THE PLANK SEPTEMBER 4, 2008
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The Sarah Palin biographical film, which wasn't shown last night thanks to Rudy Giuliani's longwinded unpleasantness, aired tonight instead and advertised her as "a remarkable woman who's never been afraid to put her city, state, or country first." The video's clear intent is to suggest that these are all the same thing, but of course they're not. When Palin hired a lobbyist to aquire a staggering amount of federal earmark money for tiny Wasilla, for instance, she wasn't exactly putting "America First." Nor was her evident sympathy for, and her husband's long membership in, the secessionist Alaskan Independence Party (slogan: "Alaska First, Alaska Always") what one would typically characterize as supportive of the red, white, and blue.
Indeed, this evident difficulty with establishing priority can't help but bring to mind one of the more memorable moments of a fellow Palin:
--Christopher Orr
8 comments
Great point.
On a less substantive note, the film was very funny. (Am I the only one who laughed out loud watching it?) Not because of the iconic Alaskan stuff (pre-dawn moose hunts, etc.) Heck, I grew up in a similar landscape and went moose-hunting once or twice with my dad and went fishing all the time. Not only did I go to a high school that had a rifle team, I was *on* it. So I don't mean to denigrate the activities and experiences they talked about. No, it was the tone... and the hyper-cliched over-narration... and the even more blatant than usual packaging efforts. With almost no tweaking at all, it could be played on The Daily Show as parody.
- hemlock41
September 4, 2008 at 10:16pm
YES!! Another Python sketch worked in!! Too bad Palin isn't named Cleese. I've been wondering how to work in a reference to the Ministry of Silly Walks.
- tnmats
September 4, 2008 at 10:37pm
So which is it she puts first, her city, her state or her country? Based on the welfare queen she's been at getting federal pork, I'd say city or state first, screw the rest of the country. Typical publican stance: I got mine, you get yours.
- tnmats
September 4, 2008 at 10:40pm
I was waiting for someone to make the Sarah Palin-Michael Palin connection.
- rozenson
September 4, 2008 at 11:43pm
Consider:
"Our chief weapons are fear, surprise, and an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope"
If you read "President" for "Pope", you have the perfect distillation of Republican Party strategy for the last 7 years.
- literatehobo
September 5, 2008 at 9:20am
Sarah Palin = George W. Bush in a skirt
hosted.ap.org/.../CVN_PALIN_IRAQ_WAR
- WayneJM
September 5, 2008 at 10:46am
Rozenson I made the Michael-Sarah connection the day she was announced. I told my wife the Friday they made the intro of her that "too bad she's not named Cleese; if she were, we'd put her in charge of the Dept. of Silly Walks". Took my wife a minute to figure that out.
The saddest part is a large part of the electorate is taking her seriously but the joke is on them and us. I personally would prefer a Michael Palin to her for a leader any day of the week. Michael knows the absurd when he sees it.
- tnmats
September 5, 2008 at 11:35am
Hmmm, she lives in Alaska.
Is she a lumberjack? Is she OK? Does she sleep all night and work all day?
She does wear women's clothing. I'm not sure about the hanging around in bars thing, though.
- WayneJM
September 5, 2008 at 12:11pm