A Very Open Letter To Sarah Palin
Dear Governor Palin:
I know you were just pandering to the crowd in North Carolina yesterday when you questioned the patriotism of people who, like me, don't live in a small town, live near or in Washington, D.C., and use their brains rather than their hands to make a living. And I know that, in the best tradition of politicians everwhere, your spokesperson has tried to clarify your remarks since they were made so they seem less offensive.
But I want you to know that I take great offense at your remarks and consider them to be a hate crime against me and my kind.
You would feel the same if someone said something as stupid, prejudiced, and ignorant about Alaskans such as "The only real Americans are those from the lower 48 states." You would be denouncing that person as anti-Alaskan and hopelessly behind the times. You would demand an FBI investigation and call for the U.S. attorney to prosecute.
Legally, of course, and absolutely counter to your ranting, I am in fact a "real" American. I was born in the United States to parents who were born in the United States, My grandparents were also born here. I am an American citizen who loves his country, obeys the laws, pays his taxes, repaid his college loans, and votes in elections.
I am also someone who has spent most of his life in and around Washington trying to understand how the government works and trying to make it better. In fact, my guess is that I have spent far more time and made a much greater effort than you have doing that. I don't run a factory or plow fields for a living, but that doesn't make my job any less patriotic or me any less pro-America. Your suggestion that is the case is idiotic and sickening.
If Washington, the cities, the suburbs and white collar workers are not part of the real America, then why are you trying so hard to get elected to work in a white collar job not just in a city, but in Washington, D.C. itself? And why are you running with someone who has been in Washington for more than three decades?
Your remarks were a disgrace. Your candidacy has been forever tarnished. You owe America an apology.
You're insulted? Ha, welcome to the club
My Congresswoman just said that the media should investigate the liberals in Congress because, heck, they're probably anti-American like Obama.
Not kidding. Apparently we need a new HUAC (House UnAmerican Activities Committee). McCarthy would be proud.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0SQTxxkdSIs&feature=related
The fascist Republicans need to get their party into the 21st century.
"Fascist Republicans"?
... "useless divide and conquer rhetoric".
Well sorry about that
I live in Michele Bachmann's district, so you have to cut me some slack.
I've had to listen to her blather since she sat on a public school board (charter) and tried to get intelligent design into the science curriculum. Then she tried a run at the public school board, but the locals had her number. Next it was state senate, and the district was carved up so that the densely populated area was unaware (different school district) of her previous antics . . . and by that time she'd been identified by national evangelical machine as an up-and-comer -- physically attractive and rabidly pro-life, anti-gay, etc. She was well funded. I worked for her opponent in that race. She was single-handedly responsible for gridlock in our state government in the 2005 session (adding her anti-gay marriage agenda to bills).
She ran for Congress when the seat was open in 2006 (incumbent ran for Senate and lost to Klobuchar). Again, she had the national evangelical machine behind her, and local right talk radio, and the district is gerrymandered to be heavily Republican. Her opponent ran a poorly managed campaign. And, again, I helped her opponent with some volunteering, and what I ran into were a lot of people who said, "I'm voting for Bachmann to get her the hell out of Minnesota, so she can't screw up the state legislature again." They figured that kicking her upstairs to Congress, where she'd be in the minority anyway, would render her impotent.
What they didn't figure on was her continuing (and embarrassing) antics, now on a national stage. And the national media doesn't treat her in a "Minnesota Nice" way like the locals did ("oh it's just loony Bachmann again, ignore it").
Anyway, listening to her rhetoric over these past 10 years or so has sort of skewed my view of Republicans . . . I'm getting a huge dose of the extreme right element of the party, and trust me, these are not nice people. Not at all. They lie and distort on a regular basis to promote their agenda . . . it's like a crusade for them, and God is giving them some weird pass, like a special dispensation, on ethical campaigning.
So, that's where I am . . . but we have a good chance to oust her November 4th. I'll try to be open to more moderate Republican candidates. I used to vote Republican on a regular basis, until the part moved so far to the right.
It's a shame, really, because the classical conservative (small government, fiscally responsible) agenda pleases me . . . but the party left me, I didn't leave the party.
Traditional values Republicans need to take back their party. I understand why people like Powell are frustrated.
Comments about the Open Letter to Sarah Palin
Stan,
Of course you are a "real" american, and I don't in any way doubt your commitment to this country. I just think you are being a bit too thin skinned and overly melodramatic.
You've lived in and around Washington for the past 30+ years, McCain has lived in and around Washington for the past 30+ years, Joe Biden has been around Washington for the past 30+ years, and all of Obama's political career was incubated within the Chicago Political Machine. In contrast, Sarah Palin is atypical of the people she finds herself surrounded with these days. This country needs the perspective and diversity that Sarah Palin brings to our public dialog. In the context of this political race the only ones justified in claiming to have hate crimes committed against themselves would be Sarah Palin and Joe the Plumber for the mainstream media's vicious unrelenting attacks.
I read Sarah Palin's comments, "We believe that the best of America is not all in Washington, D.C. We believe". I didn't see where she said, or implied that you are not a "real" american. The term she used is that "not all" of the best is in Washington. Last time I checked "not all" is inclusive rather than exclusive.
What's wrong with her comments? "We believe that the best of America is in these small towns that we get to visit, and in these wonderful little pockets of what I call the real America, being here with all of you hard working very patriotic, um, very, um, pro-America areas of this great nation."
She continued: "This is where we find the kindness and the goodness and the courage of everyday Americans. Those who are running our factories and teaching our kids and growing our food and are fighting our wars for us. Those who are protecting us in uniform. Those who are protecting the virtues of freedom."
I do feel Sarah Palin's comments highlight the strengths and values of America. Hardworking/Patriotic/Kindness/Goodness/Courage/Factory Workers/Teachers/Farmers/Soldiers/Peace Officers and Fireman.
No disrespect intended but this nation would be a whole lot better off with more of the above and less from the Washington Elites.
Hockey Moms don't call the FBI to whine
Sarah would simply dress down the insulter with a snappy comeback (though Todd looks the kind of guy who might be more aggressive).
But, tell me which campaign has anti-Americans like Bill Ayers and Jeremiah Wright as allies. Or, for that matter, who is married to someone who wasn't ever proud of America until her spouse got nominated.
Powell on Republican campaign tactics
We are in the middle of an economic crisis and they want to talk about who is more or less "American". This is more useless divide and conquer rhetoric.
While they are fiddlng Rome is burning . . . .
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9LbLxja4UHY
Unallowable
The possibility of Palin as President can not be allowed to happen.
I won't say, "she is qualified only to be cheerleader or beauty queen, or that she resembles a blow up 'real girl'" Instead, it is sufficient to observe the undisputed actions of the candidates.
A responsible report of the big oil tax situation in Alaska can be seen at:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/localnews/2008103325_alaskatax07.html
This report was written Aug. 10, before anyone knew that Palin was going to be the VP nominee.
From this we can see that Governor Palin imposed a windfall property tax and used it to hand out about $1200 in free money to all persons in Alaska. Her Republican predecessors had already set up a “oil wealth fund” system where individuals were given $2000 a year, and they had arranged that most state expenses were paid by taxes on the oil companies. Before Palin the Republicans had already put in place the most generous welfare system in the USA, and maybe in the world. She saw the opportunity to make it even better.
In the following link it is clear that Sarah Palin is very proud of the above accomplishment:
http://www.pbs.org/now/shows/434/video-webex.html
So it seems there is no dispute of the basic facts.
I suggest that there is a very close parallel between Sarah Palin and Hugo Chavez. Neither sees any problem with changing the deal for oil companies producing from "their" land. In fact, Palin is very proud of "taking on big oil."
Clearly Palin is skilled in doing popular things. Chavez is also very popular.
The difference is that Palin is advertised as a conservative and Chavez is called a socialist.
Palin, McCain, and the Republican party, all seem not to notice these similarities. They shout “Socialist” at Obama. Yes, he also has discussed a windfall profits tax, but this was not remotely like the parasitic Alaskan form of Socialism.
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So now I submit that the above demonstrated leadership qualifications of Palin are limited to opportunistic skill. An opportunistic pattern of government might also be seen in looking at the $15 million “sports complex” which Palin is also proud of as evidence of her effective tenure as Mayor. In implementing this project she seems to have demonstrated about the same level of skill as typical small town mayors. The judgment that this would be the best use of money in a town of 7000, seems to be more of a serious question. Clearly it is a popular path for local leaders everywhere. It gets votes.
So McCain can be credited with a politically wise choice in selecting such a person. This seems like an opportunistic in itself, which can be challenged as bad judgment. It is particularly ironic that it turns the principles of conservative government inside out. At least there is nothing fundamentally unconstitutional about it.
But it is also widely known that Palin was the choice to “energize the Republican base,” and that this base means people of the fundamentalist religion sort. Pandering to a particular large group of people is not a surprise, but when there is a religious dimension to it, there is some reason for concern. There is a particular worry when that religious group takes absolutist views of the Bible. It is hard to believe any of them have actually read it, for it has so many internal contradictions and directives that are clearly not appropriate in the present day world.
Obviously it is appropriate for a President to have religious beliefs. The question is boundaries, generally known as the “separation of church and state.” So it is appropriate to observe how this is handled by the various candidates. The basic lack of neutrality in religion is immediately apparent when a candidate is selected for her religious relationship to a large group. It seemed somewhat reassuring when Palin said she respects other opinions on the abortion subject, but there was something lacking in the way this was said. Clearly, abortion is an issue that is viewed differently by people depending on their religion. Government needs to be very careful about treading in any such area. The style of Palin’s campaigning raises alarms, at least for this observer. I was happy to see McCain toning things down a little, but this was not enough to make me comfortable about Palin.
As to all the little things that are not very important in themselves, such as husband’s presence in governor’s affairs, saying that children are traveling on “official business,” negotiating experience with the Russians, military command experience claims, and foreign travel claims, reading “all the papers,” and so on, all these things taken together seem to show incapacity in understanding the very words, facts, and concepts under discussion. All the while she quickly learns a set of jargon to spew forth. How can she be expected to even understand boundaries, let alone handle the difficult balances that must be achieved by the President.
John McCain should not have done this. It disqualifies him
Palinphobia
Politicians commit politics, particularly in election years. It's not always edifying.
That said, she does seem to connect with people (as Obama does), and as Lorne Michaels noted (quoted in Dan Henninger's column this week in the WSJ), she's powerful, disciplined and gracious.
The graciousness, and good humor, are striking, given what Gerard Baker over at TimesOnline yesterday described as Palinphobia:
"It's hard to make a reasoned and fair judgment about the Alaska Governor because she has been the victim of one of the nastiest, most sustained and comprehensive slime-jobs ever performed by a hyper-partisan national and global media."
I am a Real American too
Hey there,
I agree Sarah Palin's comments were petty and divisive. The continued implications that "real" Americans only consists of a certain small subsection of the population is insulting and an affront to what made this country great in the first place. "All men are created equal" and deserve equal rights.
I got so pissed I created a web site where anyone can post a simple message. Who they are, a statement about themselves and an affirmation that they too are "Real Americans".
If you are interested, please check out the I am a Real American Project. Consider submitting a video and keep up the good work.