Monday, June 15, 2009

Sarah's Selective Outrage

Does anyone really believe Sarah Palin’s latest display of motherly indignation in the wake of Letterman’s admittedly unfunny comment directed at her daughter?

If they do, then they either a.) have short memories or b.) really don’t know much about Sarah Palin. Probably both.

It’s hard to top blogger Shannyn Moore’s assessment of Palin’s hypocrisy on what has become the Alaskan governor's latest Tour d'Outrage.

However, it's important to point out that, during the campaign, one SNL skit went so far as to suggest that Todd was "doing" the daughters. This SNL skit was far FAR more offensive than Letterman’s bad joke about Willow. Sarah's response? Boycott SNL advertisers? Media blitz? Whip the base into a foaming frenzy? No, actually, she appeared on the show one month later. Oh yeah, I think we all remember her Weekend Update with Seth Green.

But why is it that I REALLY want to get a vomit bag when Sarah drones on endlessly about protecting the young woman of America from exploitation? It's because this is the woman who, in late August, when confronted with ever-more-insistent demands for some proof, any proof at all that she herself had given birth to Trig four months earlier, "outed" her own minor child's pregnancy. She put 17 year old Bristol on a national stage in an ugly and ill-fitting dress, accompanied by a young man that her father reportedly had wanted his daughter to dump so much that he had offered to buy her a car. Instead of producing a birth certificate or a doctor, Sarah Palin made her daughter a walking punchline. How do you spell "exploit?" B - R - I - S - T - O - L

You gotta love these Palin family values. THEY are the joke. Or maybe not. Because they're not funny. And she's arguably done more damage to her children than any comedian ever could. You have to imagine that behind the scenes, her kids have expressed outrage at how they're privacy and dignity have been sacrificed for their mother's political gain. Unfortunately, when they complain, Sarah doesn't listen.

Which is why no one else should listen to her either.

69 comments:

RNP in CA said...

I agree, Audrey, and here's what also makes me vomit: the thought that Palin might continue down the path she's on and marginalize herself so much that the mainstream media never investigate Trig's birth. Would SOMEBODY who knows the truth PLEASE speak up??? This is crazy.

mlewis said...

I think there's more hypocrisy than just "outing" Bristol as proof that Sarah was Trig's mother. (It didn't prove anything). In addition, Sarah paraded Bristol and baby Tripp on Fox TV with GVS, where's the privacy in that? Then, there was the ridiculous promotion where Bristol was named Ambassador for (sexy) Candies, advocating abstinence. "Do as I say, not as I do." The ads from Candies are so sexually charged that they send the wrong message to young girls "to wait," while the photos seem to tease them to "try it." Where's the outrage, Sarah? Those photos send the wrong messages to those young girls you are so anxious to protect.

As far as late night comedians, Letterman was not alone in his humor; they all made jokes at Brisol's expense. One of Letterman's favorite targets is someone who is a hypocrite. There is real hypocrisy here: the political party of family values parading an unwed mother to be as part of their campaign, advocating for abstinence while holding the baby for a photo cover of People Magazine-- this is red meat for the comics.

Sarah is clearly the wrong spokesperson for women's issues. She was brought in to get the votes that might have been meant for Hilary. Sarah is so clearly antichoice, and in her role as governor has cut back on funding for a number of agencies that care for chidren, for the abused and raped, Palingates is running a list of the agencies affected by Sarah's vetoes. Until this moment, Sarah has done nothing to advocate for any young women, for any woman at all with one exception: herself.

wayofpeace said...

you nailed it as usual, audrey.

i, too, read shannyn's searing take on SARAH's faux outrage.

i truly pity those kids.

NARCISSISTIC SARAH and the PALIN DYSFUNCTION defined:

Emotionally dishonest parents cannot be emotionally healthy role models, and cannot provide healthy parenting.

–Robert Burney

MrsTarquinBiscuitbarrel said...

Bless you, Audrey and Shannyn, for your well-placed and well-spoken outrage! All of us, in public or private life, who have tried to raise our children right and spare them distress, squirm at SP's insistence that only she, and her uncritical supporters, practice "family values."

GINO's frantic attempts to remain in the public eye, regardless of who suffers, are not political but pathological. She MUST stop.

KaJo said...

Audrey, you said, in part: This SNL skit was far FAR more offensive than Letterman’s bad joke about Willow.

One little thing: His joke wasn't about Willow. Not even close.

The joke was definitely about a Palin daughter WHO WASN'T EVEN AT THE BALLGAME because...

Neither Bristol NOR Willow were at the ballgame "during the seventh inning stretch".

You see, the Palins (whether Willow was even AT the ballgame or not) left the game "some time during the sixth inning".

Therefore, as the vast majority of people who've heard David Letterman's tasteless joke have already concluded, the joke was indeed, about the daughter who'd ALREADY been "knocked up" once.

KaJo said...

BTW, I understand ONE sponsor of Letterman's show has pulled their ads.

One. The Blackstone Group (one of whose owners is a former advisor in the Nixon Administration) who own the Hilton Hotel chain among other assets, have pulled their Hilton ads from CBS.

What????? Did Paris Hilton realize the headlines were too much Sarah Palin and not enough her?

South Buffalo / Southtowns Online said...

I was doing dishes earlier trying to get my head away from the insane state this entire world seems to be in at this moment. I was doing my best to be all sorts of zen but a Palin thought crept in nonetheless. I tried to ignore it but it kept at me.

The thought was: Omigawd - what if she decides to play the magnanimous Christian tomorrow and make a public call for calm ? I will absolutely LOSE my freaking mind.

She has orchestrated this entire thing, is abusing her own daughters, has fused the words "rape " and "Palin's daughters" together for at least the near future and has broadcast it throughout the world. These girls are now forever connected with the idea of promiscuous sex.

From the base level of this situation to the much more important situation in Iran, there are two distinct camps. Whether it's left and right or extremists and moderates, it's happening globally on so many issues.

Unsettling ? You betcha.

KaJo said...

Oh, change one thing -- it isn't even the entire Hilton Hotel chain that's removing its ads from CBS, it's ONE of the Hilton chain, i.e., Embassy Suites.

They weren't even an advertiser on Letterman's show.

*plink*

That's the sound of the difference that opt-out is going to make in the grand scheme of things in the network TV business.

A drop in the bucket.

2emptynest said...

Interesting comment from GINO during a Wolf Blitzer interview while harping on the Letterman jokes - "It wasn't my older daughter who's in college and taking care of her young family".

Who uses the term "family" when speaking of 1 child?

The quote is around 5:15, to spare you from listening to the entire word salad.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OwhXuShu05s&feature=player_embedded

Floyd M. Orr said...

Readers of Audrey's blog need to check out the latest story of Letterman's overly profuse apology to the Alaskan Abomination and her hillbilly daughters. The story is on the front page of The Huffington Post.

wayofpeace said...

i just heard that DAVE will make a humor-free apology tonight.

AND make it clear that the joke was about BRISTOL!

will NYC class-act meet same from ALASKA?

Jen said...

THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!! I have been arguing with a "friend" about this all day on Facebook. You made a lot of my same points but he still doesn't get it. I just want to scream at the absurdity of so many things these days!! Seeing your post made me feel a little bit better.

Jennifer

Burgh said...

A class act would've just said, "I think the joke was tasteless." SP proves over and over that she's willing to use her children as human shields in the furtherance of her pathetic career.
Oh, and I can't find a single picture of either B or W at the game. None in any of my local (NYC) papers, none on line in a Google image search. None.
Keep diggin' SP... that ditch is sure gonna be hard to stand in with those heels, you betcha.

Unknown said...

I don't think it is being taken seriously enough that Willow might not have been present at the ballgame.

This point could sink Palin, albeit minor, however if Willow was NOT at the game, then Palin invented this whole outrage and lied to the American people on national t.v. which is not minor detail.

Someone please confirm this and get it to Msnbc or the Today Show, etc.

onething said...

Only the joke wasn't about Willow and I doubt anyone would think it was, if they had left well enough alone.

This family is like a magnet for tabloid publicity.

So incredibly undignified and unprofessional to respond to jokes made by comedians. Very funny that no sooner does she say screw political correctness than she wants to stifle the comedic profession.

Also, how petty and ungracious of her to not accept an apology! Did you all see that?

hrh said...

My comment from an earlier post:

HuffPost has a story about comedians other than Letterman who have told jokes about SP's pregnant daughter. Guess their timing was off; they didn't meet her need for a new infusion of publicity this week.

http://tinyurl.com/ldmn3x

Is Letterman yet another spineless Democrat who thinks he must respond to (and apologize for!) every manufactured accusation? Palin sure punked him.

wv: pridse

Unknown said...

I know I'm beating a dead horse, maybe:
Video evidence exists of Palin at the ballgame with Giuliani and his wife. Is Willow in any of these? Was she even at the game?

Here's the rub:

If Willow was absent then by keeping silent, Rudy Giuliani and his wife have implicated themselves as being Complicit in Sarah's lie.

Now, if you want a scandal: I've just handed you one (compliments of Sarah, of course).

This in itself would be a s

Audrine said...

I guess Audrey must be a dense tonight, but I don't see why it's particularly a scandal if Willow was or was not at the game. It was a joke. A bad, tasteless joke, but a joke, probably written by someone on his staff before the game even happened! I don't think Elliot Spitzer was at the game or anywhere near the Palins either, but everyone who heard that joke knows that.

I will say that personally I think all this backpedaling - from Letterman and media pals - that it was REALLY Bristol he was talking about, not Willow - is absurd. Willow WAS in New York, though perhaps not at the game. She'd been photographed and seen. Bristol was in Alaska as far as we know.

So - I've got to say on this one, I agree with the Palins - I believe Letterman WAS talking about Willow, the daughter who was with her, no matter what he is saying now.

The comment was offensive, no matter who it was aimed at.

Palin is exploiting it way out of proportion to the comment itself or when compared to previous reactions to far MORE offensive and serious "jokes."

Jen said...

Now that you mention it, I haven't seen Willow in any of the released photos. And the same photos are EVERYWHERE as if the Palin camp set up the shoot and approved which shots got out. FOX, NBC, etc, same shots.

I'll keep looking....

Jennifer

Karen said...

Audrey, thanks for the post, & the new format or website seems like a great idea. It was getting frustrating waiting for tidbits of info, with the previous format. This way, we are able to post & comment on the bigger picture, which tastes so sour. Sarah has lots of baggage to overcome, but I would not count her out yet. She has enormous enthusiasm & charisma, & continues to be a huge force to be reckoned with IMHO.

2emptynest said...

Letterman's jokes were in poor taste, but these comments are truly offensive:

“If a guy can’t rape his wife, who’s he gonna rape?”

”There wouldn’t be an issue with domestic violence if women would learn to keep their mouths shut.”

Where was the outrage from Palin at those comments?
Crickets.
They are attributed to her pick for Attorney General - Wayne Anthony Ross.
Palin = Hypocrite!

Casa Calvo said...

Has anyone seen this?
www.firedavidletterman.com

I could be wrong but she might be starting something that she can't finish.

mdlw56 said...

I think the only reason Palin got upset over this joke was because Letterman called Palin a "slutty" flight attendant. That's what set her off and she wanted to go after Letterman. So, she used the joke about Bristol, change it to Willow, made Willow 14 instead of 15-1/2 years old (born January 21, 1994) and went on the attack. Both parents said Willow was 14. Why???????? She wanted to twist the knife?

Added bonus is all the free press this past week and no one has been talking about her using Newt's speech now. hummmmmmmm

It is all about Palin.

AKPetMom said...

Oh come on, companies pulling commercial advertisements from television shows? I need to see a show of hands from everyone that actually watches the commercials on a given program? (okay, Superbowl excluded...)

TV ads, while they do bring a certain amount of income to the broadcaster, catch very little of the watching public's attention. Thanks to Tivo and those of us that watch two channels at one time to avoid commercial breaks, companies have had to resort to product placement within the show or movie, rather than rely on the public to get their message during commercial breaks.

Companies dropping ads will not hurt Letterman, trust. Neither will the IceQueen's outrage. Letterman will go forth to offend another celebrity on another day. In fact, his career will still be going strong when Sarah Palin is no more than a little watched talking head on Fox News (starting in 2013 perhaps?)

KaJo said...

When you think about it, Audrey, if the average person heard that Sarah Palin was in New York state for a variety of ceremonies, a parade, and a Walk, if THEY thought about it at all they'd assume she was traveling with Todd and TriG, doncha think? And maybe Bristol and her own baby, so Bristol could watch TriG? Like during the campaign?

We forget, I think, that not everybody really cares what she's doing, or know who her traveling companions are. But since we're Palin-watchers, WE know that the party included Heather and Karcher Bruce as well as Willow, but not Bristol, Piper, or TriG or TriPP.

But the Letterman show watchers -- a huge audience that I'm thinking are among the folks who don't give a hoot about Sarah Palin -- didn't know that, and probably had no idea a non-Bristol daughter was on the trip. So it doesn't matter where Bristol Palin was -- Alaska or New York -- does it?

As I mentioned, NONE of the Palins were at the game at the time David Letterman mentioned in his joke. It's SUSPECTED Willow was NEVER at the game, and there's no visual proof she was. So far, everyone's going by what Sarah Palin has said. And you know better than anybody how reliable that is.

So, ultimately, this whole Palin vs. Letterman thing is another exercise in Sarah Palin putting over another poor-me-I'm-a-victim scam on the media (whom she vilifies every chance she gets), her doting followers (who believe every word she says), one of her critics (who's known for off-color jokes anyway), and we Palin-watchers, who always seem to be playing catch-up to her devious ways.

Jen said...

My Top Ten Thoughts on the Letterman Joke:

10)I believe the joke was about Bristol because people on THIS site have mixed B & W up why would Letterman get it right? And most people don't remember SP has three daughters.

9)Some use the "Willow was the only daughter there" explanation as if all jokes are literal, but if we are to get LITERAL, the Palin's left in the sixth inning and the joke was about the seventh.

8)I can't find SP and her family's itenerary for that day -- how was Dave to know who was there?

7)I haven't seen a photo of Willow at the game.

6)The pre-joke statements in the media sound like it was just SP, TP and the Guiliani's.

5)Bristol, although young, DID step into the world of "celebrity" with her interviews on TV and in People. Once she stepped out on her own, she was no longer "off-limits" just as Megan McCain isn't off-limits to Laura Ingram.

4)Bristol, when stepping out into the world, stepped out with teen sex as her only issue. She didn't choose animal rights.

3)SP's first public comments were about the joke about her/flight attendant. Her statement about the A-Rod joke didn't come until later, leaving a big gap of time to come up with the brilliant idea to accuse him of making the joke about Willow. (SP even made an unprompted "I didn't say anthing earlier because I didn't know about it earlier" kind of comment that was odd).

2)The person who told her about the flight attendant joke BUT NOT about the A-Rod joke is leading the fire Letterman campaign.

1)The joke, no matter how offensive, wouldn't have made sense AT ALL if it were about Willow.

Bretta said...

IMHO David Letterman has received, at this point, a very complete, detailed and in-depth analysis of the psychosis of Sarah Palin.

I think he does not wish to exacerbate her condition, knowing that she can incite terrorism and murder in her name, as in the incident last week.

I believe that he will work behind the scenes to insure that her megalomaniac plans will never unfold.

Jen said...

How many Audrey's are there? I am confused...

AKPetMom said...

I do have one question. Why did SNL make the comment regarding incest in the Palin family?

I guess on one hand we do have the reputation here in the Mat-Su Valley of being a population of gun-totin' inbred rednecks, but was there really something more, some deeper knowledge or at least rumor that led the SNL writing team to pen the joke regarding Palin Dad and daughters?

I've just always wondered and you don't have to post this if you choose not to.

Kat said...

The reason Palin did not respond to even worse jokes about her girls made by other comedians is because the real reason for her outrage was because Dave called her slutty. She couldn't respond to that directly so after huddling with her advisers for a day, they settled on throwing Willow under the bus so Scarah could get her revenge.

She could care less about anyone other than herself - even her own children.

More Cowbell said...

It's a scandal if Willow wasn't at the game because the Palins have made the joke about Willow BECAUSE, they say, she was at the game. The joke was originally just about a Palin daughter. The Palins have said that the only daughter present was Willow and that's when Todd brought up the statutory rape of 14 year olds garbage. It makes a difference because Bristol has put herself out into public as a paid spokesperson. If Willow wasn't there, and I haven't seen any evidence that she was, the Palins have lied, yet again, to make political hay of their childrens' lives. Yet again. That's always scandalous.

Vaughn said...

These crazy whackjobs don't realize that if CBS did break David's
contract by letting him go that he'd not only sue CBS but he'd
also sue Todd and Sarah.
I doubt that either one of her money grubbing funds would be able
to raise enough money for the payoff they would pay him.
He's said twice now that he wasn't talking about Willow and they
can't prove that he was.
I watched all of the John Ziegler interview with Sarah and all he
asked her about was the slutty flight attendant thing.
He wasn't all that upset about the knocked up joke then or he would
have asked her about it then.Now since there's going to be a protest
and he can get a little publicity out of it he's all outraged about
it.He's a pig pure and simple.

Unknown said...

Audrey said:
"So - I've got to say on this one, I agree with the Palins - I believe Letterman WAS talking about Willow, the daughter who was with her, no matter what he is saying now."
---------------------------------------------------------

OK, here's the thing - and NO ONE has brought this up or discussed it:

I am putting all bets out there, that Letterman saw the pix of Sarah Palin in NYC with her daughter - which was WILLOW, but who I bet
he THOUGHT was BRISTOL!!!


* I EVEN THOUGHT IT WAS BRISTOL IN THE FEW PIX I SAW - AND I'VE BEEN SCANNING PIX ON THIS WEBSITE FOR MONTHS *

Willow and Bristol DO look very much alike,
and to a layman's eye?

Willow = Bristol!

I do not think that Letterman knowingly made the joke about Willow. I believe him when he says it was ABOUT Bristol, thinking SHE was on the NYC trip. And even if he made the joke regardless of which daughter was with her, the pun only has teeth when it IS about Bristol. Know what I mean?
(She's the one who already go "knocked up"). It is totally logical, IMHO.

Now, having said all that - I think the joke was in bad taste and would get lots of reaction - which is exactly what Letterman needed the week after his new competition (Conan O'Brien) hit the airwaves. He knew EXACTLY what kind of media fury this would cause, because he also knew that Sarah Palin and the right-wing blowhards would pour gasoline all over it.

Thus....
Letterman (1)
Palin (0)

Stop apologizing, Mr. Letterman. We get it!

NakedTruth said...

Audrey,

I agree that the joke was tasteless regardless of which young lady it was targeted but I don't agree with you about the insignificance of which young lady was at the game.

If Willow was not at that game IMO it means that Todd and Sarah is lying and now throwing their 14/15 year old under the bus in order to make Letterman's joke even more tasteless because it's about a minor. IMO this would be just another great example of how Sarah use her children as human shields.

The difference between Letterman's jokes and the other comedians that made comments about her daughters is that Letterman's joke contained a comment about Ms. Sarah dressing like a 'slut'. This is what really angered Sarah not the comment about Willow.

I, too, am a mother and I would defend my children (boy and girl) through hell and high water but I honestly think Sarah's outrage is faux and unfortunately she has many out there believing that she actually cares that Letterman said something tasteless about her daughter when it's really about the 'slut' comment Letterman made about her. Damn, that Sarah is good!

Unknown said...

Now if we can only get Bitsy (Elisabeth Hasselbeck) to shut her cakehole on The View. She is keeping the Palin Puke-a-Thon going every day, parroting Hannity's talking points and whipping up outrage towards Letterman, who she now describes as an "ignorant jerk." She's an even stupider, blonde version of her idol.

midnightcajun said...

Audrey, the fact that Willow was not at the game is VERY important, and here's why:

Todd aka Stapletongue's press release said very clearly that willow was at the game and in the pre-game photoshoot. It's this lie that enabled the Palins to twist the truth and claim Dave's joke "obviously" refereed to Willow. In other words, their Outrage Tour de Farce was launched on a lie.

In her interview with Matt, when Matt said Lettermann explained his joke was about Willow, Sarah accused Dave of lying and her proof of that was, again, "Willow was at the game." Read the Palinbot sites and the comments on MSM newsarticles, and they're all saying the same thing, "Willow was at the game, ergo the joke was about Willow and when Dave says it wasn't, he's lying."

Now, if someone could prove that the Palins were the ones lying, that Willow was not at the game, Wow. They told a lie in a press release and she got up on TV and told a baldfaced lie. And why? To hurt Dave, to make people think he meant something he didn't. It's petty and sleazy. This could destroy her. But I don't think anyone in the MSM is going to bother to go after it. They react; they don't investigate or even, god forbid, think.

My fear is that this hoopla has scared everyone into leaving her alone. If we now have a Teflon Sarah, we're doomed.

sunman said...

I think this needs to be investigated. Why not ask Guiliani if Willow was indeed present? I have not seen a single report on the internet that mentions Willow at the stadium. There are reports that indicate Willow, Sarah's sister, and others being on the tour with them BUT not in the stadium.

See this article, for instance:

http://www.newsday.com/news/local/ny-sarahpalin0608,0,1640711.story

From the article

"Accompanying Palin on the trip is her husband, Todd, and the couple's 14-year-old daughter, Willow, as well as Palin's sister, Heather Bruce and Bruce's son Karcher, also 14."

It makes sense that Willow would have stayed behind in the hotel with her aunt and her 14 year old cousin.

Please, please media - do some investigation. It might turn out that Palin is not telling the truth again.

Unknown said...

I agree with nakedtruth and midnight cajun...lol, of course it's about SP being called a 'ho'.

It is just so curiously incredulous to sit back and watch all the 'women's organizations' ally with proven duplicitous SP against Letterman. How can this be? Palin who nominated W.A.R. knowing he made misogynistic comments. I guess the heads of these organizations don't realize how they devalue their 'brand'.

Thank god for bloggers to step in where the corporate controlled media clearly has forsaken the public.

sjk from the belly of the plane said...

"Audrey said...
I guess Audrey must be a dense tonight, but I don't see why it's particularly a scandal if Willow was or was not at the game."


Audrey, its because SP stated explictly that Willow was at the game in the CNN Blitzer interview.
I watched the game live. No Willow. No pics. No reports.

sjk from the belly of the plane said...

"It makes sense that Willow would have stayed behind in the hotel with her aunt and her 14 year old cousin."...

BINGO....

Q) "Willow, do ya want to go to the Yankees game, or spend a few hours shopping in Manhattan"....

A) "Are you kidding, Mom? C ya later!"

mel said...

Well, Dr. Laura has come through again, today saying that she doesn't for a tiny, tiny minute believe that Letterman was referring to WP in his joke, and that knowing this full well, SP twisted things to her advantage. And Laura reiterated that BP was, in fact, "knocked up" (by a "loser kid" or something to that effect). But she did add she has always avoided Dave for his meanness.

You know what I've always wondered? What did SP do when her kids--Piper at the very least--asked to feel Trig kick and move in the 6-week period they knew about the "pregnancy"? Did she just say, nah, he's sleeping, or OK, I'll let you know when he's kicking? Did she move her abdomen around to feign a moving fetus? As in the rest of this deception...I just don't get it.

Mel

sg said...

Re Willow at Yankees game:

One other possibility, which hasn't been mentioned: Willow may have been at the game, but just not sitting with her parents.

Huh?

Well, keep in mind that the Palins and Guilianis were sitting in pricey seats right behind home plate. Maybe they couldn't get enough tix for Willow, Heather and her son, too. So those three sat elsewhere in the stadium. Perhaps the Mayor even got them into a friend's luxury suite, for which it could have been easier to get extra admissions at the last minute. The kids might especially like it: better food, couches and TVs, perhaps a private bathroom.

But if Guiliani could get the three into a luxury suite, why not everyone go there? Well, the whole point of the pols Palin and Guiliani going to the game was to be seen and get photographed. Their sitting front and center was best for them. By the same token, keeping the kids and Heather out of the spotlight might have been everyone's preference, too.

I offer no proof for any of this; I don't know if Willow was at the game or not. I just suggest it as a possible explanation for how Willow could have been at the game yet not photographed.

I agree with Audrey's basic take on the whole Letterman-Palin feud: Letterman's joke was offensive, but SP exploited it way out of proportion.

All this having been said, IMHO this issue has run its course. Letterman has apologized, SP has accepted it. There are bigger fish to fry.

Elizabeth said...

From TheSuperficial.com following Sarah's 'acceptance' of Letterman's apology "on behalf of all young women":

"Also, because Sarah Palin loves protecting women so much, she'll continue to fight for them to pay for rape kits in Alaska and then be forced to carry their perpetrator's baby to term."

A good (though slightly exaggerated) point.

wayofpeace said...

SARAH is incapable of doing/saying the right thing.


from MUDFLATS:

David Letterman has formalized his apology to Sarah Palin about the “knock up” joke. And she was asked if she accepted the apology.

"Of course it’s accepted on behalf of young women, like my daughters, who hope men who ‘joke’ about public displays of sexual exploitation of girls will soon evolve.

"Letterman certainly has the right to ‘joke’ about whatever he wants to, and thankfully we have the right to express our reaction,” Palin said. “This is all thanks to our U.S. Military women and men putting their lives on the line for us to secure America’s Right to Free Speech – in this case, may that right be used to promote equality and respect."



A wise man once told me that when someone apologizes, there’s only one thing to say. “I accept your apology.” But, since Governor Palin does not know the same wise man I do, that’s what we got.

Somehow, the military has come into the equation. I don’t know how or why, or what war on Free Speech she’s talking about, but I’m assuming that between now and the day she declares she’s running for president, we can expect all sorts of groups inserted into announcements whenever possible.

WV: LOL: halfies,
as in the half-brained PALINS; that is, TODD and SARAH.

wayofpeace said...

another great post from MUDFLATS:

Fun With Statistics!

June, 2009

In New York City, a crowd gathered with signs of protest, wanting David Letterman to go away.

The crowd was estimated at 50 people. That’s .0006% of the population of New York City.



September, 2008

In Anchorage Alaska, a crowd gathered with signs of protest, wanting Sarah Palin to go away. The crowd was estimated at 1500 people. That’s .54% of the population of Anchorage.

So….given home court advantage to each of them, the number of people protesting Palin was 90,000% higher than those protesting Letterman.

Just sayin’.

sunman said...

sg, Re: "One other possibility, which hasn't been mentioned: Willow may have been at the game, but just not sitting with her parents."

Even if it turns out that Willow Palin did indeed attend the game, the undeniable fact remains that there are no written or photographic accounts of it dated Monday 8th. (Willow's attendance is "assumed" in later accounts after Sarah's assertion.)

That means that Dave or his writers could not have known that Willow was present.

KaJo said...

sg @ June 16, 2009 12:51 PM "Re Willow at Yankees game: One other possibility, which hasn't been mentioned: Willow may have been at the game, but just not sitting with her parents...
Well, keep in mind that the Palins and Guilianis were sitting in pricey seats right behind home plate....Their sitting front and center was best for them. By the same token, keeping the kids and Heather out of the spotlight might have been everyone's preference, too....


-----------------------

I thought of that, sg, but if that's the case, why didn't Rudy Giuliani at least say he MET Willow at Yankee Stadium, or observe some little nicety like "their beautiful daughter Willow" when he had that interview with Eddie Burke on June 8th?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovhTqSqXLDU

And Willow was in pictures sitting between her parents in that parade; and she was in that mall-shopping outfit on stage before the Autism Walk -- it would be very UNcharacteristic of Sarah Palin to "shun" her daughter and keep her out of another "spotlight" venue.

After all, she dragged Piper to that New Years Eve thing when Piper wore the summer dress and SP wore the dead mink and sweater with the palazzo pants.

SP doesn't miss a chance to "bring the family along" -- you have to think Willow objected STRENUOUSLY to being with old fogies and nouveau riche wives and her parents (whom she probably thought she's been around 'way too long on this trip already).

onething said...

Someone mentioned that Willow may have been at the game but not sitting anywhere near her parents.

This is true, but then there is no reason for Letterman or others to be expected to know that.

sunman said...

Willow Palin might have been at the game after all.
They attended an Autism walk earlier during the day (Willow's cousin, Karcher is autistic).

Here's the picture:
http://jukebox.lohud.com/photos/popup/index.php?gallery=Walk%20Now%20for%20Autism%2006-07-09&offset=2

In the afternoon, they went to the Yankees game.
See the Countdown video:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/#31396154
At 3:16, I think you see Willow behind Guiliani. Maybe, maybe not.

Patrick said...

Hi everybody,

I would like to tell you that the address of my twitter has changed. The new address is:

http://twitter.com/palin_deceives

Twitter is a great tool! Anybody should use it.

wayofpeace said...

with FRIENDS like these, SARAH may now wish she'd have just shut up:

CNN reports:

A crowd of 15 protesters upset with the late night comic held signs and occasionally shouted as they stood across the street from Letterman's studio.

But they were often hidden from view by the more than 35 members of the media there to cover the protest, and out-shouted by a few very vocal counter-protesters.

New York Magazine videographer Jonah Green was one of those press members, and he captured a disturbing video of several of those protesters in hate-filled rants against the CBS "Late Show" host.

Among the more alarming lines of attack -- particularly given that the rally was held because Letterman supposedly made a joke about Sarah Palin's teenage daughter Willow -- was that Letterman's son Harry was born out of wedlock (he recently wed Regina Lasko after dating for over a decade).

"Should we talk about his son?" one protester asked Green. "I believe his son was born out of wedlock. I believe there's a term for that."

"Is someone making jokes about his child?" asked another. "Especially, you know, when he had a daughter out of wedlock himself" (he doesn't; 5-year-old Harry is his only child).

"How dare he?" asked yet a third, the most offensive of all. "When he has a bastard son, and a slut for a wife" (Letterman's wife Lasko has kept a notoriously low profile).

It should be noted that Sarah Palin's teenage daughter Bristol gave birth to baby Tripp (out-of-wedlock) in December and broke up with the baby's father, Levi Johnston, in March.

Other conservative talking points thrown around at the rally included, "Close the borders!" and "I only watch Fox News."....

wayofpeace said...

watch what SARAH finds hilarious!

maybe some of you have already watched this... it's my first time... to call her a hypocrite is unkind to hypocrites.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJdZr4rByrw

Anonymous said...

I'm beginning to think that the Witch Doctor had some power, and that SPalin sold her soul to the devil. Will nothing stop her? How does she continue to be everwhere? And supported by NOW??! She's like a virulent staph infection that just keeps growing. I love reading the hopeful people on here, but today I'm not feeling it.

KaJo said...

sunman said...June 16, 2009 8:39 PM Willow Palin might have been at the game after all...In the afternoon, they went to the Yankees game. See the Countdown video: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/#31396154 At 3:16, I think you see Willow behind Guiliani. Maybe, maybe not.

Sunman, the answer is: Not.

All the physical characteristics of the women in the rows in front of and in back of Rudy Giuliani don't match Willow Palin -- they don't have her typical hairdo, her dark dark hair, her widow's peak, her straight fairly high forehead, or her strong chin. And the woman between Rudy Giuliani and Sarah Palin is Giuliani's wife, Judi.

(to reiterate a comment I posted previously)

Dee said...

Sunman says: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036677/#31396154
At 3:16, I think you see Willow behind Guiliani.

At 3:27 there is a clear front shot of the person sitting next to Palin. It appears to be Willow.

Personally, I love it that Sara is once again taking the opportunity to link herself with an undignified, most un-Presidential firestorm. The public can now add whiny-victim to the list of things that springs to mind when one hears the name, Sara Palin. She actually thinks that just because some feminist agree that Letterman's remarks were over the line that that is going to translate into political support for her run for office.

midnightcajun said...

sunman, that's Giuliani's wife beside Sarah; in the row behind them is an older woman in her 40s.

It is possible that Willow was at the game with Heather, but in a cheaper seat, although that seems like a weird thing to do. Plus, remember that Todd in his statement claimed willow was there with them for the photo op before the game. She's not.

akiandronin said...

One correction to this article - Sarah Palin's appearance on SNL was with Seth Meyers, head writer of the show, and not Seth Green.

Other than that, thanks for the great site!

Unknown said...

I say we protest NOW.

Whoever made the decision to come out in support of Palin needs some re-dressing by the board. I seriously doubt they polled their members.

Their hall of shame article left me chagrin with its misleading information and obvious pro Palin bias. The writer rants on about "the sexualization of girls and women in the media", scorches Letterman, mentions Limbaugh, in reference to Chelsea Clinton - but - fails to name McCain, and completely omits Palin's W.A.R., all the while refusing to admit that Candie's Shoe company is all about everything she detests.

It's a shame too because as a guy sensitive to womens' rights issues Lisa Bennett has just discredited herself and her organization and alienated...all from one seemingly disingenuous article.



http://www.now.org/issues/media/hall-of-shame/

midnightcajun said...

Meg Stapletongue has another bleat in Us Magazine. Fake sex videos, doctored photos, and contrived conversations ? What is she talking about?

"For many months now, false and misleading stories and entire fabrications about the Governor's record and the Palin family have made it into mainstream publications," she tells Usmagazine.com in a statement. "There have been many falsehoods and distortions regarding a range of topics, from the status of Alaska's natural gas pipeline and the Governor's restructuring of the state's oil taxes to sick and disgusting personal insinuations about Trig's identity, alleged fake sex videos, doctored photos, and even contrived stories about conversations with members of the Gosselin family," she continues. "It is all so very unfortunate. We can do better. We can and should focus on real issues, not fabricated issues."

http://www.usmagazine.com/news/rep-sarah-palin-phone-calls-to-jon-gosselin-not-true-2009156

mlewis said...

Regina at Palingates is discussing a very old event. Sarah was accused of child endangerment by not strapping the newborn into an approved car seat during an early outing. (I seem to remember that she dragged newborn Trip along on a visit to a prison). She shot back with a very defensive statement, saying she always used a car seat. Todd said that it was in a truck on a private road going very slowly (not exactly the same thing).

So, I am wondering if there is a picture in your extensive file of young Trig,showing him sitting on Sarah's lap in a car going somewhere? What's the point? Well, one response to the post was that it may be that they are getting all of their ducks in a row with eye on a future political run, compiling a book with every complaint and how it was addressed. Since this might be a future issue, does anyone remember seeing a that photo of Trig on Sarah's lap while riding in a car (or am I getting her mixed up with Britney Spears, another publicity seeking dame??)

sg said...

Even if one interprets Letterman's remarks most sympathetically to him (he had no idea Willow was even in NY state, he was just making a generic Bristol joke), the remarks were still offensive and in bad taste (and not even funny). That seems to be the general consensus in the press; Letterman now concedes so himself. Audrey has said she thinks Letterman was talking about Willow; I'm more inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt.

On the other side, even if one interprets SP's response most sympathetically to her (Willow was at the game, SP felt Letterman knew that and he intentionally was joking about Willow), she still exploited it way out of proportion. And I think that is also a consensus opinion (OK, excluding C4P and TeamSarah): here's a column by conservative columnist Debra Saunders:

http://tinyurl.com/saunders-palin-as-victim

======

"Enough of Sarah Palin, the victim"

"I wish Sarah Palin would just go away.

"During the 2008 presidential campaign, I wrote about the unfair personal treatment to which the political press corps subjected Palin and her children. Now I just want her to stop milking her role as GOP martyr. Palin should stick to her day job -- by which I mean, governing Alaska, not being fodder for talk-show humor."

======

As for trying to prove that Willow was not at the game: the only people who would be witnesses to her NOT being there are unlikely to talk. Even Mayor Giuliani would artfully dodge any questions. So the truth is likely to stay hidden.

But I agree with KaJo and midnightcajun re the MSNBC Countdown video: I didn't see Willow either.

~~Olivia said...

The Right (Faux News, Rush dittoheads, etc) have been screaming that if the same kind of remarks had been made about Michelle Obama and her children, the Liberals would be up in arms and demanding blood.

They have a very short memory... The Right has been responsible for many, many unkind "jokes" about Hillary and Chelsea Clinton's physical appearance. How soon they forget the "ugly" jokes made while Bill was in office and Hillary campaigned for the nomination.

The Clintons showed class by ignoring the comments and rising above it.... and there was no hoopla.

GINO should take some lessons in having class.

Audrine said...

In response to the question regarding whether we have a photo of Sarah with Trig on her lap in a car, the answer is ironically, yes. However, it is of her with Trig participating in a Fourth of July parade, so I think we will all need to give her a pass on this one.

Other than that, the answer is no. Ironically, there are very very few photos of Trig during his first four months of life. Really just a handful.

We are in the process of adding these photos to the calendar pages on the website.

Ivyfree said...

"Meg Stapletongue has another bleat in Us Magazine. Fake sex videos, doctored photos, and contrived conversations ? What is she talking about?"

Either somebody's afraid that sex videos will come to light, or they're spreading a pre-emptive denial of a phony rumor in order to disparage any internet discussion of Sarah. I'd bet that any real sex videos (and I wouldn't put that past Sarah, Bristol OR Willow)would have shown up by now.

More Cowbell said...

"alleged fake sex videos"

Ha-- I don't think anyone who's talking about the sex videos is alleging that they're FAKE. When will Sarah and her minions learn to speak English?

Anyway, I think they might be preemptively responding to rumors-- this is what an anonymous poster said the other day at Immoral Minority. "Sarah felt compelled to reach out to another woman who has had incriminating and sexually suggestive material from the "old days" come back to haunt her. Because that is Sarah's future and she knows it. It's making her absolutely batshit at the moment.

Sarah's material is a mixture of photos and explosive video, doing decidedly naughty stuff that her conservative base will condemn her for."

This link goes to all the comments for that story; this one is the ninth.

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/2009/06/is-adn-still-in-palins-pocket.html#comments

tasha said...

http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-06-16/shopping-with-levi-johnston/?cid=hp:mainpromo3
"Sarah Palin's former future son-in-law, Levi Johnston, takes The Daily Beast's Renata Espinosa on a spending spree in L.A. and talks about David Letterman's intent ("I don't think he was trying to be malicious");"
this comment from mudflats blogger:
"This article made me smile–and then it made me sit up straight! Towards the end of the article Levi says “My boys are gonna be so mad at me when they see me in this stuff,” says Levi. “My dad is going to make fun of me, he’s going to shake his head.”” Who are his boys? Does he mean Tripp and Trigg?Hmmmm…….."

Audrine said...

As much as I'd like to read more into Levi's comments about his "boys," most babies don't care much about clothes. My best guess is that he was talking about his male friends, just in the same way my daughters intend it, when they say they are going to do something with "their girls."

Unknown said...

''boys'' is shortened from ''homeboys'' which is slang for the guys he hangs out with.

Tasha, you gotta get up-to-date, girl. ;-)

Lilybart said...

It will kill Palin to report one more expensive Yankees ticket on her gift report for taxes! And she will have to or admit Willow was not there.