13 October 2008

Idiot of the Week Nominee: Sarah Palin

This was bound to happen, but Gov. Palin found a unique yet characteristic way to enter this competition. Since she entered the national arena, the Alaskan has been accused of offering pre-programmed responses to challenges, but today's episode in Richmond VA takes this purported habit to an absurd level. You may have seen it on TV, but until I can find an embeddable version of it on the net you'll have to be satisfied with this link to as sympathetic a report of the incident as you're likely to find -- and it's not that sympathetic this time. To save time, I'll cut to the chase right here:

The massive crowd of over 10,000 –holding signs that read “I’m Voting for the Chick” and “Keep Virginia Red– had problems hearing the governor of Alaska and supporters in the back started chanting, “Louder! Louder! Louder!” In an awkward moment, Palin mistakenly thought protestors were interrupting her speech, “I would hope at least that those protestors have the courage and the honor of thanking our veterans for giving them the right to protest.”

The audience began yelling, “No!” and tried to alert the GOP Vice-Presidential nominee to speak louder.Her husband, Todd then leaned over and explained to his wife that they were enthusiastic supporters not protestors, “They just can’t hear you back there. That’s it.” Todd whispered in Palin’s ear, but it is audible on the camera microphone.



I've tried to come up with a measured response to the scene, but the best I can come up with is: "HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

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Update: If it wasn't funny enough on the page, here's the video:


2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Since when did our veterans give us the right to protest? That was written into the Constitution by our founding fathers, not by some rag-tag group of ex-soldiers. That simpering bitch apparently knows nothing about the country she's trying to become vice president of. A vote for Palin is a vote for stupidity.

Samuel Wilson said...

Palin was using a favorite conservative retort to protesters. It reminds me of Mike Huckabee's speech at the GOP convention about the schoolteacher who wouldn't let students use their desks until they told her how to earn them, only to tell them that they had already been earned by: veterans!

The funny thing about this approach is that conservatives are big on the idea of natural rights. They don't believe that rights are conferred on us by governments, so it's inconsistent of them to believe that we owe these rights to soldiers. Of course, what they mean is that military might is what guarantees you the right to protest without reprisal. But the right and the guarantee are two different things. The right to protest is as close to a "natural" right that we get, because the right derives from the fact that we are human beings with intellect, conscience and courage. These do not require guarantees from any other power. I don't owe my right to protest to any soldier or any government. I owe it to myself to have the courage to speak out when my government does wrong, regardless of the consequences. Too many Americans regard rights as an exemption from the requirements of courage, and a license to make frivolous, self-indulgent complaints. Go ahead and thank a soldier for that.