Thursday, January 29, 2009

Psychology Today Says It's "Here to Help"


SarahPAC has gotten started, and is the brainchild of a group of Republicans who think that this woman is actually a viable candidate for the national stage. I don't know how anyone can feel that way for anything other than purely ideological ideas. It can't be based on job performance, since the woman is so absent from the job she's got that the legislature famously wears these buttons:
I don't know about you, but her vacuity and ravening hunger for fame and time in the spotlight enrages me enough to keep pounding the drum to expose her for the willing tool she is.

Just because anyone CAN run for office doesn't mean that everyone SHOULD. She ought to go home and take care of her Down-syndrome baby.

or at least just go home!

Pulled from A Field Guide to Narcissism:

Deep desire to be at the center of things is served by extreme self-confidence, a combination that makes narcissists attractive and even charming. Buoyed by a coterie of admiring friends and associates—protected by the armor of positive self-regard—someone with a mild-to-moderate case of narcissism can float through life feeling pretty good about himself. Since they feel entitled to special treatment, they are easily offended, and readily harbor grudges. Yet narcissists are often very popular—at least in the short term.

The beauty of being a narcissist is that even when disaster stares you in the face, you feel neither doubt nor remorse. In a study, researchers asked a pair of participants to undertake a task that was rigged to fail. Most people tend to protect their partner, sharing either the credit or the blame. "But the narcissists would say, 'It's totally the other person's fault.' They're completely willing to step on someone," says narcissism researcher Keith Campbell, associate professor of social psychology at the University of Georgia.

Intensely narcissistic people often live tumultuous lives, as few people can tolerate them for long. But having a milder version of the personality type comes with many side benefits. Subclinical narcissists are happy. They are less likely to be depressed, sad or anxious, and rate their subjective well-being more highly. They're less reactive to stress, and recover more rapidly from it.

1. Buoyed by a coterie of admiring friends and associates—protected by the armor of positive self-regard—someone with a mild-to-moderate case of narcissism can float through life feeling pretty good about himself.

example:

Meghan Stapleton - Once a beloved and respected Channel 2 News anchorwoman (I’m sensing a theme here), and whose only dreadful performance before working for the McCain campaign was literally getting run over by a Christmas reindeer on television, her fall to the dark side can only be described as extraordinary. Known now as Meghan Stapletongue, because that’s kind of what it feels like when she talks, she was front and center with McCain’s “Truth Squad.” As Orwellian as it sounded, the function of the “Truth Squad” was to stand in front of the media with charts and graphs complete with circles and arrows, and connect anyone and everyone that spoke out for accountability in Palin’s ethics investigation, with…(ominous chord)..Barack Obama….(insert high pitched scream here). Another favorite activity was sullying the name and reputation of ex-Commissioner of Public safety Walt Monegan, a dedicated and competent public servant (who refused to illegally fire Palin’s ex-brother-in-law) by calling him a “rogue” and accusing him of “insubordination.” Nice.

2. The beauty of being a narcissist is that even when disaster stares you in the face, you feel neither doubt nor remorse.


Finding Number One

For the reasons explained in section IV of this report, I find that Governor Sarah

Palin abused her power by violating Alaska Statute 39.52.110(a) of the Alaska Executive

Branch Ethics Act. Alaska Statute 39.52.110(a) provides

"The legislature reaffirms that each public officer holds office as a

public trust, and any effort to benefit a personal or financial interest

through official action is a violation of that trust."


Palin's reaction:

"If you read the report, you will see that there was nothing unlawful or unethical about replacing a cabinet member," Palin said as boarded her campaign bus in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. "You got to read the report."

Palin violated state ethics law by trying to get her former brother-in-law fired from the state police, a state investigator's report for the bipartisan Legislative Council concluded Friday.


Wednesday, January 28, 2009

Sarah Palin Wants To Run in 2012- When the Mayan Calendar Ends. I'm Just Sayin'.

Sarah Palin has a PAC now. I can only hope that the body politic of America will expel this infection from itself so that we can continue to undo the damage of the Neocons. However, in the meantime Sarah gets to run all over the country (read: NOT in Alaska) promoting whatever the hell her political agenda (read: self-aggrandizing horsesh*t) actually is.

From Alaska Daily News:

... it {also} allows Palin to more easily differentiate between her political activity and her gubernatorial duties, Pryor said. She can use the money raised by the political committee to donate to other like-minded candidates or to incur travel expenses on behalf of them. She also can use it to pay for her own political activities unrelated to her official job.

So Palin, for example, can use money raised by the committee to attend two upcoming political events outside Alaska, Pryor said.

Really, how much time has this woman actually spent in her state, running the people's business? Not so much, according to The Mudflats:

I think it’s time to dust off those “Where’s Sarah?” buttons. The legislature has worn them before to acknowledge Palin’s Juneau-phobia. And yes, both the Alfalfa/RNC trip and the CPAC trip will happen during the 90 day Legislative session.

So even if she's not tapping the Alaskans for her trip money, she's depriving them of the services of an active governor. And what about her damned kids not being high-school dropouts, really?

In the wee hours of 2008, Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin wanted everyone to know that both daughter Bristol and her fiance, Levi Johnston, parents of Palin's new grandson, Tripp, are not high school dropouts. "You need to know that both Levi and Bristol are working their butts off to parent and going to school and working at the same time," the former Republican vice presidential nominee told People magazine in a phone message on New Year's Eve. "They are certainly not high school dropouts."

Palin was also in touch with the Associated Press and the Anchorage Daily News to complain about what she said were erroneous reports that Johnston had dropped out of school. The source of those reports? Possibly Levi himself. In October, the Associated Press interviewed Johnston and reported that he had left school to work as an apprentice electrician. Palin issued a statement Wednesday clarifying that Johnston is "continuing his online high school work" while he does the apprentice thing.

Pft!

Monday, January 26, 2009

Palin's $180,000 Campaign Clothes "Stuffed In Trash Bags" At RNC Headquarters: NewMajority (VIDEO, SLIDESHOW)


Ahhh, Sarah. If only we DID see your borrowed feathers auctioned off and the money used to feed the rural villagers in Alaska! Unfortunately, she is far too self-absorbed as a media whore to pay attention to the job she was actually hired for- that of the stewardship of Alaska. This is why we won't need to worry about her in 2012- she'll lose her gubernatorial bid in 2010, and then maybe we'll by Christ be shut of her.



The more she's around, the better I like it- every time she opens her mouth she shows thinking people what a fool with a microphone looks like.
About Slideshows
Read the Article at HuffingtonPost

Thursday, January 22, 2009

It's Quality, Not Quantity, Dammit.


I was poking around the Arizona Congress Watch blog, just trying to find new ways to keep up with the news and becoming a better-informed human being, when I came across the above-linked letter from some guy named Trent Franks, who I'm guessing is important in Arizona state politics. I actually hope he's not, because his comparison of abortion to slavery was one of the sappiest pieces of sophistry I've ever read. *sneering incredulously*

Just in case anyone out there is real unclear, I've made a conscious decision to decline the joys of reproduction, mostly because I don't want the job of raising a baby into a recognizably moral human being; instead, I have chosen to help improve the ones other people have already reproduced. This is extremely satisfying, and I wouldn't trade the choices I've made for anything.

However, again and again I find it necessary to put out there the idea that responsible species planning would go a long way towards solving a multitude of problems: unemployment, starvation, homelessness, disease. If people could just remember that before they got overexited on date night, then the nutrition and long life (that also contribute to overpopulation) which humans have scientifically gifted ourselves with would be of benefit to a greater percentage of the population of the world.

If you have children, love them, cherish them, and teach them responsible stewardship of the world.

If you don't, keep it that way by any means you see fit until you're consciously ready to take on the job, or give the baby human to someone who is.

Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Where's My Pony !? *stamps foot*






















He must be ordering as we speak.

Things I like that happened on his first day:
1. GUANTANAMO BAY NAVAL BASE, Cuba — The Guantanamo Bay war crimes court came to an abrupt halt Wednesday as military judges granted President Barack Obama's request to suspend proceedings while he reviews his predecessor's strategy for prosecuting terrorists. (huffpoo)

update: WASHINGTON — The Obama administration intends to close the Guantanamo Bay detention center within a year and halt military trials of terror suspects held there, according to a draft order obtained Wednesday. The executive order was one of three expected imminently on how to interrogate and prosecute al-Qaida, Taliban or other foreign fighters believed to threaten the United States.(huffpoo again)



2. Obama decides to stack the deck against torture, as opposed to for it:

Lederman, [another] former Clinton Office of Legal Counsel lawyer, is perhaps the most prominent of several high-profile opponents of the Bush Administration's executive power claims joining Obama, a mark that he intends not just to change but to aggressively reverse Bush's moves on subjects like torture. With hires like Barron, Johnen, and Lederman, Obama is not just going back to Democratic lawyers: These are anti-Bush lawyers.

Damn straight. Lederman has been a leading opponent of Bush's torture policies, and the legal reasoning behind them. He's even suggested that the former administration officials committed crimes in this area. Now, thankfully, Lederman is headed to the OLC. (the Washington Monthy)

Now, I spose I could keep to the high road, but it's too damned much fun to sink into the morass of spiteful mockery. We gots two to mock today:

1. Dick Cheney or Jeffrey Lebowski? Gentle Reader, YOU decide! *snicker guffaw*














2. Sarah Palin just won't go away, and at this point, the more she's around, the better I like her:

ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin is going on the offensive against news organizations and bloggers she says are perpetuating malicious gossip about her and her children. But political observers say the former Republican vice presidential candidate can't have it both ways: trotting out the children to showcase her family values, then trying to shield them from scrutiny.

Palin's criticism also raises questions about her motivations because she has said she is open to a presidential run in 2012.

"I think she's positioning herself. She's attacking the media as a way to generate support among a base she hopes will support her," said Leonard Steinhorn, a professor of communications at American University in Washington and an expert on the presidency.

Palin shied away from interviews during the campaign, although her children often accompanied her on her travels, including her oldest daughter, Bristol, who was pregnant at the time.

But in recent weeks, she has personally reached out to media outlets such as People magazine and The Associated Press to complain about information she claimed is wrong. (God Bless the Huffpoo!!)

Just keep talking, sweetheart, just keep talking...



Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Can YOU tell which one is Fast Eddie?

He is one of the kids who came to my free period to watch Barack Obama get sworn in as out 44th President. Yay!
Photobucket

*Snicker* I got banned from Redstate.com!

AHHAHAHAHAHA
morons.

Check out the thread that I got excised from the site for (I'm posting as Darwinita)


In case you didn't know, Redstate.com is where the 23% flat-Earth Bushfans go to mourn and grouse. I went there today simply to see how sour the grapes were, but man oh man, the fact that Moe Lane actually kicked me off the site for expressing a dissenting opinion only makes me glad all over again that people like that aren't in charge any more.

Seriously, they booted me from the site because I disagree with them. It's their site, and they have every right to show just how cowardly and lame they are.

Can't stop laughing- for all of Huffpoo's flaws at least they don't ban people for DISAGREEING with each other. Interesting tactic to note: instead of my name, the Webmaster changed it to some load of sh*zer about FISA. Sure that was annoying, but if that's the only bit they can come up with then that's pretty sad.