Run Mama Run

9/5/2011

For what it's worth, here are my marathon stories.

While training to run the Chicago Marathon in 2000, I ran the San Francisco Marathon as a "half" in order to establish my time and see where I was in my training. That meant that I ran 13.1 miles in San Francisco (Lord have mercy, those hills!) And at the age of 39, I ran it in a little over 2 hours. I was most certainly not a sub-two-hour runner. I've cropped my son out of this photo. But I am holding him to my leg, with a banana in my hand. And I'm proudly showing my MEDAL to my husband. I have no idea where the person is who took the second leg of the race. (And I have no idea why I was wearing earrings. But I wasn't wearing a lick of makeup because you just sweat it off and who cares!) It doesn't matter. I crossed MY finish line. And I got my medal.

Here I am having finished Chicago a few months later. 26.2 miles. Wrapped in mylar, whooping it up with my child. My medal visible, my timing device still on my sneaker (I sorry I don't have a better photo on my computer.)

Here's one thing I'll say about running marathons, or even 5Ks. I never, ever wore cotton. In fact, I didn't know anyone who did. It's heavy and gets soaked with sweat. That means you carry wet cloth over your body instead of letting the sweat evaporate or get wicked out by synthetic material. I also shed whatever warm clothes I wore to the starting line before I started to run. Meaning I handed them to my husband or left them in the car. Why? Well, what else are you going to do with them? Throw them on the ground en route? That sure gets expensive if you run a lot of races. Besides, you warm up in no time. Also, too, the swag you get at races is fun. Often times, I'd put on the race T-shirt after the race in order to get into something completely dry.

That's not to say that I did everything right. I mean, I also slapped a lot of hands held out to me in Chicago (what a fabulous town for a marathon!) and then wiped my nose right afterwards. But you're not really thinking about good health habits when you're running long distance.

In shorter trial races, did I pass people? Sure. But when you're a faster runner, you don't generally start with the walkers at in the back. You just know where to position yourself.

Those were good times. My joints can't handle it now. But boy, it was fun. And it was also local. Other than flying to Chicago to run in a (thank God, flat!) marathon, I never drove more than 15 miles from my home for a race. Never had to. Never would have crossed my mind to. Unless I had some ulterior motive. Or a burning desire to see the Iowa countryside. Just sayin'.

Keep the open thread going. I love our conversations!

Byaka

9/5/2011 05:33:05

I hate all the attention that gets paid to Palin's boobs. I think that, hey, we're women and we shouldn't have to hide them to be taken seriously.

That said, I'm gonna focus on her boobs, LOL. As a triathlete who is built similarly to Palin and spends a lot of time in running bras, I'm saying there's no way she's wearing one in that post-race pic. Her girls are too perky. And no woman I know would do a half-marathon in a regular, dare I say push-up, bra.

lilly lily

9/5/2011 05:34:04

Her feet never touch the ground.

I tell you she is superhuman.

An alien life-force.

Laura Novak link

9/5/2011 05:48:18

Byaka, the other thing is you have to get out of that wet running bra at the end. That's why I'd put on the swag T-shirt from the race. The cotton shirt, now that's what blows my mind. I hadn't though about the other part of what you're saying. But makes sense.

anonfornow

9/5/2011 05:49:18

First of all, may I say how much I both admire and envy you? I've never been able to run for shit, although I've tried often throughout the years. (I recently discovered I have a congenital lung defect; and here I thought all these years I was just a slacker.)

So I welcome your observations on the running of marathons. They cast even more doubt on Miss Quittypants's recent photo op. I personally don't think she has what it takes mentally to prepare for something like this. I believe it was staged to make us doubt the Anonymous Insider at IM, since she/he clearly said Sarah is in terrible shape and doesn't run. Now, suddenly, we have Sarah in a 1/2 marathon, running incognito someplace where no one is likely to recognize her or notice that she skipped the middle of the race. How convenient.

The way this was handled also shows us the intended target audience. No news team alerted ahead of time to be there at the finish, just a few leaked photos. So this isn't aimed at the voting public; this is aimed directly at the anti-Palin blogs, to refute AI (Anonymous Insider).

The best proof imaginable that AI is real. That, combined with Bristol commenting like crazy on Gryphen's blog and weirdly tying the race to the DWTS pregnancy cinches it for me.

Leslie

9/5/2011 06:17:44

I have doubts, but we all need to let this one go, it's become a distraction and a credibility drifter. She was listed in the Storm Lake Running Club, the marathon's host, as a second place winner, in her age category. There is probably more to the story, but we should move on, to the more important stuff.

search4more

9/5/2011 06:18:25

I'm not convinced that whether she ran or didn't run a half marathon is that big a deal.

The original photo we all saw does look weird, but the other 2 show she was there and are normal photos. Also she is in the official results. All evidence at the moment points to her being there.

If the 1st photo was altered in any way then I would imagine that the most likely reason is to put Palin in the centre of the photo and separate her from the others to highlight her presence. The resolution of the photo is not high. She is wearing her trade mark red in the first photo but then ditches that top later. Possibly so she is noticeable as Palin for the 1st picture? ...Or possibly just because she got hot.

If she was in a crowd of people then you would have to draw a red circle around her or have an arrow so the viewer noticed she was there. ...Anyway that's my guess of why the first photo looks weird.

If anyone can be bothered then just wait a few weeks and go to flickr and picasa and look at pictures from the race. She is not that well disguised. anyone that noticed her took a picture of her. Everyone there in the crowd had a camera (it's 2011 they are everywhere!).

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

I'm not clued in to all the twists and turns of the story over the years. Why does everyone think she isn't really a runner? Where does that information come from?

Her running tallies in with the idea of her having an eating disorder and being overly concious about her appearance. It tallies with reports from the 2008 campaign. I remember there was a report that she had fallen over whilst running with the secret service in 2008.

Her not running comes from a witness account in one of the books or something?

search4more

9/5/2011 06:20:41

To clarify I know the anonymous commenter said she didn't run, but the idea was in peoples minds way before that. Where did that come from?

Senikau

9/5/2011 06:26:21

My 2 cents worth is that there can be no doubt that she was there at the event. No question about it - pics are there to prove it.
The question is - did she really run the whole entire race? And of course there is the question of that picture where she seems to be floating above the ground.
I think that was definitely a photo-shopped picture. There are too many strange things in there - details don't match and it's just so obvious that she is really floating above the ground.
Whether she really ran the whole race or not - I tend not to believe that she did but I wasn't there. My point is that I tend not to believe things when it is in question when it comes to Ms. Sarah Heath Palin. So sue me.

Jeanette link

9/5/2011 06:40:16

Part of the feeling that she wasn't running comes from the fact that when there was going to be a magazine spread about her running, she had to ask around if anyone had a running carriage she could use for Trig. A runner would have had one. It is in the emails.

9/5/2011 06:50:10

@Jeanette re she had to ask around if anyone had a running carriage she could use for Trig. A runner would have had one.

A runner would have had one [a running stroller] if she ran with her child. It is possible that she still ran, just not with Trig. Still a phony though, with trying to give that impression.

karenw729

9/5/2011 06:50:54

I agree with others that she was at the event. She might have even run it. But that photo of her running amongst those other people is definitely photoshopped. I'm a graphic designer and I've photoshopped lots of photos so I know what they look like. The shadows on her body do not match the lighting of the rest of the photo. Her shoes have that pixelated look to them because whoever did the doctoring tried to sharpen up a blurry image of her feet in motion. Plus, just good ole' common sense is going to tell you that at least one runner in that photo would be looking at Palin, celebrity that she is, and absolutely no one is even glancing her way.

I'm a runner too and I also never wear cotton. It gets heavy with sweat and doesn't breathe. Real runners who get the kind of times Palin says she does do not wear cotton t-shirts.

Just more stuff that makes you scratch your head and go hhhmmm.....

LTA

9/5/2011 06:56:23

Laura, as someone who would only run if I were being chased by a republican or if someone put a nestle crunch 200 yards in front of me, I have to ask- why would one be wrapped in Mylar?

Also, too! Slammin' gams!

eclecticsandra

9/5/2011 06:58:11

There has been too much focus on the image(s) of SP in the race. She may have been in the same picture with the runners, but look at the walkers and runners. The walkers have been walking for a while. They are not starting. If it was the start, they would be looking at the flag, not their feet. The runners are packed together as are the walkers. If the runners started before the walkers, the walkers would be just starting.

There were no spaces in the walking pack for the runners to get through. Those are two different pictures.

We can assume that some posing and manipulating was done. Greta seemed to want the joke for her headline of Sarah running.

This was not important, and it is not worth analyzing like the editing that went on with the "exposure" of ACORN. If someone fudged statistics for a small race in Iowa, it is not important.

Let's get into the speech where she cuts out corporate taxes and then removes loop holes that wouldn't be there if there were no taxes.

Sally

9/5/2011 06:58:54

I googled the Des Moines white pages and they list at least three Sarah Heaths...why did she list Des Moines as her 'team?'The whole thing is fishy, but then, what about the Palin narrative doesn't have a smell to it?

1Doubter

9/5/2011 06:59:33

The tip-off is at the end, where she sweats on top of her shoulders and a bit up front, but the rest of the t-shirt is bone dry. No sweat underneath her armpits, no wet t-shirt from all the sweating along the way - the t-shirt flows loosely around her hips.
Also, too... her calfs are too skinny IMHO to be runners-calfs. A real runner would have rounded ones, because of all the muscle-build-up.

1Doubter

9/5/2011 07:01:33

Oh, and Searchformore: SHE is the one who said she was a runner and used to run Marathons with Track placing water bottles along her running route! (Yeah, right: A runner stops and bends down to pick up waterbottles all along her path...)

9/5/2011 07:02:50

I hadn't seen this comment on IM broomfield thread:

Anonymous said...
Sarah can't "insulate" from the person who shares all this with me because, among other reasons too complicated to share right now, Sarah knows this person can ruin her if they REALLY wanted to talk. It's a strange dynamic but once Sarah is just a footnote in history and ALL the skeletons are out, much more will be clear about why certain people stayed on with Sarah, and so much more.

For the naysayers here...let me be absolutely candid with you--as I said previously, I TRULY do not give a fat penguin's poop chute if you don't believe me. I am not going to beg and plead for you to believe me because I honestly do not care. Yes, I posted near the times when other stuff was going on BUT...I posted details about said "stuff" days before it came up on other sites. I believe that alone lends enough credence to what I say.

Regarding the comment "did Chuck write the press release"...that is completely asinine reasoning--you think because it was in a "press release", it must be true and accurate? May I remind you that Sarah and her staff are the ones who wrote or provided the information? They also put out a "press release" about Troopergate and its resultant "investigation"; per the press release Sarah was cleared of wrongdoing. Just because something is in a press release doesn't mean it's true.

Again, for those who doubt me--no hard feelings. Just skip right on by my posts.

I'm leaving on the last leg of my trip, so this will likely be the last time I can reply/post for a bit. I will be seeing relatives I haven't gotten to visit in years, so I am really going to focus on enjoying their company.

Have a great Sunday and holiday everyone.
7:57 AM

Laura Novak link

9/5/2011 07:08:13

LTA: The mylar is for AFTER the marathon. When you're done, it keeps you warm. They give it to at the finish line when they take the timer off your shoe and place the medal around your neck.

And Karenw729: yes, it's the soaked cotton shirt that is almost the stupidest thing about this entire ordeal. No runner wears cotton. Not to enjoy or survive a race. Certainly not to get good times.

akbright

9/5/2011 07:11:07

Is this the same woman who dropped out of the 5K Turkey Trot in Kennewick, Washington in 2009, because she wanted to avoid the crowds that were waiting for her at the end?

Ivyfree

9/5/2011 07:17:41

The reason I don't think she is a runner is because nobody ever seems to have seen her actually run.

Look, there's nothing politically Left or Right about running. It's just running. So I don't really care if she runs or not, but I do know she's a liar.

And she told that ridiculous story about Track being her prop and stay with her running- how he'd get up early and drive along her route, leaving bottles of water with little encouraging notes rubber-banded to them along her running path.

I can't see any teenage boy getting up early and driving along her planned running path (assuming he knew it) and writing little encouraging notes to rubber-band around her water bottles.

So... she's running along and it has to be a road, since Track supposedly drove along it, and how does she even know where to look for the bottles? Okay, assume he says, "I'm going to leave it at Mile 1." Where does he leave it? Is she going to stop, look around, spot it, jog over and pick it up, take the note and read it, and run on? How many times per training run does he do this? Doesn't that mess with the run itself? Wouldn't it throw you off your stride?

I mean seriously! That is SUCH an unbelievable story. It's not enough to say that Track thinks her running is cool and he tells her so; no, he has to get up early (a TEENAGE BOY? That in itself tells you how little she pays attention to the kids in her life) and write little supportive notes and fasten them to the water bottles which he then drives out to scatter in her path.

I can- just- see a teenager, when his mother's doing a run, being at an official water station to slap some water into her hand and yell, "Go, Mom!" That's about it. The rest is just bizarre.

Plus, honestly- Sarah doesn't look fit enough to run 13 miles. I'm not sure she could walk 13 miles. She always seems to have an upholstered bus or limo to pick her up.

Sarah doesn't know how to lie. She says too much, and she doesn't know how it connects with other things she has said. ("well-ordered life" with a premarital pregnancy and an elopement.)

So unless I see more credible proof than has been presented, I just plain don't believe this story. She may have registered. She may have been at the finish line. Doesn't mean she ran it.

The only time I know for sure she ran was at the Tri-Cities 5K, at Thanksgiving 2009, during the break from her book tour. And she dropped out of that one. I think she told people it was just too crowded.

This was a publicity stunt with a photoshopped picture. I'm no expert, but that picture just looks weird. Even if she was actually running on the grass, her feet would touch the ground. She'd have the same shadow others would.

LTA

9/5/2011 07:17:50

Sarah's lack of fitness has been discussed many times. She did that turkey trot thing a couple years ago and had to bow out after less than 1/2 mile. She said it was so as to not "take attention away" from the other runners but that was malarkey. She had a whole huge group waiting for her at the finish line which she knew about yet she just left them there!
Also there were several reports by mccain's campaign mgr about Sarah "running" during the campaign. Once she realized they were NOT going to let her go running without bodyguards she faked a cramp or a twisted ankle or something. And during her reality (ha) show people said she ran just long enough to get the shot they needed. It was Steve Schmidt I think who talked about the campaign non running stuff and I don't remember who said she didn't really run on SPA but I will see if I can find the article. I think it might have been in huff post.

I'm trying to think of any account I have heard of which mentions her running for any real distance with absolutely no question she did it. I may have just missed it, but I honestly can't think of one.

Brad Scharlott

9/5/2011 07:32:22

It's great to see pictures of you like these, Laura. You have such a kind face.

I once ran around one of the lakes in Madison, WI -- about 10 miles. Don't remember my time -- just did it with a friend for fun. I was a discus thrower on my track teams in high school and college.

The picture of Palin at the start is legit -- no Photoshopping.

linda

9/5/2011 07:38:38

i wish one of the people in that picture with her would come forward and tell everyone whether she was there or not there. if one of them didn't see her then she was not there. but i agree she could have registered and she could have "finished."

Jude

9/5/2011 07:43:13

November 2009, Palin tweeted that she was planning to run in the 5K Turkey Trot in Kennewick, Washington. (She was there visiting relatives.)It was well-publicized in newspapers throughout the Tri-Cities area, and some people showed up just hoping to get a glimpse of her.

She started the race, but dropped out after half an hour or so, saying she wanted to avoid publicity. Right.

creeolina

9/5/2011 07:44:24

I'm gearing up for my first half marathon next month and admit I was envious when I saw her time. (And good for you on your past successes. I must be crazy because we're the same age and I got into running two years ago.)

I was suspicious about her being all bundled up in the first picture. I checked the weather in Storm Lake and it looks like it was in the upper 40s in the morning -- not particularly brutal, especially for someone from Alaska. I live in South Texas and ran a 10K in February where the temps at the start were in the 30s (we had an ice storm two days before). I was dressed similar to how Palin was in the first picture (minus the cotton garments -- what a rookie move).
Like you, I would never wear cotton, even for a 5K.

I kept thinking about Elisabeth Hasselbeck saying she has "jumped in" a number of marathons and half marathons.

Made me wonder if Palin did the same. It *was* called the "Jump Right In and Run." Hmmmm.

I also find this whole thing dubious because she dropped out of a 5K two years ago because she didn't want to deal with the crowds at the finish line. Riiiiiight.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/social/Psychresearchrn/sarah-palin-quits-turkey_n_372818_35396920.html

Sunshine1970

9/5/2011 07:51:27

I'm looking at the runners behind Palin and many of them are also wearing cotton t-shirts...

I went to see what the weather is like in Storm Lake, IA. Seems the temp is in the low 70s for the day and high 40s - low 50s for the nights. So I'm going to guess the temp was in the 50s or so for the start of the race...but if she's coming from AK, then wouldn't she be used to temps this low (or even lower) for running? She'd know not to be so bundled up like that.

Why so bundled up at the beginning of the race? (If that's even her in the pic. I'm of the mind that may be a double there and then the fresh looking Palin at the finish line.)

V-A

9/5/2011 07:52:49

I have no idea how Palin achieved her half-marathon time or even how she was registered or whose idea it was or how they pulled it off. Just like I don't know how the Trig hoax was pulled off. I agree with anonfornow that the relevant bit is that Palin went to some trouble to make a point about her physical abilities.

It's so all for us, isn't it? Because if you saw the Tea Party crowd, that's not exactly a running enthusiast bunch by their appearance. And Mitt, Michele, and Rick are doing real running and can't be bothered.

The real bummer is that Palin will have to do it all again some place else to get a medal like Laura's!

Brian

9/5/2011 07:57:21

I'm waiting for more pictures. If she really ran the race, and finished, there should be dozens of photos with her in it. Even if they were taken by people who didn't recognize her.

I don't agree with those who say this is unimportant. If it can be proved that she faked running the race, or cheated her way to a 1:46 time, we won't need babygate to end her political career.

Tom link

9/5/2011 07:58:21

Brad, you keep saying the photo is legit and I keep shaking my head. Other self-proclaimed experts are posting that it's definitely photoshopped. Sure looks fake to me. Body parts are missing. I'm trying to recall in all my athletic years when my shoulders sweated profusely.

You see, Brad, I just want some part of this marathon business to be fake. I want Palin to be deceptive, lying and sneaky in all things she does. So when you look at the photo, her positioning, no one looking at her, the very impressive time, sweaty shoulders and so on, well that supports what I want to think. Lies as always. Lies and fabrications are the default setting of all things Palin.

This could have been avoided. A not so suspect picture could have been taken and published without hoopla. Maybe one with her in the pack. But no, we get this picture that looks like it was pasted on.

Maybe you're wrong, Brad. Because I gotta tell you, Brad, just because you say so at several different sites, repeatedly, doesn't mean I believe you.

FrostyAK

9/5/2011 08:00:52

One of the email trails that took so long to be released talked about having to find a running stroller for her photo op (with Runners World?), as she had said she went running with Trig. A LIE with a coverup.

IMO, she could have been at the race. She could have started her leg of the race. Was anyone keeping their eye on her the whole time? She could have drifted off after a couple of blocks, and been chauffeured to near the finish where she blended back into the pack for the finish line. It's been documented being done before and she never has original thinking, even with the baby hoax. Kinda like her "bus book tour" where we found out that she actually flew from city to city. And arrived at the venue in the bus. Another LIE. Why could this race not be just another typical $P LIE?

@Brad - if not photoshopped, why does the pic look SOOO weird? Like she is floating above the ground and never touching down?

Bob Johnson link

9/5/2011 08:18:39

FROM THE IMMORAL MINORITY BLOGPOST AT 9:00AM

in the original fake photo here is proof it is photoshopped--lots of it:

Yes, there is a woman in green, next to her someone with white tshirt walking, then next to her woman in white shirt and pink headband has NO LEFT foot. She has a stump coming out of her short.

Also, in the front, there is a guy in red bandanna. To his left is a man in long-sleeved white shirt with grey stripe on it; that man is missing his back leg and hamstrings of his front thigh. It's not that he is taking such a wide stride that you can't see either, that would be impossible--it is that some of his leg was chopped out, there is a wheel or something where his thigh or shorts should be, some strainge black curved line.

Also the woman next to the guy in the red bandanna, you can see her hair behind his head, she is short and you can see part of her back or arm barely, but she has no legs, that's an invisible body.

Also the woman in the red shorts and black shoes with both feet together, she would fall flat on her face if she was running like that, no way for feet to be caught in same place unless she's hopping to the finish line.

Also palin is taller than all the men, and she is very short. Plus I don't think her thights are that big. So, first don't think that is actually Palin, but someone else, but also this picture was CLEARLY photoshopped, otherwise why are peole missing body parts?

bob

9/5/2011 08:24:59

Laura--thanks for sharing your great experience. I, too, have run alot of 10ks and one happy half-marathon. While everyone's experiene may differ, i've observed people wearing heavy cotton tshirts when they shouldn't be. I've observed races that included walkers that did not separate them out so i had to go up on the sidewalk (or grass) to run completely around them [they tend to walk in a horizontal line with their buddies] and it made me really cross. i've observed people who didn't train diligently put in a better time than i did and look great doing it. I've been a volunteer at the Boston Marathon picking up all the discarded runners' clothing along the way that gets turned over to one of those charities that take clothing.

i accept that Palin ran in this race although it probably was the half-half-marathon--is that a quarter-marathon????

None of the things that Palin ostensibly did --foolishly-- means she didn't run in this quarter-marathon. i'm really interested in why she ran it--apparently it was some three hours away from her speech and it started at 730am. And then she had to get up to NH to give another speech today. That's alot of bother---did she do this as a joke--look, Sarah's running???- or did she do it becuz the blogs, including us, think she looks like crap??? I still say something's not right with the back-story on this. I also suspect that she ran it under a different name and city than her own becuz she wasn't confident how it would turn out.

Why do people think she's not much of a runner? All of the things you mention indicate to me she hasn't run many races of this distance. And then there's the infamous Runners World photo shoot--that didn't include any shots of her actually running!!!--but a cheesecake shot in what looked like pantyhose under her shorts.

The woman has no credibility. But she probably ran some of this race.

WakeUpAmerica

9/5/2011 08:27:56

Several things jump out at me. First, in the picture her head is way bigger than the person closest to her. Second, at the end of the race she was wet at the neck and on top of her shoulders (WTF?) but not under the arms. She just ran 13 eight min miles in about 65% humidity and no under-arm sweat? Third, the media whore suddenly decided to go incognito? Not likely. Fourth, no runners around her at the finish. Fifth, no personal accounts from anyone who ran near her during the race. Sixth, no pictures except the wonky one and the finish. No video. Seventh, no pictures from paparazzi of her training. Eighth, coming from an Alaska climate to Iowa's heat and humidity would frikking kill her. Something just doesn't smell right.

Class E

9/5/2011 08:28:28

Plz excuse the O/T but I just had a thought. (Oh okay, it's a pipe dream.)

People on the other thread were kicking around the idea of a class action suit.

You know who might have a case ?

A bunch of former Palin fanatics who have "left the fold" and now believe she made fraudulent statements to get them to donate huge amounts of money to SarahPAC.

If such a lawsuit claimed that the lie that broke the fanatic's back was her story of Trig's birth, could Palin then be legally compelled to give a deposition or provide proof that Trig is really hers ?

Yes, I know it'll never happen.

Thanks for letting me dream.

Oh, and Laura ? VERY cute pix of you in your running outfit !

bob

9/5/2011 08:49:36

why is everything about this person so weird? Why does a seemingly harmless thing to do like running in a race end up looking so faked? I understand our suspicions but can't they come up with a normal looking picture?

Maybe she ran the race--or part of it with a person who really can run fast--and there wasn't a good picture of her running and they faked one. I have no idea.

I just worry that obsessing over this undermines our more serious pursuits of her fabrications.

Anna Neemus

9/5/2011 08:49:54

The Palinbots yelling that we're nuts for thinking Sarah would fake running a lousy marathon ?

Palin herself is the reason so many people doubt every word that comes out of her mouth.

After the Palinbots read some of the documented evidence which proves she's a serial liar, THAT'S when we should talk about who is crazy.

bob

9/5/2011 08:53:07

Here's a thought. If commenting that she's been looking like a wreck and is probably heavily medicated caused her to run this race--what else can we get her to do?

K.M.R

9/5/2011 08:57:06

I'll join the chorus... There is no way that that picture of Sarah running on the grass is any way legit.

Laura, your pictures of you and your son are adorable.
I decided to be a runner one day, long ago. Went out and bought myself some neat looking running gear.
I thought a daily run would be nice while the kids ate breakfast (they were big enough.
On the first day I only managed to run down the street for two blocks. I practically crawled home.
Day two...I stayed home and ended up using my track suit for pj's.
Since then I've admired those who can run. It's not as easy as it looks.

I'm not a runner, obviously, so I don't know how numbers are given out for a race. I assume (not a wise thing to do) that her number 63 means she was the 63rd person to sign up. Or are numbers just randomly handed out? I'm wondering if the number 63 could be checked somewhere to see if it matched up with Sarah Heath?

eclecticsandra

9/5/2011 09:01:58

Bob, you are right. We are drawing lines around her life by commenting on stuff that bothers her. Maybe that is the best reason to continue, but I think that is akin to bullying.

Class E

9/5/2011 09:02:28

@bob

"Why does a seemingly harmless thing to do like running in a race end up looking so faked?"

Sometimes I think all the top-dollar, dirty-trickster media consultants Palin has on her speed dial have us figured out.

Tney know that if they release a slightly photoshopped-looking pic, the anti-Palinistas will go after it like a pack of hound dogs chasin' a fox -- and make about as much noise on their blogs doin' it.

One way to hide a few real clues is to create a whoooole bunch of fake ones which only lead to dead ends.

Beaglemom

9/5/2011 09:10:44

So she ran half of a half-marathon. Sort of like being a half-term governor. Something Sarah Palin has experience at.

That does not make her fit for any public office. She lacks the intellectual stamina required for serving the public. She also has far too many issues - she cannot out-distance them in the long run [no pun intended]. So I am not the least distracted by her sideshow in Iowa; at some time or another, she will have to answer a multitude of questions.

Laura Novak link

9/5/2011 09:12:05

Great point, KMR, and I don't know about the #'s and the correlation to when you sign up. I do know that something like 30,000 people ran the Chicago marathon that day. Or some amazing number. So perhaps I was in that order of signing up. Mama's brains are no longer so sharp as to remember.

The whole story about the teenage son leaving notes and water is just more horse pucky. I packed some GOO in my pocket, took a water bottle and ran for months to train. My son was obviously little, but yes, it would have been a whole lot of distracting to stop, look around, bend over, read note and coo over how great my son was. Part of training for these events is to be independent in your mind and to isolate yourself in an odd way. It's about going the distance and zoning out the pain and distractions. Or maybe I'm just jealous b/c I didn't have someone leaving me water and love notes. Sure, whatever.

As I've said a million times: is there ANYTHING, anything AT ALL about this woman that ever, EVER adds up? Anything? Cuz I'm all ears.

P.S. V-A, yes I've got my big shiny medals hanging right here next to my desk. Maybe Mrs. Palin will be jealous of me now, also too.

9/5/2011 09:12:33

Class E--I like your idea about the Class Action Suit from former Palinbots. Any legal people out there think that this could work and do we have any seriously p.o.'d former Palinbots?

padoreva

9/5/2011 09:18:49

For those of you who say the photo is real of Palin running on the grass, suspended in mid-air, let me remind you that Palin is 5'3".

If you believe this hasn't been photoshopped, then you must believe that there is a herd of tiny runners in Iowa, many less than five feet tall.

padoreva

9/5/2011 09:20:31

Also one of the "tiny runners" to Palin's left is missing a foot.

Tom link

9/5/2011 09:34:00

I feel bad for the man in the middle of the pak who's lost not only the bottom of his black running shorts but both his legs as well.

I don't doubt the phto at the finish line. The one at the start is bogus. As Laura said, nothing is normal with this family. Prevarications and outright mendacity is a core family value. The culture of grifting is center stage within this family. It's what they do. Young adults know when their parents are lying. And worse, they see that the parents profit from their lies.

Melly

9/5/2011 09:41:19

The odd lies of Sarah Palin make everything about her suspect, including the story of this race. But all the story means to me is that Palin spent yet another couple of hours devoted, honestly or dishonestly, to herself and her image, when she could have been being a mother to Trig. Am I being old fashioned? Or am I behind in the news...is it pretty much a given that Palin is not involved with Trig's care, even when she's at home? Anyway, this is a woman with THREE minor kids, one of them with extra needs, and she acts like she the freest bird in the tree.

Palin doesn't know if she wants to be a madonna or whore, an elite or valley trash, a politician or a celebrity, intellectual or ignorant, an adult or a child, a candidate or sideshow, athletic or fragile. She's a ditherer like I have never seen. How any thinking person could want her in charge of their lives is so far beyond me it hurts my brain to try to understand. I'm really sick of the b...ch. Trying to find the truth of this silly race would do me in for good.

Melly

9/5/2011 09:43:19

Oh, and Laura, great legs!

Brian

9/5/2011 09:43:38

I'm very cautious about crying Photoshop every time I see something that doesn't quite add up in a picture. I generally feel that the photos we're looking at are too small to allow for definitive conclusions. Blowing up a 72 pixels per inch image does not generally elucidate.

However, I've been looking a long time at the "Palin running" photograph, and it finally dawns on me what seems strange about it. It's not so much Palin's figure in the foreground, odd as she may appear, but more the runners in front and the walkers in the rear.

The walkers are moving relatively slowly or just getting started--some are elderly and/or a little heavy--while many of the runners a few feet in front of them seem to be at full stride. How can this be?

The runners do not appear to be a step or two out from taking a standing start. They look like they are already well into their stride, and not bunched together as if at the start of the race. How did they get in that position only a few feet in front of walkers?

I await more pictures.

Balzafiar

9/5/2011 09:53:14

@B, that post is on Page 2 of the Broomfield thread on Gryphen's blog. Each page holds a max of 200 posts, so go all the way to the bottom where you will find a link to the next 200 posts.

The post you copied above is on the previous thread here, perhaps 3/4 of the way down.

Laura Novak link

9/5/2011 10:06:11

Thanks, Melly! Oh, and thanks, Brad. I like to think of my self as a kind person.

And Melly, I agree with you. Every hour spent training on this stuff is an hour spent not engaging with a very needy child. But I always said that. I wasn't doing this when my child needed me watching over him 24/7. I did it once he was healthy, in school and thriving. She was always running away from that child, one way or the other. That's my judgmental opinion. But no one's asking me. And I'm not worth $12 million.

comeonpeople

9/5/2011 10:08:19

Hi Laura,
Thanks for this post on your marathon. I have never run one, but it is a life goal. But, I just don't enjoy running all that much. My husband has run them, and when I watched him cross the finish line of the Marine Corp Marathoin when we were dating, that was the "moment" when I knew I was going to marry this man. It is a great accomplishment.
I competed in figure skating well into my adult life and we trained by doing 10 minute all out sprints to build endurance, that's the extent of my running so far. I Absolutely agree about not wearing cotton. And real athletes sweat, alot. Even in 40 degree ice rinks we are down to sleeveless Underarmour apparel by the halfway mark of practice. Cotton just makes you wet and really cold in between the runthroughs of our program!
Congratulations on your impressive accomplishment!!

Balzafiar

9/5/2011 10:22:32

Photoshopped or not, one thing I noticed is that the gray shirt she has on in the first photo under the red has a collar. The one in the photo with the couple is just a plain tee without a collar.

Or maybe she changed into the neckless tee at the end. Then again, maybe she had on three layers of clothing.

Given that it is Sarah, who can say for sure?

Laura Novak link

9/5/2011 10:23:19

You know, for all of you who have said you tried it or wanted to do it, running long distances is not for everyone. And believe me, I was not fast nor could I do it well when I started. And I could never in a million years do it now.

But yes, Comeonpeople, the whole cotton thing is crazy. And I finally went over to IM just now to look at the photos and the links to photos. WHAT IS UP with those sweat soaked shoulders? I'm not suggesting this whole thing was fake at all based on that. I'm just saying that I've never in all my days seen sweat patterns like that! And if nothing else, you don't leave the soaked shirt on afterwards! You duck behind a building or go into a bathroom stall if you're famous and you put on an event shirt or anything else b/c you're cold!!!

And clearly I had it all wrong. Her eyes are inked in with eye makeup. Shame on me for posting here sans maquillage. My apologies to all!

1Doubter

9/5/2011 10:28:16

OK. In the first pic, with the red sweater, she is wearing something with a grey collar underneath it (like in a 'greay shirt'). At the end of the race, she is wearing a grey crew-neck t-shirt.
Where on her route (and especially WHEN!) did she have time to not only take off the red top and the sweatband under the visor, but also change her grey top to the t-shirt??? Wonderwoman alright!

1Doubter

9/5/2011 10:35:03

Could someone please post a link to the Broomfield post? On my computer, I only see 148 ansers, not the 200+ that you guys are talking about.

Floyd M. Orr link

9/5/2011 10:38:12

Link to the Nick Broomfield post (you have to copy and paste from this comment):

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2011/08/more-about-nick-broomfields-documentary.html?commentPage=2

Floyd M. Orr link

9/5/2011 10:42:02

Here is Page 1 with the first 200 comments, so now you can see them all.

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2011/08/more-about-nick-broomfields-documentary.html?commentPage=1

mxm

9/5/2011 10:43:53

Would a serious runner wear so much eye makeup? I am a swimmer, and of course wear 0 makeup when I work out. What would happen to smokey eye makeup after 13 miles?

FrostyAK

9/5/2011 10:44:38

"Sweat pattern" on tee shirt at the end of the race - I believe a bottle of water dumped over the head would leave exactly that pattern? If mussing the hair was an issue, she could either remove the wig and pour. Or if sans wig, they could have poured it down the side of her head.

I still think she may have been at the beginning of the race, scooted off to be carried to near the end, dumped the water to indicate an hour of sweaty hard work, and run back into the pack after she saw her "partner" pass. Saw a comment at IM that says her partner's name is the same as a paid PAC employee.

So much for her not reading blogs...

1Doubter

9/5/2011 10:45:07

THANKS, FLOYD! ;)

anonfornow

9/5/2011 10:50:58

For those asking why we think Sarah isn't a runner, there are several clues. First the photos of her in Hawaii in December 2009 show a woman with cottage cheese thighs and NO muscle definition. When people in the blogs commented about it, the next morning she went out running! Except you could see in the photos that she was blowing hard, and there was something really weird going on with her right leg; someone said it was a botched liposuction. Then, when she did the Runners World photos, she had to ask around in emails for someone with a running stroller, although in the article she rhapsodies about how she LOVES putting Trig in his stroller and going running, just the two of them. She will lie about anything and everything.

Personally, I doubted she was a big runner even before I had any proof, just because she talked so much about it, "sweat is my sanity," etc, etc. I figured it was just another part of her false image.

But I would like to know how she really hurt her hand during the campaign. You know she didn't fall running, and they told two different stories about it at the time. I'm thinking she got mad and punched her hand through a window or something.

mary

9/5/2011 10:55:16

@FrostyAK, that is interesting about the teammate's name matching a pack employee. Someone by the name of "Julie" sometimes comments on Palingates, IM, etc. regarding what a gosh-darned great gal Sarah is and how we don't know what we're talking about. Probably just a coincidence, but a funny one.

honestyingov

9/5/2011 11:01:58

Laura, the discussion of whether she ran or not was discussed on Politicalgates as well in the comments. I would agree with P & K that is sort of a ' distraction ' from the real story and whether or not she runs.

It is sort of a cute ploy or play on words set up by somebody because her cult has all been saying for months " Run, Sarah Run " Fox used in their story. Technically NOW... she 'RAN' in Iowa. It amuses the people in her Cult who send her money and pumps them up ( they are VERY easily amused ) so they keep their checkbooks open. All of their stories will say she is ' running ' now... and of course encourages them to say "Keep on Running"... they love to tell their stories.
The Game they play is 'Fantasy Wordplay'... Lets make up some stories. ( Facts be damned )

She probably WAS in the race. Her time is rather irrelevant though as far as how good she did, isn't it? SHE ran HALF of a Half-marathon. So,She did 6 miles.And the OTHER half of her partner team is responsible for that time as well, Right?

The photo of her running in the grass 'off' the course does make you wonder. Everybody else is running on the designated course, the street. You would be able to attest to this better than anyone else.Me, I'm just using common sense. Runners want to get into their stride and get a rhythm and keep it, match your breathing to it also. Keep the same pace and stride length.She is about to have to maybe hold up or change that stride or else she could trip over that curb coming up. Trip on that curb and you could REALLY hurt yourself. This is not off-road racing here. What (seasoned runner)idiot would ever be trying to run off or outside the designated course.... and hurt themselves?

Again, this was staged for the " Fantasy Wordplay" Game it seems.

FrostyAK

9/5/2011 11:06:56

Pic. No comment other than look closely.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hannahlcampbell/6112853629/sizes/l/in/set-72157627468163637/

kelgal

9/5/2011 11:10:33

Is anyone else surprised to see that Shealah Craighead currently shows up in a google search as SP's "personal" photographer?

I know Sarah is allegedly paying for everything with PAC $$$ but this is Laura Bush's former official photographer, which makes me think she does not come cheap. Especially since she is D.C. - based which means travel expenses whenever she is working for Sarah….book tour, Iowa fair, sneaky 1/2 marathon, Alaska, etc.

I would expect that SP, with her tendency to keep those grifting dollars in the family would have equipped Willow, perhaps, with a high-end, fool-proof digital camera so that the immediate family could control the pics that are being released publicly.

That scenario would surely be far cheaper and less risky than hiring a professional photographer to follow her when it appears that she dithers about whether or not to show up to events, and then seems to decide at the 11th hour. Those last minute flights are usually pretty spendy. So, she pays for herself, family (whichever member/s have drawn the short straw), handlers aka as monkey wranglers, AND a personal photographer…..

As for Track the teenager's devotion to his Mom's marathon training, kids will do some pretty abnormal shit to cover for a crazy parent. Add in the additional pressures of a small town, prominent family, first-born maybe trying to protect younger siblings, rumors of a paternity cover-up, long distance runs maybe having a palliative effect on the loon, etc and this seems plausible to me.

Plus, when the "sane" parent is modeling this type of enabling behavior to keep the peace as well as preserve the family's status, all bets are off for comparisons to "normal" familial relationships.

Sorry this was so long-winded. I spend waaaay too much time on this ridiculous woman, but family dynamics fascinate me, and this particular family puts the "fun" back in dysfunction for me.

FrostyAK

9/5/2011 11:12:02

Also too:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hannahlcampbell/6112853629/in/set-72157627468163637

1Doubter

9/5/2011 11:21:58

Frosty: ???
What *I* see is an empty water bottle, and a t-shirt that seems to have been the recipient of the contents of said water bottle. Also, too, eye-make-up to the wazoo, and totally dry hair (and hair line).

1Doubter

9/5/2011 11:27:01

Oh. One more thing: I thought she is a bit 'wonkey-eyed'?

Olivia

9/5/2011 11:36:33

Interesting points at Ozmud. http://ozmud.wordpress.com/2011/09/06/hey-sarah-about-that-marathon-this-is-the-stuff-that-makes-us-go-huh/

Conscious at last

9/5/2011 11:38:34

@ FrostyAK --
Hey, is that our girl or NOT?

OzMud link

9/5/2011 11:42:14

WOW! Just finished posting about this on my blog, poured coffee, came over here to find your post and all these commenters - thinking the same way i did! I can't tell you what a comfort that is because I really thought I was going to catch a lot of flack for daring to point out some 'irregular' bits of her photo evidence.

May I please add this to your discussion:

1. There's no sweat under her arms. Only on her shoulders and chest.

2. Her timing gear is not on at the start of the race, only as she crosses the finish line.

3. There's a white stain on her pants that mysteriously shifts from one leg to the other during the race.

Great shots Laura - and congrats on all your medals :)

emrysa

9/5/2011 11:57:33

ozmud, those white marks on the pants are on both legs. see the runner's world pics - she is wearing the same pants.

as someone else noted re: the flickr pic with the 3 women: I also thought it was peculiar that the quitter had tons of sweat on her shoulders yet her bangs were completely dry. she doesn't have the headband on at the finish line, so obviously she removed it sooner - which means her bangs should have been stuck to her face.

OzMud link

9/5/2011 11:59:30

Ok one point for Sarah - I'm wrong about the timing cable - it's a crack in the sidewalk! talk about optical illusions!

Even blown up 50% my eyes saw the line going across her leg instead of behind it - thanks for the head's up on that problem child!

kelgal

9/5/2011 12:00:51

Something I forgot to mention, unless there is a photo other than the one of SP looking at her watch to check her time after the 1/2 marathon that she "ran? hmmm?" any underarm sweat would not be visible as her upper arms are laying against her torso, obscuring her sides down to her waist.

I'm pretty weary of the photo analysis of the Iowa run since Brad has unequivocally written that he doesn't see any signs of photoshopping in the marathon pics.

Doesn't mean she didn't cheat to come in second though.

Mrs Gunka

9/5/2011 12:08:42

What I would love to see is Sarah coming out of the shower with her stringy, wet hair, no make up, fried egg boobs, wrinkly abs and butt, cottage cheese thighs and no glasses and hear the bots say it is photoshopped! Suppose she still has her stretch marks she wanted us to see earlier? I would also like to hear her play her flute solo during her next speech. :-) I thought she was taking that medicine, she gets delivered to her sister's house, for joint pains. I doubt it is for running too much but because of her bad eating habits. Has the woman ever been seen drinking a glass of milk or eating a piece of fruit?

SLQ

9/5/2011 12:18:42

Searchformore: You asked, "Her not running comes from a witness account in one of the books or something?"

Sorry if someone else already mentioned this, but one of the reasons is that in one of her released e-mails, she asked her staff to find a baby jogger for a photo shoot. If she jogs all the time (and takes her baby), wouldn't she have one? The runners (and walkers) I know all have baby joggers.

FrostyAK

9/5/2011 12:20:02

@Conscious at last - that was my take on that group pic as well. IMO, it is a fairly decent doppelganger, but not her.

SLQ

9/5/2011 12:24:26

"There's a white stain on her pants that mysteriously shifts from one leg to the other during the race."

I don't think that's a stain. I think it's part of the pants, and it's on both legs.

Same pants as here:

http://evil-klown.blogspot.com/2011/08/will-she-or-wont-she-klown-makes-call.html

and here:

http://www.glamourvanity.com/celebrities/running-for-office-literally/

(which I think is a little odd in itself, considering these shots were taken in the summer of 09 -- I have 3 pairs of black yoga pants I wear for walking, which I do a lot -- none of the 3 pairs is from 2 years ago).

SLQ

9/5/2011 12:26:59

OZMud: You said, "Even blown up 50% my eyes saw the line going across her leg instead of behind it - thanks for the head's up on that problem child!"

I think part of the reason many people saw it that way is that her leg is alarmingly skinny. It looks more normally sized if you add the "white stripe" that is really an optical illusion from the pavement/crack.

9/5/2011 12:34:23

@Frosty--that does not look like SP in those photos. Therefore, SP did not run in this race, it is a double.

Also, people should check out the post at OZmud. She makes good points.

curiouser

9/5/2011 12:46:54

Laura - It's so nice to see your beautiful face, without sunglasses and hat! Thanks for sharing your running experience. You and your adorable son look so proud of your achievement. I'm exceptional at walking but can't run worth beans and I'm impressed by anyone who attempts running long distances. I did walk one 5K that was part of a 1/2 marathon event. The Palin photo in question looks to me to be close to the start of the race. She may have arrived late and was making her way around the 5K group. It's impossible to tell from the still photo but those who are running could be walk/running the 5K.

Frosty AK - Both photos looked the same to me but I did notice a few things.
--sunglasses are red; sunglasses at race start don't look red - suspicious but Todd was at the finish and may have provided another pair
--she's holding her white sweatband
--there's underarm sweat visible
--eyeliner (Laura mentioned this earlier) She may have permanent liner. She had permanent lip liner during the 2008 campaign but had that removed.
***It looks like she has a horrible varicose vein or some other lump in her neck. I hope it's a photo effect and not as dangerous as it looks. As much as I detest most everything about her, I don't wish her harm.

Brad - Thanks for your expert opinion on the photo. I'm with you. Even if she did run all 13.1 miles, it doesn't rule out the possibility she has an eating disorder or other physical issues and it certainly doesn't rule out her personality and cognitive problems.

myrna nichols

9/5/2011 12:46:57

Oh you doubters. This is the same woman who filmed a reality TV show last year. Although she claimed to have gone moose hunting with her father, they needed an expert guide and five shots to bring down that poor animal. We never did see a shot of Sarah shooting and the caribou falling in the same frame. It was: Sarah shoots, next frame, down goes the caribou, next frame Sarah still doesn't understand that someone shot the animal for her.

Sarah has made other claims that were meant to define her personality (but not her qualifications for office). She said that she was a hockey mom, but by the time she said it at the 2008, Track had been in the Army for a year.

I do believe that Sarah ran in that race. I just don't believe that started with everyone else and finished with everyone else. It was called "The Jump In Half Marathon," and I think that Sarah jumped in for her photo opportunity. It might have been in an empty or not very photogenic spot, so they took Runner-Sarah and shopped her into a more race-like setting. The picture looks and feels fake. But, almost everything about Sarah also seems contrived.

Here is this famous person who had just come to town for two days, and no one in the race paid any attention to her. There is not one photo from the sidelines from any of her fans. No one recognized the woman wearing the bright red shirt when everyone else wore white. She wore makeup. When sweat pours down from the hairline and forehead, it ruins the eye make up, yet Sarah was ready for her photos at the end of the race. She doesn't sweat under her arms. What antiperspirant does she use?

This is supposed to be a symbol of Sarah RUNNING. She doesn't need to tease everyone for another month to make an official announcement. If we need to know what a good job Sarah will do organizing a campaign, we only have to look at the days before the Iowa event, when Sarah canceled because Christine O'Donnell was also invited. Then Christine was out and Sarah was in. In, out, in out, that kind of immature theatrics is what a Palin Campaign will look like. She didn't secure the necessary permits for her appearance in New Hampshire. There are questions as to whether she really visited the World War I Memorial Museum or just posed for a quick photo op outside.

Sarah is a figment and a creation of her own imagination. She is all image and no substance. She is heavily made up and ready for her closeup. She is manufactured and fake. The race is only the latest example of Sarah's Smoke and Mirrors. Pay no attention, there's nothing behind the curtain.

Tom link

9/5/2011 12:47:46

@kelgal,

Respectfully, kel, just because Brad insists doesn't mean he's right.

There's no watch in the first/start photo because she's missing her left arm. My mouse isn't working right. It keeps double clicking and I can't copy/paste the flickr links. I'm losing it.

Darklady link

9/5/2011 12:59:53

I read that Palin "ran around" the main group of runners so that she could get ahead of them... (cuz, you know, they're all so slow and she's so speedy fast).

Could that first, seriously weird looking, image be from this alleged event?

It's interesting that she's much sweatier in the photo with the three women than she is with the man and woman, who posted it on their own blog. I wonder which was supposed to have been taken first.

9/5/2011 13:00:28

Myrna Nichols - I heart you.

ann_s

9/5/2011 13:04:47

It really is not SP in those photos. Just not her. So funny.

Melly

9/5/2011 13:12:32

Frosty, stop, you're freaking me out. Is that Palin? Not even any French tips. Maybe it's just that we're not used to seeing Palin w/out glasses.

Melly

9/5/2011 13:19:48

I believe the woman in the flickr photos has...an attached earlobe. You know, the kind that doesn't curve upward at the base. Ms. Palin does not have this characteristic.

NSG

9/5/2011 13:30:59

OMG, @Melly, you're right!!!

This is just TOO far out.

I checked one of her official pics -- right on the banner at the SarahPAC.com site -- and THAT left lobe is definitely detached. Flickr-Sarah's left lobe truly appears attached. And as we all learned in middle school science, that's an inherited trait. :)

There aren't that many pics of her looking straight into the camera, so that's why it's hard to see it. It's likely SP deliberately turns her head for a more flattering shot. But IF there is a double, she may not have that down. Wow.

(Just got back from 4 days in the woods, off the grid. Glad for a break from the insanity, but enjoying catching up with everyone!)

Venefica

9/5/2011 13:58:24

Holy crap. The photo at http://www.flickr.com/photos/hannahlcampbell/6112853629/sizes/o/in/set-72157627468163637/ (original size) is incredible.

Certainly Palin participated in the event. Certainly multiple photos were taken. Certainly she did some running. But a speedy 13+ miles?

Perfect makeup, penciled brows, eyeliner, eye shadow, mascara, lip gloss...and a sweat-soaked T-shirt. Simply not plausible.

Yet the MSM (not to mention Joe McG. and Phil G.) swallowed this latest deception, hook, line, and sinker. The Grifter wins -- or at least places! -- once again.

search4more

9/5/2011 14:23:23

Thanks for those people that posted the links to the flickr photos. Presumably a load more of those will turn up in the coming days. FYI they have EXIF info in them. So for those very concerned about sweat patterns / post race cooling water, you can study the times on the pictures and see if the water will have dried in that amount of time. :-)

I thought this was all an interesting story earlier in the day but now I think there's to much attention to minor details that probably aren't very relevant.

"run Sarah run". She is stupid and shallow on policy, but actually quite smart on what I call game politics. She is good at playing the media.

I like the tactics versus strategy discussion about Obama that Andrew Sullivan talks about on his blog quite a lot. I would say that the run was a little fun and clever tactic to garner some media coverage, to make her seem like a normal person and to make a play on words. A little inside joke. Kind of a fun thing. I don't know if she actually knows what she is doing in the long run though.

If it is a little play on words, then it's not really a joke on the media, but more a joke on her supporters. After all they are the ones chanting "run Sarah run". I suppose they won't see it like that, but then again some might. There is a point where I assume some of them just won't be able to take the tease any more. If you really want something and then you get it, the wait was good. If you don't get the thing you want the wait was torture. It was waisted time.

search4more

9/5/2011 14:39:41

ann_s , Melly, NSG, Venefica,

I have a hard time believing you really believe that. four people in a row posting that they don't think a picture of Palin is really her. Come on now. That's just a bit weird.

Just in case your actually being serous, which I kind of doubt actually, just look at this photo again.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/hannahlcampbell/6112853629/sizes/l/in/set-72157627468163637/

see the girl on the left in pink. using the rules of your photographic analysis she has one ear bigger than the other and each connects to her head in a different way.

Sorry that was a bit sarcastic. Don't beat me up. ...just saying though. :-)

V ictoria link

9/5/2011 14:54:48

Wow. The face struck me as different but I was wondering if it was a Clark Kent disguise (and I know I look very different after a heavy workout). But the earlobes are different. If you increase the size of the picture, you can see it more clearly.

Who are the other women? And who is the SP double with the attached earlobes? Can we get them to talk? Or at least some non-SPbots are out there who recognize some of the women. After all, there are a lot of people who don't like her.

And if this is a hoax, why on earth would they allow this photo to be uploaded?

At first I wanted to allow the possibility of running and faked photos. Not that I really believe that she ran the entire race, but that it's possible that she simply wanted better photos for the internet. So those could have been staged.

Tesha

9/5/2011 14:59:19

NSG
Detached earlobes can become attached after a facelift.

kelgal

9/5/2011 15:05:35

@Tom

Of course, just because Brad says that he sees no signs of photoshopping doesn't mean that these pics have, without a doubt, not been monkeyed with.

I am aware that others here and on IM have claimed to be experts on photo analysis and have stated that the Iowa marathon photos have been tampered with to benefit SP's narrative as a superior athlete. Even though, no one has claimed that she has accomplished anything notable physically since high school!

I am putting my trust in Brad's opinion because his journalistic experience in regard to photography is verifiable through his academic credentials. Other, differing opinions, may be just as legitimate but as I have no way of researching their backgrounds, I am relying on Brad as the resident expert.

We can agree to disagree.

BluedogAK

9/5/2011 15:28:51

As much as I believe that Palin is a pathological liar and a fake through and through, it does seem implausible that her stunt double would pose for close-ups, and for so many of them.

Unless...you don't think...could she be pulling a double-fake-Jedi mind trick by enlisting an impersonator who's just as foolish as she is....?

Naah. Nobody is THAT stupid.

V ictoria link

9/5/2011 15:30:47

@Tesha - OK, detached earlobes can become attached during a facelift. Are you saying that she had a facelift Saturday night? Because there are pictures from Saturday's speech where one can see the detached earlobes.

curiouser

9/5/2011 15:42:39

Okay gals/guys. The full earlobe isn't visible in the photo and it's impossible to determine whether the lobe is attached or freely hanging. The shape of the ear is visible and it's Sarah's ear...and her nose, mouth, eyebrows, teeth...

Tesha

9/5/2011 15:43:12

You're right. I see she had detached earlobes on Saturday.

Doubts everything Palin

9/5/2011 15:48:51

Is Palin wearing depends in this pic? http://www.flickr.com/photos/hannahlcampbell/6113399472/in/set-72157627468163637/

Rationalist

9/5/2011 15:52:03

You know, this is just crazy. The earlobe, the water on the shoulders, the weird possibly photoshopped picture...

(Did you see the guy behind the guy with the headband? He seems to have bike tires where his legs should be.)

I don't *think* Palin is savyy enough to put out a badly photoshopped picture just to get us chasing after it in order to "prove" our observations about all the pregnancy pictures are crazy. But someone in her camp might be.

My opinion is that it's in our interests to say "point: Palin" and move on. There's something wacky about the circumstances of the marathon, but we have FAR bigger fish to fry.

Boycott this topic, that's what I say. Let's ignore her.

Weyda Minnett

9/5/2011 15:53:20

I keep seeing comments which claim Palin's running partner (Julie Marks) is somehow involved with SarahPAC but no one has provided a link to where that comes from.

I've searched the most recent SarahPAC financial disclosure form at the FEC (covering January to June of this year) and there's no Julie Marks.

I've also Googled "Julie Marks"+Palin and found nothing.

Has anybody seen any proof, or is this another "Well, I heard that ..." rumor ?

Re: the marathon ...

I think the real story is:

Yes, Sarah was there and yes, she ran -- at least enough to get pix for a pre-planned "Sarah Runs in Iowa" story.

I think her media people came up with that idea a couple weeks ago (when she was registered for the marathon) as a way of glossing over the fact that she STILL hasn't announced her intentions. (And didn't she claim a few weeks back that she would make a major announcement on 9/3 ?)

What better way to distract than with a light-hearted "run" pun story that also reminds everybody that she can toss off a marathon ... and then go make a speech ...

She can beat Obama ...
Yeah, the White House is in her reach !

Cause she's a WOOOOO-man ... ! ....

(Sorry.)

Unfortunately, her energy was weird all weekend and (no sexism intended here) she looked very haggard and rundown -- which is, I believe, one reason there are so few pix and no video anywhere of the marathon -- people simply DID NOT recognize her until after. Since they'd gotten the pic, I imagine she and Toad got outta there ASAP so she could rest up.

From Des Moines KCCI, Channel 8 site:

"Organizers said Palin was gracious and had a good time. They noted that hotel staff the night before didn't even realize who she was."

http://www.kcci.com/news/29079600/detail.html#ixzz1X91G4hSl

I found a slideshow of last year's "Jump Right In and Run" event which appears to have been held in the same venue and may offer an answer to why Sarah was alone at the finish line: the marathon was held in the small town of Storm Lake, Iowa (population 10,600) and simply wasn't heavily attended. Due to her tired appearance (plus big sunglasses and visor at the start), lack of energy, and the fact that the runners had no reason to imagine Sarah Palin would be there, nobody recognized her. Maybe there will be more images that show her when the "Jump Right In and Run" site posts their pix.

slide show of 2010 "Jump Right In and Run" marathon =
http://blip.tv/storm-lake-running-club/jump-right-in-and-run-2010-4136568

If the running shot was, in fact, photoshopped (looks like it to me), it may only have been touch-up to enhance her -- hence the red shirt, brighter lighting -- in order to sell the earlier-mentioned "run" pun story.

But I really don't think the photoshopping question is terribly important.

The REAL story-within-a-story here is that something was definitely "up" --
whoever that was tottering around Iowa this past weekend, it certainly wasn't the Sarah Palin we've all come to know and loathe.

notafaux

9/5/2011 16:04:22

Sarah Palin's antics since her debut bus-tour appearance at the Rolling Thunder rally, and especially her half-marathon run in Iowa, bring to mind long-ago memories of the arrival of "the gypsies" (with sincere apologies to modern-day Roma) in my Ohio hometown.

I vividly recall that during summers in the 1950s, the gypsies would roll into town, with members of extended families crammed into dilapidated Cadillacs, and set up camp at a vacant lot. Then they'd fan out into the community, offering various "services." Town fathers always issued alarums, but to no avail. The gypsies still came.

A favorite venue for the gypsies was the county fair, where they'd tell fortunes and operate sundry booths (my mother would always warn me, "Stay away from the gypsies! They're swindlers!"). Among other scams was black-topping driveways. My uncle and aunt were hood-winked into that one: They proudly displayed the driveway do-over they got "real cheap," only to watch it wash away in the first heavy rainfall. Eventually the gypsies were run out by a town ordinance . Curiously, though, to this day I see warnings (I still live in the region) about cut-rate driveway block-topping and, now, roofing scams. The gypsies?

So I'm thinking that Sarah Palin--with her bus-ridin', rovin', mavercky ways--is just the current political equivalent of what we used to call "the gypsies." She needs to be run out of town.

guest

9/5/2011 16:28:05

Detroit Free Press

<b>Tea partiers in N.H. want a simple answer from Palin: Are you running or not?</b>

Palin's New Hampshire appearance came amid rising frustration among Granite State Republicans and tea party activists over her hazy intentions.

A New Hampshire tea party leader couldn't hold back his frustration Sunday night at another rally hosted by the Tea Party Express.

"Once again it is time to determine -- are you here to sell books or are you here to run for president of the United States?" asked Corey Lewandowski, state director for Americans for Prosperity, a tea party ally.

"The people of New Hampshire deserve to know, are you serious? And if you are serious, then welcome to the race. And if you're not serious, get out of the way because we're going to elect a new president."

renee99503

9/5/2011 16:30:29

The red top appears to have a grey collar and zips up the front. I would imagine the grey T-shirt was underneath. I do think she ran the race, although I have a hard time believing her time. Its within the realm of possibility, though.

Ginger

9/5/2011 17:52:28

Did the Palins punk everybody! They love to do "stuff" like this. Then, later on, they read the blogs and laugh their heads off.

Tee hee...

guest

9/5/2011 18:55:27

Sarah, New Hampshire, California radio station WIBW report:

"You've already withstood the wrath and the disdain and the lies from the media and the permanent political class looking down on us. Mocking us. Making things up about us, telling us to 'go to hell,' you've already withstood that. We're still standing, right?"

Sheffield

9/5/2011 20:22:45

On one continuum, this is small potatoes. On another, after all this time, it'd be way wonderful to PROVE she's lying and have the photo evidence that makes it for sure positive. I get the focus on the marathon.

At the same time, we can look for the real issue(s) for which this may be a deliberate distraction... as Obama says, his administration can do two things at once.

ginny11

9/5/2011 21:00:12

I had an interesting discussion/debate about SP this weekend with my sis, who pays attention to politics but is not a blog reader. She basically, (and in a VERY agitated manner) said EXACTLY what Joe M. said in his "My book, other books, blogs/blog commenter don't matter to SP and won't make any real difference in our problems" post. She also said, like Joe, that the vast majority out there may take a slight interest in revelations in Joe's book, but it won't be any bit "awakening" moment about the corruption of the Republican Party or politics in general, as many of us are thinking/hoping it will. She says, these people need to be "spoon fed" everything. And, again like Joe, she said if we want to see people wake up, we need to take real ACTION.
While I disagree with both my sis and Joe that the blogs (and his coming book) have not made any difference, I think they are both right about the large number of "low information voters" out there: they just don't pay attention until something hits them between the eyes.
So, reading all this hubaloo about the dinky little half marathon that the half term quitter governor started/finished but likely did not "completely" run, I am struck at what a distraction it is. Body doubles? Faked photos? Really? And what are we gaining or accomplishing by expending all of this energy on the scrutiny of this non-event, I wonder? Could our energies be better spent elsewhere, maybe raising awareness somehow in the real world, with real people who will never read any of these blogs?

9/5/2011 21:05:59

"I am aware that others here and on IM have claimed to be experts on photo analysis"

People on the internet claim many, many things. Dont be so gullible. Sometimes you just gotta use your brain.

NSG

9/5/2011 21:07:06

@Rationalist, yes, this is "just crazy." But so is the notion that an American governor could fake a pregnancy.

I agree with Sheffield. The marathon confusion is relatively small potatoes, but I think many agree that something doesn't add up (Wild Ride, anyone?), and there is the potential this time to figure it out, to "prove" it and discredit her enough to open up the whole Pandora's box of lies, grifting and manipulation of media & voters. The photo evidence is just becoming available, and there's no McCain campaign to scrub the record.

As I said myself, this IS too far out. But in her official pics she DOES have detached earlobes. Others' observations about the marathon pics have raised some more questions, and I think it warrants keeping an eye on it.

And if this gives her something to giggle about, who cares? It also reminds her that any false step will likely be caught, so she's more hemmed in than ever in her ability to further manipulate the MSM, which in turn further limits her ability to grift or actually succeed politically. Which effectively removes whatever power & influence she has.

And that's the whole point, right?

Kinkirk says

9/5/2011 21:17:36

O M G. USE YOUR BRAINS PEOPLE. Do you REALLY think Sarah spends time finding a woman who happens to look like her twin to fake a race photo op????? No matter the race, there are lots of people around. Sigh, nevermind. I'm wasting my breath.

This is the same as saying there are multiple Trigs floating around AK, DESPITE the vast numbers of visitors to the Palins home, the vast number of Palin friends and sheer observation that refutes this. (I'm speaking of present times, not in the spring of 08, but I have a point even back then as well. Too many people see them. Dont you think thered be rumors FLYING around AK if there were babyswappage? Instead, many people still believe Trig is hers.)

All this is as crazy as them using Bristol or WIllow standins. It simply doesn't happen. There are better things to cover in the Palin saga than over analyzing photos and making yourself look stupid.

Sorry for the rant, but I have low tolerance for ridiculousness. And I hate wasting time. There are important things to discuss and many outlets on which to discuss them. YET you people feel it's necessary to discuss a person's momentary look, sweat, and an anon comment to death.

Double sigh.

KMiller

9/5/2011 22:40:06

Palin typically pulls stunts like this when she is trying to distract attention away from another issue.

Look more carefully.

Lidia17

9/5/2011 22:43:29

@anonfornow, Anon238 doesn’t have to be real in order for Sarah to THINK she could be real. Or even to think that WE think she’s real. That’s what’s sort of delicious about it.

Regarding the race, I was most intrigued about the possible Scientology connection:
http://training.fitness.com/open-talk/did-katie-holmes-really-do-ny-marathon-29066.html
Rumor Katie Holmes faked a marathon, with similar questions about her appearance.

Wouldn’t necessarily be a connection except for the Greta/John Coale link to Palin. One commenter said that Coale wouldn’t bother with Palin unless it benefitted Scientology in some way.

--------
In addition to all the other suspicious details about this race, just think back to how Sarah portrayed herself as a “runner” in “Runner’s World”: she wore pantyhose under her track shorts! She just doesn’t see how she comes across well enough to even fake things convincingly. [Sadly, the poverty of her disguises is “good enough” for the majority of observers, even someone who has been keeping tabs on her for a long time, like Phil Munger.]
--------

@akbright reminds us of her feigning participation in the Turkey Trot. Along those same lines, she made a big show of putting on her sneakers for an Autism walk, but left in an SUV after a few hundred yards! So why the emphasis on finishing NOW? Because they need to show her as being capable of finishing SOMEthing (it would be a first)!

@Ivyfree, that is a great story about Track and you relate it very well with all due skepticism!

@Brad, I tend to agree that the photos are not Photoshopped but that, just like with the Gusty photos, there is still a deception behind them and what they are meant to convey.

I am certain that she was there, but it’s quite obvious that the “finish line” photo with her insouciantly “checking her watch” is completely fraudulent. A real photo of a real fake.

@Tom, there are at least 5 or 6 photos of a water-dampened Palin posing with people after the race: they aren’t fake photos. She was there. Everyone is too quick to rush to Photoshop as an easy explanation, when it is in fact the most difficult to pull off. Much easier to waltz into a small-town race and take a few pics that imply you ran the whole course. Especially when the small town just happens to be that of the founder of Iowans4Palin. Mr. Adams is also a C4P’er.

@FrostyAK, good reminder about the fake bus tours. There is nothing about Mrs. Palin that is NOT falsified. THAT is the main reason that I disbelieve she ran this race for real, actually.

About the photo: when someone is running there is a point in each stride when both feet are off the ground; this happened to capture that moment.

@anonfornow, exactly: I’m not a runner or an athlete, but ”thrashing your guts” sounds to me like an unlikely description of dedicated running. In that same Hiking in Juneau video, after saying it was “so gorgeous here” she DODGED the host’s question about whether she had ever hiked up in the trails around the Mendenhall glacier (a huge tourist attraction, especially for outdoorspeople)… she just said “Mendenhall DOES have a trail system… I USUALLY run around here because I like running the hills. It kills me, that’s why I like it.” but then she said that “the hard-core runners around here find those trail systems and actually run up in the, up in the mountains”. So Palin obviously does not consider herself a hard-core runner. Funny for someone who runs half-marathons with that kind of time.

I get the distinct sensation from the exchange with Slone that Sarah had never even visited Mendenhall. Otherwise she would have talked more about it; it’s supposed to be an amazing place.
Starts at about 1:45 here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZIcb8MGYDn8

@mary, I believe “Julie” is the same troll as “Brooklyn” and I think she actually connects from that locale, although she goes by many different names. It’s the same person as “Dakotan4Life” on the previous thread—all about how happy the family is and how we “can’t know” unless we are the actual person, etc. She pretends to know the family. She’s delusional, and a very prolific commenter.

@myrna nichols “Sarah is a figment and a creation of her own imagination.” Exactly!

@guest, re. speech in NH… She’s talking about herself! LOL.

Lidia17

9/5/2011 22:46:10

Oh, BTW, congrats on the marathons! (I wish I could be that fit, ever…)

You have many real accomplishments that Sarah could never approach, poor thing.

Beaglemom

9/5/2011 23:20:53

Keep in mind that it was half of a half-marathon. Her partner, Julie whatever-her-last-name-is, ran the other half. Still a feat for a woman of Sarah Palin's age and abilities.

But it was all a kind of joke: "see, Sarah's running!" And a big distraction from her bizarre behavior earlier in the weekend and from the crazy speech the night before.

Only corporate America should be happy about the big proposal in her speech - eliminating corporate taxes and paying for the loss of income by closing loopholes - now also being spouted by Michele (one l) Bachmann. This was all for the big corporations that have been freed by the Supreme Court to buy elections big time. Now that the idea is being bandied about by more than one candidate, the not-so-bright "palinbots" and "tea bagger" crowd can latch onto it and Fox News will promote it as the ultimate solution. Who really cares about half of a half-marathon!

gigi

9/5/2011 23:46:42

Blue shoes in beginning, red shoes at finish?

Lidia17

9/6/2011 00:31:17

@gigi, the red-striped shoes are the same. You just see mostly stripes in the later photo because of the angle of her feet.

jeff

9/6/2011 00:32:00

Omigod, this is UNBELIEVABLE!

Courtesy of FOX News:
Following Sarah Palin's rousing speech yesterday in front of 125,000 adoring fans in New Hampshire, she slipped the paparazzi tailing her and made her way to a waiting private jet, courtesy of Donald Trump.

Once she boarded Trump's jet, Ms. Palin changed into a black, formal gown, and upon arrival in NYC, she met a waiting limo, which whisked her stealthily down to Avery Fisher Hall.

Ms. Palin entered the building surreptitiously through the performers' entrance in back, again successfully avoiding the hordes of rabid reporters and photographers who had been tipped off by a tweet from Greta Van Susteren.

The house lights had already been turned down in anticipation of the evening's performance by the NY Philharmonic Symphony. There was a special air of excitement and curiosity in the audience, as patrons had been told only moments earlier that there would be a special guest artist performing a solo during the concert.

Only seconds later, those outside the building who were unlucky in their efforts to secure tickets to the special performance were said to have panicked and run for cover, thinking another earthquake had hit the East Coast, as Sarah made her way, with a smile on her face, a song in her heart, and her flute in hand, across the stage to thunderous applause from her legions of fans.

Following an unprecedented 20-minute standing ovation, Sarah managed to quieten the crowd only long enough to play a spirited rendition of "Mary Had a Little Lamb" in E-Minor. Following her performance, an unnamed Palin aide told CNN that Sarah had been offered a reality show on MTV where she will showcase both her musical and parenting skills.

After her performance, Ms. Palin, outfitted in her favorite athletic attire, including her skinny raven cotton t-shirt, was reported to have been chased down Broadway Avenue by the paparazzi as they shouted in unison, "HEY SARAH, ARE YOU RUNNING?"

sarahs disgrace

9/6/2011 00:33:22

Two words: Rozie Ruiz

Remember this? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosie_Ruiz

V-A

9/6/2011 01:09:45

So Palin lied. What's new? Clearly, she lied about something in this fakey deal, but so what?

Seems to me the only thing that matters is her response to blog-world. Her need to prove she's hale and hearty. The Tea Party folks could not care less if she runs marathons or not. As for seeing in this a pun or metaphor or playful poke-- God, that's giving this woman a lot of credit for higher level thinking.

IMO, she's a response-react creature. That's all. -- I'll show them! --

(Although, the Scientology link is intriguing, and I have wondered if Bristol's become involved-- since Scientology is almost de rigueur for Hollywood wannabes.)

(And I do love G's very satiric approach to it all. Now that's some higher level thinking.)

Tom link

9/6/2011 01:29:34

@Lidia17

The only photo I said was fake was the first/original one at the race start. Which brings me to the half half marathon business. How does one manage to be begin and end the race.

I've seen the Hannah photoa and of course they're real. The first, no sir.

I hope she didn't run the whole race and yet accepted a finish time and allowed the results to be published. That would establish for doubters a pattern. The original photo and the sneaking in and out are what made the whole thing suspect. Otherwise there wouldn't be such scrutiny by the likes of us.

It's the FINISH photo that's phoniest

9/6/2011 01:35:20

If this was real, wouldn't there be more people around? Wouldn't the clothing be damper?

Joie Vouet

9/6/2011 01:59:50

Wasn't that (1st picture) the Emeryville marathon?

lilly lily

9/6/2011 02:02:47

The reasonable assumption would be she did what she said she did.

Except.. this is Sarah Palin. She is all hogwash.

That famous shot of her trading her red strappy shoes for the running shoes. Well she ran a tiny bit, then got into an SUV.. never completed the run. A phot op.

The Turkey Trot? on thanksgiving. Again she didn't want to inconveniance the other runner, ran a little ways. A photo op.

Everything she does is a photo op.

So people doubt her. Good reasons for the doubt.

Doubles, the Palins do doubles all the time. Though this looked like Palin. But three layers, one grey with a collar to which the number is attatched, then a collarless t with the number attatched? The yoga pants and running shoes look the same to me.

But something is off. Something is always off. I don't care.

I do care that it is taking energy away from her primary hoax.

Joe? I've given him the heave ho.

Ivyfree

9/6/2011 02:04:16

"...I hate wasting time. There are important things to discuss and many outlets on which to discuss them. YET you people feel it's necessary to discuss a person's momentary look, sweat, and an anon comment to death. "

And you come here to snark at people you think are ridiculous.

"Who's the fool, the fool or the fool who follows him?"
- Obi-wan Kenobi

lilly lily

9/6/2011 02:11:25

Andrew Sullivan has given Joe McGinniss's book a big thumbs up.

Hells Bells. Good.

Hope it is a winner, even if I don't care for him as a blogger.

Dana7

9/6/2011 02:13:47

Maybe a runner (which I am not) will have a valid explanation for the following...

PHOTO OBSERVATIONS -- COMPARING S’s photo (http://ozmud.files.wordpress.com/2011/09/spia-06.jpg) with two other crossing-finish-line photos (female and male runners at http://www.flickr.com/photos/hannahlcampbell/6112851991/in/set-72157627468163637/):

1) RED TAPE at the finish line is gone in S’s photo

2) Notice the POSITION of the finish-line-POST on our right (with a concrete bottom, to the right of S as we look at her photo): it is on top of the white line and with one set of little flags in S’s photo, and very different in the photo with a female runner…The post was most likely moved by the time SP’s picture was ‘taken’

3) SP is crossing the finish line along the ‘groove’ in concrete, while the other two runners are to the left of the same groove (otherwise, they would be too close to the post)

It will be interesting to look at the additional pictures that the running club will post soon!

PS I posted this on Oz Mudflats too.

Ivyfree

9/6/2011 02:17:26

"I'm waiting for more pictures. If she really ran the race, and finished, there should be dozens of photos with her in it. Even if they were taken by people who didn't recognize her."

Yes. Small town, everyone knows everyone- somebody would have had family there to get a snapshot of their loved one. Has this hit the news? Because if someone I loved ran a local half-marathon and I got a picture, I'd be scrutinizing it for any picture of the famous person. And if she was there, I'd call the local news station. "Hey, I got a picture of her! Here's proof!"

Todd picked up the entry packet, and Sarah was at the finish. That first picture is so odd, with her levitating, and the strange outline around her body, and the off proportions and all, that I suspect it was photoshopped. Snapped in a parking lot near the hotel, maybe, and added in later on a picture taken of actual walkers.

The finish line looks like she poured water over her head because she was hot... except, of course, for her hair not being wet. And her makeup perfect. And no sweat under her arms. And hardly anyone else around.

Odd. My son used to run cross-country in school. He'd have a deep "v" of sweat down the front and back of his shirt when he hit the finish, and under the arms. (He'd also fall over and nearly throw up, but maybe that's TMI.) Then he'd struggle to his feet and stagger into a walk to cool down.

I love my son, but cross-country is THE MOST BORING SPORT IN THE WORLD to watch, even for a mother. And I like watching curling.

lilly lily

9/6/2011 02:29:40

Having no sweat on her face. Being totaly unwinded. She doens't look at all winded.

She has been sweating a lot in Iowa. At the state fair she was sweating in her face, at the dinner sweating, and after running all that way her face has no sweat on it? Perfect except for some water on her upper torso. No need to catch her breath, no sweat.

I'm winded after walking fast that distance. But I don't play let us pretend, or do photo ops.

There is a Julie who writes to the blogs saying how wonderful Palin is and defending her. I think her partner is that Julie. Why isn't she writing in telling everyone how great Sarah runs, what fantastic shape she is in.

O.K. Julie time to log in.

We are waiting with baited breath.

guest

9/6/2011 02:31:20

"...we can look for the real issue(s) for which this may be a deliberate distraction..."

_Distraction_, you say? Lemme think, now...

By gum, you're right! There WAS a big distraction away from a REAL issue!
Two appearances and Sarah didn't declare 2012 candidacy for president. A refused invitation to a BIG deal Republican candidates forum.
Whoops, we missed it.

Holy smokes, if this is planned and strategized (a marathoner body double in Iowa, photoshopped images publicly released _before_ the end of the event, registration in a name other 'Palin'), then Sarah is a great deal smarter than she gets credit for.

Naw, I don't think she's that smart or that organized. But I think some bloggers are.

guest

9/6/2011 02:40:43

On another blog, fixated with the distraction:
Sarah WANTED the photo to look altered, because a REAL unaltered photo of her running in a crowd wouldn't have attracted this much attention.

Oh.
I see.

Conscious at last!

9/6/2011 02:41:26

I have been aware of the possibility of the use of doubles for a while both for SP and for BP. The key is that they keep switching places (sometimes at the same venue) to confuse us. I will pause here and address those who are thinking -- "Oh, now we've really lost our way - this is crazy talk."

We all understand that Palin is a fraud and a grifter. Politics is simply the "trade" where she's been most successful. Politics allows her to shriek and scream and blow her dog whistle. She needs to do this because of her very sick and bruised ego. But, more than anything else, she is about makin' money the fraudulent way. She is about media whorin' and selling books that are full of lies. She doesn't care how she gets the $$ and attention, as long as she gets them.

For a while some political movers and shakers thought that SP would be a useful tool. After about two years, they finally realized that SP was too unreliable and uncontrollable. She is mentally ill and willfully ignorant.
But she remains in the public eye because she retains one desperate client - the media. She is the new/old shiny object that folks still want to see... or at least THINK they are seeing. Either way, SP rakes it in. Remember, she got a TRADEMARK for herself and BP. What does that tell us? It tells me that SP is a business venture. It tells me that in this business venture, SP gets to determine who and what is SP and who and what isn't.

Some of us who are old enough can remember a large corporation called
US Steel. Yes, they used to make steel (and profits)!
They are now called USX (or something like that). They no longer make steel, but they still make profits. This is the point. SP, primarily is about profitable grifting that massages her sick ego. It doesn't matter how she does it. Doubles are a business tool and SP probably uses them... just like she used an empathy belly.

lilly lily

9/6/2011 03:27:55

I don't know if she actually ran, or if the photo is or isn't photoshopped.

The few things that did stand out for me. In her red shirt, feet floating in air feet shot, her foot would have hit the higher curb when it came down and she would have stumbled.

The lack of sweating on her face and not being at all winded (Rosie Ruiz type of run).

Her long history of fraud for fake photo ops.

I'm waiting for the published photos of the race. She would be easy to spot. Though to date I have seen two doubles for Palin in my area. One looked older, and one younger and slimmer.

My husband could have been a double for Louis Jourdon, and my sister for Doris Day. We ALL have doubles. Though I think this was Sarah Palin in the photo shots. I only wonder if she did run it all or did her usual three shell monte tricks.

Laura Novak link

9/6/2011 04:30:36

Thanks, Lidia, et.al., For all the strange phoniness about this story, it's the make-up plastered on the face at the end that kills me.

Oh, and one reason I ran local races is b/c you have to be at the starting line SO darn early, who wants to drive THAT far THAT early. Smells fishy, huh?

So glad to see a crusty New Englander give her the verbal slap down in New Hampshire.

And the commenter who offered to communicate with me about the AFT, can you please give me a shout. So sorry for blanking on name or the post you commented on. But let me know if you get this message.

Thanks everyone!

lilly lily

9/6/2011 04:37:51

Well enough of this nonsense for me today. It will be whatever it is. She either did or didn't run in the race. Not that it matters. Except that it shows how people will analyze every last detail when it comes to this fraud.

I think she has lost her political steam and can't possibly run, lack of support. People are on to her and resent her will I or won't I routine. Her ego can't take losing.

The things one learns.

Evidently botox injected into the armpits stops you from sweating. Never knew.

Brad Scharlott

9/6/2011 05:21:27

For what it is worth, I would not be called on to give expert testimony about Photoshopping in a trial. I teach Photoshop, but I teach many things - a graphic artist who uses the program daily would be more expert.

Having said that, the key for me in saying the picture is not doctored are the 1) the very light shadows near the feet of Palin and others (they indicate same light source), 2) the side lighting on Palin and others, and 3) the way the plane of sharpness extends as it should to Palin's side (the guy to the right is in fairly good focus), and becomes more blurred in the background. To many things to get right in a doctored photo.

I think she looks odd b/c it's a staged photo - she was probably told to run fast and to the outside at that point so a photo could capture her gazelle-like strides as she speeds by the rest.

It was staged, not doctored.

Floyd M. Orr link

9/6/2011 05:48:51

I am with Brad on this one. Not only is he probably technically correct, but the whole issue is just a pile of distracting silliness in the first place. I thought this was supposed to be the INTELLECTUAL blog. A couple of days ago, we were discussing Palin's direct connections with the CNP and Bud Paxson, and now we are discussing body doubles, running shoes, and more relentless photo analysis. Let's just say that Sarah is guilty of all of it. What does that mean outside the fact that she is a compulsive liar and she like to play games with the truth? Politically, Mittens can outrun her in his flip-flops. Let's get back to the serious issues, please.

Yes, I know I am a bigheaded blowhard, but at least I know how to TERRIFY the potential candidate. With this marathon of photo analysis and endless discussion of drivel, we are just making her laugh her head off at how easily we can be distracted.

kelgal

9/6/2011 05:56:43

Floyd and Brad~
Yep.

SunnyVee

9/6/2011 06:00:30

Floyd, Brad, Keigal...Well said.

Sarah can run, but she can't hide !!

Sunshine1970

9/6/2011 06:08:47

There are things in the photo that look funky, ie her legs and shoes. Her shoes are reflective and that probably is doing some weird things to the bottom of the photo. The male runner's blue shoes have that same weird look to them as her red shoes do. (Would these be Naughty Monkey Tennies, BTW lol).

I've seen faked photos that look absolutely real, and real photos that look faked. Heck. I've taken photos that no one believes are real.

I'm with Brad and Floyd on this one. It's a real photo, but staged. Probably in response to anon238's posts on IM.

ja.thought

9/6/2011 06:40:33

Here today and gone tomorrow?

The LA Times for Sep 4:
http://articles.latimes.com/2011/sep/04

At the bottom shows one item under NEWS at the bottom:
Sarah Palin runs half-marathon incognito in Iowa By Robin Abcarian
http://articles.latimes.com/2011/sep/04/news/la-pn-palin-marathon-20110904

That link now gives "Page Not Found". Have they retracted their article? It was there yesterday.

I emailed Robin Abcarian to find out. Too early to hear back yet.

Floyd M. Orr link

9/6/2011 06:42:42

Here is a good article from 2/21/08 that describes Bud Paxson's relationship with John McCain

http://www.drewclark.com/is-john-mccain-uncomfortably-close-to-lowell-bud-paxson/

Sunshine1970

9/6/2011 06:44:00

The article's still available. Just moved links:

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-palin-marathon-20110904,0,1357976.story

ja.thought

9/6/2011 06:45:48

Ooops.

Looks like the LA Times article is still there:
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-pn-palin-marathon-20110904,0,1357976.story

Floyd M. Orr link

9/6/2011 06:47:44

I'm sorry, I should have included this link to an even juicier story involving McCain and Paxson.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vicki_Iceman

ja.thought

9/6/2011 06:49:34

I saw this on Greta's blog in which she is now questioning the questioners:
http://gretawire.foxnewsinsider.com/2011/09/06/this-is-funny-claimed/

---------------------
from: request for assistance
comment:

No one has asked Sarah 'for the record' if she did in fact run the entire half-marathon in Storm Lake run this past weekend. Sarah rarely makes herself available to answer such a question, but she would to you, Greta.

Sarah's left leg has become her right leg between when she starts and finishes. Look at the white marking just below her knee. This is truly amazing. Granted Sarah can be amazing and yet I think this ability is truly beyond her. Several other people have claimed additional evidence of photoshop at work and I will let them speak if they care to. The inverting of all or part of an image is enough to start a reporter to ask why.

The relevant question is not whether Sarah Palin was there for the race, not whether she participated in the race, not whether she was registered for the race, not whether someone entered as 'Sarah Heath' ran the entire half-marathon, but whether 'the' Sarah Palin ran the entire half-marathon as being reported. I need someone to be specific and accurate to lay this to rest.

Was there really JUST one person who SAW (yes, one eye witness) her start and SAW (with her husband) her end? The husband JUST happened to be a blogger on a pro-Palin blog?

Perhaps you can look into this Greta. I would really appreciate it if you would!

Sarah's at the finish photo is here: http://caucuses.desmoinesregister.com/2011/09/04/sarah-palin-runs-in-iowa-half-marathon/

FrostyAK

9/6/2011 07:03:05

People continue to ask why any of this matters. Here's a partial answer:

IF the running pic is photoshopped;

IF the running pic is just a photo op;

IF she was at the start and the finish and didn't run the entire race (Rosie Ruiz style);

IF she poured water on her shirt to make it look like she ran the entire way

IF she is using doppelgangers, ad infinitum

IF ANY or all of the above, then it fits nicely into the picture of the lying, grifting, cheat that we all know she is. Her sociopathy.

"How does that fit with Babygate?", you ask. If she would fake a 1/2 marathon, then what else might she fake?

Would she be able, on her own, to come up with such complex machinations? We know she couldn't. It's the men behind the curtain that have been pulling her strings and guiding all of the lies for a very long time that need to be exposed. This fake 'race' is just one more piece of the puzzle, IMO.

lilly lily

9/6/2011 07:29:44

Well Todd was there and holding her red overjacket. So she was dressed to run and Todd was present. Pictures of the two of them with her T drenched on top and clenching a bottle of water. Along with some of her supporters.

Her fanatic fans continue to think she can and will run, just for them, to make the America THEY want, Whitel little taxes on the rich and I don't know what else. Everything she blatters on about is gibberish to me. I can't stand her voice, and reading it all is like slogging through mud.

lilly lily

9/6/2011 08:15:48

One last aside about the picture. I don't know if or if it isn't photoshopped, but Gryphen has the photo with two Palins (one a bit smaller but the exact same image). The larger Palin image behind is the one passed around on the grass and she always looks too big to me somehow. She is petite but the woman next to her would be 4 feet tall, and she herself is a petite woman. The second Palin image in front is placed on the pavement and is a bit smaller and looks like it fits into the running group better, except behind her she wouldn't be running on pavement. I now lean towards thinking this was indeed a photoshopped picture.

It never seemed right. It is the false placement of the superimposed Palin image that makes it so wrong. Her size in relation to others size. They misestimated.

lilly lily

9/6/2011 08:18:13

Take a look over at IM and you might see it as I do. It is the one where he is sarcastic. The first shot is the one spread around, the second is the one with the two Palins, Wrong placement, then the right placement for a photoshop.

Bobcat Logic

9/6/2011 10:21:15

@ Floyd:

I, too, would like to return to the Paxson issue.

What astounds me about the entire "relationship" Paxson, the wealthy GOP Christian broadcaster, had with McCain over the years was Paxson's obvious intent to control, and compromise McCain.

For example, as reported by the Washington Post on Feb. 23, 2008, Paxson had just gleefully contradicted McCain's sworn testimony -- precisely when McCain was interviewing Palin for the VP spot (her DC conference visit -- the one where no one noticed she was 7 months pregnant).

McCain, as we know, wanted Lieberman as his running mate, but this totally freaked out the Dominionist right wing. Wing-nuts like Paxson were pulling out all the stops to get "one of their own" as the VP (i.e. A STRONG RIGHT-TO-LIFE candidate like Palin--whom the Dominionists had been grooming for power since at least 2006.)

Paxson, in Feb 2008, seemed to be going out of his way to jerk McCain's chain, and force him to choose Palin. Here's how the Washington Post reported it:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/22/AR2008022202634.html

I also can't help thinking Paxson and his operatives were behind the New York Times expose on the McCain-Iseman affair.

But something happened after McCain interviewed Palin on or about the 23rd of Feb, that made Paxson call the expose off.

I think this was when McCain finally succumbed to Paxson's blackmail and secretly agreed on Palin as his VP choice.

Once all the details were settled upon, Palin announced her "pregnancy" on March 5th.

Brad Scharlott

9/6/2011 11:00:15

Bobcat Logic: That sounds exactly right to me. And if the nomination was in the bag, why would Palin do the fake pregnancy? Not to cover for Bristol, but to give the GOP the best chance to win, by having a bring-out-the-fundies candidate on the ticket – suggesting to me complicity at a very high level, the highest in fact.

Banyan

9/6/2011 11:00:59

@ Bobcat Logic

Part of the Fundies' "grooming" of Sarah Palin for high office was their declaration that she was "the new Queen Esther."

I just did some searches on the "Queen Esther" meme and learned that the Dominionist Right also, at various times, declared Carrie PreJean, and, before that, Katherine Harris (remember her from the 2000 Florida recount?) to be the new "Queen Esther."

rad S

9/6/2011 11:02:30

Brad Scharlott

9/6/2011 11:03:56

Banyan: Nice work - yup, they were casting about for someone they could largely control and count on.

senikau

9/6/2011 11:09:01

Technical Proof that the photo was edited. I found this program JPEGsnoop that tells you the results of whether a picture has been altered or not. It's very technical and the result is at the end. The result I was given after it scanned Scarah's photo where she seems to float.

Based on the analysis of compression characteristics and EXIF metadata:

ASSESSMENT: Class 1 - Image is processed/edited

Try it for yourself if you like.
http://impulseadventure.com/photo/jpeg-snoop.html

BIG FAIL Sarah. FAKE just like everything else about you.

molly malone

9/6/2011 11:10:09

The reason I think the pic of Palin is legit is because any graphic artist skilled enough to get the highlights correct on her clothing would have deepened the shadows under her front foot to keep it from looking as if she's floating.

Staged? Yes. Photo shopped? No.

molly malone

9/6/2011 11:42:57

@ senifau

I think it is very likely that the contrast has been sharpened on Palin to make her stand out from the crowd. Too, the red seems a bit strong for such a hazy, overcast morning, so I'm guessing that was beefed-up, too.

If this is the case, then the very faint shadow under her foot would look too soft to match the intensified image.

Conscious at last!

9/6/2011 11:44:32

Yeah! @Brad,Bobcat Logic & Banyan

Yup, that's what I think also. I've always felt that the date SP chose to announce the pregnancy, 3/6/08, was one of the biggest tells. As we all know, it was the day after McCain got the nomination. That was the signal for her that the hoax/game was on.

I also assumed that the Eisemen affair was perhaps a "honey trap."

Brad Scharlott

9/6/2011 12:08:27

senikau: Sure, contrast alteration possible. What I meant by "not Photoshopped" was that her image was not taken wholesale from another source. I just looked at it again, and I agree with you. It does look like her saturation was increased. So the impression of "Photoshopped" is a problem here. There was an enhancement of her image relative to the rest to make her stand out more. And that's one reason the picture looks odd. Nice catch.

molly malone

9/6/2011 12:37:06

thx Brad.

What tipped me off was that Palin's hair, above the visor, is the same washed-out color as the rest of runners. Hair, as you know, can be real tricky to mess with, so it was just best left alone.

litbrit link

9/6/2011 13:27:27

@Bobcat -- Yeah, I've said the same thing: that I "sense" some kind of intense connection between McCain, Iseman, Paxson, and the Palin pick. Paxson not only wanted that legislation thrown his way; he wanted a pro-life VP pick.

I also think--*think*, not know for sure--that Lowell "Bud" Paxson is somehow mixed up in the arrival of Trig Van Paxson Palin on the scene.

At some point, I hope we can revisit the Baby on the Plane photo. The one Bristol took of him, wearing that hand-knit blue baby cardigan that I speculated was made for him by a hospital/halfway-house/foster care volunteer. Furthermore, I still strongly believe that the plane in that photo is a private jet. Possibly McCain's, before it was fitted out with campaign posters (it has exactly the same seats, right down to the brown leather, the style of armrest, etc., as his Straight Talk Express jet, which was photographed repeatedly and shown in the WaPo and NYT.) I also recall Rubbernecking being intensely against all of this, questioning it and going off on tangents, and given what a few people said in the previous post or so, I find I'm rather more inclined to reject his or her push to make us abandon that line of inquiry. Indeed, I think I'm going to just dig in and go deeper.

physicsmom

9/6/2011 15:31:33

What all this nonsense says to me is that Palin thinks she can get away with ANYTHING, and she can! Photoshopped or staged, that first photo is Odd with a capital "O". The final photos seem to be real, but also "faked" in that the "sweat" doesn't make sense and her hair is not wet and her make-up is in tact.

I don't buy body double, as the picture also shows Todd with her and some family and he sure looks real. He is holding her red sweater. I had been wondering what had happened to that garment. I asked my husband, who was a runner, if people just discarded clothing along the route when racing, and he said sometimes, but not often. Was Todd running along side her in order to collect her discards?

Finally, I'm curious: how does everyone (or anyone?) know that she was wearing cotton? Don't they make poly t-shirts? Just wondering. It's a good point, but I don't know what the "tell" was that her clothing was cotton.

While this was sort of a fun exercise (pun intended), I hope we soon return to the more serious issues. There are other lies to expose about her, and I'm sure there will be new ones. The temptation to "get" her on this one is strong, because we think there will be more evidence, but the same motivations exist in the larger political arena to try and keep this quiet. Therefore, I'd rather we concentrate on the biggest lies that have a greater chance to take her down (politically, not literally) than this one, which is minor in the long run.

Namaste, my friends.

Lidia17

9/6/2011 16:47:50

@litbrit, excellent evaluation of the rubbernecking phenomenon. I can't wait to see what you find out!

@molly malone, yes the photo was probably a bit blah due to the haze, so they could have pumped up the saturation.

Or, as I was thinking, it might just not be a very good cell-phone camera… that would explain the shallow depth-of-field and the verging-on-posterized look of the red jacket.

Disclaimer: I don't use a cell phone to take photos, nor have I dealt with many cell-phone photos. This is just a surmise.

----
The hazy conditions also account for the lack of shadows. Notice none of the other runners have them, either, except where the feet are essentially touching the pavement.

The apparent incongruous size is a bit of an optical illusion. The lady behind Palin, several feet away, looks hunched over, and/or she could be particularly short; her shoulder seems to line up with the elbow of the guy in striped shorts. If you use your fingers on the screen to measure Palin from her rear foot to her shoulder, and then transfer that measurement to the big guy with the red headband, you'll see that her shoulder comes up to the middle of his chest, which seems about right to me (and this is just quick and dirty—without factoring in the difference in their distance from the camera).

----
Why investigating the race could be important: IF it can be easily and directly proven that Sarah faked this run, it COULD be an occasion for someone who bypassed babygate to expose THIS fraud instead, and put paid to her political career just on these grounds alone.

Heidi3

9/6/2011 18:54:18

@Litbrit, Bobcat Logic, & Floyd Orr:

I'm thinking out loud here...

In researching the relationship between Paxson, McCain, and the Palin pick (which I agree was orchestrated on or about 2-23 to 2-28, 2008 when Palin & McCain met in DC & the Iseman story conveniently disappeared from the Times), I suggest we also throw in a potential connection to Franklin Graham.

Graham has a large Samaritan's Purse compound with a 3,000' airstrip in Port Alsworth, Alaska, and could possibly have been a conduit for the 'delivery' of the agreed upon right-to-life "prop baby" (forgive my using that odious term). Per my research, Port Alsworth is 188 air miles SW of Anchorage on Lake Clark. And we know Graham has a mini-fleet of aircraft.

Here's some info about Graham leaning on McCain re the VP pick (3rd paragraph):

http://www.adn.com/2008/09/20/531723/kopp-hiring-proved-palins-fundamentalist.html

It's quite obvious that Paxson and Graham share the same religious & political goals. Paxson cooked up the Palin faux pregnancy scheme, and Graham willingly provided the transport? Perhaps even "Dr." Gina Loudon in St. Louis had the ability to locate the perfect Trig. So, as Brad suggests, complicity at the highest level, namely the hogtied presidential candidate who desperately wanted to win at any cost. No wonder the State of Alaska websites were scrubbed of any photos.

Allie

9/6/2011 19:10:50

Interesting thoughts, Heidi. Doesn't explain the imperfect Trig, aka Ruffles, which is one reason why I think the Palins had a baby on their hands and then devised what they thought would be a politically-acceptable solution. But, it could explain litbrit's blue sweater Trig. So all of those thoughts could be true.

Allie

9/6/2011 19:17:32

Although faking the run is trivial, it is also part and parcel of the pattern. It is my belief that Sarah has engaged in sleight-of-hand fakeries probably since she was a child and now it is a way of life and how her brain operates. (We dropped in on the pregnancy hoax, which is not trivial.) We aren't like that so we still register shock when we encounter yet another example. I think it is just how she conducts her life and Todd and her family members have adjusted to it and enable it and participate in it. They just are not used to having us as an audience.

Consider this: any time in the future that people express doubt about her running abilities, there will always be someone out there who will raise the -didn't she run a marathon? - meme. Quarter marathons and half marathons will morph into full marathons in record time and they will have newspaper articles to which to refer.

She layers and layers those types of memes, trivial ones so you won't notice the bigger ones. Plant enough doubt so no one ever really knows and those who support you don't stop believing. So that when some photo appears of her with Paxson or some other Dominionist Apostle they can go on offense and claim it was photoshopped or staged or somehow set up. Since she has already established the pattern, it will just get brushed off.

It would also explain why Mr. & Mrs. Greta VS glommed on to her right from the get go; her "talents" and her gender could be turned into an ATM, compatible with how Scientology operates, too, I would think.

In a funny kind of twisted way, anti-Palin bloggers and commenters and critics (including anon238) have supplanted supporters she has lost along the political wayside who have moved on and no longer pay attention to her. She craves attention and I have found that those who have a deep longing for attention, who never quite get their fill, will take any and all attention, even negative attention, because even that gives them the emotional payoff for which they are looking.

Sorry to get all pop psychy on you. Back to our regularly scheduled program. :)

Heidi3

9/6/2011 19:42:35

Exactly, Allie. From all indications from our two Anons, Ruffles - "Trig #1" - was born in early February, 2008 in Anchorage and the Trig we see now was 'obtained' for political right-to-life vote reasons. Who will ever forget the abominable Lion King presentation onstage? The blue-sweatered baby has always mystified me, though. I'd have to see the photo again. Maybe he's the 'new Trig' traveling on McCain's plane?

1Doubter

9/6/2011 22:02:35

Ozmud has a great sleuthing article about the 1/2marathon grifter! Turns out, she DID finagle her way into a medal, and cheated a deserving woman out of her hard-earned one!

lilly lily

9/7/2011 00:58:52

this half marathon will never leave her. People don't necessarily care about her baby hoax, but runners do care about their running.

If she is truly and firmly outed on this, it will hang around her neck like a chicken killing dog has the dead chicken hung around its neck.

OZ mudflats is great. I hope they stick with it till it is solved.

GhostbusterTX

9/7/2011 05:29:37

In case you haven't looked at the course map, it is a double-loop-back type with the start/finish in the middle, at least one actual cross-over point, and multiple races (half, full, 5K, and maybe a relay) run at the same time on the course - in other words, lots of choke points where runners may have to pass walkers, and also many many opportunities to take shortcuts, for what that is worth.

There are likely multiple finish chutes at the end for different races. (The race number or the color of the tag usually indicates whether the runner is finishing a half, a relay, etc., so seeing pics of other runners finishing in a different chute is not surprising.)

She was there - as to whether she ran the whole thing start to finish or took the risk of being videoed cutting corners - well, we're talking about Sarah here.

Bush the younger ran some pretty good times in races here in Austin while he was Gov., if I recall, of course he started in front of the pack and surrounded with a phalanx of security - none of that silly jumping into the grass to get around the granny pack for him.

Meanwhile, this is what is going on in my neck of the woods:
http://blog.chron.com/rickperry/files/2011/09/Fire_Austin-skyline.jpg

1Doubter

9/7/2011 06:05:38

Ghostbuster: STAY SAFE! (My daughter is there also, too...)

Bobcat Logic

9/7/2011 07:10:24

@ Heidi3

I think you are right about Graham being involved, as well as "Dr." Gina Louden.

There is evidence that the hoax was devised around 2005-6, and possibly well before then.

Ruffles did happen along the way, and that may have been part of the plan as well -- to provide a back-up story as to why Sarah faked a pregnancy if the hoax ever were to come out. To fake a pregnancy cover for one's daughter would seem more noble than to fake it for the political benefit of the GOP-Fundies.

Paxson has a long history of involvement in GOP dirty tricks -- the swift-boating of Kerry, for example. Some of his activities (like taking Saudi royalty out of Las Vegas post 9/11 on his jet) suggest a CIA connection, as well.

It seems that someone in a very high place has also assigned Paxson the job of neutralizing and compromising McCain at every turn.

Graham may have been involved in the deep planning to use such a DS baby hoax to enhance the credentials of the 'Queen Esther' du jour, when and if it became useful politically for the Fundies.

Graham's location in Alaska was perfect for allowing him to act locally and behind the scenes to "groom" and "foster" Palin.

Graham is also reputed to have lived a rather fast and lawless life in Alaska before reverting to his Fundie Christian upbringing, which ultimately proved more profitable. Perhaps, Graham's involvement with the Palins began around the prostitution ring in which Todd was allegedly involved.

I look forward to hearing more from Shailey Tripp on this one. From what she has said so far, the purpose of this ring was to infiltrate multi-national organizations and businesses for purposes of espionage and blackmail. This is right up the alley of the Fundies, and of people like Rupert Murdoch, who is also in this somewhere, I suspect.

Paxson may have entered the hoax when McCain's compliance was needed.

Bobcat Logic

9/7/2011 07:26:45

@ Heidi 3

PS: Thanks for that excellent link in your post, about Graham and McCain. I hadn't seen it previously!

Everyone, please check it out!

I'm going to recopy the link here, and thanks again Heidi3!

http://www.adn.com/2008/09/20/531723/kopp-hiring-proved-palins-fundamentalist.html

9/7/2011 09:43:12

Heidi3 (et al): interesting thoughts! Ruffles born early to Bristol, official "Trig," aka blue-sweater baby, brought in later as a prop. This fits my own preferred scenario, i.e., that Ruffles was Bristol's child, I'm guessing by Keith Johnston, while the Trig presented from the RNC onward was the prop.
I'm tripping over something, though: how a scheme hatched in smoke-filled rooms, quite possibly before 2007, meshes with a knocked-up daughter who just happens to produce a DS baby. I know people have theorized that Ruffles had FAS, not DS, but I believe medical experts have chimed in to the contrary. A borrowed-Trig plan would have taken time: if Bristol turns up pregnant and amnio shows DS, why arrange to borrow a baby? And wouldn't that be WAY too much of a coincidence, if the adopt-a-prop plan was hatched much earlier? If there is a DS baby at hand the only reason to find another one would presumably be because Ruffles turned out to be too fragile (not expected to survive?) to be a good prop. But that wouldn't have been known until he was born, February...maybe as early as Dec '07. I don't see how all of this fits together. Heaven help me & my tinfoil hat, but the "snowflake" baby theory, as far out there as it is, actually does make sense.

9/7/2011 09:44:13

PS. Oh yeah, meant to add a note of thanks to Laura...for being the anti-Joe!

Bobcat Logic

9/7/2011 10:21:41

@ jk
speaking of "snowflake' babies -- this blog post from yesterday's Daily Kos outlines some of the weird possibilities medical technical has created for parenthood -- and for fraud.

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2011/09/06/1013904/-Surrogacy-and-Baby-Selling-in-a-Globalizing-World:-Whats-Next?via=search

rubbernecking

9/7/2011 11:45:28

@litbrit, why waste any time looking up what I actually said? I know it's so much easier to rely on memory and feelings than research.

It is true that on an earlier post I expressed my belief that the Palins had never publicly identified the baby in blue as Trig. When commenter @alexis later provided a link to trial testimony that proved me wrong, I acknowledged my error. Please see
http://www.lauranovakauthor.com/1/post/2011/7/little-boys-blue.html. My comment acknowledging my error is 8:53:58.

I have consistently pushed back on claims that I don't believe have factual support. I'm baffled by the ongoing hostility to this type of fact-checking. I think many of you refer to fact-checking as "distracting" or "tangents." Many of you pride yourselves on your freethinking--but you beat up commenters who ask the wrong question or dare to ask for proof.

Asking if Anon238's story conflicts with verifiable information about Palin's press releases shouldn't be a such a landmine. Daring to ask if an anonymous commenter on IM might be phony shouldn't be heresy, but yet it is.

Some of you are so focused on finding secret messages in my comments that I don't know whether to laugh or to cry.

Is the Spiral of Silence really such a mystery?! I don't think so. Many of you work much, much harder at pushing away curious people like me than you do at providing any factual basis for your claims.

Exp:Nov.05/08

9/7/2011 14:42:51

The Paxson connection has always stood out to me because of Trig's middle name. I figured Sarah probably owes that guy something big. Him helping with the 'delivery' in some way is a very likely scenario.

I think the lie about Sarah knowing Trig had DS through an amnio was exactly that, and that's why she's repeated it and gotten it wrong.

I don't think they did an amnio on any pregnancy of Bristol's, whether Ruffles, Trig, Tripp, or other. It's possible that Trig's real birth mother had one and as a result decided to give her child up for adoption, or loan, or whatever it was that Palin did to obtain that baby.

Trig HAD to have DS. It was essential that Sarah appear to have known about it before he was born, and crucial for her to appear to have CHOSEN to have a baby she knew had DS - to show that, even under what some would consider extremely tough circumstances (four kids, seemingly busy Governor, potential VP pick, all that time in church (!), and being an awesome mom, wife, daughter, runner, hunter, fishpicker - how can she - and while looking so flippin' hot! - do it all?) she was tough enough, and - most importantly! - pro-life enough to do it all.

Those religious operatives knew the pregnancy was fake, and planned that the baby would have DS, because it would be the royal flush in their anti-abortion circles. If all they needed was a baby from Sarah, they could have used any baby - they certainly didn't need to use an actual pregnancy.
They used a fake pregnancy, and a real DS baby, on purpose, to "prove" Palin was pro-life.

Wasn't it Frank Dobson who emailed SP to congratulate her for "really walking the walk"?

And did Palin ever say before April 18th '08 that she'd had an amnio? It seems to be an after-the-fact thing, only mentioned after Trig was presented.

litbrit link

9/7/2011 15:48:18

@Rubbernecking

I believe you are the one who needs to look things up before making statements about them. You didn't just "push back", you flat-out stated "There's no evidence that the Palins were presenting the baby in Blue Sweater as Trig"--a declaration of certainty, yet one that was completely false. You said there was no subject line for the blue-sweater baby photo, but there was--it's right there on the screenshot of the In box that Kernall accessed, one of the two emails that had photos attached to it (indicated with a little paperclip icon). When I wrote about those two photos in July 2010 (link here: http://litbrit.blogspot.com/2010/07/down-rabbit-hole-where-things-continue.html ), I obtained the shots from the Wikileaks site, which has since been up and down (it was down when Laura wrote the Little Boys Blue post).

You "pushed back" about the plane, too, saying couldn't it be one of the Alaska King jets the state owned, when it was clearly a 727, one with identical leather seats--and first class configuration (Willow was in the last row, at the bulkhead)--even though I had provided links to shots of McCain's jet showing that identical interior. Palin did not sell a 727, not on eBay nor anywhere else. What she sold--offline and not on eBay--was a 1985 Westwind II, 10-seater jet. Hardly a Boeing 727. Not even close.

(You also launched into questioning the significance of a near-empty plane vis-a-vis it being a private plane, noting that a cell phone on the tray table suggested other passengers, never mind the complete lack of any airline logos or paraphernalia. Every time a valid point is made, you found another, often petty, thing to question. In order to, what--distract? Annoy? Discredit? Muddy the waters?)

Now, either you were interested in throwing distractions into the discussion; you thought Palin's plane was so large, its cabin could hold four wide, first-class leather seats abreast with an aisle in between; or you didn't bother "fact checking" and were going on "memory" and "feelings".

Which was it? I don't know.

I do know this: you do tend to presume bad faith--or else stupidity or laziness--on the part of people who are genuinely discussing a topic.

No-one here has said with certainty that Anon238 is for real, only that he or she thought Anon238's stories had a ring of truth, that it "sounded" right, and so on. Similarly, I have always made sure to distinguish my educated guesses or senses about things from established fact; the former begin with something like "it is my sense that..." or "This is an idea I'm just throwing out there...", and the latter appear as simple declarative sentences.

Heidi3

9/7/2011 18:30:23

@ Exp:Nov.05/08 - YES! To repeat your two spot-on points:

- - - - - - - - - -

(1) "Trig HAD to have DS. It was essential that Sarah appear to have known about it before he was born, and crucial for her to appear to have CHOSEN to have a baby she knew had DS..."

(2) "Those religious operatives knew the pregnancy was fake, and planned that the baby would have DS, because it would be the royal flush in their anti-abortion circles."

As many of us are surmising, I think we've arrived at "the motive". All of this was pointed to in Floyd's book, which must be why Anon 238 says Sarah is terrified of him.

So in my opinion, Ruffles aka Trig #1 is an ancillary player in this discussion. He/she is not even part of the end scheme. (I will agree that Ruffles' possibly unspeakable paternity may have sparked an initial panic.) Ruffles just 'happened', albeit at a devastating point in the arc of Sarah's political aspirations. The only true actors in this drama are Sarah, the 'obtained' Down Syndrome Trig, and the stage managers behind the scenes. There would be no logic in Sarah's faking a pregnancy just to cover for Bristol's Ruffles (although it could have been a good backup idea as jk suggests), when in fact Sarah turned right around and very publicly outed Bristol's next pregnancy with Tripp!

Trig #2 stands alone as the key card in the "royal flush" needed to sell the McCain/Palin ticket to the Fundie voters. It was diabolical and sick, and dangerously undermined our entire voting process.

rubbernecking

9/7/2011 21:28:17

@litbrit, you are correct. I said there was no evidence. However, when Alexis provided evidence, I acknowledged my error. But we are discussing different photos.

In my exchanges with you, I said the "Look at Trig!!" email was a photo of Trig eating food, not the picture on the airplane. In the baby in Blue thread, I provided page # and line # to the transcripts of Bristol's testimony about this photo. Alexis provided the transcript where Palin testified about taking the Willow/Trig plane photo.

I asked *QUESTIONS* about the plane in the baby-in-blue photo thread. I asked if it was *possible* if Palin was on the AK state jet. I then acknowledged the King Jet were too small. Other commenters thought the photo might be an Alaska Airlines jet.

I put effort into the baby-in-blue photo because it was heavily discussed as part of the multiple-trig theory. I think the multiple-trig theory is far-fetched but I was willing to look at evidence and make an effort to understand it.

If you can't handle questions from people who are actually interested in understanding your theories, you shouldn't be complaining about the Spiral of Silence.

9/7/2011 22:11:34

Exp:Nov.05/08, and Heidi3: the theory makes all the sense in the world for the child now known as Trig (call him PT: Prop Trig). But I still trip over the knocked-up-daughter-producing-DS-baby as sheer coincidence, and right around the time of the planned hoax. It would be easier for me to believe that Palin created the Bristol pregnancy rumors to give herself cover with PT if need be. But this doesn't square with all of the evidence either, nor does it explain where Ruffles came from.
Okay, so let's see what I do believe: Bristol turns up pregnant in fall, 2007; baby (Ruffles) born prematurely some time between 12/07 and 2/08; Ruffles proclaimed extremely fragile, unlikely to survive; Palin announces she is pregnant, Bristol, undecided between adoption and keeping the baby?, is reportedly furious; PT located and delivered ("Look at Trig!") in 4/08; Ruffles and PT overlap in Palin household through time of RNC; only the more presentable PT seen after RNC; not clear what becomes of Ruffles.
This scenario hangs together, except, as I said, for not meshing with evidence of an earlier scheme involving Paxson, etc.
It's that dang Unified Trig Theory that continues to be elusive. I forget who came up with the snowflake baby theory, sorry, and it's WAY far out there. But, okay, let's try this on: Palin hatches the scheme with Paxson et al., but has her own eggs harvested and fertilized, and then selects for DS. She goes to Bristol: my fertilized eggs will be destroyed if I don't use them, can you carry a baby for me? ("Now I'm a mother duck for that baby"?) At the same time they arrange for another snowflake baby fertilization, as back-up, Palin having an idea how much of a party girl her daughter is. Maybe Palin tells Bristol the baby can be put up for adoption, or Bristol can keep it, whatever she wishes. Bristol has no idea about the DS; when the baby is born prematurely she is thrown for a loop. Then she is furious when Palin announces she is pregnant. Ruffles turns out to be too low-functioning to be a good prop; PT is brought out of the wings. The babies look a lot alike: not twins, not the exact same age, but full brothers. This theory, unlike the others, actually does seem to hang together.

9/7/2011 22:59:05

Hi All,

Disclaimer: I am writing this immediately post-run, still experiencing my endorphin rush... but anyway, here goes:

On one of the more recent threads, there was discussion on how to finally get the attention of the MSM: newspaper ads, billboards, etc.

What about one of those online petitions?

A statement that clearly and simply declares something like this [or a variation]:

Sarah Palin did NOT give birth to the Down Syndrome baby, known as Trig, on April 18, 2008, but has used him for political purposes. We dare Sarah Palin to sue us.

I know it might be safer to use qualifiers, like "In our opinion," but am not sure if it would have the same potency.

Another thought is that Laura could keep the petition under wraps until we have a certain number of names, say 1000 or so, in order to have the POW effect when revealed.

With the movies and books coming out this month, I think the timing could be perfect.

I would sign it.

(ps litbrit, I wish I were as articulate as you - you are the best!)

Cracklin' Charlie

9/8/2011 02:58:38

I just popped in to throw in a couple of suggestions. I am not trying to diss anyone's ideas or theories, mostly because I enjoy reading them all, and I think those could help us get to the bottom of Sarah's bottomless pit of lies. And I will admit that sometimes I get dates and such confused, but I will try to be clear.

I think the blue "airplane" baby is likely the child now known as Tripp. I think at that time his name was Trig. I really think that what we are dealing with here are two children born to Bristol Palin.

My theory: Bristol delivered her first child, named Tripp, who was very fragile, but seemed to have received very good medical care, and as a result, survived, but was later confirmed as having DS. Soon after his birth, Bristol realized that she was again pregnant. She delivered the second child prematurely in April of 2008, and the child was named Trig.

Sarah, upon learning of Bristol's second pregnancy, devised a scheme whereby she would adopt one of the babies. She may have had advice here from Paxon, who probably had a plan, should McCain secure the nomination, to blackmail McCain into placing his girl Sarah on the McCain ticket. Once baby Tripp (now Trig) had been confirmed as DS, they may have thought him the better choice.

But Sarah could not call the baby Tripp, for reasons which we are all now aware. So she stole Baby #2's name, and called him Trig. She named him for Paxon, who was her mentor and champion, and she would be vice-president with
his help.

I really don't think Sarah would go out of her way to adopt any child; these are not even people who have pets. And I really don't think that she needed any pro-life credibility. That was something that she already had in spades. She didn't need any more proof of her pioneer woman reputation; again, she had plenty. What she did need was a cover-up for the fact that Bristol had too many children for her age, and that fact did not reflect well on Sarah's mothering abilities.

I think there are a few photographs that demonstrate very well my reasoning, and I apologize for the fact that I do not know how to attach a link to my post. The pictures that stand out to me are, 1) airplane baby in blue 2) Levi in green shirt holding newborn baby 3) pictures in Palin kitchen with Levi holding different newborn. The reason I use these examples is that I think these photos were missed by the fixers, so they should be authentic.

The captions that were added by Mercede to the kitchen photos, supposedly contemporaneous to adding them to myspace, work with this theory as well: triggybear, mommy in law, baby brother. Anyway, those are just a few of my thought, feel free to pick my ideas to pieces. And I will do the same to yours, because that is the only way we may ever solve this mess.

guest

9/8/2011 04:07:06

Heidi3, others - good for you for bringing the Chuck Kopp/Franklin Graham thing up again.
A bunch of us researched the church relationships and those connections, posted info on blogs, but it just has never gotten due attention and publicizing.
When Sarah and Sean Parnell were flown out to villages by Franklin Graham to deliver his food boxes containing church literature, as an OFFICIAL STATE DUTY and site visit, a few of us almost had strokes!

Sean Parnell's first trip as the Alaska Governor was to meet with James Dobson. With his wife. OFFICIAL trip. ON STATE DIME. To this day, the purpose of the meeting has not been disclosed, even with reporters asking.

Port Alsworth has TWO runways - a _4,200 ft_, 1/4 mile away from the 3,000'. For a settlement of less than 30 real residents. They claim more people based on summer-only people (from all over the U.S., not necessarily Alaskans) and Christian mission-associated individuals assigned there for "service" and "training" for varying lengths of time. Masters Commission. Retreats.
Alsworth and Wilder are heavily involved in regional public politics, serving on boards and holding public office, including Port Alsworth "public works" projects written in to area capital projects funding requests from the State of Alaska.
Now, there's nothing wrong with a mayor advocating for state funding for his community - they're supposed to. But mayors don't typically literally OWN the "town" and the land it's on as private property, and public money isn't generally used to build the mayor's dynasty and personal estate. Literally. Not just financial interest, but OWNS it.
And the state isn't in the business of building airports and water systems for private individuals.

"Mini-fleet"? No, it's a FLEET, an Air Force for God. They have more aircraft than some small countries. There are 76 aircraft registered to Port Alsworth, including Bell and Sikorsky helicopters. The Alsworths personally own 42 aircraft. That does NOT include the aircraft registered to the Anchorage-based office of that operation in other people's names.
Soldotna - a very short flight away. Home of Franklin Graham. Multiple support businesses and the Missionary Aviation Repair Center (MARC), a 2 million-dollar "non-profit." They own 9 aircraft directly.
"Impacting remote Alaska with the hope of Jesus Christ through missionary aviation. Our mission is to expand the reach of the Gospel in Alaska by: flying people and supplies where there are no roads, supporting other missionaries & their aircraft, and training missionary-minded pilots & mechanics."
It operates in partnership with and specifically to support Port Alsworth and Samaritan's Purse. Not speculation, documented.

Putting Chuck Kopp in there was a tandem move to match Sarah's buddy Joe Schmidt's appointment as Department of Corrections commissioner. Joe Miller's wife to the Alaska Judicial Council. The Christian-focused Suicide Prevention Council, also a State of Alaska entity. And there's more.

Joe Schmidt was head of Wasilla's Pt. Mackenzie Work Farm, a state prison. He _personally_ counseled inmates in his office to convert, accept Jesus, while he was officially processing them and managing their paperwork. Imagine that kind of pressure. Sitting in the chair, interviewing for your request for placement in an alcohol treatment program, family visits, release and probation paperwork, whatever a prisoner's need is. Inmates released come out spouting Glenn Beck/Ann Coulter/Tea Party propaganda. They tell their families, but nothing can really be done. Nobody believes them and nobody cares - they're offenders and convicts. They must be compliant or go back to jail. An army of Tea Party Christians come out of Alaska's jails.
This is not paranoid tin-foil hat stuff. This is REAL. The indoctrination of Alaska.

Here's where tinfoil comes in. Michigan Militia's Norm Olson is also a "pastor" and a pilot. In Soldotna. Samaritan's Purse's neighbor.
Wildwood Correctional Facility is there. They transfer to Pt. Mackenzie. Of course, Alaska doesn't have a whole lot of prisons, so it means nothing.
A 1,536-bed prison in Wasilla, financed by the Matanuska-Susitna Borough to be leased to the state, will open in 2012.

Particular legislators are pushing an agenda of privatization.
Private prison company Cornell Corrections is all over the place.
"Relationships between political and corporate players, as well as political contributions, have been present throughout Cornell’s efforts to expand their business in Alaska. The wife of House Finance Committee Co-Chairman, and privatization advocate Eldon Mulder, Wendy, is an aide to Cornell lobbyist Joe Hayes. “I don’t deal with clients,” she said; the only reason she took the position was to keep the family together during the legislative sessions. She does not lobby but goes to her husband’s office in the Capitol “to pick up the mail,” she says. She did however run her ow

Banyan

9/8/2011 04:14:38

I was the one who offered the "snowflake baby" theory -- and it is ONLY a theory. But the theory could explain a lot and could also allow Sarah to be vindicated with a DNA test (so we must be careful what evidence we ask for).

I am the mother of a "special needs" child and immediately recognized the powerful and dishonest melodrama that Palin and the GOP were unleashing on us.

I also recognized that the scenario she presented would almost certainly go unquestioned, for who wants to look so mean -spirited as to question such a heart-wrenching situation. Parents of disabled children can mobilize a huge amount of guilt in others.

Most people are emotionally terrified by the situations posed by our children and would REALLY rather not go there.

Palin was counting on the use of emotional manipulation, and has been playing that angle (quite stupidly, I think) for all it's worth, by making it appear that any attack on her story is really an attack on people with disabilities. I think very few people still buy that excuse, and some are now willing to take a harder look.

Several family members and friends of mine (in late 30s or 40s) have recently undergone IVF and/or surrogacy, and that is why it was on my mind. I thought it should be put out there as a possibility -- although one that would take a huge amount of planning and expense.

And then there is evidence that Palin was planning a "pregnancy" as early as 2006 (according to Frank Bailey), and I recalled Bush hosting the "snowflake" moms and babies at the White House at just that time. The idea was for moms to carry spare IVF embryos to "save" them from stem cell research or merely being discarded.

The "snow flake" theory would explain why Sarah never really appeared pregnant, but how "Tri-G" still manages to look like her. And it would fit in with a powerful religious trend of the time.

The odds of Bristol having produced a made-to-order DS baby at that particular time just seemed too remote. Although she could possibly have been one of the surrogates -- "a mother duck for that baby."

But, I was also thinking that, as with the Dan Rather/military documents story, this could be a hoax with a sting at the tail. DNA tests vindicating Palin as the genetic mother might be that sting for all of us, and could catapult Palin to power (maybe).

It is just a scenario to consider.

Bobcat Logic

9/8/2011 04:26:06

Thank you, guest!

Do you know if the recent militia arrests in AK of Schaeffer Cox, etc., are related to the Palins or the Fundies in any way?

What about "Drop Zone Bill," the guy who ran the gun shop and turned (or was all along?) an FBI informant?

Do you have any info as to how Shailey Tripp's account of Todd and the prostitution ring (with multi-national connections) may fit in here?

Please keep posting!

guest

9/8/2011 04:40:13

Chuck Kopp and Franklin Graham, Part 2.

Particular legislators are pushing an agenda of privatization.
Private prison company Cornell Corrections is all over the place.
"Relationships between political and corporate players, as well as political contributions, have been present throughout Cornell’s efforts to expand their business in Alaska. The wife of House Finance Committee Co-Chairman, and privatization advocate Eldon Mulder, Wendy, is an aide to Cornell lobbyist Joe Hayes. “I don’t deal with clients,” she said; the only reason she took the position was to keep the family together during the legislative sessions. She does not lobby but goes to her husband’s office in the Capitol “to pick up the mail,” she says. She did however run her own lobbying business back in 1995. And for her non-lobbying assistance, in 1999 Hayes paid her $65,000 and in 2000 she received a twenty percent increase, according to Alaska Public Offices Commission (APOC). Mulder himself received $2,600 from Allvest in the ‘96 elections and $2,500 toward the ‘98 elections."
Read the article. It's worth it. http://www.safetyandjustice.org/node/489

So what does this have to do with Alaska's 'God' agenda? _A captive audience_. Airplanes swoop in across the state (and I mean everywhere), loading up kids for Alsworth's Tanalian Bible Camp. Parents WANT their kids to go, feeling like they're allowing a privileged and fun opportunity. It's become a tradition in every village.
From Tanalian's IRS 990 - 1.9 million dollars in 5 years. And check this out:
"Part VI, Line 11a - Organization's process to review Form 990. No review was or will be conducted."
"Part VI, Line 19 - Governing Documents Disclosure Explanation. No documents available to the public."

Prisoners in jail have to do whatever the jailers want. 37% of the prison population are Alaska Native males. Joe Schmidt is in charge. They can make them comply with whatever they want. Who's gonna complain? To whom? Who cares?

Um, Sarah did what now, about Alaska's corruption? Sean Parnell is still the governor, still moving Sarah's agenda. Which is someone else's agenda for Alaska.

So thanks for bringing it up, one_more_time_.

FrostyAK

9/8/2011 07:18:52

Another thing about port Alsworth. It is heavily rumored to be the Talibangelical's main 'retreat for the tribulation'. Specifically built and supplied as such. I guess they figure they won't be 'raptured'?

Thank you Guest, I was unaware of the information you have provided. As I believe most Alaskans are. The plans are of long standing, deep and filled with treachery. Is the TriG 'birth' a part of it? I believe so, as the Dominionist tentacles reach into every realm. IMO, THEY didn't vet $P carefully, and she has thrown a small monkey wrench into their plans.

9/8/2011 10:41:25

Cracklin' Charlie, I've seen your theory before, but just don't see how it squares with several pieces of evidence. First, a side-by-side comparison of blue-sweater Trig and blue-black-jumper RNC Trig reveals, to my eye, the same baby. (From this I conclude that blue-sweater Trig was "prop Trig" -- it's impossible to place this photo in a progression of photos of Ruffles). Second is the baby Bristol presented in her TV interview after Tripp's birth: he might have been a month or so older than claimed, but he was not a year old. We saw other infant photos of Tripp as well: the cover of People(?), etc.

9/8/2011 10:52:06

Banyan, thanks for the reminder -- and for sharing your perspective as a parent. I know it's only a theory, but I agree, it makes a lot of sense. We've had some hints that Bristol has been pregnant four times, with one miscarriage that I'm guessing was the culmination of the early "green sweater pregnancy." An earlier IVF attempt, maybe -- fitting with the timing of Palin's comments to Bailey? So the second attempt includes a back-up DS snowflake planted in the wings, just in case? Or maybe Bristol just got herself knocked up the first time, lost the baby, and so was receptive to her mother's plea to "save" a baby?
One thing gives me pause: if Palin could produce a DNA test proving she's the biological mother, why hasn't she?

Banyan

9/8/2011 11:29:39

@jk

I suspect (assuming the theory is correct) Sarah is going to play this card at the very last minute to discredit her foes, vindicate herself, and carry out her "Mission From God." Sort of like the CBJ letter put out at the last minute of the last day...

phantomimic link

9/8/2011 11:53:43

Nice that you were healthy enough to do this at that age. I used to do athletic things way back in my youth. Nowadays I struggle to find the time to walk a mile per day. As to all the other comments about Palin, I think that she won't run for president. It's more lucrative to stay on the sidelines and criticize.

9/8/2011 12:13:13

Banyan, one more thought occurred to me...
I've been struck since the beginning that Bristol actually seems to be showing off her baby bump in both the green-sweater photo and the "Christmas" '07 photo: in both she is wearing tight clothes, turned sideways towards the camera. If this were your garden-variety knocked up teenager, wouldn't you think she would be careful to pose like Britta did in her wedding photos? (Not to slam Britta, who I have nothing against -- just making the point.) I figured the poses were Bristol's in-your-face gesture towards her mother. But the poses would make sense, also too, in the context of the snowflake-baby scenario.
Oh, and one more thought. Suppose there was a 1st IVF attempt that ended in a mid- or last-trimester miscarriage due to genetic abnormalities beyond DS. That could explain the mysterious NY trip that Palin made with Bristol: go find a specialist for heavy-duty prenatal genetic testing. It could also explain why the Johnston's were so relieved that Tripp turned out healthy: not knowing anything about the earlier ruse, they could have had real concerns about Bristol's propensity to produce babies with genetic abnormalities.
hmm

Banyan

9/8/2011 12:43:37

@jk

In the "snowflake" scenario, I would think that multiple women would need to be implanted more or less at the same time (give or take a month.)

Because abnormal fetuses are often (perhaps usually) miscarried, to have a baby of roughly the right age --a baby that could be drugged and carried in a blanket during political events in the fall of 2008 -- to be assured of at least ONE healthy presentable DS baby -- multiple women would have to be implanted as surrogates.

I'm very curious as to what went on in NY, and I imagine a heavy duty fertility specialist (maybe from outside the country -- Russia? Israel? italy?) could have been involved. It would be less suspicious for such an MD to be working in NY (however clandestinely) than in Alaska.

But if Bristol had been implanted with a deliberately abnormal DS fetus, then her genetic propensities would not be an issue. But of course, the Johnstons may not have known any of this.

And yes, it does seem like Bristol is sending some sort of message with her tight clothes and those poses.

Another detail: in Frank Bailey's book he describes one of Sarah's lies as being like "A snowflake in a blizzard." Interesting choice of words.

9/8/2011 13:04:50

Banyan, we might be talking to just each other at this point, but I'm enjoying the conversation, at least :)
You're right, I think, that multiple surrogates would have been needed for the plan. Presumably they didn't want to implant multiple embryos, as is often done with IVF. Maybe Palin didn't think it through that far the first time, secure in her fairy tale universe. But then she learned the errors of her ways?
Last(?) thought for tonight: since the beginning people have hinted that the real truth beyond babygate was much sadder and darker than a mother covering for a pregnant teen, or the theories people had come up with. Maybe they've all been talking out of their hats. But I've wondered...people have come up with some awfully sad and dark theories. What could be sadder and darker than, say, Keith Johnston impregnating Bristol during a drunken party, or even by rape? Or Trig being a product of incest? How do you get more dark than that? A snowflake baby scheme would do the trick, I think.

Banyan

9/8/2011 13:27:31

@ jk

If the theory is correct, Sarah was not making many of these decisions herself; her deep-pockets Fundie handlers were controlling the IVF/surrogacy process, rounding up the (Quiverfull?) "mothers" etc.

To the extent the handlers trusted Sarah to do anything (as in wearing her pregnancy gear consistently) they must have been horrified at her carelessness. She could never have pulled off a hoax like this without major help, planning, and money.

I doubt that Sarah, herself, fully understood the scope and details of the hoax.

I'd love to know precisely what the "handlers" have on the Palins (and I think Shailey Tripp may have some answers, here). I think there are many, many dark details in the Palin story.

9/9/2011 01:15:09

Banyan, I do realize this is all a theory, even if I don't always say it! But you're right, a scheme like this would've been orchestrated by handlers. Didn't Chuckie once say, "Sarah doesn't call the shots"? An equivocal statement to be sure, but again, it fits. It would mean that the number of people who know the whole truth could be limited to Todd, Sarah, Bristol, the handlers (who will never talk), and medical professionals bound by HIPAA (who can't talk.) Maybe a larger people think they know the truth, but in fact bought into a manufactured truth: poor Bristol got pregnant as a result of incest or rape, we can't let the story get out. So even if people come out of the woodwork and spill the beans, they could be planted beans.
Another thought did occur to me about why Palin wouldn't have shown a DNA test if she had one: one way a snowflake hoax could be revealed is if there were incontrovertible evidence that Trig IS Palin's biological child AND she had the tubal ligation or hysterectomy that we keep hearing rumors about. Ironic to think that DNA results proving Palin is Trig's biological mother could prove to be the long-sought smoking gun!

Banyan

9/9/2011 04:05:25

@jk
Yes, but a DNA "vindication" after a tubal ligation COULD mean that Sarah chose to impregnated with her OWN DS embryo. Even with tied tubes she could presumably still carry a baby if her uterus was intact.

Or, she may have had her eggs harvested at some point, used IVF when the political timing was right, and availed herself of surrogacy services from someone(s) else.

If either of these scenarios is true, she could still argue that she had deliberately "chosen life."

But it would mean (as most of us already believe) that her pregnancy story is a lie.

Medical technology presents us with many interesting routes to parenthood and many opportunities for hoaxes.

Laura Novak link

9/9/2011 06:39:33

JK and Banyan, I LOVE that you two are talking to one another here. Please feel free to continue to do so. No reason to change threads or alter course. Your theories are deep and well thought-out. Keep up the grand discussion. You both bring such insight and intelligence to it.

:-) L.

9/9/2011 11:17:33

Laura, thanks for the kind words, and the welcome mat! Of course I did manage to go and say something that was way more dumb than deep: as Banyan points out, Palin could still claim to have carried her own IVF baby if she only had a tubal. We all know she didn't have a baby on 4/18/2008, but maybe she could claim Trig was born sooner (and she lied about for...some reason I can't fathom.) From what anon432 said my guess is that she did have a hysterectomy, but that, like the rest of this, is pure speculation ;) . As for what Palin could plausibly claim, assuming the snowflake baby theory is right, the claim that she "chose life," even with an embryo known to have DS, would be powerful...but if she "chose life" by having her unmarried teenage daughter carry the baby for her, even the most rabid Red State kooks would get off the train at that point, I think.
Another thought: if Bristol was duped into producing prop babies for her mother, one could certainly understand why she was so desperate to make a baby of her own.
Last thought (for now): a couple of people -- insider anon types -- have made some strange comments about not willing to say who Trig's mother and father were, but then all but saying Bristol was the mother. All very confusing...but maybe less so if the biological mother & the birth mother were two different people?
hmm

Banyan

9/9/2011 12:03:03

@ jk

You are right about the mysterious statements of those people who claim to "know" who the mother is and strongly hint that Bristol is involved, but then who don't really come out and say it.

I never quite thought of that before.

One thing that struck me reading the Bailey book was his use of the word "snowflake." Almost like deliberately dropping a clue.

I was really struck by his "snowflake in a blizzard" analogy and had one of those "lightbulb" moments. The word "snowflake" certainly has a special meaning among the more radical factions of the "Right-To-Life" community. (Try a Google search of snowflake babies)

I'm not at all sure IVF/(multiple) surrogacy is a correct insight on my part. While it would explain some questions, it would raise so many others.

And let me add my thanks to Laura for commenting here!

Banyan

9/9/2011 12:17:03

BTW, here is a rather scathing parody of the whole "snowflake babies" notion (written in 2006-- just when Sarah first spoke of becoming pregnant) suggesting that all female GOP politicians who voted against medical use of embryonic stem cells volunteer to gestate one of these babies.

http://momentofscience.blogspot.com/2006/07/elizabeth-dole-to-carry-snowflake-baby.html

Maybe this + Bree in Desperate Housewives helped Sarah and/or her handlers hatch the Hoax.

Darklady link

9/10/2011 19:23:32

In case you guys hadn't seen this. I think you'll feel the smug...

http://gretawire.foxnewsinsider.com/2011/09/08/governor-sarah-palin-running-news/

"I just walked to Capitol Hill with FNC’s Griff Jenkins to talk to Congressman Paul Ryan. En route, Griff told me that he ran a 1/2 marathon this weekend just as Governor Sarah Palin did the other day in Iowa. He then confessed…her time was 2 minutes 30 seconds faster than his."

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