Hix Nix Palin Tricks

Well, maybe they can re-title it as "The Defeated" ...


Palin doc headed for PPV as ticket sales plummet

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap) - With its Sarah Palin documentary "The Undefeated" increasing its playdates by 40 percent this weekend, only to watch box office revenue decline by more than 63 percent, distributor Arc Entertainment announced Sunday that the film will soon be available on pay per view.


The movie played in 14 Tea Party-friendly locations this weekend -- up from the 10 in which it opened last week -- but grossed just $24,000.


Starting September 1, subscribers to DirecTV, Dish Network and Time Warner can see the true Horatio Alger story of an Alaska woman's rise from self-described "hockey mom" to gubernatorial dropout to conservative cable news bastion talking head, all in the comfort of their own home.


In addition, the film will launch on DVD October 4 with a shipment of 250,000 units.

 


Hard to say "ticket sales plummeted", when on opening night, in Red-as-you-can-get-Red Orange County, Southern California, the theatre was empty - nobody showed up.


Why, on earth didn't some Right Wing Flying Monkeys, or, her own Mommy Moose PAC buy up all the movie tickets - just like they did for her book - to make it a runaway success?


To tweak LBJ, if the Wasilla Whiz Kid has lost the Teabaggers, she's lost the country.


And, so much for the juggernaut.


Highlights heading into the 2012 Campaign are, now, a cancelled pre-campaign victory bus tour, and a Susan- Alexander-Kanesque film that goes bust.


If Tina Fey has some smarts, she'll quickly punch out a Doppelganger spoof of "The Undeafeated", of which its' opening night will eclipse all the revenue of the Ex-Governor with Lipstick's box office.


 


Bonus Riffs


Andy Kroll|:  New Sarah Palin Hagiography: Springboard for 2012 Presidential Run?


John Cole:  So Much Awesome In One Place


Ben Child:  Sarah Palin likened to Joan of Arc in two-hour documentary film


TBogg:  Sarah Palin Is The Culmination Of All Human Endeavors and Wars And Probably Evolution


David Weigel:  Palin's Coming Attractions - What the new Sarah Palin documentary gets right, and wrong, about her politics.


Alyssa Rosenberg: Sarah Palin Taken Aback by Hollywood’s Reaction To Her

Palin's Experience

"Sarah Palin is back! The keeper of the light! All hail Sarah Palin! All hail Sarah Palin! Oh Sarah Palin can you see by the dawn's early light..."

Grand Central Station Locker Creatures.



It's a good thing I hadn't had my first morning cup of coffee when I caught this, otherwise, I would have spewed it all over the computer, as I fell to the floor in a fit of laughter.

It should be no surprise that The Wasilla Whiz Kid would call for, on her Policy Think Tank Facebook Page, continued drilling;

All responsible energy development must be accompanied by strict oversight, but even with the strictest oversight in the world, accidents still happen. No human endeavor is ever without risk – whether it’s sending a man to the moon or extracting the necessary resources to fuel our civilization. I repeat the slogan “drill here, drill now” not out of naiveté or disregard for the tragic consequences of oil spills – my family and my state and I know firsthand those consequences. How could I still believe in drilling America’s domestic supply of energy after having seen the devastation of the Exxon-Valdez spill? I continue to believe in it because increased domestic oil production will make us a more secure, prosperous, and peaceful nation.

No, actually "increased domestic oil production" will not make us more secure and prosperous (well, it will make the oil industry companies very prosperous).

It will continue to destroy our environment, and strain state and federal budgets, cleaning up, for years-to-decades, those "accidents with the strictest oversight" while underfunding the development of alternative, safe, renewal energy sources.



But that is not what would have had coffee shooting out of my nose.

Rather it was the Flying Monkey sycophants over on Conservatives4Palin.

Latching on to anything, anything, with Herculean powers, anything that could possibly make Mommy Moose look like a thoughtful, competent leader, they go to the source, the beryllium sphere, Ms. Ya'Bet'cha's book, to highlight "her experience" in dealing with oil spills.

Palin's Experience With Exxon Valdez Oil Spill

Governor Palin wrote earlier today about the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. As the governor mentioned in her Facebook posting, she's experienced the effects of an oil spill first-hand. The following is an excerpt from Going Rogue about the Exxon Valdez spill (pages 59-62):

On Good Friday, March 24, 1989, I baked a cake for Dad’s fifty-first birthday. It started out a great day, but turned into one of those “where were you when ...” moments. When Ronald Reagan was shot, I heard about it over the intercom upstairs in the library at Wasilla High; when the space shuttle Challenger exploded, I was watching it on TV while standing in my dorm room at UI.

On this day, I was in my apartment on Peck Street in Wasilla when the phone rang.

“Sarah, turn on the TV!” It was Blanche. The intensity of her voice did not spell good news.

[snip]

When the Exxon Valdez hit Bligh Reef, I was a young mother-to-be with a blue-collar husband headed up to the Slope. I hadn’t yet envisioned running for elected office. But looking back, I can see that the tragedy planted a seed in me: If I ever had a chance to serve my fellow citizens, I would do so, and I’d work for the ordinary, hardworking people—like everyone who was a part of my ordinary, hardworking world.

Well ...

Not exactly.

It was more like she'd work for, about, a half term, for those "ordinary, hardworking people", before bailing out, and jumping on the Money Train.

Meanwhile, back in reality;

Leaked report: Government fears Deepwater Horizon well could become unchecked gusher

The worst-case scenario for the broken and leaking well pouring oil into the Gulf of Mexico would be the loss of the wellhead and kinked piping currently restricting the flow to 5,000 barrels -- or 210,000 gallons -- per day.

If the wellhead is lost, oil could leave the well at a much greater rate.

[snip]

Gouget said the loss of a wellhead is totally unprecedented.

Maybe she can go down there, and wink at it.





Bonus Links

Andrew Sullivan: Tweet Of The Day

Laura Conaway: Palin feels Gulf's pain, but accidents happen, OK? As proved by 2nd rig collapse

Cheney, Baby Cheney ...

Twisted

The one, absolute certainty of this evening, regarding the Wasilla Whiz Kid's reversed-Sally-Field-I Love-You-Tea-Party-Nation-I-Really-Love-You $100G speech, is that Peggy Noonan must have had a half-dozen, or so, orgasms, for the number of drippingly pandering times Mommy Moose gave (and encouraged) virtual blow jobs to Ronald Reagan.



The way the Teabaggers were lapping her up like happy soup, Ms. Ya'Bet'cha's could have just said the name "Ronald Reagan" for 90-minutes or so, and they still would have carried her off on their shoulders.

The way she opened the gig, the earth was rumbling at Forest Lawn, as Frank Capra had to stand up, from his grave, and applaud the way the former PartyofNoican clothes horse covered just about all there is in Americana, just short of baking an apple pie on stage, as she stuttered out how proud she was to "be an American", blew kisses to the soldiers, slammed CSPAN, let everyone know she wants to knit American Flag underwear for Scott Brown, and, of course, groped, and French kissed, for the first of many times, the old Gipper.

From there, it was pedal-to-the-metal boilerplate bashing, of Obama, Pelosi, Reid, the Democrats, liberals, and even poor Joe Biden.

And, surely, the MSM will grab onto her "Hopey-Changey" zinger.

It all their fault, all our debt, unemployment, that they are running a panty-boy National Security and Foreign policy, and all we have to do, to get our "economy soaring again", is cut spending and cut taxes.



In fact, it would be much later, when asked to describe, if, cough, cough, she was "President Palin", what her National Security and Foreign Policy would be, flags popped out of sleeves, and I swear, the Liberty University Marching Band came out on stage, playing "Stars and Stripes Forever" and she machine-gunned out;

We win, they lose

Yabetcha!

Give her credit, for knowing her rabid audience, as her jabs, slurs, misinformation and lies were often punctuated with a proverbial rim shot, and, she gave a nod to any geezer Teabaggers, with raising "high, high, high" the godfather of what used to be the Conservative Movement, Barry Goldwater (if he were in the mix today, the teabaggers would chase him down the street and beat him to death with their misspelled signs).

But the big moment, the money shot, came at the end, in a sandbagged Question and Answer period, with the money-grubbing Convention producer, Judson Phillips, who winked-and-nodded to the crowd, that the questions came from "Tea Party Nation".

If the Teabaggers didn't have flaming-arrows-in-the-eye blind loyalty, and love, of Palin, the room would have deflated, perhaps been torn apart and burned down, when, before the questions began, Mommy Moose advocated, after nearly 90-minutes of kissing the grass-roots ground they walk on, that the PartyofNoicans "embrace" the Teabaggers into their white-only tiny tent.

Come to think of it, not sure if that was an olive branch, or a fatwa, that if they don't, they will be hunted down, skinned alive and used for kindling wood, when the Teabaggers embark on that revolution Palin, earlier said, they were ready for.



Anyway, back to the money shot.

Phillips asked that, with the pending Conservative takeover of the House and Senate, in the Fall Midterms (he presented this, less as a hypothetical, and more as a given), what should be the three top points of their agenda?

Oh no, a wild card question, requiring the former abdicating half-term Governor to, yikes, think.

Onward Comrades, as Palin jumped right in, saying, first, we have to go back to our roots, and be a "God-fearing nation".

Then, it was okay not to have all the answers, you know, have ideas, vision, facts, she was giving her future government a pass on, you know, actually doing anything.

That's because she saved her best, for last.

The definitive policy of Sarah Palin;

Divine Intervention

Everybody just get down on your knees, start praying, start beseeching the Good Lord, to take away the scary monster in the closet, and make us okay again, you know, give us back OUR country.

Divine Intervention.

Oh, good grief ...

Take it away, Annie Ross

Twisted - Annie Ross

Crazy

Well, good thing we did our posting early morning, yesterday, as the afternoon got taken over by events on the homefront.

We had to get The Aunt up to the hospital early afternoon, which ended up to be an extended ER visit, and turned into their admitting her for the night, for treatment and monitoring.

Today, up until early evening, was a all-day-hospital visit, more than half of it, waiting for the discharge orders and paperwork.

She's home and resting comfortably.

That all adds up to virtually zero energy left to do anything creative, including putting into shape a handful of partially-prepared posts sitting in the files.



So, we will get off a small riff, on Mommy Moose, and growing-infamous, pedal-to-the-metal, whining press conference on Friday.

We searched for a bit, to come up with a tune The Wasilla Whiz Kid could use, as, more-or-less, a theme song, or soundtrack, for her virtual meltdown (as well as cover our own weekend).

And, we think we found it, an old war horse, the lyrics playing, rather nicely, in-sync, to the soon-to-be-ex-Governor.

It's the Willie Nelson chestnut, "Crazy", performed with Mr. & Mrs. Elvis Costello

Diana Krall, Elvis Costello & Willie Nelson - Crazy (Live)



Oh No!

I'm calling Sarah Palin crazy!

I might be sued!

Yet Another Reason We Called Him 'Stumblin' and Bumblin'

Dead Campaign Express pulled off another one.

While there are efforts being made to expunge the gutter campaign the debunked Maverick ran, the one consistency was that, if something could be screwed up, they certainly screwed it up.

This seemed harmless, enough, from the WaPo's 'The Sleuth', Mary Ann Akers;

Fire Sale on All McCain-Palin Campaign Equipment

That's right, the failed McCain-Palin campaign is having a fire sale this week on leftover equipment. Everything is on sale at reduced prices. An email sent over the weekend to all campaign staff, which was subsequently forwarded to the Sleuth, reads:

"Starting Monday December 8, 2008 the prices will be slashed to 36% of the original price for furniture, office supplies, blackberries, and many campaign computers. This is a great opportunity to own a piece of history, finish your Christmas shopping, or simply replace your old laptop."

Don't have any cash on you? No worries. An attached price sheet says, "We accept cash, checks, and credit cards."

Okay ... Dump some of the stuff, pick-up a few bucks, maybe, some folks could have gotten a good deal.

So, how did it go for the Stumblin' Fly Boy?

Campaign Blackberry Filled With McCain-Palin Info Sold To Reporter For $20

MyFoxDC.com: When we charged them up in the newsroom, we found one of the $20 Blackberry phones contained more than 50 phone numbers for people connected with the McCain-Palin campaign, as well as hundreds of emails from early September until a few days after election night.

We traced the Blackberry back to a staffer who worked for “Citizens for McCain,” a group of democrats who threw their support behind the Republican nominee. The emails contain an insider’s look at how grassroots operations work, full of scheduling questions and rallying cries for support.

But most of the numbers were private cell phones for campaign leaders, politicians, lobbyists and journalists.

We called some of the numbers.

“Somebody made a mistake,” one owner told us. “People’s numbers and addresses were supposed to be erased.”

“They should have wiped that stuff out,” another said. But he added, “Given the way the campaign was run, this is not a surprise.”

We called the McCain-Palin campaign, who says, “it was an unfortunate staff error and procedures are being put in place to ensure all information is secure.”

As Steve Benen noted, TECHNOLOGY WAS NEVER THEIR STRONG POINT...

Even if he didn't blow it on the economy, or do the blindfolded "Pin-The-Tail-On-My-VP-Choice" of The Wasilla Whiz Kid, it still would be hard to imagine that he would ever get elected President.

Not for us, but for him;

Help Me Mr. Wizard!

The Clothes Horse Rides Again!

What's a diva supposed to do with $150K in wardrobe?

In the latest installment of the now, long-running RNC production of "The Dresser", it seems that she added another $30,000;

Say it Ain't So, Sarah, Another 30K?

The Republican National Committee is scheduled to file a campaign report with the Federal Election Commission Thursday disclosing that the committee spent additional funds to clothe and accessorize vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin.

Snip ...

While not providing much in details, Republican officials say that the RNC’s post-election financial report will include information on other “accessories’’ purchased for Palin before the Nov. 4 election.

“The amount to be reported is significantly less than $150,000,’’ one RNC official told National Journal. “The accessories on the report are less than $30,000.’’

I'm beginning to think she took this gig, just for the freebies ... Load up ... Juice up the wardrobe ...A proverbial "Supermarket Sweep"...

It certainly wasn't for her intellect, the substances of her speeches.

Somebody she look into the Chambliss campaign reports ... Mommy Moose regurgitated her McKKKain stump speeches for old Saxby ... I'm sure she must have grabbed some new threads there ...

She'd want to look sharp when standing up for such a repugnant veteran basher.

Though, can you count white bedsheets as "wardrobe"?


Bonus Don't Wink For Me Sarah Palin Riffs

She's Not A Hockey Mom with Lipstick ... She's Clothes Horse!

She's Not A Hockey Mom with Lipstick ... She's A Hockey Jinx!

She's Not A Hockey Mom with Lipstick ... She's Emily Litella!

Legally Alaskan ... Or: Base Hit

Is It A Palin Truth Squad? .... Ya Betch'Ya!

Well, it may be that those salad days of shopping, slaughtering turkeys, and inspiring strangers to give a "Thank You" shout out, will be looked at as "the good days".

News comes The Land of the Midnight Sun that Mommy Moose will be getting a look-over that doesn’t send starbursts through the screen.

Mudflats has it in a most creative post today;

Alaska Needs Your Help! In Which I Explain That the Creature from the Black Lagoon is a Good Guy

The boaters realize with growing dismay that the crowd that has gathered on the shore has not come to help them fight off the beast. They are actually cheering for the creature who has boarded the boat! What can this mean?! Why do they hate us?! Quick, offer this thing a sandwiche or something!

But neither the creature, nor the townsfolk on the shore will be deterred. The creature has made itself quite comfortable on the boat, and is now sitting, and has actually begun to row the boat ashore (Hallelujah!) with the intent of delivering the trembling crew right into the middle of the mob of agitated townsfolk….

It’s amazing what can be brought to life with some good old fashioned community organizing. What all this means is that Alaskans for Truth is now an official Political Action Committee, registered with the Alaska Public Offices Commission. And they have issued a call to action.

And what would this "Call to Action be?

Rather than to try to figure out how to get our creature to pull something out of his non-existant pocket, and read an eloquent call to action, I’ll just give you a link to the Alaskans for Truth website, which spells it all out. What do they want?

1. Censure of the Governor for violating the Alaska Executive Branch Ethics Act.
2. Penalties for the state employees and Todd Palin who ignored subpoenas.
3. Hold hearings on whether Governor Palin and her husband committed perjury in their sworn statement to Timothy Petumenos.
4. An independent investigation into Attorney General Talis Colberg’s alleged witness tampering in the Troopergate investigation.

Hmmm ... Sounds a lot different than the Palin Truth Squad we wrote about, wondering if they got per diems too, and, flashing that big, giant "P" in the sky, whenever someone told the truth about Mommy Moose.

Ahhh , but that was the dwarfs, finks, phonies and frauds Palin Truth Squad.

Here's to the Alaskans for Truth, and their success, so that we can have a quieter 2012, leaving only the other Republican nitwits to fight it out.

Oh yeah, one tip;

Ask about her new house....

The Mommy Moose Fan Club

Oh, I'm sorry, wrong video.

Word comes today (and earlier this week) of a, ya gotta give'em that they got spirit, a Sarah Palin Fan Club, of sorts, the Our Country Deserves Better PAC, and they are not waiting.

They love The Wasilla Whiz Kid and they want to let everybody know it.

Group Makes Support Video for Palin in Rancho

More than 100 Californians are appearing in a new television ad campaign this week that will be directed to Governor Sarah Palin. Because of what this group is calling bashing from the media, they’ve decided to instead thank Palin for her work in the 2008 Presidential campaign. The ad is being produced by a conservative group called Our Country Deserves Better and people from all over the country are heading to Rancho Cordova to take part.

The Republican vice president candidate received a lot of media attention during her run for office. Everything from her hairstyle, glasses and manner of speech was critiqued. Others argue that is true for any one running for public office and she shouldn’t be singled out. Our Country Deserves Better disagrees and plans on showing America another side of Sarah Palin over Thanksgiving weekend, when the advertisement will air on cable television stations across the country.

You can view their video, "Thank You Sarah Palin!", HERE.

I might want to join them in a small round of "Thanks"

I sure got a bevy of posts out of her fleeting moments in the spotlight, movin' up to the big show (HERE, HERE and HERE).

Now, before we get too excited about this Our Country Deserves Better PAC, leading the charge, carrying the infamous infamous Hockey Mom on their shoulders, to victory in 2012, let's look at how they did this year.

From the Our Country Deserves Better PAC website;

Our Beliefs

The Our Country Deserves Better PAC has one objective: to defeat Barack Obama in the 2008 presidential election. We won't be subtle or vague - America's future is at stake, and it's time someone stood up to Barack Obama and told the American people why this man cannot, and must not, serve as our next Commander-in-Chief. We are going to give the American people the truth in no uncertain terms because that is what they expect, but haven’t been getting from either the news media or many of our political leaders.

Hmmmm...

Didn't do to good on that "defeating Barack Obama" thing, did ya?

Oh, but the truth did come out.

That the Dead Campaign Express ran a negative, lying, smearing, bigoted campaign, with The Wild Wordsmith of Wasilla, on the mound (and the stump) hurling most of the innings with those mudballs.

So, if they want to throw away their money, with an "Up With Peoplesque" video, knock yourself out, folks.

Mommy Moose may have other ideas.

Who's the leader of the club
That's made for you and me
M-O-M-M-Y M-O-O-S-E

Oh yeah, one more thing.

We already have seen "another side of Sarah Palin" over Thanksgiving.

Well, She Could Have Been Shooting Them From A Helicopter ...

If you ask me, this was a subtle (well, not so subtle, really) shot back at all her detractors, the other Republicans who have been dissing her, blowing her off for 2012, saying she's not what the party is about.

If he wasn't dead already, you could have been led to think that this press conference was directed, and shot, by Sam Peckinpah.

Yes, Mommy Moose is in the news again (well, she has never really left it, has she?), doing the lame, traditional "Turkey Pardon" (I wasn't aware Governors did this - I thought that was a Presidential thing - Hint, Hint!) and, then, stepping out to do a little PR.

Not that she offered anything earth-shattering, or profound (we are talking about The Wasilla Whiz Kid here, after all), it is her choice of location that has been buzzing in the headlines.

And, as everyone who has presented this has done, we offer the warning that you may find the scene of a turkey being slaughtered a bit gruesome.

KTUU 2008 Sarah Palin turkey interview



It was said that the photographer alerted the infamous Hockey Mom to the activities going on behind her, and she shrugged it off.

Like I said, perhaps pointing at people like, say, Newt Gingrich, she knew what she was doing, and it was less doing the ceremonial thing, and more that she was delivering a message.

No doubt, Rich Lowery must be playing the above video, over-and-over, breathless and soaked, not once glancing at the carnage going behind his dream girl, with the rainstorm of starbursts cascading over him.

We'll have to wait and see if the Turkey Farm went out and purchased her clothes for the Bloody Pardon Press Conference.

Doesn't a girl gotta look good standing in front of birds being slaughtered?

Ya Betch'ya!

And the Thanksgiving holiday, itself?

A Palinpalooza of potential media coverage!

Stuffing the turkey ... Mashing the potatoes .. Carving the cooked bird ... Serving the homemade pies ...

And, what does everyone do the day after Thanksgiving?

Go Shopping!

Recycle your Thanksgiving toothpicks to use for how often The Wild Wordsmith of Wasilla (as labeled by Dick Cavett) pops up on the tube over this holiday season.

Happy Palin Holidays!


Bonus McKKKain Running-Mate Riffs

Bob Cesca: WTF?

Libby Spencer: Palin talks turkey

(Be sure to view the bonus video Libby posted - WKRP turkey drop scene Happy Thanksgiving - It's hysterical!)

McCain VP Confusion; Staff Had Canadian Actress Sarah Polley In Dayton Hotel For Three Days

Hey Palin, I'll See You Your First Amendment Rights, and Raise You Our Eighth!

Alaskan Lie

Could This Be The Answer For The Torn GOP?

Mighty MendIt

Yes, Billy Mays and his Mighty MendIt!

He's more ubiquitous than Michael Caine, and, as we have all seen, he's up to virtually any job, always guaranteeing success, fixing any problem, solving any need.

Hey, they're touting The Wasilla Whiz Kid, Billy Mays can't be much worse.

Hey Palin, I'll See You Your First Amendment Rights, and Raise You Our Eighth!

Ignorant and stupid doesn't begin to cover the latest ramblings from The Wasilla Whiz Kid.

Now, it seems rather obvious, that Mommy Moose was tossing a shout out to the Base with this "both-feet-in-mouth" view of our First Amendment, you know, get'em riled up that a severe injustice is being perpetrated against her, and the Stumblin' Fly Boy.

It's actually a "twofer", bashing both Barack Obama and the media.

What is it, you ask?

Palin Fears Media Threaten Her First Amendment Rights

ABC News' Steven Portnoy reports: In a conservative radio interview that aired in Washington, D.C. Friday morning, Republican vice presidential nominee Gov. Sarah Palin said she fears her First Amendment rights may be threatened by "attacks" from reporters who suggest she is engaging in a negative campaign against Barack Obama.

"If [the media] convince enough voters that that is negative campaigning, for me to call Barack Obama out on his associations," Palin told host Chris Plante, "then I don't know what the future of our country would be in terms of First Amendment rights and our ability to ask questions without fear of attacks by the mainstream media."

WTF!

Is this what she really thinks, and/or, believes?

I suppose, if the Dead Campaign Express is successful, and they do win, Palin can, as the Vice President who runs the Senate, can just have the whole gang to roll up their sleeves, and get to workin', and fix that little nasty First Amendment, darn good, so she, and future Republicans can run smear campaigns, worry-free, from getting any negative press, or, for that matter, merely asked about it.

Glen Greenwald nails it good

If anything, Palin has this exactly backwards, since one thing that the First Amendment does actually guarantee is a free press. Thus, when the press criticizes a political candidate and a Governor such as Palin, that is a classic example of First Amendment rights being exercised, not abridged.

According to Palin, what the Founders intended with the First Amendment was that political candidates for the most powerful offices in the country and Governors of states would be free to say whatever they want without being criticized in the newspapers. In the Palin worldview, the First Amendment was meant to ensure that powerful political officials such as herself would not be "attacked" in the papers. Is it even possible to imagine more breathtaking ignorance from someone holding high office and running for even higher office?

So, if she wants to play this game, I believe we can trump her on it.

The Eighth Amendment.

Cruel and Unusual Punishment.

It is documented, overwhelmingly, in both the media, and in polls, it has been absolute torture seeing, and hearing Mommy Moose on the campaign trail.

Her Hockey Mom BS, the winking (sorry Rich Lowery, we know you go to heaven with it), the "gosh gollies" and "gosh darn its", the unabashed, complete naked, out-and-out lying, the obfuscation, the gutter-based smears, the fraud, the ignorance ...

Torture, pure torture.

Worse than fingernails scrapping down a blackboard.

Waterboarding, sans the water, as one's breath is stunted, stopped, labored, watching her on the campaign trail.

The Eighth Amendment clearly outlaws this kind of torture;

In Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972), Justice Brennan wrote, "There are, then, four principles by which we may determine whether a particular punishment is 'cruel and unusual'."

The "essential predicate" is "that a punishment must not by its severity be degrading to human dignity," especially torture.
"A severe punishment that is obviously inflicted in wholly arbitrary fashion."
"A severe punishment that is clearly and totally rejected throughout society."
"A severe punishment that is patently unnecessary."

As you can see, the GOP Clothes Horse, out, in public campaigning, hits, at minimum, two of these four principles, the "A severe punishment that is obviously inflicted in wholly arbitrary fashion," and "A severe punishment that is clearly and totally rejected throughout society."

You can also argue, which numerous REPUBLICANS have, that "A severe punishment that is patently unnecessary," as the debunked Maverick should have chosen someone other than Palin, someone with a minimal amount of intelligence, so her being on the ticket is certainly "patently unnecessary".

If you looked at the papers today, you would see that a majority of the country believes that to be true

Growing Doubts on Palin Take a Toll, Poll Finds

All told, 59 percent of voters surveyed said Ms. Palin was not prepared for the job, up nine percentage points since the beginning of the month. Nearly a third of voters polled said the vice-presidential selection would be a major factor influencing their vote for president, and those voters broadly favor Senator Barack Obama, the Democratic nominee.

While a majority viewed Ms. Palin as unqualified for the vice presidency, roughly three-quarters of voters saw Mr. Obama’s running mate, Senator Joseph R. Biden Jr. of Delaware, as qualified for the job. The increase in the number of voters who said Ms. Palin was not prepared was driven almost entirely by Republicans and independents.

So there, Mommy Moose, are these people that took part in the poll infringing on your First Amendment rights?

Gosh Darn It, I don't think so ...


Bonus Palin WTF! Riffs

Eric Zorn: Wow!

The Toot: Free speech is a threat to free speech

Jason Zengerle: Alert the ACLU!

Steve Benen: AS NASTY AS SHE WANTS TO BE...

McKKKain-Palin, In Reverse

I think it's supposed to be, in the final days of campaign, that you "get out the vote", not, as it appears the Dead Campaign Express is employing, "get the voter the hell out of here".

Two incidents this week, that shows they just don't get it.

Pre-emptive ejection: Audience members removed at McCain rally in Cedar Falls

Audience members escorted out of Sen. John McCain’s, R-Ariz., campaign event in Cedar Falls questioned why they were asked to leave Sunday’s rally even though they were not protesting.

Lara Elborno, a student at the University of Iowa, said she was approached by a police officer and a McCain staffer and was told she had to leave or she would be arrested for trespassing.

“It was a very confusing, very frustrating situation,” Elborno said. “I said that I had a right to be there, I wasn’t doing anything disruptive — I was sitting, waiting for the rally to start.”

She said McCain staffers wouldn’t tell her why she was being asked to leave and when she got outside, she saw “a group of about 20 people” who had all been asked to leave.

Despite repeated attempts, McCain’s campaign could not be reached for comment.

Kicking people out of your own rally?

I'm not sure that's in too many campaign playbooks.

But, those were just regular people, Joe-and-Josephine Six-Packs.

The Dead Campaign Express also had bigger fish to fry.

McCain-Palin Campaign Snubs Penn State Prez; Unwelcome at Palin Campus Event Because He's a "Big Democrat"

A McCain-Palin campaign official snubbed the president of Penn State University who inquired about attending a campus speech Tuesday by Republican vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin, university officials told ABCNews.com.

"I welcome eminent visitors to our campus everyday, including lots of Republicans, but [the McCain-Palin campaign] didn't want me to greet her or even attend the event," said Spanier.

Some might say that makes it an odd time to snub the president of the state's largest university. The school enrolls 40,000 students and counts a quarter-million alumni living in Pennsylvania alone.

Spanier says he does not appear on stage or introduce candidates but is always eager "to officially welcome visitors to our campus."

"At a time when both campaigns are appealing to independents and people of the other party in our state, it seems like a strange decision," Spanier said.

I would suspect, that in leaving, the Palin Mob stomped and kicked the Nittany Lion mascot, as, probably, it is also a "Big Democrat".

Strange decision?

A strange decision could be viewed as a good day for Stumblin' Bumblin' John McCain.

His choice of Mommy Moose for VP, and his wrapping his arms around Joe The Dumber, have been disastrous decisions for the Stumblin' Fly Boy.

And just think, The Wasilla Whiz Kid could have added another name to her roll call, like "Tito the Builder" and "Nancy the Nurse", she could have given a shout out to "Graham, the College President".

What's pissing off a potential quarter-million voters?

A bit more than a "strange decision", no?

Ya'Bet'cha!


Bonus Throw-The-Votes-Away Riffs

Steven D: John McCain Would Like Me

The Jed Report: Not So Bipartisan

Steve Benen: A BUBBLE BOY FOR A NEW GENERATION...

Happy Halloween!

The Big Day ...

Trick or Treat?

We could make jokes about Stumblin' Bumblin' John McKKKain, and his sidekick, The Wasilla Whiz Kid, going out today, dressed as a couple of mavericks, however, I doubt very many would drop candy in their bags, not finding the pair credible, the costumes really low rent and cheesy, yet, we will lay low on that.

Rather, instead of any tricks, we'll give you a treat.

Some say, the legendary drummer, Philly Joe Jones was a huge fan of Béla Lugosi, and then there is this account as well;

If that weren't enough, he was, in addition, an entertainer with unusual presence and great ability as a mimic and comedian. I commend to your attention his now famous Bela Lugosi/Count Dracula imitation (Blues for Dracula - Philly Joe Jones Riverside, OJCCD-230-2). He did it so accurately and with flair that he might well have intimidated comedian-commentator Lenny Bruce, whose Lugosi impressions inspired the multifaceted drummer to this a part of his act.

In any case, our treat for you today is (drumroll, please);

Blues For Dracula




And a Bonus Treat: Trick Or Treat With A Beat: Halloween Jazz

Enjoy!

Have a fun (and safe) Halloween!

She's Not A Hockey Mom with Lipstick ... She's A Hockey Jinx!

Oh Man, this just keeps getting' better ...

We wrote, two-weeks ago, of "A Pandering Politician, With Lipstick", when the geniuses of the Dead Campaign Express thought it would be a good idea for Mommy Moose to drop the puck at the opening game for the Philadelphia Flyers, in Philadelphia.

She was booed, unmercifully (and despite dressing up her campaign-prop daughter in a Flyers' jersey).

The Flyers have been winless, so far this season.

Fast forward to last evening, and The Wasilla Whiz Kid was in St. Louis, to, once again, drop the puck in an effort to suck up some votes.

As they say on the television, "let's go to the videotape!"

Sarah Palin's carpet injures NHL Goalie



In case you missed it, Blues goalie Manny Legace tripped on the carpet they laid out for Ms. Ya'Bet'cha's, played only one period, leaving the game with a hip injury.

And the St. Louis Blues lost the game, to the Los Angeles Kings, 4-0.

Two games with the VP-wannabe, and two losses for the teams that have brought her in.

Now, that's a Good Luck Charm you can believe in!


Bonus Back-Checking Links

Sarah Palin Gets Booed Again In St. Louis

Palin Puck Drop a Jinx, Hockey Player Injured, Team Loses

NHL Goalie Trips Over Palin's Carpet, Leaves Game

Goalie injured after tripping on Palin carpet

Shoo Fly, Don't Bother Me ...

Now, we can't be overly cynical here.

I'm sure it was just a coincidence, a bump in the schedule of such a high-flying campaign, that Mommy Moose gave here first "Policy" speech on the same day that she, and First Busy Body, husband Todd, gave (Wink, Wink) their testimony to the "real" Troopergate inquiry.

And, believe it our not, she still managed to screw things up, and generate head-shaking and headlines.

Richard Wolfe, of Newsweek, on Countdown with Keith Olbermann last night called it "The most mindless, ignorant, uninformed comment we've seen from Governor Palin ..."

On top of the gaffe, her speech also, as Glenn Greenwald points out, goes against Stumblin' Bumblin' Fly Boy's much-heralded "Spending Freeze".

The "policy speech" chosen for the Wasilla Whiz Kid was on Special Needs, something, naturally, she could speak of personally, a sort of home-field gimme.

Here's the video of it;

Palin hits fruit fly research but it has helped autism



Got that?

This is a matter of how we prioritize the money that we spend. We've got a three trillion dollar budget, and Congress spends some 18 billion dollars a year on earmarks for political pet projects. That's more than the shortfall to fully fund the IDEA. And where does a lot of that earmark money end up? It goes to projects having little or nothing to do with the public good -- things like fruit fly research in Paris, France, or a public policy center named for the guy who got the earmark. In our administration, we're going to reform and refocus. We're going to get our federal priorities straight, and fulfill our country's commitment to give every child opportunity and hope in life.

She's dissing the research community and their use of Fruit Flies to combat Autism.

As Think Progress notes;

Palin did not specify what fruit fly research earmark she was referring to (presumably a grant for olive fruit fly research), but she is apparently unaware that scientific research with fruit flies has led to valuable discoveries that have boosted autism research, as a study at the University of North Carolina demonstrated last year:

[S]cientists at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Medicine have shown that a protein called neurexin is required for..nerve cell connections to form and function correctly.

The discovery, made in Drosophila fruit flies may lead to advances in understanding autism spectrum disorders, as recently, human neurexins have been identified as a genetic risk factor for autism.

The study of fruit flies has also been used for other autism research and “revolutionize[d]” the study of birth defects.

Or, what PZ Myers says, in his "Sarah Palin: Ignorant and anti-science";

This idiot woman, this blind, shortsighted ignoramus, this pretentious clod, mocks basic research and the international research community. You damn well better believe that there is research going on in animal models — what does she expect, that scientists should mutagenize human mothers and chop up baby brains for this work? — and countries like France and Germany and England and Canada and China and India and others are all respected participants in these efforts.

Yes, scientists work on fruit flies. Some of the most powerful tools in genetics and molecular biology are available in fruit flies, and these are animals that are particularly amenable to experimentation. Molecular genetics has revealed that humans share key molecules, the basic developmental toolkit, with all other animals, thanks to our shared evolutionary heritage (something else the wackaloon from Wasilla denies), and that we can use these other organisms to probe the fundamental mechanisms that underlie core processes in the formation of the nervous system — precisely the phenomena Palin claims are so important.

This is where the Republican party has ended up: supporting an ignorant buffoon who believes in the End Times and speaking in tongues while deriding some of the best and most successful strategies for scientific research. In this next election, we've got to choose between the 21st century rationalism and Dark Age inanity. It ought to be an easy choice.

So, what is this?

Palin just being her usual, vapid self?

The staff, the speechwriter, forgetting to vet the speech, to employ that obscure tool called "The Google"?

Or, is it the beginning of politicizing the Fruit Fly, running the Fruit Fly through the Right Wing Freak Show grinder, noting Ms. Ya'Bet'cha's designation of the "Paris, France" Fruit Fly.

Will we soon see charges of researches being targeted for "pallin' around with Paris, France Fruit Fly researchers", or pitting those with the "Paris, France" autism, versus the Real American, "Freedom Autism"?

Rumor has it she's going to give another "policy" speech on Energy next week.

Boy, I can hardly wait for what comes out of that one.


Bonus Shoo Fly Links

Wonk Room: Analyzing Palin’s Special Needs Policy Address

Tristero: Republicans vs. Science

Christian News Wire: Pro-Life Reaction to Gov. Palin's Policy Speech Addressing Special Needs Children

Boston Globe: Palin spotlights special needs in first major policy speech

New York Times: Palin Promises Choice for Disabled Students

John Cole: The Cure to Autism Involves Mocking a Route to the Cure