Just who are the Sarah Palin supporters?

There is this amazing article from the Mail Online which examines the kind of people who belong to the Tea Party and support Sarah Palin.  It is, in a word, terrifying.

I suggest that you read the entire article by clicking the link above, but here are some of the quotes from the Palin supporters.

'I love Sarah Palin, I just LOVE her. She's bright, she's clever and she thinks like we do, she acts like we do and she lives like we do. She listens to the people, and she has a proven track record. She talks the talk and walks the walk and she'd make a wonderful president.'

'What's more, she's got good old common horse sense, as we call it round here,' chips in his white-haired neighbour. 'She tells it like it is. And she can shoot and skin a moose! Not many world leaders can do that.'

By the way, and I HATE to mess up anybody's fantasy about Sarah Palin, but there is NO evidence that Sarah Palin EVER skinned a moose. None. On page 32 of "Going Rogue" she talks about her father handing her two moose eyeballs to hold, but as gross as that may seem it is also appears to be the extent of her "moose skinning" experiences.

"I just hope she runs for president,' says beautician Dee Saddler, 63, who's organised today's gathering. 'She's the only person who can unite the Tea Party movement and the Republican Party. Sarah Palin is America's last hope!'

'Amen,' chorus the 26 members of the Sharon Tea Party group.

If Sarah Palin were in fact "America's last hope" then America would have absolutely no hope. I am just saying.

'Obama's trampling all over our Constitution and turning America into a socialist state and we feel angry and let down - not just by him, but by our own party. There's no one to vote for. No one to represent us.'

'Which is where Sarah Palin comes in. She's a proper leader,' says a man called Tom in a ten-gallon hat.

It happens with pretty much everyone I talk to. Particularly Shane Hershberger, 42, from Chicago, who's selling 'I Love Sarah' badges and wearing a 'Commies aren't cool' T-shirt.

'Obama is a communist spy and the collapse of the Soviet Union was staged,' he says, leaning in very close. 'This isn't home-grown Marxism we're seeing now. He's trying to destroy America.'

For every bad word the Tea Baggers say about Obama, there are two good ones for Palin. Despite all her gaffes. 'Who cares about her mistakes. It's the media, it's not her,' insists Hazel.

'Yes, she's made some goofs and errors,' says Jody Fronk, 46. 'But so what. We all make mistakes. That's what makes her one of us. And who cares if there's been a bit of scandal.'

And there you have it. These people are never going to let a few things like writing on her hand, being ignorant of how government works, or her famous pettiness, keep them from looking on Sarah Palin as if she were the second coming of Jesus Christ.

Which once again illustrates the importance of revealing the truth behind the birth of Trig Palin. 

The "Wild Ride" story will NEVER have any negative impact on these crazed supporters, hell she even wrote about it in her book, but the idea that she faked having the Down syndrome baby that she trotted out on stage with her throughout the 2008 presidential campaign, and has used to pimp her pro-life credentials, might just be the kryptonite that will strip away much of Sarah Palin's rabid fan base. And it has the added attraction of in fact being the truth.

For those people who believe that talking about this faked pregnancy helps Sarah Palin, I would like for you to show me how it helps her. 

Does it make her seem like a victim?  Well hell EVERYTHING makes her seem like a victim!

Talk about her lies? Poor Sarah! 

Talk about the fact that she quit her job as governor? Poor Sarah! 

Talk about her lack of intelligence and habitual lying?  Poor Sarah! 

Talk about her horrible approach to parenting?  Poor. poor Sarah!

If being worried about allowing Sarah to play the victim kept journalists from covering her, NOBODY would ever write a single word about her!

Does talking about the impossibility of her birth story somehow make EVERYBODY who speaks critically of Sarah Palin look crazy? Fuck no!

If this were a question that had legitimately been addressed by Sarah, and that had been refuted with real evidence of which she must have numerous examples of in her house, then we could be labeled quacks. That would seem fair to me.

But she never did.  Instead she threw her pregnant daughter under the bus to throw people off of the scent, and used a bullshit letter from her doctor, released the NIGHT BEFORE the election, to finally put the issue to rest.

Let me just say for the record that the journalists who  allowed those flimsy bits of "evidence" to dissuade them from pursuing this story are cowards!  They have put their journalistic integrity in a deep freeze while they instead focus on protecting their precious reputations and future job opportunities from attack by the Palin supporters who will attempt to destroy their careers for daring to reveal the most incriminating information about their queen.

And it is not enough that they will themselves hide their head in the sand.  No they have to also reach out to others and beg them to drop the story as well. And sometimes these people are our friends. Friends who have our personal e-mail addresses and have eaten in our homes, who whisper in our ear that we could be a "real journalist" if we walked away from this potential scandal.  Or that "you could have so much more credibility if you just dropped this story." They seem to be only concerned with how WE are perceived when in fact the real issue is how THEY are perceived when outside agitators bring up our friendship, and attempt to use it to undermine them.

I have little doubt those are the same whispers that Andrew Sullivan has been hearing.  The attacks from Palin supporters are easy to dismiss, and actually serve as fuel to energize our pursuit of the truth, but the knife that is driven into your back by your "friends" is the unkindest, and most painful cut of all.

Perhaps the worst is when they will not even stand beside you for a photograph for fear of a Palin supporter getting their hands on it and using it to smear or discredit them.  When in fact the people who want everybody to walk away from this story have convinced them that YOU are the enemy, and the reason that THEY are not getting more national attention. As you can imagine they cannot make the distance between the two of you big enough, nor run away fast enough, once those seeds of doubt are sown.

And then you find yourself alone.

Fortunately for me at least, I am not much of a joiner anyhow and I like it best on my own, so those tactics simply will not work on me.  And let's face it, what reputation would I be protecting?  If I have a reputation at all, it is for my tenacity and refusal to drop a story no matter how much blowback I receive. So sticking with this story only increases that reputation and hopefully provides me with the support from all of you guys.

And hey, as long as I have YOU who else do I need?

So, shall we continue?