You know, when Levi and company first went out and made fools of themselves on Tyra Banks, I wasn't a big fan of the knee-jerk reaction a lot of conservatives had. Don't believe me? Check it out.
I tried to give Levi the benefit of the doubt for a long time. Little by little the kid wore down my patience. Eventually, the mere mention of his name made me want to hurl.
When it comes to the Johnstons, I go through phases that range all the way from boiling rage over the thirty pieces of silver, to cutting them some slack for Tripp's sake. Right now I'm in a state of non-emotion about the whole thing.
Levi's out to make a buck. Why should he get his hands dirty when he can gin up publicity using Sarah Palin's name to draw attention to his own pathetic "career"? It's good money, baby.
I mean, come on, the Johnston's lives kinda suck right now apart from the coattails of Sarah Palin that Levi gets to ride. If it wasn't for that Palin wave, they'd have pretty much nothing. Ironic, since they also hate Palin's guts.
But they're not the first to make a buck off of Sarah. "Tina Fey" ring any bells? Palin is a one-woman stimulus package. Even people that hate her are getting rich off of her.
When it comes to the Johnstons, I think a lot of it has to do with jealousy. The Palins are a family that they probably didn't see as being any better than theirs. Now they're flying high and the Johnstons aren't a part of it anymore. While the Palins hit the penthouse, they lost their house. Literally. Levi lost his honey. Sherry went to jail for dealing oxycontin. Who knows what's up with Mercede.
Pull ourselves up by our bootstraps? Get real jobs?
Nah. Let's just devote our lives to pulling those horrible Palins down into the dust with us. Goodness knows they aren't any better than we are, so why should they get all the breaks and us get all the short ends?
As far as letting them see Tripp is concerned, I don't know. I'm not there. But if there was a legitimate beef, they had a lawyer. Levi (and I was calling for this for weeks) should have filed for joint custody a long time ago.
Instead he didn't finish high school and refused to get a real job.
Maybe he's just been getting some really bad advice. After all, Levi himself said in his Vanity Fair article that Rex and Tank put a bug in his ear that he could be famous. It's not everyone who gets to be the ex-boyfriend of a Palin kid. Might as well take advantage of it, right? When he went on CBS and said that he had big stuff on Sarah, he might as well have had a neon sign flashing over his head - "How much are you willing to pay me?"
It's pretty obvious now that Levi himself is fully down with making a living off of his almost-mother-in-law, so I'm done making excuses for him because of his counsel.
Just in case people like Mercede Johnston are not aware of it yet, the people who support Levi, don't give an actual d*** about him, or anyone else in his family. They're merely salivating over any potential dirt he may have on the Palins.
Mercede, remember back during the campaign when you were with the Palins? The Left called you white trash. Now, you're the poor little persecuted ones. "Please, please write the book. Please, spill your guts. The truth will come out. It will be cathardic," etc...
They don't really give a rat's behind about you getting to see Tripp. It's always been about the Palins; it'll always be about the Palins.
And I'm sure you really do love Tripp and all that, but when you guest-post on a Trig-Truther blog..... You do have some concept of PR, don't you?
Apparently not.
Oh, by the way, I actually really want Levi to write that book. Nothing would please me more than to see him throw off any semblence of decency and just go full-throttle scumbag.
Saturday, April 24, 2010
Palin in Eugene
Article in the American Chronicle:
---------
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, acknowledging she was visiting a strange, if not hostile, place, exhorted Lane County Republicans to rise up against government excesses and misplaced values of the Obama administration.
"When the other party's wrong, we stiffen our spines," Palin told about 900 people who attended a fundraising dinner for the Lane County Republican Party. "Why not be the party of not just no, but hell no," she shouted.
Palin's visit to what is considered Oregon's most liberal city attracted dozens of protesters who waved signs and taunted the mostly well-dressed crowd entering the Eugene Hilton, where the event was held.
The one-time vice presidential candidate took it in stride. She said she looked up Lane County on the Internet and found an article that described the residents as a bunch of Nike-wearing, granola-eating hippies.
"I'm reading that, and I'm saying, 'Ooh, I feel so culturally profiled," Palin said. "I love my Nikes. ... I eat granola. I eat a lot of organic food. I have to shoot and catch a lot of my organic food before I eat it."
Most attendees paid $250 to have dinner and listen to Palin's 45-minute speech, followed by a brief question-and-answer session with Eugene City Councilor Jennifer Solomon.
For $100, diners in an adjacent room were able to watch Palin live on two large video screens. About 70 donors shelled out $1,000 for a special reception with Palin.
"She's a superstar," said Jeanne Staton of Eugene, who attended the fundraiser by herself to get a look at the woman who may run for president.
To reach the event, donors had to walk through a gantlet of taunting, people wearing red rubber noses, a Palin look-alike waving the flag and a woman on a bike hurling insults at every high-heeled shoe that passed by.
"They don't bother me. They're all nuts," said one man, who wouldn't give his name, after he passed by a couple of dozen protesters who lined the street outside the Eugene Hilton...
Rebecca McKenzie, 29, of Eugene left work at a nearby barbershop and grabbed a perch on an outdoor patio at Rockn Rodeo, a cowboy-themed bar across the street from the hotel. She watched the protests with a mix of fascination and chagrin.
"I think it's pretty pathetic," she said of the name-calling.
But c'mon. Palin? Eugene?
"I understand the oil and water thing," McKenzie said. "But if you don't approve, go home. Don't come."
Also on hand to protest were members of Code Pink, a liberal activist group. Palin said her daughter Bristol saw them from their hotel window, liked their pink clothes and went down and talked to them. Bristol, according to Palin, told them how much she likes Eugene.
Palin, or her speechwriter, had clearly done her homework. Time and time again, she urged the audience members not to get discouraged when they see Democrats in Congress and President Barack Obama pushing through government programs such as "Obamacare" health reform and bailouts of car companies.
"It's like the runner Steve Prefontaine used to say," Palin said, referring to the Eugene track legend, "It's going to come down to a pure guts race. And if it does, we can win it."
Palin aimed her message at the blue-collar, grass-roots level of the Republican Party. "Big government," represented by the Democratic Party, has run roughshod over the American people, she said, but people can fight back.
"If you remember only one thing, please remember this," she said. "America does need your voice now more than ever, especially in a place like this. Don't get discouraged."
Dawn Attleberger of Vancouver said she got a bit rattled as she endured jeers on her way into the event. But it was worth it, she said.
"I'm 51, and I wasn't interested in politics until she came into the picture," Attleberger said. "Now I am."
--------------
And here's a little anecdotal story about the reporter who wrote the above article running into Sarah Palin:
--------
Security was tight tonight at Sarah Palin’s fundraiser speech to the Lane County Republicans. But it wasn’t foolproof.
Shortly after filing my story on the speech, I headed to the basement of the Eugene Hilton, where I ran into state Rep. Ron Maurer, the Republican from Southern Oregon who is running for state schools superintendent.
As we were talking, up walks Palin with her husband, Todd. Both were sweaty and in workout clothes. They’d just come from the hotel gym and were headed up to their room.
It was a bit of a shock because the organizers -- under Palin’s orders -- had taken great pains to make sure she never encountered any reporters. We were allowed only to watch the speech from two large video screens in an adjacent room.
After talking briefly with Maurer about his naming his sons after rifles -- Remington and Winchester -- Palin turned to me and shook my hand, asking who I was.
“I’m one of those media people,” I said somewhat sheepishly. A significant chunk of Palin’s speech was devoted to criticizing and outright ridiculing what she termed “the lamestream media.”
“That’s OK,” she said. Todd grinned and shook my hand, too, before they both hopped into the elevator.
---------
Former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, acknowledging she was visiting a strange, if not hostile, place, exhorted Lane County Republicans to rise up against government excesses and misplaced values of the Obama administration.
"When the other party's wrong, we stiffen our spines," Palin told about 900 people who attended a fundraising dinner for the Lane County Republican Party. "Why not be the party of not just no, but hell no," she shouted.
Palin's visit to what is considered Oregon's most liberal city attracted dozens of protesters who waved signs and taunted the mostly well-dressed crowd entering the Eugene Hilton, where the event was held.
The one-time vice presidential candidate took it in stride. She said she looked up Lane County on the Internet and found an article that described the residents as a bunch of Nike-wearing, granola-eating hippies.
"I'm reading that, and I'm saying, 'Ooh, I feel so culturally profiled," Palin said. "I love my Nikes. ... I eat granola. I eat a lot of organic food. I have to shoot and catch a lot of my organic food before I eat it."
Most attendees paid $250 to have dinner and listen to Palin's 45-minute speech, followed by a brief question-and-answer session with Eugene City Councilor Jennifer Solomon.
For $100, diners in an adjacent room were able to watch Palin live on two large video screens. About 70 donors shelled out $1,000 for a special reception with Palin.
"She's a superstar," said Jeanne Staton of Eugene, who attended the fundraiser by herself to get a look at the woman who may run for president.
To reach the event, donors had to walk through a gantlet of taunting, people wearing red rubber noses, a Palin look-alike waving the flag and a woman on a bike hurling insults at every high-heeled shoe that passed by.
"They don't bother me. They're all nuts," said one man, who wouldn't give his name, after he passed by a couple of dozen protesters who lined the street outside the Eugene Hilton...
Rebecca McKenzie, 29, of Eugene left work at a nearby barbershop and grabbed a perch on an outdoor patio at Rockn Rodeo, a cowboy-themed bar across the street from the hotel. She watched the protests with a mix of fascination and chagrin.
"I think it's pretty pathetic," she said of the name-calling.
But c'mon. Palin? Eugene?
"I understand the oil and water thing," McKenzie said. "But if you don't approve, go home. Don't come."
Also on hand to protest were members of Code Pink, a liberal activist group. Palin said her daughter Bristol saw them from their hotel window, liked their pink clothes and went down and talked to them. Bristol, according to Palin, told them how much she likes Eugene.
Palin, or her speechwriter, had clearly done her homework. Time and time again, she urged the audience members not to get discouraged when they see Democrats in Congress and President Barack Obama pushing through government programs such as "Obamacare" health reform and bailouts of car companies.
"It's like the runner Steve Prefontaine used to say," Palin said, referring to the Eugene track legend, "It's going to come down to a pure guts race. And if it does, we can win it."
Palin aimed her message at the blue-collar, grass-roots level of the Republican Party. "Big government," represented by the Democratic Party, has run roughshod over the American people, she said, but people can fight back.
"If you remember only one thing, please remember this," she said. "America does need your voice now more than ever, especially in a place like this. Don't get discouraged."
Dawn Attleberger of Vancouver said she got a bit rattled as she endured jeers on her way into the event. But it was worth it, she said.
"I'm 51, and I wasn't interested in politics until she came into the picture," Attleberger said. "Now I am."
--------------
And here's a little anecdotal story about the reporter who wrote the above article running into Sarah Palin:
--------
Security was tight tonight at Sarah Palin’s fundraiser speech to the Lane County Republicans. But it wasn’t foolproof.
Shortly after filing my story on the speech, I headed to the basement of the Eugene Hilton, where I ran into state Rep. Ron Maurer, the Republican from Southern Oregon who is running for state schools superintendent.
As we were talking, up walks Palin with her husband, Todd. Both were sweaty and in workout clothes. They’d just come from the hotel gym and were headed up to their room.
It was a bit of a shock because the organizers -- under Palin’s orders -- had taken great pains to make sure she never encountered any reporters. We were allowed only to watch the speech from two large video screens in an adjacent room.
After talking briefly with Maurer about his naming his sons after rifles -- Remington and Winchester -- Palin turned to me and shook my hand, asking who I was.
“I’m one of those media people,” I said somewhat sheepishly. A significant chunk of Palin’s speech was devoted to criticizing and outright ridiculing what she termed “the lamestream media.”
“That’s OK,” she said. Todd grinned and shook my hand, too, before they both hopped into the elevator.
Friday, April 23, 2010
Brown Backs Romney
Scott Brown says that Palin is qualified to be President, but he's in Romney's camp for now.
Color me shocked!
Okay, not really. This is more of a yawn.
My guess is that Rubio is the same way. In Romney's camp. People like Ann Coulter are also in Romney's camp. My guess is that Ann doesn't want Sarah to run because she doesn't really want to fight her because Ann will most likely support Romney.
I'm sure others in the system, more party boys, will back Romney as well. They just don't have the courage to buck the machine. Romney has a machine. He is a politician. The party boys who know the power of a machine aren't man enough to fight it. Well, then they're not man enough to fight Obama's either. I will support some of them, but I wouldn't trust any of them.
If it does turn into a Romney vs. Palin fight for the primaries, Romney will run establishment. Palin will know how to deal with that. It mirrors her run for the gubernatorial primary. The anti-establishment Palin will roar.
You heard it here first. :)
Color me shocked!
Okay, not really. This is more of a yawn.
My guess is that Rubio is the same way. In Romney's camp. People like Ann Coulter are also in Romney's camp. My guess is that Ann doesn't want Sarah to run because she doesn't really want to fight her because Ann will most likely support Romney.
I'm sure others in the system, more party boys, will back Romney as well. They just don't have the courage to buck the machine. Romney has a machine. He is a politician. The party boys who know the power of a machine aren't man enough to fight it. Well, then they're not man enough to fight Obama's either. I will support some of them, but I wouldn't trust any of them.
If it does turn into a Romney vs. Palin fight for the primaries, Romney will run establishment. Palin will know how to deal with that. It mirrors her run for the gubernatorial primary. The anti-establishment Palin will roar.
You heard it here first. :)
Wednesday, April 21, 2010
An Illegal Prank
The trial of Kernell, the guy who hacked Palin's email account, continues. The defense's main argument seems to be that it was all a harmless prank.
I'm watching the news about some guy or guys who are calling the families of National Guard soldiers and telling them that their loved ones are hurt or worse.
These are termed as "prank calls." They also happen to come with a minimum five year sentence if whoever did it is caught. It's an actual crime to "prank call" like that.
Maybe I'll rob a bank and say, "Hey, I was just kidding, lighten up! It was a prank!"
Yeah. I'm sure they'll buy that.
They must be trying to buy the guy leniency, which is understandable. It's not like I want him locked up and the key thrown away myself. But he's got to get something. You can't just spread people's private emails all over the web for political reasons and get away with it.
I'm watching the news about some guy or guys who are calling the families of National Guard soldiers and telling them that their loved ones are hurt or worse.
These are termed as "prank calls." They also happen to come with a minimum five year sentence if whoever did it is caught. It's an actual crime to "prank call" like that.
Maybe I'll rob a bank and say, "Hey, I was just kidding, lighten up! It was a prank!"
Yeah. I'm sure they'll buy that.
They must be trying to buy the guy leniency, which is understandable. It's not like I want him locked up and the key thrown away myself. But he's got to get something. You can't just spread people's private emails all over the web for political reasons and get away with it.
Threats - UPDATE
So, the latest development in the university speaking fee drama is Congressman Yee releasing some threats he got because of the controversy. I'm not going to link the stuff that was sent to him because it's sick and racist. Anyway, you can bet your bottom dollar that the Left is going to have a field day with this.
Three points.
1. The Left is happy that Yee got these things. Now he can play victim, because when the Left starts looking stupid, there's nothing that pulls them out of that nosedive like a good case of crocodile tears. It also provides them an opportunity to further stereotype Palin supporters.
2. I don't know any Palin supporters that would ever say things like that. Doesn't mean they don't exist because every group has its crazies, but I've certainly never run across any.
3. The stuff they released is disgusting. No one should ever say it for any reason. But what, you think other public figures don't get similar threats all time? Of course they do. The FBI is a constant presence in Glenn Beck's life. Anyone who's the center of a controversy gets this garbage. I guess maybe I'll take it more seriously when the media starts covering the threats Beck gets.
And if you are a Palin supporter and you sent him anything like that, congratulations; you just handed the enemy a nice big round of ammunition to shell Palin with. Figuratively speaking, of course.
The stuff is disgusting. But the media's spotlight of it is merely an attempt to divert attention. I, for one, will not fall for that trap.
The bigger issue is that Yee is wasting the time and resources of his constituents in pursuit of brownie points from the higher-ups. He represents a state that's going bankrupt in a country that could be soon to follow, and he can find nothing better to do with his time than to use state resources to find out how much Palin is getting paid.
Pathetic.
I concur with this guy's view of Yee's actions:
--------
Our state legislators have a $20 billion budget deficit to solve to stave off financial ruin for California and yet Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, who recently discovered there was an area of California east of the Altamont, would rather spend his time obsessing over Sarah Palin coming to Turlock. While the house burns, our government argues over the color of the window shades.
This is a perfect example of the dysfunctional nature of Sacramento. Whether you like Palin or not, I think citizens of this region can all agree agree that it is time for Yee to go back to work in Sacramento and deal with the most pressing issues at hand, such as our depression-era unemployment levels. If Sacramento would do its job instead of squandering our tax dollars, perhaps the foundation wouldn't have to privately support the needs of a public institution.
--------
UPDATE - Remember this?
Three points.
1. The Left is happy that Yee got these things. Now he can play victim, because when the Left starts looking stupid, there's nothing that pulls them out of that nosedive like a good case of crocodile tears. It also provides them an opportunity to further stereotype Palin supporters.
2. I don't know any Palin supporters that would ever say things like that. Doesn't mean they don't exist because every group has its crazies, but I've certainly never run across any.
3. The stuff they released is disgusting. No one should ever say it for any reason. But what, you think other public figures don't get similar threats all time? Of course they do. The FBI is a constant presence in Glenn Beck's life. Anyone who's the center of a controversy gets this garbage. I guess maybe I'll take it more seriously when the media starts covering the threats Beck gets.
And if you are a Palin supporter and you sent him anything like that, congratulations; you just handed the enemy a nice big round of ammunition to shell Palin with. Figuratively speaking, of course.
The stuff is disgusting. But the media's spotlight of it is merely an attempt to divert attention. I, for one, will not fall for that trap.
The bigger issue is that Yee is wasting the time and resources of his constituents in pursuit of brownie points from the higher-ups. He represents a state that's going bankrupt in a country that could be soon to follow, and he can find nothing better to do with his time than to use state resources to find out how much Palin is getting paid.
Pathetic.
I concur with this guy's view of Yee's actions:
--------
Our state legislators have a $20 billion budget deficit to solve to stave off financial ruin for California and yet Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, who recently discovered there was an area of California east of the Altamont, would rather spend his time obsessing over Sarah Palin coming to Turlock. While the house burns, our government argues over the color of the window shades.
This is a perfect example of the dysfunctional nature of Sacramento. Whether you like Palin or not, I think citizens of this region can all agree agree that it is time for Yee to go back to work in Sacramento and deal with the most pressing issues at hand, such as our depression-era unemployment levels. If Sacramento would do its job instead of squandering our tax dollars, perhaps the foundation wouldn't have to privately support the needs of a public institution.
--------
UPDATE - Remember this?
Tuesday, April 20, 2010
"Pampering" Palin - UPDATE
Fluff piece about Palin's visit to Peoria, IL:
--------
Sarah Palin spent several hours at Pamper Me Please in East Peoria last Saturday before her speaking appearance in Washington, as well as appreciation for some Alaskan coffee provide by Embassy Suites during her recent visit to the area.
Stylist Tonya Jones of Metamora jokes about her brush with fame, cutting the hair of Sarah Palin, who spent several hours at Pamper Me Please in East Peoria last Saturday before her speaking appearance in Washington. "Palin wanted her hair to be done like mine, but I told her we got the style from her."
Nail technician/salon manager Rachelle Stokes, right, works on Sarah Palin's nails as she visits Pamper Me Please in East Peoria last Saturday before her speaking appearance in Washington.
Embassy Suites gained the gratitude and personalized thank you note from Sarah Palin during her recent stay through the efforts of outlet operations director Ben Mitzefelt and general manager Joe LoMonaco. The East Peoria hotel order six pounds of coffee from Palin's favorite coffee shop in Wasilla, Alaska.
Owner Gina White holds up a thank you card signed by Sarah Palin:
---------
UPDATE: More on the visit found here:
---------
For two days in East Peoria, at least, the 2008 Republican vice president candidate relaxed, with an afternoon at an East Peoria hair and nail salon far removed from blinding TV cameras and the swarm of reporters and security.
Husband Todd dined alone and undisturbed at a Subway.
And the couple was surprised at the Embassy Suites Hotel & Conference Center with six pounds of Mocha Moose coffee, a move which led Palin to write a note to the hotel's general manager Joe LoMonaco: "Joe, Thank you so much, Sarah Palin. * this was the most special thing ever in a hotel for us!"
"We did everything we could to really make her feel as comfortable as possible," said Gina White, owner of Pamper Me Please, the tucked away hair and nail salon located off Main Street that the Palins visited Saturday afternoon. "She made us feel comfortable as well."
The Palins arrived at Embassy Suites about 9:15 p.m. Friday, ordered room service (two orders of hamburgers and fries) and were greeted by a surprise sent direct from Wasilla, Alaska: Mocha Moose Coffee Company and Roastery coffee.
"Todd came to our staff and said, 'Wow, you really blew her away,'" LoMonaco said.
The coffee was discovered by Ben Mitzelfelt, the hotel's director of outlets who searched on the Internet to have something from Wasilla shipped to the hotel to present to Palin. He called the coffee shop and asked for several packages of coffee to surprise the Palins upon their arrival.
"He wanted to pay for it, but we just shipped it off to them. We really appreciate what Sarah is doing," said Ben Harrell, owner of Mocha Moose in Wasilla, where Sarah Palin served as mayor from 1996 to 2002.
LoMonaco still has a package of the coffee in his office, along with the written Palin message. The Palins, meanwhile, took four packages of the coffee with them when they left Sunday.
Diana Anderson, director of sales at the hotel and a Pamper Me Please customer, called White telling her that Palin wanted to get her hair and nails done and that she was sending the former governor to them.
White called her daughter, Rachelle Stokes of Germantown Hills, the salon's nail technician. While the two had the day off, they decided to rush to the salon and get to work. Tonya Jones, a Metamora resident and stylist for the past 15 years, already was at the salon when the Palins arrived about 12:15 p.m.
"I happened to have a cancellation," Jones said, and she was immediately thrust into doing Palin's hair.
Palin spotted Jones and said she liked her hair. The former governor said she wanted a simple hairdo, sat in Jones' chair and turned on her laptop to do some work while chatting about families and 80's hair styles.
It took about a half hour to do Palin's hair, Jones said. The ladies also chatted about daughter Willow's prom in Alaska and son Trig's second birthday on Sunday. No politics were discussed.
Next, Palin sat down and got her nails done by Stokes, who talked about Metamora High School football and families.
"Her daughter was getting her nails done at the same time," Stokes said. "(Sarah Palin) was like, 'I don't know how I feel about my daughter going to prom.'"
Palin spent time signing autographs for employees and visitors. She also took pictures with the staff. The photos likely will be framed and commemorated inside the salon.
"She said she hadn't had a chance like that to relax in a long while," Stokes said.
While Sarah Palin was getting her hair and nails done, Todd Palin went for a walk to Subway for lunch by himself.
Upon his return, his wife asked if he had been noticed by anyone. Todd Palin replied, "no."
An employee at the restaurant on Tuesday said he did not know if Todd Palin had stopped in.
The couple returned to the hotel after their salon stop to dine on room service again and meet with some local guests.
This time, the couple shared a rib-eye steak. The two also had their favorite wine while at Embassy Suites, a bottle of Shafer Merlot for $92 a bottle and $132 bottle of Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon.
The couple left early Sunday.
"She and her husband were normal, nice people," LoMonaco said. "You never know with what you see in the news and everything. But she was really nice and down to earth."
--------
Sarah Palin spent several hours at Pamper Me Please in East Peoria last Saturday before her speaking appearance in Washington, as well as appreciation for some Alaskan coffee provide by Embassy Suites during her recent visit to the area.
Stylist Tonya Jones of Metamora jokes about her brush with fame, cutting the hair of Sarah Palin, who spent several hours at Pamper Me Please in East Peoria last Saturday before her speaking appearance in Washington. "Palin wanted her hair to be done like mine, but I told her we got the style from her."
Nail technician/salon manager Rachelle Stokes, right, works on Sarah Palin's nails as she visits Pamper Me Please in East Peoria last Saturday before her speaking appearance in Washington.
Embassy Suites gained the gratitude and personalized thank you note from Sarah Palin during her recent stay through the efforts of outlet operations director Ben Mitzefelt and general manager Joe LoMonaco. The East Peoria hotel order six pounds of coffee from Palin's favorite coffee shop in Wasilla, Alaska.
Owner Gina White holds up a thank you card signed by Sarah Palin:
---------
UPDATE: More on the visit found here:
---------
For two days in East Peoria, at least, the 2008 Republican vice president candidate relaxed, with an afternoon at an East Peoria hair and nail salon far removed from blinding TV cameras and the swarm of reporters and security.
Husband Todd dined alone and undisturbed at a Subway.
And the couple was surprised at the Embassy Suites Hotel & Conference Center with six pounds of Mocha Moose coffee, a move which led Palin to write a note to the hotel's general manager Joe LoMonaco: "Joe, Thank you so much, Sarah Palin. * this was the most special thing ever in a hotel for us!"
"We did everything we could to really make her feel as comfortable as possible," said Gina White, owner of Pamper Me Please, the tucked away hair and nail salon located off Main Street that the Palins visited Saturday afternoon. "She made us feel comfortable as well."
The Palins arrived at Embassy Suites about 9:15 p.m. Friday, ordered room service (two orders of hamburgers and fries) and were greeted by a surprise sent direct from Wasilla, Alaska: Mocha Moose Coffee Company and Roastery coffee.
"Todd came to our staff and said, 'Wow, you really blew her away,'" LoMonaco said.
The coffee was discovered by Ben Mitzelfelt, the hotel's director of outlets who searched on the Internet to have something from Wasilla shipped to the hotel to present to Palin. He called the coffee shop and asked for several packages of coffee to surprise the Palins upon their arrival.
"He wanted to pay for it, but we just shipped it off to them. We really appreciate what Sarah is doing," said Ben Harrell, owner of Mocha Moose in Wasilla, where Sarah Palin served as mayor from 1996 to 2002.
LoMonaco still has a package of the coffee in his office, along with the written Palin message. The Palins, meanwhile, took four packages of the coffee with them when they left Sunday.
Diana Anderson, director of sales at the hotel and a Pamper Me Please customer, called White telling her that Palin wanted to get her hair and nails done and that she was sending the former governor to them.
White called her daughter, Rachelle Stokes of Germantown Hills, the salon's nail technician. While the two had the day off, they decided to rush to the salon and get to work. Tonya Jones, a Metamora resident and stylist for the past 15 years, already was at the salon when the Palins arrived about 12:15 p.m.
"I happened to have a cancellation," Jones said, and she was immediately thrust into doing Palin's hair.
Palin spotted Jones and said she liked her hair. The former governor said she wanted a simple hairdo, sat in Jones' chair and turned on her laptop to do some work while chatting about families and 80's hair styles.
It took about a half hour to do Palin's hair, Jones said. The ladies also chatted about daughter Willow's prom in Alaska and son Trig's second birthday on Sunday. No politics were discussed.
Next, Palin sat down and got her nails done by Stokes, who talked about Metamora High School football and families.
"Her daughter was getting her nails done at the same time," Stokes said. "(Sarah Palin) was like, 'I don't know how I feel about my daughter going to prom.'"
Palin spent time signing autographs for employees and visitors. She also took pictures with the staff. The photos likely will be framed and commemorated inside the salon.
"She said she hadn't had a chance like that to relax in a long while," Stokes said.
While Sarah Palin was getting her hair and nails done, Todd Palin went for a walk to Subway for lunch by himself.
Upon his return, his wife asked if he had been noticed by anyone. Todd Palin replied, "no."
An employee at the restaurant on Tuesday said he did not know if Todd Palin had stopped in.
The couple returned to the hotel after their salon stop to dine on room service again and meet with some local guests.
This time, the couple shared a rib-eye steak. The two also had their favorite wine while at Embassy Suites, a bottle of Shafer Merlot for $92 a bottle and $132 bottle of Silver Oak Cabernet Sauvignon.
The couple left early Sunday.
"She and her husband were normal, nice people," LoMonaco said. "You never know with what you see in the news and everything. But she was really nice and down to earth."
Monday, April 19, 2010
Miss America and Cries of Sedition - UPDATE
Apparently, Miss America has some class:----------
You betcha Caressa Cameron's not picking political sides, but Miss America 2010 is willing to say she's a fan of the Palins.
"She's someone who cares about the world around her, and she comes from a pageantry background," Cameron said of Sarah Palin at a lunch hosted by Tammy Haddad at Cafe Milano on Monday. "It shows good light on the program in my opinion."
Like a young Palin, Cameron wants to be a TV reporter and saw opportunity in pageantry. As for whether she plays for the same team politically, Cameron's not saying.
"I guess I could say I'm a fan," Cameron said of Palin. "I'm a fan of anyone who is trying to work for the greater good of the people, period."
Cameron was definitive about one thing -- she has issues with partisan politics.
"I think the problem sometimes with people is that they are so concerned with their allegiance to their party that they forget what's right for the American people," Cameron told Yeas & Nays.
As for Bristol, they both advocate a similar line -- preventing unwanted teen pregnancies. And Cameron praised Bristol for her work to deglamorize the idea of being a teen mom.
"I'm sure she's getting flak in regards to probably being a hypocrite and saying, 'Oh, go be abstinent now,' " Cameron said. " ... But I think some of the best lessons are taught by people who have walked the road that you would rather not walk."
---------------
Wow. Good on you, Miss America.
And Joseph Klein takes apart Joe Klein:
-------------
Times columnist Joe Klein never misses an opportunity to make a fool of himself. His latest bufoonery was displayed on NBC’s April 18 edition of “The Chris Matthews Show.”
I did a little bit of research just before this show – it’s on this little napkin here. I looked up the definition of sedition which is conduct or language inciting rebellion against the authority of the state. And a lot of these statements, especially the ones coming from people like Glenn Beck and to a certain extent Sarah Palin, rub right up close to being seditious.I suggest that next time Joe Klein do a more thorough research job and use a much larger napkin as a crib sheet. He might have discovered the discredited and short-lived Sedition Act, passed 22 years after the Declaration of Independence, which outlawed conspiracies “to oppose any measure or measures of the government” and made it illegal for anyone to express “any false, scandalous and malicious writing” against Congress or the president.
James Madison and Thomas Jefferson opposed it.
James Madison had argued that the Sedition Act attacked the
right of freely examining public characters and measures, and of free communication among the peopleAs president, Jefferson pardoned all who were convicted under the Sedition Act and helped pay their fines. The law was off the books by 1802. As Jefferson said in his inaugural address, Americans have the right
to think freely and to speak and write what they think.It looks like Joe Klein is on the side of the discredited Sedition Act, in opposition to Jefferson and Madison. Yet, ironically, he would have been punished himself for saying such “malicious” things against the Bush administration as:
I think this has been a profoundly un-American administration.Joe sure sounds like he was using language inciting rebellion against the authority of the state. Shame on him!
I’ll stick with Madison and Jefferson, who recognized the the right of the people to freely criticize their government. That applies to protecting Joe Klein and his leftist friends who railed against Bush for eight years or Glenn Beck and Sarah Palin who are railing against Obama’s big government policies today.
If Joe Klein had bothered to actually tune into Glenn Beck’s program, he would have heard Beck repeatedly quote this motto of peaceful protest from Mahatma Ghandi:
Use truth as your anvil, nonviolence as your hammer and anything that does not stand the test when it is brought to the anvil of truth and hammered with nonviolence, reject it.Perhaps it is time for Joe Klein to lift his head out of his intellectual bog known as the Swampland blog. Perhaps he can then begin to understand that Beck, Palin and the Tea Party protestors embody what Jefferson and Madison’s concept of political dissent is all about.
UPDATE: Here's Glenn mocking Klein earlier this year:
Tea Party Punks and Paulbots
I feel like I just pulled my head out of a crazy pit. Gotta shake it off...
The video below was uploaded by a guy supporting Ron Paul for 2012. Sometimes I think the Paulbots will still be supporting that man when he's six feet under.
I don't know if the guy in the video is a Ron Paul fan or not. If he is, he's the mother of all hypocrites because I believe that Ron Paul is in fact a Republican. So...I guess we can't vote for him either. Let's just elect Andrew Halcro and get it over with.
You know why I got a problem with fringe libertarians? Because they remind me so much of progressives.
A progressive crashes a Republican event and is carried out screaming about his violated freedom of speech and how the cops are facists. Hm. Sounds like a recent McCain/Palin rally, only that guy was a Paulbot.
Progressives (like Bill Maher) seem to think that if we can just get rid of that whole "God" thing and "drag the country" to whatever it is they want to accomplish, that sunshine and lollipops will be in order for everyone. If we just bow to our enemies, they'll leave us alone.
Paulbots seem to think that if we just overthrow those evil bankers and that evil Federal Reserve and dismantle the "war machine" and the "empire" (and perhaps even the church) that wars will cease and all will be well with the world.
Both sides trying to reach utopia, in two very different ways. The first by giving the state more control; the second by dismantling the whole system.
I got news for ya; man is fallen. We would be fighting each other whether there were "Bilderbergs" or not.
At least the Progressives don't talk in conspiracy theories. I think I'd rather watch Shannyn Moore than Alex Jones. That dude is one crock full of crazy.
The Tea Parties aren't fringe. You want to see real fringe? Check out the 9/11 truthers.
Well, on second thought, the Progressives do deal in some conspiracy theories. How many Trigs are there again?
"Run! The Neocons! Ahhhhh! They're coming!"
Anyway, without further adeiu:
The old dude was right. He's pretty much a punk.
Also, when I first started watching it, it made me doggone uncomfortable. Little red flags started going off over what he was proposing. He just seemed a little..."out there." But I decided to give him a chance and let him have his say because maybe there's a point he's getting to, ya know?
Then he went after Palin. Oh, dude, no. No, no, no. This is a Tea Party rally. Not everyone there is a Palin fan, but there are definitely Palin fans in the crowd. You can bank on it. You brought the reaction on yourself, man. LOL!
Also, the Tea Party movement is not a Sarah Palin movement, but neither are the Tea Party rallies 2012 campaign rallies. It's not customary to get up there and back a 2012 candidate or diss a potential candidate. The Tea Party members are diverse in their opinions of 2012 and it's just flat-out disrespectful.
I'm glad that this guy stepped in it, because he was on his way to encouraging the Tea Party to do something illegal. Conservatives grumble sometimes, and sometimes joke in a "Well, I can't afford health insurance. I guess I'll see you in jail!" way, but you don't get up in front of a crowd and advocate something along the lines of all of us becoming tax cheats.
By the way, I'm not ragging on Ron Paul himself. I do know some sane Paul fans. And I'm kind of a fan of his son, Rand. Like Palin, I don't agree with him on everything, but I appreciate his calm, educated demeanor. Here's Rand talking about Palin's endorsement of him and whether he feels that she's qualified to be President at around twelve minutes in. He also mentions her around 21:00 -
One more thing, some are now saying that the Tea Party movement is split between Palin and Paul. Um, no. It's open to everyone. It's just that some Paulbots have their pants in a bunch because it was "their" movement and Palin and Glenn Beck (those filthy Neocons!) "hijacked" it.
It was actually "hijacked" by the mainstream conservative American people, but that doesn't stop some from channeling their rage into Palin.
The video below was uploaded by a guy supporting Ron Paul for 2012. Sometimes I think the Paulbots will still be supporting that man when he's six feet under.
I don't know if the guy in the video is a Ron Paul fan or not. If he is, he's the mother of all hypocrites because I believe that Ron Paul is in fact a Republican. So...I guess we can't vote for him either. Let's just elect Andrew Halcro and get it over with.
You know why I got a problem with fringe libertarians? Because they remind me so much of progressives.
A progressive crashes a Republican event and is carried out screaming about his violated freedom of speech and how the cops are facists. Hm. Sounds like a recent McCain/Palin rally, only that guy was a Paulbot.
Progressives (like Bill Maher) seem to think that if we can just get rid of that whole "God" thing and "drag the country" to whatever it is they want to accomplish, that sunshine and lollipops will be in order for everyone. If we just bow to our enemies, they'll leave us alone.
Paulbots seem to think that if we just overthrow those evil bankers and that evil Federal Reserve and dismantle the "war machine" and the "empire" (and perhaps even the church) that wars will cease and all will be well with the world.
Both sides trying to reach utopia, in two very different ways. The first by giving the state more control; the second by dismantling the whole system.
I got news for ya; man is fallen. We would be fighting each other whether there were "Bilderbergs" or not.
At least the Progressives don't talk in conspiracy theories. I think I'd rather watch Shannyn Moore than Alex Jones. That dude is one crock full of crazy.
The Tea Parties aren't fringe. You want to see real fringe? Check out the 9/11 truthers.
Well, on second thought, the Progressives do deal in some conspiracy theories. How many Trigs are there again?
"Run! The Neocons! Ahhhhh! They're coming!"
Anyway, without further adeiu:
The old dude was right. He's pretty much a punk.
Also, when I first started watching it, it made me doggone uncomfortable. Little red flags started going off over what he was proposing. He just seemed a little..."out there." But I decided to give him a chance and let him have his say because maybe there's a point he's getting to, ya know?
Then he went after Palin. Oh, dude, no. No, no, no. This is a Tea Party rally. Not everyone there is a Palin fan, but there are definitely Palin fans in the crowd. You can bank on it. You brought the reaction on yourself, man. LOL!
Also, the Tea Party movement is not a Sarah Palin movement, but neither are the Tea Party rallies 2012 campaign rallies. It's not customary to get up there and back a 2012 candidate or diss a potential candidate. The Tea Party members are diverse in their opinions of 2012 and it's just flat-out disrespectful.
I'm glad that this guy stepped in it, because he was on his way to encouraging the Tea Party to do something illegal. Conservatives grumble sometimes, and sometimes joke in a "Well, I can't afford health insurance. I guess I'll see you in jail!" way, but you don't get up in front of a crowd and advocate something along the lines of all of us becoming tax cheats.
By the way, I'm not ragging on Ron Paul himself. I do know some sane Paul fans. And I'm kind of a fan of his son, Rand. Like Palin, I don't agree with him on everything, but I appreciate his calm, educated demeanor. Here's Rand talking about Palin's endorsement of him and whether he feels that she's qualified to be President at around twelve minutes in. He also mentions her around 21:00 -
Watch live streaming video from cjpolitics at livestream.com
One more thing, some are now saying that the Tea Party movement is split between Palin and Paul. Um, no. It's open to everyone. It's just that some Paulbots have their pants in a bunch because it was "their" movement and Palin and Glenn Beck (those filthy Neocons!) "hijacked" it.
It was actually "hijacked" by the mainstream conservative American people, but that doesn't stop some from channeling their rage into Palin.
Sunday, April 18, 2010
Happy Birthday, Trig!
The little cutie turns two today. The Hillbuzz boyz have a prelimary report on last night. I'm sure there'll be a more detailed one to follow:
-----------
Last night in Washington, IL we heard Governor Palin speak and she told us that every morning Trig wakes up, rubs the Sand Man’s dust from his eyes, giggles, and starts applauding. That’s how the little champ greets each day. With thunderous applause and laughter. She says she knows he understands challenges, and that he certainly gets frustrated and has his ups and downs, even at two, but that every morning his natural cheer and kind spirit pops to life the moment he wakes, revved up to start a new day and enjoy it to the fullest.
You better believe we’re going to remember that from now on, every morning we wake up. Each day is a gift, folks. It should indeed be met with applause and thanks, for we are all blessed to get a chance every morning to do something incredible, something fun, something joyous, because we’ve been given another day above ground.
Trig Palin’s an angel undercover — with a clear mission to us: to inspire, to challenge, to make us think, and TO LEAD by his simple and heartfelt example.
We’ll have more on the Governor’s speech later today when we have a chance to type up our notes, but we had to share this bit with you, as we all send little Trig our best wishes on his big day.
Happy Birthday Trig!
--------
Here's a video where little Trig does some clapping. Just about melted my heart the first time I saw it. He's so cute. Turns me into a total girl with the squealing and all. "Oh, he's so adorable! He clapped his hands!" It's pathetic, really. ;)
Lots of good Trig videos out there, including this one, but this has to be the cutest:
Happy Sunday!
Good morning. Here is your Sarah Palin vid for this Sunday. From June of last year. Palin introduces Michael Reagan. Includes the famous, "Politically speaking, if I die, I die" line that is now seen as a foreshadowing of her resignation:
And now on to Tammy Bruce having some fun with "Strawgate" -
And now on to Tammy Bruce having some fun with "Strawgate" -
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