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Sarah Palin Resigns

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What's wrong with that? I didn't follow the link (got a 404), but I assume it's about this report circulating that Palin's being investigated by the FBI. THe FBI said they're not investigating her. To keep claiming she's the subject of a criminal investigation when there's public knowledge that the claim is false does constitute libel and defamation. A reputation is a valuable asset that should be protected.

The fact is that as a major political figure in America, people can say almost anything they want about her and her practical ability to seek some sort of legal remedy is virtually nill. Whether this is right or not can be debated, but again as a practical matter, it's just idiotic for a politician to declare they're going to sue anyone who says untrue things about them.

Palin's resignation has essentially destroyed her national political career. It shows that she's thin skinned and has poor judgement. I can't imagine how she could possibly run for President in 2012 after doing something this wierd.

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What's wrong with that? I didn't follow the link (got a 404), but I assume it's about this report circulating that Palin's being investigated by the FBI. THe FBI said they're not investigating her. To keep claiming she's the subject of a criminal investigation when there's public knowledge that the claim is false does constitute libel and defamation. A reputation is a valuable asset that should be protected.

Not by the Law or courts it shouldn't be.

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The fact is that as a major political figure in America, people can say almost anything they want about her and her practical ability to seek some sort of legal remedy is virtually nill. Whether this is right or not can be debated, but again as a practical matter, it's just idiotic for a politician to declare they're going to sue anyone who says untrue things about them.

I disagree. Maybe she won't get any sort of redress, but the bloggers maliciously libeling her probably can't stand the legal fees involved. It's certainly worth a "cease and desist" letter with an appropriate threat of legal action.

Palin's resignation has essentially destroyed her national political career.

Possibly. Then again who knows. Any number of policiticans ahve been written off only to rise from the ashes of their political graves (if I may mix my metaphors). Remember Nixon?

It shows that she's thin skinned and has poor judgement. I can't imagine how she could possibly run for President in 2012 after doing something this wierd.

The Republican base likes her. That would allow her to run for the nomination and possibly to get it. Whether she can then defeat Obama is a different matter.

Essentially Obama is insured a second term if the economy is ok by 2012. Depsite his best efforts to wreck it, chances are things will be alright by 2012. Therefore the GOP nominee will be a sacrificial lamb. In that case they'd be smart to offer a lesser politician for a sacrifice.

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There seems to be an obvoius explanation that many are overlooking: Sarah Palin is a mother acting according to her rational self-interest as such.

Her oldest son is in increasingly hostile Afganistan, her older daughter is a young unwed mother, her younger daughter was perceived by many to have been defamed on national television, and her baby son is afflicted with Down's. She has had umpteen ethics charges successfully defended at her own expense ($500,000 last I heard), but there's no sign of these coming to an end. The media have been relentless in their attacks on her and her family. In resigning, she is perhaps acting according to her own hierarchy of values, putting her family's welfare ahead of her political career, and even ahead of "the state of Alaska", whatever that might mean. If so, it's extraordinarily courageous and I applaud her.

(I suppose this corresponds to #4 above.)

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I disagree. Maybe she won't get any sort of redress, but the bloggers maliciously libeling her probably can't stand the legal fees involved. It's certainly worth a "cease and desist" letter with an appropriate threat of legal action.
If she sues, I think you'd be surprised how fast various groups would come up with the funds needed to defend the bloggers. These people won't quit and politicians better have some pretty thick skin. I don't think Palin has shown she has the armour plating that's needed to play at this level.

Possibly. Then again who knows. Any number of policiticans ahve been written off only to rise from the ashes of their political graves (if I may mix my metaphors). Remember Nixon?
I can't recall any of them resigning in the middle of their term for no apparent good reason and then coming back to be a major force.

Essentially Obama is insured a second term if the economy is ok by 2012. Depsite his best efforts to wreck it, chances are things will be alright by 2012. Therefore the GOP nominee will be a sacrificial lamb. In that case they'd be smart to offer a lesser politician for a sacrifice.
I think he's going to win no matter what the economy looks like. The American people seem to be in the mood for his brand of leftism. The only thing that could trip him up would be a major blunder overseas and he seems to be working hard to accomplish just that. Let's hope it doesn't result in too many dead Americans.
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There seems to be an obvoius explanation that many are overlooking: Sarah Palin is a mother acting according to her rational self-interest as such.

This could be the underlying reason, but she isn't spinning it that way. She continues to make strange comments like: "I said before ... 'You know, politically speaking, if I die, I die. So be it,'" she said.

And, she isn't mentioning her family as a reason for her resignation: "The outgoing Alaska governor told the Anchorage Daily News she stepped down because ethics complaints against her and her squabble with lawmakers would have paralyzed the 18 months she had left in office.

"Especially when all these lawmakers are lining up for office," she said. "Their desire would be to clobber the administration left and right so that they can position themselves for office. I'm not going to put Alaskans through that."

She told the paper she believes her replacement, Lt. Gov. Sean Parnell, who will take office on July 26, will diffuse the controversy that surrounds her.

"With Sean in the governor's seat, it won't be the politics of personal destruction, I don't believe," Palin said."

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20090707/ap_on_...lin_resignation

Edited by gags
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If she sues, I think you'd be surprised how fast various groups would come up with the funds needed to defend the bloggers.

Maybe. But money's not all that's involved in a lawsuit. Can they afford the time, too? And for what? To appear like a bully in open court?

These people won't quit and politicians better have some pretty thick skin. I don't think Palin has shown she has the armour plating that's needed to play at this level.

But she wouldn't look nearly as good with that kind of skin! :dough:

I think he's going to win no matter what the economy looks like. The American people seem to be in the mood for his brand of leftism.

Because there was a huge collapse and Obama was smart enough to blame the Republicans. If the economy doesn't improve in his whole term, blaming the GOP still won't do him any good.

The only thing that could trip him up would be a major blunder overseas and he seems to be working hard to accomplish just that. Let's hope it doesn't result in too many dead Americans.

It would take a 9/11 kind of attack, or worse, on American soil to unseat him with a good economy. A major attack elsewhere, even against American citizens, woulnd't do it.

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Maybe. But money's not all that's involved in a lawsuit. Can they afford the time, too? And for what? To appear like a bully in open court?

I think you underestimate the extent to which these people would see this sort of thing as a badge of honor. They would love to be able to take her deposition and do anything else they can to embarrass someone like Palin. They hate the woman. Filing such a suit would be a lost cause for her.

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I think you underestimate the extent to which these people would see this sort of thing as a badge of honor. They would love to be able to take her deposition and do anything else they can to embarrass someone like Palin. They hate the woman. Filing such a suit would be a lost cause for her.

We'll see. First the leftie bloggers ought to persist with the FBI accusation, gettign louder every time, trying to rope in as many other bloggers as they can. Then they'll dare Palin to sue, calling her a coward if she doesn't. Then either she sues and they have a field day, or she doesn't sue and they slime her some more.

Did I miss something?

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This could be the underlying reason, but she isn't spinning it that way.

Well, yeah, the reasons she actually gave were incoherent. She declares she's not running for re-election, and since that would make her a lame duck, she doesn't want to do what other lame ducks have done (travel, have fun, etc.), and she must therefore resign immediately. QED!

Faced with such nonsense, we must look at the most reasonable explanations if we're going to join in the speculative game.

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McNair died! I had no idea. Sad news.

He was murdered by his twenty-year-old girlfriend it seems. He was married with children at the time. It looks like the girl shot him, then herself; it's unclear at present why. Still, "Air" McNair was an awesome Quarterback and should be remembered for that, though this seems to dull his glow a little.

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Yeah Tina Fey said the seeing Alaska thing. I do not think she is great or anything but the media crucified her to get Obama elected. I have seldom seen so much ignorance as among people who dislike Palin. So many perpetrated lies that few questioned; it was like the hate against Bush all over again.

Agreed. She isn't brilliant, and she is philosphically and intellectually confused but she's obviously a nice lady and seemed much more down to earth and real then *any* politician I've ever seen. Isn't "nice" and "down to earth" how we want people to be? And yes I know intelligent and philosophically correct are more important, just don't think that's *all* that's important. Being a "real" person comes first, and she's the only politician I've ever seen that pulled that off. That's why people really hate her.

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Agreed. She isn't brilliant, and she is philosphically and intellectually confused but she's obviously a nice lady and seemed much more down to earth and real then *any* politician I've ever seen. Isn't "nice" and "down to earth" how we want people to be? And yes I know intelligent and philosophically correct are more important, just don't think that's *all* that's important. Being a "real" person comes first, and she's the only politician I've ever seen that pulled that off. That's why people really hate her.

That's part of the reason why most of the Left hates her, but I think there are other more important reasons. Whenever a member of one of the Left's chosen victim groups breaks the mold and defects to the dark side, they go to great lengths to destroy that person's reputation. Clarence Thomas is the best example of this. If you recall, during his confirmation hearings they went after Thomas like there was no tomorrow because he was a threat. The idea of a black conservative being elevated to a place of prominence like the Supreme Court was more than they could handle. Palin is also dangerous to the Left's notion of how members of a victim group should act because she's a woman, she's attractive, she has the potential to be quite popular, she's plain spoken (almost to the point of being a bit anti-intellectual), and she's a conservative. That's five strikes against her.

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Whenever a member of one of the Left's chosen victim groups breaks the mold and defects to the dark side, they go to great lengths to destroy that person's reputation.

That's exactly right. The Left is heavily invested in identity politics and they don't tolerate any dissent. Michelle Malkin often gets hate mail about it (she's of Asian descent, ergo she shoulnd't be siding with white males).

Of course the proper name for "identity politics" is "racism and sexism." It's the idea that people are defined by their race and/or gender.

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Agreed. She isn't brilliant, and she is philosophically and intellectually confused but she's obviously a nice lady and seemed much more down to earth and real then *any* politician I've ever seen. Isn't "nice" and "down to earth" how we want people to be? And yes I know intelligent and philosophically correct are more important, just don't think that's *all* that's important. Being a "real" person comes first, and she's the only politician I've ever seen that pulled that off. That's why people really hate her.

She received a lot of attention and most of it negative but I did not get the impression that people hate her. She is however as is (due to her lack of crucial to the job knowledge) not qualified. Although you would want a politician to be "real" that is NOT enough no matter how you slice it.

The requirements of a political/military leader by definition place a properly qualified person above the average guy. People, and especially in times of uncertainly and economic turmoil, are looking for an expert. That is one of the things which Republican party needs to provide in the next presidential candidate.

When I am looking for a dentist, a financial planner, a medical specialist I am looking for an expert and not someone with the level of knowledge in that area equal or lesser to mine.

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Whenever a member of one of the Left's chosen victim groups breaks the mold and defects to the dark side, they go to great lengths to destroy that person's reputation. Clarence Thomas is the best example of this. If you recall, during his confirmation hearings they went after Thomas like there was no tomorrow because he was a threat. The idea of a black conservative being elevated to a place of prominence like the Supreme Court was more than they could handle.

Sounds a lot like Jim Taggart's marriage; it was okay for him to go slumming with a lower-class girl who would supposedly give him unconditional admiration but he cut her down whenever she would dare transcend her dependent status.

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