Brace yourselves

Today marks a turning point for Palingates. I asked Patrick and Kathleen to leave the blog due to irreconcilable differences in editorial approach.

I take full responsibility for my decision and for the inevitable consequences of this move. Palingates is a fairly popular open forum and its contents often used as a point of reference by a number of people. What goes on here matters and certain lines should not be crossed.

Despite any disclaimers about who is responsible for the editorial decisions and contents of Palingates, the overall responsibility rests with me. All the accounts relating to it are in my name: Blogger, Disqus and Paypal. I cannot shirk my responsibility for the sake of an increase in pageloads or for the growth in the number of readers and commentators.

I am not detracting from all the hard work and the many hours Patrick and Kathleen put on the blog. I would like to pay tribute to their dedication and enviable skills as researchers and networkers. Palingates was transformed through their input, evolving from a modest, sleepy blog to a minor sensation in some circles. But we are not on the same page on a number of issues.

I do not know if Palingates will appeal to readers after Patrick and Kathleen's departure. I do not have the skills they brought to Palingates and may not be able to offer what people want from it.

Will Palingates survive? It may have had its natural lifespan and could simply become a reference blog. I cannot guess what the future holds.

There is a Palingates community. It is a dynamic group of very diverse people who are proud of the close ties that were formed in the last few months. Unfortunately, this caring community does not always live up to this caring label and at times some insensitive comments are posted. Anybody who dares to express their concern regarding any insensitivity is met with aggressive and dismissive responses by some.

I have received a number of e-mails asking me to do something about it. To that end, I wrote two posts addressing the issues of commenting and how to deal with the trolls. They were very well received by the majority of readers, but there was an inevitable pushback and the problem persists, as may be observed in the thread about Shailey Tripp. (Sorry, it can't be observed anymore, the post was deleted)

Again, the dedication and hard work of Palingates contributors has to be commended. But it became apparent that members of this admirable community need to re-evaluate themselves from time to time and ask themselves a few questions. Palingates would be a much better community if people paused to read their own comments before clicking on the "post" or "reply" buttons.

I could not ignore the pleas of people expressing genuine concern for Palingates. I could no longer sit on my hands and hope for the best.

Palingates is a political blog with a purpose. This purpose is to find ways to prevent Sarah Palin having influence in the political landascape of the US, which affects us all in this global new world. Is Palingates going to stop Sarah Palin at all costs? Are we going to publish anything and everything about Sarah Palin and anybody connected with her, however incidental the connection?

I will always be the first person to rush to my keyboard to take apart Sarah Palin's speeches, point out inconsistencies found in the pages of her books and share any discoveries of unethical or criminal behaviour in her part. I will criticise the way she uses her children to score political points. But if I came across a notebook containing poems written by her, personal poems that reflected a deep hurt or pointed to some painful events in her early life, I would never publish any of these poems. They belong to Sarah Palin the woman, the human being, not Sarah Palin the politician, the Fox News talking head.

If I did that, everything I ever wrote about Sarah Palin the politician would become tainted by my lack of compassion for Sarah Palin the woman.

I cannot run a blog about another human being without compassion. If this blog was about the efficiency of internal combustion engines, UFOs or simply a blog to share recipes, none of the things described above would be an issue.

On this blog, words matter. That's not negotiable.


Full explanation about the split HERE

Sarah Palin and President Barack Obama Get It On

By Kathleen



A long awaited pairing of Sarah Palin and Barack Obama has at last taken place. Unpredictably it was a sweet one as the two dimensional pair were observed sharing a chocolate milkshake together in the Chok’lit Shoppe, Riverdale. Yes, Sarah and Barack found common ground over their love of a chocolate milkshake on the cover of the popular comic “Archie”.

The storyline has a recurring and somewhat topical premise -- even people with opposing views can find common ground if they truly want what is best in a given situation.

The story is spread over two issues #616 which was released on December 22nd, 2010 and #617 which was issued yesterday and concludes the story.

In the comic world of Archie, President Obama is the President and leader of the Democratic Party and Sarah is the somewhat less than subtle apparent leader of the GOP. They visit Archie and Reggie who are opponents in the contest for student body president of Riverdale High and together find common ground regarding what it is that is really important.

Back in the three dimensional world, Jon Goldwater, Archie Comics publisher, believes that Sarah and Barack want the same thing, which is the best thing for everyone.It certainly worked out fine in the comic. The best thing for all was achieved without bitterness.

If only life could so easily reflect that which is portrayed in two dimensional Riverdale.

The comments at the ADN rock with regard to this topic!

http://www.adn.com/2011/01/24/1664709/palin-in-the-comic-books-steampunk.html

Several readers brought to our attention the outstanding article that Andrew Halcro wrote regarding who is responsible for Sarah Palin. And no, he did not say that it was all Chuck and Sally’s fault. He was talking about her political career. And he blames Alaskans.

Andrew makes the case loud and clear that Alaskan voters made Sarah Palin’s political career by “rewarding her shallow campaigns and soundbite governance with thanks and praise.” Although he believes that she is now unelectable due to “her downed lines of communication to critical segments of the voting public" and that "her historical inability to bridge that divide seems insurmountable" it also appears that he is issuing a warning to all voters that they have to see beyond who she is and that they should rather focus on what it is she actually knows before they cast a vote for her.

You can read the full article here:

http://www.andrewhalcro.com/who_is_responsible_for_sarah_palin

Reader Kasha Knish has revealed the release date of the long awaited Joe McGinniss book regarding Sarah Palin.

"The Rogue: Searching for the Real Sarah Palin" by Joe McGinniss - Release date Sept. 13th - pre-orders on Amazon now!

http://tinyurl.com/4nruzgq

Palingates Weekly Roundup - January 17 to January 22, 2011

By Blueberry Tart

Monday, January 17, 2011

Palingates honored Martin Luther King Day with a post recalling his inspiring words, calling on Americans to stand up to evil and fight hate with love. The timing of his message resonates so strongly with the calls to renounce violent rhetoric in the wake of the Tucson tragedy. The violence that Dr. King saw first-hand and that eventually claimed his life could best be overcome by non-violent resistance – both parts, non-violence and resistance against injustice and evil, being equally important. Kathleen offers some wisdom about putting oneself in the others’ shoes and really trying to see their point of view, and also reminds us of the huge cost of violence, such as the history of Northern Ireland.

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Patrick got us very excited with a post about his phone conversation with Kim Chatman, who has heard that there will be a big scandal relating to emails from Palin’s short tenure as Governor of Alaska. Kim, whose credentials include having filed the successful ethics complaint about Sarah’s slush fund, the Alaska Fund Trust, has heard from her sources that the emails contain damaging information on a variety of topics. Kim expects that damaging info on the Palin’s will be released “very soon,” although the exact timeline is not yet known. The comments were abuzz with speculation about which of Palin’s many skeletons will be the focus of this upcoming scandal. Best collective guess: more than one scandal will emerge.

Thursday, January 20, 2011

We’ve had an influx of trolls lately, so Regina reminds us that we need not respond to their comments; in fact, please just ignore them. Much like the way that President Obama ignores Sarah Palin, this is the best way to handle trolls. Even the one pictured is really quite harmless, albeit not very pleasant to look at! One other request is to please be careful in labeling someone as a troll; sometimes this label may be WRONG, as happened, ironically, on this very same thread. In fact, if you follow Regina’s advice (please), the second problem will not BE a problem. No need to worry about defending Palingates; we are secure.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Get yourself settled with a bowl of popcorn and your favorite beverage, because it’s movie time! This post includes a great assortment of videos from the past week. We start with the fawning Sean Hannity and his softball questions, allowing Sarah to stick to her obvious script. Stewart and Colbert are priceless; do not miss! Dylan Ratigan points out the utter hypocrisy (up is down) of Sarah’s claim that it is her critics whose words are “reprehensible,” not her own words. Joan Hamsher says that it is a fair question to ask whether Palin acted responsibly in putting up the map and using the words she did, as violence was directed at Congressional offices right after HCR was passed. If I heard right, Joan Rivers called her a Nazi on Joy Behar’s program; Joan and her daughter have obviously been following Sarah’s antics and had some interesting comments. David Frum: “she’s madder than she is sad…it’s hard to imagine [her] coping as President with a tragedy like this.” David Corn called out her blood libel comment where she equated criticism of her with genocidal persecution; he also said, “She’s the last person…to be preaching a…Kumbaya approach to political discourse.”

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Kathleen not only questions the idea that Sarah Palin is finished politically in the wake of the Tucson shootings, but she shows polling data indicating that Palin’s appeal remains largely unchanged, except for a small shift in some of her support from “very positive” to “somewhat positive.” The rest remains steady, at least in the NBC-WSJ poll cited. This does not mean that Sarah Palin stands a strong chance of being elected; her favorable:unfavorable ratio among the people at large, and among independents, remains very weak. But it does thrown some cold water on the notion that we can stop worrying about her as a political force.

Comments of the Week

Omomma: ". . . her rise to the top?" Top of what. Pinocchio Mountain? Who writes this crap.

AzureGhost and elizabeth44 were on the case late Sunday, investigating Friends for Palin 2012 (Sarah Palin, President) and its connections to people with what appear to be shady dealings in NV.

Nomadicjoe: So they are comparing her to both Ronald Reagan AND Martin Luther King!?! Sheeeesh, that's quite a stretch. I would have stuck with Evita Peron and left it there.

Later: I watched a documentary online the other day. "Five Steps to Tyranny" and it listed how a sane society can be lured into a fascist one. Step One, create a "US and THEM" and Step Two, dehumanize the opposing side.

CR46: Dr King's words and thoughts are and always will be meaningful, in today's society or in any future generation. The horrible racism and segregation that Dr King and many others fought against in the 60's was not an easy fight. We must ALL be willing to step up to the plate and let our voices be heard. I will not stand by and let evil overtake the great strides that have been made ( and a few more need to be made) in civil rights for everyone. As long as Teabaggers target politicians with violence, the woman's right to vote, child labor laws....we must stand and be heard.

MadamDeal: The Fairness Doctrine is the new "attack on freedom of speech." The day after Obama's Tucson remarks, Rush said "Civility is the new censorship."

There were many thoughtful comments about this and other tumultuous times in American history and Dr. King’s legacy.

Elizabeth44: …I firmly believe that love is light, and light overcomes the darkness… Those who have chosen evil will fight us every inch of the way, because it is their method of obtaining power. Those who are cooperating with evil out of fear, love and caring can help. Where do we start? Our families, friends, and neighbors.

Nin1963 implored God to spare us from Palin… other ‘Gaters joined in her prayer.

Juicy76 has a brilliant new nickname: Sarah "I have a scheme" Palin, that great civil rights leader.

Espresso4me: After all these years I still have a dream, Martin. One in which the fires of hate, violence, bigotry and ignorance are not stoked by those who have their own selfish personal and financial agendas. One where the voices of reason, peace, respect, and intelligence are strong, sound, and unfaltering...

"Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity."
Martin Luther King,

More_Cowbell: Could you ever have imagined that we'd be talking about Facebook and Twitter as being the main communication strategies of someone who thinks she's a viable candidate for President of the United States?

Nin1963: Carl Bernstein on Morning Joe said in response to Joe's question: "Should the media report every thing Palin says on her facebook as if it came from Mt Olympus" and Carl responded: "The media needs to treat her for what she is, a demagogue." Couldn't agree more. She has NO real solutions, only soundbites and quips and is a populist whore. She needs to be treated for what she is.

Later, Nin had a long list of traits of NPD and it sounded like Sarah’s biography.

Leota2: As I'm having a quiet morning---I just googled PALIN WHINES and giggled at the over half a million hits. . . . That's a lot of whining.

Later Leota said: …there is a serious problem with the Palin women's need to label any male who disagrees with them a pedophile. That is some serious Freudian baggage those sick puppies are dragging around.

Tan: …this was the perfect opportunity to [reach out to those outside her base] in a sympathetic manner. She could’ve expressed her innocence whilst also admitting regret in her poor choice of words and symbolism and followed up with a pledge to unite. She also should've apologised for the choice of 'blood libel'… But her mental illness is just too strong and compels her to - an explosion of rage and spite and hate. Sickening!

Live blogging Sarah’s Hannitizing ritual with 59 people on chat was apparently a blast!

BanditBasheert: difficult [week] for all of us but obviously no one has suffered more than Sister Sarah. She is the "biggest victim" of them all. She got caught being exactly "WHO" and "WHAT" she is.

Patrick’s post on Tuesday opened the floodgates for VERY excited comments by ‘Gaters dreaming about what fate our Sarah might endure… the most enthusiastic seemed to involve an orange jumpsuit.

Casey’s Mom: Breaking news: Wasilla Wal-Mart announces an unexpected shortage of canned goods. Details at eleven. ;o)

Wayofpeace: Who so diggeth a pit shall fall therein. –Proverbs

ProChoiceGrandma had a good list: Oh, so many choices….
How about the mysterious 15 oil & gas explorers who received $193million?
The Pipeline always seems to involve bribery.
Dairygate is another big one with criminal consequences.
Housegate would also involve bribery/favors/theft.
But please let the emails at least show how she lied about Trig’s birth! Insurance fraud.

Femme7 calmed us down: I'll get excited AFTER the damaging emails are released.....IF they are released. I just have seen this impending "iceberg" story too many times to get too worked up. Sorry I'm a party-pooper but I remember after Palin quit and the big iceberg stories were running wild and nothing ever came of them… But…I do think that once there is a crack in the dam, I think Alaskans will come out of the woodwork to tell their Sarah and Todd stories.

Ltl1: She is the real victim here! Ignore all those dead and wounded people over there in Tucson! Look at poor, poor Sarah and the threats she must deal with!

Juicyfruityy found this Hubert Humphrey quote, which seems apropos: "You cannot go around and keep score. If you keep score on the good things and the bad things, you'll find out that you're a very miserable person. God gave man the ability to forget, which is one of the greatest attributes you have. Because if you remember everything that's happened to you, you generally remember that which is the most unfortunate."

Peacepax: I found a quote on that web site which made me think of palingates. “Fear not the path of truth for the lack of people walking on it.” - Robert F. Kennedy

Drpatois: Regina, did you find those trolls under the bridge to nowhere?

Alembic had a good summary of all the reasons why Independents will never vote for Sarah.

Monkey99 had several excellent comments; here is part of one: …I have gone to Pro-Palin blogs, and can't believe the level of childish thinking and use of offensive language. The level of fear (mostly hidden by bravado) and mistrust of pretty much everything is a far cry from what I am used to. The field of combat is not something you can exactly argue with, but if any of these Palin supporters were to be thrust into it, I'm not sure I could trust them with a weapon. I commend you all for making Palingates a class act!

Lilylake was hopeful: I think this is the "tipping point" for Sarah Palin. We have witnessed it. Things are downhill for her now; no one in their right mind wants to listen to her nonsense, much less support Sarah Palin for national office.

There was a mini-thread on why Sarah won’t sue the NE – because what they have printed is true and also a suit would expose her to depositions and other discovery. I just want to make sure this comment by Patrick is not lost (referring to NE report on an affair that Sarah had with Todd’s then-partner): The Brad Hanson story is true, confirmed to us from several very good sources, including a member of Brad Hanson's family.

Mmboucher had us ROFL with a quote from C4P “refudiating” the NE article, including this gem: “Given what we know about the Palin family, and their transparency in how they conduct themselves, this story is ludicrous on it’s [sic] face.” OMG, they are SO delusional!

Lilybart: Two nights ago I was at a NYC media party talking with a Vanity Fair reporter about Palingates etc...he was very interested in babygate. I enticed him with the things that most reporters would find odd....that the McCain campaign asked for proof of Trig's parentage and she refused. Why would anyone who is chosen from obscurity to be the VP nominee not provide everything asked of them? And the ADN reporter Lisa Demer who tried to put the rumors to rest, and again, she would not cooperate. He kept asking questions.....he also said that VF has too many stories in the can, backed up, so I don't hope this will be a story, but I am sure they will talk....

KatieAnnieOakley: When people spoke out about G.W. Bush, they were traitors; when people speak out about Obama, they're Patriots.

Nomoosestew: She is the real victim here!! People were shot, killed, and now Gabby is fighting to get well but people weren't nice to Sarah. Have you no heart?

Alex posted this quote from Mark Shields on PBS: "This is America, where a white Catholic male Republican judge was murdered on his way to greet a Democratic Jewish woman member of Congress, who was his friend. Her life was saved initially by a 20-year old Mexican-American gay college student, and eventually by a Korean-American combat surgeon, all eulogized by our African American President."

AKRNC had another great comment with insider info on Friday afternoon; here is a snippet: It seems that due to her refusal to communicate with these people who are ready to invest millions in her, they now have cold feet and are looking elsewhere. They had been told many times prior to this that Palin did not take direction from anyone but they had thought with their investment in her, she would listen to them. She has them running scared because they realize now how uncontrollable she is.

Wesinoregon: I think I officially have "Palin Fatigue". (that should be a new medical term)

Indy_girl: Well, Sarah *is* as important as Jesus, Mohammed, the Easter Bunny, Father Christmas, St. Patrick, Buddha, Allah, and the great Pumpkin....all rolled into one narcissistic package, dontcha know! *wink*

Maelewis and others provided info on the fact that Justice Clarence Thomas failed to disclose the income his wife received from the Heritage Foundation. This, along with Thomas’ and Scalia’s failure to recuse themselves from the Citizens United decision, points to the direct connections between right-wing power brokers and the SCOTUS, and the apparent conflicts of interest of these justices.

Emily Peacock, responding to Ripley in CT: Exactly. It's the emails. They've fought tooth and nail over releasing them using every legal trick in the book. They MUST be very incriminating.

Kilob was inspired, dubbing Sarah the “self appointed Demander in Chief” – excellent!
Palingaters send our love to Mr & Mrs Gunka.


Links of the Week

From HIG and others, here is the link to Frank Rich’s NYT opinion piece.

Need a laugh? Amy1 has this for you: Hi Mrs Gunka -- Here's me doing my pageant walk. (note by Regina: We lost the original link, so I searched for a similar one, just for the laugh. Sorry, Amy1... I hope you like this one.)

Sjkfromthebellyoftheplane linked to Daily Kos: Sarah Palin Is Not Responsible. Sarah Palin Is Irresponsible.

Juicyfruityy had a great link to smirkingchimp on MLK.

MrsTBB linked to Dion singing Abraham, Martin and John.

TruGal/wayofpeace linked to an interesting NYT piece.

Palinized pointed out this Media Matters piece on violent rhetoric.

Juicy76 found another Frum takedown of Palin.

And this British bit on What is a Sarah Palin.

I love me a good Sarah smackdown, like Business Insider did here; thanks to HopeforAmerica for the link.

Quite a few ‘Gaters posted this link to the Young Turks showing the Sarah Palin song (to Battle Hymn of the Republic]; it’s an instant classic!

Wesinoregon found some links to interesting international coverage of the Palin map-crosshairs-violent rhetoric-rise of the right wing themes. HERE and HERE

Politicususa on “blood libel.”

Aview found this in WaPo; seems even the Repubs don’t think Sarah is handling things well. and here is a WaPo poll that doesn’t look good for Sarah. Aview also found a post from Malia Litman on the snow machine tweet and several good posts at politicsdaily.

Soapydog linked to the Colbert Report on “Mika’s Palin Fatigue.” Must see!

HopeforAmerica found this on Sarah’s “sobbing meltdown” because she was afraid the blistering criticism in the wake of Tucson would derail her presidential ambitions.

And this good article on RAM in The Daily Beast.

These 2008 articles (H/T nomoosestew and MadamDeal) never get old. HERE and HERE

Cheeriogirl found this great link on the Congress themselves requiring health insurance in 1798, signed by President John Adams. Fascinating!

Paradigm Shift linked to witsend on pollution affecting trees and ecosystems.

Older_Wiser: CNN piece on Palin fatigue.

TurtleTears linked to firedoglake on Loughner’s defense team possibly using Sarah’s rhetoric and map, among other things, in an insanity defense.

Austintxx linked to PolitiFact’s Obamameter.

Wanda found that Andrew Sullivan doesn’t buy the Palin news-blackout idea. No surrender.

KatieAnnieOakley pointed out “Sarah Palin’s Pregnancy Decision Map.”


Tweets of the Week

ProChoiceGrandma (with H/T to xboxershorts): Palin feels she's being unfairly blamed for the actions of an extremist. Maybe she can ask Muslims for advice on how to deal with that. #P2

On @MorningJoe Carl Bernstein says we need 2 fact-check @SarahPalinUSA. @Palingates ahead of you, Carl.http://tinyurl.com/2debcre #P2

History would be different if there had been Hitlergates. We have @Palingates to expose crazy demagoguehttp://tinyurl.com/2debcre #P2

HIG: Progressives to ‘uncloak’ the secret financers behind the Tea party http://j.mp/ieJzh1

HIG also highlighted NewsHounds: Fox News Throws A Pity Party For Sarah Palin, The Martyr Of The Arizona Massacre: On Martin Luther King Day (1/1...http://bit.ly/gPcnp7

BellPeppery: @SarahPalinUSA MLK preached & practiced nonviolence; reflect on that and recommit to peace - PULL DOWN YOUR HIT LIST! http://tiny.cc/ocb2v

ParadigmShift found this tweet: @sarahpalinusa The party's over for you.http://tinyurl.com/6x63eq9

KashaKnish: 4 $arah #Palin "Everybody's Talkin'@ me-I don't hear a word they're sayin'-only the echoes of my mind."http://bit.ly/gFcYWK

Dedicated 2 Sarah #Palin - "Sorry Seems to Be the Hardest Word" Elton John http://bit.ly/if4GzC @sarahpalinusa

@sarahpalinusa The Party's Over -"It's time 2 call it a day-it's time 2 wind up this masquerade ..." - http://youtu.be/3vKN7VrRC8Y #Palin

ThanksABunchJohn with H/T to sjk: @SarahPalinUSA You may not shut up but you may have the right to remain silent - verrry soon! #iceberg cominghttp://tinyurl.com/6x4fjaa

KatieAnnieOakley: Scientists studying Palin's travels. Hoping 2 learn about flight patterns of an elusive species: Wild Alaskan Dingbats.http://bit.ly/eSPifi


The Last Word

Toccaro had a powerful comment on Palin’s attempt to co-opt Dr. King, including: This woman knows nothing about the real legacy of King and those like me who were there and experienced that awful time in history…We are of all persuasions, political leanings, cultures, countries, colors and more, but the common thread, I believe, is that we believe in the good of mankind and that good will triumph evil. Like King did. We dream of a better tomorrow.


And here are some cartoons:

Maelewis pointed this cartoon out:

And this one that Joe Christmas found in the WaPo is excellent:

(Click to enlarge)

Annettek pointed out this mother lode of cartoons.
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Sarah Palin's commonsense solutions to mend the economy

By Regina

Sarah Palin is very fond of talking about "time tested truths," "commonsense solutions" and "work ethic." Just as her Founding Fathers are a thing of the past, so are her simplistic views of the economy. I'm not saying the American Constitution is a thing of the past, but the way she talks about it and the people who wrote it are completely out of any historical context and amount to nothing more than a few soundbites.

Palin's views of the economy fall in the same category. The days when hard work meant good rewards are in the past. In the good old days, there was a strong manufacturing industry, not only in America, but in most other western countries. People produced stuff, earned money and consumed stuff. That was straightforward capitalism and it was simple. But the world has changed a lot. We now have a global economy. The pursuit of the mighty dollar and the desire to escape the rules and regulations that exist to protect workers, consumers and the environment, drove the big fat cats to China and India. In these countries, their main commodity is a vast, growing population that will work for next to nothing and won't dare ask for any guarantess or decent working conditions. These poor people fall over each other to work like slaves in factories that are free to pollute as they please. And we in the West give them a pass because they are emerging economies and could do with a bit of help in order to grow. This paternalistic approach has nothing to do with helping emerging economies and everything to do with maximizing profits.


The West outsourced a lot of manufacturing and other jobs because we all want to pay less at the checkout. For a start, that's not necessarily true. Sneakers that cost pennies to produce are still sold as status symbols and don't come cheap. The question is: What are we going to use for money? The same monopoly money the big financial corporations play with? Millions of jobs went to India and China, so how are the consumers going to pay for the cheap goods? There are whole towns in America where chronic unemployment has become the norm. Where are the consumers?

There is a climate of fear among the workforce in the US (and elsewhere in the West). In the US, people are afraid to change jobs because they're afraid of losing their healthcare plans. All over the West, people are being forced to take pay cuts because any job is better than no job at all. What kind of work ethic is that? A big section of the population can't even dream of working hard and reaping the rewards.

During the economic boom of the 80s, people got used to the instant gratification that credit afforded them. Buy now, pay later. That was when monopoly money became the currency and oh, boy, are we paying for it now! The economy looked healthy, people were buying like never before, but all the while, the true strength of the economy was being dismantled and moved abroad.

A couple of years ago, the storm that had been brewing during the Bush years hit with unforgiving violence and Obama was saddled with the task of rebuilding the US economy from the debris. How could a country with so many smart people allow it to happen? Are the finance gurus that stupid? Were the people who sold the jobs abroad a bunch of dummies? Well, yes and no. They made a lot of money for themselves and their shareholders, but due to their lack of foresight, they destroyed the source of their profits. An insecure population without jobs or fearing for their jobs don't make very good consumers. Some may still be living in the past and buying now hoping to pay later, but that is a bubble that has already burst. The vast majority of the population are not shareholders, not many people can hedge their bets. They need real jobs, they do want to work hard. What's this job creation Ms Palin keeps going on about? Is it going to be in the service industry, which is money consuming, not money making? Is it going to be in government like in her Alaska, where great numbers of people work in some oil related job or for the government in some way or another?

There are fewer industries left in the US and the money is (more than ever) concentrated in the hands of the very few. Without a proper manufacturing industry, the backbone of the economy is gone. What are the industries that so far have kept the economy ticking, albeit in a faltering fashion? Big Oil, Big Pharma, Health Insurance and the Media, for example. So people can continue to feed their gas guzzling machines with stuff that's declining, swallowing medicines they can't afford for illnesses everybody is afraid to have while they watch reality shows and news that make them even more afraid of their own shadows? Let's not forget the war industry, which has become the new backbone of the American economy. It's no coincidence that it also thrives in a climate of fear. It's also being bankrolled by China...

When Obama proposed buying $600 billion in bonds in order to boost the economy, Sarah Palin asked if the money was going to come out of thin air. What she doesn't realize is that money has been coming out of thin air for many years. That's the monopoly money I mentioned earlier. In the absence of a strong manufacturing industry and very poor prospects for creating real jobs, that's the only currency any president has at his disposal to address an economic crisis and only puts a band-aid on the deep wounds that are affecting a great number of people. Pouring money into the market is a short term patch-up job. The real solutions are far more complex than that.

I didn't hear Sarah Palin coming forward with any proposals for real long term solutions...

Europe still has some safety mechanisms in place and will survive longer, but not forever. The West, in their hunger for cheap profits, transferred economic power to China and shot themselves in the foot. Now all they have is some cheap, make-believe money and not much power.

My views may be simplistic also, too, as I'm no economist, but I think they go a little bit beyond Ms Palin's outdated soundbites. I may be wrong (I hope so), but I have the impression the fat cats are in panic mode, grabbing what they can while they can because they have realized that they have destroyed the economy and their own golden goose. They'll grab the money and run.

Then they'll blame it on Obama.

+++

Please re-tweet:

http://twitter.com/#!/palingates/status/29274777025777664

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Has the shooting in Arizona and Sarah Palin's "blood libel"reaction affected her chances of winning the Republican nomination for President?

By Kathleen

Despite Sarah Palin’s apparent crash and burn absurd "blood libel" reference controversy and her subsequent defense/attack, "I am a victim and so are you" interview with Hannity, Palin still ranks as one of the top three in a recent survey carried out from January 13 to 17 by NBC News and the Wall Street Journal - conducted several days after the Arizona shooting, which happened on January 8. Sarah Palin's "blood libel speech" happened on January 12, one day before the polling started for this survey.

The survey included questions that were to be addressed only to Republican or strict Independents with regard to a list of people who might seek the GOP nomination for President in the upcoming primaries for the 2012 Elections. In the survey, Romney ranks first at 19%, closely followed by Huckabee at 18%, and Palin polling at 14%. I have included the full poll results because the findings are interesting. There is a significant gap between the top three and the fourth placed and fifth placed preferences, Newt Gingrich and Ron Paul. However, the primaries are a year away and there is still a lot of time for such gaps to be closed or for new candidate names to become more prominent.

Haley Barbour’s name makes an appearance but Michelle Bachmann is not mentioned by name despite the recent chatter that she is considering a run for the Presidency herself. Bachmann is a native of Iowa, raised in Cedar Falls, who yesterday delivered a keynote speech at a fundraiser for Iowans for Tax Relief PAC in Des Moines in which she intimated that she is proud that none of her children are in jail right now, waxed lyrical on American exceptionalism and the “thunder cloud of debt” that America presently faces.

The Iowans for Tax Relief Pac is headed by Ed Failor Jnr and access to its 55,000 member list is much desired by those considering mounting a campaign for the Presidency. I think that it is worth pointing out that some consider that a better name for the Iowans for Tax Relief Pac would be Iowans for Special Interest Loopholes and High Rates because despite its name the group supports special interest and corporate tax subsidies which it is thought result in tax rises for the majority. Bachman says that she would like to see a similar Pac set up in her own state of Minnesota.

On page 17 of this very comprehensive survey we find the opinions about some of the potential Republican nominees:

That Sarah Palin’s name still appears in the top three amongst Republican and Independent voters must drive to distraction those in the GOP and others who insist that she has “done herself in” due to her deaf like response to the Gabby Giffords shooting. And it should, because despite the repudiation of the violent imagery which her 2010 campaign used and the rejection of her as a victim by many these latest figures show that she clearly still maintains the strong support of the right wing base and that this support is unlikely to change.

Sarah Palin is a divisive personality who engages in extreme rhetoric as a matter of course. There is a significant number of very angry voters in the USA who feel disenfranchised because they feel that neither the Republicans nor the Democratic Party represent them. They feel disenchanted with both parties because they have lost their homes, their jobs or even both. They can see no solutions. Those angry voters will gravitate naturally to the loudest angry voice during the primaries. That voice looks like it will be Palins. That she is quiet now is the lull before the storm.

Please don't get me wrong: I am of course well aware that the chances that Sarah Palin would win a presidential election against Barack Obama are very slim. However, it has to be noted that the shooting in Arizona and Sarah Palin's controversial reaction do not appear to have had any impact on her overall "negative" ratings, as the following chart shows. On page 5 of the survey, we are told that there is a significant drop in the "very positive rating", but the overall "negative" ratings haven't changed at all:

Therefore, the comparison between the positive/negative ratings for Sarah Palin in this survey from January 2011 is virtually identical to the ratings by the same pollsters from December 2010, which Palingates previously reported.

January 2011:

December 2010:

The notion that the shooting in Arizona and Sarah Palin's reaction to it have damaged her chances to win the Republican primaries is not supported by this survey.

Anyone declaring victory at this point in the fight against Sarah Palin might be in for a very unpleasant surprise.

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