Going rogue

by: Gerald Weinand

Mon Mar 08, 2010 at 14:05:19 PM EST

SARAH!: My first five years of life we spent in Skagway, Alaska, right there by Whitehorse. Believe it or not - this was in the '60s - we used to hustle on over the border for health care that we would receive in Whitehorse. I remember my brother, he burned his ankle in some little kid accident thing and my parents had to put him on a train and rush him over to Whitehorse and I think, isn't that kind of ironic now. Zooming over the border, getting health care from Canada.

At least Sarah! has three more years to study our Constitution

by: Gerald Weinand

Sat Nov 14, 2009 at 21:38:41 PM EST

I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States.

In a post regarding Attorney General Eric Holder's announcement that Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, alleged mastermind of the 9/11 attacks, and four others would be tried in a Federal Court in New York City, Sarah Palin, the woman that would be president, posted this on her facebook page:

Obama Administration's Atrocious Decision

Horrible decision, absolutely horrible. It is devastating for so many of us to hear that the Obama Administration decided that the 9/11 terrorist mastermind, Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, will be given a criminal trial in New York. This is an atrocious decision.

Mohammed and his terrorist co-conspirators are responsible for the deaths of more than 3,000 Americans. Thousands of American families have suffered through the loss of loved ones because of the disgusting attacks launched against the United States, and now this trial venue adds insult to injury, in addition to compromising our efforts in the War on Terror. Heaven forbid our allies see this decision as a reason to become less likely to support our efforts in the future.

Criminal defense attorneys will now enter into delaying tactics and other methods in the hope of securing some kind of win for their "clients." The trial will afford Mohammed the opportunity to grandstand and make use of his time in front of the world media to rally his disgusting terrorist cohorts. It will also be an insult to the victims of 9/11, as Mohammed will no doubt use the opportunity to spew his hateful rhetoric in the same neighborhood in which he ruthlessly cut down the lives of so many Americans.

It is crucially important that Americans be made aware that the mastermind of the 9/11 attacks may walk away from this trial without receiving just punishment because of a "hung jury" or from any variety of court room technicalities. If we are stuck with this terrible Obama Administration decision, I, like most Americans, hope that Mohammed and his co-conspirators are convicted. Hang 'em high.

I wholeheartedly support the survivors and the families of the victims in their appeal to the president regarding this matter. You can read more about it here.

Sarah! can't claim the experience that Rudy! can, that of being a Federal prosecutor, but certainly even she knows that trials are typically held where the crime has been committed. In fact, it is in the interest of the prosecution to do so, and it is nearly always that the defendant requests a change of venue.

Sarah!, and those who do not quite understand what "rule of law" means, would have you believe that relying on our justice system somehow makes us weak. She considers herself in the same mold as George W. Bush, who said, "Whether we bring our enemies to justice or bring justice to our enemies, justice will be done." Of course, short-cutting constitutional protections does not make our nation stronger, but makes each of us less safe, less secure.

Sarah! writes that defense attorneys will "enter into delaying tactics and other methods," which ignores that these men been denied the full protection of our Constitution (see Al Odah v. United States). And more - Mohammed was waterboarded 183 times - a criminal act according to the UN Convention against Torture, and so hardly constitutional.

While Sarah! may "hope" that Mohammed is convicted, she really ought to hope that those actually guilty of the crime are convicted. And that is exactly why we have trials - to assess the evidence in a court of law before a judge and/or jury. It is disturbing to realize that Sarah!, as Governor of Alaska, had no concept of the legal protections that everyone one of us enjoy.

While all of us deplore the attacks of that day eight years ago and stand fast with those that survived or lost loved ones, it would be a dishonor to them to shortcut the legal system that Americans have relied on for over 230 years.

A Sarah! double dip

by: Gerald Weinand

Tue Oct 06, 2009 at 22:15:50 PM EDT

Sarah! is all about foreign policy.

Not one, but TWO facebook posts were to be found by her adoring fans, and meaty they are. First - Afghanistan:

For two years as a candidate, Senator Obama called for more resources for the war in Afghanistan and warned about the consequences of failure. As President, he announced a comprehensive new counterinsurgency strategy and handpicked the right general to execute it. Now General McChrystal is asking for additional troops to implement the strategy announced by President Obama in March. Hundreds of thousands of Americans have sons, daughters, fathers, mothers, sisters and brothers in harm's way in Afghanistan right now. We owe it to all those brave Americans serving in uniform to give them the tools they need to complete their mission.

We can win in Afghanistan by helping the Afghans build a stable representative state able to defend itself. And we must do what it takes to prevail. The stakes are very high. The 9/11 attacks were planned in Afghanistan, and if we are not successful there, al Qaeda will once again find a safe haven, the Taliban will impose its cruelty on the Afghan people, and Pakistan will be less stable.

Our allies and our adversaries are watching to see if we have the staying power to protect our interests in Afghanistan. I recently joined a group of Americans in urging President Obama to devote the resources necessary in Afghanistan and pledged to support him if he made the right decision. Now is not the time for cold feet, second thoughts, or indecision -- it is the time to act as commander-in-chief and approve the troops so clearly needed in Afghanistan.

The 9/11 attacks were planned in Afghanistan. WTF don't you get, jackass? Why do you hate America?? It doesn't matter that Afghanistan hasn't had a stable government that controlled over 25% of its territory in the last 30 years - "we can win!"

It affects me physically to think that this ignoramus actually had a chance to be Vice President.

But there's more!

With no apparent sense of irony given her post from less than three hours before, Sarah! provides further proof of the need for energy independence:

The British newspaper The Independent reported today that Gulf oil producers were negotiating with Russia, China, Japan and France to replace the dollar in pricing oil with a basket of currencies. According to the Wall Street Journal, Arab oil officials have denied the story, but even the possibility of such a talk weakens the dollar and renews fears about its continued viability as an international reserve currency. In fact, today a United Nations official called for a new global reserve currency to replace the dollar and end our "privilege" to run up huge deficits. We can see the effect of this in the price of gold, which hit a record high today in response to fears about the weakened dollar.

All of this is a result of our out-of-control debt. This is why we need to rein in spending, and this is also why we need energy independence. A weakened dollar means higher commodity prices. This will make it more difficult to pay our bills - including the bill to import oil.

In his book Architects of Ruin, Peter Schweizer points out that the Obama administration is focusing primarily on "green energy," while ignoring our need to develop our domestic conventional energy resources. We're ignoring the looming crisis caused by our dependence on foreign oil. Because we're dependent on foreign nations for our oil, we're also at their mercy if they decide to dump the dollar as their trade currency. We can't allow ourselves to be so vulnerable to the whims of foreign nations. That's why we must develop our own domestic supplies of oil and gas.

Though the chant of "Drill, baby, drill" was much derided, it expressed the need to confront this issue head-on before it reaches a crisis point.

Bottom line: let's stop digging ourselves into debt and start drilling for energy independence.

Hole in the sand, meet head (but don't scratch the Kawasaki's).

Obviously, our nation will be dependent on oil - be it foreign or domestic - for some time yet. But to ignore that peak oil has occurred, and that there are alternatives in renewable energy generation (that happens to create jobs - but maybe not fund the depressed Alaskan Permanent Fund).

Keep bringing it Sarah! I'm not sure which is more entertaining - that you continue to think of yourself as a national force, or that you have a fan base.

Susan Collins v. Sarah! in death panel match

by: Gerald Weinand

Thu Aug 13, 2009 at 10:49:45 AM EDT

The America I know and love is not one in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama's "death panel" so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their "level of productivity in society," whether they are worthy of health care. Such a system is downright evil.

She is referring to Sec. 1233 of H.R. 3200, which mandates that any consultation of end-of-life care be covered by health insurance, not that such consultations occur, and if they do, that they are between the patient and their practitioner, not a government bureaucrat.

Last May, Sens. Susan Collins and Jay Rockefeller introduced the Advance Planning and Compassionate Care Act of 2009 (S. 1150) (h/t Greg Sargent). Browsing through the summary, the bill is remarkably similar to Sec. 1233 of H.R. 3200, and Sen. Collins wrote this about it on her website:

Noted Princeton health economist Uwe Reinhardt once observed that "Americans are the only people on earth who believe that death is negotiable." Advancements in medicine, public health and technology have enabled more and more of us to live longer and healthier lives. When medical treatment can no longer promise a continuation of life, however, patients and their families should not have to fear that the process of dying will be marked by preventable pain, avoidable distress, or care that is inconsistent with their values and needs.

The fact is that dying is a universal experience. Clearly there is more that we can do in this country to relieve suffering, respect personal choice and dignity, and provide opportunities for people to find meaning and comfort at life's conclusion.

Unfortunately, most patients and their physicians do not currently discuss death or routinely make advance plans for end-of-life care. As a consequence, about one-fourth of Medicare funds are now spent on care at the end of life that is geared toward expensive, high-tech interventions and "rescue care." While most Americans say that they would prefer to die at home, studies show that almost 80 percent die in institutions where they may be in pain and where they may be subjected to high-tech treatments that merely prolong suffering.

Continued on the flip:

Deep thought

by: Gerald Weinand

Sun Jul 26, 2009 at 19:00:00 PM EDT

W/kids in camper;on World's Best Rd Trip!To soar by Mt.McKinley&rushing rivers,we remember all of AK is BIG/WILD/GOOD LIFE;feel freedom here

This got me curious: has Sarah or husband Todd ever done anything in the great outdoors without the use of things with motors? Have they ever hiked into a fishing hole, or gone cross country skiing to hunt?