How do you debate people who seek to attack Governor Sarah Palin?
Our good friend Patricia sent in the following email exchange that recently transpired between a neighbor, Anne, and herself, with Anne engaging in attacks on Governor Sarah Palin that seem oddly familiar…because they’re almost word-for-word lifted from the media’s usual talking points.
Patricia is no shrinking violet and didn’t take any gruff from Anne. She defended Governor Palin and debated Anne in a calm and reasoned way, which drove Anne into emotional territory where she stooped to expletives and other irrationality that just made her look foolish (more so than usual, according to Patricia).
I’ve reprinted the exchange below to give you an idea how YOU too can counter these tired and familiar attacks on Governor Palin, whether they come to you in email exchanges or happen in the grocery store, at the park, or in the coffee room at the office.
You’re going to keep seeing this same garbage recycled repeatedly for the next year…so it’s important to get in your own mindset to refudiate it.
Wink.
EMAIL FROM ANNE TO PATRICIA:
Patricia,
I want to continue what we were talking about today when I saw you at the store and you had that Sarah Palin magazine in your cart and you were going on about the Sarah Palin movie “The Undefeated” and were excited about getting “Sarah Palin’s Alaska” on dvd. You would probably buy “Sarah Palin Cupcakes” or “Sarah Palin Pine-Scented Hand Sanitizer” if they sold them at Giant Eagle, and you’d probably give everyone in town lifelime supplies for Christmas if you could.
I see Sarah Palin as a media whore that throws her family out to the wind, putting them in the limelight with the media….all of ALASKA in the limelight when it doesn’t want to be…..making the kids pose and be under the cameras and have a somewhat reality show for the family all because Sarah Palin wants fame and fortune for herself and doesn’t care what anybody else wants.
The Governor Sarah Palin that is so accomplished for her work with her state is a fading memory….now she is rock star Sarah Palin always looking for a photo opportunity or some new book or TV show or movie to be featured in.
She was the only part of the McCain / Palin ticket that we were truly impressed with. Now is a different story.
I would never fault someone for pregnancy before marriage. I just feel putting that young lady, her daughter Barstow or whatever her name is, out in the public eye with one reality show after another filiming their daily lives was irresponsible as a Mother and I do not change my opinion on that. If someone asked me to be on a reality show, I would probably say no, unless it was The Amazing Race because then I would get to go to far away places to see things I would never get to see otherwise and I also think I would do very well on that show because my family’s life story is interesting. But that’s besides the point.
In her efforts to keep herself in the limelight Sarah Palin does nothing to protect the family and has very young children she should be reading to and feeding, instead of just feeding her ego and taking other people’s chances away from them in terms of being on TV.
I know you support her, but Sarah Palin is just a one time, second place beauty contestant who doesn’t know when to get off the stage now that her fifteen minutes are up.
Anne
******************************
PATRICIA RESPONDS TO ANNE:
Anne,
Wow.
Are you really going on about “The Amazing Race” again? Seriously, just apply for the show already and stop being jealous of people who leave their house every day and accomplish things.
No, I don’t agree with you one lick about Sarah Palin. I think you are rather foolish actually and that you parrot whatever you hear on the TV. Or, maybe it’s your toaster you are listening to this time. Just don’t set any fires and then blame it on the elves living under your porch. The fire department is going to start charging you fines for this if it keeps up.
I really do see the hand of God working through Sarah Palin. She is so much more than “a one time, second place, beauty contestant” (who did that to earn money to go to college, you need to be reminded, since apparently you didn’t even go to college). I thought maybe you would have appreciated her hard work, but perhaps I am wrong. I also think you are jealous no one has ever asked you to be in anything but the “scariest costume contest” at Halloween, when you weren’t even intentionally dressed for the occasion. You won first place for that, I remember. It’s the only bragging rights you have over Sarah Palin.
I’m not sure why you say that Sarah Palin is pathetic as a politician. She beat a three term incumbent named Frank Murkowski to win the Governorship. She has always fought against corruption in her own party. Is this what you mean by “pathetic?” Do you call someone who takes on her own party and roots out the evil-doers “pathetic”? If so, then I guess you would think that I am pathetic because I fought against a Republican mayor when we had an illegal referendum and he refused to listen to his Bond Counsel who told him to hold a new referendum. As a result, the Republicans kicked me off the Republican Town Committee. I kind of wear this as a badge of honor for standing up and doing the right thing. If you need a new dictionary, I can send you one so that you can edumacate yourself on what words mean since this is not “pathetic”. Better yet, I’ll just send you a mirror so you can have a handy visual reference for “pathetic” whenever you look into it.
Why do you say that Sarah Palin is pathetic as a mother? Isn’t the fact that she chose to have, and to love with all her heart, her Down Syndrome baby Trig in line with your pro-life stand? Is it because her daughter Bristol (not Barstow, as you called her…and I know darn well you know the girl’s real name, but you’re just being mean-spirited) got pregnant out of wedlock? Jenny from the Tombstone Tavern “lives in sin” with her boyfriend, who is a cook at the restaurant and always humors you when you keep sending back your fries claiming they aren’t crispy enough. Everyone in town knows you are just trying to get things for free when you do this, but Jenny humors you because everyone knows how lonely and bitter you are. Does it make me a pathetic mother, too, in your eyes that I have my own business and work and always have done that and I raised two kids of my own? You make no sense.
I believe that Sarah Palin likes Rand Paul, or else she wouldn’t have endorsed him. Mitt Romney is another story. I don’t see how Sarah Palin could ever want anything to do with that man because of Palin’s history of fighting the corrupt establishment and Romney is clearly the establishment’s chosen guy this time around. Sarah Palin is Tea Party and Romney is Cocktail Party. Enough said.
I just don’t think you know very much about what you are talking about and suggest you maybe start reading all the Notes that Sarah Palin has written on her Facebook account to maybe edumacate yourself on what she stands for and what principles she holds dearly.
And lay off the tired old personal attacks on the woman that you pick up like fleas from watching MSNBC. And brush your hair once in a while. You look a mess.
Love,
Patricia
*****************************
—–Original Message—–
From: Anne
To: Patricia Sent: Sun, Jul 17, 2011 9:50 pm
Subject: Re: So you think you know Sarah Palin
Patricia,
You are so far up the Palin Ladder there is no talking to you…. you go girl …. get your beauty queen into office if you can….
She does not have my vote….she is pathetic as a politician, and mother like I said…..
Glad to hear what the Palin camp thinks about Rand Paul and Mitt Romney….
grateful to you for that info….
good luck you’ll need it…because there is no way that Sarah Palin can win.
Anne
****************************
EMAIL FROM PATRICIA TO ANNE:
Anne,
Have you been over to the Conservatives4palin.com website? This site was created by a woman who never even met Sarah Palin, but knew her record and what was done to her by the lamestream media. Sarah took the $14 BILLION Alaska budget, which was in surplus, and CUT spending and managed to leave her state STILL with a surplus. On top of that, she made sure that every single person in Alaska got a profit-sharing check from the oil companies. I think everyone got something like $1,200 a piece because of her.
Let’s look at the Republican candidates that have already announced for a second:
Hermann Cain – He is an interesting man who has never held any sort of elected office. Ever. Part of Obama’s problem in office is that he was not prepared to handle the job. I don’t think we want another person who needs this much on the job training. Maybe Cain should run for mayor, City Council, Governor, or some other position first before running for president.
Newt Gingrich – Putting aside what Newt did to his wife when she was dying of cancer, which irks many people including myself, let’s talk for a minute about Newt sitting on a park bench with Nancy Pelosi in front of the Capitol building supporting Al Gore’s global warming cult. There was no reason for Newt to do that commercial and photo op aside from wanting to bask in some media praise for doing it. This is not the sort of candidate that Republicans need to field. No one with a friendly enough relationship with Pelosi to go on picnics in the park with her should be a serious Republican presidential candidate.
Michele Bachmann – She can do the most good for the country in Congress. She can make an effective Speaker of the House and would sure do more good than that wimp John Boehner. But Bachmann has zero executive experience. We need someone in office who has been a Governor, a Commissioner, and a Mayor before that…like Sarah Palin, who understands how to be a chief executive on multiple levels. Bachmann does not have the needed experience.
Rick Santorum – He did not win reelection in PA. He, too, has no executive experience. He has very little name recognition aside from the bad publicity he’s generated for himself by attacking gay people and is in single digits in all polls. If the people of PA didn’t reelect him, will voters nationwide select him? When he was a Senator he also lied about his residency status and kept an empty house in a neighborhood in Pennsylvania — with no furniture in it — and then tried to scam the state for rebates to pay for sending his three or four kids to private school in DC, where the family really lived. I remember seeing very embarrassing news footage of people peeking into Santorum’s supposed residence in PA and having the place be empty and thinking “what a damn fool this man is”. He has done nothing to change his much-earned reputation.
Jon Huntsman – Who? He’s a very wealthy guy and can buy ads, but does he have conservative hearts? I don’t think so. I think Democrats have been saying for a few years now “Gee, we really don’t want to run against Jon Huntsman. You know, the guy Obama made Ambassador to China. Don’t pick him as your nominee please because Obama can’t possibly beat Jon Huntsman”. Are you really stupid enough to fall for something this absurd? Democrats are trying to make Huntsman into the new Ross Perot…an egomaniacal billionaire who spoils the 2012 race and gives the election to Obama by running as a third party candidate most likely. America can’t afford to let that happen again like it did in 92.
Ron Paul – I give him credit for his understanding of monetary issues and having a legion of followers. But, when his son ran for office, it was Sarah Palin who Rand Paul called in to endorse him. Does Paul have more influence than Sarah Palin? I don’t think so. Where is Paul’s executive experience as well?
Willard “Mitt” Romney – This guy changes his position on issues depending upon how the political wind blows. I am pretty sure he also enjoys smelling his own farts. There is a reason why he is called a “flip-flopper.” He is silent on every major issue until he polls tell him what the voters want. Half the time he does whatever Democrats want him to do just so he gets great press coverage and the media lavishes praise upon him. Romneycare was the template for Obamacare. If the majority of the people don’t want Obamacare, will they vote for a guy who gave the template for it? There is a reason the national media is pushing so hard for Romney to be the 2012 GOP nominee and it’s that everyone knows Obama will beat him. Romney is another John McCain or Bob Dole. He can’t win, and that’s why there’s such a hard push to cram this loser down everyone’s throats.
Name me one candidate that has people willing to wait in line for hours in order for them to shake their hand and sign their book. I should say “her hand” and “her book”, because all of 15 people bought Romney’s book, and I think 14 of them were libraries that had to buy it because one of the shelves here or there was wobbly and they needed something to prop it up.
Name me one candidate who has written two best-selling books.
Name me one candidate that can produce a show and have it be the highest rated show on TLC.
Name me one candidate that, whenever she speaks on one of the news shows, that show will get the highest number of viewers.
Name me one candidate, who, when put on the cover of a magazine, will sell it out.
Name me one Republican candidate that has over 3 million followers on Facebook and over almost 600,000 on Twitter.
Name me one candidate who endorsed other candidates and 66% of those candidates won.
Name me one candidate who was the first to speak out on Obamacare and successfully coined the phrase “death panels” to pithily describe what Obamacare is all about.
Name me one candidate who has taken on the corrupt bastards in their own party AND WON.
Name me one candidate who has CONSISTENTLY taken the lead in addressing the various topics from Obamacare to debt ceiling to undeclared wars, etc.
Name me one candidate who can win the HEARTS and MINDS of voters.
Name me one candidate who has a legion of supporters ANXIOUSLY waiting for her to announce.
Name me one candidate who has been so completely vetted that there are no skeletons in her closet (but unlike Santorum, there’s actual furniture in her house).
Name me one candidate that has volunteer organizations in at least 30 states when that candidate has not even declared she is running. Yet.
Name me one candidate who a private company was willing to risk $1,000,000 on to make a movie about their accomplishments. Then, without purchasing any ads, had that movie come in second behind Harry Potter, both of which debuted on the same night and which beat the Transformers when it debuted in the per-screen accounting based on the number of theaters the movies were shown in.
Name me one candidate that is the polar opposite of all that is Obama, that will give the voters a real choice in 2012.
Anne, please keep an open mind about Sarah Palin. When The Undefeated comes to a theater near you, please go see it. There is a reason why Sarah Palin had an 88% approval rating in Alaska. Sarah Palin is real. Please get beyond the pretty face. Get beyond the photo ops you are jealous of. Sarah needed to do these things because she was trashed by the media. She has successfully found a way to use the media to get her messages across. That is what a real leader does. It is something that no man in the Republican Party since Reagan has been able to do. Sarah Palin is a once in a lifetime gift to American conservatism.
It seems to me that you are listening to the lamestream media’s version of who Sarah Palin is and the spin they are using to try to get you to believe Sarah Palin is unelectable. Do you not see that they are deliberately picking anyone other than Sarah because they want us to believe that Sarah Palin is unelectable? If Sarah Palin is so unelectable, why are they making such an effort to destroy her? Why did they follow her on a bus tour when she is not a candidate? This should be a clue to you that she is, in fact, the MOST electable.
I don’t know about you, but when the media invests everything it has trying so desperately to convince people to hate someone, I take a good hard look at that person and I start thinking about WHY the media’s putting all its eggs in the basket of destroying her.
I am one of those who admired her from a single speech she gave at her inauguration. I even tried to meet her the first time Earl and I went to Alaska, that is how much I admire her. That was more than two years before she was on the national stage. It is the reason McCain picked her to be his Vice President on the ticket. And while I think that McCain’s people were terrible in how they treated her, I thank McCain for bringing Sarah Palin into the national spotlight. It is his place in history that he introduced Sarah Palin to the country. I can’t wait for her to announce. For all my years of active involvement in politics, there is no one, NO ONE, who has captured my heart and captured my mind the way Sarah Palin has. I WILL be involved in her campaign, one way or another. I believe that God has placed her here for such a time as this. I just ask you to keep an open mind. Put aside whatever jealousy you have against her or what the TV or other appliances have told you to think and listen to Sarah Palin with your head and your heart.
By the way, on the conservatives4palin.com website, you can read about all the stands she has taken on all the various issues. You can also see these on her Facebook page. There is just no reason at all to get all your information from the biased media that clearly has an agenda not only to harm Sarah Palin, but to ensure Republicans pick a losing candidate to put up against Obama.
Love,
Patricia
********************************
—–Original Message—–
From: Anne
To: Patricia Sent: Fri, Jul 15, 2011 11:21 pm
Subject: Re: So you think you know Sarah Palin.
She is just going to wreck the possibility of any Republican Getting into office….
taking votes away from a solid fiscally responsible business encourager…..
With the circus of Republicans in the race we are really up against it to try and
have someone from our party in office….
so these Yahoo’s are just going to muddy the water I think…..and they actually help
our opposition overcome us….
I am so disgusted….
Anne
**********************************
EMAIL FROM PATRICIA TO ANNE
Anne,
No. You are just foolish.
Check this out.
Edumacate, not embarrass, yourself.
Patricia
© 2011, Kevin DuJan. All rights reserved.
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Wow! Feisty! I like that! I would attack the problem in the following way: why is Sarah Palin such an undesirable candidate? She's dumb is what they'll say. I'll respond by saying that she is college educated, worked in the private sectork, and also held public office. What can you say about obama? Well, 57 states come to mind, teleprompter comes to mind, his "hemming and hawing" comes to mind. How about the absence of any evidence that he's done anything, including what he did in school. I would like to see his credentials. I'm sure that there are a lot more… I would like to turn the obamite's criticism on obama himself. In that case, it should wither their case. If they don't see the point, then they're stupid. Plain and simple.
wow. those emails are too lengthy. i just tell them the facts as concisely as possible. i have a friend who hates sarah because she thinks she's stupid and because of the wolf hunting. she thought sarah actually hunted wolves herself from helicopters. i told her no she doesn't. now that obamao (who is not a muslim) has taken them off the endangered species list for montana and idaho (where there are only 1200 left), she is very upset, and i make no qualms about wanting to see the commercials where obamao is personally targeting and shooting wolves himself. she also said something about the paul revere ride and how even john stewart was making fun of her. i told her no, she did have it right, and that the MA historic society had testimony from revere himself. i explained it to her. she didn't believe me, but that is all i do- say "nope- here's the facts:…."
i'm also the fan of subliminal dropping of her name when i can and how she does not back down. how can you not admire that? can't wait for the "fight like a girl" campaign starts!
Not everything in life can or should be 140 characters like on Twitter.
Not everything is a two sentence Facebook update.
People do still actually write to each other. It doesn’t mean you have to, and what’s “too lengthy” to you may be how other friends communicate between each other. Like the way they would have in the old days of handwriting letters.
This still happens.
Kevin
Great response.
[Even] Greater to have you back.
God Bless
I think it's time to purchase those old-fashioned index cards and make myself some notes. So often I will hear someone say something that I know is false, but I don't like to engage unless I have a source to cite to bolster my argument. When speaking to those leftists with whom l can carry on a civil debate I like to use sources that they will also accept — original quotes or reports versus Fox News or Breitbart, for example. Trouble is, that takes work! But if I decide to eat the elephant and just take one point at a time, it can be done successfully. I know what I'll be doing this week.
That is a GREAT idea! There really are only a handful of insults that the MSM keeps recycling about Sarah Palin. If we all take a few minutes to deconstruct them and then come up with clear, direct responses, it will easier to defend her whenever the occasion arises.
I still maintain that people like to be associated with people who are perceived as "cool" but they don't want to be seen as following a "loser" (Think of Bob Dole vs Bill Clinton – even though I disagreed with Clinton on many issues, and was very concerned about the womanizing rumors, I had to admit that this "Don't Stop Thinking about Tomorrow" Campaign was very effective!
We need to be ready at all times to make people see Obama as a petty, immature, failure, an out-of-touch grievance monger who has wrecked the economy….contrasted with Sarah Palin as a successful busineswoman, and governor, someone who loves this country and is enthusiastic about its future.
If we're looking at 80's anthems, maybe the new one should be "It's Hip to be Square." I hear you about wanting to be associated with the cool kids. But really, when you look at how many of those folks turned out after the glory days of high school and/or college, don't you think many of them peaked too soon? I'd rather be a Bill Gates over a Paris Hilton type, with a conservative edge, of course.
I think this could be a great Blue Team ongoing project: talking points a la Arguing with Idiots.
I'm late to this discussion, but I want to throw in a "Me too" on mastering responses to the most basic MSM complaints about Sarah. For sources, I have them bookmarked on my smartphone, but index cards is just as great an idea.
Would you make that information available to all of us? It would be grand for everyone to use the same information so that we develop a repeating meme. It would also be grand to tweet & post & get the same information out there over & over so that the truth begins to come immediately to mind instead of the lies the treacherous purveyors of drivel (tpd instead of MSM) keep repeating. And, we could all be certain to have the most reliable sources.
I have a very liberal friend who always refers to Sarah Palin inciting violence but can only refer to the comment about "reloading." When I tell her that Gov. Palin didn't make the remark, her father did & I explain the reference, she still insists there are other calls to violence. Even when I point out the only violence that has been committed has been by liberals, she won't believe me. I'd love to refute her & others who attack Gov. Palin but haven't got the references & am preoccupied w/ health issues (but I still want to do whatever I can). Having attacks, responses & references would really help a lot of us as we work to support Gov. Palin.
I had an interesting exchange with my liberal neice. She told me she “Hates Hates! Hates! Sarah Palin. And I’m a republican!!!!!” she can’t understand why I like her. I calmly explained to her that I am more interested in understanding the psycology of the people that dislike Sarah Palin than actually supporting Sarah. This had an important effect on her. It put the spotlight on my neice and her uncontrolled emotions. The conversation focused on her and her emotions and not about a hockey mom from wasilla alaska. It was fascinating to watch her not want to defend her emotions. By not defending Sarah Palin I boxed my niece into a corner with no way out.
Everybody, let's add this to our rolodex of ideas! Great, great approach.
Have faith my friends. Sarah will convince folks. It is already happening. I work in the High Tech Industry out in the Land of Fruits & Nuts (CA) and have watched many of my liberal co-workers find a grudging respect for Mrs P. and many of my conservatives co-worker find a sense of admiration and respect for her. When asked about her chances I reply, "if she runs, she wins". This last Friday I was asked by a youth liberal co-worker if I would vote for her. "in a heartbeat" In the past that would have been met with derision and the usual media Palin slams. Not this time. This time that was responded with a "Why?" Which is all the opening anyone of us need to chance hearts and minds. I doubt I changed my young friend's mind, but I know I planted a seed. Time for all of us to be gardeners for Sarah. Nurture your new seedlings whenever you find them. Remember, too much water and fertilizer kills young plants, so use them sparingly.
Kevin, Conservatives4Palin just sent you a big shout out (and as far as I'm concerned, a whole bunch of hugs & kisses):
http://conservatives4palin.com/2011/07/they-said-…
send them to http://www.whysarahpalin.com It was created just for people who don't have an answer to the why? question yet.
Wow, Ms. Davis. Thank you for that! I am going to check it frequently.
Another reason I want Sarah: She paid attention to her entire government while governor. Every office. Our State Dept., Justice Dept., CIA, FBI, Dept. of Defense needs to be cleansed of the Communists who have infiltrated it. She will pay attention to that. I think any senate and house member who runs will be paying more attention to policy and bills, rather than fixing our government. Our state and city governments cannot afford to and should not need to continue being threatened by the Justice Dept. with a lawsuit because not enough minorities can pass tests for law enforcement, firefighting, etc. They are dumbing down our requirements. If my kid has to have brain surgery, I want the neurosurgeon to have earned his credentials, not be in that position because of some affirmative action BS and dumbing down of requirements. I want the requirements as high as possible.
Thanks! That's exactly what I've been looking for.
I don't seem to be able to post much in one post, so I will split up this response into separate posts.
Respond with facts.
Troopergate. The police chief who was fired admitted that his firing had nothing to do with Sarah's former brother-in-law. He wouldn't say anymore. I followed Sarah Palin before she was chosen to be McLoser's running mate. He admitted this before she was chosen. He was fired because he wanted funding for a certain something-or-other, but it was outside the budget, so his request was denied. There is a certain protocol controlled by Alaska law – he had to go through certain channels. He went around those channels because he was going to get that money one way or another, and the route he chose was against the law.
The hunting of wolves. Sarah said that decision should be left to Alaskans, so she put it to the voters. The residents of Alaska voted to cull the packs. They know good stewardship.
Before the media decided to completely destroy her, Sarah had an 85% approval rating in Alaska.
The reason Sarah left the governorship is because she cared more about the state than her own power. It was costing the state $2 million/day to investigate and defend the false ethics charges, and it was costing Sarah's family their personal funds.
She got rid of the governor's jet, saying there is no reason she and her family should not fly commercial like the rest of Alaskans. She got rid of the governor's chef and governor's chauffeur, saying she was perfectly capable of cooking for her family and visitors and certainly could drive herself to work. How anyone cannot admire that humility, I will never understand. She wanted to save the State of Alaska money.
She took on the big dogs (Murkowski) of her own party. Corrupt to the max. They were a dynasty up there, much like the Kennedys in MA, and she won. That takes real mettle and a solid foundation for kicking out the good ol' boy, business as usual antics that has stifled growth in Alaska.
The gas line has been planned since the 1970s. In 1977, there was word that the gas line would actually be built. Canada prepared. No governor has been able to get it off the ground because of environmental groups, oil company lobbying, etc. Sarah is the first governor to be able to achieve the impossible, which would be great for Alaska's economy and would help this country become more energy independent.
Can you expand on the gas line? I read her first book & she talks about this but l’m not exactly sure what happened. is the gas line different from the oil line? I thought the oil companies were getting some kind of tax break (which I also don’t understand how) but never doing anything with the lands they leased. I thought it was a. oil line but then I thought they had done that already, and if it is a gas line, how do the oil companies figure in exactly? Are they in control of both oil and gas? For me when i read about it it wad
*was like she touched on it and skimmed over it because she needed to give too much background before she could go into mccains campaign.
Here’s how I understand it from watching the movie “The Undefeated” and having read “Going Rogue” — and please someone correct this if I get it wrong.
ACES was the program that the Governor introduced to restructure the tax system in Alaska so that the oil companies didn’t get tax breaks for anything BUT investment in infrastructure. The Governor had to do this because the oil companies did not invest in new construction for 30 years in some areas, like the Point Thompson oil field that Exxon had the lease on. Basically, the problem was that previous Cocktail Party administrations sold leases to these fields to the Big Three oil companies but never made these companies actually do anything with them…so the companies just bought them so that other people could not do anything with them either, and the natural resources just sat in the ground doing Alaskans no good. I am not 100% sure, but I believe oil and gas development are both included in these leases, since repeatedly in the film I remember people talking about “oil and gas reserves” for the same piece of land, and only Exxon was named as a lease holder, so I assume the two are linked in those leases.
The ACES program gave Alaskans a bigger cut of the oil and gas produced because taxes were levied on net not gross amounts in the oil company’s sales.
The other thing that’s discussed in the movie “The Undefeated” is the AGIA pipeline — which I believe is a natural gas only pipeline. AGIA stands for Alaska Gas Inducement Act. This is the pipeline that Governor Palin put up for open bids, ticking both the Cocktail Party and the oil companies off. A firm named TransCanada Alaska got the contract and is going to build the pipeline that will go from the Alaska North Slope to the Midwest through Canada. It’s not going to be finished until almost 2020.
TransCanada Alaska partnered up with Exxon on this project.
Exxon as a company handles both oil and gas production and delivery. But oil and gas do not travel through the same pipelines.
This appears to be why the AGIA project was needed, because there was no natural gas pipeline but there appear to have been oil pipelines where they are needed.
I am so happy you asked these questions because I now have a note on my computer because of you to research all of this and put it into nice, neat debate card format so that I can share it with readers who will no doubt need this info for surrogate speaking on the Governor’s behalf.
We all need a good handle on this…so chime in if you know more about this topic, and please correct if my memory is wrong from watching “The Undefeated”.
thanks for that because i was confused on oil and gas- i know they aren't interchangeable but it seems like they are ? i remember ACES as being for the Alaskans themselves once they got the oil companies off their collective @sses to do something, but the pipelines are what confuse me because it seems we've been taught since 3rd grade that Alaska has an oil pipeline for the US. and i know she quit the oil/energy commission because of corruption and cronyism, then later nailed them when it was known the FBI(?) was investigating the politicians and whatnot.
Khemo,
Please remind me on Wednesday if I didn’t get to this tomorrow, but I think it would be very smart to work on some research on all this oil and gas stuff so that it’s very easy for regular people to understand it, when they don’t have time to figure this all out on their own.
We need to come up with a way to really showcase Governor Palin’s achievements in an “elevator speech” that hits he high points and doesn’t leave anyone confused.
Oil and gas pipelines are so alien to most of the country…our challenge is to make all this relatable and understandable. Can you please help by reminded me to do this if I don’t get to it tomorrow? I definitely want to have this done by end of the week.
K
If she runs for president, she will be the most vetted candidate probably in the history of this country. Too bad the media didn't vet Obama (who is not a Muslim). Those of us who care to cast an educated vote did our own vetting, but his school and college records, birth records, senate voting records – everything is sealed. Why? Why would any American vote for someone about whom they know nothing?
I have a liberal friend who read Sarah's first book – I was shocked. I would have never expected her to do so. The last time I talked to her, she was so wowed that she thought Sarah should be president. Maybe we can order a bunc of The Undefeated DVDs and loan them to people and ask them to watch it and then we can have a conversation. All they know about Sarah is what the media has reported and lied about. All they know about Obama is the media covering his wretched rear end and hiding his entire history.
I've had some liberals tell me they can't stand the sound of Sarah's voice. I don't engage in conversation with people like that because they are ruled by their emotions rather than their intellect. It's a waste of time.
By the way, I love this pic of her. Really shows her fearlessness.
Oh, and one other: Sarah was the first female governor of Alaska. Also its youngest. I point blank ask liberals if they have a problem with that.
NOW, oh NOW, where are you???????
I just thought of another argument I use: Sarah has had five friends whom she considers her "best" friends for over 30 years. One of them is gay. So I do not allow anyone to tell me she is intolerant or anti-gay.
Sorry, Kevin. I feel like I'm spamming your site. Rest assured that is not my intent. This thread triggered a frustration in me so much so that I wanted to share every tool in my toolbox that I use. I'll shut up now.
I'm so glad you are on the mend!
I don't have any republicans to whom I need to argue in defense of Palin. I live in Philadelphia so I am constantly dealing with self loathing liberals who have a very difficult time dealing with a self made, respectable, accomplished (in personal and professional life), who cannot be deamed a hypocrit because she leads by example.
When libtards begin to trash Palin and then trash me for supporting her, I tell them that I support the actual person Sarah palin , not the fictional character that the Soros puppet media and Tina Fey created. I direct them to Fact Check.org's "Slimming Palin" which list the numerous and outragious lies that the Obama-Soros media reported as fact about Palin and then never recanted.
If it is a real scum bag liberal that is attacking her-we all know the type, I tell them that liberal dudes hate her because she is not the kind of woman they can knock up and then march off to the abortion clinic. She is not a vagina opportunist, like Barbara Walters or a wife who would disrespect herself by inviting another woman into her marital bed at her liberal dude husbands request like Jane Fonda did. Conservative woman respect themselves. That is why they have my respect.
I tell "progressives" that Sarah Palin is a pioneer woman, and it doesn't get any more progressive than that!
Good post. Reminds me of the conversations my sister and I would be having if we didn't have so many political things on the "Do NOT Discuss" List – sigh.
Anyways, can we pre-order The Undefeated DVD's?
I'm living abroad, and it's surprising the number of people who are familiar with Palin, but see her as dumb. I recently chatted with an elderly Englishman and he cited the "I can see Russia from my house…", and I corrected him. Had him loving Palin by the end of it. I use questions. "Do you know that that was a parody from Saturday Nite Live?", "Do you know that the media has tried to destroy her for having Trig?", "Do you know that the NYTimes and WAPO was begging its readers to help them go through her emails from when she was Gov?". I try to lead it to, "if she does run, there are definitely no skeletons in her closet…there's nothing more they can attack her on", "there's been no other person who has stood up under such scrutiny". (cont'd below)
I also always try to bring in a contrast with Obama and say (something like), "The election of a Black man in the US was truly historic and beautiful. A few short years ago there was segregation. The thing that makes me sad and angry is the fact that we have chosen such an incredibly incompetent Black man (cite examples of incompetency here) that there will likely not be another chance for a Black president, regardless of competency, in many, many years." It rolls 1) I'm not racist AND 2) Obama's incompetent, all into one. After all of that schpeel, they don't generally argue much more.
Interesting point as well (hat tip Pumas!), America was willing to give Black men the right to vote before women got the same. A few years later, a Black man was given the Presidency before a woman has been given the same (with an arguably MUCH more qualified woman, Hillary, being denied the opportunity). The Suffragettes laid ground for the19th Amendment. Maybe Ferraro laid ground for Hillary, who has laid ground for Palin. The times, they are a'changin'….
Just a note of caution: this is clearly a long-standing relationship and apparently these women are in the habit of exchanging snarky pleasantries like this all the time, which makes this really a unique exchange. The facts Patricia cites are helpful, but the tone should NOT be a template for anyone seeking to engage others thoughtfully. Know your audience. Usually, respect, deference, and graciousness will get your message through much better than sarcasm and put-downs. (Again, I am in NO way criticizing Patricia's approach, just noting that it likely won't work for other situations. She knows her own friend and the nature of their relationship best.)
Rose,
This is great advice. Just so people know, the two ladies involved have known each other for something like 30+ years now and have kids that went to school together from kindergarten through 12th grade.
So, they know each other pretty well. And even if they fight, they mend the fences and are at it again down the line, as good friends do.
Great points, Rose.
K
I appreciate the exchange. It just further proves how effective the media is in making sure that women keep their place.
I cannot think of a man in politics that I know as much about his personal life as I do Palin or Clinton. It is a bizarre that other countries that I consider to still be in the dinosaur age as far as how their laws are for women have elected them as their world leaders and yet my own demonizes women for getting too uppity if they set their sights too high.
Late to the very important and interesting discussion! But here's my method: I take JUST ONE POINT AT A TIME. Even if I get a torrent of objections (as in that e-mail), I stop the person at something judgmental like "She's a ditz." I ask in genuine curiosity, "Why do you think so?" They might have some easily-refudiated
item like the Paul Revere thing or the word "refudiate," which I return with corpse-men, 57 states, a slip in my own conversation or whatever just to show that people are often misunderstood and we all make mistakes (it helps the conversation when I let Obama off the hook) — but then I push. "What really stupid things has she done?" It never, never fails on these sweeping judgements: there really is no factual case against her.
At the moment when they're sputtering or trying to change the subject, I step in in my very best reasonable tone and say, "You know, I think her politics were very smart in the way she moved through the corrupt members of her own party to get those big oil companies off their butts and start working instead of squatting on Alaska's oil resources. I mean, that would be like the Department of Defense sitting on a hundred prime acres in Silicon Valley when Steve Jobs wanted to build a factory there! I'm also really impressed by the way she cleaned up Alaska's legislature with an ethics reform bill that Democrats and Republicans both agreed was the best legislature they'd ever seen (bookmarked in smartphone). And the way she set a precedent by actually going through the state budget line by line and taking out pork — that's serious work! That's where I think Obama hits the golf course."
By this time they're gaping helplessly, because they know zero about Sarah. And then they're ready to talk about something else.
So that's how I do it. ONE POINT AT A TIME.
I think this is a great way to respond. I hate the statement, “she’s dumb.” That immediately pushes some buttons in me because it’s such an elitist response. My response, I guess if given the opportunity, would be how do you know that obama is “smart?” If I hear that “he’s entitled to privacy,” then I would ask wouldn’t Sarah be entitled to the same thing? A typical, 5-year-old respnse would be “that’s different.”
Some advice from a long-time political warrior …
The right answer to any confrontation with the Left is to attack, attack, attack. Never defend. Never accept their version of the situation. Reword it so that it favors you. Always.
Never defend;
Never accept their terms.
Always take the offensive. The moment you start defending, you've lost.
Are you Liz Cheney? Cuz you sure sound like her. Great advice!
Nay, not Liz Cheney. Am old grey-haired anti-socialist.
Just echoing George C. Scott as Patton, saying, "Remember what Frederick the Great said..'L'audace, l'audace, tourjours l'audace".
The art the conservatives don't grasp easily is how to deflect the thrust of a Leftist. It is truly simple.. never fight on their terms.
Change the terms of every argument, never accept their characterizations. Make them defend *their* positions against *your* arguments.
The technique is similar to aikido or judo where you use the opponent's energy against them. They are well-armed if you argue on their terms, but if you change the narrative, they become helpless as kittens. Their mouths drop open and they have no idea what to say.
Remember, they are mental robots. Change the words and they short-circuit.
it's a blast to watch.
Try it.
Wow! Thanks.
There are those who have been impressed with Sarah Palin and then there are the rest of the folks who seem to be running on venom.
At the age of 74, it seems to me that a large part of the folks in the USA have gone crazy. Racist this, ignorant that, sluts, whores, if you disagree with them. Someone calls me racist I tell them to get lost that I am not impressed.
It seems to me that the government is broken and cannot fix itself, ever.
Political people are laughably transparent.
I never thought I would feel like a refugee living in the nation of my birth.
This was such a thought-provoking comment WB that I gave it its own thread.