All about Sarah...

Just a few quotes, thoughts, and links for you to ponder...

The McCain-Palin team has campaigned on media coverage that they describe as excessive or unfair. from CNN

Correct me if I'm wrong, but is this not the campaign that spent the late spring and early summer whining that it wasn't getting enough coverage? Well, it's getting the coverage now, so stop whining.

Bottom line: You can't have it both ways.

I found a great article on Slate: The Sarah Palin FAQ. It's a definite must read. Here are just a couple of excerpts about some of my "favorite" issues.

Did she oppose the so-called "Bridge to Nowhere"?

When she was running for governor in 2006, Palin said she supported a $223 million federal earmark for the Gravina Island Bridge. Congress eventually killed the earmark after it became a symbol of pork-barrel spending, but Alaska was given the same amount of money to spend on other projects. Last year, Palin put a halt to state support of the project, saying, "We will continue to look for options for Ketchikan to allow better access to the island." The reversal was hailed by budget hawks, but it irked local politicians like Ketchikan Mayor Bob Weinstein, who said, "[S]he pandered to us by saying, 'I'm for this.' "

So in other words, she was for it, then she was against it, though she took the money anyway.

Bottom line: She took her pork and grilled it instead of frying it.

Cindy McCain and others have asserted that Alaska's proximity to Russia has contributed to Palin's foreign-policy knowledge. What dealings has she had with Russia?

The campaign has not come up with any. Palin has never been to Russia.

Yeah, there's no substance here. I just think it's funny.

Was she ever a member of the Alaskan Independence Party?

Public records indicate [] that Palin has been a lifelong Republican since she first registered to vote in Alaska.... According to the New York Times, Gov. Palin recorded a video segment for the party's convention this year, wishing the AIP "good luck on a successful and inspiring convention."

Bottom line: Why does anyone care about this? Because the AIP wants Alaska to secede from the U.S.

Did she want to ban books from the public library as mayor of Wasilla?

Yes, at least according to John Stein, the town's former mayor. Stein says Palin asked the Wasilla library "how she could go about banning books" with offensive language. It's not clear whether any book was ever banned.

Banning books is just not a good idea. Ever. Even the McCain-Palin website admits that she asked the librarian about it twice. They claim she didn't want to ban books though. Unclear on why she was asking if she wasn't interested.

Bottom line: From all reports, she had an unusual and unexplained interest in banning books.

Does she oppose federal earmarks?

Alaska has long been the recipient of astounding amounts of federal funding. While Palin slashed pork requests in half during her tenure, the state still requested $550 million in Palin's first year in office. This year she has requested about $198 million—$295 per person—which is still the highest amount per-capita in the country, according to Taxpayers for Common Sense. And when she was the mayor of Wasilla, Palin hired an Anchorage-based firm to secure $27 million in federal earmarks for the town.

Bottom line: No, she does not oppose federal earmarks.

What are Palin's views on abortion?

[S]he... has also indicated her preference for abstinence education over "explicit sex-ed programs." She would permit abortion in cases where the mother's life was endangered, but not in the case of rape or incest.

Bottom line: No woman (or girl) should be forced to become a mother. Especially in the cases of rape and incest.

Education. It's not going so well. Alaska's graduation rate for the last school year was 59.6%. Their Averaged Freshman Graduation Rate for 2004 (so this looks to the kids who were freshman in 2004 and graduated this past June; it's supposed to be a more reliable number for comparing across states) was 67.2%; the national rate for the same kids was 75%. The national average was You can see more here.

It's been said that Palin increased funding to education. Here's to hoping she's done something other than throw money at a system that doesn't appear to be in the best working order at the moment. Of course, given the short amount of time Palin has been governor, it's difficult to assess the success or failure of anything she's done.

Bottom line: That's the point.

eBay. Palin stated in her convention speech -- and both she and McCain have made sure to mention this several times since then -- that she put the governor's jet on eBay as she thought it was a waste of money. That much of the story is true. Unfortunately, they don't stop there. Nope. Instead, they go on to say that it was posted on eBay, where it sold at a profit. Not true. The jet did not sell on eBay. It was removed and sold via a broker. What's more, it was sold at a loss.

Bottom line: An outright lie that is so easy to check out that it really makes you wonder how very stupid the McCain campaign thinks the public as a whole is....

For those who have read the Anne Kilkenny letter, it is real.

Some other interesting articles/reports: Sarah Palin's Alaskonomics and Sarah Palin’s abysmal environmental record.

I'll add some more citations in the days to come. And I'll post more interesting links as I come upon them.

Bottom line: Sarah Palin is a great speaker with a strong presence. But please don't let that sway you. Learn about her and her positions. And then cast your vote for whichever pair of candidates you believe would be the best for our country.