The Sarah Palin Thread: 'Controversial Controversy' Edition

[DACrowe]

I think Sarah Palin has a right to be angry when people are blaming her for this event.

All this hysteria has been disgusting. And its disgusting we need a memorial broadcast on TV because of it. Why can't we just have respectful and quiet morning?

No one blamed there being a memorial for Oklahoma City that Clinton spoke at. Or President Bush at Ground Zero half a week after 9/11. Or President Reagan giving a eulogy after the Challenger exploded. This sounds like a complaint for the sake of complaining on partisan lines, quite frankly.

 

[TheVileOne]

No one blamed there being a memorial for Oklahoma City that Clinton spoke at. Or President Bush at Ground Zero half a week after 9/11. Or President Reagan giving a eulogy after the Challenger exploded. This sounds like a complaint for the sake of complaining on partisan lines, quite frankly.

This is a little different than 9/11 mate.

These shootings also happen a lot lately and never get any mention or eulogy from a sitting president like Obama.

So the next time a shooting happens, I want another memorial and speech by the president.

This wasn't a eulogy either, it was a play for approval by the President to CONSOLE AND COMFORT a devastated nation

 

[Anita18]

Palin's reality show hurt her big time.

My mom was a huge Palin fan - we are talking about true blue (red?) Momma Grizzly. She watched an episode of Palin's Alaska and couldn't get over how fake she seemed. Destroyed her cred in her eyes.

If Sarah Palin can't win over my mother, she can't win over anyone.

I was wondering how her supporters would react to it. Being well-dressed, made-up, and perfectly coiffed for a political event is perfectly understandable, but you've got to be a moron to think that's how she'd look roughing it up in Alaska. I have a friend roughing it up in Alaska right now (no electricity, no running water, pictures on Facebook) so I know what that would look like!

I think this is too funny. I kind of feel for her because I wouldn't have known what that term means. But on the other hand, I've never heard the term so never would have used it. So in my mind either A) She or her writers heard this word, didn't know the meaning behind it, and just thought it fit, or B) knew what the word means and thought it was appropriate in this context.

Exactly. It's so stupid it can't be real. My first reaction upon hearing this new development was to facepalm. And then it was to grab a bucket of popcorn to watch the ensuing drama.

 

[DACrowe]

This is a little different than 9/11 mate.

These shootings also happen a lot lately and never get any mention or eulogy from a sitting president like Obama.

Political assassinations, thank God, do not happen everyday. An armed man firing into a crowd of constituents meeting their representative and hitting almost 20 people, 6 of whom died--including a nine-year-old girl--is a big deal.

It is a tragedy and an assault on our democratic system. The president not responding to it is a ridiculous notion based more on a personal disdain you seem to have for this particular president.

BTW were you upset that President Obama attended and spoke at the memorial for the victims of the Fort Hood shooting in 2009?

So the next time a shooting happens, I want another memorial and speech by the president.

This wasn't a eulogy either, it was a play for approval by the President to CONSOLE AND COMFORT a devastated nation

I hope to God we don't see another assassination attempt. While we have historically had a problem of such horrific incidents--Lincoln, Garfield, McKinley, JFK, RFK, MLK, Malcolm X, John Lennon and attempts on Teddy Roosevelt, FDR, George Wallace, Ford, and Reagan--in the decades since Reagan nearly died Americans have become complacent about it and allowed it to enter the national conversation. Whether it was Palin and her map, Angle and her "Second Amendment remedies," or people holding signs that say things like "If Brown can't stop this, a Browning can," violent imagery has become common place in our political discourse.

Despite the grievous tragedy, it is nice to know that the horror of what happened in Tucson last Saturday shocked a nation into the horror of what the "blood of patriots" really looks like. This is not about blaming Palin for what happened, but hopefully we can see that sort of language is unnecessary and unwanted in this country.

And yes, it is horrific enough that the president should address it. I hope these images will discourage "more shootings" like this to occur, because quite frankly we haven't seen anything like this since Oklahoma City Bombing. And if President Obama's words help many Americans turn the page, then I am thankful.

But at the end of the day you will hate whatever this man does, because of the letter after his name, so I'm going to stop now.

 

[TheVileOne]

No one was assassinated. Its not going to prevent anything. The kid was clearly a psychotic disturbed individual. And the reality is that it will not stop. Sometimes kids just go wrong and sick in the head.

The language isn't going to stop either. Its evident in how after the event like this people and commentators were so quick to look for a scapegoat. Sometimes its movies or TV shows or videogames. This times its RHETORIC AND LANGUAGE AND SARAH PALIN.

Obama uses it. The democrats use it. Everyone uses it. I don't necessarily like it but lets stop acting like its only the Tea Party and Sarah Palin.

The reason I'm angry is because through all this ******** it doesn't feel like anyone is really sad or mourning they are just trying to assign blame and make this political. Maybe there just isn't anything political at all about this. It was a terrible tragedy so just let it be a terrible tragedy. Why does this have to be this kid was a political activist and somehow the unconscious influence of Sarah Palin and Tea Party made him want to shoot a congresswoman? Its sickening. Its despicable, disgusting, and pathetic. Its like saying Catch 22 made John Lennon get shot.

And for the President to come out and make a public stink about let's not blame anyone and let's all heal and stuff it sounds ridiculous when he's been guilty of the same thing.

 

[DACrowe]

No one was assassinated.

No, Congresswoman Giffords only was shot point blank in the head and six people are dead.

But you're right, since the representative lived I guess it's not important.

That was sarcasm, by the way.

 

[TheVileOne]

She's not dead though. All those people you mentioned were shot dead.

Reagan was also shot but not killed.

 

[bell110]

Sounds like blame to me. If it looks like a duck, sounds like a duck, walks like a duck it ain't a freaking goose.

Maybe but any of Obama's camp are lying if they aren't looking at his approval ratings after something like this. Pretty obvious.

There are shootings like this that have been happening a lot lately that don't nearly get this type of coverage and nearly this hysteria. The only twist is that a congresswoman got shot. She's also not dead. She's responding to treatment and the doctors. So the next time a shooting like this happens and its not a congresswoman, I still want the President to attend the memorial. Be consistent.

Yeah, Palin walked like a duck alright. But she complains when the media points out that she's walking like a duck.

And the Bush camp for 9/11. And the Clinton camp for Oklahoma City. And the Reagan camp for Challenger. And so on and so forth for every sitting president for what ever national tragedy happens.

That's not a twist. And congresspeople have not been getting shot at lately. I don't really know what you're talking about/

This is a little different than 9/11 mate.

These shootings also happen a lot lately and never get any mention or eulogy from a sitting president like Obama.

So the next time a shooting happens, I want another memorial and speech by the president.

This wasn't a eulogy either, it was a play for approval by the President to CONSOLE AND COMFORT a devastated nation

Again, how is this something that happens alot?

No one was assassinated. Its not going to prevent anything. The kid was clearly a psychotic disturbed individual. And the reality is that it will not stop. Sometimes kids just go wrong and sick in the head.

The language isn't going to stop either. Its evident in how after the event like this people and commentators were so quick to look for a scapegoat. Sometimes its movies or TV shows or videogames. This times its RHETORIC AND LANGUAGE AND SARAH PALIN.

Obama uses it. The democrats use it. Everyone uses it. I don't necessarily like it but lets stop acting like its only the Tea Party and Sarah Palin.

The reason I'm angry is because through all this ******** it doesn't feel like anyone is really sad or mourning they are just trying to assign blame and make this political. Maybe there just isn't anything political at all about this. It was a terrible tragedy so just let it be a terrible tragedy. Why does this have to be this kid was a political activist and somehow the unconscious influence of Sarah Palin and Tea Party made him want to shoot a congresswoman? Its sickening. Its despicable, disgusting, and pathetic. Its like saying Catch 22 made John Lennon get shot.

And for the President to come out and make a public stink about let's not blame anyone and let's all heal and stuff it sounds ridiculous when he's been guilty of the same thing.

It was an attemped assassination. I'll agree with you on this; it's not the last time something like this will happen.

But saying it's alright for Palin and the Tea Party to talk like this because the Democrats do it to, is no excuse. No one, at least in the public eye, should talk like this. And when they get called on it, don't try to displace blame for your own words.

She's not dead though. All those people you mentioned were shot dead.

Reagan was also shot but not killed.

So it only matters if the person dies?

Someone else wasn't killed during that shooting either. Yet we got the Bradey Bill.

 

[TheVileOne]

I'm not saying any of its alright, but we have the left proclaiming OMG YOU GO TOO FAR! THAT'S WHY THIS HAPPENED BLAH BLAH BLAH

Its disgusting.

 

[Wylie Times]

No one was assassinated? A federal judge was killed and Giffords was nearly killed. It was also obviously done for political reasons.

 

[Kelly]

No one was assassinated? A federal judge was killed and Giffords was nearly killed. It was also obviously done for political reasons.

No...

The judge JUST HAPPENED to stop by on his way home from mass, it is very doubtful that the shooter even knows who he is.....

The shooter went to one other Congress On The Corner, and was pissed off at Congresswoman Giffords because she answered one of his questions in Spanish at that particular meeting.... that was probably the trigger that began his obsession with her....that was I believe in 2007, long before anyone had ever heard of Palin, or the Tea Party.....he is simply a derranged, bigoted, psychopathic young man.....that should have in the 5x he was contacted by police been put into 72 hour long down for psychiatric evaluation....

He was a registered Independent, that did not vote in the 2010 election....

He has no idea where he stands politically, only that he was pissed off at the fact that this woman did not speak English to him.....he is OBSESSED with grammar and English.....he is crazy, plain and simple.

 

[dnno1]

No...

The judge JUST HAPPENED to stop by on his way home from mass, it is very doubtful that the shooter even knows who he is.....

The shooter went to one other Congress On The Corner, and was pissed off at Congresswoman Giffords because she answered one of his questions in Spanish at that particular meeting.... that was probably the trigger that began his obsession with her....that was I believe in 2007, long before anyone had ever heard of Palin, or the Tea Party.....he is simply a derranged, bigoted, psychopathic young man.....that should have in the 5x he was contacted by police been put into 72 hour long down for psychiatric evaluation....

He was a registered Independent, that did not vote in the 2010 election....

He has no idea where he stands politically, only that he was pissed off at the fact that this woman did not speak English to him.....he is OBSESSED with grammar and English.....he is crazy, plain and simple.

In spite of coincidence, it is still a serious crime that should come with special circumstance (no one should get away with killing a federal judge, killing a child, and attempting to assassinate a congress person/federal employee). Let's not take this out of context by saying that a federal judge just happened to be there.

 

[danoyse]

This is a little different than 9/11 mate.

These shootings also happen a lot lately and never get any mention or eulogy from a sitting president like Obama.

So the next time a shooting happens, I want another memorial and speech by the president.

This wasn't a eulogy either, it was a play for approval by the President to CONSOLE AND COMFORT a devastated nation

Really?

This was Bill Clinton's speech at Columbine: http://voxygen.net/classes/contemporary-public-address/bill-clinton-columbine-speech/

And this was George W. Bush's speech at Virginia Tech:
http://blogs.suntimes.com/sweet/2007/04/bush_at_virginia_tech_the_wors.html

 

[Alex The Great]

I bet you guys anything that if Pailin were to become President in 2012, the population of Canada would sky rocket. We got plenty of room. Come on over!

 

[Paroxysm]

Palin...a clown without a circus.

 

[Raiden]

No one was assassinated. Its not going to prevent anything. The kid was clearly a psychotic disturbed individual. And the reality is that it will not stop. Sometimes kids just go wrong and sick in the head.

The language isn't going to stop either. Its evident in how after the event like this people and commentators were so quick to look for a scapegoat. Sometimes its movies or TV shows or videogames. This times its RHETORIC AND LANGUAGE AND SARAH PALIN.

Obama uses it. The democrats use it. Everyone uses it. I don't necessarily like it but lets stop acting like its only the Tea Party and Sarah Palin.

The reason I'm angry is because through all this ******** it doesn't feel like anyone is really sad or mourning they are just trying to assign blame and make this political. Maybe there just isn't anything political at all about this. It was a terrible tragedy so just let it be a terrible tragedy. Why does this have to be this kid was a political activist and somehow the unconscious influence of Sarah Palin and Tea Party made him want to shoot a congresswoman? Its sickening. Its despicable, disgusting, and pathetic. Its like saying Catch 22 made John Lennon get shot.

And for the President to come out and make a public stink about let's not blame anyone and let's all heal and stuff it sounds ridiculous when he's been guilty of the same thing.

How can you say that it wasn't political, when the killer specifically targeted the Congresswoman in that shooting? And you can't say that he's not responsible for killing six people (including a federal judge & a 9-year-old girl), and wounding 13 others? If he didn't want to kill anybody else, he could've just shoot at her only, yet he continued shooting. I don't understand the points you are trying to make.

 

[Wylie Times]

No...

The judge JUST HAPPENED to stop by on his way home from mass, it is very doubtful that the shooter even knows who he is.....

The shooter went to one other Congress On The Corner, and was pissed off at Congresswoman Giffords because she answered one of his questions in Spanish at that particular meeting.... that was probably the trigger that began his obsession with her....that was I believe in 2007, long before anyone had ever heard of Palin, or the Tea Party.....he is simply a derranged, bigoted, psychopathic young man.....that should have in the 5x he was contacted by police been put into 72 hour long down for psychiatric evaluation....

He was a registered Independent, that did not vote in the 2010 election....

He has no idea where he stands politically, only that he was pissed off at the fact that this woman did not speak English to him.....he is OBSESSED with grammar and English.....he is crazy, plain and simple.

I didn't say he was specifically targeting the judge, just that he killed him. Nor did I said he had any followed any particular political party. If it was JUST someone speaking to him in Spanish he probably would have gone off MUCH sooner, this is Tucson, a sizable portion of the city speaks Spanish first on Spanish only. Nobody goes to to a political rally to shoot a politician unless it's politically motivated. It was his own warped sense of politics but it was political.

 

[Raiden]

I didn't say he was specifically targeting the judge, just that he killed him. Nor did I said he had any followed any particular political party. If it was JUST someone speaking to him in Spanish he probably would have gone off MUCH sooner, this is Tucson, a sizable portion of the city speaks Spanish first on Spanish only. Nobody goes to to a political rally to shoot a politician unless it's politically motivated. It was his own warped sense of politics but it was political.

Besides, the killer has met with Congressman Gifford before, and police found his notes in his house that shown that he is still bitter about her since their last encounter. It was definitely an attempt at assassination.

 

[ChrisBaleBatman]

It was an assassination attempt.

The question as to his sanity doesn't matter. John Hinckley's mental state doesn't call into question if President Reagan's assassination attempt, was an assassination attempt.

Besides, danoyse posted links.

To say that the President shouldn't have said anything...sounds a bit out of touch.

 

[DACrowe]

She's not dead though. All those people you mentioned were shot dead.

Reagan was also shot but not killed.

Teddy Roosevelt and George Wallace lived, despite being shot. FDR survived, but the mayor of Chicago was killed. Fortunately Gerald Ford avoided being hit...twice.

But those are all horrific incidents in our history that demonstrates this country has a history of political assassination and it is always a big deal. Giffords lived, but had to have brain surgery and 6 people are dead....including a Federal judge and a Congressional staffer. Then there's Christina Green....

Your position makes no sense and is indefensible. Because Giffords didn't die you're acting like this isn't news or we should not make a big deal out of this. And that is a horrible way to look at the world.

 

[Alex The Great]

Teddy Roosevelt and George Wallace lived, despite being shot. FDR survived, but the mayor of Chicago was killed. Fortunately Gerald Ford avoided being hit...twice.

But those are all horrific incidents in our history that demonstrates this country has a history of political assassination and it is always a big deal. Gifford lived, but had to have brain surgery and 6 people are dead....including a Federal judge and a Congressional staffer. Then there's Christina Green....

Your position makes no sense and is indefensible. Because Giffords didn't die you're acting like this isn't news or we should not make a big deal out of this. And that is a horrible way to look at the world.

Jesus Christ that's a lot of killing. We've only had two assasinations up here

Hell, none of our Prime Ministers have been killed

 

[DACrowe]

Jesus Christ that's a lot of killing. We've only had two assasinations up here

Hell, none of our Prime Ministers have been killed

Those were the ones that survived.

The 1960s were the worst. In the span of ten years JFK, RFK, MLK and Malcolm X were assassinated. Our greatest president, Lincoln, was assassinated.

It is a terrible part of our political culture, I am afraid.

 

[dnno1]

Top ten Sara Palin fails.

 

[Marx]

I can't add much to what's already been said today...but here are my two cents on what she said.

1) She had to say something given the bad publicity of her awful, awful "Don't retreat, just RELOAD" map. And waiting four days was appropriate to not come out defensive in the wake of the tragedy. However, choosing the day of the memorial (where she would no doubt be compared and contrasted with the president) was unwise.

2) She should have come out and condemned the actions and called for unity. By becoming angry, defensive and going on the attack of her favorite target, "the media," despite however justified she personally felt, was a terrible idea. She made her response all about her and not the victims. By doing this she has enshrined her name and political legacy/baggage to this tragedy for the rest of her career.

3) The use of "blood libel" was stupid. I don't think she was being anti-semetic or drifting to the word because blood infers violence (as some on the left have said). But it was stupid as it is a loaded term with historical baggage that nobody for a minute believes she knew before this week (Sarah Palin the medieval scholar? Please!). It opens up attacks from offended Jewish communities, further draws attention to herself instead of the victims and draws a ridiculous analogy. She was clearly trying to sound like the martyr...but sorry Sarah, blood libel carries images of the burning and persecution of Jews, the inquisitions, the First Crusade starting by massacring Jews along the Rhine in 1096, etc. That is not the equivalent of being the subject of an angry Keith Olbermann rant.

4) Nobody is attacking her First Amendment rights. They are using their own to suggest Palin's angry rhetoric is unhelpful in this democracy when it conjures up images of assassination. An act of political violence that we were reminded of how horrible it was this weekend.

My two cents on the issue.

Well said DA.

I think Sarah Palin has a right to be angry when people are blaming her for this event.

All this hysteria has been disgusting. And its disgusting we need a memorial broadcast on TV because of it. Why can't we just have respectful and quiet morning?

No one blamed her for the event. They blame her for the language she uses. She has no one to blame but herself for that. She can't blame the media for her language.

As for the memorial broadcast, Obama would have been criticizsed if he did have one. If you want quiet morning, turn your tv off.

Yeah, Palin walked like a duck alright. But she complains when the media points out that she's walking like a duck.

And the Bush camp for 9/11. And the Clinton camp for Oklahoma City. And the Reagan camp for Challenger. And so on and so forth for every sitting president for what ever national tragedy happens.

That's not a twist. And congresspeople have not been getting shot at lately. I don't really know what you're talking about/



Again, how is this something that happens alot?



It was an attemped assassination. I'll agree with you on this; it's not the last time something like this will happen.

But saying it's alright for Palin and the Tea Party to talk like this because the Democrats do it to, is no excuse. No one, at least in the public eye, should talk like this. And when they get called on it, don't try to displace blame for your own words?

What it basically boils down to is that Sarah Palin can dish it out but can't take it. This woman is one of the most oblivious, self-righteous people I think I've ever seen. She can drum up lie after lie after lie. She can invoke god and guns. She can tell people that they shouldn't retreat, but reload. She can go off on all of these hate-filled tangents...BUT GOD FORBID SOMEONE ACTUALLY CALL HER OUT ON ALL OF HER CRAP!

The fact of the matter is that no one is blaming her for the arizona massacre. People are calling her out for the over-the-top and dangerous rhetoric that she has pretty much used since day one. People are using the massacre as a means of discussing the rhetoric and political discourse in this country. And while Loughner may have been 'just another crazy', turning this horrible event into an opportunity to change the rhetoric and discourse in this country is not something that should be frowned upon.

It seems to me that the only ones who are upset and defensive over this are the ones who have been pushing such a dangerous rhetoric to begin with.

Palin...a clown without a circus.

Ok...this made me laugh.

 

[Kelly]

I didn't say he was specifically targeting the judge, just that he killed him. Nor did I said he had any followed any particular political party. If it was JUST someone speaking to him in Spanish he probably would have gone off MUCH sooner, this is Tucson, a sizable portion of the city speaks Spanish first on Spanish only. Nobody goes to to a political rally to shoot a politician unless it's politically motivated. It was his own warped sense of politics but it was political.

Not necessarily, usually the first severe issues with this type of violence and schizophrenia and other mental issues is 22 years of age....it was his warped mental illness....and a semi-automatic gun that killed those people...