Palin's interpretation of the Constitution is just as skewed as her interpretation of the bible. She believes America is a Christian nation and that the governement should follow Judeo-Christian tenets. That's where the non-Christians come in. They should be patted on the head and tolerated by the "real" American believers.

She seems to have a close association with Franklin Graham, an opportunistic Evangelist who, in a role reversal, appears to use his father as a prop...


Parents

Oh, Mama Grizzly really upsets committed parents. All her children have been used relentlessly since Sarah Palin hit the national scene. Track the brave, fighting for the First Amendment in Iraq. Bristol the knocked-up teenager, campaigning for revirgination and other BS, Willow the statutorily raped, desperately trying to keep a low profile, Piper the cute, the babysitter who should be at school and finally Trig the prop, as explained above.

Bristol, the retroactive virgin, has already jumped on the grifting bandwagon. Speaking engagements and a book are in the pipeline and she has a more manageable prop, poor Tripp. Sarah Palin loves to ram her "family values" down our throats and we can only shake our heads in disbelief... where is the CPS?

Immigrants, ethnic minorities

Sarah Palin's record regarding Alaska Natives is absolutely terrible. From taking cookies and the Evangelical circus, led by the ubiquitous Franklin Graham, to starving, poverty stricken communitites to appointing Wayne Anthony Ross to the office of Attorney General.

She married a token native and exploits it every step of the way.

She sided with the governor of Arizona on the unconstitutional law against Hispanics or any other minority the local police decides to target. Not content with that, she's now meddling in the affairs of a school in Illinois.

Her references to "Real Americans" are simply an underhanded way of implying that the president is not a real American. He's black, a Muslim and god knows what else...

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Intelligent, peace loving, sensible people are all disgusted with Sarah Palin's hypocrisy, divisiveness and vindictiveness. Her shallow statements, repeated platitudes and word salad may make us laugh, but deep down we're all horrified.

Sarah Palin is loved and admired by people who can't see beyond a pretty face or a shapely body, by people too ignorant to seek information, too racist to be objective. She's in a comfortable relationship with ruthless Neocons and large corporations. They see each other as useful tools to achieve their own ends. And she gets a pass from the media because she means big bucks for them.

Hopefully the intelligent, sensible people are in the majority and will continue to see through Sarah Palin's lies, continue to be outraged by her ill advised statements and will show their power when the mid-term elections take place later this year and again in 2012.

BONUS PICTURE

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Sarah Palin and her "Women of Joy" speech - "Connecting" with the Christian fundamentalists - Part 2

Here is the second and last part of Sarah Palin's speech at the "Women of Joy" conference in Kentucky on April 16, 2010 (clips 4-6 and transcripts). Our brilliant reader Tildama has once again completed a fantastic job of transcribing the speech. She probably won't be able to listen to Sarah Palin for the next few weeks, but it was definitely worth the effort. ;-)

Click HERE for the first part with clips and transcripts 1-3.

Download the complete transcript of the speech as a Word-document HERE.

Video-clips of the speech: Overview HERE.

We feel that Sarah's speech in Kentucky is important, because it's another example of her not only trying to boost her "street cred" amongst the Christian fundamentalist base, but also another example of her creating an alternate reality - a version of events which exists to a large extent only in "Sarah's head".

In December 2009, we posted an article with a documented example of this alternate reality which Sarah Palin presents in "Going Rogue": The real version of events is on video tape! I keep coming back to this post because it so clearly illustrates what Sarah Palin constantly does since she has published "Going Rogue": To present to the public a highly distorted version of events - and to sell it as the "real deal". Steve Schmidt didn't fall for it, when he called her book "100% fiction", and many others didn't fall for it either. However, a frightening number of supporters take Sarah's word for gospel, especially those who think that God speaks through her.

I would like to highlight two parts of the transcripts we publish today:

1)
Sarah tells the audience a heartwarming story about reading parts of the Old Testament to Piper:

Now I was trying to make a point about preparation with Piper the other night and I’m reading her the book of Esther out of the Old Testament. And I’m telling her all about Esther. See honey, I’m telling her, she’s the underdog, and she’s the orphan, she’s working hard preparing to be judged by others. Essentially Esther, she was out there on the stage wondering if she’d be chosen to have opportunity to really help change her world and Piper’s listening and she’s kinda dozing off and finally she rolls over and she says “Wow, that’s just like ‘American Idol’”.

So, Sarah - you read Piper the Book of Esther "out of the Old Testament"?

Let's take a look at one of the most "easily accessible" versions of the bible, the "Good News Translation". What does in actually SAY in the bible in the Book of Esther?

Excerpt:

Esther 2

Esther Becomes Queen

1 Later, even after the king's anger had cooled down, he kept thinking about what Vashti had done and about his proclamation against her.2 So some of the king's advisers who were close to him suggested,
Why don't you make a search to find some beautiful young virgins?3 You can appoint officials in every province of the empire and have them bring all these beautiful young women to your harem here in Susa, the capital city. Put them in the care of Hegai, the eunuch who is in charge of your women, and let them be given a beauty treatment.4 Then take the young woman you like best and make her queen in Vashti's place.

The king thought this was good advice, so he followed it.

5 There in Susa lived a Jew named Mordecai son of Jair; he was from the tribe of Benjamin and was a descendant of Kish and Shimei.6 (A)When King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon took King Jehoiachin of Judah into exile from Jerusalem, along with a group of captives, Mordecai was among them.7 He had a cousin, Esther, whose Hebrew name was Hadassah; she was a beautiful young woman, and had a good figure. At the death of her parents, Mordecai had adopted her and brought her up as his own daughter.

8 When the king had issued his new proclamation and many young women were being brought to Susa, Esther was among them. She too was put in the royal palace in the care of Hegai, who had charge of the harem.9 Hegai liked Esther, and she won his favor. He lost no time in beginning her beauty treatment of massage and special diet. He gave her the best place in the harem and assigned seven young women specially chosen from the royal palace to serve her.

10 Now, on the advice of Mordecai, Esther had kept it secret that she was Jewish.11 Every day Mordecai would walk back and forth in front of the courtyard of the harem, in order to find out how she was getting along and what was going to happen to her.

Read the rest in the "Good News Translation" HERE.

As some of you will certainly know, the story shortly afterwards becomes very cruel, when King Xerxes issues "the instructions that on a single day, the thirteenth day of Adar, all Jews—young and old, women and children—were to be killed. They were to be slaughtered without mercy and their belongings were to be taken."

Queen Esther then risks the death penalty by revealing that she is Jewish and trying to stop the slaughter against the Jews.

It's apparent that this is the comparison Sarah Palin wants to draw to herself. The woman who is "chosen by God" and who stands up against her "enemies" and "adversaries", as she calls them in her speech. Sarah also duly mentions the "Trig Birthers" in Kentucky. ;-)

2)

In the speech she gives another example of one of the conflicting versions of her pregnancy story when she says:

"And here all along after I finally got to tell Todd and it was a few weeks after I had the test results (of the baby having DS) I finally got to tell Todd, and he had come home (I didn’t want to tell him over the phone). And my first question to Todd after he looked at the sonogram pictures too, I said, aren’t you asking “Why us?” and Todd looked at me and he says “Why not us?” And right from that moment *applause* my destiny began to change."

As it may come as no surprise, the story that Sarah tells in "Going Rogue" is different. In "Going Rogue" Todd didn't come back after a "few weeks", but after a "few days" (p. 178).

However, will any journalist pick up on this fact? Most likely not, because the media already has given Sarah a pass with her monstrous lie, the fact that she faked the pregnancy with Trig. That Sarah now tries to pass off her alleged pregnancy as an "experience of biblical proportions" is in my opinion another reckless act of her megalomania.

+++

Part 4:

And I would surely be wise to put my life in His hands, in the creator’s hands, and let Him direct my path, that from that day forward putting my life in God’s hands, that’s why I was saved and I found that faith has sustained me through some tough times and certainly strengthened me through joyful times. *applause*

The surest measure of that truth was that year of the, the tumultuous and full and fun times, and that that fullness it continues today. But I know we all have our battles, we all have our challenges and maybe the enemy is doing to you what the enemy is never going to let up trying to do to all of us, to proclaim our faith in Christ. Because he wants to knock us off our rock, so that we’ll give up, so that we’ll sit down and shut up and we wont go forth seeking the destiny that God has for us. But we’ll just concede and say no, it’s not worth it, I’m tired, I’m sick of gettin beat up, I’m gonna sit down and shut up. That’s what the enemy wants to do to us. And maybe what you’re going through, in fact I know that everybody is going through something a battle, a challenge, some are being played out on the front page of the newspaper but most are not. *laughter*

And we with all of our battles know that what we’ve experienced. For instance with Trig and with Bristol, and any other thing that happened that year that I don’t have time to talk about, then it only reaffirmed really and strengthened my resolve and my beliefs. With Trig and with Bristol it has been the unwavering support for the sanctity of life. The gift of life that is at every stage and choosing life may not be easy path but it really is the right path *applause and cheering* What the enemy means for good, what the enemy means for bad, to harm us, it it is what God is going to turn into good. And that only happens when we put it into God’s hands. God promises that. And the timing or the circumstances perhaps not perfect, not ideal, what we had planned for, but God sees a way where we cannot. And He does not make mistakes. We may say “oops” but God does not, and he does not look away from us.

So putting my faith in that fundamental belief and crying out for more faith, then you do that too, we are all going to learn together. And what seems like life’s greatest challenges at the moment end up being our greatest blessings. And we are also learning that our faith isn’t just there for us in the hard times, it is also guiding us in the good times. When we are calm and when we’re still, we can sense our purpose. We can sense our calling and those promptings of the Holy Spirit. For me the thing tugging at my heart was a desire (ever since I was a little kid) was to be of service to others my neighbours, my community, I did want to serve my state, even as a child and eventually beyond. And that desire pointed me in the right direction – at least some would say it’s the right direction, others would say “Get her the heck outta there. We don’t want anything to do with her”.

But it provided me with what has become my life’s work finding that path. And at first I didn’t know what to do with those passions, and those interests that were within me. I didn’t know where it would lead me but I was blessed with the support of family and a husband taking joy in my work, I knew I had options. And I knew that what stirred passion in me was that desire to make a positive difference for others and not just in family, but in community and in the wider world as well.

So I started out volunteering in schools and then served on the city council, then was elected Mayor and served as our City Manager and then I was Chair of the state’s Oil and Gas and then I became Governor. Those were the steps along the way. And then I joined the ticket with John McCain I knew events led to that opportunity along the way. I’d sought signs all the time that would confirm and affirm that I was on the right path, and throughout life always trying to be prepared because opportunities needing that preparation that’s when you have success that’s when you have progress and you have joy. But I honestly had no idea where the road would lead because we are never promised to know what the detailed results are going to be.

Now I was trying to make a point about preparation with Piper the other night and I’m reading her the book of Esther out of the Old Testament. And I’m telling her all about Esther. See honey, I’m telling her, she’s the underdog, and she’s the orphan, she’s working hard preparing to be judged by others. Essentially Esther, she was out there on the stage wondering if she’d be chosen to have opportunity to really help change her world and Piper’s listening and she’s kinda dozing off and finally she rolls over and she says “Wow, that’s just like ‘American Idol’”. *laughter/talking over the applause/laughter* my point there.
But I hope you too will take the time to ask yourself what is it within you, that tugs at your heart and makes you excited to wake up in the morning and be able to applaud that new day. Figure out what gets you excited. Is it art? Is it science? Is it working with children, or gardening, or cooking the best “something” in the entire world. Maybe it’s travel? Reading about history? Learning about government, maybe throwing a tea party *loud cheers/applause* Home for your children and your grandchildren. Whatever that desire of your heart is.

I love the words of Proverbs 3 “Trust in the Lord with all your heart” Lean not on your own understandings. We don’t know what the heck to have is the plan for this. Lean on God and in all ways we should acknowledge Him and He’ll direct our path, that’s His promise. See God puts those interests, and those desires, those passions within you, not to tease and frustrate you but to give you direction. They are to put you on that right path towards your calling, directed to your calling, your destiny. So find your inspiration from the gifts that God has given you and stop and think about what it is that you would love to do and then you look for the signposts along the way that guide your path. Which means door opening and people with your best interest at heart supporting what you’re doing. And once you’re on that path, don’t give up. My Dad says we do a lot of (hunting or punching?) together. My Dad says don’t let them get you down when you’re tired or frustrated. Don’t retreat, just reload. *laughter/applause*

Don’t retreat and there will be challenges. You have to be realistic. Knowing that there’s going to be challenges just because you’re on the right path doesn’t mean that there won’t be bumps in the road. Whatever work we do in the world all of us have challenges to overcome and battles to fight. If we take the time to look around we get outside of ourselves and remember it’s not about me. We’re not here on this earth for me, me, me. And that’s a problem with our culture, it’s all about me have to get away from that *applause* get outside of our selves *applause* and know that it is about glorifying God that is our main purpose and we’ll find that there is more than enough inspiration from God and from others that is our purpose and we’ll find that there is more than enough inspiration from God and from others to see us through. And read Proverbs 3, 5 and 6 where it’s promised there too. “If we trust in the Lord with everything that we’ve got” that is our own understanding. He will direct your path, if you promises He will direct your path.
Now with what’s going on in the world today I know that good on in the world today I know that good news sometimes seems to be in short supply. Maybe, maybe you’re not just worried about what’s going on in the country but, but in your own lives and your homes, your business or about your lives, your families, trying to keep a business afloat, keep your job.

Maybe it’s about trying to be the best parent that you can be in these challenging times and raising kids, maybe you’re feeling like a “crap shoot” you know you’re doing the best you can in these challenging times in our culture but these are the times when we lean on His word and we draw nearer to God and then He draws nearer to us and he announced that promise in James 4. And when we truly say with the psalms(?) that we may endure for a night the joy comes in the morning. That’s what God taught me. *applause*

Even now there is a lot to be joyful about and inspired by. You can step outside yourself and your immediate circumstances which may seem overwhelming. You can find so many positive and life-affirming things because while these are troubled times, we still live in the best nation on earth and surely that is something to be grateful for? America itself is so inspiring *applause* the opportunities that we have and the freedom, the freedom to assemble in a place like this and worship, that is so precious and may we never lose that.

Part 5:

*applause* I see that my see first hand that yes, America’s finest our men and women in uniform. They’re a force for good in this world and there’s nothing to apologize for. And I know that so many of you to are married to, or the daughter of, or the mother of someone in the service. I, I connect with ya, I understand and I appreciate the sacrifice that you make too. So, learning that lesson through that and um our son that year going ??? so proud. And he’s a real clever kid. He, he like most soldiers, you know, he comes home and he’s gotta be really unique and different and show us a tattoo. Because every soldier gets a tattoo to be different and unique, right? Yep *laughter/applause* stand out from the crowd, yeah they all did, yup. *laughter*

He comes home all proud and he tells us that he’s got some ink. And I’m like oh, no, yeah right, this is gonna end up on youtube or somethin’ like that *laughter/applause* He’s so clever he chooses a design his Mamma can’t argue with, and his Granny, and he rolls up his pants leg and shows us he got a Jesus fish on his calf. Awwww *laughter/applause* He did it just ‘cause he knew I couldn’t argue. *applause* You know and say how dare you or somethin’.

But in this year though, this was happening then and then I (??spoke fit??) Todd and I we find out that we’re gonna have another baby and “woooo” talk about rockin’ our world. I’m, I’m, you know, I’m no spring chicken “woooohh” *laughter* “woooooh” ........ real
And I’m telling God “oh really, yeah, my name is Sarah but my husband isn’t Abraham” *loud laughter and applause*” it’s Todd”. *laughter/applause*

But you know I know what the critics would be saying in Alaska. I’m thinkin’ you know they’re gonna say “Yep they finally, the pioneers up there, we finally elect a little woman and she goes and gets herself pregnant you know, whatever, my God, there you go.
But whatever. You know, it takes me a little while to wrap my arms around it and and working and good, bringing up children and, yeah Todd’s like, “the more the merrier, yeah” It’s very easy for him to say. Yeah *laughter* You know there’s no better ingredient in this sometimes mixed up world of ours and the most promising ingredient is a child. So good we can embrace it and and we know that it will be treated well. Todd and I though we’re keeping it to ourselves we didn’t even tell the other kids, because it was like in such a public arena to have one thing that was personal and private and we just weren’t up to telling anybody about it. In fact I didn’t tell anybody until I was 7 months along. And, yeah, I wanted to get the record you know for going (to lunch?). But I know that they know that I was getting really chunky but everybody was just really too polite to say anything in the governor’s office. And yeah we’re in Alaska, winter time, we wear lots of layers and you know I’m thinkin’ they’re thinkin’ I’m just puttin’ on another layer of fleece to stay warm.

Anyway then the baby’s born 5 weeks early, so reporters are doing the math. They’re like this couldn’t be her baby she was only pregnant 3 weeks *laughter* and to this day we still have on the internet the Trig-birthers who still don’t believe that he’s my so. Don’t make me show you the stretch marks to prove it. Don’t make me prove it. But it was a very special time. And in this time early on, 12 weeks, I had an ultrasound and the technician tells me that she could tell it was a boy. And I’m just ?“marvinated”? and I start crying. Oh man, that this is so awesome. We dared not even pray for another boy, but that’s what we wanted and we were just so happy and I thought “Wow, God is so good and He knows what he’s doing to give us another son”. Then sh , the technician says well maybe his neck is a little bit thicker than what we normally see at this stage. And I’m still marvelling, thinking “wow, she can measure the baby’s neck at 12 weeks”. And God is so good he provides the technology, this wisdom, to create technology where you can measure a baby’s bones and you can see this child at 12 weeks. And I’m thinking it’s really great. And then thinking, that all of that was so awesome, I stopped real quickly though when I recalled with a kinda quick shot of fear what a thicker base of the neck could be. And in that moment, I’ll be honest, I, I was scared to death.

And you and I know that there aren’t any reporters in here. Even if reporters have snuck in well I’m going to say some things that I’ve never said before publicly. But again, knowing that you know, the spirit of Christ is in this place and there is protection there *applause* and I can share from my heart *applause* and I will *applause* If anybody misconstrues what it is that I say or we say, well good, then we’ll have an opportunity to clarify or get to repeat some of the messages that were talked about today. Yeah.

But I was really scared to death and um quickly though trying to shove doubt on that fear. Doubt with, no God would never give us something that we couldn’t handle. He he knows me. I’m busy and I I’ve got 4 kids and I want these overachievers who’ve gotta be outta the place, good grades, oh gosh. And think I know what’s really important, and the kids, they need my attention and I have a state to run. And “Remember God,” (I’m saying) “it’s my sister who can handle a situation like this. God you need to give to my sister Heather who I would think is, who’s more nurturing and more compassionate and patient. You gave her a child with autism, so one of us out of the family, right God? You would never give us something we could not handle. I just don’t know if I’m wired for that, right God?”

And I’m asking these questions and trying to shove doubt and fear though and then the doctor called though. And I’ll never forget, I glanced up at the clock and it was 2.22. And 2.22 has always been (a tape jump here) it’s good news God, I glanced at the clock and remember it was a freezing cold day outside, looking out from the windows in my Governor’s office in Anchorage um lookin’ out the office and the doctor says “Yeah the child will be born with Down Syndrome. And my world just stopped spinning at that moment. Because I thought at that moment “God are you in this? Is there a God? Didn’t you hear me God? I said I don’t think I can handle such a thing”. And I asked God “why?” And I wondered if perhaps he’d over estimated us this time.

I knew that my impression of babies with Down Syndrome, they are aborted so to me I had that kinda inkling. It was like, maybe these are not only less than ideal circumstances, maybe these are impossible circumstances to deal with. I don’t know if I can deal with this. And my faith faltered as I wondered “Does He really know what He’s doing? Why? What? This isn’t part of the plan.”

And I was very very scared of the unknown. And I had nowhere else to go in this secret place, in this private chapter in a very public setting; nowhere to go but prayer. And I cried out to God to change my heart. Quickly change my heart Lord. Make me ready for this. Prepare me for this because I hadn’t planned for it.

And here all along after I finally got to tell Todd and it was a few weeks after I had the test results I finally got to tell Todd, and he had come home (I didn’t want to tell him over the phone). And my first question to Todd after he looked at the sonogram pictures too, I said, aren’t you asking “Why us?” and Todd looked at me and he says “Why not us?” And right from that moment *applause* my destiny began to change.

But through those months still difficulty wrap my arms around this. And it seemed a part of all this though was this constant whisper and all this asking. So you boldly tell others about your faith and you believe in the sanctity of life and you speak of the pro-life message and you talk of God’s sovereign plans, so are you gonna walk the walk, or are you just talking the talk? And I could only hold on to faith.

And then when he was born. Oh and he was placed in my arms and Trig just sorta melted right into me. And he was this quite tiny mellow, sweet little guy. On my chest up to my heart and he’s just like he felt, I felt he was saying “Aahh Mom. I’m here. Love me. God gave me to you.” *applause* And what Trig brought to me was this message, that God knows what he’s doin’. Part of the message was too – “Bug up OK?” *laughter* I knew though that God had heard me. He answered my prayer, because it was the miraculous heart change, and it was beyond anything that I could have ever imagined and really a miracle. From the second that he was born, I knew that God was in this because it’s a miracle to us. Trig is so perfect and I know I’m not the worldly standard of perfection. But we have been given eyes now to see God’s standard of perfection when we see this child *applause* and this gift that he is.

Part 6:

*applause* And hear me then, that you know, one of the ways, you know, that you’re going to be able to get something done in life, that you’re going to get joy in it. In the midst of all of it, one of the ways is really to have that “help mate” to know that you have somebody standing by your side. And for me it’s Todd. It’s nice to have someone who’ll stand by you and someone who can look at when you’re frazzled and you’re messy and you’re trying real hard and they tell you, “It’s cool”, “You’re doin’ fine” and “It’s gonna be OK”, and that’s Todd. Twenty eight years later and he’s still by my side *applause* through thick and through thin *applause* and it’s a lot of challenges and a lot of joy in life with him, it’s good.

So for me it’s like strengthening faith the key to keeping joy in life has been family first. And my kids keeping me grounded and keeping it real and they provide a healthy perspective on what really matters. And they are the reason that I do what I do. And like you, who love kids, you know, I breathe my children and I protect my children. And that’s why with all the political shots that sometimes we take, and serve as junk on the periphery, trying to distract from what the mission is at hand. And some people want to bombard and distract. But I can handle that, because of the perspective my kids bring.

But um considering considering the media, which really has changed ?them? drastically. When I was a reporter years ago, I was a sports reporter, and I had learned, in seeking and then receiving my college degree, the who, what, where, when and why of reporting and you keep your bias out of reporting this the er facts. But um it’s been a scary thing for me to see this cornerstone of our democracy that’s so important, kind of being atrophied and this erosion of ?criticism? and trust by citizens in our media. And there is much deception in the media and we got ??? there. But our adversaries though are kinda throwing away the darts and the arrows. I can use that prayer shield of prayer warriors to deflect that, and it kinda allows my skin to grow thicker (and I’m hoping that you’ll learn that too) allow it to grow thicker, your skin and go forth. That I know truth and I know what really matters, so I can deal with the misrepresentation any misreporting or mocking or whatever. That’s just the worldly reality that that’s what it is right now. And that also applied when the darts and arrows are aimed at me.

Now, when they’re aimed at my kids, oh, that’s a whole other story. That’s a whole other story. *laughter* ‘Cause you can imagine um indecent shots at kids. um . . I’m like the Mamma Grizzly bear like we have up there in Alaska. When they rise up on their hind legs they say “You leave my cubs alone”. *applause* So if any of you *applause* if any of you were inclined ever to want a prayer focus, for what it is you’re doing, please pray for grace in that area. Don’t let me just tear the head of some reporter who want to take shots at my kids. *laughter* no don’t dare, pray for me. But I did digress right there.

OK Gals. I want to talk about (?omens?) Take a quote from Notre Dame host Lou Holtz said “I can’t believe God would put any of us on this earth to be ordinary.” No. What God has done is allow us to be extraordinary by providing us opportunities that can really blow our mind, if we know where to look. I think, if we think that it’s OK to be complacent and accept ordinary, then we’re going to be stuck in a rut, and we won’t find joy. God has created every one of you with purpose and with a destiny in mind that it’s just so perfect for just you, only you. And there is going to be nothing ordinary about it, I can promise you that. And I know this. It’s our job then to be prepared for opportunity that He gives us. And preparation means working hard and working selflessly and seeking those divine appointments and the opportunities to reach out and to help other people. He expects us not to squander opportunity that He provides. And God doesn’t drive parked cars. He expects us to get out there and move and find opportunities *applause* and find inspiration. He expects us to act on the promptings that he gives us. And we do have to be still, every once in a while, and seek the Holy Spirit’s promptings to tell us which direction to go. And to know that nothing is coincidental. I still believe that nothing in this life, in this world, is a coincidence. It’s not an accident that we’re all here tonight. It’s not like things just happen to “work out” for all of us to get us here in Kentucky tonight. Here tonight seeking the tools that we can all use to find joy. But more importantly to ultimately know what our real purpose is. And our real purpose ladies on this earth, is to glorify God. *applause* It would appear at this conference seeking the tools to allow us to figure out how to glorify God. Ultimately that is our real purpose on this earth and it is no coincidence, no coincidence that it happened. Let me tell you why I know, that I know, that I know it to be true.

Let me tell you about a year in my life, what happened. It was only about a one year time span. It really strengthened my faith and affirmed and confirmed in me that God knows best. He’s given me hope and He’s given me joy after a year, of kinda tumultuous, very full, some fun times, but a pretty wild year.

I was very very busy as the Governor of Alaska. And I was the first woman elected, and the youngest governor so there was a little bit of a double standard I knew would be applied there. The largest state of the union and we were very focused on energy development in Alaska. My baby has been energy independence for our nation. We have such rich, vast, resources of oil and gas and other sources of energy here in our country and it is nonsensical that we rely on foreign regimes to purchase *cheers/applause* because many of these regimes involved don’t even like America and they would seek to do us harm. And yet we are beholden to them, because we ask them to produce our energy. When God has given us the resources here in the United States of America *applause* We’re spending hundred of millions of dollars, US dollars going overseas, to purchase these instead of creating millions of jobs here at home. And there is an inherent link between energy and prosperity and energy and security in a nation. There is an inherent link between energy and freedom, so that is kind of my platform that that I’ve worked on for all these years.

And my busy ??? running this energy producing state and chairman of the nation’s oil and gas compact mission at the time, we were working out national issues. And Todd’s busy working up on the North Slope at the time. Alaska is so big that Todd’s work commute 1,700 miles from the governor’s mansion up to the oil fields where his job was. That’s how large it was, in this day too. So when he’s not on the oil fields though he’s a commercial fish. He’s out there on the waters of Bristol Bay as a commercial fisherman doing tough, dangerous, blue collar hard work.
And we’re really busy but you know things are pretty much under control. We got a plan. We think we got a plan. And the four kids, they’re doing well. Our son is thinkin’ he’s the next Wayne Gretzky and don’t we all, you know we all hoping the best for our kids and we don’t want to knock the dream outta them, life kinda knocks the dream outta them. So he’s living for hockey. He’s travelling the country with a couple of real strong teams and though life happened to my son and he got injured so badly, that finally after shoulder surgery he had to hang up the skates. And that was you know that was a bit dramatic for him. So barely 18 years old, he decides he still wanted that camaraderie of team and he wants the physicality. And he decides in his patriotic heart that he wants to serve something greater than himself. So on September 11th, he tells us that he’s enlisting in the United States army, as an infantryman. And yeah *cheers and applause* that was it.

It kinda rocked my world because that wasn’t really part of the plan. But ah, you know, I hear the news. And I go with him to the enlistment ceremony, I’m thinkin’ “Wow God, really?” OK you know you gotta trust, even more so when Striker Brigade gets deployed the next September 11th for their year long mission in Iraq. That was kinda rockin’ my world. But through that unexpected event, through it, I gained such an appreciation for country and for freedom and for those willing to sacrifice all for the rest of us, for our security. *applause*