Rumors, Smears and a Question of Judgement

UPDATE: MSNBC, and Reuters are now both reporting that Bristol Palin is in fact 5 months pregnant. At 17, she intends to marry the father (not sure who this is yet or his age) and have the child. Thank goodness, we can now lay the rumors of “preggergate” to rest, and focus on the real issues…like why do we really want the right-wing nuts running our sex education system. The abstinence only sex-program doesn’t seem to work all that well in Wasilla…

As a blogger, it’s easy to get swept up in stories as they swirl around. Some of these stories turn out to be of the lowest order - like the Larry Sinclair-Obama story. Others, like the John Edwards “Love Child” story, find themselves followed by a public confession and embarrassment.

In the last couple of days the rumor (or smear), that suggests Sarah Palin is covering-up her daughter’s baby, by claiming it as her own, has swept the blogosphere. This story is complicated for several reasons, not only because it involves a minor, a new baby, and a newly selected Vice Presidential candidate, but there’s also the question of judgement that seems laced throughout the story. I want to focus on what is verifiable and how that relates to judgement.

I’ve looked into the story quite thoroughly, and I cannot find any real justification for this story being true. There’s ample evidence that women, at 6 months pregnant, can still look completely normal. This appears to be the case with Sarah Palin, who surprised even her staff when she made the announcement that she was seven months along.

The rumors that her daughter, Bristol, was not in school for several months, having contracted mono, cannot be confirmed. Nor do I think they need to be. It’s one thing to take on an adult political figure, it quite another to go after their children.

My questions about Palin’s judgement assume that baby is quite definitely hers.

Here are the facts.

Sarah Palin spoke on April 17, 2008 at the Republican Governors Conference in Dallas, Texas. The morning she was to deliver her speech, she noticed her water broke. She delivered her luncheon speech. Then, having conferred with her doctor, determined that the she was comfortable enough taking a flight back to Alaska so that she could have the baby in Wasilla, Alaska.

Palin took an Alaska Air flight from Dallas, Texas to Anchorage, Alaska while knowing that at any moment she could deliver the baby. She chose not to inform the flight crew. Looking at Alaska Air schedules, in best case scenario, and without flight delays, this was a 9 and half hour flight with a change over in Seattle.

She made this flight, feeling that it was safe, based on past pregnancies. However, this was not any ordinary pregnancy. She was an entire month early. She was 44 years old. And she knew her child had Down Syndrome, which can lead to birth defects and complications that require a doctor’s exam.

Once in Anchorage, Palin then made the 40 mile trip to Wasilla. She checked into the Mat-su Medical Regional Clinic. The baby, Trig Van Palin, was born on April 18, 2008.

Sarah Palin was able to return to work within a few days. On August 29th she accepted the invitation to join John McCain on the Republican presidential ticket.

You be the judge. Is this an example of sound judgement, or does it frighten you as much as it does me?

Take the Poll: Sarah Palin Qualified to be Veep?

This is a great little video if you ever wanted to know what Wasilla Alaska was like.

The Slow Exit: McCain’s Iraq Plan, Suicide and Coming Home

The slow exit of soldiers from Iraq, not as heroes draped in flag covered coffins shielded from the cameras of journalists, but as veterans of a war that has left them alone in a battle against demons only war can conjure, is the silent casualty of our mishandled policy in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Barack Obama has consistently made treatment for PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) a central part in his plan for leaving Iraq and treating our troops with the respect they deserve post-war.

Also read: 22,000 Calls Received by Special Suicide Hot Line, Over 1,200 Suicides

McCain Picks Palin???

Ok, I’m truly surprised….well no I’m not. By choosing Alaska Governor Palin, McCain confirmed how he made his choice for running mate.

Female 20 years younger than me. Check.

Former cheerleader, beauty pageant winner and still attractive. Check.

Lover of oil from an oil state. Check.

In all honesty, it’s pretty obvious why McCain chose Palin - he still believes Obama has a weakness with Hillary supporters. That’s it…and it’s a pretty sad reason to choose a running mate.

First, McCain is asking Americans to believe that he has a better mortality rate than most 72 year former POWs, that in the next 4 years he’ll still be going strong. Well, he’s wrong. At 72 he’s pushing genetics and he’s expecting us to believe that a Governor from a state with the population of a small city is ready to lead.

WTF.

Does Size Matter in Politics?

On Friday, John McCain will announce his running mate to a “massive crowd.”

The McCain campaign is hoping to have 15,000 people at the Ohio rally — roughly five times the size of his largest crowd to date.

(Source: CNN)

15,000? A massive rally? Five times is largest crowd to day?

In sports, the difference between 5,000 and 70,000 is the difference between a high school playoff football game and the NFL Superbowl. So how can CNN even describe this as “massive”, unless massive is a completely arbitrary term used to manipulate the general readers perception of the enthusiasm surounding a candidate.

Well John McCain, have fun at your massive rally.

Photo Credit: Yes, this is my cat Vinny and his adoring crowd of two. He enjoys sitting on this tailed-tennis ball thingy…don’t ask me why.

McCain Tries to Stand Next to the Pillars of History

Barack Obama’s candidacy is historical. No other major political party has nominated an African American for the President of the United States. No other nominee has been backed by as many Americans as Obama.

John McCain’s candidacy is historical too. No other major party has nominated a man as old as McCain for their first term to be President of the United States. And the only older candidate to be nominated was Ronald Regan for reelection, and it was later revealed, likely suffered from the early stages of Alzheimer’s at the time.

McCain is set to announce his vice presidential pick. This will likely be leaked to the press shortly after Obama delivers what should be an electrifying speech to the 70,000 supporters at Invesco Field.

McCain will try, in his own little way, to steal the spotlight from Obama.

And McCain will be seen as merely a little man standing next to the true pillars of history…a speech on the anniversary of “I Have a Dream” by Martin Luther King Jr (who ironically John McCain battled against recognizing with a holiday), delivered by a historical candidacy…the historical kind that doesn’t forget who they were just a few years back.

Note: The reference to the pillars invokes the mocking Republicans that were berating the “Greek columns” on Obama’s stage. This just tells you how out of touch Republicans are….have they not been in Washington before? Actually, they know full well the neo-classical columns that decorate Washington DC…but they also know that middle America has likely never visited that place, and they want to keep it that way.

In Conversation with a Republi’cant: Episode 4

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