I noted the following at the time that Dr. Cathy Baldwin Johnson's utterly lame "medical statement" was released but with the election and all the activity since then, I never returned to it.
Today, since the publication of last night's Prom Picture, many people have written to me questioning whether or not Trig Palin actually was born on April 17th. Obviously, I don't know; I wasn't there. My position is that Gov. Palin was in a huge hurry to reach Mat-Su Hospital in Palmer Alaska on April 17th. A HUGE HURRY. So much of a rush that she traveled many hours, in a very public way and in a way that caused her to come under considerable scrutiny. I've said from the start that I doubted very much that it was because they had wonderful birthing rooms... but of course I could be wrong.
This renewed interest in that aspect of the story though reminded me of something that I had read in Dr. C. B-J's statement that had caused me to pause at the time. It still does. Here is the statement:
He [Trig] had some minor problems with jaundice that required phototherapy in the hospital and at home for several days.
In the hospital? When? Trig was released from the hospital on April 19th, a Saturday. On Monday (21st), Gov. Palin was back in her office. On Tuesday, she gave a speech... we have photos. So when was this baby back in the hospital? Why was nothing said to the press?
This is a woman who supposedly believes, devoutly, in the power of prayer. I know of folks who attend churches and congregations like Gov. Palin's. They have prayer chains, and prayer circles, and prayer trees, and I don't know, prayer coffee klatches. She refers to herself as a "Prayer Warrior" in her interview with Dr. James Dobson.
As a lactation consultant, I know that when the decision is made to readmit a newborn for jaundice, the docs are fairly concerned about the baby. If the situation is not treated properly and promptly, serious long-term mental retardation can result. While not an "emergency," the situation is NOT trivial. I have visited many such families in the hospital, and comforted weeping mothers as they sat vigil by isolettes, watching their newborns, eyes covered with a little mask. In spite of my reassurances, the mothers are often inconsolable with worry. When a baby is readmitted for phototherapy, it's not an outpatient procedure. They typically keep babies 2-3 days. It CAN be treated at home... but Dr. B-J STATES that he was treated in the hospital.
Given what we know about Gov. Palin's belief in the power of prayer, it's incomprehensible to me that there would not have been some sort of public announcement that little Trig was back in the hospital for several days, with requests for "your thoughts and prayers." And surely there would have some adjustment in Sarah Palin's schedule? Some sign that her child was hospitalized? Why hide this from the press? But again, as with so many other factors of this birth, we have nothing. A blank. It's like Trig came from nowhere and promptly went back to nowhere.
Just another thing - to be added to the long list of things - that doesn't make sense.
36 comments:
Don't they have phototherapy machines that can be used at home? My sister-in-law had one for her baby and called it a "glow worm" and it wrapped around the baby under his clothes. A nurse came by during the day to prick his heel. Let's try to find out when Anchorage high schools had their prom. And honestly, I think MySpace may be the key. MJ's boyfriend has a page and lots of his friends have public pages. Surely SOMEONE has a prom pic posted.
~BG
Dear Audrey,
Does she actually say he left the hospital and came back? I read that language as consistent with being treated for jaundice in the hospital before discharge, and then follow-up at home.
But in keeping with the larger point you are raising, a jaundice diagnosis can certainly delay a baby's trip home. If I remember correctly it takes several days for jaundice to appear. My first-born's discharge was delayed for jaundice,and she was diagnosed with it shortly before we were otherwise ready to go.
Wikipedia says:
"Neonatal jaundice is usually harmless: this condition is often seen in infants around the second day after birth, lasting until day 8 in normal births, or to around day 14 in premature births. "
Thus, if he had severe jaundice requiring treatment, it sounds like he would have been held in the hospital for more than 2 days. If he had gone home, I'm not sure how they would have known he had jaundice to bring him back for treatment. I think it requires a blood test to diagnose. Although perhaps knowledgable parents can tell from the skin color. I sure couldn't.
That's my lay-person's knowledge. Any experts out there?
Kangaroo
I realize that we may never know exactly when this child was really born. I do want to draw your attention back a quote from the NY Times story "Fusing Politics and Motherhood in a New Way" (couldn't get the link to work but it was a widely-circulated article).
In it is this passage regarding SP's journey back to AK:
“Nobody knew a thing,” said Gov. Linda Lingle of Hawaii. “I only found out from my security detail on the way home that she had gone into labor and that she had gone home to Alaska.”
So SP's colleagues at the conference were not aware she had left or was in labor; the airline attendants on the trip back did not realize that she was even pregnant; she landed in Anchorage late the evening of the 17th and drove (with Todd, presumably) to Wasilla , where she entered a small community hospital and gave birth, letting the media know the next morning when it was all said and done.
I would agree that she came under considerable scrutiny from the public for the story that she told about the birth...after the fact. But she appears to be completely without witnesses who could verify that she was going into labor or was in the hospital until hours after the birth. Was she really rushing to get back for her delivery or the delivery of someone close to her? Or did she make up a story that contained the element of urgency in order to explain why one day she was giving a lunch speech in TX, but (surprise!) the next day she was inviting reporters to a sleepy little hospital in Alaska to meet the newest family member?
Feel free to poke holes--I can take it! :)
MC
Audrey,
With this yet additional oddity, I am beginning to believe even more that Trig is Bristol's baby and that he was born earlier than April 17th. Maybe say in March. Sarah rushed home because she heard that Trig needed to be checked into the hospital for jaundice maybe. I think that she was always planning to have an early birth (pre-mature baby). The due date of May was just made up to justify why she wasn't already showing. There is no other mention of Trig being in the hospital and I find that, just as you, very odd.
I don't see anything strange or inconsistent with the doctor's statement regarding the jaundice.
My youngest had jaundice after he was born and was treated AT the hospital while I was there recovering. Both of us went home in less than 24 hours.
By the way, the Anchorage Daily News publishes "Mat-Su Births" with the last names of parents.
For a small fee you can access older stories in the archive. On 5/2, the Mat-Su Regional Hospital births for the past few weeks were published. Sarah and Todd Palin were listed as giving birth to Trig on 4/18.
May I respectfully make a suggestion? Sarah Palin's home phone number is public. Instead of plowing through the myspace pages of teenagers, perhaps one of you should just pick up the phone and talk to her directly.
According to a blogger at AndrewHalcro.com, Track Palin's girlfriend was being paid by Alaska to travel with the Palin campaign as a babysitter. If she (name unknown) and Track are Trig's biological parents, she would be a logical sitter. -B.
Here's the entry:
Submitted by Elliot Ness (not verified) on Sat, 2008-11-01 04:32.
She [Kris Perry] isn't the Palin's babysitter. It is completely appropriate that Kris travel with Governor while she campaigns, so there is a state person with her to act as the liaison. The Governor has two other people on the state payroll doing babysitting. Ivey Frye and Track Palin's girlfriend are the two doing the babysitting on the state dime.....not Kris Perry.
...If Trig is a preemie, how is it he was able to leave within a few days from the hospital, then she was able to go to work the next week and take him with her? I thought preemies had to stay in the hospital for a bit to make sure everything was okay. My friend's brother & sister in law had a preemie earlier this year. He was born at 7 mos. And he was in the hospital for a few weeks before being discharged.
BG--Based on what I've seen, I think Mercede and her bf did not start dating until maybe this summer or fall. I believe the Santa pics were taken for Halloween, since I've also seen pics of her in the same outfit but with a friend dressed as a nun.
Wouldn't hurt to determine Anchorage's proms, though.
Audrey,
As one commenter said, I was also thinking that maybe Trig was treated for jaundice before being discharged from the hospital. Is this a possibility? Because I read the statement from CBJ as he was treated in the hospital (a specific timeframe) and then he was also treated at home for several days.
??? What do you think?
A few quick answers: First, to the poster who states her child was treated for jaundice and sent home within 24 hours: that may have been your experience, but is not typical. Jaundice that occurs in the first 24 hours of life is considered "nonphysiologic," (i.e, NOT normal) and is a cause for much greater concern. Here is a link that discusses it.
http://www.fpnotebook.com/Nicu/GI/NnphyslgcNntlJndc.htm
In general infants that manifest this sort of jaundice would be unlikely to be released within 24 hours. It can have some fairly serious causes.
The more typical neonatal jaundice does not typically show up until the 3rd or 4th day. In my experience, when babies are readmitted for phototherapy, it's most often on the 4th day.
Trig was released approximately 36 hours after his birth. So yes, it is possible that he was treated within the first 36 hours and then sent home, but I would say very very unlikely. If he was jaundiced enough to require therapy within the first 24 hours he would not have been sent home at 36 hours.
Based on Dr. C. B-J's statement, I feel the most likely scenario is that he was readmitted at some point in the first 3-5 days of his life.
Who knows? Maybe she has him mixed up with some other baby.
They do have "home" options available ... but Johnson's statement says that he was treated at the hospital. In my twenty years as a lactation consultant I have never heard of this treatment occurring as an outpatient. If the baby needs phototherapy they admit him.
Also, there is a difference between saying a baby is a "preemie" and saying the birth was "pre-term." At 36 weeks, this birth was pre-term technically (if that really was the proper dating, which it may not have been.) But at 6 plus pounds, Trig would not have - weight wise - been considered truly premature.
Still, I do agree with all of those that have pointed out that this was very quick to leave the hospital. Considering that he supposedly was four weeks early, and had Down's, I would sort have thought that they would have preferred to keep him at least one more day...
To the anonymous person who made the suggestion to call SP. Since it appears that you know SP so well (knowing she has a public number and all), why don't you call her for us? Since you are a supporter, maybe she won't tell you the same lies she has told everyone else. Please let us know what you find out. Thanks for the suggestion.
Just want to clarify something I said in the last comment. Babies are often treated for jaundice at HOME. When I said I have never heard of a baby being treated "as an outpatient," I meant that the infant would be brought to the hospital for an hour or two, put under lights, then taken home. I have never heard of this.
WOW!! I'm watching Law & Order SVU right now. It's about a group of high school girls who all try to get pregnant together. One girl references "that vice president lady's pregnant daughter" while stating her case...
Anyway....I was going through Mercedes' boyfriend's friend list on My Space this evening after getting in through the web address someone left here earlier. I found 3 teens who are either pregnant or now have a baby. I'm sure there are plenty more... Seems pretty common in the Wasilla area.
Regarding the prom photo, I have always thought that the photos of Mercedes/Sadie and Bristol/Trig/Sarah were all taken on the same day.
Teenage girls often visit each other to try on prom dresses and to do each other's hair. I had a friend in highschool who always did my hair for me for special occasions, as I could not do it myself.
My guess is that Mercedes/Sadie came over to see her new sister-in-law (Bristol)'s new baby, and brought her prom dress with her, to show Bristol, and perhaps to have Bristol do her hair later.
She is wearing large pink earrings in the photos with the baby.
Later, Bristol looks more tired but is still in a sweatshirt as she stands next to the gussied-up Mercedes/Sadie.
She's expressing love for her generous sister in law, who's helped her plan her prom outfit and hair.
Just to reorientate ourselves, please revisit the Sept 3rd photo on the website of Bristol and the "unusual" breasts. Something was up there. I think it was something to pad or prevent any leakage. Everytime I see that pic or similar pictures I can't help thinking as I know others have that it is just not natural.
DMS
sorry for the snark: from what we've seen of Sarah's parenting skills and bending of the truth, she probably put the poor infant in her tanning bed for treatment. sorry again. At this point practically anything seems possible.
--too much drama from the vp nominee
Audrey, I turn to your blog regularly because I think Sarah Palin is lying about Trig's birth. And overall, I abhor the thought of her gaining any more political clout. She truly scares me. However, I think you're really reaching on the prayer issue. I am a Christian and I be believe in the power of prayer as much as anyone else. But I wouldn't many public announcements asking stangers to pray for my loved ones. Having more people praying isn't necessarily the answer. It's having people pray with the right kind of heart and faith.
I say let's leave the Palin's alone on the issue of not making a public announcement asking for prayers.
(sorry for the typos on the previous comment regarding prayer ... Too many mistakes when I type on the iPhone!)
Hello Audrey,
Given HIPAA regulations regarding PHI, and the fines and firings that can result in releasing PHI without permission, I can see why no one in the healthcare community in Wasilla, Anchorage, or Juneau is willing to risk their jobs coming forward with the truth about this baby's birth. And you know that even with a home birth, there are some medical personnel involved, at the very least a midwife or doula. Certainly in a hospital with many people coming and going in your room...nurses, lab techs, medical records staff with documents to sign and getting the baby's SSN paperwork ready, neonatal nursery staff, etc. Is a governor so private and special in a hospital that none of these people witnessed anything?
However, there have to be others inside and outside the family who know, and surely ONE of them has this weighing on their conscience. But as I have posted before, secrecy is a powerful thing in families, and in extended families, and many secrets really are carried to the grave. Piper may be too young to know about her brother's origins, but her siblings are not. And family friends are not. But no one is going to risk telling. But WHAT is this risk? I would wonder that in a few years, when Bristol is older, and has a different perspective on her family, as many of us often do in our 20s, she might just be angry enough to finally talk about the situation. It must be awful to be used as a political pawn by your own mom. I cannot imagine that this VP nomination has been anything but painful for the Palin family...all sorts of things that once were private no longer are, and for teenagers in particular that has to be very painful. The attention is probably exciting, but trying to hold in all those secrets has to be difficult.
--Reader from Ohio
Babies can be immediately be put in the phototherapy machine if jaundice is suspected. Certain conditions like A/O incompatibility make jaundice a high probability, and those babies are immediately treated for jaundice. If the biliruben count does not go up drastically, the baby can be released in two days, and a home nurse can take a blood sample from the house, or the baby can just be tested in the doctor's office with the bili count monitored. You can also have home photo therapy machines.
Prematurity is not an issue if the baby is of good weight and condition. My 8 month preemie went home early and he weighted less than Trig. THey kept my full term low weight baby an extra day. 5 lbs used to be the go home weight; now 4 lbs is usually used.
I think it is a foregone conclusion that Palin is careless about medical things and her kids' well being.
Anonymous at 7:13 pm brought up an interesting point that I had never heard before. We know comparatively little about Track. I have wondered along the way if there is a situation in which SP would ever claim or adopt a child that wasn't her daughter's, but her son's. Truthfully, the only situation I can come up with is pretty sordid, and I don't want to put it into writing--I guess I don't want to go there yet. Andrew Halcro (didn't he run against SP for governor?) is also someone who is quoted out there as saying he knew about Bristol's pregnancy in May...
http://dyn.politico.com/printstory.cfm?uuid=21606469-18FE-70B2-A81BC9950D56BD1A
...but I don't know how his statement and the claim that Bristol was only 5 months along at the time of the RNC could both be true. Why would he have known at almost exactly the same time that Bristol probably discovered she was pregnant? WAIT-maybe he's the father! J/K ;) Seriously, though, an avenue worth pursuing.
And I have to agree with Audrey about the prayer issue. There's a prayer request group in our Lutheran preschool, and it's a pretty mainstream church. I also have evangelical relatives, and I do mean evangelical in the pattern of SP's church. They are all about prayer and saying stuff in the name of Jesus in everyday conversation--so I can't imagine them having a newborn baby with issues and them not being EXTREMELY vocal about it. But here, no one seems to have been aware of the fact that Trig, a preterm, special-needs infant, was even having a problem.
My kids all had minor jaundice, and I freaked out every single time (because it was part & parcel with them being too sleepy, thus having a harder time nursing, leading to a much harder time getting good production going for me--on top of being exhausted). It was just as stressful the subsequent times as it was the first time, and maybe more so since I had other children to care for. I was certainly not averse to pouring my heart out to any friend, relative, or person on the street who appeared to show some interest. Three days after all my deliveries, I was still a work in progress, both mentally and physically. And SP back in the Anchorage office with the kiddo at that point?
MC
I had two premature babies both born at 36 weeks, 2 days. My doctor tried to pass the first one off as being 37 1/2 weeks to avoid the protocol of going directly to the NICU because she was 8 lbs. and healthy. However, by looking at her fingernails they were able to tell she was 36 weeks and took her away for observation. My second was born at 36 1/2 weeks and had pneumonia and was kept for 10 days.
I find it so hard to believe that she KNEW she was having a Downs baby and yet was not ORDERED to deliver in a hospital with a NICU.
I have become obsessed with this. I am now starting to believe that who ever had the baby did not know it was a Downs baby, was caught off guard when the baby arrived and was "different" and that is when Palin made up the whole pregnancy story. Sooner or later, someone is going to talk. It may not be for awhile but someone WILL talk. It is too hard for teenagers to keep a secret.
Lisa, I agree with your theory that the birth mother might not have realized she was having a DS baby until she delivered. Or, she found out late in the pregnancy and decided to give it up and then pro-life politico Sarah Palin entered the picture.
I also agree that it is very hard for teenagers to keep secrets, either because they love having something to share with their friends or because they have a tendency to tattle when angry. The "circle of trust" in the Palin family will be ever expanding... and eventually it will only take one of the Palin kids' friends who knows the secret to blurt it out under the influence at some keg party where someone else then picks up the story. I guess that might be more my wishful thinking (!).
I think though that it is useful to consider that Alaska is portrayed as an "outlier" state, where social norms and behaviors seem either to be less rigidly enforced, or being up there on the edge of wilderness relaxes the rules that apply in the lower 48. Teen pregnancy and dropping out of school just seem less frowned upon up there. And everything I read seems to say that "everyone helps out their neighbor". Who's to say that this was not Sarah Palin's act of kindness gone wrong? If that's the case, one would think she would be proud to say she adopted rather than concoct such an elaborate hoax. Two people can keep a secret, three much less so.
--Reader from Ohio
for most of this time i thought trig was tracks baby.
track got into bunches of trouble with the school bus stuff, and there was a prior incident of school bus vandalism w/ no arrests made in 03, same M.O, same area.
then the next school bus incident in 05 where he was caught with others, he being the 16yr old in the arrests made.
same area as wooten patrolled, btw.
then they sent track to MI for school....then he came home, then he signed for the military...at the same time the vandalism was in court.
once track went active mil all his records prior and present are sealed, totally private....no court records no nuthin.
very convenient.
then some rumor of track being gay floated around.
nice distraction.
could be true tho.
it finally seemed then that bristol was mother to trig....who else could it be?
willow?
we hear nothing....of track coming home AFTER BASIC training for the NORMAL time off between trainings.
...which is usually 1-2 weeks.
before they head to AIT training.
and they usually get time HOME before they deploy overseas...
has he been HOME at all since sept 11 08????
why hasnt track been home and covered---at least---the local media???
If Trig was born on April 18, someone knew about Down's Syndrome.
It's mentioned at the bottom of this April 18 birth announcement:
http://groups.google.com/group/alaska-panhandle/browse_thread/thread/bdea304108a0bb6b?hl=en
The governor's office did not confirm this until two or three days later, but it's obvious that someone out there was privy to this. The press release linked by the poster did not state this. It says "special challenges," but that paints a pretty broad brush.
The poster also put this on the Alaska Panhandle group at the exact same time it appeared on adn. Almost like they were waiting on it.
My oldest was treated outpatient for jaundice, as were a number of other babies whose mothers I met while we waited for the phototherapy techs to finish the treatment.
Maybe it depends on where in the country you live as to how this is treated by local hospitals.
My nephew was born 6 weeks premature. He had to stay in the hospital 2-3 weeks before going home, and he did not have Down's or any other special conditions other than being a preemie.
So they just kicked a premature DS baby from the hospital and let him go to the office with "mom" 3 days later? Makes no sense to me. I think this points to Trig's birth being earlier than announced.
About the prayer business, yes, lots of churches do that; Sarah's type of church would have that type of prayer circle. Obviously Sarah did not request a prayer circle because it would bring more publicity to all her lies (whatever they are).
That link to the Alaska Panhandle entry is really odd, Silver Salmon.
Just for the sake of accuracy, the entry does include the date & time of the press release, but the entry itself was posted later that evening (see the upper righthand corner). Still on the night of the 18th, though...and the Palins didn't officially confirm DS until the 21st, I think.
Usually if a poster has edited or added something, it almost certainly will make an automatic note of it in the text. Nothing like that here, and the starred comment below almost sounds like there is a personal interest there. I might be imagining that, though. Stranger and stranger.
The email address for the poster in the Alaska Panhandle group ends in aflow.net. The full email address of the poster is easy to get, but for the moment I'll decline posting it.
aflow.net is a personal website. Mixture of eastern religion, nature and, photography. It also has a Bush countdown clock, so I wouldn't necessarily think it's a friend of the Palins. Unfortunately, I didn't see a way of contacting the site owner on the page, so I don't know if the email addresses match up.
No other posts anywhere (apparently) by this individual have to do with the Palins.
Actually, it is more interesting to click on the link to the original story that the Alaska-panhandle blog was quoting from:
That link is: http://community.adn.com/adn/node/121691
This leads to a blog hosted by the Anchorage Daily News for releasing up-to-the-minute-news. Though Audrey's readers have copied/linked to postings on the ADN blog before, the seven pages of comments that followed this April 18, 2008 birth announcement are worth reading. I'm summarizing and/or pasting in a few examples below that seem new to me.
While Alaskan Airlines does not allow women in active labor to fly, it seems to allow women to fly closer to their due date than other airlines to enable rural women to get to big-city hospitals (and that small local flight services do fly women actually in labor to city hospitals). The Alaskans posting to the ADN blog suggest that Palin abused the policy to actually do the reverse of what most Alaskan women would do.
April 24, 2008 rfn said: ". . . a baby born in Alaska will automatically have citizenship when we achieve independence. Those born "outside" will need to negotiate special waivers."
Perhaps this line from a longer comment was a joke meant to mock the Alaska Independence Party mindset. However, if this is the position of the AIP, could it be that in order for any deception to be credible to AIP supporters who voted for Palin as governor, it was a plus to appear to be committed to having her baby born in Alaska? Todd has attended the AIP conventions. SP sent a special video greeting to a recent AIP convention. Do SP’s parents also support the AIP?
April 21, 2008 haut_monde_ak said: " someone needs to explain to Alaskans why the health and safety of their children should take precedence, no matter which US state you are in. This is a huge public safety issue that's being misinterpreted as a victory for Palin."
April 25, 2008 - 8:37pm | juno said, "Are state public health officials missing the opportunity to educate Alaskans with information outreach about flying while pregnant/in labor issue in order to not embarrass their boss Palin? Good open honest ethical and transparent government does not stay silent about general facts on serious maternal health risks related to flying when such events are presented in order to protects its own, does it? Whose interests does the Health and Social Services Dept. serve?"
April 21, 2008 - JakeW said - "A telephone consult with a doctor three times zones away . . . . It puts the physician in the position of having to speculate about whether or not there are significant issues present such as cord compression, necrotizing enterocolitis, fetal distress and other potentially fatal complications that can accompany premature rupture of membranes in preterm deliveries. . . .The Anchorage Daily News press statement is more interesting for what it doesn't say than for what it does (which is very little) but I'll cover that when I have a bit more time."
Note - these are excerpts from a much longer post. Can anyone find if JakeW posted more later?
April 25, 2008 - 8:49pm | dot_dot_dot said: "What a tangled web we weave .... I'm sorry CBJ is in it. Had to get an OB in here. Let's hear the whole story . . . shall we? Isn't it time that someone asks about the "rest of the story"?????"
April 21, 2008 - 12:35pm | AK_Lady - "Sarah Palin's father stated on KTUU that she concealed her pregnancy and didn't tell anyone that she was in labor so she could board the flight."
Note - Others posting comments also mentioned seeing this TV clip of Mr. Heath saying SP WAS in labor and PURPOSELY CONCEALED that fact. Hmm, Is it still possible that SP did not give birth to Trig but that her own parents were told she did?
The dates are out of sequence, because the comments come from several threads in the discussion.
Check this link from a May 2008 ADN blog.
http://community.adn.com/node/124181?page=3
It seems odd for JunoSr to say that JunoSr has been banned and then to post again . . . but still, it might be worth checking to see if this was the last post from this person. Still, in light of the ADN mocking Cajun Boy's request before the election, this comment posted at the ADN in May 2008 is interesting.
May 28, 2008 - 8:21pm | JunoSr
Keep fighting the good fight JakeW. ADN has banned Juno and JunoSr from the ADN blogs for bringing up Palin's fly-the-friendly-skies-while-in-labor escapade. So much for the media as being the bastions of free speech. This issue will not go away until some questions are answered about why Palins felt compelled to resort to lies and deception in order to board that plane and get back to AK knowing the risks involved. Don't give up asking questions JakeW. The editors are wrong when they remove posts and ban bloggers that post on this issue. Alaskans deserve answers from Palin.
Is it possible that Cajun Boy's source is Kyle Hopkins?
Here is the ADN profile:
"Kyle Hopkins covers politics and other stories for the ADN. He covered the 2006 campaign for governor, has blogged
extensively about Alaska politics, covered Anchorage city government and was a reporter based in the Mat-Su. He grew
up in Southeast Alaska and previously was a reporter at the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner and Anchorage Press. E-mail
Kyle at khopkins@adn.com"
Kyle Hopkins wrote this for the ADN blog page in August 31, 2008. Perhaps that's when Cajun Boy started writing to him?
Rumor patrol -- Baby drama
http://community.adn.com/node/130178
Perhaps someone already posted this to Audrey's blog, but I don't remember seeing any references to Kyle Hopkins as the
likely reporter whose story was shelved by the ADN.
This comment posted by "rfn" under this article is also interesting. Is it possible that rfn sold information to an ADN reporter
in September and that breach of journalist's ethics is why the editors killed the story? But, if rfn sold the story to the ADN,
maybe that is why rfn can't sell it to the Enquirer? On the other hand, it also looks like "rfn" posts something to the ADN nearly every day and might just be a crank?
September 5, 2008 - 6:06pm | rfn - "Do you pay by the word or pay by the story?I might have something to tell you but it
would be nice to know the going rate first. Others are asking, so hurry!"
Some of the latest comments here are smoking! I wish I had been aware of these diligent Alaskan bloggers! I hope they will find your site, Audrey! Mary G.
PS I did think that in the initial ADN April 18 story they clarified special needs as "down syndrome"--I'll check. What are the earliest signs? Mary g.
Audrey,
Thank you for keeping this blog going! Between you and CB & the others, let's get this story going! I am one who has long felt there is something more regarding Track.... The shipping him off 3,800 miles to Michigan for school is a line of b.s. The 'hockey scout' story is crap.
Down syndrome is usually apparent right at birth because of the distinctive facial features: a flat face, a small broad nose, abnormally shaped ears, a protruding tongue, and upward slanting eyes with small folds of skin in the corners. Babies with Down syndrome also often have weak muscle tone, excess skin at the back of the neck, and a poor Moro (startle) reflex - all noticeable at birth or very shortly thereafter.
Does anyone know anything about Track's girlfriend? That is a line of thinking that I haven't really pursued, but may be worth considering. OTOH, I was looking at the photos of Bristol and Levi with Trig at the RNC, and I suddenly realized that Trig resembles Levi more than I had noticed. That, along with Bristol's otherwise inexplicable appearance (looking like she is engorged) have put me in the Bristol is the mom camp. I guess there are still more questions than answers...and I'm not sure we'll be able to get definitive answers. But one thing we can say with certainty is that Sarah's story does not pass the straight face test. Her's is the "goofy" story, not the reasonable questions being asked about it.
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