As many have already noted, this book is all about payback. The nasty, mean spirited, Sarah makes frequent appearances throughout.
Here she is reveling in the fact that she automatically earned female support by virtue of the fact she had a vagina, and how that worked in her favor, especially with female reporters.
When I ran for reelection, John Stein (That non-Christian Jewish guy from before) again challenged me for the job. In one debate, Stein referred to me as a "cheerleader" and a "Spice Girl".
A cheerleader? I thought, come on, don't insult cheerleaders like that. (Shout out to the cheerleaders! Whoop, whoop!) I was just a jock and couldn't hold a candle to their pep and coordination. (I am going to go out on limb here and assume that what Stein meant by the word "cheerleader" is that Sarah was overzealous in her promotion of something that she did not truly understand, and NOT her athletic prowess. But hey, I could always be wrong.)
"At least get it right," I laughed wen it was my turn to respond. "Call me 'Sporty Spice'!"
I thought the whole things was hilarious because a TV station was covering the debate and I knew that his sexist remark would play to my advantage. (There was a quote from Napoleon Bonaparte right here , but I omitted it because, WTF?) A young female reporter, brand new to Alaska, caught Stein's "Spice Girl" comment.
"I can't believe what that candidate said about you!" she told me, appalled and sympathetic.
I shook my head in a "can you believe what we women have to put up with?" way and milked it for all it was worth. 'I know, I know" I said. "But you just have to rise above all that and plow through. Look, we have to work twice as hard to prove we are half as capable as men think we are."
Then I gave her a wink and whispered the old familiar punchline, "Thankfully, it's not that difficult." (P 80)
Did Sarah just brag that she proved she was "half as capable as a man"? I don't get it.
It is amazing how blatant Palin is when bragging about how she uses the gender card to elicit support and sympathy from women. I have a hard time imagining Margaret Thatcher, Palin's supposed hero, using those same tactics.
Of course I also have a hard time picturing Prime Minister Thatcher walking through the House of Commons wearing red Naughty Monkey Pumps.
Sarah is constantly laying a heavy coat of gloss over incidents that she does not want anybody to pay much attention to. For instance.
Todd was building a new house for us on Lake Lucille, and we had to pack up and sell the one we were living in on Wasilla Lake. He was still full-time on the Slope, plus commercial fishing. He and his partner had recently sold our business, Valley Polaris. (P 82)
Hmm, no mention of the help that Todd received from his friends at Spenard Builders Supply. Or the fact that Sarah had blocked an effort to require the filing of building permits while she was mayor which allowed them to build that house without following any guidelines. Or even the name of the business partner (Brad Hanson) and WHY they sold the snowmachine shop. That is a LOT of gloss for one paragraph.
You want to hear the rumor? Of course you do.
Rumor has it that the windows, and other materials, in the Palin house were "borrowed" from the material's purchased by Spenard Builders Supply for the construction of the Wasilla Sports Center. Yep that's the rumor.
You want to hear another rumor? You do?
Well according to the National Enquirer the REAL reason Todd sold his snowmachine business is because saintly Sarah was allowing his partner, Brad Hanson, to "break a little trail" of his own, if you know what I mean. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge.
Are the rumors true? Well personally I would put far more stock in them than anything I read in THIS damn book!
Time for an irony break. Here is a tidbit on page 85 from when Sarah was running for Lt. Governor.
In my journal that season I wrote, "Unlike some other candidates, I can't just be-bop all over the state raising money."
You know I am just going to leave that there without comment. I think it speaks for itself.
The next section is about her incredibly "brave" stand against the "good old boys" and how she single-handedly cleaned up the state Government before she was elected Governor and started piling up ethics violations by the truck load. I think I will skip that.
We are almost at the end of the chapter surely there must be somebody else she feels she owes a little pay back to. Let's see, Faye Palin (Actually this seems to be the only person Palin feels bad about mistreating), Randy Ruedrich (Nah everybody knows he is a criminal!), Frank Murkowsi (Palin is still pissed that he gave his old job to his daughter instead of her), Mike Wooten,......wait, wait, wait, back up......ahhh Trooper Michael Wooten! Perfect.
We begin on page 100.
In 2001, my sister Molly had married a guy names Mike Wooten (Boo! Hiss!) who'd recently moved to Alaska.
She did not know that he, only in his mid-twenties, had already been married and divorced twice. Or that he'd already filed once for bankruptcy, or that infidelity had been a problem in an earlier marriage. (Not only is Wooten a philanderer, he is not good with money. I wonder which one bothered Sarah more?)
When I was serving as mayor, Mike asked me to write him a recommendation for the Alaska State Trooper Academy, as I did for lots of people applying for different programs and scholarships. After he became a trooper, though, it became clear that there were some problems. He was seen drinking alcohol while driving a patrol car. In 2003, after using graphic terms to challenge his young stepson's masculinity, he shot the child with his state-issued Taser gun.(The boy BEGGED Wooten to let him feel what it was like to be tasered. The Taser was a model used for training puposes, as Wooten was qualified to train officers in its use, and NOT a real Taser. And he did not SHOOT the boy, he placed the barbs against his skin and turned the Taser on for a second. That was all.) later, after Molly found out he was having an affair, Track and I witnessed a domestic dispute in which we both heard the man threaten to harm my dad. If Dad helped Molly retain a divorce lawyer, he screamed while wearing his trooper gun belt, "he'll eat a f***ing lead bullet!" (P 101) (To get the straight dope on the Trooper Wooten affair just click here. I am sure you will find it enlightening.)
Not too many people make the assertion that Micheal Wooten is a saint, or that he did no wrong, but Palin's very concerted efforts to attack his character and destroy his career is a very frightening look into her pathology. Wooten is certainly not the only person she treated in this manner, and as we go further into the book we will undoubtedly see more of the mean-girl come out. You just betcha we will.
Up next, Chapter Three. "Drill, Baby, Drill".
Apparently Molly is about as incurious as her sister
ReplyDeleteif she did not bother finding out about Mike's two
previous marriages . . . or maybe they HAD to get married ?
Catch the echo in the cheerleader comment ("I thought, come on, don't insult cheerleaders like that...") to the comment she made during the Letterman flap ("I thought, come on, don't insult flight attendants like that. They work hard...") She is good, isn't she?
ReplyDeleteOne thing I wish someone would explain to me is, Why does Sarah consistently leave the noun and verb off so many of her statements (can't call them sentences)? You know how she always says things like, "Very, very disappointing..." or "Very, very excited..." instead of "I found it very disappointing" or "It is very disappointing" or"I was very excited" ? It's just weird.
It's a quarter 'til five, here in Noblesville, Indiana--still a little over an hour left before Sarah's bus takes Exit 10 and pulls into Borders. I still have time...but do I really want to drive all the way out to the Interstate so that I can get a glimpse of her?
ReplyDeleteIt's grey and cold. Do I really want to go out in the rain? Hmmm...should I? It would mean burning a half gallon of gas for the round trip, not to mention the wear and tear on my car.
It means that I would have to miss the rest of David Shuster...
What to do...what to do!
Weather report suggests that it might snow tomorrow. Hmmm...which means that it might also snow in Columbus, Ohio, and Washington, Pennsylvania...and Rochester, New York...
Let's see, where was I? Oh, well. I wonder how long it takes to drive from Washington, Pennsylvania to Rochester, New York in the snow? Hmmm.
My wish for S'error is that the world will get to know what a liar she is,be publicly humiliate,have her secrets revealed, THEN I want her ethics charges to stick ALL while the IRS is investigating her shady deals. Is that asking for too much ?
ReplyDeleteNYCgirl
Cheerleader? Isn't that what she looked like on the cover of Newsweek? Do you think Margaret Thatcher would have posed in shorts, leaning on a flag and squeezing her blackberries?
ReplyDeleteSarah Palin is the Britney Spears of politics.
Gryph, you're gonna love this. I have permission to repeat this without attribution, but it's just TOO good!
ReplyDeleteA valued commenter and contributor to the witty discourse over at the Mudflats (nswfm CA) came up with this title for a documentary featuring $P. I think it would make a great alternate title to this very book, or to its sequel (squeal?)
Ready?
"Sour Grapes of Wrath"
I laugh every time I think of it... it's simply perfection. Don't you agree?
Why hasn't Walt Monegan sued Sarah for defamation?
ReplyDeleteGeez, Gryphen, how am I supposed to erase the image of Margaret Thatcher winking in naughty monkeys?
ReplyDeleteWhen I heard the CNN & MSNBC reporters starting to talk about a Palin/Beck ticket in 2012 I just about lost it. Saw on Huff that Fox had to apologize for running tape from the McCain campaign of Sarah ,they said it was the Grand Rapids, MI book signing. This is not the first time they have done this. It's outrageous. They are deliberately misleading the public.
ReplyDeleteJust saw the Quitter Queen somewhere on her book tour on MSNBC with her adoring crowds, with little Trig as a prop of course. I still find that heartbreaking no matter how many times I see it. Oh boy, "Drill, Baby Drill". Can't wait. Hailey Barbour just referred to her as a energy expert, but wouldn't say she is qualified to be President, even though Chris Matthews asked him for times.
ReplyDeleteUpdate: Sarah's "real American" bus tour:
ReplyDeleteNoblesville, Indiana. 6:00 p.m.
Per Channel 6 News, in Indianapolis live coverage: Woohoo! She's here! Got here about 15 minutes ago!!!
According to Sarah, "All the 'Great Americans' that care about our country," are there with her. (The rest of us, I guess, are just hiding out at home until her bus hits the road, again).
Per Fox 59 Indianapolis, earlier today:
"In order to keep things orderly and organized, these are the rules...
If you're planning on heading out, security will be extremely tight. Prepare to have your purses and bags searched. You will have to put away any cell phone or cameras before you get to the signing table. Also, we're told you can't bring any other memorabilia for Palin to sign, no posters or signs, etc...".
All of this is okay, I suppose, as long as it's Palin's minions pilfering through your purse--just as long as it's not some nosey official from the U.S. Government!
Awwww..no memorabilia, posters..for her to sign--what a disappointment! But wait! It doesn't say anything about babies.
Sorry, gotta run! I've got to see if my neighbor's at home--and if she'll lend me one of her kids.
Sarah! Wait, wait! Don't leave yet! I just borrowed this baby--will you sign it for me?
I am surprised that Sarah didn't trash the little girl who snuck into the seat before Sarah had a chance to sit down and win the game of Musical Chairs. Where is the spelling teacher who marked a word wrong just because 3rd grad Sarah forgot to dot an "i?" Where is the poor shnook who forgot to bring her a corsage for their date?
ReplyDeleteI am amazed at how long Sarah could hold a grudge. Once the divorce was over, couldn't ya just say bye bye to Wooten? To keep fighting old battles is the sign of a very weak, immature person. Even McCain has said that his staff was right, and it's time to move on.
She's making an appearance here in Cincinnati, but I won't stop by to say hey. This town is conservative to the bone and my mental health can't take any more $arah worship. Her book makes me angry and sad in equal measures, and I despair that she will ever be asked a direct question, forced to speak off script, or held accountable, and that thought sends me boggling to the gin bottle. I don't want the Handmaid's Tale in my lifetime or in my daughter's lifetime, but $arah is determined to take us there. Now she goes to Fort Bragg, a civilian, and I wonder why no one said no to her. Why doesn't ANYONE ever say no to her??
ReplyDeleteP.S. to Anon 1:09
ReplyDeleteIt's not really going to snow tomorrow. I was just exaggerating and spinning a tale...you understand about exaggeration and spinning tall tales, don'tcha, Sarah?
B in Noblesville, Indiana.
SBS didn't help build the house. As the name implies, they are a building supply store. Truss plant builds roof trusses, other than that, they do not build anything.
ReplyDeleteAs for the sports complex/house thing, an Internal Audit demanded by corporate (Fidelity Investments)
shows everything is legit on their end. SBS's responsibility ended with delivery of material to either site.
Not saying fraud didn't occur, I suspect it did!
It did not occur on their end of it.
After following my favorite blogs as well as MSNBC coverage I find it strange that not ONE person has come out and said, "Yup, Sarah's account in 'her' book is correct." We've heard PLENTY of people who've said (in so many words), "This is a steaming pile of crap" but NO ONE has confirmed / verified Sarah's "recollection" of things and stuff. Also, too.
ReplyDelete.....
ReplyDeleteKeep in mind that, the last time Sarah Palin came to Noblesville, Indiana, the Democratic turnout in Hamilton County, Indiana, went up 30%.
Repeat: 30%!
Lol. Welcome back, Sarah!
She's ignorant and unethical, but at least she's a liar.
ReplyDeleteSeriously? One of my patients this morning commented there was nothing on TV except Sarah Palin, and "the commentator said she was stupid. He got that right!"
Ivyfree
the Newsweek sexist picture thingy is the essence of her batshit crazeeeness. She let her camel toe hang out, stood leaning on the Flag, looking like a washed up Hooters girl, approved and let that image be published, the pee heads gushed and wet themselves collectively and NOW this picture, that SHE APPROVED is sexist?
ReplyDeleteEverything that Two Blue Jays said. That she is allowed onto a US Army base to sell her book makes me furious. How was that arranged? I made a wrong turn a few years back, when the Base here was open, and I couldn't even get past the guard to turn around. And she gets to make money while on military property?
ReplyDeletecleavage, camel toe, and a baby:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.runnersworld.com/photo/sarahpalin/home.html
DISGUSTING SEXIST PIECE OF SHIT MAGAZINE! Where is the outrage? Oh the HUMANITY!
As some crazy Texans I knew once said, "F you and the horse you rode in on, you sorry sack of shit".
Sporty Spice? I prefer Alec Baldwin's 'Bible Spice', Faker Spice, Quitter Spice, Grandma Spice or just Old Spice, also, too.
ReplyDeleteTwo Bluejays said: "Now she goes to Fort Bragg, a civilian, and I wonder why no one said no to her. Why doesn't ANYONE ever say no to her??"
ReplyDeleteTo all: SAY NO TO HER! Be polite (they are polite on the other end of the phone, and calls are coming in):
The following is the number to the Fort Bragg Public Affairs Office:
910-907-5290
You will most likely not be able to reach anyone tonight, but please use the number tomorrow and voice your disgust with this whole thing.
The military does nt like controversy, and will shut it down if it gets too many calls and the situtation gets too hot.
this book proves what I have suspected for a long time -
ReplyDeletesarah didn't take on the corrupt political establishment in alaska because she wanted to clean it up, she did it because she wanted to GET EVEN!!!
they wouldn't include her in their club, so she narced them out. "I'll show them!"
you know that's EXACTLY what it is about.
she should be NOT allowed on a US Military base to whore her book. I find it highly offensive, and probably illegal.
ReplyDelete2:34 PM Anonymous, the house materials just fell off the truck, and toad contractor buddies built that ugly dwelling in a few weekends with no power equipment to lift those BIG windows to the 2nd floor. Spenard had a lien on the house.
ReplyDeletehttp://chattahbox.com/us/2009/07/04/does-sarah-palin-have-a-ted-stevens-problem-federal-indictments-may-be-imminent/
Gryphen says...
ReplyDelete(To get the straight dope on the Trooper Wooten affair just click here. I am sure you will find it enlightening.)
_____________________________________
You are linking to a Palin fansite that is all about "debunking the smears made against palin" for "the straight dope" on the Troopergate issue?
Really?
Thanks EyeOnYou, I fixed it.
ReplyDeleteI had read through about three different versions and chose that one because it described the Tasering incident more completely, I guess I skimmed over the part where they defended Palin.
You know I think reading her book is killing brain cells that I still need.
Please, anyone, take that "Sour Grapes of Wrath," do a video, youtube, satire, news clip---you get the idea---and RUN WITH IT.
ReplyDeleteI just spoke with a friend who voted for the McCain/Palin ticket and USED to really like SP. All the stuff coming out lately has made her see Palin as stupid, shallow, and vindictive. She told me the final straw was SP not really answering any questions on Oprah and dissing Levi.
ReplyDeleteAlso, I took an informal poll of some well-to-do professionals I am friend with, all of whom are Republicans. All think Palin is an unqualified horror and would never vote for her. One even goes to an evangelical church and has a special needs child. She isn't pulling the wool over everyones eyes. Some are smart enough to see her for what she is.
*Pecan Farmer
Gryphen, if you are going to kill brain cells, my vote would be for wine, without the "h."
ReplyDeleteJust out of curiosity how many times has Molly Heath McCann Wooten (McCann?) Hackett been married? I looks like at least three and maybe four times. So why is Sarah saying shit about Wooten being married twice before he married her saintly sister. She was married before Wooten. WTF? Off topic is going to blame the gotcha media for her Sean Hannity interview. He asks her how to stop the Iranian regime from getting nuclear weapons. Her answer is to cut off the imports into Iraq of refined petroleum. She also said we should go after the money of Iraq. Is she really that stupid?
ReplyDeleteMy final comment on the matter of SBS. Internal audit determined goods and services were delivered to their destinations. Did the Palin's hire a boom set for windows? I don't know. What I do know is, if they did, they paid for it.
ReplyDeleteDid things walk from the Sports Complex to the other site? IMHO they did. However, that would be out of the company's hands once they had made delivery. Just trying to nudge you people in the right direction as you seem focused on a dead end.
Gryphen, you get some rest! Thank you so much for wading through the ginormous pile of poo that is this book - but take care of yourself, too!
ReplyDeleteYa know, just in case anyone needs a response to the "Psalm for Obama" threat: here's some bible spice quotes!
ReplyDeletehttp://ecclesia.org/truth/lying.html
enjoy and use often!
Anonymous at 224pm: "Awwww..no memorabilia, posters..for her to sign... But wait! It doesn't say anything about babies...I've got to see if my neighbor's at home--and if she'll lend me one of her kids.
ReplyDeleteSarah! Wait, wait! Don't leave yet! I just borrowed this baby--will you sign it for me?"
Watch out--she'll kidnap it and pretend she gave birth to it herself! (Then pawn it off on Bristol)
Gryphen, this is one of your best posts. Really.
ReplyDeleteI do believe that housegate is the peripheral smoking gun that will expose Palin for the corrupt politician she is and I agree with the earlier post that said people should stop looking at Spenard's as being complicit in anything. It is easy to imagine a worker or a contractor moving material from one building site to another. The problem is in proving that the glass railing & the windows are identical or hoping that eventually someone will come out with the truth. Possible Levi knows something about this. As fot installin the windows, people build large homes all the time & it is a common practice to rent the services of a company that runs boom trucks if you cannot do it yourself.
ReplyDelete@5:08 here is what Andrew Sullivan said about it: Iraq. Iran. Whatever. Palin strikes again. Hannity cannot correct her. It would be like correcting the Pope - too confusing for the viewers.
ReplyDeleteAK Sandhills:
ReplyDeleteI do think that Hannity caught her mix up of Iran/Iraq but to correct her would make her look foolish & he was not about to do that! One can only hope that eventually these Palinbots will be forced to acknowledge the empty vessel that is Sarah Palin. Certainly the McCain campaign realized this early on which was obviously the reason for keeping her away from the media in the first place. I've been a long time lurker at Gryphen's since Aug 08 & am posting here now to express my - I guess I would have to call it fear - that Palin may just be a force to be reckoned with in 2012. I am only hoping that if the bloggers or other fellow AK residents (unfortunately I know nothing about Palin) cannot dig up the information on housegate or babygate, that the other Republicans who will be running against her will be the ones to expose the lies.
Has anyone considered checking whether all items delivered by Spenards are actually in situ at the Sports Complex?
ReplyDeleteAnd as for Iran and Iraq... we know that SP is geographically challenged! I live in South Africa which is you all know is a district in the country of Africa. Yeah, right, also too.
Anon @ 6:37
ReplyDelete"...in her own mind she is..."
Have a feeling you've hit the nail right on the head--and/or she thinks that this will scoop in some Jewish support. In her confused and hyper-religious mind, she may even be "Sarah: the Messiah the Jews have long awaited..."
Of course it makes no sense!--but when did Sarah ever make any sense?
Anon 5:08
"Is she really that stupid?"
...yes.
**Iran**Iraq**Iraq**Iran**Iraq**Iran**Iraq**. It makes no difference to her--which is precisely why she's been cast to play the starring role in any given neocon's wet dream. (Isn't that right, little miss halibut cheeks?)