Here's The Thing

10/2/2011

You don't have to like or support President Barack Obama. I just so happen to do both.

You don't have to mock or deride President George W. Bush. I just so happened to do both.

But I've also never published a website with THIS as my mission statement:

"O teach me, Lord, that I may teach
the precious things Thous dost impart;
And wing my words, that they may reach
the hidden depths of many a heart."

Welcome to Parenting Freedom, where many a photos of Sarah, Trig, and Family Palin reside (dozens, to be honest.)

So too, does this photo:

So, here's the thing: I am a member of a non-denominational church in the San Francisco Bay Area. I am actually on the Altar Guild - in fact, I was in charge of Easter this year and I'm happy to report that the lilies and the palms went up on the correct days.

It is through this mainstream Protestant church that my husband, son, and I got started working at the Berkeley Men's Shelter every month.

I've often said, it's all good in the Bay Area. Your color, religion, party affiliation, sexual preference and citizenship status matters not one bit to me or to anyone I know. You want to love it, marry it, just sleep with it, or smoke it, makes no difference to me, as long as it's over 18.

I just hope the Lord one day teaches so-called Christians who post racist crap like this on their website, while citing verse, that this is not what He meant by blessing us with freedom. It's interesting what is hidden in the depths of many a heart.

bob

10/2/2011 02:17:07 am

agreed agreed agreed. And couple this with your post yesterday about a 21-year marriage which is still a positive force in your life and in your community---and you get right to my frustration with an element of political discussion that centers on family values. So often, the people who focus on "family values" politically do not espouse those values. It's impossible for me to look at that website, and see what they've posted about President Obama etc and equate it with so-called christian values or family values etc.

Slighlty off-track ---I come from a state (MA) which has the lowest divorce rate in the nation, which has relatively low teenage pregnancy rates and low abortion rates---and yet politicians sometimes use my state as an example of what is "morally" wrong with our country. I find it frustrating.

litbrit link

10/2/2011 02:34:23 am

Hear, hear, Laura.

Living in Florida (a red state that purports to be purple but isn't, not really), I get to see and hear some of the worst of the racist spew.

And as for the so-called "family values" of Dominionists and Christianists and other mutant strains, one can only laugh at their hypocrisy. They say they're "pro life", even as they cheer the execution of a man for whom so much evidence pointed toward innocence. They say they want to reduce abortions, and then turn around and vote to defund sex education in the schools and make it nearly impossible for young and lower-income women to access birth control. They're all about marriage, except they--like the residents of the so-called red states in general--have significantly higher divorce rates (Newt Gingrich, I'm thinking about you...and must now do some deep yoga breathing in order to cleanse my poor brain).

A sincere congratulations to you, Laura, on your long-lasting marriage. Like you, I've hung in there for a long time (we celebrated anniversary number 22 back in August), and we, too, have had our many ups and downs. Love is not always pretty: sometimes it resembles a blood-soaked bandage more than anything else, but the important thing is, it *is* a bandage, a strongly-woven one that stops the bleeding, that holds the broken bits together so the soul can heal.

Cheers and all good wishes to you and your beloved, and keep on keeping on!

WakeUpAmerica

10/2/2011 03:25:13 am

You will find more extreme hypocrites in Christianity than anywhere else. Makes me sick. I worship at home. I'm glad you found a church that resonates in your heart.

just call me friend

10/2/2011 03:35:22 am

What IS family values to you all? Simply put, isn't it "the love and joy of family"?

Because everyone is different, meaning we all live different lives, you cannot pinpoint more specific characteristics of family values without alienating good people. By that simple description at the beginning of my comment, iit is affirmed the Palins DO showcase family values.

Again, how many of you see extended family members weekly or even monthly?

It's time to stop alienating people just because they don't live how you do. What's funny, you have no idea how people you've never met live.

granny j link

10/2/2011 04:13:52 am

I learned a hard lesson about the hypocrisy of organized religion at the age of 16 when my mom committed suicide. I never really went back to any church after that and I no longer believe in a supreme being- although I am spiritual- if that makes sense. It is not something I spend a lot of time thinking about. However I truly believe that if we followed that one phrase- to do unto others... we would be okay. That is the hypocrisy that radiates from these Christians in name only. That and always having to tell others how to live- In my opinion what we say we believe/value and what we actually believe/value is shown in the way we live our lives. The people responsible for the photo of Obama are showing us very clearly what they value.

Laura you keep going girl! You are a little light in the darkness.

tooshyshy

10/2/2011 04:28:37 am

for just call me a friend...i'm a very conservative type person with a long time husband and kids and i see my family all the time. talk to my mom on the phone everyday of my life. i am the type of person who doesn't like to cast stones, so i'm not too fond of name calling, nor do i care for the tomfoolery mrs. palin's kids get up to (lord knows i made mistakes growing up). yet here's the thing...i want my kids and your kids to have the same kinds of opportunities available to them. i want them to be safe and happy through life. i want your kids to be safe and happy.

i don't discriminate and i don't hold grudges. every interview i have ever watched with mrs. palin she is always meangirling someone. or she's saying one thing and then i see pictures of her doing the opposite. she, at this time, is trying to identify herself as middle class. (that one makes me mad i have to admit)i don't believe everything i hear,see, read, but when there is so much evidence, oftentimes her own speeches and past policies indicating her true spirit, it saddens me that she still has well meaning defenders. do you really think she would defend you if the tables were turned? she is turning on fox now and they pay her a lot for not much output.

DebinOH

10/2/2011 04:39:10 am

just call me friend - The thing is I would have never given a rat's ass about SP if she wouldn't have started calling certain people/areas "real" Americans/America, lying about her record, ginnin' up racism, and holding herself and her family up as "good" christians, etc.

SHE wants to tell people that they can't have abortions, that gays shouldn't get married, that everyone not married should be abstinent, etc. She is a dominionist which is scary as hell.

I know that you just don't get it but if you have watched the tea party/republican debates you would have seen people cheering executions, booing gays in the military, and cheering for letting someone die because they don't have health care. How anyone could even think this way or let alone believe this stuff is sickening. These are NOT good family values or personally any values/morals at all.

I know that SP was not at these debates but she espouses the same philosophy. She let people say horrible things about President Obama and spread lies. She faked positive letters and calls so that she would look good. She lies about her records - straight faced.

I don't care that both of her eldest children were pregnant but if it had been Obama's daughters they would have been talked about like they were scum of the earth. We saw that with the Spears girl and other mothers having children out of wedlock. Not only that but they said that their parents were awful too.

I could NEVER vote republican. That doesn't mean I don't like republicans but I am sick of "liberals" being labeled as disgusting immoral people. The republicans are the ones saying they won't vote for anything the dems put forward. That is the most insane thing I have ever heard. Who the hell cares about people just sit there and act like you are in kindergarten. Hell, five year olds could show them a thing or two.

SP is dumb. I am sorry but she is. She is proud of it as well. There is something seriously wrong with her and when ANYONE like this wants to be our leader we should ALL be scared as hell. The best thing she could ever do is go back to Wasilla & take care of her family. Piper clearly is one unhappy child and what she needs is a mother which I am not even sure SP is capable of being. I am not just saying this but look at her children they are and have been acting out. Something is not right in that family.

You are right it is a two way street, but if you want to rule then you better be able to listen to ALL the people. You should not pit people against each other. You should care about people (exhibit the cookie handout). Sorry, but these are values I can't or won't espouse.

Karen

10/2/2011 04:40:44 am

OT, but all hell's broken loose on the MeAgain comment thread on that "defunct" Palin website. It looks like Sarah and her paid posters spent all day yesterday and this morning trying to stop the train that is barreling down the tracks. Here is just a taste:

Anonymous said...

Hi "Bristol's friend".

Bristol, it's nice that you call your mom a friend. Truly heartwarming.

Ladies, you are sad. Did you spend the whole night here, refreshing the page with a compulsion driven by hatred of truth and fear of exposure?

Keep it coming. It's only going to be that much prettier when everything is out in the open. People are lining up to purge their long held Palin secrets and some of those people are very, very high up the political food chain.

But if this is how you both want to spend your last days before you're a complete national disgrace (to EVERYONE, not just the people paying attention since 2008) then that is your business. The more ridiculous claptrap you spew about how I'm lying and other posters are "living hatefully" and Trig is happy and Sarah is practically the patron SAINT of special needs children because she made a photo op appearance at the Buddy Walk exactly a YEAR ago...the better you make ME look and the more satisfaction I get from knowing that Sarah is seething and has tried everything in her pitiful arsenal to shut me up quietly because she knows if she tries to do so publicly...well, let's just say people will be VERY surprised at some of the things Sarah said about fellow politicos while in office. She got her lawyers to redact nearly all of it, but some of those printed emails did a little traveling before the sharpie of lies attacked them.

Yes, I think people would be very, very surprised at some of the things Sarah said about others WHILE she was in office.

Or perhaps inquisitive about the very...familiar...nature some of the conversations between Sarah and Parnell seem.

Or about a derogatory term that BOTH of you used toward Mercede Johnston--who a minor at the time.

I'm sure the ones I didn't see make the ones I DID see look like Saturday morning cartoons. But make no mistake, Bristol and Sarah both would love to keep all hidden, keep living on lies, ignore reality crashing down on them.

But the more they rudely attack me and baselessly call me a liar...the more I might have to host a "Broomfield thread reading night". I think I'd start with the email where Sarah says that a recent cancer survivor "couldn't find her butt with both hands and a map". It just exemplifies Sarah's mean girl schtick, don't you agree?

-MeAgain

10:04 PM"

Karen

10/2/2011 04:42:56 am

And, then:
"The Palins say "do it", hey?

So much for that "I do not pay any attention to the negative blogs about me" line Sarah spewed.

Or should I say- the line YOU spewed.

But no apology needed for telling another big fat whopper...knowing that you, your "guy", and your two puppeteering daughters are tying up time in this thread is gift enough.

Oh, and I never said I was going to "take you down". I think you and I both know who will actually be doing that...you're not even trying to hide your disdain for him publicly anymore but somehow I think you'll stop short of REALLY getting into it with him. Because oh, the dirt he has from Rove and Schmidt...honey pie you KNOW you are in for it good.

That's why you're kicking seventeen and eighteen year old kids out of their homes so you can get orange self tanner streaks on their sheets, right? Because you know that Fox gravy train is off the rails and soon to crash. It's hilarious that you couldn't get the hotels to comp your stay like you wanted. Guess the name "Palin" isn't quite the golden ticket it was when you were greedily scooping up five and six sets of swag in the suite when the invite explicitly stated "take only one of each item or voucher", or when you were living the high life in Nieman's- tell me, Sarah...why is underwear for your husband and children a "political expenditure"?

(see next comment)

8:25 AM"
Continued...

"But it's not like anyone is surprised at your family's greed. How do you think the people who sent Bristol more than $100,000 in baby clothes and gear would feel...if they know most of their lovingly selected gifts for Bristol and Levi's "new" baby...ended up being sold on eBay?

All your gauntlet throwing achieves is to truly display how desperate you are. Saying "everyone" knows who I am is a not so subtle attempt at trying to scare me. But I know you didn't tell anyone who I am. You know I was serious about the "insurance policy" I have. And if I ever have to USE said insurance policy...I think I'd start by having a little show and tell with Lyda. I think she would be SO interested in seeing what's behind some of those many "redacted" blocks.

As to your nonsensical bit about Gryphen putting my posts on the front page? You know good and well I have asked him NOT to feature my posts. But if he wanted to and thought something could be gained by doing that...all he would have to say is "I am presenting these statements as speculation only" to protect himself.

Now really, Sarah...you and Bristol have both admitted on this thread that you read all these comments. Everyone knew that of course...but I'm sure they appreciate how your desperation is causing you to trip up and make yourselves look even more scared.

Now, you should play nice, Sarah. Or I'll have two words for you: REAL HAIR.

-MeAgain"

LisaB2595

10/2/2011 04:59:04 am

Well, you and I will disagree about the freedom and amiability of the Bay Area. When you try to pass a law saying only "fair trade" coffee, you're just as into controlling others according to your values as the far right. To be fair though, it's all part of a democratic process, so I'm not being hyper-critical. The people who live there live there because that's their style and can change it if they want.

But back to your point---I agree that the smallness and meaness I see from many on the far right does not resemble the God I worship on Sundays. It's frustrating to see the hateful comments directed toward my own faith. "That's not what we do!" but it's a losing battle when those whose claim the same faith lie and bully those less fortunate.

jadez

10/2/2011 05:24:56 am

the problem is religion itself not all the different interpretations of god.

because once you believe religion is valid (which it obviously is NOT) then you have absolutely no right to say your belief is better then any other.

being a moral person has nothing to do with religion or god.

Sharon_Too_Also

10/2/2011 05:44:14 am

@Karen - I'm watching the show with you and what a spectacle it is. The trolls are literally frothing at the mouth and if MeAgains' last salvo: selling baby clothes on ebay and "REAL HAIR' doesn't put them over the top, I don't know what will.

Since I know you've been following this all along, let me ask this, how do you think G will handle this?

Viola-Alex

10/2/2011 05:54:53 am

Anybody seen the previews for Ken Burns' Prohibition which previews tonight? The catch phrase was something about a law that turned everyone into criminals and the criminals into millionaires.

That's what happened the last time the Christian right took hold of the country.

Ottoline

10/2/2011 06:05:21 am

See this is where I don't understand the interest in MeAgain: Does anyone CARE to see Palin without her wig hat(s)? Not me.

And selling baby gifts? Okay, it would have been better to donate them to charity. Take no profit. But unless there's an IRS illegality there that's actionable, I don't care about that, either.

I'll take MA more seriously once the first credible AND important issue is revealed. And I do hope that happens.

FrostyAK

10/2/2011 06:11:24 am

OT? For anyone wanting to understand the ruling rich there is a great article at PoGates today. If we want to understand the Dominionists or far right conservatives, we must first understand how the Uber Rich manipulate/mutilate the world of capitalism.

http://politicalgates.blogspot.com/2011/10/in-new-bombshell-story-bloomberg.html

Ottoline

10/2/2011 06:17:03 am

During the Palin reign, I've learned a lot about lying.

For example, taking a shred of truth and turning it around. Like the comparison above of Lincoln and Obama. The RW with its Kochs and Murdoch IS trying to enslave us via reduced health care, reduced civil rights, reduced income and reduced overall prosperity, a RW packed Supreme Court, voting fraud -- someone else can do a better list than mine. So yes, the bottom part of that cartoon is right -- we ARE heading away from a strong middle class and all that that implies, but it's not Obama who is doing it. It's Geo Bush and his pals, and the RW who wants control back to go further in that direction.

I was going to give chapter and verse for all these observations on how to lie effectively, but I'm too tired of it all. And you know what I mean, anyway. "Fred" where are you? Let's get this show on the road.

The PoliticalGates piece on the upcoming Bloomberg piece on illegal Koch arms sales is interesting -- and even more exhausting to think about.

Ivyfree

10/2/2011 06:17:04 am

"See this is where I don't understand the interest in MeAgain: Does anyone CARE to see Palin without her wig hat(s)? Not me."

Palin cares.

As for Babygate, without medical records and/or DNA it's always going to be one person's word against another. And Palin's word is worthless. We all know she's a liar.

Ottoline

10/2/2011 06:19:08 am

Hey FrostyAK -- didn't the PoGates preview of the Koch article make you see Nazi Germany all over again, appearing here in its new, improved version?

Sharon_Too_Also

10/2/2011 06:30:07 am

@Viola-Alex - Ken Burns did an interview with Stephen Colbert last week and they discussed the similarities between this political climate and the one at the start and prohibition. Obviously we haven't learned our political lessons and are doomed to repeat them ..... with a slight variation. This looks to be another Ken Burns masterpiece.

FrostyAK

10/2/2011 06:41:07 am

@ Otto - Fascism is only the first stop. I suspect they are trying to take us back to Medieval times in society - where there are only only 2 classes, the ultra rich/privileged ruling class and serfs.

If the majority of the US population doesn't pry itself away from game consoles and online games, there is no chance to stop the political Dominionists, from taking over. The majority of the corporate owned US press sure won't be helping us. They just perpetuate the lies.

carolyn clark

10/2/2011 07:02:06 am

Help me out here please. What is the MeAgain site?

Karen

10/2/2011 07:34:49 am

@Sharon (12:44), I think he may handle it the way he has been and then come out with a total doozy (a la the first part of his review of Deer in the Headlights, which suggests that Part 2 will be a bombshell.) I also think perhaps he is working it through legal channels or elsewhere, perhaps a MSM journalist who has told him all this time that he or she needs "PROOF" before printing what they have heard. If the redacted e-mails are produced that substantiate the hoax, support MeAgain's claims that Parnell is in on it, support a theory on housegate or one of the many other money-laundering schemes, she is DONE. Not just done like "I just called the major network that drives both my financial gravy train and political prospects misinformed and biased" but done like "I need to go into hiding from the people I defrauded." I also think Gryphen will be careful that whatever he does proves his credibility with no doubt whatsoever, so that his work all these years becomes a resource to the people who have been in the dark but don't like being deceived, defrauded and made a fool of.

Carolyn, we are referring to an Aug. 23rd post on Immoral Minority that brought forth an anonymous commenter (who was later penned "Me Again" when she/he came back to make another comment and stuck with the name) who is apparently very close to a Palin insider whom Sarah has "wrung the life out of." Here is the link to the thread, which now has nearly 800 comments. Anon/MeAgain has asked the blog owner, Gryphen, not to make her comments a main blog post, so she has continued to fight off Palin trolls and skeptics on the August post's comment thread. For various reasons, she sounds to be a woman who is retiring at the end of the year. (Sorry about the long post off-topic, all.)

Lisa

10/2/2011 07:37:21 am

I am terrified by the mindset that website exhibits. I find it typical of Christian home-schoolers who digress continually about their homeschooling choice and then rant about the dominant culture. They truly believe they are protecting their children.

Every homeschooling mom has doubts but the Christian homeschooling moms are straight up arrogant. And the narrative in the blog about how her sister is "making a baby" is crazy talk. Even as a mom who desperately desired kids and went through long time infertility issues before having them, I find the culture of the mommy to be over the top. My mother finally told me to get on with life, a life that could be markedly different and interesting without kids!

Working in a library I continually encounter the Christian home schooling moms and they have the least curious and the most well-mannered kids. The moms seem uneducated about science and favor an oddly bizarre set of books for history that we librarians find teach a subtle racism. Go figure.

Anonfornow

10/2/2011 08:03:49 am

Anyone following the Me Again comments at IM should go look at the past 24 hours' worth of activity. The Fairy Tale Trolls are on there insisting that Trig sees the family A LOT, which is hysterical since it confirms that Trig is not living with the family. They've made quite a few similar slips, all of which convince me that Me Again is real, and Bristol, April, and possibly Sarah herself are going nuts sniping back.

And did everyone catch the hint that Parnell and Sarah had an affair? Interesting. I wonder if that's one of the reasons she has a ring through his nose: do what I tell you to or I'll tell Mrs. Parnell about our little fling.

Viola-Alex

10/2/2011 08:13:00 am

New NYT review of Joe's book in Sunday Book Review = http://tinyurl.com/3dfneq9

For those who don't know:

MeAgain's Thread: http://tinyurl.com/3pdbh4u

Once there, click on "Newest" to read the newest comments. MeAgain signs his/her name at the end of a comment.

The attacks that raged last night and today are of a better written variety than usual. (spelling, syntax)

Sharon_Too_Also

10/2/2011 08:22:26 am

@Karen - Continuing our O/T discussion .....

The reason I asked is because it's pretty evident at this point that what she has is photos of actual emails - probably taken while on a computer and that's quite a few 'layers' to deal with. Putting the legal stuff aside, it will be a bit of challenge to present them so that they are believable .... and effective. Even though that Bloomfield post is drawing a lot of traffic I think G would have shut it down by now if he wasn't going to act on it. If nothing else, just because it must be becoming a distraction from the main posts.

The idea of getting an MSM channel in on it is interesting - with all the stuff that's been coming out in the last couple of weeks, I wouldn't be at all surprised if they weren't sniffing around in AK again. Who knows - maybe even one of the AK rags might want to redeem themselves ( I can dream can't I ?)

Thanks for your thoughts - this could get seriously juicy :-)

search4more

10/2/2011 08:31:54 am

This all sounds like great fun. I'm off to read these comments at IM.

I looked through the photos at the blog Laura linked to. I suppose the most interesting one is this one:

http://parentingfreedom.com/images/palin301-thumb.jpg

Balzafiar

10/2/2011 09:41:18 am

MeAgain posted again at 1:58pm, but the post just before that one is most interesting.

Anonyous at 1:11pm wrote:
"I remember the post where someone said a man in a bar in WDC had the goods on Palin and was just waiting for a phone call to bring her down.

MeAgain, do you know what is stored in the self-storage units in Palmer and Anchorage rented by SarahPAC?

MeAgain, do you know how the Palins would have had $400,000 cash after she quit the appointed job with the commission?:"

Has anyone heard of this stuff prior to this?

molly malone

10/2/2011 09:41:59 am

Although I was raised in a devoutly religious home, complete with doting parents and loving sibs, it failed to take with me. Convinced that this must be due to a character defect on my part, I put years of serious effort into studying the Bible, biblical history and religious philosophies of all manner, shape and form--up to, and including, cargo cults.

Alas, I neglected to factor in The Law of Unintended Consequences.

The more I learned, the more I found that those who most loudly profess their Christian creds are either con artists or don't have a clue what they're talking about. Seriously. They really don't. Ask them what Christ said about abortion. (He said nothing.) Ask them if a fetus becomes a person: A. when a baby takes its first breath, B, when it is a month old, C, at conception--which, if one takes the Bible literally is only reserved for God's chosen prophets. If you said True to all of these, you're right.

I'm nattering on about religion because, along the way, I have come to greatly value those aspects of Christianity that make my heart soar: A Catholic high mass that pulls out all the bells and whistles; magnificent cathedrals built by faith in a loving deity; acts of charity motivated simply by the desire to do good.

And I have come to increasingly despise those "Christian" religions which seek to diminish others, and in so doing make us all so much less than we are capable of being.

molly malone

10/2/2011 09:47:33 am

Damn. I took so long to write my missive I wound up on the wrong thread. Argh! Please forgive. And ignore.

curiouser

10/2/2011 10:07:40 am

Times have changed so much since my fundamental Calvinistic evangelical experience which also taught social justice. I recall one African-American guest preacher, a Republican, who believed government programs perpetuated poverty. Of course, he was seeking support for his private foundation which provided job training and other services to the poor.

I guess the Lincoln/Obama graphic is drumming up fear of health insurance reform or a general fear that Pres. Obama will lead African-Americans to oppress the white population. The churches should be fighting against the racism nonsense but I've seen it crop up when biblical literalists try to explain the existence of different races.

MeAgain's latest comment doesn't make sense to me. Palin will be the keynote speaker at an 'Exceptional Women's Conference' that sold out the main location and opened up seats in a secondary site...so there's no need for an entourage to fill seats. The dorm/motel rooms are for conference goers. I don't doubt she'd try to get some hotel rooms comped but SarahPAC can pay for entourage rooms if the hotel isn't impressed enough with Sarah's celebrity to bestow favors. Lynchburg is...putting it politely...not a destination city and I can't imagine any of the Palin group staying there, especially not in the 1 or 2 star motel rooms. I'd look for her at the Omni or Keswick Inn in Charlottesville if she tries to stay close to an hour away from the venue. Depending on when she speaks and where she's staying, she might be able to fit in a 5K run a few hours away.

Karen

10/2/2011 10:08:28 am

@molly, you are on the correct thread. We just took a different turn on you! My fault, (and Laura, I hope you didn't mind.)

molly, your comments on religion are beautiful. "I'm nattering on about religion because, along the way, I have come to greatly value those aspects of Christianity that make my heart soar: A Catholic high mass that pulls out all the bells and whistles; magnificent cathedrals built by faith in a loving deity; acts of charity motivated simply by the desire to do good."

That is exactly how I feel about the little bit of religion I have in my life. Hearing Ave Maria or Panis Angelicus in a beautiful cathedral. Witnessing people who are truly devout in their practice.

I had a rare and beautiful opportunity to travel to France in June with my daughter and her youth orchestra as they toured and performed in a number of cathedrals and college theaters. I was most touched by one woman during a performance who was touched beyond words and prayed throughout their performance. It was a thing of beauty and I felt privileged to witness it. There was not judgment in that room, only faith.

lazrgrl

10/2/2011 10:15:44 am

Lisa,
I see the same thing in most home schooled kids when they get to college- very well behaved, neat handwriting, work done exactly as requested and turned in on time. BUT there's no critical thinking, now idea how to solve a problem they haven't been taught to solve. Inquiry or problem based learning throws them for a loop.

FrostyAK

10/2/2011 10:21:16 am

@anonfornow - "And did everyone catch the hint that Parnell and Sarah had an affair?"

It would be more likely that perfect family man Parnell was caught up in the alleged TP/AIP/Dominionist prostitution/blackmail ring. One might ask why else he kept the majority of her staff and was doing his best to be $arah in a business suit.

Katie Taylor

10/2/2011 10:23:26 am

I have made no secret of the fact that I think MeAgain is full of S**t. Right away I filed the story about the e-mails in the too good to be true and therefore probably wasn't category. MA's story has now shifted from releasing the e-mails to transcribing them for Gryphen. This latest change comes after she said she had purchased special software to protect her privacy when she transmitted the e-mails. Gryphen has been silent on the prolific posting of MA at his site despite a few requests for comment from his readers. While the quality of MA's posting may be better on the most recent posts they now seem to be driven more than by her defensive reaction to what she believes are attacks on her from the Sarah "bots". (anyone who does comment favorably is deemed a "bot" on the thread it seems) She has even threatened a Bloomfield E-mail night on IM. There are better ways to get the information out if that was the genuine goal. Posting on a defunct thread at IM where only baby hoax activists are likely to be following the story is not conducive to that outcome. MA has commented several times that she has asked Gryphen specifically not to highlight her posts or given them any special placement on the blog which keeps them from a wider audience. This is not the approach that one would take if they seriously wanted to get the word out. The ability to post anonymously no doubt drove the selection of the IM site for MA's chosen outlet for her work. I know many accept MA's legitimacy but I don't. I simply can't believe that Sarah still allows someone to remain close enough to her to this day who would have access to the information that MA claims she is still receiving. MA has been dragging out her release of information to Gryphen for some time now, there's always something popping up to keep her from getting it done. The transcription of the E-mails versus forwarding the E-mails appears to be the latest wrinkle in the story, a job that she now apparently understands is time consuming. My suggestion is that she post less and focus on the transcription. Exactly how the authenticity of the information can be determined from a transcribed document is a mystery...to me at least.

SLQ

10/2/2011 10:27:05 am

"Again, how many of you see extended family members weekly or even monthly?"

All the time, as in every day. If I'm not with them (as I was today with a sibling), I'm talking to them on the phone.

It's absolutely fair to discuss people who share their lives via reality shows, photos, interviews, etc. It makes no sense to try to make a living that way, and then rail at the public for talking about you.

FrostyAK

10/2/2011 10:31:31 am

Seems the Bloomberg article might trace Koch ill gotten gains to Alaska. Now, why am I not surprised?

http://progressivealaska.blogspot.com/2011/10/upcoming-koch-brothers-bloomberg.html

Karen

10/2/2011 10:36:50 am

@Katie Taylor, You may very well be right. But whatever has been going on on that thread in the past 24 hours is motivated by fear, imho. I think that she must have touched a nerve or 50 for the kind of response coming from the Palin camp. It is frustrating and fascinating both.

curiouser

10/2/2011 10:39:36 am

I'm feeling guilty for disparaging Lynchburg. If I were going there, I'd try to stay in Charlottesville. But that's because I love Charlottesville. I haven't been to Lynchburg in many years and I should keep my mouth shut. A quick google search turned up the Craddock Terry Hotel. It lacks a spa but looks nice. MeAgain said the hotel was about 45 minutes away so I'm clueless where that would be.

Check out Keswick Hall--about 1 hr 45 minutes from Lynchburg.
http://www.keswick.com/web/okes/rooms_suites.jsp

DebinOH

10/2/2011 10:39:48 am

I know that home schooling gets a bad rap but I did home school my one son through 9th and my other through 8th before sending them to public schools. I did not do it for religious reasons but both of my sons are brilliant (I am not bragging) and they didn't have gifted classes until 3rd grade.

My oldest did go to kindergarten but was bored out of his mind. When I went to his first teacher conference the teacher told me there was something wrong with him. She took out some samples of his work and the entire back of some of the pages were completely covered in pencil. The answers on the front of the page were either underlined an inch thick or circled a million times. Instead of wondering why they looked like that (it never occurred to her that he would have had a lot of time to it) she just assumed that he had a problem.

After bringing in all his artwork (the kid was drawing beautiful fish tank scenes under his crib at 22 months old) and other stuff she decided he was gifted. It didn't matter anyway because there was no program available. When they were able to get into the program they just gave them more of the same work (confirmed from other parents & the program). Yeah, like he loved doing 50 problems of something he already knew so they would add 100 more.

So we decided to home school them. We had both of them tested (California Achievement Tests) every year. They took piano, art lessons, karate, etc. There were a lot of home schooling programs around my area.

Now we did know a lot of home schoolers and I agree that what some of them did was child abuse. My oldest is getting his second master's degree (in teaching) & thinks home schoolers need a lot more supervision. My youngest is in his first year of grad school for physics (at an excellent college). He graduated with a math & physics degree. They both went to a first tier college (in the top 40 list) with almost full scholarships. All my older sons profs have always advised him to get a PhD too. They are both critical thinkers. They have traveled all over the world, and my one son speaks three other languages fluently. He will turn 25 this year & has done things that I never had the opportunity to do.

I am so glad that it worked for us but I agree that it can be a very bad thing as well. Fortunately a good education for my boys was a top priority.

Ottoline

10/2/2011 10:50:02 am

On the PoGates Bloomberg post, did you see the video

http://tinyurl.com/44u5x8k

of Koch speaking: at the end of the video he thanks the "partners" who have donated $1M or more, and the Menard family is among them. Could this be the AK Menards? Are they that wealthy?

SLQ

10/2/2011 10:56:32 am

Katie, I respect your opinion about "MeAgain," and don't wish to debate the "is she or isn't she" issue. (IMHO only time will tell.)

However, I do want to point out that I think you've misinterpreted "MeAgain"'s statements:

"MA's story has now shifted from releasing the e-mails to transcribing them for Gryphen."

I don't believe she ever said she would release actual e-mails. She has presumably always known the form of those e-mails in her possession, and I think people assumed she had the actual e-mails. IMHO, she still may. The fact that they were on an iPhone doesn't necessarily mean that they are photos.

"This latest change comes after she said she had purchased special software to protect her privacy when she transmitted the e-mails."

Here again, I think you're assuming. She seems concerned with making sure to protect any direct contact with Gryphen, which would even include a simple e-mail from her, whether or not it included anything else. Again, I also think when you read that she was going to transmit the e-mail, you assumed she has them in e-mail form and would forward them. She can also "transmit" the e-mail content if she types it in, no?

"MA has commented several times that she has asked Gryphen specifically not to highlight her posts or given them any special placement on the blog which keeps them from a wider audience."

This is correct, however, she has stated that Gryphen can do whatever he wants with the information she transmits directly to him, which she indicated she has started doing. As several have pointed out, nothing she's said so far is backed by evidence. What would be the point of posting such information as the main post of a blog? Gryphen doesn't post pure speculation from an individual as a post in and of itself.

DebinOH

10/2/2011 10:57:13 am

I am still on the fence about our anon on IM. Someone posted that the "haters" on Laura Novak's blog should be ignored. I haven't seen any haters. I have seen some of post that they aren't believing it yet but that doesn't make one a hater.

I don't know but to me personally I don't see anything at this point that this person is who we would love her/him to be. They would have released this stuff to Gryphen already. They wouldn't keep talking about it. In regards to the "special" program they needed to transcribe the emails why couldn't they just make copies of them (on a copier) and send them to him?

Anon also states (to Bristol, Sarah or Bristol's friend) that she wasn't there to take SP down. Then why bother? The trolls are interesting though. Something this person said is flipping the palinbots out. However, it doesn't mean that a crazy person is just posting stuff to tick off anon.

Time will tell......

Ottoline

10/2/2011 11:17:41 am

Re our dear anon MA: credible and important. Until we get that, it's just a game to get attn and play some games online. Or maybe it is "just to piss off SP," as MA said at the outset. The REAL HAiR threat would fit with that goal but be far less interesting to others, like me.

Although, I bet a REAL HAIR photo would make it into the MSM and could help SP circle the drain and gurgle away into oblivion without anyone else having to explain anything. So that would work well for the enablers/funders.

"Fred"!! We need you.

Viola-Alex

10/2/2011 11:32:40 am

ya know, if Anon Me Again is riling up the Palins -- she's ok by me.

It's better than nothing.

Laura Novak link

10/2/2011 11:53:09 am

Great thread and comments, everyone. Bob, I am from Ma. and so perhaps a long marriage is in my blood. They sure are in my family!

I too love the sounds of church music and have even sung along mightily (allelujah) at Bar Mitzvahs as the cantor sings (since I don't know the words.)

I love the art in churches. And the smells. And yet I think spirituality is a personal thing and has nothing to do with organized religion. It has taken me a very long time to find a church that I like as an adult. So much can go wrong in a person's life to frame the way they view church/house of worship. So I too believe that the golden rule is the most important. That, and feeding the homeless or building a house somewhere or any simple act of kindness.

Teaching a kid to worship Christ, belittle someone who does not and then not do anything for mankind...what's the point? That's what makes the holier than thou's so nauseating.

As for Anon, where to begin? I am lost. Please feel free to paste here as you see the comments. I'll try to dive in now on IM and see if I can catch up.

And no: there are no haters here at this blog. That's simply not true.

FrostyAK

10/2/2011 12:20:36 pm

@ Otto - "of Koch speaking: at the end of the video he thanks the "partners" who have donated $1M or more, and the Menard family is among them. Could this be the AK Menards? Are they that wealthy?"

The Menards certainly aren't middle class, but I doubt a donation of 1M. Curtis senior was a well respected dentist in town and a legislator. I'm sure they sold his practice for a pretty penny when he died, but a 1M political donation? I'm hard pressed to believe that...

Conscious at last!

10/2/2011 12:45:13 pm

@ Ottoline re: your comment @13:05:21

I think the more interesting part of MeAgain's post about the baby gifts is that she refers to Tripp as a "new" baby, as if to suggest that he wasn't actually born when the Palins said he was. Some of us have been wondering about this for a while. Remember, Palin's Deceptions was chased off the internet right when Audrey was discussing THAT pregnancy. The same thing happened to the short lived blog by Morgan(not the PD moderator) with the great photo analysis. Morgan's last post was about Bristol's shape-shifting pregnancy and then Morgan was threatened off the internet. Unfortunately, unlike Audrey, she took her blog down.

FrostyAK

10/2/2011 12:57:25 pm

Another OT - can we say US headed for martial law? Or are we already there?

http://www.politicususa.com/en/taking-the-bridge-police-arrest-pr-gold?

Anonfornow

10/2/2011 01:02:50 pm

@Katie, I don't think Me Again is posting for us OR to take Sarah down. I think he/she is posting to get under Sarah and Bristol's skin, and it's working. That's why we're hearing only little things; the point isn't to prove herself or to get us knowledge but to prick the Palins. She has warned them she has knowledge that she could release if she wanted to, which sounds to me as if she doesn't intend to do so.

This also explains why she is posting on that old thread, because her posts really are directed at Sarah and Bristol, not at a wider audience.

I have to admit that while I'm all for annoying Sarah. I just wish her aim was to take the bitch down.

SLQ

10/2/2011 01:19:00 pm

I just listened to Bannon's interview with Todd. Nothing interesting.

Blah blah The Undefeated blah blah Obama responsible for Democrats being mean to Sarah after she lost VP blah blah Sarah is a rogue blah blah Track fishing blah blah Iron dog not for girly men blah blah more Track fishing blah blah more movie hype.

Interestingly, Todd kept coming back to Track running the fishing operation. Todd said he didn't even get over there this summer. Bannon stepped into it by asking why. Todd stumbled and avoided saying that Track is now married and has a family to support. No mention of baby Kyla Grace or even that Track is married. You'd think he'd be proud to mention it.

No mention of Joe's book or anything else even mildly controversial.

Bannon did say "when we showed the movie to liberal audiences, they were surprised to learn . . ." Riiiight.

Had to time the mute button just right, because every break, they ran a commercial for The Defeated, and the screeching (and I mean the worst of the worst) came at me out of nowhere.

LakeLucilleLoon

10/2/2011 01:36:45 pm

I think Frosty is from here but for everyone else that is not from Alaska and not from Mat-Su, you need to put things into perspective, regarding your own surroundings and your own elected representatives.

How many of you know your Mayor on a personal level? How many of you are friends with your governor?

Realize, please, that many of us live life as mere voters here in Alaska. We do what you do in other states. We don't know our officials, but we do take some time to research the candidates and go vote on the Tuesdays that they tell us to.

We work, we pay mortgages and shop for groceries and take vacations a few times each year. We live life and we don't know the Palins.

eva marie

10/2/2011 01:39:02 pm

re: the Menards

I remember this discussion on palingates. The Alaskan Menards came from Minnesota? I think and a lot of their family is still there. I was the person who found the picture of Curtis' uncle that looks so much like Track. There is also a Menard store franchise in that area of the country, I don't remember if we found a connection to the Alaskan Menards or not. But anyway it is there on Palingates.

Ottoline

10/2/2011 01:53:14 pm

FrostyAK -- I wonder who THOSE Menards are, then. I didn't think there was that much money there from what I've read. Plus a $1M donation sounds like someone who has a business future to protect/ensure, and that doesn't sound like the AK Menards. Maybe they are the (relatively) poor relations!

Conscious and Anonfornow -- Yes someone playing ze leetle game with SP. I feel sure I (or any one of us) could do the same just by recycling info or using imagination. But if I really knew something, I would play it differently.

"Fred" -- Is your book going to be good enough?

SLQ

10/2/2011 02:34:55 pm

Based on the wikipedia article about the Menards building supply stores, it seems pretty clear they could have been the Koch donors:

Menards is aggressively anti-union. Norm Baumann, a former assistant store manager in Wausau, said he was made to attend a day-and-a-half-long seminar about fighting unions. "If a person had ever worked at a union shop, you couldn't hire them," Baumann told the magazine, adding that he once had to fire two promising management trainees because they had worked in high school as baggers at a unionized grocery store.

Menards has a long history of being an environmental scofflaw, paying at least $3.8 million in fines since 1976 for ignoring or violating state law. In 1997, John Menard was caught using his own pickup truck to haul ash contaminated with chromium and arsenic to his home, to toss out with the regular trash.

There's more that's pretty awful.

This is from the Wiki on John Menard Jr.: Menard had a net worth of $7.3 billion in 2007, according to the Forbes 400, and is the richest person in Wisconsin.

Ottoline

10/2/2011 03:33:37 pm

Yes, pretty awful:

http://tinyurl.com/3kb5w9n

So the older John Menard who started the fortune that is now $7B is one of 8 children, so that could be the link to the AK Menards. Or not.

Ottoline

10/2/2011 04:14:56 pm

But the WI Menard connection to Scott Walker and TParty seems clear because of Menard's anti-union history and the $1M contribution to the Koch fund.

Curtis Menard Sr could be the brother of John Menard, in terms of age. Can't find anything to confirm or refute.

Bible Babble

10/2/2011 05:04:54 pm

Laura,

Your post instantly reminded me of the (in)famous Karl Marx quote:

"Religion is the opiate of the masses."

Interestingly, a little Googling and a trip to Wikipedia clarified that this is, in fact, a bastardization of what Marx actually said:

"Religion is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the heart of a heartless world, and the soul of soulless conditions. It is the opium of the people."

The Wikipedia entry also cites the remarkable Charles Kingsley, a Canon of the Church of England AND among the first to support Charles Darwin's theory of evolution, who wrote this four years after Marx:

"We have used the Bible as if it were a mere special constable's hand book, an opium dose for keeping beasts of burden patient while they were being overloaded, a mere book to keep the poor in order."

Few realize that the Bible was compiled over many centuries from Hebrew texts, oral traditions, various cultures' mythologies, the writings of unknown authors who claimed to be among Christ's first twelve disciples, as well as a host of other sources.

The result was pronounced "official" long after Jesus' death, and only after several forged sections had been added and certain "heretical" books deleted.

Over the centuries, it's been mistranslated and misinterpreted, often by people motivated only by the desire to see "God's word" conformed to their own personal biases and beliefs.

It is mind-bogglingly absurd that such a book is still an effective tool for manipulating American politics.

Even more sickening is that this vacuum of ignorance helped fuel Sarah Palin's undeserved, over-inflated influence.

I really doubt we'll ever know the truth of how a charismatic but emotionally disturbed housewife managed to tie herself to both the decidedly UN-Christian sect of the Dominionists AND the "cronies of capitalism" she now rails against to become one of the most influential puppets in political history.

What I DO know is that if religion IS a dangerous, mind-altering drug then Palin rivals Pablo Escobar for trafficking and the Republican Party is every bit as criminal an enterprise as the Medellin cartel.

Thanks for letting me rant.

Nippy609

10/2/2011 09:11:05 pm

I have no idea if this is a Menard connection to AK. However, You DO realize that in many cases, distant relatives never meet.

My mom and LBJ are 2nd cousin (or something like that) and they've never met nor has she met his family.

Don't denigrate good people because you have this irrational hate for someone else.

Good people

10/2/2011 09:18:23 pm

Wisconsin is a popular place for Alaskans to attend college. Molly's son goes to a Wisconsin school, as does Curtis's daughter. Molly must have been good friends with them as well (family thing) as she named her youngest after Curtis.

ASK the right question

10/2/2011 09:22:36 pm

It really bothers you all that there are successful people in this country doesn't it? Why?

It's one thing to commit crimes. But a good number of billionaires are independently wealthy and just live their lives. They shouldn't be FORCED to give up anything. What does that tell young. aspiring people who have dreams of wealth, that one day they too will be forced to give some of it away?

We must get away from this forceful atmosphere. Charity should not be forced.

And when these billionaires say "raise my taxes", unless they're saying "Raise capital gain tax", it means jack.

Warren Buffett has no normal income.

Ask yourselves:

You want people to start sacrificing (as many have done already) but WHY is capital gain still low AND not talked about?

Glennallenbabe

10/2/2011 09:30:38 pm

How many of you know your Mayor on a personal level? How many of you are friends with your governor?
-------------------------------------

That's a good question. I grew up in FL and knew Gov Chiles personally. GOOD man.

I met Gov Bush on several occasions, as my mentor/teacher and he were "bff"
NICE man.

We really cannot judge people we've never met. Remember, MANY people in Alaska have never met the Palins, don't embroil themselves in petty gossip, and just live THEIR lives.

I think that is key to remember when we become frustrated that nothing catches on as we hope it would.

I can also say that there are a number of people IN Alaska who THINK they know the Palins, saw them once at some unspecified place and therefore think they can assert a truthful opinion about them. THIS is one reason there's so much melarchy out there regarding her family, immediate and extended.

It makes me sick that people dump on her parents, spread lies about them, and drag her other family members into the pettiness of politics. You won't find two more incredible and friendly people than Chuck and Sally Heath. They were the IT parents back in the day. The kids loved them and still do. THAT is a fact.Same goes for young Sarah. WHY people feel the need to create some distorted or fictitious history I will never understand. Ok, so I DO know that there are jealous classmates. I've talked to those people myself.

It's all sad what people will do for attention or self-validation.

Squarebanks

10/2/2011 09:40:00 pm

" it's working"

Do you know how malicious that is? To spread lies about someone else to attempt to manipulate them?

Do you REALLY condone this behavior? What if som moron were doing the same towards Obama? You'd be up in arms.

And how do you know it's working? They aren't exactly living unhappily now are they? I don't even think Bristol knows Gryphen exists outside his name and anything her mother mentions in passing. Any manipulative blog written about a person will get at least a mention in the household. I personally know Bristol laughs at drama and the lies created to stir shit.That's who she is.

Her show completed filming in early Sept and she went home then for a brief spell. She came back for whatever reason but is now home (as of last Thurs) This I know. Kyle seemed enthusiastic about the show in mid Sept (twitter).

It's entertaining to me that bloggers think

It would probably be a good idea to have someone keep their eyes on the blogesphere from time to time, as there are some nasty people out in the world with no qualms about spreading hate and lies (like MeAgain) The kids may laugh it off because they know the truth, but the adults know how powerful the power of suggestion is.

I mean, look at how some lies have made you think Chuck Heath is a creepy person. He is the exact opposite in real life - a friend to all who treats people fairly.

Considering how you pride yourselves on being openminded and fair, you sure seem to judge a lot based on no evidence and outright lies.

Judas?

10/2/2011 09:49:41 pm

Deb - You call them trolls, I call them compassionate, sensible people who don't like anonymous liars on the blogs.

You said, "I haven't seen any haters."

Um, what do YOU call someone who hides behind anonymity to spread lies about people they've OBVIOUSLY never met? What do you call crystalwolflady and katieannieoakly etc who are irrational 85% percent of the time?

Yes, there are (or seem to be. I can't judge people I've never met, good or bad) sane, rational people who are regulars of the blogs, but the people who only post hateful, emotional comments containing cliches, lies, and personal attacks make everyone look bad.

This blog doesn't seem to have many of those and the regulars here aren't this way. (Good job guys. Way to be mature)

Politicalgates has more sane sounding people than immature people, although the immature one stand out a great deal. Palingates is pretty mature now. IM is THE place for irrational thought, but Gryphen invites that himself with his self-described immature comments and unsubstantiated rumors.

It's comical how you don't see hate like a normal person. Perhaps because you're so closedminded and refuse to see things objectively anymore. I'd say the same for Far left, "Obama haters." Though, I don't see anyone spreading outright lies about him.

Glennallenbabe

10/2/2011 10:21:10 pm

SLQ, they don't rail against people for talking about them. Bristol has said on video that people will talk no matter what. That's why they just continue living the lives they choose, regardless of who's watching. In reality, about .00004% of Americans know anything about the Palins other than Sarah ran for VP and she has a grandkid. I just spoke to a woman who didn't even know Todd's first name.

I would say the reason Bristol posts photos and things on her public facebook is because she has 50k followers and enthusiastic commenters. She also comments back on some. She's embracing her public life. Its easier to do that than fight against people who will do anything to attain information in anyway possible. It's called taking power back.

Side note: I would hope that this family makes you want to reconnect with your family and possibly lost family members, as It made me.

Lilly

10/2/2011 10:33:27 pm

http://www.flickr.com/photos/palinproject/5854477441/in/photostream/

This photo comparison made me laugh.

1. the photos were not taken DAYS apart. There are many days between Sept 3 and Oct 18th.

2. The ears are the same, as is the hair and face

It's people like this that make everyone else look stupid and illogical.

V ictoria link

10/2/2011 10:42:58 pm

The thing about Sarah Palin - I have never seen one nice, kind or truly generous words or deeds come out of her. Nothing that wasn't obviously for her own personal gain. Nothing worthwhile.

So, dear trolls - and at least you're working harder! - don't you think you should find something better to do with your lives?

Anyway, as to religion, I want to remind everyone of one of the first stories in the Bible, when God punishes Eve and Adam and Satan when the humans eat from the Tree of Knowledge. In other words, the religions that have evolved from this are religions with a god that only values obedience and who will punish those who have any initiative or who seek understanding and knowledge (and especially punish women). Satan, too, is punished and hated - even though in other mythologies, such as Greek mythology, the deity (Prometheus) who brings knowledge to mortals is at least appreciated by the mortals, even if Prometheus gets punished by Zeus.

rubbernecking

10/2/2011 11:23:03 pm

@Ottoline, you asked if the Koch donor John Menard might be a sibling of the former AK resident Curtis Menard Sr.

It appears they are not siblings.

Curtis Menard Sr was born in Detroit to June and Curtis Menard, and he was raised in L'Anse, Michigan. His 2009 obit lists these siblings: brothers Larry, Ritchie, and Jim; and sister, Nancy. Source: http://www.frontiersman.com/articles/2009/03/06/local_news/obituaries/doc49b0d084211e5275050007.txt

The Koch donor, John Menard Jr was the eldest of eight born in Eau Claire, WI to parents John and Rosemary Menard. Source: http://www.insidemilwaukee.com/Article/242011-BigMoney

Menard is not a rare name. The US Census bureau publishes statistics about surnames in the US. Menard is a more common surname than Palin or Novak, for example. Source: http://www.census.gov/genealogy/www/data/1990surnames/dist.all.last

P.S. Some of the comments today are hysterical. But I will agree that if anyone has a family member who is bar brawling for cash, do reach out. Your family member needs help ASAP.

eva marie

10/2/2011 11:27:05 pm

Rubbernecking,

Your information is helpful and thank you for that but it does not prove or disprove any family ties between these two Menard families.

rubbernecking

10/2/2011 11:48:07 pm

@eva marie, a commenter asked if two men were siblings. I answered this question.

I would never attempt to disprove something as vague as "any family tie". If you believe there is a meaningful connection between these families, you should research it.

carolyn

10/3/2011 01:09:47 am

Thanks to Karen and all others who helped me out with MeAgain. There's some really interesting stuff there.

Ivyfree

10/3/2011 01:11:11 am

"It's comical how you don't see hate like a normal person. Perhaps because you're so closedminded and refuse to see things objectively anymore."

"It's all sad what people will do for attention or self-validation"

You know, if you feel that way, why you just ought to get right up and leave- just march out of here and slam the door behind you and leave us to our own devices! That would show us, all righty!

Allie RN

10/3/2011 01:16:10 am

Oh, we've got ourselves a trollfest going! :) I'm fresh out of troll food, though.

Laura Novak link

10/3/2011 02:04:48 am

Yes we do, Allie. DO NOT feed the TROLL (singular).

LakeLucilleLoon: can you contact me please at:

[email protected]

Thank you!!

Ottoline

10/3/2011 02:18:50 am

On the earlier link I gave re the $7B Menard, it says "Since 2001, John Menard has been involved with POLARIS Industries Inc. as independent director and member of the Corporate Governance & Nominating Committee as well as the company’s Technology Committee."

POLARIS and Iron Dog seem joined at the hip:

http://www.irondograce.org/2011/iron-dog-ambassador-and-polaris/

The $7B John Menard also has a brother named Larry, but different names of parents, and different growing-up towns. Cousins? No relation at all? But definitely related in terms of interest in the TParty.

DebinOH

10/3/2011 02:48:15 am

Judas? - perhaps you should re-read what I wrote. I did not say there were no haters (I assume you mean about SP) on Laura's blog. I was talking about people writing hateful things about anon. Someone on IM said to anon that they should ignore the hateful posters on Laura's blog saying that they were trying to shut anon down. Yes, there have been posters here who said they are on the fence, etc., but hateful?

Maybe I am crazy but I see the same comments on Laura's blog that are on Palingates, Politicalgates, IM and Mudflats (and assorted others). The only difference I really notice is a lot of hit & run comments on IM.

I may not be good at reading comprehension though because I really can't even figure out why you seem to be so mad at me. I've re-read what I wrote and how you came to any of the conclusions you did baffle me.

Thanks for judging me as close minded though. I think if you read all the comments I have ever made here you could not call me a hater or call me close minded. Can you say the same?

Allie RN

10/3/2011 03:32:38 am

@DebinOH, responding to a troll is called feeding the troll. Don't do it. Just move on. You're right; time will tell. :)

DebinOH

10/3/2011 03:37:26 am

Oops, & just to clarify something - I really have not seen "haters" here either. I see people here who are concerned about the future of their country. I see people here who would NEVER have given a rat's rear end about SP. She put herself out there & lied, enjoyed people hating other people and was happy to foist her family on the general population.

No one made her join the cast of Sarah Palin's AK. No one made her put her family on the show. No one but SP herself. If she did not enjoy the attention she would not have done bus tours, speaking engagements, new's commentary (if one can call it that), book tours, etc.

Do I feel sorry for her family? Yes, I will be perfectly honest. They did not ask to be dragged into this mess. This is why she takes full responsibility for the comments she gets. It is not our fault that she made a million enemies and mistakes up in AK. It is not our fault she used private e-mails to correspond with her staff. She has no one to blame but herself.

I guarantee you one thing, I definitely know that I am not smart enough to run the country, I would NEVER have put my family out there, and I would not have done any of the things she did in office (or while running as VP through now).

Off my soap box now!

Allie RN

10/3/2011 04:14:04 am

Deb, borrowing your soap box: everything you mentioned goes to her judgment, which is extremely poor. Just like McCain exercised extremely poor judgment in choosing her. Just like McCain's "advisers" exercised extremely poor judgment in recommending her and retaining her. Just like the Weekly Standard clown car from the cruise ship, particularly Kristol, exercised extremely poor judgment in responding to his erection over her. In other words, just in case I haven't been clear, Sarah Palin was an extremely poor choice for the ticket, as well as for governor, oil and gas commissioner, mayor and councilwoman. Fortunately, I don't believe for a nanosecond that she was "annointed" because I am sure that God is a leedle bit smarter than that, so that leaves me free to recognize that she was an extremely poor choice in a party of extremes, as well as an extremely poor example of a mother and a human being.

Ok, here's your soap box back! :D

Rationalist

10/3/2011 04:21:49 am

Wow - I've been away from the blogs for a few days over the weekend and it's gotten crazy! I respect everyone here who has maintained an even keel in spite of troll attacks. It just seems funny to see the posters here called "haters."

O/T but Andrew Sullivan has an interesting post up about the odds of success of a conspiracy.

http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2011/10/why-conspiracies-are-hard-to-pull-off.html

I feel it proves what I've been saying - that there are VERY few people who know for certain the truth about Trig. That - and all the issues Brad so wisely explained in his paper - is why Palin has managed to keep the game going this long.

I'm sure there are insiders who have put two and two together and are now convinced of the hoax. But at the time it happened, I still hold that there were only three people who were in the loop. Sarah, Todd, CBJ. Everyone else - the Johnstons, Dar Miller if she was involved, Bristol and the other kids, Parnell, Bailey, etc. - were in the dark or partially in the dark.

sunnyskies

10/3/2011 05:00:19 am

Sounds like Sarah to me:

There are six things that the Lord hates, seven that are an abomination to him: haughty eyes, a lying tongue, and hands that shed innocent blood, a heart that devises wicked plans, feet that make haste to run to evil, a false witness who breathes out lies, and one who sows discord among brothers.

—Proverbs 6:16–19

Laura Novak link

10/3/2011 05:11:17 am

Deb: Allie's right: don't feed the troll. Just ignore her. It's counterproductive to engage.

Ottoline

10/3/2011 05:18:47 am

Allie -- Lob that soapbox on over here for a minute. You've made a great list of all the bad-judgment points, for a more normal world than we are seeing here in GOP-land. I agree with you, and I also think it goes beyond bad judgment.

If I turn the perspective around to that of the Kochs and a few of their pals, the situation looks a little different. McCain was on his way to losing, so they had to do a HailMary save, and the cruise-ship clown car pundents :-) said that SP was charismatic and might work. And at first it seemed it might be so. As the campaign wore on and the GOP realized what a loose cannon they had, they thought it would be okay because they would keep her busy as a puppet after they offed McCain after election. If needed; only if needed. (The big business elite was convinced it could control Hitler, too, right up until it was all too clear that they could not.) And Palin could have a good run as a puppet. A puppet who goes around waving, being styled in great clothes, staying in 5-star hotels, with her every wish delivered, right down to the bendy straws and lucrative gigs for her family members. All provided by pals of the GOP.

If WE BLOGGERS could read the blogs and figure out the BabyHoax, surely the GOP had some poor staff member(s) doing the same. They knew they had a hoax on their hands, but so what, so long as it never really came to the attn of the public. (Just like Joe Kennedy paid people off to keep JFK's promiscuity out of the MSM: worked just great for that time.) And they were well positioned to keep the hoax quiet, as we now see all the more clearly from the blackout on MSM stories and the pushback to the McGinniss book. Well positioned because either they or other pals owned/controlled all the papers.

The economic bust was supposed to happen AFTER the election, has always been my guess. And lots of money to be made on it. Without McCain's wimpy and out-of-control response to it, the election might have been far closer. The GOP expected to win. And upon winning, their control would be only greater than at present: of MSM, for reducing civil liberties, for continuing profiteering from the wars, keeping taxes low on the wealthiest, reducing services, reducing medical coverage to "depopulate" us (to greatly reduce all those pesky costs of caring for our most vulnerable). And SP could be as useful to "energize the base" as she was at the start of the mid-term election campaigns. Or so they must have hoped.

Rationalist, I agree that v few people knew at first. I'd even question CBJ's involvement at the outset. As people caught on, it was obviously easier to ignore and go along than to speak up, and then it was impossible to explain why you hadn't blown the whistle earlier.

And now that's the GOP damage-control problem: how to get rid of SP without implicating all the guilty enablers. How to get McCain and the funders off the hook so they never need to comment on their role or their observations.

Because it's a no-win to comment on it: if you say you never knew, it reveals you are stupid; if you say you did enable to a large or even small extent, it makes you crooked. And if you lie, you get caught, like Bill Clinton did. It wasn't the act, it was the lie.

Okay, who needs the soapbox next?

Karen

10/3/2011 05:21:04 am

Not me. If I had the soapbox, I would probably throw it at the troll ;)

sunnyskies

10/3/2011 05:24:57 am

Sarah and now Bristol wear Christian icons and clothing apparently to "cover" for their very unChristian behavior. I find that very offensive.

So, Bristlepants, next time you go out on the town to ride the bull and start bar room brawls, dress appropriately -- your gorilla suit maybe?

DebinOH

10/3/2011 05:39:14 am

Laura, I don't think I need to worry about feeding said troll. I don't think they would even care or read what I had to say:)

I guess sometimes it just gets to me! Sorry about that.

comeonpeople

10/3/2011 05:44:38 am

o/t my husband just called me to report that on NPr Tery Gross has some ominionist on talking about the 7 mountains.....but she won't have on Joe mcGinniss? Damn, gotta take the kids to the dentist so can't listen. But does anyone else find this really strange that they are talking about the 7 mountains on NPR but won't have Joe on??

sunnyskies

10/3/2011 05:55:00 am

If I were in any way related to that adorable little boy Tripp, I would not let his immature mother and more immature aunt parade around LA with him in tow. Does Bristol have body guards 24/7?

She's a celebrity now, recognized where ever she goes, and she and her family have lots of money.....One crazy idiot is all it takes for a disaster to happen. God forbid but really! LA is NOT Bristol's kind of town. It's not Wasilla.

If 20-year-old Bristol and her 17-year-old sister want to dress like hookers and parade up and down Sunset Blvd, then ok, I guess....That's ok with you Todd?

But doesn't anybody care about the safety of this child Tripp? Levi? What's wrong with these people?

10/3/2011 05:57:45 am

I'm still working my watpy through the Rogue, but as I was reading today I was struck by something which IMHO relates to the absolute hatred of Obama.

On p. 195-96, McGinniss discusses the World Prayer Center, which he describes as a spiritual version of the Pentagon. It is the campaign HQ of Peter Wegner (who had contact with the christianist mass murderer in znorway) and Ted Haggard. In '98 the WPC created a spiritual map which is like a GPS for finding demonic activity, allowing good Christians to engage in spiritual warfare and improve quality of life. In a video about this approach, one of the case studies was in Kenya.

I wonder if this association was behind the regular calls about Obama being a Kenyan Muslim.

nancydrewed link

10/3/2011 06:07:58 am

Amanda Knox is free to go home after four years.

10/3/2011 06:09:37 am

Ack. I hate typing on the iPad, but I'm too lazy to turn on the computer.

To complete my thought... The identification of Obama as Kenyan was like a silent dog whistle to the uber-far right.

Thanks for the tip on Fresh Air. I'm sure the NPR board (made up of station board members) put a kibosh on negative Palin stories. But TG is clearly doing her best to get the story out.

McGinniss's book is fascinating. It might have gotten more respect without the lurid stories, because he does a great job laying out the evidence on her vapidity and unusual religious beliefs. But it also would not have had as much free publicity without a titillating story involving a prominent athlete. Hopefully a few Viagara-loving Pbots bought the book for that story, and read the entire thing liking for the details. (which were't even there, beyond Sarah's over the top reaction.). Maybe they can be turned.

Thanks to all of you who act in the spirit of your religion, even if you don't adhere to man-made rules.

FrostyAK

10/3/2011 06:22:21 am

IF only 3 people were involved in the hoax, how do we explain that someone as stupid/vapid as $P or as uneducated as Todd could have conceived (pun intended) it, pulled it off (though badly), and kept the media out of it?

Not possible. IMO, there were high level planners and enablers. $P just did a crappy job of playing the lead role. Those same high level planners and enablers are still at work behind the scenes to make sure this story never sees the light of day. Hence the terrible initial reviews of McG's book in this country.

10/3/2011 07:09:52 am

frosty, what convinces me that the hoax was homegrown is Sarah's hobo getup during her "pregnancy.". If Paxon or someone savvier then Todd & Sarah had been involved, they would have had the empathy belly ready, or at least Fed-Exed to Molly. That the empathy belly didn't show up for a month tells me S thought she could get away with pillows and extra sweaters until someone finally convinced her to order the empathy belly. Maybe after the museum photos? But still cheaped out, getting ground shipping.

I do believe some of her more powerful supporters or former supporters are trying to keep a lid on the story to save Sarah and / or their own reputations.

lilly lily

10/3/2011 07:18:07 am

IM has a drawn empathy belly on Bristol at the convention. MY god it is so right in that dress they snuck out of Meghan McCains closet. She wasn't that big at the airport coming in. They sure made her look ridiculous in their effort to prove she was so pregnant she couldn't possibly be Trigs mother. I don't know anything about these kids births, but that sure looks like what they did.

They muddied the waters.

Viola-Alex

10/3/2011 07:28:41 am

The Prohibition documentary by Ken Burns premiered last night. It's on tonight and Tues as well.

What's interesting is that Prohibition started among women and in the churches (mostly in rural areas), but it took a man who started a dif. organization to force the change to the constitution. His group gained power by defeating non-supporter congressmen and Senators at the ballot box. It was systematic, powerful.

BUT what it really was about was attacking immigrants -- the Italians, Irish, Germans were the drinkers. To take away drink was to kill their culture. The man who took over the crusade did not care about drunkenness, he cared about immigrants.

People supported the amendment because they thought THEY would be able to get around it. Before the US knew it, Prohibition landed in everybody's laps.

It's really better than the other KB films imo, because of it's topicality to what's happening now.

FWIW.

rubbernecking

10/3/2011 07:48:26 am

@Up, I'd argue that Palin is vain and does not follow advice. I think it would be hard to convince her to maintain the pregnancy look if she believed it was unflattering.

The Palins also had legal advice. Someone helped them make the decisions about health insurance. Of course, these lawyers are limited from speaking but I always thought it was interesting that Michael Carey's source was a lawyer.

My biggest question mark is why/how all the teenagers stayed quiet. Levi's sister was willing to sell photos of her nephew. She has revealed many unflattering things about Bristol but, as best as I can determine, has never endorsed the idea that Bristol could be Trig's birth mom.

I think we still need to stay open to the possibility of other birth mothers--like Molly. Her age, and the family investment/obsession with her custody battle are factors to consider. I also think an adult woman would be better at keeping this secret than a teenager.

Anonfornow

10/3/2011 08:12:48 am

Someone over at IM quoted an interesting passage from Levi's book: He's talking about when he dropped out of school in mid-March 2008. two months before the end of his Junior Year:

" 'I don't support this,' my father told me, when I announced I was dropping out of school. 'I want you to get your diploma; stay in school. Mom and I can help you work this out.' His words echoed the expression I'd seen on my mother's face, if only for a second, when we told her Bristol was pregnant.

"I respected my father's opinion but I needed to earn money, not take from them. Todd had made that clear, though I'd already figured it out for myself."

Look at the timeline: In mid-March, Levi drops out of school so he can help support his pregnant girlfriend. On hearing that Levi is dropping out, his father's face echoes the same emotion as Levi saw on his mom's face when she heard Bristol was pregnant. So this means that Bristol would have to have been impregnated no later than mid-February, and probably earlier, for her to have time to realize she's pregnant, tell Levi and her parents, for Levi to tell his mom, for Todd to tell Levi he needs to earn money, for Levi to decide to drop out of school, then tell his dad he's dropping out in mid-March.

I have said for a long time that I think Bristol's second pregnancy actually began earlier than what they announced, not later. I suspect the second pregnancy is what provoked Sarah to announce that she was pregnant with Bristol's first, still in the NICU at the time (a 17 year old knocked up once is bad enough; twice shows real issues).

I suspect Bristol's bust was padded at the Convention to make her look LESS pregnant, not more, just as they padded her bust on DWTS to disguise her protruding belly. The reason for making her less rather than more pregnant is simple: to convince McCain that Sarah hadn't known about Bristol's pregnancy when he approached her back in February, and to avoid having to announce the birth during the campaign. All they needed was for her to be pregnant five months, so that's what they said.

Our Modern Prohibition - mistah charley, ph.d.

10/3/2011 08:18:43 am

Fred Reed, who lives in Mexico, has some recent opinions and observations about The War on Drugs and its effects -

http://www.fredoneverything.net/DEA.shtml
http://www.fredoneverything.net/Downhill.shtml

litbrit link

10/3/2011 08:19:43 am

"My biggest question is how/why all the teenagers stayed quiet..."

Well, "all the teenagers" would just mean Bristol (of course), possibly Willow at some point, and Levi and Mercede Johnston. The former two are family and even if they were not overtly bribed with material consideration, they would have had to have known (or been sternly informed) that it was to their considerable benefit to hew closely to the official story.

The latter two had the fear of God burned into them when their medically-fragile mother was hauled off to prison for what is a relatively minor offence (selling a few prescription painkillers, the likes of which a family member of mine was once prescribed for shingles pain) and then placed under house arrest, with an ankle bracelet, in lieu of further prison time. You can kind of understand their reluctance to reveal a few key details if they were informed that so doing would be tantamount to signing their own mother's incarceration order.

Anonfornow

10/3/2011 08:28:47 am

"My biggest question is how/why all the teenagers stayed quiet..."

Ah, that is easy. They're all from severely dysfunctional families, and kids from dysfunctional families learn early how to keep secrets. Just think of all the nuttiness Sarah and Willow keep quiet about. I don't think the Johnstons are anywhere near as bad, but they were dealing with a drug-dependent mom and a cheating dad, so I suspect home life was rocky there, too. And as litbrit says, they were ultimately silenced by fear for their mom.

I have a feeling some of Willow and Bristol's boyfriends have heard the truth. But they would have no proof.

10/3/2011 08:31:12 am

i wasn't aware that Carey's source was an attorney. I did notice reading The Rogue that someone other than Van Flein was id'd as her attorney.

Did Carey's source tell him at the time of the pregnancy? Sarah and Todd may not have called for advice on insurance until finding out Trig wouldn't be covered without a birth certificate. Carey's source may not even learned due to questions from Sarah. State Houses are often crawling with attorneys.

I do have an open mind. The mother could be anyone, though Bristol is the most likely suspect.

curiouser

10/3/2011 08:34:43 am

"Levi's sister was willing to sell photos of her nephew."

I think this was a charge in Bristol's book. Do we know it's true? At the time, the talk was that there were no photos of Tripp in any publications and the Greta interview was the first the public had seen of Tripp. I recall an interview of Mercede complaining the Palins wouldn't let her see her nephew but don't recall there being a photo of the baby.

Ottoline

10/3/2011 08:41:45 am

I encourage everyone to remember that the Palins did not wear clothes of their own choosing during the RNC but instead were "styled" by probably the best in the business, or at least the best that GOP money could buy -- as we learned later in terms of the costs and the rigorous attention to all the details.

So it's not possible that the RNC handlers were surprised by Bristol's look, because they created it, carefully crafting a message, just as they did with SP's clothes and details.

The fake belly sure fits the odd contours of that dress. It was no accident.

Now we just have to learn who knew what and when, and how exactly did they co-conspire with Palin -- not just on this small point of clothes, but on the larger issues that the "family values" mantra was intended to represent, and did -- in a fraudulent, bankrupt way.

comeonpeople

10/3/2011 09:10:46 am

The NPR interview with Peter Wagner and Terry Gross is "must listen to" radio:

http://www.npr.org/programs/fresh-air/

You can just imagine Terry's face when trying to ask these questions in a professional manner...

search4more

10/3/2011 09:22:08 am

Anonfornow,

The passage from Levi's book you quoted is very interesting.

It doesn't fit with what Levi said in that Eonline interview:

http://eonli.ne/mOLvBi

If the pregnancy happened before the birth of Trig, then looking after Trig can't have been a motivator for the pregnancy.

search4more

10/3/2011 09:33:13 am

I have a question about the MeAgain thread on IM.

MeAgain believes that Bristol and Sarah themselves are making comments. I know a lot of people do. I have considered this to be possible, but kind of unlikely, but since there is no evidence really either way I have never formed a definitive view on whether it's true or not.

The interesting thing about the comments recently is that an image was apparently uploaded to Bristol's Facebook page as a response to a comment.

I couldn't access it though because I was looking at the thread days after it happened. For some reason I cannot access Bristols Facebook page.

My questions for anyone who followed it:

1) Was a photo uploaded to Bristol's Facebook page in response to MeAgain?
2) Does the date and time it was UPLOADED come after the comments by MeAgain. What was the date and time of the upload?
3) Was the photo removed soon after or has Bristols Facebook page since been removed or made private? I can't seem to access it.
4) Does anyone have a copy of this picture I can look at?

Thanks :-)

search4more

10/3/2011 09:38:08 am

...Also I'm interested to hear from people how likely they think it is that Sarah or Bristol actually comment on threads?

If you think they do then why do you think that?

rubbernecking

10/3/2011 09:47:35 am

Levi's sister sold pictures and an interview which Star Magazine published as an "exclusive" in Mar 2009:

http://www.starmagazine.com/news/world-exclusive-bristol-palins-bitter-split

Levi's sister told the magazine about a text that Bristol allegedly sent to Levi about praying that the baby wasn't his. If his sister was willing to tell a tabloid that Bristol was not monogamous, could she really have been in fear?

Wouldn't Mercede have discussed the Trig pregnancy rumors with other girls in Wasilla before Palin became the VP pick and her mother was arrested? What kept Levi's sister seemingly quiet about this rumor between Apr-Aug 2008?

Melly

10/3/2011 09:51:42 am

Search4more, the picture is still on Bristol's FB page. Just says--Sat at 10:41 am via mobile. I don't know how to post a copy for you--I just searched for Bristol Palin on FB and clicked her wall.

The picture does not show Trig's face and the poster on IM--Bristol?--didn't say when it was taken.

curiouser

10/3/2011 09:58:39 am

@rubbernecking - Thanks for clearing up the bit about Sadie selling a photo.

search4more - Bristol posted the photo to facebook around 10am AK time on Oct. 1.

Here's what MeAgain wrote in comment on Oct. 1 with a time stamp of 6:45am:

Well then where exactly IS Trig, pray tell? And don't you dare say "living with his strong happy family" because I will PROVE you wrong.   

Go ahead. YOU prove something, make me look bad. Prove to everyone I'm "full of shit" like you say. After all it should be MUCH easier to prove something that IS rather than something that ISN'T.

  And FYI, saying "Bristol posts current pics of Trig all the time. Then she coos at him!" is NOT 'proof'.

  We're waiting, Bristol.   -MeAgain

curiouser

10/3/2011 10:10:12 am

I meant to qualify the 6:45am time. I think that's the time the comment was submitted. There's a delay on IM for when Gryphen posts them.

I don't know what to make of MA but I do enjoy reading her comments. Since she says Sarah knows who she is, I'm hoping she'll allow Gryphen to vet her. Otherwise--skeptic that I am--I'll wonder if she's a double agent. ;)

10/3/2011 10:17:27 am

Ottoline, the stylists were professionals. If they were the ones trying to make Bristol look more pregnant, she would not have looked like she stuffed a sofa bolster in her dress. She looks like she is wearing the empathy belly with <avert your eyes, squeamish gentlemen> a pair of spanx. One of the photos on IM today is of Bristol at the RNC. She has that telltale indentation at her waist which appears when your spanx start to roll down.

Plus, she didn't look pregnant just a few weeks before. In Gryphen's post today about Levi's book he includes a photo of Bristol from August 2008 in which she does not look pregnant and she has a normal sized bosom.

Sunday

10/3/2011 10:38:19 am

I think it is possible that Sarah, Bristol, and their friends post on IM, C4P, and other places, both in support of and in defense of themselves. It fits revelations from others who say Sarah wrote or had written by friends such propaganda in the past. I'm guessing all politicians, or their handlers, do this to a certain extent.

In Palin's case Sarah has relied heavily on the social media to get her message out, as well as friendly speaking venues. Why pay attention to the LSM or polls if you have your very own fawning fan sites to read daily to convince yourself how wonderful you are or hear the cheers and claps of an adoring audience? Commenters are rill people expressing their opinions, not talking heads repeating each other or toeing the company line. Imagine Palin's world of People and US magazines and it's not hard to make the leap to blogs and web sites as information sources.

In some ways I agree that blogs and commenters on blogs and other media sites are more "real" than journalists' filters. For years we've been told about the "pulse of the country" from a few media outlets, and now there are a gazillion more media outlets than there have been in my lifetime. So much to read, so quickly. Where have all the filters gone? It sometimes feels like being high on a drug that has cancelled out the neural synapses of reason where every speck of dust is intriguing and the impulse of fight or flight is right on the surface. TMI. Crazy.

I happen to live in a very blue area so I don't often encounter opinions opposed to mine. I mostly read news outlets and blogs that reinforce my opinions in addition to the aggregated headlines. I believe opposing points of view are at times stupid and hateful. Putting myself on the other side, I imagine many there do and believe the same. I also believe there are intelligent people trying to run this country and much of what we see is the flotsam and jetsam of headline material and oversimplification. It worries me.

Teens and young people are constantly chattering, trying to figure things out. Passing notes, talking on the phone, texting. In my university town, I've noted a large percentage of people talking on phones while driving or talking/texting while walking. As an older adult, I find it hard enough to just keep it between the ditches. But I recall the drama of earlier ages, and quite honestly some of that recollection draws me to the current media blitz. It's my personal opinion that Palin is stuck in teenager time and continues to rehearse adulthood.

So yes, I think it's possible that Palin herself, her family, and her allies read and comment on the blogs. It's in the blogs that theories are thoroughly explored, and bloggers and commenters have at times hit on or neared some truths the Palins could use strategically, take great umbrage at, or fear exposure.

rubbernecking

10/3/2011 10:39:23 am

Ok, more weird stuff about the Palin's bizarre parenting decisions regarding school.

On 3/28/2008, Palin tells her staff that WILLOW is leaving Juneau and will finish the school semester in Wasilla while living with Todd (and a puppy).
Source: http://www.crivellawest.net/palin2011/pdf/13873.pdf

On 3/31/2008, Palin tells her staff BRISTOL will be attending summer school.
Source: http://www.crivellawest.net/palin2011/pdf/13900.pdf

Can anyone answer:
1. Do schools allow a child to transfer mid-semester like this?
2. It looks like Piper continued to attend school in Juneau. We saw her on the Elan video and I found April emails from the Juneau house mgr about food for Piper.
3. Are kids typically assigned to summer school by Mar 31st? Might a student be automatically assigned to summer school if he/she missed a certain number of days?

Audrey did an interview with AK source called "Misty" who said Bristol stopped attending Anchorage HS sometime between late Feb and mid March: http://www.palindeception.com/blog/2008/11/on-record-from-misty-some-bristol.html. This person was absolutely certain that Bristol did not return to Anchorage HS after spring break (3/7-3/14).

So, for some reason, Bristol, Willow, and Levi all appear to changed or left school in March 2008. Weird.

FrostyAK

10/3/2011 10:39:27 am

@ comeonpeople - thanks for the link to the NPR interview.

On Wegner and the NAR:

I thought Xtians were monotheistic. If that's so, how can the Emperor of Japan be screwing the "Sun Goddess"? And causing all the destruction there?

Wegner has a hangup with "demons". IMO, if there is such a thing, HE is the demon. The epitome of the false prophet. He won't name who he thinks is a demon in the current government, though.

He is a prophet/apostle, because he *says* he's a prophet/apostle. Because he *says* God has chosen him. He openly lies about the real goals of NAR. And prevaricates about things he doesn't want to address because it would make him look crazy.

After listening to that, I can see why $P is so whacko and thinks she is the anointed one. They take advantage of the mentally ill...

Best line is that Muthee could have prayed over $P and protected her from witches in her kitchen, didn't have to be done publicly in church. And probably shouldn't be done publicly because of the blowback from it.

NAR - A bunch of snake oil salesmen using religion to control weak people/populations.

search4more

10/3/2011 11:04:14 am

Thanks to the people that responded to my question.

I find it fastening that the Facebook picture went up at approximately the time that corresponds with MeAgain's comments.

---------

Here are the dates for the Anchorage school district school year 2007-2008:

http://bit.ly/q6vGeQ
(using the Way Back Machine)

The week 9-15th March 2008 was an end of quarter holiday. The 4th Quarter started 17th March 2008.

I hope I got the terminology right. I live in the UK, not the US.

search4more

10/3/2011 11:15:25 am

if you go to that webpage I linked to and click on "scools" on the upper left corner and then on the next page click on "High Schools" you will be taken to a list of Anchorage high schools. on each of those pages is a list of all the teachers at the schools.

I'm not going to do this, but for anyone who actually cares a great deal about this and wants to be a detective then there are a hell of a lot of people out there who you could talk to to work out what schools Bristol was in and when she was in them.

I assume this has already been done by Palingates and others.

Can I ask a question? Is there any law like HIPPA that stops a school/teacher saying whether a pupil attended a school at a particular date?

FrostyAK

10/3/2011 12:04:56 pm

@ search4more - if we cannot get any information on $P's Idaho 'degree', we surely will not have access to the school attendance records of minors.

search4more

10/3/2011 12:34:24 pm

I'm sure you're right.

I'm just trying to come to it with the perspective of someone who's newish to it.

------------------

Here's another interesting Sullivan post:

http://bit.ly/okNPz4

It's the video from Fox I'm interested in. They (Fox) are defending McGinniss's book. I don't know what other people think, but it seems to me that the reviewer has not actually read the book. She is just commenting about the few things in it that have been in the media, and defending it on that basis.

Fear of the right's reaction seems to be something that drives a lot of the mainstream media's coverage in my opinion. If the right say it's OK to talk about something, then I guess that means the chances it will be talked about go up considerably. :-)

rubbernecking

10/3/2011 12:37:04 pm

@search4more, I'm pretty sure I know which schools enrolled the girls between fall 2006 and spring 2008, based on emails and newspaper articles. All three girls bounced between schools in this period.

Fall 2006 - Girls enrolled in Wasilla schools.
Spring 2007 - Girls enrolled in Juneau schools.

Fall 2007 - Girls enrolled in Wasilla schools. Family trip to Hawaii in Nov.
Spring 2008 - Bristol enrolled in West Anchorage HS; Willow and Piper re-enroll in Juneau but do not finish the term there.

Fall 2008 - VP campaign - not sure any of them attend school
Spring 2009 - Bristol somehow manages to graduate from Wasilla HS.

I found some info on Anchorage attendence policy here:

****************************
It's important for high school students to not have a lot of time between withdrawing from their former school and enrolling here. Each of the days they are out of school is counted as an absence and our high schools have a strict attendance policy. Depending upon the school, that is anywhere from 8 (Bartlett and West because they use block scheduling) to 15 (the other four high schools) days. When a student reaches the maximum number of absences in any class they may not earn credit in that class.
****************************
Source: http://www.asdk12.org/parents/relocating.asp

Bristol was enrolled in West HS in Jan 2008, which had the block schedule. It would be possible to predict summer school requirements by March if Bristol had missed too many school days.

Is it possible that Bristol and Levi were cutting class in March and no one was paying attention until it was too late to salvage the semester? Was Willow brought back to Wasilla at the end of March to keep tabs on Bristol?

SLQ

10/3/2011 12:37:30 pm

Search4more, I think that is a risky proposition. FERPA prohibits public schools from releasing student information.

"The Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99) is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student education records. The law applies to all schools that receive funds under an applicable program of the U.S. Department of Education."

http://tinyurl.com/y8stkbw

(I just made my first tinyurl!)

SLQ

10/3/2011 12:41:07 pm

FrostyAK, we probably CAN get Sarah's Idaho degree info.

"An exception permits a school to non-consensually disclose personally identifiable information from a student's education records when such information has been appropriately designated as directory information. "Directory information" is defined as information contained in the education records of a student that would not generally be considered harmful or an invasion of privacy if disclosed. Directory information could include information such as the student's name, address, e-mail address, telephone listing, photograph, date and place of birth, major field of study, participation in officially recognized activities and sports, weight and height of members of athletic teams, dates of attendance, degrees and awards received, the most recent previous educational agency or institution attended, grade level or year (such as freshman or junior), and enrollment status (undergraduate or graduate; full-time or part-time)."

http://tinyurl.com/6e7f6ad

Laura, if you're interested in this, please let me know.

NSG

10/3/2011 12:44:25 pm

@rubbernecking, re transferring schools.

Yes, public schools see students come & go throughout the school year, as families, homes & jobs change. Obviously, many families try to time these switches to summer or other more natural breaks, but at our schools, students can be in flux at any time.

Of course, a lot of this is related to parents placing a priority on kids' stability and well-being. Doesn't sound much like Sarah - her kids' academic careers are breathtakingly scattershot!

Re student data privacy. I imagine there are specific state/local laws & rules, although I'm unaware of anything comparable to HIPAA. Our district makes a meaningful effort to protect privacy, although I'm sure someone looking for specific info could make some progress by digging. I agree with FrostyAK -- getting attendance records for a particular student would not be easy.

NSG

10/3/2011 12:55:20 pm

@SLQ, thanks for the info re FERPA! I'm going to have to research that further for my own work. And a big Emily-Litella-"Nevermind" about my last comment!

On another subject, did anyone see the article about Martha Stewart's daughter's new "mommy dearest"-type book? Oh my! Who could ever imagine a mother who actively cultivates a high-profile image as a perfect mother role model, and it turns out they were too busy with their public image to actually spend time mothering?!

Bristol, Willow, pay attention. Get yourselves some good therapy and get ready to take care of yourselves. Mama's just not that into you.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
http://tinyurl.com/3m5fjpe (HuffPo)

Alexis Stewart, daughter of domestic goddess Martha Stewart, has a new tell-all book where she describes what it was really like to grow up with a mother like Martha. She cuts to the chase - not great.

You might think that she grew up with beautifully handcrafted Halloween costumes; Christmas presents wrapped with silk, satin, and tulle bows, placed under a pristine tree; the perfectly balanced gourmet tuna salad in the fridge. Nope, no such luck. According to the daughter of America's favorite perfectionist, that was all for show.

The Daily Mail got its hands on excerpts of the book, and the revelations are not pretty. Halloween nights were spent dull and dark as Martha insisted they pretend "they were not home" to avoid any enthusiastic trick-or-treaters. Martha had Alexis wrap her own Christmas presents just days prior to the holiday, and the fridge was often left empty.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

I may joke, but it's all very sad. The children of these self-absorbed mothers really pay a price. And it seems to be a pattern that's hard to break.

I really do hope that Palin's kids get some help so they can build meaningful lives and do a better job with the next generation.

rubbernecking

10/3/2011 01:02:34 pm

I posted a comment about some attendence research but the comment seems to have gone into moderation for some reason.

I think I have identified the schools where the girls enrolled from fall 2006-spring 2008, based on emails and news articles. And all three girls changed schools 2 or 3 times each school year.

rubbernecking

10/3/2011 01:31:54 pm

Here's what Levi says about Bristol's schooling:

"She started a high school correspondence course through some church group during what would have been her senior year, but whether she submitted her work or not, she said her mom had it set up that she'd get a degree from Wasilla High. She had first gone to Wasilla High; then transferred to Juneau's high school; and finally was a student at West High in Anchorage when she got pregnant. For the remainder of that school year, she was signed up for this church program. Then, at the end of her senior year, she got a diploma from Wasilla High."

How do you interpret "for the remainder of that school year?" Doesn't this suggest that Bristol did not finish the term at Anchorage but used a church program for some portion of her junior year?

search4more

10/3/2011 01:46:23 pm

Thanks SLQ for telling me about FERPA.

It seems to me that although this law is in place there must be some way to bypass it. if that wasn't the case then everyone applying for a job could claim they had a 3 degrees. One from Harvard, one from Yale and One from MIT. Wow it would be easy to get a job ;-) . listed on the webpage you linked to were several exceptions.

I'm going to make a guess that for university degrees and some types of high end qualifications there is some way for businesses to check that applicants are not lying to them. Seeing as we are talking about the US I bet there are a few companies that provide a checking service.

I'm going to say something a bit absurd for fun. Fox ,since she is currently employed by them, probably have the right to find out about her degree. Wouldn't it be fun if as the 2 go their separate ways they did that.

Marie

10/3/2011 01:49:08 pm

Perhaps someone who is familiar with Alaska high schools can comment on this? What Levi is describing simply could not have happened here in Virginia. Is it conceivable that it could have happened in Alaska?

Transferring from one public high school to another can be tricky even within the same state. And it gets much more complicated when the student transfers mid-year or is using a correspondence school program at home. Different school districts may be using completely different textbooks or working at different paces. Add in the homeschool option, and it gets even trickier, because not all school districts will accept the credits and the work is even less likely to correspond neatly with what is being used in the public schools. I've spoken with many parents who were tearing their hair out over these types of issues.

Also, high schools as a rule do not award diplomas to students who attended their school for their freshman year and then went elsewhere for the other three years!!!! Something isn't right here.

curiouser

10/3/2011 01:50:25 pm

@rubbernecking - "Doesn't this suggest that Bristol did not finish the term at Anchorage but used a church program for some portion of her junior year?"

Yes.

I'd swear I read somewhere that a friend asked why Bristol left West Anchorage before the school year ended in 2008 and Bristol replied that she finished the coursework early. I think it was MySpace chatter but can't find it.

And the earlier part of the quote from the book sounds like Levi is suggesting she didn't earn the diploma.

Anonfornow

10/3/2011 01:55:26 pm

@search4more, I don't know about others, but my belief that Bristol is commenting on IM comes from the kind of posts that attract her. She always comments on the posts about Bristol, Levi, Sadie, Tripp, and Trig; I believe a paid friend posts all the time, even on the Sarah posts, but the person I think of as Bristol tends to appear only on posts that relate to Bristol in some way.

We know Bristol has a pathological hatred of Sadie, and this is always on display. She will bring up Sadie out of the blue even when the girl has nothing to do with the topic being discussed. Who else besides Bristol would be so obsessed with Mercede?

Plus, this person sometimes slips in her language usage. She isn't exactly what one might term clever, so I can't believe it's done to deceive us. She frequently tries to prove a point by bringing up obscure dates and people from the past that make you think, WTF are you talking about, girl? She always insists that Bristol was never that into Levi, which is just weird, given the official Palin tale of young love.

I just can't seen a Palinbot being that obsessed about Bristol, and I can't see even one of Bristol's bosom beaux spending so much time posting on Gryphen's blog.

I know some people find it hard to believe that people read what is written about them on the Internet, but they do. Look at Ann Rice, Laurell K Hamilton, and other authors who've snapped and openly attacked their critics on Amazon and on other forums. I have author friends who obsessively read what is written about them on the Net. I personally make it a policy not to do that, because in that direction lies madness. But we know from Bailey and other sources that Sarah is obsessed with what is written about her and answers back. Remember Bristol talking about the "haters" during DWTS? How did she know they were there if she wasn't reading the blogs?

curiouser

10/3/2011 01:58:58 pm

search4more - Employers frequently have employees sign permission forms to allow them to contact the schools. For several of my jobs, I had to send a request for complete transcripts and provided envelopes so the transcripts would be sent directly to the employer--no chance to fudge anything. This was done after being hired...conditional on receiving the transcripts.

Ferry Fey

10/3/2011 02:39:41 pm

Aside from FERPA, these days most schools try to control information about students because many have had problems with non-custodial parents trying to violate custody rulings.

SLQ

10/3/2011 02:47:36 pm

Search4More, you said: "I'm going to make a guess that for university degrees and some types of high end qualifications there is some way for businesses to check that applicants are not lying to them."

Yes, the FERPA exception I posted would allow for that, but it's not necessary. Most employers who care about confirmation simply ask you to sign a release and/or request that your school send a transcript directly to them. This also gives them grades. The employer doesn't want the time, trouble, or expense of doing it on their own, so they put the responsibility on the potential employee.

So, FERPA doesn't apply, because the employer either has consent, or the employee is the one who does it.

rubbernecking

10/3/2011 03:21:53 pm

Here's some info on transferring to Anchorage HS (http://tinyurl.com/67hn5ev):

*****
It's important for high school students to not have a lot of time between withdrawing from their former school and enrolling here. Each of the days they are out of school is counted as an absence and our high schools have a strict attendance policy. Depending upon the school, that is anywhere from 8 (Bartlett and West because they use block scheduling) to 15 (the other four high schools) days. When a student reaches the maximum number of absences in any class they may not earn credit in that class.
*****

Bristol was enrolled in Anchorage West HS, so if she missed 8 or more days, she would have been unable to earn credit for some of her classes.

I'm wondering if Bristol and Levi were cutting school in March and if nobody noticed before it was too late to salvage the semester.

Is it possible the Palins sent Willow back to Wasilla on 3/28 to keep tabs on Bristol until the legislative session ended? Why else would they disrupt Willow's spring semester?

It seems the change in Willow's schooling is inconvenient to Palin. On 4/1, Palin is scrambling to find someone to meet Piper at the bus stop. (http://www.crivellawest.net/palin2011/pdf/13955.pdf)

jeff

10/3/2011 03:58:52 pm

@Laura,

O/T but I've been using my iPhone and just got a good look at your wedding photo on my laptop.

Wow! I'd have to assume that you married a really smart fella, b/c nobody could do as well as he did on pure luck alone! Great picture of both of you.

Also O/T... I had to set aside Nicole Wallace's book after about only 80 pages. Her character, Tara, is far too accomplished for me to visualize as SP, so her book is just not working out for me right now. I'll have to read it later when I'm broke and can't afford to buy something else to get my reading fix.

Phyllis

10/3/2011 05:19:52 pm

@rubbernecking

Bristol must have missed enough days that she had to make up credits because Sarah knew by the last of March that she was going to have to take summer classes.

10:57 AM 31 Mar 2008 [ View original ]
from: Gov. Sarah Palin
to: Janice L Mason , Kris Perry
cc: Todd Palin
I really need any and all info on philly that you've got- Bristol will need to coordinate
her work and summer school schedule so she can attend, and I'll need to tweak mileage
plans for kids tickets. Thanks

Here is something else for you to mull over.
Bristol got a speeding ticket on Aug.6 2007. The fine was going to be $82.00 all together. The Palin's were on vacation Aug.9-20. Wasilla school started on the 20th.
On the 21st Bristol plead not guilty on her speeding ticket. The hearing was set for Nov. 8 2007. On Nov.6th Bristol's lawyer asked to have the hearing reset.
On 12/24/2007 the judge set a hearing for 1/19 2008 at 11:00am.At that time the judge brought a judgement of conviction and the case was closed.
She paid the fine on the same day she paid the fine for the collision she had in Wasilla. Collision happened on 2/11/08 and both fines were paid on 2/26/08.

Is there any reason you can think of that Miss Bris didn't want to go to court for 5 1/2 months after she got the ticket.

FrostyAK

10/3/2011 05:24:03 pm

On the schooling of the Palin kids - their mother was governor. If she asked for favors they would be granted. The kids would be given a pass JUST because the mother was the gov (GINO).

As for Bristle graduating from Wasilla High, best guess is if the deal was set before the resignation it would stand. If she turned in even part of the work, they probably gave her a diploma.

Realize that things work differently in Palinland than in the rest of the country. Homeschooling is a big thing here for the evangelicals, even if there is no one in the home qualified to teach the kids. IOW, even if no one in the home graduated from an accredited high school.

From what my neighbors told me, they do not get a HS diploma if they never actually went to the school, but something similar to a GED. Their girls never attended public or private school, but the boys went to public high school after the home schooling, and went on to college. The girls had scads of kids instead... more than a dozen between 'em at last count. Home schooling them, of course...

Phyllis

10/3/2011 05:26:50 pm

I left out one little tidbit.in my comment. Jan.19th 2008 was on Saturday and normally a hearing would not have been set for the weekend.

search4more

10/3/2011 06:51:53 pm

Jeff,

I complimented Laura on that photo, but then I started to regret it in case she felt it was a bit pervy :-) . .....Then I started to think that maybe since the photo was taken a long time ago she wouldn't have liked the comment because we are praising old her and not new her. I'm going bald. I think maybe I'm beginning to be wistful about the past. I may soon be resentful of old me. Damn him! ...He had hair. ;-)

So let me state, just in case, that Laura you look very nice in your more recent picture at the top of the blog also.

Viola-Alex

10/3/2011 11:07:42 pm

Regarding college degree verification, I was willing to fake SP's signature on a bogus form I made -- but then of course these college degree checking sites require a SS#.

So, yes, for an employer to check they need your signature and your SS#.

SLQ

10/3/2011 11:36:45 pm

FERPA allows non-consensual release of directory information, which includes degrees earned (see my post above). Anyone want to do a FOIA request? I'll help.

10/3/2011 11:43:06 pm

Viola, Did you JUST admit to condoning FRAUD and identity theft?

SHAME. That's lower than Sarah.

OMGEe

10/3/2011 11:44:43 pm

WHOAAAA viola-alex,

That would be like a bot forging Obama's signature on an affidavit proving he wasnt born in Hawaii.

Lilly

10/3/2011 11:48:59 pm

Phyllis, I don't understand why a Saturday court date in Jan matters one way or the other. Socially prominent people (at the local level) typically stay on the DL.

What's weird is, Bristol was already attending school at this time in January.

Confusing. Maybe social conscious Sarah thought it would look bad for a Palin to walk into a court house on a week day when people could see. This was nearing the most important time in her career.

Who knows. It's weird that a Nov court date was postponed (some people think do to pregnancy) BUT she flew to Hawaii????

Makes no sense, UNLESS that court date was DURING the Hawaii trip in Nov.

Checking

huh

10/3/2011 11:53:01 pm

I actually have a question regarding that speeding ticket Bristol received in Aug 07. It was for like 5 miles over or the smallest amount. Why did she plea not guilty to a speeding ticket?

Is that weird to you all? I've never received a speedind ticket but I have received other minor violation tickets and, unless it's an obvious set up, you check guilty and mail payment (or go to the courthouse and pay on the day listed)

Why would she plea not guilty? hmmmm

Viola-Alex

10/3/2011 11:54:01 pm

Here's an early morning story that may or may not have relevance here. For 18 years I was married to an embezzler. Everything we had,and we had a lot-- vintage wines, jewels, luxury trips, private school for our children -- came from my husband's thievery.

I had no idea. Our entire marriage was a lie. He was a charming, generous man. He was the smartest person (1600 on college boards, turned down a chance to go to Oxford) I've ever known. He was a William Blake scholar and an expert on wine. He was on the church vestry. Everyone adored him.

I believed my husband made his money as an investment broker and as owner of a thriving wine importing company. The truth was, he stole from his mother (a client) and from family trust funds (family clients). Everything else was just a facade to hide his criminal activity, because the more he stole, the more he had to rearrange to steal some more. All of that brilliant intellect was spent covering and stealing, like a game.

I didn't learn the truth until I filed for divorce. It took months for my lawyer to unravel the truth, or as much as I would ever learn.

My husband's family sued me, accusing me of squirreling away what their son and brother had stolen. They got nothing, because there was nothing. The brokerage firm stayed out of it, and did nothing, not wanting to be in the news.

I considered suing my husband and putting him behind bars, but I was urged by everyone, even my own family, not to because it would "hurt the children."

Today, my ex-husband still works in the investment business.

The point of my story is that in the web of lies business, there may never be resolution or explanation. Or justice. As one lie begets another, the entire shabang grows into an ever larger tangled mess. People turn away. They can't make sense of it, so they look away. HIS family blamed me, because they hated that they had trusted him.

My ex- has never stopped lying to our children. He still says he graduated from university, but he did not. He's never fully explained the embezzling but only says that during those years, he was "crazy." I hear the IRS is again looking for him.

As Palin's web of lies appears to be ever-expanding, encompassing her college degree, her political record in AK, Trig and Tripp-- rational clarity flies out the window. It's as if she and her family create intrigue in everything, because they don't know what else to do.

I'll never know what made my ex-husband steal and lie, and hurt his own children irreparably. And maybe I've transferred this need to know, now, to SArah Palin.

But I'm beginning to believe, I may be just as frustrated there, too. That her lies keep me spinning to make sense, when there may be nothing more than pathological lying and covering.

Viola-Alex

10/3/2011 11:57:30 pm

Call my willingness to forge Palin's name what you want. I was willing to break the law if it meant getting something concrete. Mainly, I was just stupid not to realize I'd need a SS#.

GhostbusterTX

10/4/2011 12:07:24 am

Every year when I register my (elementary age) child in the local public school I have to sign off permit or do not permit on a series of privacy-related items, including "directory" information, and allowing military recruiters to contact my child. (I know they've had to lower the bar in recent years, but hands off my kindergartener!) There is a separate form for the PTA family directory and more permissions if media are expected to cover a school event.

The schools/district most likely have discretion in turning over that kind of information, even if the parents didn't opt out. My suspicion is that the directory information is used primarily by colleges who buy mailing lists targeting specific student profiles, rather than given out to curious individuals.

jeff

10/4/2011 12:15:55 am

@search4more,

Now I wish that I had let you comment first; that way, I could've just said "Um, ditto what the other perv said".

Oh well, if Laura quits posting here at her blog, we can both share the title as the creeps that ran her off. On the other hand, I'm betting that she's plenty tough enough to send me packing just like those dead skunks if I get too far out of line!

lilly lily

10/4/2011 12:18:05 am

I dreamnt she quit for health reasons. I won't go into the details of the dream though I did say what I thought of her very quietly, and she said "what does it matter, I'm dropping out for health reasons. No one can prove anything."

I went into the next room and they asked what did she say, and I said "What does it matter she is leaving politics."

She will drop out for one or another bogus reason and that will be that.

It will all be swept under the rug.

And the country will move on.

Lilly

10/4/2011 12:26:17 am

"Is there any reason you can think of that Miss Bris didn't want to go to court for 5 1/2 months after she got the ticket."

Well, Typically, when you get a ticket and are summoned to court, the court date is usually about 2 mos after the ticket is dated. I'm not shocked it's 3 mos in AK as im sure the courts are overrun by delinquents.

The Nov Hawaii trip was JUST AFTER Nov 8th, a thurday. Sarah sent Erika F an email on Nov 11, a Sunday, saying that Erikas son was staying close to the Palins and she hoped Bristol would meet up with ALex (ALex and Bristol were joking about this coincidence about a month ago)

The wedding was that night, Sunday Nov 11 and the family returned to AK that tuesday.

I have no idea when they left however.

The lawyer or whomever asked on Nov 6th for a rescheduling of the court date.

Also to consider: The first hearing was on Thurday, Nov 8th at 6PM (is it normal to work at 5pm?)

The final hearing was on a Saturday.

To me, it appears Sarah wanted to avoid public attention to a Palin kid's court appearance.

But my question remains: why did she plea not guilty to basic and very minor speeding ticket?

poppy

10/4/2011 12:34:57 am

" Remember Bristol talking about the "haters" during DWTS? How did she know they were there if she wasn't reading the blogs?"

Um. she was in LA. You'd have to be blind and deaf NOT To see or hear some catty remark. The reports went wild during dwts. The hollywood sites lit up with rumor after rumor and lie after lie.

The blogs are a TINY part of it.

rubbernecking

10/4/2011 12:41:50 am

@Phyllis, the Palins went to Hawaii for a wedding in Nov. I don't know which exact day they flew to Hawaii but

- Wedding was evening of Sun, Nov 11
- Todd and kids returned to AK on Tue, Nov 13
- Palin missed the wedding and returned afternoon of Sun Nov 11 because of AK special session
Source: http://www.crivellawest.net/palin2011/pdf/21778.pdf

A direct flight between Anchorage and Honolulu is 6+ hours travel so Palin must have been in Hawaii a day or two before her Sunday return flight.

So I suspect the Nov hearing was rescheduled because of the travel plans to Hawaii. A court schedule is booked several weeks in advance. If you ask for a new hearing Nov 6, you won't get another hearing for Nov--because the calendar is already filled.

I can't see why Palin's lawyer would use traffic court to hide an adoption or guardianship hearing. Wouldn't the lawyer arrange a private hearing for this? Wouldn't this be sealed? Why bother with traffic court?

jj beanie

10/4/2011 12:43:49 am

"Bristol, Willow, pay attention. Get yourselves some good therapy and get ready to take care of yourselves. Mama's just not that into you."

But they come from a strong family that values togetherness. There's a difference. It appears Martha, who's a very cold person even when she meets fans and gives talks at fundraisers, never valued family time. Sarah absolutely did. There is much proof of smiles and laughter. Her kids still hang around the house. Her kids' friends love her.

Sarah is not Martha.

bbb

10/4/2011 12:46:59 am

"I find it fastening that the Facebook picture went up at approximately the time that corresponds with MeAgain's comments."

It would be more fascinating if that were the first picture that went up. It is not. Bristol routinely puts out pictures every month or so. The one of Tripp with the facial, the 4th of July one of Trig and Tripp, the one of Tripp after the bus tour...

Her fans enjoy them. And her response comments to fans recognize this.

Mazie

10/4/2011 12:58:59 am

rubbernecking,

well, Levi really never attended a formal schooling institution after Spring 07 as far as I can see. He wasn't attending WHS in fall 07 with Bristol. The only school he mentioned in his book was that alternative school Sadie graduated from.

He has said in the past schooling interferes with hunting and he never liked it much.

I would imagine once Sarah announced the pregnancy, rumors were bombarding Bristol and she HAD to leave to avoid all that crap.

I do believe though that she stayed in Anchorage until May.

But who knows and who cares. We will probably never know. Bristol really isn't a major player in our concerns. Her pregnancy helped convince the country that Trig was Sarah's. Thats it.

Over analyzing HER schedule isn't going to disclose Trig or Sarah secrets. It will only confuse is.

I would kind of like to know when exactly LEvi and Bristol got back together in early 08, after breaking up. that might prove that Bristol really wasn't into Levi, as I think most have suspected. You dont easily dump the father of your child if you really "love" him.

Marie

10/4/2011 01:01:33 am

@FrostyAK, I am a longtime(secular) homeschooling parent who has counseled a lot of parents on homeschooling over the years.

Many of the parents I have counseled were attempting to enroll or re-enroll their child in public high school after a period of homeschooling. Or they were transferring from one school division or state to another and finding out that their child would lose significant time towards graduation if they enrolled him in the local public high school, because of transfer issues. (I got these calls because the parents erroneously hoped that their kids could homeschool the missing credits or graduate faster through homeschooling.) There were rarely any easy answers to these complicated situations.

While homeschool law varies quite a bit from state to state, most state laws offer a lot of flexibility to homeschooling parents as to when/where/how/what to homeschool. (There are numerous pros to this as well as cons, but that's a story for another day.)

However, once the family chooses to transfer from homeschool to public school, they lose all that flexibility and are completely subject to the public school laws and policies on transfer, graduation, grade level, etc. These policies tend to be quite restrictive, much to the dismay of the transferring families.

And as for graduation, to the best of my knowledge, only Pennsylvania and possibly North Dakota award high school diplomas to homeschooled students. Most homeschooled students go directly to college or career without official diplomas, or they obtain diplomas from accredited distance learning programs. Or they take the GED exam.

After 8th grade, transfer between public schools gets a LOT harder because different schools are using different textbooks, curriculum, standards, etc. This was a problem when I was in high school in the 1970s, and by all accounts is still a problem today.

Transferring even once during the high school years can potentially delay graduation for a year or more. Transferring multiple times would be even worse. Add in a church-based homeschool program, which may not be accredited and/or may not be using the state curriculum, and you're just further adding to the time required for graduation.

So when I hear a story like this one coming from the Palin camp, two possibilities come to mind:

1) The Palins pulled some major, major strings to get their daughter to graduate on time, which at best would have severely bent the local laws or policies on graduation. Some laws might even have been broken in the process.

2) Bristol never actually graduated, from Wasilla High or anywhere else, because she lacked the credits and time in place to graduate from any one school or program.

Wes Wiz

10/4/2011 01:03:34 am

"Just like McCain exercised extremely poor judgment in choosing her."

McCain chose to trust his COS, Schmidt. McCain was 99% in the Lieberman boat which would have been a good choice. Steve Schmidt, in al his ignorance, smugness and ambition, basically said, Sarah Palin is your only shot.

Steve Schmidt was the WORST thing to happen to McCain and Im shocked he still works in politics. Well, not really. 97% of political operatives are backstabbing, ladder climbing, assholes like Schmidt and the rest of them.

There job is to save their asses and secure their futures. Nothing more. Nothing less.

rubbernecking

10/4/2011 01:05:58 am

U of Idaho claimed Palin as a 1987 graduate in some alumni marketing material they sent out in Jan 2008. They updated the online piece after the VP selection.

Jan 2008 newsletter (p 14): http://www.uidaho.edu/~/media/Files/Events%20and%20Festivals/herewehaveidaho/2008_Winter.ashx

Online profile:
http://www.uidaho.edu/newsevents/features/alumni/sarahpalin

I'm not sure why we keep pursuing this one. U of Idaho has claimed her, for better or worse.

Marie

10/4/2011 01:10:50 am

One point that I forgot: High schools (like colleges) generally have residency policies in place to prevent people from coming in at the last minute to grab diplomas without actually having attended the school.

These policies typically require that a certain number of credits be earned at the school, and that the student have attended for his/her senior year. Failing to adhere to these policies could potentially cost a school its accreditation, which could mean loss of funding.

So if the Palins really truly pulled strings to get Wasilla High to graduate their daughter who hadn't attended there in three years, then you're potentially talking some major violations, unless Alaska laws work differently from the rest of the country. This is why it would be helpful to talk to someone who is familiar with Alaska state and local policies on transfer and graduation.

Anonfornow

10/4/2011 01:12:09 am

@Poppy, people who are in the public eye--especially when they lack both talent and looks but are simply coasting on their mom's fame--need to either develop a thick skin (you know that thing the Palins always claim they have even as they are showing they don't?) or have the sense not to read blogs and fan/gossip sites on the Internet and in trashy magazines.

Funny, the rumors I remember were mostly planted by the Palin publicity people. The most glaring lie was one of omission: not reporting on the numerous people working on DWTS who noticed Bristol was pregnant again.

People who survive best in LA know not to pay attention to all the media crap that surrounds their careers. As I said, that way lies madness.

I have a very good friend married these past 15 years to a HUGE Hollywood producer. I am quite plugged into the Hollywood scene and know of what I speak.

rubbernecking

10/4/2011 01:30:40 am

@Mazie, I respectfully disagree. I think understanding schedules is useful and objective.

March 2008 was a key month. Palin announced her surprise pregnancy, Bristol disappeared from Anchorage HS, Willow transferred from Juneau's to Wasilla's middle school, and Palin told her staff Bristol would attend summer school. That's an awful lot of turmoil for one month...

In Oct 2007, John Hopkins published a list of failing schools they called "Dropout Factories" and several AK schools made the list, including Wasilla HS. In Nov 2007, Palin's office sent out a press release promising that the Gov would call AK students who were thinking about dropping out.

http://www.crivellawest.net/palin2011/pdf/21723.pdf

*If* Bristol was cutting school in March 2008, this would have definitely been covered up. Think about the blowback if the public realized the Gov was unaware that her own kid had dropped out.

IvyfreeIn Nov 2007, Palin's office sent out a press release promising that the Gov would call AK students who were thinking about dropping out.

10/4/2011 01:34:15 am

"In Nov 2007, Palin's office sent out a press release promising that the Gov would call AK students who were thinking about dropping out."

You know, I remember hearing about that. It's the kind of thing she'd say to make herself look like she cares.

Does anybody know if she ever did any calls? I would think that if she had, somebody pro-Palin would step forward and say so, but I've never heard of any.

Dangerous

10/4/2011 01:36:13 am

While I don't usually comment on purely political posts -- the Palin faked pregnancy being the hobby I give time to -- I'm not without interest and litbrit's post at the top made me consider a couple of things.

First, I'm not sure where in Florida she lives, but she knows it is a very large, diverse state that is all over the map politically. There's the north which is more southern redneck and Miami which is solid blue (except for a few pockets). So I wouldn't say that Florida is a "red state".

I like Obama and support him, but his political skills have proven extraordinarily weak and it is likely to cost this country a huge amount as the Tea Party lunatics drive the politics right off a cliff.

Some have compared him to Carter, but I think it's more like Neville Chamberlain, minus Hitler. He tried to appease his detractors and those who interests would never allow them to see things his way. In fact, from the beginning they plotted for his destruction and pursued that strategy at every turn. The point was to see that the blame for a continuing bad economy -- and it had to remain bad the strategy to work -- shifted to Obama. And for many people in swing areas of Florida and around me in Pennsylvania, that stategy has worked.

Obama famously said "It's not about me!" Well, I'm sorry but once you are President it IS about you whether you like it or not. You're the guy. If you aren't strong and take a side in an argument, you're going to lose. You're the president, not a judge. Judicial temperament is fine, but you have to decide an issue early, based on arguments already presented, rather than hoping the opposing side will settle their differences and reach a compromise. That's what judges alwasy want. Presidents don't have that luxury.

Besides, Mr. President, one side in this political fight wants you to fail and wants you gone. Once they made that goal clear, you should have simply stopped listening to them and turned their intransigence against them.

GOP wants Obama to fail = GOP wants American to fail.

That's how you make them behave and then you'll have your change in tone. Not before, and certainly not with appeasement and weakness.

I think there's a good chance Obama will lose and it will be the biggest disappointment in my lifetime.

Viola-Alex

10/4/2011 01:49:24 am

Ivyfree -- But what you're proving is what we know: that Palin's life is always out of control but was particularly so that March 08. Each new lie is to put out a fire, and the lies and fires grow and grow.

Granted the dropout issue is interesting but wouldn't it have been part of the compound issue that was Bristol? Remember RAM's tweets?

GhostbusterTX

10/4/2011 01:55:56 am

The Mat-Su district apparently has an "open transfer" policy. The graduation requirements listed on line currently don't mention any minimum credits or enrollment time to determine which school is listed on the diploma.

It is possible that by judicious use of Christian correspondence school enrollment Bristol could have "earned" enough credits to graduate, and maintained her status as a student, even while being for all practical purposes a drop-out. My guess would be that many of her credits converted to pass/fail upon transfer and so were not used for GPA calculation; pure speculation, but probably not hard to find the policy with a few phone calls if some cares enough to follow up.

It's really disruptive socially and academically to move kids from school to school mid-semester, although I can see the Palins making a case that they wanted the kids (in this case Piper and Willow) to be in an area where they had more family support once the new baby was there, but not wanting them to be away from Sarah for the whole spring semester. (Sarah did know she was "pregnant" during winter break, the logical time to move the kids, right?) Of course that argument would carry more weight if Sarah was actually showing up for work in Juneau once in a while that spring....

Viola-Alex

10/4/2011 01:59:38 am

If we take a model like Madoff, then a few journalists and bloggers (I think) called it early. But it took enough complaints for agencies finally to investigate.

please correct me if I'm wrong.

so we can spin and spin, but if we can't lodge formal complaints against someone or something (in mass) can we succeed in pulling Palin off the stage?

Or we can be like a UFO site or a Princess Diana site that just spins theories for the game of it.

which was the point (obscure, I admit)of my long story above. If I had it to do again, I WOULD make a stink about my own husband. I would make sure the world prosecuted the father of my children. I would not stay silent.

Laura Novak link

10/4/2011 02:09:53 am

Jeff, are you kidding? I appreciate any and all of 'em complements. Yes, those were the days, my friend. But they are long gone and we appreciate what we have now. But no, you're no perv. You're a valued member of this community.

Speaking of: Don't feed THE troll.

Viola-Alex: I really appreciate you writing that personal story. There is much to be gleaned from it.

I am trying to get a new Brad post up. Should be finished and published soon.

rubbernecking

10/4/2011 02:42:45 am

Here's the MatSu policy on graduation as of March 2008:

Students shall receive a Matanuska-Susitna Borough diploma only after successfully completing all sections of an approved graduation qualifying examination and acquiring the minimum of 22 credits in required and elective
subjects. Source: http://tinyurl.com/3ekhmsv

Here's what Levi's book says about AK home schooling:

"Alaska has no regulations about homeschooling, no tests. Nothing. It's legal truancy. A parent in Alaska who decided to home-school a kid had no forms to fill out. My state had no way to even know how many kids were being homeschooled. I didn't have to learn any particular thing for a certain number of hours or take any tests. The idea was to give moms and dads the freedom to teach whatever they wanted, or not. It should have been called no-schooling. It got pretty loose for some kids, who just hung out at home, loafing."

Bristol enrolled in Wasilla HS as a freshman and if she "home-schooled" without re-enrolling, she would have counted as a Wasilla HS dropout by the criteria of the John Hopkins study. I'd guess there were lots of people eager to avoid having Bristol as the poster child for Wasilla HS dropout factory.

rubbernecking

10/4/2011 03:04:44 am

Last comment...but the scandal is not whether Palin graduated from U of Idaho. The scandal is that Palin's children are less educated and have spent far less time in school than their parents or grandparents.

This issue is among the worst of the red/blue state divides. We have "parenting freedom" groups that advocate for policies that raise American children in poorer conditions than their ancestors.

Very sad.

Marie

10/4/2011 03:31:26 am

@Rubbernecking, what Levi describes is people using the homeschool laws to get around the truancy laws. That's not valid homeschooling---it's "not schooling", as he says. It's people who do this sort of thing who make life hard for the hardworking parents who DO legitimately homeschool their children, in Alaska and other states. (End rant.)

@GhostbusterTX writes: "It is possible that by judicious use of Christian correspondence school enrollment Bristol could have "earned" enough credits to graduate, and maintained her status as a student, even while being for all practical purposes a drop-out."

If you are enrolled full time in a Christian correspondence school, you are not, cannot be, a public school student. If a student leaves the local public high school and immediately afterwards enrolls in a correspondence school or distance learning program, then you become a "withdrawal" statistic, not a "drop-out" statistic. But you are NOT by any stretch of the imagination a public school student. You just aren't.

Now, there are an increasing number of STATE-RUN correspondence school programs out there. State law varies as to whether these students are "homeschooled" or "public school students receiving offsite instruction" or something along those lines. However, a high school student could enroll in a STATE-RUN correspondence school program and receive easily transferable credit. They might even be considered to still be enrolled at their local high school for some purposes, although that would vary from state to state. (In my state, such students are enrolled as attending an umbrella school division located hundreds of miles from anywhere. So they aren't enrolled in the neighborhood public school, and they can't get their diplomas from there either.)

There also are accredited PRIVATE VENDOR correspondence school programs. Some of them are Christian; many are secular. If you are enrolled in one of these programs, you receive your diploma from the correspondence school itself. Examples are American School, Keystone, Oak Meadow, Indiana University High School, Seton Home Study, etc etc. (The list is long.)Sometimes credit from these programs will transfer over to a public high school, although local policy can vary greatly and there are no guarantees.

But speaking as someone who has spent way too much time in this field over the years, the official story simply does not compute. If Bristol were enrolled in a Christian correspondence school program, then the easiest thing to do would be to have her GRADUATE from the Christian correspondence school. Unlike public schools, these correspondence schools tend to be far more liberal about granting credits from multiple schools or providers. And if the Christian correspondence school could not grant her a diploma, then the parents should have chosen to enroll her in another correspondence school (Christian or otherwise) which WOULD grant her a diploma. It's a buyer's market out there and it would not have taken much time or effort to find a program that would have met the family's needs.

Bristol's situation would actually have been ideal for this scenario because the accredited programs all require the student to attend their correspondence school for at least a year before graduation. By leaving high school during junior year, Bristol could have accomplished this with relatively little difficulty. (Where it gets tricky is when the kid leaves half-way through SENIOR year for whatever reason.)

One could also argue that Palin would have gained points with her base by having her daughter graduating from an accredited Christian homeschool program instead of a "godless" public school. Instead, she insists that the kid graduated from the neighborhood public high school--one that she apparently had not set foot in for three years. I smell a huge rat.

Ottoline

10/4/2011 04:27:09 am

Oh, V-A, I am shocked and dismayed (at your pain) by your story. How good of you to tell us. I feel like I've gotten to know you over the 3 yrs, and to like you so much, appreciate your wisdom and common sense. I see now what a crucible you have been through. I'm actually Amy1 from the Audrey days -- didn't mean to switch names, but when I signed up here the software (or my ignorance) didn't let me use the old name -- now I see it looks like a deception.

Re the SS effort: I have a friend who was doing a good deed for a senile aunt and wanted to know her SS info, so she phoned in, impersonating the aunt. I've forgotten the details, but her conclusion was the SS folks are way ahead of us amateurs in spotting fake requests, so she too was headed off in a way that might have gotten her charged with a crime. Which it was, except it was to help rather than hurt a loved one.

Re not prosecuting your husband: that's just what the grammy did in "The Two Mrs Grenvilles," re prosecuting the wife who murdered her husband, the grammy's son. Gram did not want the murdered man's children (her grandchildren) to have a convict for a Mom. A fictionalized true story by Dominick Dunne. I'm sure you've read it.

Anyway, so good of you to tell us your story. Lots to think about there -- a biggie for me is that clearly you found a way to have a life after such a disaster. A huge accomplishment. Reminds me of the Jackie O quote when Stephen Spender asked what she thought was her biggest accomplishment, and she said "That after some difficult times I've been through, I've managed to come out of it as a fairly normal person." Wow!

Anyway, sending you lots of warm feelings and thoughts.

Ottoline

10/4/2011 04:47:53 am

Re Madoff, I remember reading (after the scandal) the v detailed report of a man who called it just right about 6 yrs earlier, send his study twice to the SEC, with no action. My recollection of how Madoff got caught was simply that the market dipped lower than he (or we) ever thought it would (and he suddenly had too many withdrawals, then the panic). If that had not happened, he would have been okay for some time to come. I don't think any agency caught him -- the bad luck of a declining market toppled his Ponzi scheme and then the agencies got involved.

Like you, I see the SP story sinking silently into the dim past, with no revelation of the hoax, no accountability by the VIP fat cats, leaving everything primed for a more clever repeat of a variation of it. I fear the megabillions that will surely attempt to overwhelm the electorate with Madison Av PR for the GOP in the next election, so that is another reason I want the hoax explored and acknowledged.

I am hoping "Fred" and more time for McGinniss+Dunn, plus the "Game Change" movie to move things along a little more. But I'm getting more pessimistic.

rubbernecking

10/4/2011 05:29:09 am

@Marie, did you read the John Hopkins study or their methodology? http://web.jhu.edu/CSOS/images/AP.html

By the John Hopkins criteria for **dropout schools**, Bristol would have counted as a dropout if she graduated from a Christian correspondence program. There was controversy about the John Hopkins study because it did not distinguish between transfer kids who attended senior year at another HS vs kids who never attended senior year.

At the end of the day, the study showed that less than 60% of kids who enter Wasilla HS as a freshman make it to senior year. Where do they all go? Isn't troubling that the Palin and Johnston kids are not rare exceptions?

I know a home-schooled kid who graduated with a science degree from a top-notch university. I'm not saying that home schooling never works. I asking if this emphasis on parental "freedom" might come at too high a cost to AK children.

Marie

10/4/2011 06:04:04 am

@Rubbernecking, are you implying that Wasilla High might have had an incentive to claim Bristol as one of their own graduates to improve their abysmal graduation statistics? It's a very intriguing idea, but a very risky one.

Schools often rest the bulk of their reputation on their diplomas---having a diploma from a particular school is supposed to mean something. (People actually get arrested every year for illegally crossing school boundaries so their kids can get the credential from a better school than the one in their hometown!) Padding the graduation roster with the names of kids who actually did their coursework elsewhere is a really good way to get in trouble and lose accreditation and/or state and Federal funding. If this is what happened with Bristol Palin, then it's a scandal worthy of national coverage.

Incidentally, according to the link you sent, Johns Hopkins did its research on Wasilla using statistics for 2001-2006, so Bristol's class would not have been counted. And the article itself says that they were looking at overall trends, not individual students.

(Having spent most of my life in very mobile communities where families are constantly moving in and out of town, I would never create an academic study that lumped transfer students in with dropouts! But that's another story.)

Marie

10/4/2011 06:33:32 am

As for the question of parental freedom and homeschooling, this is actually a national issue, not merely an Alaskan one--every state is dealing with this issue to some extent. These questions are being posed all over the country, and are being discussed elsewhere on the Internet. The topic is well beyond the scope of this blog.

There is no question that there are homeschooling success stories and homeschooling failure stories. The challenge is that the very laws which lend themselves to abuse and criticism also create the flexible environment for many of these success stories. So any changes to the law must be handled very delicately and crafted carefully by people who understand the needs of both the public schools and the legitimately homeschooling parents. There aren't too many such people out there, which leads to much misunderstanding and a lot of well-intentioned bad proposals.

For instance, you could create a daytime curfew to keep the allegedly homeschooling kids of Wasilla off the streets and out of trouble (along with the kids who are playing hooky from brick-and-mortar schools). But this measure would also impose a hardship on the enterprising homeschooled kids who are using school hours to go to the library, work paying or volunteer jobs in their community, travel to extracurricular activities or classes, etc. And these kids HAVE been picked up and harassed by well-intentioned police officers in these communities, so it's not a theoretical issue. No easy answers.

We now return to our regularly scheduled program!

rubbernecking

10/4/2011 06:58:09 am

Bristol's educational status was very newsworthy. Palin claimed she was forced to comment publicly about Tripp's birth because the media was running false stories about Levi and Bristol being HS dropouts.

If Bristol had graduated from Christian correspondence school, there wouldn't have been a cap-n-gown photo opportunity for People Magazine. Rather, there might be more media attention to AK's lax homeschooling environment. It might have raised more scrutiny of all the school changes Palin inflicted on her kids. It might have raised concerns that if the Governor's kids were falling through the cracks, how were less fortunate kids faring in the same system?

BTW, the John Hopkins study did check for migration using census data. Wasilla did not have enough population migration to explain why less than 60% of Wasilla freshmen made it to senior year in Wasilla HS.

10/4/2011 08:38:17 am

ottoline, that was Harry Markopolous. He used to have to check his car for bombs, he was so worried Madoff & Co would come after him. He thinks Madoff was a front for the Russian mob.

Marie

10/4/2011 08:47:54 am

Actually, a cap-n-gown photo opportunity could have been very easy to stage. Many state and local homeschool organizations stage annual graduation ceremonies so homeschooled kids and their families can have the full graduation experience. Some of these have huge attendance with hundreds of graduating seniors each year. These ceremonies are often covered by the media as positive publicity for homeschooling.

Furthermore, such an event would be fairly easy to orchestrate if it didn't already exist---all you would need is a suitable meeting space, some rented caps and gowns, some custom-printed diplomas, and some publicity. The Governor's office could have used their connections and staff to help coordinate such an event pretty quickly if no such event existed already.

As for calling attention to Bristol, it was already common knowledge that she was pregnant, and pregnant teens often have trouble finishing school on time or have to use special measures like summer school or distance learning to keep up with their schoolwork. And there are over a million homeschooled kids out there, so it's hardly unheard of any more.

But we're talking about a family that fakes pregnancies, fakes Christian and family values, fakes marathons, fakes college degrees, fakes just about everything....So why not fake Bristol's graduation too? Makes a lot more sense than the convoluted "three different high schools, months of unexplained absences, and a couple odd correspondence school credits" explanation.

This family has a LOT of explaining to do.

Ottoline

10/4/2011 12:02:10 pm

Thanks, Up -- I wiki'd Markopolos and it was so interesting. I'd forgotten so much about that. His difficulty in getting anyone's attention has its parallels to ours re SP.

10/5/2011 02:36:28 am

"U of Idaho claimed Palin as a 1987 graduate in some alumni marketing material they sent out in Jan 2008. They updated the online piece after the VP selection."

That doesn't necessarily mean she actually graduated. My college claims me as an alumnus in their publicity material (because I have a very small measure of a fame in a specialized field), and I never graduated; I left after my Junior year. The college lists me as an alumnus from the Class of '79, which would have been my graduation year if I'd actually finished. They don't come right out and say that I graduated with the rest of that class, just that I'm an alumnus of the college and I was in that class. Technically correct, if a bit misleading. (Although the word "alumnus" is generally used to refer to a graduate of a school, it can also be used simply to mean a former student.)

FrostyAK

10/5/2011 07:00:16 am

On the question of why Bristle plead not guilty to the speeding ticket - in AK most people plead not guilty. The cop only shows up about 50% of the time, and if they are a no show, the case is dismissed. So, you have a 50% chance of not being found guilty (even when you are), and no points are added to your license. Pretty good odds. Pretty lousy law enforcement.

@ Marie - $P has broken many laws, ethics and others. Those transgressions were covered by ??? . There is no reason to believe that she would not have pulled as many strings as possible in Wasilla to get the school to issue a diploma to Bristle. Unless there is a complaint no one would know the difference, and no loss of accreditation would result. We also have to be open to the possibility/probability that the diploma is no more than another lie in the $P litany of lies. Phil Munger may know the truth of that matter.

The graduation statistics in AK overall are appalling. I believe Anchorage only graduates about 68%. Even worse stats for going on to college. Many boys figure there are high paying jobs on the Slope as roustabouts. Many apprentice jobs pay more than jobs for recent college grads. And many of those dropouts flip burgers and deliver pizzas.

Levi is right about many of the 'home schooled kids' in this area. Many are left to play video games and facebook all day or run around town, and have no one who can or wants to teach them even when the parents are home. They may be the model for the nasty comments about 'pajama clad bloggers living in their parent's basement'.

Other families do okay with the homeschooling, and many kids learn on their own even without adequate 'teachers' in the home. The one family I know well had the boys transfer to public HS in the 9th grade. The ones who could teach themselves did very well. The ones who could not, struggled mightily in the public HS. None graduated before the age of 19 or 20. All have gone on to college. One graduated suma cum laude from undergrad and went on to grad school. So there are some positive stories about homeschooling, even here.

FrostyAK

10/5/2011 08:39:21 am

This is very OT, so am going to post on an older blog post. OT but IMO, very interesting and important.

http://www.stonekettle.com/2011/10/consequences.html

MicMac

10/5/2011 09:07:28 am

Viola-Alex, don't be so hard on yourself. Your ex-husband story is so much like mine. And, post-divorce, after finding (like you) and documenting SO MUCH I was never able to put his feet to the fire. I was out-attorneyed, and after exhausting my savings/equity in my house to the tune of almost $90,000, I had to represent myself, and lost again. Had to pay HIS attorney's fees to the tune of $7000, which I did not have. Had to go on public assistance for awhile, which was bitter, bitter. He, like Palin, is a supreme narcisscist. They make very good witnessness on the stand, because they believe their own lies. If your story would have turned out anything like mine, feel good that you saved yourself and your children all those heartbreaking dollars and time spent in court, trying to get child support, trying to prove fraud (this was my second husband BTW, not the first husband I wrote about earlier that is the father of my disabled son) - my struggle, which was composed solely of responding to complaints on his end to stop child support ENTIRELY, not complaints filed by me, nearly destroyed my family and myself. You can look at it this way, you got off easy. Just as we spend all these countless hours blogging and posting to bring down Sarah, tearing our hair out, in like manner, attempting to do this against an ex-husband clever narcisscist who is crooked and thinks and plans and does things in a manner you or I would never consider in a million years. . .you're not going to win. And I am well educated, with skills, rational, articulate. Tell ya, under those conditions, crooked wins every time.

rubbernecking

10/6/2011 12:47:29 am

@dt, I provided links when I claimed U of Idaho said Palin was a graduate. Were you not able to open the link?

Here are some direct quotes from the 2008 article:

************
The youngest governor in Alaska’s history and the first born since statehood, Palin is a 1987 journalism graduate of the University of Idaho.

Palin began her college career at Hawaii Pacific University. Wanting to reconnect with her family’s roots, she transferred to North Idaho College, then finished her journalism degree at the University of Idaho.

After graduation, Palin moved back to Alaska.
************

I don't see anything vague here. In Jan 2008 the University published an article that called Palin a "graduate" and said she "finished her degree" at their school.

Source: http://www.uidaho.edu/~/media/Files/Events%20and%20Festivals/herewehaveidaho/2008_Winter.ashx (p 14-15).

Asking if Palin completed her degree was a fair and reasonable question. I think the University's own publications are a reasonable and reliable source for answering the question.

The real scandal is the education of Palin's children. Palin's children are reaching adulthood less educated than their grandparents. This is Palin's vision of America's future.

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