Tuesday, September 16, 2008

ThePete VS. PALIN VS. GIBSON: FIGHT! (Round 2)

We now join ABC News' Charlie Gibson's interview with Sarah Palin, accompanied by round 2 of my commentary (Check out Round 1), already in progress:

Sarah Palin on God:

GIBSON: You said recently, in your old church, "Our national leaders are sending U.S. soldiers on a task that is from God." Are we fighting a holy war?

PALIN: You know, I don't know if that was my exact quote.


It was! It was!

GIBSON: Exact words.

PALIN: But the reference there is a repeat of Abraham Lincoln's words when he said -- first, he suggested never presume to know what God's will is, and I would never presume to know God's will or to speak God's words.


BWHAHAHAHAHA!

You've got to be kidding me!!! That's exactly what she did!!

But what Abraham Lincoln had said, and that's a repeat in my comments, was let us not pray that God is on our side in a war or any other time, but let us pray that we are on God's side.


COUGHcopoutCOUGH.

Come on, Sarah. Either you presumed to know God's will or you Bidenesquely quoted someone without citing your source. Either option still puts you in a pulpit, as the elected governor of the United States, violating the separation of church and state.

That's what that comment was all about, Charlie. And I do believe, though, that this war against extreme Islamic terrorists is the right thing. It's an unfortunate thing, because war is hell and I hate war, and, Charlie, today is the day that I send my first born, my son, my teenage son overseas with his Stryker brigade, 4,000 other wonderful American men and women, to fight for our country, for democracy, for our freedoms.


Wow, so either you're so totally brainwashed or you're so totally corrupt that you'll send your own son over there to possibly die.

1) You should never be brainwashed. Question everything.
2) If you're not brainwashed you're an amoral hypocrite--life begins at conception but ends when you get killed by an IED in Iraq.

Also, you're using "your son going over to Iraq" as an example of how you know war is hell?

Seems like your son is a good example of how you DON'T know war is hell or you wouldn't be sending him over there.

What kind of mother supports a cause that sends her son into hell?

Charlie, those are freedoms that too many of us just take for granted.


Hey, Sarah, fuck you.

THEY ARE GRANTED.

Remember that whole "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights" thing?

Yeah, that pretty much means that we can expect those rights to be intact.

It's people like you politicians who think that's up for debate. Taking away Habeus Corpus, arresting protesters, spying on American citizens--all these are great examples of how the United States Government takes away our rights while people like you, Sarah Palin, claim to be fighting for them overseas. How 'bout trying to fight for them right here at home?

And don't get me started about a woman's right to choose what she does with her body.

I hate war and I want to see war ended. We end war when we see victory, and we do see victory in sight in Iraq.


Wow, so victory at any cost?

If victory is the only way to reach peace, that's pretty much all we can assume, right? Beat everyone into submission and there's peace?

Peace can't be negotiated? Peace can't be, oh, I don't know, reached through a truce? A cease fire?

We can't just walk away from a fight?

GIBSON: I take your point about Lincoln's words, but you went on and said, "There is a plan and it is God's plan."


Ooo, nice one, Charlie--stick to your guns!

PALIN: I believe that there is a plan for this world and that plan for this world is for good.


Well, THERE'S your problem!! ;)

Hey, Sarah--if you think the plan for the world is good, then why is it that 10 percent of the people have 90 percent of the wealth? Why are people starving to death in Africa while people die of obesity in America?

Why do Chinese workers get paid pennies to make socks we buy in the US for dollars while American workers get paid nothing?

If that's a "good" plan to you, I definitely don't want you anywhere NEAR Washington!!

I believe that there is great hope and great potential for every country to be able to live and be protected with inalienable rights that I believe are God-given, Charlie, and I believe that those are the rights to life and liberty and the pursuit of happiness.


Haha, when you can't offer a straight answer, quote the Declaration of Independence!

Wow, that's pitiful. Palin, you are pitiful. Give us a straight answer and stop reinforcing politician stereotypes!

That, in my world view, is a grand -- the grand plan.


Read: From God.

Not the Creator, but God, aka the Christian God, aka Yahweh, aka Jesus' pop.

Seems an awful lot like Palin is endorsing a religion there...that's not legal for an elected official to do according to the 1st amendment.

Just sayin'!

GIBSON: But then are you sending your son on a task that is from God?

PALIN: I don't know if the task is from God, Charlie.


Uh, I'm pretty sure she used those exact words...

What I know is that my son has made a decision. I am so proud of his independent and strong decision he has made, what he decided to do and serving for the right reasons and serving something greater than himself and not choosing a real easy path where he could be more comfortable and certainly safer.


Yeah, supporting and joining an illegal war based on lies, that's something to be proud of!

Sarah Palin on National Security:

GIBSON: Let me ask you about some specific national security situations.

PALIN: Sure.


WHEW! For a sec I thought Palin would say no!

And hey, didn't Gibson already ask her about national security? What was all that stuff about energy and her living so close to Russia?

GIBSON: Let's start, because we are near Russia, let's start with Russia and Georgia.


Yeah! That's what I meant! Oh wait, now you're talking about Georgia... got it...

The administration has said we've got to maintain the territorial integrity of Georgia. Do you believe the United States should try to restore Georgian sovereignty over South Ossetia and Abkhazia?


A reasonable question. Not that we can do anything to restore Georgian sovereignty since our military is already taxed to hell. There's no way we can do anything to anybody at this point.

PALIN: First off, we're going to continue good relations with Saakashvili there. I was able to speak with him the other day and giving him my commitment, as John McCain's running mate, that we will be committed to Georgia.


Wow, that's quite a commitment! From the vice presidential candidate. I'm sure Saakashvili was impressed!

Who's my wittle candidate? YOU are! That's RIGHT! YOU are!!

Oh, I'm doing it again...

And we've got to keep an eye on Russia. For Russia to have exerted such pressure in terms of invading a smaller democratic country, unprovoked, is unacceptable and we have to keep...

GIBSON: You believe unprovoked.


Uh, yeah--it wasn't unprovoked. Georgia decided to go for regime change in South Ossetia, a region that had Russian peacekeepers stationed in it. So, when Georgia attacked, Russians were killed.

Most definitely, it was not unprovoked.

PALIN: I do believe unprovoked and we have got to keep our eyes on Russia, under the leadership there.


Well, in Palin's defense, Georgia is a long way from Alaska--it's not next door like Russia is. We can't expect her to know too much about it, right? :P

I think it was unfortunate. That manifestation that we saw with that invasion of Georgia shows us some steps backwards that Russia has recently taken away from the race toward a more democratic nation with democratic ideals.That's why we have to keep an eye on Russia.


Yeeeeah... so, the seizing of the media in Russia, the killing of reporters critical of Putin, those aren't good examples of steps away from democracy? I'm thinking Russia invading Georgia has no direct relevance to democracy and is more about a return to cold war attitudes about Russia Vs. the US. I don't see the connection to democracy there. I just see Russia acting cocky because they know we can't do shit to stop them.

And, Charlie, you're in Alaska. We have that very narrow maritime border between the United States, and the 49th state, Alaska, and Russia. They are our next door neighbors.We need to have a good relationship with them. They're very, very important to us and they are our next door neighbor.


Wow, sounds like Palin is sounding a bit like Prime Minister Chamberlain from before WWII in the UK! Appease our enemies? We can do what ever we want, Palin! We're AMERICA!

U!S!A! U!S!A!

Actually, caring what your neighbors, I think, is a very good idea, I just doubt it'll win you many points with Republicans. I bet they'll change your firmware after this to make sure you don't spout such reasonable ideas again.

GIBSON: What insight into Russian actions, particularly in the last couple of weeks, does the proximity of the state give you?

PALIN: They're our next door neighbors and you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska.


He said "insight", Sarah, not "sight".

SIGH. So much for sounding reasonable...

GIBSON: What insight does that give you into what they're doing in Georgia?

PALIN: Well, I'm giving you that perspective of how small our world is and how important it is that we work with our allies to keep good relation with all of these countries, especially Russia. We will not repeat a Cold War. We must have good relationship with our allies, pressuring, also, helping us to remind Russia that it's in their benefit, also, a mutually beneficial relationship for us all to be getting along.


Yeah, I think I saw that written on a bathroom stall: "Sarah Palin gives good relationship"

Hopefully, that was just a typo in the transcript.

Of course, she's talking about getting along just because that's the moral thing to say. The reality is both sides do better financially and politically when they don't get along.

Sarah Palin on Russia:


I thought we just got "Sarah Palin on Russia". :\

We cannot repeat the Cold War. We are thankful that, under Reagan, we won the Cold War, without a shot fired, also. We've learned lessons from that in our relationship with Russia, previously the Soviet Union.


There she goes continuing the lie (or at best the misconception) that we (America) won the Cold War. We didn't win anything. The USSR lost. The rest of the world, by default, won. See, they were communists--there's no money in it so they couldn't compete globally. It was just a matter of time before they crumbled with no money holding them up.

So, is that really the kind of win you want to claim?

"They ran out of money before we did! YAY!"

We will not repeat a Cold War. We must have good relationship with our allies, pressuring, also, helping us to remind Russia that it's in their benefit, also, a mutually beneficial relationship for us all to be getting along.


I think the transcript just looped itself for a sec...

GIBSON: Would you favor putting Georgia and Ukraine in NATO?

PALIN: Ukraine, definitely, yes. Yes, and Georgia.


Yes, but WHY.

This is not the kind of question you answer as though someone just asked you who you want to manage the homecoming dance at your school.

"Sally, definitely, yes. Yes, and Georgia."

GIBSON: Because Putin has said he would not tolerate NATO incursion into the Caucasus.

PALIN: Well, you know, the Rose Revolution, the Orange Revolution, those actions have showed us that those democratic nations, I believe, deserve to be in NATO.


Uhhh, you might want to remember that the American public hasn't gotten the same talking points memo that you have.

The Rose and Orange Revolutions? Que?

Putin thinks otherwise. Obviously, he thinks otherwise, but...

GIBSON: And under the NATO treaty, wouldn't we then have to go to war if Russia went into Georgia?

PALIN: Perhaps so. I mean, that is the agreement when you are a NATO ally, is if another country is attacked, you're going to be expected to be called upon and help.


So, it's good that she knows what NATO is for, but it's bad that she wants Ukraine and Georgia as part of NATO since we'd be forced to send troops if Russia messed with Georgia again.

But NATO, I think, should include Ukraine, definitely, at this point and I think that we need to -- especially with new leadership coming in on January 20, being sworn on, on either ticket, we have got to make sure that we strengthen our allies, our ties with each one of those NATO members.


Yeah, so we can send fewer troops!

"Nah, you guys rock! You can handle it all! We'll just sit this one out. You guys are great, though!"

We have got to make sure that that is the group that can be counted upon to defend one another in a very dangerous world today.


Another misconception/lie. The world is NOT a very dangerous place today. In fact, I'd say an overwhelming majority of the people on this planet will still be alive tomorrow.

Living in fear is not the answer, Sarah. I know fear is probably also in your talking points memo, but please. It's getting really old and it's pretty uncool.

GIBSON: And you think it would be worth it to the United States, Georgia is worth it to the United States to go to war if Russia were to invade.

PALIN: What I think is that smaller democratic countries that are invaded by a larger power is something for us to be vigilant against. We have got to be cognizant of what the consequences are if a larger power is able to take over smaller democratic countries.


I know it was run by Saddam and all, but wasn't Iraq, technically, a democratic country before we invaded it?

Just sayin'!

And we have got to be vigilant. We have got to show the support, in this case, for Georgia. The support that we can show is economic sanctions perhaps against Russia, if this is what it leads to.


Sanctions.

Against another super power.

Good luck with that!

It doesn't have to lead to war and it doesn't have to lead, as I said, to a Cold War, but economic sanctions, diplomatic pressure, again, counting on our allies to help us do that in this mission of keeping our eye on Russia and Putin and some of his desire to control and to control much more than smaller democratic countries.


Do we even have allies left?

His mission, if it is to control energy supplies, also, coming from and through Russia, that's a dangerous position for our world to be in, if we were to allow that to happen.


We might want to encourage more energy independence, then, shouldn't we? :P

After all, if we don't need as much oil, who cares about energy from that region?

Sarah Palin on Iran and Israel:


We'll save this for part 3! That'll be posted tomorrow. Thanks for reading!

Orignal From: ThePete VS. PALIN VS. GIBSON: FIGHT! (Round 2)

No comments: