Pray for Me While I Kick Some Ass – From the Cutting Room Floor of Blind Allegiance to Sarah Palin
By Ken Morris and Jeanne Devon
As outlined in our last piece Obsessive Perfection and Anger Mismanagement, Sarah Palin’s temperament, emotional instability, and what others suggested were psychological disorders that bordered on, or actually crossed into pathology, necessarily leads to the inescapable conclusion that she would, as Frank Bailey stated in Blind Allegiance, be a “disaster of Biblical proportions” if ever elected to high public office.
According to individuals who knew her for decades, the compulsion to be perceived as perfect in both physical and intellectual terms drove Sarah Palin to “botox addiction,” bulimia, and abuse of diet pills even during pregnancy. In addition to the omnipresent quest to maintain a beauty queen image, Blind Allegiance described the lengths she went to manufacture intellectual chops, including ghost written op-eds and self-penned letters to the editor signed by others who were instructed to lie about their authorship. The need for this unattainable perfection (fueled, perhaps, by the side effects of diet pills, and what was described to us as binge and purge sessions), caused Sarah’s political inner circle, including husband Todd and Frank Bailey, to be constantly grappling with Sarah’s mercurial moods, in which she bounced between manic childishness, and depressive, brutal viciousness. These cycles left everyone she interacted with on a regular basis beyond edgy.
Confirming this roller coaster ride, an individual who knew her socially and reached out to us after Joe McGinniss’ leak of our manuscript in February said of the narrative in Blind Allegiance to Sarah Palin, “One thing about the manuscript that rings so true is this: you didn’t know which Sarah you’d meet up with. It’s so exhausting. You never knew. When it was time, and the family knew Mom would be home soon, even Todd, the whole demeanor of the house would change because you didn’t know if she was going to be happy as a lamb—the world is wonderful, ‘Hi, kids,’ laughy, laughy, laughy, good times—or if she was going to come in and slam her stuff down, be pissed off at Todd, slam some doors, and go to her room. You never knew what was going to walk in. I laughed my head off when I saw [in the leaked manuscript] that Todd was calling Frank Bailey to give him a heads-up about who she was that morning. That is classic Sarah. But isn’t it kind of sad to think that as the governor of a state, your spouse is having to call your support staff to tell them what kind of mood you’re in? But this doesn’t surprise me at all because Todd would complain about that all the time. And the kids knew what to look for too. If she was in her big, bad mood, they would disperse and hide.”
Sarah’s ferocious temper and retributive, attack dog personality conflicted strikingly with her tenacious insistence that God was at the core of her life. Throughout the years Frank worked alongside her, she continued to have email and personal contact with a longstanding and dedicated group of Prayer Warriors. She beseeched them and others to “pray hard” for her, and her mission to battle evil forces in the state and the nation. Palin took pains to heap public thanks on these groups, including in the acknowledgments of her memoir (what we like to fondly call her “dark comedy”) Going Rogue. The term Prayer Warrior is used by many evangelical Christian churches (and those espousing Dominion Theology), where adherents actively engage in what they believe to be spiritual warfare against demonic spirits. Sarah clearly expressed great sympathy for this religious philosophy as she swore to political and personal friends that those who opposed her were evil and suggested that she was at the center of a spiritual battle. She embraced as her legacy the Biblical images of Queen Esther and Jabez (both described in some detail in Blind Allegiance).
Once Sarah arrived on the national stage and became the Rebpublican party’s beloved hockey mom and vice presidential nominee, prayer networks across the country cropped up (with her full endorsement). Each stood at the ready to act on her requests and pray for her success on a day-to-day basis, including for her performance in a particular speech, debate or interview. She often received messages that supporters were praying for her, including Lt. Governor (now Governor) Sean Parnell of whom she said, “I’m so pleased to have a brother in prayer while in office as the Lt. Governor and I pray for God’s wisdom and His will to be done through us in this state…”
Sarah regularly received gushing emails from individuals who felt they were personally chosen by God to intercede for her. Just as Frank on the political front, there were those in her spiritual circle willing to lay down their lives for her if necessary. Lt. Governor Parnell and friends would share particular verses or prayers passed on to them by others, as if these were spiritual transfusions that would keep their beloved Sarah strong. Prophesies and visions were joyously passed to the governor and even her own dreams and those of others, were interpreted for their Biblical and political significance by spiritual “prophets.”
Palin attended at least one prayer meeting in Wasilla just before the VP nomination. She described herself as “quite anxious” to meet with, and have hands laid upon her by a small and secretive group of Prayer Warriors who congregated at a local business. They would pray and beg God for protection and political success for the woman they described as “God’s anointed” and in danger of being “toppled by the enemy.”
On June 7, 2008, Palin used Alaska state funds to travel from the capital of Juneau home to the Mat-Su Valley to attend two June 8th events hosted in part by the Wasilla Assembly of God, which she had been associated with for almost two decades. At one of the events, held at the Wasilla Sports Stadium, Palin spoke and dedicated the state of Alaska to Jesus. Governor Palin with her daughter Piper by her side, and son Trig in a sling, spoke to a cheering crowd, “I’m thinking, you know, what can our critics do? What can my critics do? They can’t take it back if I dedicate [the state] according to the authority I have within me to the Lord. They can’t take it back!” Upon learning of this dedication, her legions rejoiced: Sarah was, they now knew for sure, willing to eradicate the boundaries between a secular state and a rule by and for the glory of God. One Prayer Warrior commented that was the moment she knew Palin was without question, “one of us.”
When senior McCain staffers heard that the local Wasilla Prayer Warriors were planning to release a video tape of the 2008 One Lord Sunday event, in which both Governor Palin and Lt. Governor Parnell were blessed on stage in what is known as a laying on of hands, by Wasilla Assembly of God’s pastor Ed Kalnins, they grew extremely concerned. For them, this was yet another political disaster, and something that would be interpreted by the average voter as religious nut-baggery.
Bruce Wilson, reporting for AlterNet in September of 2008, noted that the sermons of Pastor Kalnins “espouse such theological concepts as the possession of geographic territories by demonic spirits and the inter-generational transmission of family ‘curses.’”
When the hapless McCain campaign was notified by Palin—who was apparently clueless that the film was incendiary—that the video was ready for circulation, it flew up the chain of command. McCain advisor Tucker Eskew diplomatically told Palin that “…general rule of thumb to our friends is let’s not give opponents new things to distort.”
Despite the potential powder keg of her own religious background that was ready to blow, Sarah was desperate for the McCain camp to attack candidate Obama over his affiliation with the controversial Rev. Jeremiah Wright, a man who had delivered sermons that sometimes sounded racially inflammatory. All the while, Sarah had radical religious tapes in the can that needed no distortion to be regarded as unsettling. Much to the McCain staff’s dismay, a video of Reverend Thomas Muthee, in which the visiting African cleric was shown laying hands on then gubernatorial candidate Sarah Palin and praying for her victory in the election, was being widely circulated. Muthee not only heaped praise on Palin, but he discussed how the church needed to take over the education system, the banks, the government, and the media; and prayed for Palin to be kept safe from witchcraft.
Wilson had this to say about Muthee: “Palin has also been blessed, or ‘anointed,’ by an African cleric [Muthee], prominent in the Third Wave movement, who has repeatedly visited the Wasilla Assembly of God and claims to have effected positive, dramatic social change in a Kenyan town by driving out a ‘spirit of witchcraft.’ The Wasilla Assembly of God church is deeply involved with both Third Wave activities and theology. Their Master’s Commission program is part of a three year post-high school international training program with studies in prophecy, intercessory prayer, Biblical exegesis, authority and leadership.”
While Frank Bailey noted in his book that Sarah never prayed in public or carried a Bible on trips, she invoked religiosity regularly (some would say, opportunistically). Knowing that she was pregnant with a Down Syndrome child, for example, she told friends that her pregnancy was a message from God to “walk the walk” and choose life for a “less than perfect” child. In a letter to family and friends which Palin wrote entirely in the voice of God, she included the biblical passage “My ways are not your ways, my thoughts are not your thoughts… for as the heavens are higher than the earth, my ways are higher than yours!” Palin stated that it took time to come to terms with the pregnancy, but wrote in an email to a close confidante in late March, “It’s all good. And I’m anxious for May. And anxious to find normal clothes to wear – I’m about out of scarves and fat blazers. And we’ll figure out how to tell others eventually also. No one else knows except Dr CBJ, her nurse, and the sonographer folks.”
When Sarah learned daughter Bristol was pregnant, a tentative and politically expedient shot-gun engagement to the baby’s father, Levi Johnston, was in the works. She told Todd on July 25, 2008, “I think she [Bristol] needs to get married on our anniversary. Word?” Coincidentally, the Palins anniversary happened to be on August 29, the very day of her nomination to the vice presidency. When Todd didn’t reply to this message, Sarah prodded, “Ya didn’t answer! 🙂 Pray about it.” Apparently if the prayers were effectual, they led to the ultimate dissolution of said engagement and, eventually, dueling books from the one-time lovebirds.
In writing Blind Allegiance—and even more so after listening to those who reflected on her non-political life—we struggled to understand Sarah’s lack of New Testament virtues including charity, forgiveness, and compassion. The born-again bona fides she swore were at the core of her spiritual life seemed hollow and without substance. Despite Sarah’s pleas to staff and followers to shield her with prayer when she believed evildoers were seeking to do her harm, Frank Bailey suspected that she had a different approach to faith than the one he’d embraced growing up on Kodiak Island.
For us as authors who read over 50,000 emails and spent two years researching Sarah’s campaign and governorship, we developed more than a suspicion. The only Biblical message that seemed to resonated for the half-governor was from the Old Testament, and Sarah seemed a revisionist at that – rewriting the familiar verse from Exodus as Two eyes for an eye. Our subsequent interviews with those who knew her well confirmed and extended these observations. Blind Allegiance, we were authoritatively told, was, if anything, understated, and the devout images projected publicly were nothing more than a sham.
One friend of the Palins commented, “I cannot ever remember a religious moment in the house. Ever. I can’t remember hearing a prayer. Ever. Todd rarely would get up and go to church with Sarah. When they did decide to go to church, it was a screaming match. ‘We’ve got to go now!’ Sarah would scream. ‘Get your asses in the car!’ The girls would roll out of bed, no breakfast, hair all messed up. Seemed that there was a lot of swearing.” Mad and stressed out, “Sarah often yelled at her family . . . the kids kind of learned to ignore it because it happened so much.”
None of these observations prove that Sarah wasn’t a woman of faith. Frank certainly believed she was.
Despite this undercurrent of extreme religious fervor, and frequent comparisons to Biblical figures by her army of warriors, the flashes of temper at staff and eventually anyone who opposed her demonstrated that the woman who played so well for the camera and the religious right had a much darker side that remained unseen except to those in her inner circle.
To the extent she practiced faith, it appeared to many to be a radical spirituality – filled with demons, witches and dark forces that drove her to feel justified in destroying anyone who opposed her. She used God and her perceived role as one chosen to lead as an excuse to launch Crusade-like attacks on enemies including even (as described in Blind Allegiance) a Juneau neighbor who simply complained about traffic congestion. In this and other facets of her life we will write about a bit later, it also demonstrates a personality that is devoid of self-realization and full of monumental hypocrisy.
Stay tuned. Illegal drugs, affairs of the heart, and serial hypocrisy yet to come.
OMG!!!!!!!! It will never stop…
“In writing Blind Allegiance—and even more so after listening to those who reflected on her non-political life—we struggled to understand Sarah’s lack of New Testament virtues including charity, forgiveness, and compassion.”
Why is that a struggle? The concept of the hypocritical pseudo-Christian is not new. It took me about thirty seconds to realize that Sarah is a lying hypocrite: I discovered that when I read her ridiculous story about the alleged birth of her youngest child.
Lots of lying hypocrites in the world. Sarah’s just one of them.
I don’t come here daily and I don’t post much at all, but I do follow your facebook feed to keep up with the Palanastan family insanity. Your writing keeps me coming back. It’s always interesting and I’m so sad that your book was leaked by that monster. Keep on, keeping on.
Cheers.
Is it just me, or does anyone else think that Dear Sarah is Bi-Polar (what used to be called Manic-Depressive)?
“Nick Broomfield on Sarah Palin – You Betcha!: ‘It was very ugly, very nasty’ – Toronto film festival video”
the ivideo nterview with Broomfield is pretty good:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/video/2011/sep/12/nick-broomfield-sarah-palin-you-betcha-video
Makes me want to move south actually.
Thank you. I am enjoying all the things that were left on the “floor”. Hope to see more and really hope for a bombshell or two…. 🙂
“None of these observations prove that Sarah wasn’t a woman of faith. Frank certainly believed she was.”
They don’t? Wow. Assuming they’re true, they prove it to me.
“To the extent she practiced faith, it appeared to many to be a radical spirituality – filled with demons, witches and dark forces that drove her to feel justified in destroying anyone who opposed her.”
See, to me, that pretty much proves she’s not a woman of faith. Primitive superstition, yes. Faith? Nope.
Just in case you missed this, and in case you like Bill Maher, this is sorta fun to watch about whether SHE will run…… http://vodpod.com/watch/15398310-bill-maher-on-sarah-palin-and-michele-bachmann?u=buzzflash&c=buzzflash
Thanks AKM, I appreciate all you do.
“…if I dedicate [the state] according to the authority I have within me to the Lord.”
How can Sarah dedicate something that God created to God.
Wouldn’t that be like me saying, of a pie you just baked, I dedicate this pie to you?
Does it strike anyone else that “Prayer Warriors” is an oxymoron, at least in the context of the Gospels.
Yes. Especially in the context of wanting worldly power. When Christ was tempted in the desert, and offered the very kind of power these folks are now seeking for SP, he recognized it as a temptation and turned it down. The whole dominionist movement in my view has fallen for this lure and has been blinded in the process.
Just letting you know, bulimia is spelled wrong in this article. You should fix that, since people are so silly that they think a spelling mistake must make it untrue.
Thank you.
Off topic, is it true that the Chicago Tribune pulled a Doonesbury strip? Admittedly, this is from Wonkette. (And I know it’s not our favorite Palin author. . .)
http://wonkette.com/452989/chicago-tribune-gitmos-comic-strip-for-talking-smack-about-sarah-palin#more-452989
Here is the paper telling us about it themselves:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/tribnation/chi-doonesbury-pulled-from-chicago-tribune-this-week-20110912,0,5161792.story
Sounds to me like whomsoever owns the paper did not have permission yet — YET — from the Murdoch/Koch level to say anything negative about our “energizer of the base” — the low-info base. that is.
OT Sarah the Storm Lake Marathon. I just pulled up the map for the race. It was an out and back course for the most part. There were porta-potties at various locations along the way and it appeared from the street map there would have been several opportunities to cut down the mileage and get to the finish line in a “good time.” She could have very easily ducked into a toilet and pulled off the red shirt and sweat band and headed back to the finish line or she also could have jumped in the race at some other point other than the start. With the course being an out and back why didn’t someone notice Sarah after they hit the turn-a-rounds.
I was bullimic and used long distance running and laxatives to keep the weight off. I was still able to run competitively but it didn’t do much for my health. I never cheated on my distance…..just my physical well being to be a racing weight. If Sarah really used diet pills when she was pregnant, that paints an ugly picture of beauty and fitness at any cost…..
Hey, AKM, I couldn’t read this on my lunch break at work today. 🙁
The district filters picked up “ass” in the title and blocked it.
Drat!
Headed back to the top to catch up now.
thatcrowwoman
Jeanne, great writing as usual,thanks. Love all the comments also.
Bill
Sarah never carried a bible. She needed all that room in her purse and luggage for makeup, mirrors, nail polish, and high heeled shoes.
I stopped reading at the point where you became as vindictive as $P. Seems to be contagious…
After reading this, I feel so sorry for her children. It is my feeling that Todd should have left her and provided a better home for the youngs ones. I cannot imagine being a part of that household.
So – Sarah wouldn’t be happy with a push back slogan “Gay Away the Pray?”
That’s really funny! The McCain campaign deserves an “F” for their failure to vet their vice presidential choice.
$arah’s instability and crazy mood swings are surely the reason $he is so often unable to commit to attending events until the last minute.
I hope someone will report on the famous screaming melt downs she had with staff in women’s rooms all across Alaska when she was running for gov. $he is downright $cary.
Do tell!
WOW…
I love this stuff…
Can’t wait till your next post…
Keep up the good work.
You know how they say that sometimes it’s easier to remember how to be grateful for our abundances when you finally see what someone else is missing by not having them? I am now eternally grateful for all the wonderful things and people who surround me. Any one of ’em would upslap me if I ever tried to throw even one tantrum. I believe all the enablementation going on definitely set her gutteral instinct to “Squirmish before you refudiate!”
She started out a nutcase w/ a personality disorder in my opinion. She is now the whole forest of nut trees.
Mud… It remains crystal clear that heavy, and regular sessions of electro-shock therapy are called for in Sarah’s case. Anyone with a rational, functioning basic brain stem can see that. Unless from just a case of stunning fear, no one has told her, or the people around her, that she has got to seek help, someone truly need to get this woman to a clinic… Or a jail cell….ggeezzzzzz…
I will gladly do my part and offer up a nearly new,solar powered electric fencer and enough electric fence wire to ensure containment for her and her ginormous ego. All you need do is provide some sunshine and we can light up the looney like a Christmas tree,months in advance.
Thanks for saying what other people are too polite to say. Either Sarah abuses medication to a dangerous point or she is seriously disturbed. Maybe both. Either way, Todd has been enabling her in order to enjoy the benefit$$$ of their relationship.
I vote both!
Unfortunately, the kinds of medications she seems to be using the most are NOT the correct kind for her mental problems.
.
I’ll finish the second half of this, soon after I stop flinching from reading the first half.
.
When ever I read these bizarre stories about Sarah Palin, I always put it in context that I can understand. If one of my close friends belonged to a church and was prayed over so she would be victorious in an election, had a crew of Prayer Warriors not only standing guard over her, but willing to give their lives, hid a pregnancy for almost the entire gestation, took diet pills while pregnant, wrote a letter about her unborn child in “gods” voice, had anger management problems, was vindictive, obsessive, etc- I would run from her as fast as I could!
Martha UnAlaska Yard Sign and all –
Setting aside any sliminess on the part of bloggers, I just have to understand why in the world a woman who had announced she was pregnant would need to continue wearing scarves and “fat jackets.” It does not make any sense.
Look – the creepiness and generalized “ick” factor all comes directly from Sarah Palin. To report on it, to ask questions – that is not slimy. The “Letter from Trig’s Creator” is creepy enough if Trig really is her birth child. If she faked the pregnancy – which there is a lot of evidence she did – then it’s just completely insane.
Sarah Palin continues to benefit from her ability to make us feel dirty for even asking questions about this insane topic.
“Setting aside any sliminess on the part of bloggers, I just have to understand why in the world a woman who had announced she was pregnant would need to continue wearing scarves and “fat jackets.” It does not make any sense.”
I agree. And AKM included this email in her post, so it is worthy of discussion. I wonder just how far Palin was prepared to go for her Prayer Warriors?
The half-marathon photos have shown beyond a shadow of a doubt that they were photoshopped.
http://ozmud.wordpress.com/
This woman lies about everything.
I really don’t think the issue at hand is whether MSM/LSM bothered to consistently ask, and then follow up on, obvious questions, or not — they didn’t. They flat missed, or quickly backed off of, a whole bunch of questions that would’ve stopped $Ps political aspirations and ambitions dead in their tracks. And saved our citizens from a whole BUNCH of ick and slime.
That being said, what I’m having trouble with –as is MUYS, I believe– is people confusing the ‘obvious questions’ re: her 5th child MSM/LSM failed to ask, and follow up on, with the separate ‘category’ of “Babygate.”
To me, among the obvious questions about Trig’s birth are: “Why did $P feel she had to keep her pregnancy a secret from everyone? To include her immediate staff?” To me, these questions –and their follow-ups– would be pertinent to understanding the type of ship she ran…the level of trust she has in her immediate staff. Another obvious question would be: “Why, two months before he was due, had she still not told her parents about his condition?” This would, I believe, give insight into the great disconnect between her insistence that her parents (Chuck, in particular) taught her everything about everything and they are best pals and other such yucky stuff, and yet for one of the most life-altering pieces of information she’d ever receive in her whole life, she doesn’t go to them. And,”Why did $P pass up fully equipt hospitals to give birth to her child in a podunk clinic/hospital?” — this would give *great* insight into her decision-making skills…or lack thereof.
And then there’s “Babygate”. $P is not Trig’s biological mother. $P and Tawd ‘bought’ the ‘special needs’ baby to pass off as their own to curry favor with the right-wingers. Trig is Bristol’s baby. Trig couldn’t possibly have been born when they say he was because [insert the ‘because’ here ___], therefore [insert the ‘therefore’ here ___]. There were at least 2 babies; one was ‘returned’ within a week or two…the shape of the ears are the telling feature making this a fact. $P had a baby but it didn’t live so they got a second one (for her political career…see 2-baby ‘fact’, as well.) And that is just for starters!
There are all sorts of hoax theories and conspiracy theories swirling around Trig’s birth. Folks have chosen their ‘one’ and heaven help anyone who disputes and/or questions them about it! I, too, had a ‘one’; if I tweeked the timeline here and squished it a bit there, my theory would fit perfectly! In the past two years, though, I’ve found absolutely n.o.t.h.i.n.g that’ll allow my theory to ‘fit’ *without* tweeking and squishing. iow, it’s got *no* legs. Unless and until *additional* information/proof is uncovered to make my ‘one’ theory ‘fit’ with *no* reservation, I’ve shelved it… Otherwise, I figure I’m right in there with/no better than the Birthers, the Social Security Number-ers, the “Muslins” and all the others who insist they have the ‘truth’…oooops, the facts and full proof will come later.
The way I see it, discussion of $Ps pregnancy(s), her actions at the time of her pregnancy(s), and how those pregnancy(s) played into her larger agenda, are not only germaine, but are totally legitimate to understanding her; Babygate, otoh, not only calls credibility of the verified *facts* about her into question, it destroys any authority and legitimacy of said facts.
Just my two cents-worth.
Scratch that…for as wordy as this is, make that: Just my buck fifty-nine worth. beth.
She who should eat an apple fell directly at the base of the Chuck & Sally tree. She proudly ghost-wrote (p. 30ish) that Chuck-the-teacher-coach-dad championed lying and cheating in order to get what she wanted. While an obsessive perfectionist, she never finishes anything; fear of failure, a learned behavior. Additionally, it is far easier to be angry and aggressive than be contemplative, that’s what this Heath child lived and learned. And today she defiantly pontificates that her every word and act is God ordained; another escape mechanism, she has no personal responsibility for what she says and does. In Jesus name she guzzles Red Bull and ferociously hurls canned goods at her husband.!?! The cycle of domestic violence continues into another generation…”the sins of the father are visited upon the son”
I wonder how much healing could begin in this family if a parent sat down with a child (any of ‘em, all of ‘em) and read “Of Thee I Sing” aloud, meant every word, and then chose to role model this: “Children Learn What They Live”
“If children live with criticism, they learn to condemn.
If children live with hostility, they learn to fight…”
“If children live with honesty, they learn truthfulness.
If children live with fairness, they learn justice.
If children live with kindness and consideration, they learn respect…”
and children can’t learn when they’re hungry, adults also, too; “A hungry man is an angry man” ~ Bob Marley (double-down on the anger factor with Red Bull for brains)
My advice to the target of the flying canned goods would be to park the bus and call Dr. T. Berry Brazelton. He’ll know where to begin.
My thoughts exactly Scout. Those poor kids don’t stand a chance.
You’re such a good writer and researcher, I hope you won’t take it the wrong way when I say this:
YOU’RE SCARING THE HELL OUT ME!
This woman could be President. Don’t scoff–it could happen.
<>
Nah. People often dwell on the effect she has on the nutty ones. Even stronger is her effect on the good guys. I think you would be floored to see the uprising of those who will oppose her. Floored is putting it mildly. This I do know with all of my heart, my brain and my soul. Last time I checked, I still had all three.
Well, that puts you three giant steps ahead of Palin! 🙂
I wonder what happened in $arahPalins childhood that twisted her so badly.
Vengence isn’t enough – it has to be annihilation.
Believing or having faith isn’t sufficient –
everyone must meet her level to be Christian.
If you disagree with her political views –
you aren’t a patriotic American ( ‘rill American)
I bet a psycho-analyist would love to have
her on a couch for several years.
I too have wondered what happened to her to make her so vengeful. Maybe that is why she uses sports metaphors, they are particularly compatible to her behavior … revenge etc … I think she has emotional issues that appear exacerbated by the drugs. She seems addicted to the culture of celebrity and this requires a degree of physical perfection that she seems determined to maintain at all cost. Consider the over the top tanning bed despite all physical detriment. The diet drugs during pregnancy make me especially sick. I find such behavior to be criminal and equal to alcohol abuse during pregnancy. How can someone live with the decision to have a baby and then put garbage in their body and their developing baby’s body? I frankly think she found Trig was Down’s and decided he was already challenged and her drug use wouldn’t make any difference. She has admitted to not facing this head on during her pregnancy and avoiding reading about his challenges. The wild ride showed an incredible disregard for the health of the little guy and if she was abusing diet drugs as well, this is particularly sick behavior. The question needs to be asked again: Is Sarah Palin a good mother? Why would anybody believe she is anymore capable of being on the national political scene? I had the great luck of being raised by a fantastic mother and grandmothers. They are appalled by Sarah Palin’s behavior.
So many women who have body image issues (excessive dieting / working out / purging / self medicating, etc.) seem to have experienced some type of abuse. Long term sexual abuse is a common thread. With $arahPalin’s descriptive language toward people she believes are weak or lacking (ie Pussy’s) – it makes one wonder if $arah wasn’t the dominant abuser.
It’s also been noted that she often uses sexually-related language in ways that are extremely inappropriate (limp, impotent). In addition, she and her older daughters seem to frequently use the implications of rape or sexual abuse against people they don’t like, even if the situation has no connection to sexual behavior.
I don’t know if she was abused or the abuser (or both) but it is very sick and there has to be some reason for it. And even worse, she seems to be passing this behavior on to her children.
Read Frank Schaeffer Jr’s book “Crazy For God.” Shaeffer regularly beat his wife. This is rarely discussed publicly. It is discussed a lot in the book and it is clear the family avoided all discussion as they needed the money to keep coming in. Sarah Palin sounds bi-polar and her family was aware of her mercurial personality. Todd is an enabler and obviously enjoyed the power of her office and the power of her money. He is as crazy as she is. I understand how they would believe she was empowered by something. Really, how else could her family explain her rise to power? I think they are stupid enough to believe in the magical. It is truly bizarre. But, so was the crazy-eyed priest who had such control over the last tsarina. Look how that turned out. People of low educational background and stressed to the max are prone to such magical thinking. It makes for a bad outcome in any event.
The Frank Schaefer Jr. book is a good read. I am currently reading ‘Sex, Mom, & God.’ Both are worth the read–he tends to name names and supply background on the religious right players. Along with info from ‘The Family’ by Jeff Sharlett, christianism is a dangerous threat for those of us (USA and beyond) not only of the wrong (or lack of) religion, but the wrong kind of Christianity.
This morning:
Roland Martin: The Media Should Stop Talking About Sarah Palin, Stop Following Her and SHUT-UP!(VIDEO)
http://www.rolandsmartin.com/blog/index.php/2011/09/12/roland-s-martin-the-media-needs-to-shut-up-about-sarah-palin-video/
AKM,
there was an article in Huffington
So here is the governor of Texas, candidate for president who does this: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/10/governor-rick-perry-charity_n_922890.html#s328540&title=Rick_Perry
“A review of his tax records from the mid-1990s through 2009 show the governor has contributed very little to charity. When he has, Perry has given mainly to charities connected to his family, and even then, his donations have sometimes been slight. An analysis by the San Antonio Express-News in mid-June reported that of his $2.68 million, Perry “gave half a percent to churches and religious organizations, or $14,243.”
Do you know where such information on a former half Gov of Alaska fraud could be found? Did she/does she tithe? What would really be interesting, but not public information, if she donated after she quit and started making the big bucks.
I’m not terribly surprised by this information.
I know that I’ve posited one of the many reasons SP will NOT choose to run is because she will have to cough up a lot of financial information that will reveal a lot more about her character than she wishes to reveal.
We all know she is terribly selfish. Otherwise, why in the WORLD would a woman/family as wealth as hers accept the specialized tricycle on behalf of her son, Trig? Why wouldn’t she graciously donate it BACK so it could be given to a family with a lot less financial resources?
Money doesn’t buy character or class.
Just for clarification… The One Lord Sunday event and all the times Thomas Muthee has been to Wasilla was hosted by the VPPN, or Valley Pastor Prayer Network. Wasilla Assembly of God is a part of this group, along with 20 or so other churches. Their building was used for these events because it’s has the biggest seating capacity.
http://www.valleypastorsprayernetwork.com/
she’s a sick puppy. heaven forbid she ever achieves a high office again.
Once again, we should all be horrified at the lack of background investigation and vetting that the McCain team engaged in prior to inviting Mrs. Palin to the ticket.
Pretty face, check. Special needs child, check. Sitting Governor, check. Okay, let’s invite her to run.
Can you imagine their surprise when the actual facts about this woman began to pour in?
Or when they met her and found out what a hayseed she is.
And it sounds like there were a lot of staff in the campaign who were truly guilt ridden and terrified by the pick. The GOP simply did a terrible job vetting this woman. The party continually runs scared and makes bad decisions.
I think fixing the problems in the world will take years. It is like losing weight — a quick fix backfires, but a slow careful loss requires sacrifice and physical work. It takes a while to put on the pounds and it takes a while to take them off. The quick fix is an illusion and a sham. There are a lot of charlatans who want to make us believe we can fix the problem with the least amount of sacrifice. Not only will we have to deal with the economy, wars etc. …. we will have to rethink whether an expanding economy is a sustainable economy for the whole world, not just the developed world.
BINGO! on your last comment. How do we develop an stable economy that is sustainable without continually expanding? That is going to be THE issue of the 21st century, in my opinion. How mankind fares after that will depend on it.
This is a truly relevant issue and worth responding to. The simplest answer to your very astute question is we can’t. Even if we could develop an economy that was able to contract we would still be behind the eight ball. The thing is of course, that the time factor is greatly overlooked. The earth has been more or less like it is now with the exception of the changes in biological life for about 4 billion years and will probably remain so for another 4 billion years provided we don’t trigger a catastrophic overturning of atmospheric and oceanic equilibria that we do not understand in the slightest.
It should be clear to anyone who can understand not just how to balance a check book but why that is a good thing to do on a regular basis that denying the fact of burning 32 billion tonnes of carbon into the atmosphere every year will have an effect. And not a good one.
I have always wondered how Sarah could be a die hard Christian. Even putting her un-Christian behavior aside, how could a true die hard Christian never go to church? I asked this back in 2009 when her church pastor said he hasn’t seen Sarah in church, with the exception of Christmas. I know little about this, but wouldn’t mass be essential? She never visits churches on the road either, which seems odder because I would think that for the show she puts on, she would want the holy photo op.
I actually conclude she has no sincere interest in God. Her “Christianity” was just a tool for acceptance and approval. I’ve been given a lot of pushback on that. How do her children learn about God without church? Was Trig ever baptised in a church? How often did Palin go to church before she resigned as Governor and before she was picked as Vice-president? I suspect she mimicks real Christians and pastors words of support to her and that’s as far as her Christianity goes. Has Mr. Bailey ever had religious conversations with her? I know he said she didn’t pray around him.
I also suspect Bristol is following in her Mother’s foot steps. She always talks about God and faith in her public presentations and I ask, what does she know about it? What has she learned and from where in the past two years? Certainly not in church.
Andrew Sullivan has a post this morning about “Republicanism as Religion” that is so relevant to what you’re talking about here – and, on the whole, kind of scary.
http://andrewsullivan.thedailybeast.com/2011/09/goodbye-to-all-that-the-lofgren-thesis.html
Thanks, lemonfair. That is an excellent read. I agree that it is scary.
This is just an observation but if all of the smoke cleared and you boiled it down I believe that S.P. with a gun is in the same room with the ” son of sam” nutjob!
If babygate keeps creeping into the comments here then I’m done reading comments for awhile. If AKM wants to write about it, fine. That means she’ll have some real info. In the meantime, anyone can run over to almost any other blog about Sarah and hear all about the amassed conjecture and pictures if they are interested. It doesn’t need to be drug over here, too. I feel slimy.
“It’s all good. And I’m anxious for May. And anxious to find normal clothes to wear – I’m about out of scarves and fat blazers. And we’ll figure out how to tell others eventually also. No one else knows except Dr CBJ, her nurse, and the sonographer folks.”
This statement from the authors themselves touches on the baby issue, and in itself indicates that Palin was at least, disguising her own pregnancy with scarves and “fat blazers”. I’d say that creates a certain relevance to the photos that were taken during the pregnancy. A sitting Governor covering up a pregnancy is news, even it runs towards the tabloid end of the spectrum, it is news, and it is relevant regarding her mental fitness, which is already being discussed in the article. It is “icky” but so is a lot of what surrounds Sarah Palin, icky and quite mysterious. It’s okay to talk about her possibly being mentally unstable but not discuss how disguising a pregnancy might be a symptom of that instability? This episode in her life is part and parcel of the entire Palin package and to ignore it is to shove aside a major indicator of Palin’s mental status.
C’mon AK Pet Mom – there wasn’t a mention of “ignore” anywhere. There wasn’t a mention of “icky” in relation to Sarah. There is also no longer anything mysterious about her and there hasn’t been in quite some time.
I feel slimy when it’s brought up because of how it’s brought up. I watched the whole thing unfold from the very beginning at PD – the cast of players, the info, the pictures, the whole sordid subject. I have watched what it has done to many of those players. I have watched that they are so dedicated to their mission that they mow down anyone in front of them. I speak from personal perspective – I do not like what many people have “turned into” over this. Period.
I mistyped sordid subject, which should have been sordid story. The subject is definitely not sordid, nor icky, nor slimy. Light is Sarah Palin’s worst enemy, and although she has many of those it helps that some are more effective.
The drama surrounding the blogs & the players steeped in this is what did me in. I still see misinformation about the sequence of events being typed in comments. I see people taking sides, calling each other trolls, guarding comments and blogs as if they are theirs to guard. That’s what does me in. That’s what helps the issue lose credibility and interest in my eyes. In my eyes.
i wholeheartedly agree with you Martha UYS. come sit by me awhile. we will have some lemonade and sandwiches and maybe some more pups will come join us. hugs lady.
Sandwiches?
I know, I see where you’re coming from. There has been a fragmentation of blog support going on for quite some time and there’s a lot of drama and anger and finger-pointing on some of the comments these days, and yes, it’s tiresome.
Right on. I think the pregnancy was a mental health disaster for Sarah Palin. The only upside was TriG was Down’s. I think it didn’t matter whether Trig lived or died. He was a political plus in her mind.
Is there enough lemonade for me, bubbles? I’ll bring cookies.
Please do!
always enough for you dear friend. and cookies? come right on over.
Yum! Cookies!
The only “upside” was Trig was Down’s. ?????? As much as I detest many of the things Sarah stands for, and her misuse of people, this is to paint her as a truly evil person in a way that is just not justified.
Feel slimy? That’s exactly why she’s gotten away with her hoax. Spiral of silence populated by those who feel slimy.
Don’t start the “shoving down the throat of babygate”. This is exactly what makes me feel slimy.
Melly, I agree with you. If the media had done its job in the first place at the beginning of this, we’d not be having this conversation and perhaps we wouldn’t have a Sarah Palin “career” to deal with either. I firmly believe that the media failed to ask appropriate questions and connect-the-dots. Whether it was a spiral or silence or simply lazy journalism (a lack of professional, objective investigating or reporting) doesn’t matter as much as the fact that no one asked obvious questions and did the follow-up that is normally done. The only slime I sense is in the trail of those who wish to run away from asking the tough questions. We have a duty to follow the facts as they emerge and to push professionals to do their jobs.
Then you’ve clearly missed the drama of the expose since day one. When people get so caught up in their mission as to be nasty – including bloggers, they lose me. I’m happy to be at MF because no matter what place the discussion starts up again, all the stuff that has gone on before pours in. The attacking starts. The lining up of sides starts. The “you must believe everything we have found out so far” starts. The desire to have LIKE buttons on the comments starts. I won’t go on since I feel like I’m hijacking AKM’s great post. Thanks AKM, and sorry.
That’s just me, so if this is the way it goes I will just have more time to spend doing other things!
As late as I am to this discussion…I agree.
Although I will pop over occassionally to many blogs I rarely read the comments, or offer one, as the ‘tone’ has changed so dramatically, to one of taking ‘sides’.
Thanks AKM for continuing to bring us more details and new information of ALL sorts!!
I heartily agree ks sunflower. Well said.
KS- I beg to differ with you.
Melly appears to be referring to the accepted notion amongst certain groups that we were owed, due, and deserved tell-all stories from SP’s friends, neighbors, staff,etc which would have spared us clear back at the beginning of the VP run.There is a even a contingent which espouses the idea that SP’s doctor should independently and illegally lay to rest the whole baby thing by releasing confidential medical records publically.
This notion , while it grew out of frustration with whatzername’s obviously fake public persona during the national run,has morphed over time to deep and abiding anger at those-who-could-have-brought-her-down.
This is all distinctly different than than your contention that media coverage then (and now ) was inadequate and lacking.
Without spending hours finding links and treading the same old well worn grooves, I think it important to partially refute the media coverage thing as well.
Laying aside from the work of our intrepid AKM, Shannyn, celticdiva, and Phil Munger , the MSM didn’t do too badly following the Troopergate -Branchflower and the machinations of the McCain campaign to disrupt it and turn it into a fiasco.
There were a couple other reported “discoveries ” that should have raised alarms but seemed to have slid in under the radar , even to progressives, because of being so Alaska centric.
The people fascinated with her didn’t hear a word of it and didn’t want to. They were too vested in what they thought she was.
The real cautionary tale lies more in the realm of why-do-we-stop-up-our-ears-and -our-eyes to follow an image instead of the record, the real record, not the spin record.
As much as I hate to say it I think America was ripe for an SP to hit the scene just as it is ripe for popping out Perry’s, Bachmanns, etc. We are in a troubled time and the crackpots have come spilling out into the light.
I’d rather focus of the misuse of religion to pursue an agenda that would force all citizens to adhere to a particular set of laws- something I see happening with Palin- and Perry, and Bachmann, and some of the Tea Party, and…
scary.
They use fake religion because it comes with a big, built in network all its own and has props, too. Religion has study materials so confusing that they can be interpreted or manipulated in thousands of ways. Religion encourages blind loyalty (faith). Churches buy buses and have regular gatherings. What else could a whack nut, power hungry, deluded Dominionist want?
Thought all SP bloggers instructed us not to read the blog if we don’t like what was written.
WOW!!! I knew I was right!! She uses God just like everyone and everything else in her life.
At the June 8 event you mention (“. . . Palin spoke and dedicated the state of Alaska to Jesus. Governor Palin with her daughter Piper by her side, and son Trig in a sling, spoke to a cheering crowd, . . .”), the video of that event
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kQIa3KGmlm0
is the one that was discussed extensively re the possibility that the Trig shown here is one of those v lifelike dolls. Here were the reasons, as I recall them:
1. baby seems so lifeless
2. both the minister’s and Piper’s odd expressions, as if they know/suspect it’s not a real baby
3. at 1:47, Palin squishes his head! You can see her fingers depress into the head, as if it was a rubber doll head. The squishing would not be possible on a real baby, but on a doll it might serve to animate the face as she shows it off for that short moment. It could be her fingers moving the thick hat, but it looks like she’s squishing a tennis ball.
4. the position of the baby’s sleeping face seems like he could not breathe!
5. at 2:45 she takes her hand away from supporting his head, and he remains upright. Not my experience with tiny babies.
FWIW.
This is certainly odd – mostly because the baby’s face seems firmly squashed into her jacket.
But I do notice that at the beginning the baby’s hand is out of the blanket and hanging at the side, and at 1:09 the hand and lower arm are inside the blanket, and I don’t see where Sarah put them inside – but the baby could have done it himself.
Still wouldn’t have put it past her to use a doll though. All the benefits of baby as prop without any of the inconveniences.
Thanks for re-posting the link. Many new readers on the AK related blogs may not have seen this video. Is this the video that the McCain GOP minions did not want shown?
Can’t we just get over her? She is a third string (non-announced) candidate with no national credibility. Here in rural upstate NY we put her in the same category as Michele (one L) Bachmann. All she wants to be is a “celebrity”, with all of the $$$ attached. ‘Nuf already!!!!
“Palin stated that it took time to come to terms with the pregnancy, but wrote in an email to a close confidante in late March, “It’s all good. And I’m anxious for May. And anxious to find normal clothes to wear – I’m about out of scarves and fat blazers. And we’ll figure out how to tell others eventually also. No one else knows except Dr CBJ, her nurse, and the sonographer folks.”
“And we’ll figure out how to tell others eventually.” This is a very strange comment, considering that Sarah announced her “pregnancy” early in March, after McCain was selected as the Republican nominee. Sarah must be referring to the fact that the baby had Down Syndrome, and from the sound of this strange email, Sarah hasn’t quite come to terms with it either. Except for the fact that Sarah wrote Trig’s birth announcement in the voice of God, weeks before the announced birth date of Trig.
There are too many conflicting facts that make this so hard to believe. (It’s like seeing someone start a marathon in a questionable photo, and seeing someone end the race in another questionable photo, but there are no photos or witnesses of the person actually running the race).
Sarah described a visit to a geneticist in Anchorage in “Going Rogue.” She claimed to have used a false name and entered by a back door so no one would know who she was. (She was the governor with her picture in the paper every day). Unlike most medical visits, she did not produce ID or an insurance card, and she must have paid cash to protect her identity. And, the geneticist is not mentioned in the above quote. Sarah announced her pregnancy at the beginning of March, and still can’t explain it by the end of March.
The photographs of Sarah in previous pregnancies showed that Sarah was as big as a house. It is hard to believe that Sarah, now in her 40’s and having given birth to 4 children, could carry a child to term wearing “fat blazers” and scarves. “I’m almost out of scarves.” She could wear the same scarf on different days. It doesn’t hide the fact that photos of Sarah, taken weeks before Trig’s arrival in the middle of April, show a woman with a flat abdomen.
So in her beetle poop brain (sorry beetles) she thought that God was talking to her to carry the baby to term as some sort of self imposed victory that she would trimuph over the hardships of taking care of a special needs baby and being such a busy mom and governor and goody-two-shoes leader of her followers while fending off the evil doers. Did God tell her to stave the kid while in still in uterio, take over the counter diet drugs so that she’ll look pretty while pregnant, get on a plane with fluid leaking and a stressed baby and fly 8-10 hours, drive another hour or two to get to a clinic that can’t even handle special needs adults let alone a baby delivery? Then as an added adventure, and according to her book, He told her to hand the newborn around to everyone in the family and anyone to admire while in the hospital, leave the hospital a couple days later and take the little tyke in the office exposing him to all kinds of germs even though there was a hole in his heart and suffering from being a preemie – again according to her own book. Whomever she was talking to doesn’t understand pregnancies but then again Palin wasn’t pregnant with that child, she was only pregnant in her own imagination.
Quitty doesn’t spend much of her time taking care of her special needs child. I guess Trig had to grow up fast and take care of himself.
This is the first time I have heard mention of this particular email mentioned in the article above: “Palin stated that it took time to come to terms with the pregnancy, but wrote in an email to a close confidante in late March, “It’s all good. And I’m anxious for May. And anxious to find normal clothes to wear – I’m about out of scarves and fat blazers. And we’ll figure out how to tell others eventually also. No one else knows except Dr CBJ, her nurse, and the sonographer folks.”
Who was this email sent to? Or was that name redacted? And I’d like to see the message that this was in reply to.
I’m confused by groups like Palin’s Prayer Warriors (hers specifically, not the many prayer circles throughout the world). Here’s my confusion; I was taught that it’s all right or even good to pray for someone; for example, praying to give a candidtate the strength to win a campaign, praying for someone’s health, etc. If you pray for bad things to happen to your opponents, how is that any different from a curse or a hex?
You got it, Wallflower! Cursing/hexing is exactly what they are doing. They just use the word “prayer” to make it sound holy.
The prayer they’re *actually* sending up to God is not “thy will be done,” but “my will be done.”
Exactly!
This just brings home the point that there absolutely needs to be a separation between church and state. The very idea that she used her public office and monies to bless the state in her version of christian values is discusting. Did anybody else in the two branches of state government that are suppose to keep things in checks and balances speak out? Is anyone monitoring the present governor to make sure he doesn’t use his idea of biblical law to supercede over state or federal law? The very idea that she thinks that God choose her to lead to masses to some promise land is pathedic beyond words. Do or worship what you want in the privacy of your own home or church but using public funds to promote your version of faith is so wrong on so many levels its just, pick a word – as my youngster used to say – yucky,poo poo.
Sadly, the US was far more influenced by Calvin than Luther. Calvin advocated theocracy, Luther wrote the “Doctrine of the Two Kingdoms.”
“she said They can’t take it back ..They can’t take it back”, after dedicating our State to Jesus. Can you imagine her stating this after elected into a higher office..She pushes the nuclear button to take out the middle east and start the Armagaden . Wicked Witch in the Wizard of Oz…”They Can’t take it back . They can’t take it back ..my pretty..
Raven,
Perfect. Just perfect. Snowbilly Grifter is evil.
“None of these observations prove that Sarah wasn’t a woman of faith.”
As someone who was brought up in a Christian home and who accepted Christ at 19 years of age – I’m sorry but ALL of these observations above prove that Sarah Palin is NOT a woman of faith. Her actions prove louder than her religious words that her “faith” is not in God but in her own self.
It is blasphemy of the highest order to assume the voice of God. Even Isaiah the prophet, who was given amazing visions about the kingdom of God, fell down in terror when he realised he had seen God’s presence in the Temple. And it was actually God’s robe that filled the Temple, not even God Himself but Isaiah was terrified – rightly so. Moses – who talked with God face to face, according to the Bible, was told by God that he could not look upon Him fully for Moses would die if he did that. Even Moses could now look upon God in full! But Sarah Palin would DARE to assume the VERY VOICE of God Himself? It is outrageous and utterly beyond belief.
Palin believes she is being hounded by evil spirits. BOLLOCKS. She is being “hounded’ by her OWN sinful choices & the consequences that have come out of them. She is addicted to polishing the idol of HERSELF. She takes pills to keep herself thin and attractive, she LIES constantly about her achievements and accomplishments and she lashes out at everyone WHENEVER it pleases her. This is not a person whose faith and TRUE & GENUINE repentance has changed them. This is a person who has elevated herself ABOVE ALL OTHERS, including GOD HIMSELF.
Sarah Palin worships herself and has placed herself in the place of God. I don’t care who says what and how many prayer warriors she has. I just spent an hour driving to work praying for my friends in my bible study group and for my family – NONE of us have as many unconfessed and unrepented sins as Sarah Palin – who lives in sheer hypocrisy. NONE of us have ever lied to the extent that she has lied. NONE of us exalt themselves to such a high degree as to assume the voice of God.
I’m sorry but I am furious. She is an idolater and a blasphemer. I am disgusted that otherwise faithful Christians have been so deceived because they are looking for “signs and wonders”.
Here’s a sign for you – if a person lives a double life, if they sin constantly against God and against their families in private but praise Him in public and if they are constantly an ugly witness to the God they profess to love, then this person is not someone who has truly repented of their sins and accepted Jesus Christ as LORD of their life. That person is only religious on the outside but devoid of the Holy Spirit that changes you radically from the inside and out.
Lastly – all Christians have been called to a holy priesthood of witnessing and faithful evangelism. ALL. No one of us is MORE anointed. Jesus said to ALL believers – go out and tell the world about Me and what I have done to save all sinners.
I’m sorry but I am absolutely sickened by what I have just read.
Here’s Galatians 5:16-26 to show you that I am not just making it up and by the way, ALL REAL CHRISTIANS read the Bible regularly and pray regularly – because that shows a genuine desire to actually WANT to walk and live according to what GOD has said.
But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.
But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law. Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.
If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk by the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.
If Sarah Palin is not the perfect picture of someone who is RULED by their “passions and desires” i.e. ruled by their basest instincts then I don’t know what is.
I’m sorry you guys, I am so livid that I can’t even type properly. There should be begin quotation marks at the start of the second paragraph and there should be end quotation marks at the end of the second last paragraph.
Thank you Aussiegal – I have been trying to find the words to explain her “Christianity” without being “pious”. You have quite correctly done so. It has bothered me since she first came on the scene, proclaiming to be a Christian, yet never once did she mention Christ or confessing her sins and repenting of them and allowing the blood of Christ cleanse her of them. Nor have I ever heard of her behaving in a Christ-like manner, or displaying “charity” of any kind. I have wanted to speak out about these and other non-Christ-like actions of hers, but at the same time I didn’t want to appear to be casting stones or behaving un-Christ-like myself. I also feel that while she thinks she is being led by God she has actually (knowingly or unknowingly) opened her spirit up to Satan himself and the “voice” she hears is actually his. Satan is the great deciever/trickster and takes great pleasure in trying to convince us that his is the voice of God rather than the voice of Satan. Also, her saying that if God opens a door just a crack she will go crashing through. If God has a door open a crack, he’s not ready for you to go through yet. When He is ready for you to through that door it will be wide open and you can simply step through. As for Prayer Warriors, they do exist and they have been chosen by God for a specific purpose in specific situations and I do not believe that Sarah’s prayer warriors meet those specifications. And yes, that is being judgemental on my part because I do not know their hearts, and they may very well be trying to lift her up, but are not doing so in the Biblically perscribed way (specifically praying that God’s will be done, not like a child demanding new toys or a bag of candy).Thank you Aussiegal for giving me an opportunity to air my rant also.
She and those like her are Pharisees.
In Matthew 34- especially 45: “Then he will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it not to one of the least of these, you did it not to me’ “. He refers to feeding the hungry, healing the sick… all of those “do unto others” type of actions, instead of filling the pockets of the Koch Brothers et al with more cash.
That’s OK, aussiegal – thank you for speaking up and putting all of her pretend Christianity in perspective. You’ve nailed it. And you’ve said what I wanted to say, only much better and more thoroughly than I could have done.
I agree with much of what you say, but I think there’s a difference between writing a letter “from God,” and speaking as if your words are God’s words. Sarah’s pretty clearly trying to come to grips with having a child with Down Syndrome, and finding comfort in knowing that she can trust God even though she doesn’t understand all of this.
I’m not at all sure what a “real” Christian is, and particularly quite sure I’m not able to judge that – though I’ve no hesitation in agreeing with you that her behavior often seems pretty much at odds with the behavior and even the beliefs that I recognize as Christian. I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt when they believe themselves to be Christians. I think Sarah is misguided, but don’t you think she believes she believes? It’s so easy for any of us to miss our own sins and hypocrisies. You know your Scripture well enough so I don’t need to add the obvious quotes here :0)
Palin signed the letter to friends and family as “Trig’s Creator, Your Heavenly Father” – that’s writing in the voice of God. In the letter, she also talks as God explaining His actions and decisions about the pregnancy. It’s beyond creepy.
I think Palin absolutely believes what she believes – but that doesn’t make her beliefs sane or biblical. I can sincerely believe I can walk on water – doesn’t mean I can.
Palin takes HER own words and then writes them AS IF God was the one speaking. That is a bridge too far for me. But I’ll let you see for yourself, here is the letter. That last paragraph before sign off pretty much proves my point that Sarah Palin is blaspheming the name of God by speaking as if she were God.
Here is the link also to the original email:
http://projects.nytimes.com/palin-emails/date/2008-04-19
“From: Sarah Palin
Date: Mon, 7 Apr zoos 14:17:11
To gov . sarah@yahoo . com
Cc gov . palinoyahoo . com
Subject Baby
To the Sisters, Brother. Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Cousins, and Friends of Trig Paxson Van Palin (or whatever you end up naming him!):
I am blessing you with this surprise baby because I only want the best for you. I’ve heard your prayers that this baby will be happy and healthy, and I’ve answered them because I only want the best for you!
I heard your heart when you hinted that another boy would fit best in the Palin family, to round it out and complete that starting five line-up. Though another girl would be so nice, you didn’t think you could ask for what you REALLY wanted, but I knew, so I gave you a boy because I only want the best for you!
Then, I put the idea in your hearts that his name should be “Trig”, because it’s so fitting, with two Norse meanings: *True’ and “Brave Victory’. You also have a Bristol Bay relative with that name, so I knew it would be best for you!
Then, I let Trig’s mom have an exceptionally comfortable pregnancy so she could enjoy every minute of it, and I even seemed to rush it along so she could wait until near the end to surprise you with the news – that way Piper wouldn’t have so long to wait and count down so many days – just like Christmastime when you have to wait, impatiently, for that special day to finally open your gift? (Or the way the Palins look forward to birthday celebrations that go on for three, four day.. you all really like cake.) I know you, I knew you’d be better off with just a short time to wait!
Then, finally, I let Trig’s mom and dad find out before he was born that this little boy will truly be a GIFT. They were told in early tests that Trig may provide more challenges, and more joy, than what they ever may have imagined or ever asked for. At first the news seemed unreal and sad and confusing. But I gave Trig’s mom and dad lots of time to think about it because they needed lots of time to understand that everything will be OK, in fact, everything will be great, because I only want the best for you!
I’ve given Trig’s mom and dad peace and joy as they wait to meet their new son. I gave them a happy anticipation because they asked me for that. I’ll give all of you the same happy anticipation and strength to deal with Trig’s challenges, but I won’t impose on you.. I just need to know you want to receive my offer to be with all of you and help you everyday to make Trig’s life a great one.
This new person in your life can help everyone put things in perspective and bind us together and get everyone focused on what really matters. The baby will expand your world and let you see and feel things you haven’t experienced yet. He’ll show you what ‘true, brave victory” really means as those who love him will think less about self and focus less on what the world tells you is ‘normal’ or “perfect’. You will grow and be blessed with greater understanding that will be born along with Trig.
Trig will be his dad’s little buddy and he’ll wear Carhartts while he learns to tinker in the garage. He’ll love to be read to, he’ll want to play goalie, and he’ll steal his mom’s heart just like Track, Bristol, Willow and Piper did, And Trig will be the cuddly, innocent, mischievous, dependent little brother that his siblings have been waiting for..in fact Trig will – in some diagnostic ways – always be a mischievous, dependent little brother, because I created him a bit different than a lot of babies born into this world today .
Every child is created special, with awesome purpose and amazing potential. Children are the most precious and promising ingredient in this mixed up world you live in down there on earth. Trig is no different, except he has one extra chromosome. Doctors call it “Down’s and Downs kids have challenges, but can bring you much delight and more love than you can ever imaginel Just wait and see, let me prove this, because I only want the best for you!
Some of the rest of the world may not want him, but take comfort in that because the world will not compete for him. Take care of him and he will always be yours! Trig’s mom and dad don’t want people to focus on the baby’s extra chromosome. They’re human, so they haven’t known how to explain this to people who are so caring and are interested in this new little Alaskan. Sarah and Todd want people to share in the joy of this gift I’m giving to the Palin family, and the greater Alaska family. Many people won’t understand..and I understand that. Some will think Trig should not he allowed to be born because they fear a Downs child won’t be considered “perfect” in your world. (But tell me, what do you earthlings consider “perfect” or even “normal” anyway? Have you peeked down any grocery store isle, or school hallway, or into your office lunchroom lately? Or considered the odd celebrities you celebrate as “perfect” on Have you noticed I make ’em all shapes and sizes? Believe me, there is no ‘perfect”!)
Many people will express sympathy, but you don’t want or need that, because Trig will be a joy. You will have to trust me on this. I know it will take time to grasp this and come to accept that I only Want the best for you, and I only give my best. Remember though: “My ways are not your ways, my thoughts are not your for as the heavens are higher than the earth, my ways are higher than yours!”
I wrote that all down for you in the Good Book! Look it up! You claim that you believe me – now it’s time to live out that belief!
Please look to me as this new challenge and chapter of life unfolds in front of you. I promise to equip you. I won’t give you anything you can’t handle. I am answering your prayers. Trig can’t wait to meet you. I’m giving you ONLY THE BEST!
Love,
Trig’s Creator, Your Heavenly Father”
It’s one thing to quote the Bible. Some people may even try to look deeper into certain events to find some spiritual lessons behind it. But it is another thing entirely to explain circumstances as if they were divinely arranged and explain the purpose behind each circumstance as if one was God doing the explaining.
She’s writing as if she was God – the letter itself makes it very clear.
Sorry that I am pounding this – but honestly, it’s blasphemy and Palin has gone too far to do this. It’s a freaking nightmare that other Christians haven’t spoken up about it.
I don’t really see it as blasphemous. More like extreme presumptuousness while trying to be “cutesy.”
Another rw blasphemer that needs to be smitten with her own jawbone. Hell yeah! I provided my own Howard Dean shriek.
I read remarks from some other self identified Christians. I think the consensus was through their teared eyes after reading it that SP was the reincarnate of Christ .
Aussiegal, I’m with you on this one. What she wrote and the way she wrote it wasn’t cute or touching. It was wildly inappropriate and shows that she has no understanding of the teachings in the Bible. She can pretend to be any person she wants, but to pretend to be God or know what God would say is so far from reality. Incredible.
Does anyone else find it beyond weird that she calls it “Downs”? By the time she wrote this letter you would think that she would know that it was Down syndrome. There are a lot of people who get snippy when someone calls a Down syndrome child a Downs child. Surely she would have seen this when she did research. Wouldn’t one know the correct term if you were going to give birth to a Down syndrome baby? Just sounds awfully bizarre to me personally.
The letter is beyond creepy. I can honestly say that it might be something you would write to yourself (at least parts of it) maybe for comfort? To hand it out & give to others is just bizarre (again that word). Everything about this woman – bizarre to say the least!
It used to have an “s”. Maybe she just assumed that she knew everything there was to know about her unborn child and she didn’t bother to do any research. She hasn’t researched anything else – why would she research that?
Amen. Thank you for this. To call her a Christian is a huge insult to all who really walk in the faith. By their fruits they are known.
Thats where I come down. The Galatians passage lists some of the fruits of the Spirit. Being a Christian involves a change of priorities, and life. If our life doesn’t reflect at least some of the fruits, we are being misled. At least that is the ruler by which I measure my own life.
aussiegal77, some “believers” here in the US are so certain they speak for God that they actually put up billboards along the highway with some message or other signed: “God.”
This has elicited some very funny reply billboards, also signed “God.”
If a mama grizzly ate “Thee Mama Grizzly” would that be considered poetic justice or would the followers of the Tundra Tart place the blame on those who “hate” the chosen one?
So far the cutting room floor hasn’t revealed much we didn’t already know. Bailey will never be exculpated, till he reveals all.
Pvazwindy, what it details is what we believed before to be true of Palin. We heard brief statements about what she was like, but the cutting floor has verifed those statements and has added more detail then what we had heard before. It’s also coming from more people who were actually close to Palin at one time which adds creditability.
Don’t forget, also, that this information may be familiar to those of us who have followed Mudflats and other Alaskan blogs, but Palin’s been very successful at maintaining a veneer of sanity for a very long time for anyone who hasn’t been paying close attention.
AKM may be preaching to the choir where we’re all concerned, but there are a whole lot o’ people who haven’t heard the music yet!
I am curious as to what category of diet pills Palin was taking. There is quite a wide variety between the OTC kind and prescription pills. Is there a specific kind that you have been told about?
Over the counter, not prescription pills.
Thanks. That could be a variety of choices which could contain harmful substances.
Not to mention the interactions with each other. And caffeine.
I read this and thought of Joe South and his song, Games People Play. Sarah really personifies that song!
That is the song where he says they try to stick it to you,in the name of the Lord. Clever
Palin wrote in the voice of God, she said, “My ways are not your ways, my thoughts are not your thoughts… for as the heavens are higher than the earth, my ways are higher than yours!”
Although she wrote this about the birth of Trig, Palin might be wise to remember that God apparently didn’t choose her to be in a higher public office that Governor of Alaska.
Looking back..in time..where did those threads of mental instability..become so strong..and..looking forward..how much damage will there be..to each child of this woman-like person..before actual, genuine counseling is sought..to help them heal?
Mention in the Guardian about Nick Broomfield’s film “You Betcha” in Toronto film festival:
http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/video/2011/sep/12/nick-broomfield-sarah-palin-you-betcha-video
The phrase “devoid of self-realization” perfectly describes people such as Sarah Palin, Dicky Cheney and George W. Bush (and I suspect Rick Perry and Michelle Bachmann). These folks project self-confidence and absolute surety in their beliefs, but it is clear that none of them have clue-one about who they are and why they believe what they do. You cannot realize your potential unless you gain a modicum of self-knowledge.
To a person, they lack even the ability to comprehend what they espouse, let alone who they are. They merely say the words, look the part, and go through the motions of seeming confident. They are fabrications of their desire to escape themselves. They can never be fully-realized human beings because they are afraid to face themselves and their own shortcomings.
I often wonder if it is because they are actually so fragile, so afraid, so brittle that any self-doubt would make them unable to function. I wonder what it was in their lives that crippled their ability be be introspective, to admit to self-doubts, to connect with own frailties (for we all have weaknesses, fears, and insecurities). I wonder what drove them to run away from examining their hearts and minds, to deny themselves the ability to simply accept themselves without brashness, without inflated self-images, without the desire to dominate others so they can get a false sense of feeling better about themselves.
Ironically, they all say they believe in a faith that, at its core, is about forgiveness, acceptance and tolerance but they seem unwilling or unable to embrace it enough to forgive, accept and tolerate themselves. They are so outwardly-directed, so keen upon running away from themselves, that they focus entirely upon condemning and controlling others, and in doing so they miss the point of their faith.
Most of have learned that admitting our weaknesses, facing down our fears, and embracing the fact that we are not perfect actually empowers us to become stronger, to overcome those fears and work towards self-improvement, but Sarah and those others listed seemingly will not even try.
What has damaged them so deeply, scared them so thoroughly and crippled them so effectively that they cannot admit mistakes, cannot see their own flaws, and cannot come to terms with their own humanity? There must be a common thread because they are too much alike, too dedicated to the frenzied energy it takes to sustain the illusion of perfection. They make no mistakes, have no imperfections,and tolerate no hesitations. They want us to belief what they need to believe: they are perfect, their vision is the only vision worth having, their truth is the only truth. Yet, this is just what signals to us that they are wrong, they are imperfect, and that they lie – most effectively to themselves.
They are damaged goods, fractured souls, who will not accept themselves and because of that, seem intent upon trying to sell us on how perfect they are. They are desperate to convince us of their perfection, of the perfection of their visions. They may never be able to admit they or their visions are flawed because to do so would destroy them, so it is left to us to find ways to diminish their madness, to contain their frenzy, to keep them from harming and destroying us in the quest to destroy themselves.
If only we could unravel the dreadful tapestry they have woven and find that common thread that produced their madness, perhaps we could prevent them from creating havoc, could minimize their impact, and could even prevent others from following them into the dark and empty recesses of the human heart.
What or who made Sarah and all those others feel unloved, unwanted, and unworthy? For surely, that may be what drives them to seek acceptance, power and love in all the wrong places in all the wrong ways at the worst of all possible times.
I believe their anger is really self-hate.Somewhere deep inside they know they are behaving badly, harming those who would love them, destroying what is good but cannot stop themselves because either they do not know how or they are afraid, deeply afraid, that if they stop to reflect they will not be able to cope with who they have become. In their quest for perfection, they have allowed the most flawed portions of themselves to take over because they refuse to look into their own hearts and see what is there and to forgive themselves.
I don’t think they are all the same though there are public similarities.
And I don’t think any of them , except perhaps Mr Bush, have a clue they are behaving badly or ever will.
Mr Cheney is an obstinate, obscurantic adherent to social Darwinism, Mr Bush is a middling intellect with the emotional age of a five year old (which is fine in five year olds ) , and whatzername is a selfish, self anointed seer .
Ole “my way is higher than your way” has had years and years of practice in down-is-up-and-up-is-down rationalizing of her behavior as well as all the covering for her offered by family and political allies. Whether it all comes down to self hate or not doesn’t matter in the end. There are personality types which are not only not self-reflective but also incapable of reflection upon the effect they have on the lives of others beyond basking in affirmation or anger at denail.
whatzername has had just enough savvy to mostly manage the outbursts she apparently regularly visits upon her family and close associates as political capital in the need-to-hold-govt-accountable routine but the veneer is thin and pokes out when she’s prodded much at all.
they remind me of cartoon characters for some reason. as though they have only two dimensions and are not fully human.
Shadows Heart nailed it for me. the lack of self realization; and in that they are exactly alike.
it is in their DNA. they are dangerous and they have the ability to pass their pathology on to their progeny. we are doomed if we allow them to maintain positions of power. i remember a song from years ago called Stop The World. I Want To Get Off. i wish we could stop the world so they could get off and leave the rest of us to love another like the One who left us here would have us do. what a world we would make then.
we will keep on loving; keep on doing what we can to tend the sick, the helpless. we will feed the hungry. clothe the naked. adopt the babies who need us. educate the ignorant. care for the earth and its animals. we will learn to be fierce in defense against these who would destroy all we have worked for. they have declared war on us. we have no choice but to win.
kssunflower, your words actually make a lot of sense from a psychological point of view. NOW, how do we get them all into therapy?!?
Sunflower..Good points , but I was distracted by the your use of the word “they”. I didn’t count but it was used about 1000 times.
ks sunflower–very compassionate and perceptive comment. Have you ever read “The Sociopath Next Door” by Martha Stout? I think you would find it interesting. Also the books by the Swiss psychologist, Alice Miller.
Sarah’s approach to religion is not uncommon, especially among denominations like the Assembly of God. It’s a very dualistic, all or nothing, view of a God who constantly pulls the strings. It’s hard sometimes to believe they think God created all of us, loved all of us into being. It’s a fundamentally “us vs. them” view of the world which unfortunately reinforces the worst of our politics.
It is also, unfortunately, uncomfortably close to other fundamentalist views of the world. Fundamentalists often seem to have more in common with fundamentalists of other religions than they do with other members of their own religion.
— – – –
You say “Palin wrote in the voice of God…” I know the letter you are speaking about, and some of it is Sarah’s composition (presumably.) But what you cite here is a passage of scripture that Sarah is quoting, from Isaiah chapter 55 – a passage that reminds the hearer that it’s not so easy to know what God’s purpose is, something that the rest of your article makes clear Sarah’s forgotten.
– – – –
Ironically, “an eye for an eye,” is often given as a justification for retribution against others, but the passage (In Exodus 21) was a humane effort to limit what could be exacted from someone who had done wrong. No more than an eye for an eye.
Yes – thanks for clarifying this passage, “Palin wrote in the voice of God, she said, “My ways are not your ways, my thoughts are not your thoughts… for as the heavens are higher than the earth, my ways are higher than yours!” which is the quotation of a verse as you mentioned.
There are plenty of things to fault her for, but it doesn’t help if we make uninformed criticisms. In context, this is a pretty cool verse, and actually is more about not assuming God could be easily predicted, a counter point I think to much Dominionist thinking.
Also, on the term ‘Prayer Warriors’ – it is used more widely than stated here and is not limited to usage in evangelical or dominionist churches. Related probably to the passage about putting on the ‘whole armor of God’, which includes the ‘sandals of peace’, ‘shield of faith;, etc.
Though conclusions about Sarah Palin’s use of these terms may be accurate, it is not the universal interpretation and does not always imply the same intent of meaning indicated here.
God could NOT be easily predicted – where is an editor when I need one??
Thanks lemonfair and WfA. I hope the sentence is clarified now.
🙂 youz welcome
lemonfair, your second paragraph: “…Fundamentalists often seem to have more in common with fundamentalists of other religions than they do with other members of their own religion.” is very perceptive. That’s the heart of it, I think.
I remember before 9/11 and all the muslim-bashing, a group of US Christian fundamentalists attending a world-wide NGO conference on women’s health. The US fundamentalists remarked that their greatest allies against contraception, abortion rights, etc., were the conservative muslims in attendance.
Thanks for the reinforcement
They probably won’t print it, but at McGinniss’ own blog, he directs us to The Washington Post who has an article by Michael Cavna about the recent collaboration/partnership of Joe Mc and Doonesbury to promote his book. I let Mr. Cavna know, in the comments, where much of Mr McGinniss’ information came from and suggested they check out the Alaskan blog Mudflats for more information. Have a nice day.
Thanks for the heads-up to the Washington Post, Grasshopper. I just posted this in their Comments (not sure if they will accept it):
If we care at all about Palin lying, and other VIPs enabling those lies, how about her biggest and most disgusting lie? Can anyone explain how valid photo evidence of Palin’s exceedingly flat profile on Mar 14 can turn into the 6+ pound baby she claims she delivered on Apr 13?
This is not about the baby, it is not about Palin’s family: it is about an unprecedented hoax, executed for political gain, intended to sway an election. And unreported by newspapers like your own.
http://s406.photobucket.com/albums/pp141/WestCorrespondent/Sarah%20Palin/?action=view¤t=5weekstobaby.jpg
Good job Amy1! I especially like your second paragraph “…it is about an unprecedented hoax, executed for political gain intended to sway an election.” Excellent.
excellent. nicely done.
i wish to make clear that my reply was meant for grasshopper.
Most Republicans are devoid of self-realization, its in their DNA. They did all that praying for her and she lost so does that mean the demons, (meaning us) are stronger and more powerful then they are. Who would a thunk.
Interesting that mcCain wanted the religious vote, but doesn’t want the craziness known to the public.
I find that so interesting. What a difference 3 years make.
Now all the crazies are running, boldly and out in the open.
The only Republican hopeful not blatantly pandering to bible-thumpers is the Wall Street Mormon!
Because they view Mormons with great suspicion… (I need a smiley with knitted brow and squinty eyes)
How’s this one? {:)
Never have figured out why there’s so much dislike about Romney because he is a Mormon. In a heavy Catholic state like MA, it didn’t seem to bother them. Did it ever even come up? Of course that’s not the deep south.
They know how to separate their government and religion there. Plus he promised to stay away from social issues and not attempt to limit access to abortion.
Sarah appears to use God to make us think she is a Christian, but she goes around the country just like the devil in a red dress. All the hate and lies she spews is not Christian, and those who support her and take up for her are not Christians either but disciples of the devil.
Sarah’s constant hate rants at President Obama is in no way the rants of a Christian. She is being paid big money to try to tear down President Obama who is kind, good, a peacemaker and a Christian. Sarah has never learned that money is the root of all evil and she takes the money and preaches hate to Americans because she is evil herself.
Just a slight quibble. THE LOVE of money is the root of all evil. Money can be, and sometimes is, used for good in the world (although the state of American politics might lead one to believe otherwise).
Thank you for this post. It gets awfully old hearing Sarah is living with the word of God as her guide. She is using the evangelical Christians and Dominions for political support, just as they are using her to fulfill their desires – it’s so twisted. I don’t believe that someone with an extreme narcissistic personality disorder can worship anyone but themselves. Just saying.
Thanks so much for this post. There was always something dark about Sarah Palin that many of us sensed from the moment that she stepped onto the national stage. It was obvious that she was a fraud and now the mask that has hidden the reality of the woman is finally being removed.
She is scary. Perhaps her “15 minutes” is about to expire. I noticed that there is a lot less media coverage these days.
Her 15 minutes expired after the 2008 election, but someone forgot to tell her. Finally, the media have decided to pay less attention to her. I don’t know what took them so long.
Loved her comment about Levi’s book that it was “disgusting” that he was exploiting his new-found fame.
Palin has all the characteristics of being Bi-Polar. Someone in her family should see that she gets medication.
Damn…. just when I thought she couldn’t be any scarier. Wish I’d made a bigger prof coffee this morning. Seriously AKM, thank you for all that you do and, more importantly, stay safe
Sounds like Francis Shaeffer Cox’s 241 kinda gal.