L'Ex- Gouverneur De Rouge Aux Lčvres Snarky
August 11th 2010 14:56
A video of Sarah Palin arguing with a woman displaying a very large banner that reads “Worst Governor Ever” has gone viral on the internet. The video was shot during the filming of her television series for The Learning Channel in Hope, Alaska, and the woman was obviously hoping for a confrontation with Palin during the shoot.
In a piece for Newsweek’s internet web site, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler comments on Palin’s encounter with Kathleen Gustafson, the alleged school teacher, who was waiting to ambush Palin in front of the cameras. It’s alright for Mr. Adler to criticize Palin for being a “nasty, snotty, slightly dense but popular high-school girl” (Newsweek, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler, 8/9/10), and it’s even fine to characterize her as a prima donna and self-centered, but to characterize this encounter as “snarky?” Come on, Ben. I don’t even know what “snarky” means, and I can’t find it in the dictionary, but it doesn’t sound wholesome.
Adler claims “Palin's dark side came out in full effect this weekend, and this time the victim was not President Obama but a schoolteacher in small-town Alaska.” (Newsweek, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler, 8/9/10). When I read Adler’s article I decided to watch the video. Now, I’m no fan of Palin’s politics. I’m a conservative Democrat, and Palin, the darling of the Tea Party, is a Reactionary, someone to the ultra right of Conservatives. She makes Conservatives look like Leftists. However, and here’s the difference between my attitude towards Palin and Adler’s, I welcome her musings and fumbles. I can’t wait for her next attempt to sound intelligent and significant. I hope she continues to try to be the leader of the Tea Party, because if she does, I will have much to write about.
So, not only did I watch the video, I transcribed it to try to determine if anything nasty was said and how the tone of the conversation went. Neither Sarah, Sarah’s daughter, nor Gustafson raised their voice; they all spoke in a normal conversational tone, although Sarah spoke in that sing-song manner that I find so funny. When Gustafson says, “You swore on your precious Bible that you would uphold the interests of this state, and then when cash was waved in front of your face, you quit,” Sarah answers back, “Oh, you wanted me to be your governor. I’m honored. Thank you, thank you.” If you haven’t seen the video, you have to understand that Sarah is being confronted beneath Gustafson’s sign, yet she is being polite, not “dripping with unamusing sarcasm,” (Newsweek, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler, 8/9/10) as Adler puts it. And, even if Adler’s interpretation is correct, how would he react in a similar situation? What if I encountered him in his office, with a video camera running, and his colleagues watching, and I criticized his writing? How polite would he be?
Then the following exchange between Palin and Gustafson took place:
Gustafson: I wanted you to honor your responsibilities. That is what I wanted. And to become a part of the political process instead of becoming a celebrity so that you could, and if that is the best that you could do, then good for you, if that’s the best that you could do.”
Sarah: “I’m out there fightin for America’s people to have a Constitution protected to have free speech.”
Gustafson: “In what way are you fighting for that?”
Sarah: “Oh my goodness! Elect candidates who understand the Constitution, to protect our military interests so that we can help keep on fightin for a Constitution that will protect freedoms that . . . “
Gustafson: “By them you mean your celebrity status.”
Gustafson: “You’re not representing the State of Alaska any longer.”
Daughter: “She’s representing the United States.”
Gustafson: “Yes, I know. You belong to America now and that suits me just fine.”
Sarah seems to have forgotten the real reason she resigned her first and only term as governor of Alaska: to cash in on speaking fees being proposed to her after her run at the Vice Presidency so she could pay off her massive legal debt stemming from accusations of ethical misconduct while governor. She’s convinced herself that she really resigned for the more noble cause of protecting the Constitution. I thought that was the job of the five Conservative justices of the Supreme Court, with the help of the four liberals.
Adler, after this part of Sarah’s conversation, rips her because of her “tone of nasal condescension.” (Newsweek, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler, 8/9/10). Come on, Ben. She has a big nose. How do you think she holds up her glasses? Is this the best you can do? She always sounds nasally, so how can you tell this nasally incident from “nasal condescension?”
Then Adler quotes the New York’s Dan Amira: “"When Palin asks Gustafson what she does for a living, and Gustafson tells Palin she's a teacher, Palin and her daughter groan and exchange eye rolls as if to say, 'Of course, only a teacher would be such a liberal nut.' "” (Newsweek, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler, 8/9/10). He goes on to say that even though teachers usually vote Democratic, anyone running for public office, especially President, should be polite with public servants, like teachers, police, and fire fighters, and this incident won’t help her popularity. Actually, from the transcript, the conversation went like this:
Sarah: “What do you do here?”
Gustafson: “I’m a teacher. I thought of a few other jobs. I’m married to a commercial fisherman.”
Sarah: “So am I. I’m married . . . We probably have a lot in common.”
Gustafson: “I think that we do. I think that we do.”
(Some mumbling about a video)
Gustafson: “I’m more of a still camera girl. I am, I am. I will tell you I’m very pleased to meet you.”
Sarah: “I’m honored to meet you. I really am and though we both agree on the freedom of speech, you know, the protection of that, so, no, I’m, and ya know, best of everything to you too, and ya.”
Gustafson: “Thank you.”
Now, how New York’s Dan Amira and Newsweek’s Ben Adler can think that the conversation ended badly is beyond my ability to understand. While I can’t stand Palin’s politics, she has a politician’s knack for winning over and disarming her detractors when she faces them, either with her stupidity, which makes them see the futility of debating her and simply give up, or her sweetness, which makes them think they’ll save their arguments for another time.
If you are going to attack her, attack her for the stupid things she says and Tweets ("Pls refudiate"). Don’t attack her for her looks or her family, and certainly don’t get snarky (whatever that means) with her.
In a piece for Newsweek’s internet web site, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler comments on Palin’s encounter with Kathleen Gustafson, the alleged school teacher, who was waiting to ambush Palin in front of the cameras. It’s alright for Mr. Adler to criticize Palin for being a “nasty, snotty, slightly dense but popular high-school girl” (Newsweek, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler, 8/9/10), and it’s even fine to characterize her as a prima donna and self-centered, but to characterize this encounter as “snarky?” Come on, Ben. I don’t even know what “snarky” means, and I can’t find it in the dictionary, but it doesn’t sound wholesome.
Adler claims “Palin's dark side came out in full effect this weekend, and this time the victim was not President Obama but a schoolteacher in small-town Alaska.” (Newsweek, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler, 8/9/10). When I read Adler’s article I decided to watch the video. Now, I’m no fan of Palin’s politics. I’m a conservative Democrat, and Palin, the darling of the Tea Party, is a Reactionary, someone to the ultra right of Conservatives. She makes Conservatives look like Leftists. However, and here’s the difference between my attitude towards Palin and Adler’s, I welcome her musings and fumbles. I can’t wait for her next attempt to sound intelligent and significant. I hope she continues to try to be the leader of the Tea Party, because if she does, I will have much to write about.
So, not only did I watch the video, I transcribed it to try to determine if anything nasty was said and how the tone of the conversation went. Neither Sarah, Sarah’s daughter, nor Gustafson raised their voice; they all spoke in a normal conversational tone, although Sarah spoke in that sing-song manner that I find so funny. When Gustafson says, “You swore on your precious Bible that you would uphold the interests of this state, and then when cash was waved in front of your face, you quit,” Sarah answers back, “Oh, you wanted me to be your governor. I’m honored. Thank you, thank you.” If you haven’t seen the video, you have to understand that Sarah is being confronted beneath Gustafson’s sign, yet she is being polite, not “dripping with unamusing sarcasm,” (Newsweek, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler, 8/9/10) as Adler puts it. And, even if Adler’s interpretation is correct, how would he react in a similar situation? What if I encountered him in his office, with a video camera running, and his colleagues watching, and I criticized his writing? How polite would he be?
Then the following exchange between Palin and Gustafson took place:
Gustafson: I wanted you to honor your responsibilities. That is what I wanted. And to become a part of the political process instead of becoming a celebrity so that you could, and if that is the best that you could do, then good for you, if that’s the best that you could do.”
Sarah: “I’m out there fightin for America’s people to have a Constitution protected to have free speech.”
Gustafson: “In what way are you fighting for that?”
Sarah: “Oh my goodness! Elect candidates who understand the Constitution, to protect our military interests so that we can help keep on fightin for a Constitution that will protect freedoms that . . . “
Gustafson: “By them you mean your celebrity status.”
Gustafson: “You’re not representing the State of Alaska any longer.”
Daughter: “She’s representing the United States.”
Gustafson: “Yes, I know. You belong to America now and that suits me just fine.”
Sarah seems to have forgotten the real reason she resigned her first and only term as governor of Alaska: to cash in on speaking fees being proposed to her after her run at the Vice Presidency so she could pay off her massive legal debt stemming from accusations of ethical misconduct while governor. She’s convinced herself that she really resigned for the more noble cause of protecting the Constitution. I thought that was the job of the five Conservative justices of the Supreme Court, with the help of the four liberals.
Adler, after this part of Sarah’s conversation, rips her because of her “tone of nasal condescension.” (Newsweek, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler, 8/9/10). Come on, Ben. She has a big nose. How do you think she holds up her glasses? Is this the best you can do? She always sounds nasally, so how can you tell this nasally incident from “nasal condescension?”
Then Adler quotes the New York’s Dan Amira: “"When Palin asks Gustafson what she does for a living, and Gustafson tells Palin she's a teacher, Palin and her daughter groan and exchange eye rolls as if to say, 'Of course, only a teacher would be such a liberal nut.' "” (Newsweek, “Sarah Palin Gets Snarky on a Schoolteacher,” Ben Adler, 8/9/10). He goes on to say that even though teachers usually vote Democratic, anyone running for public office, especially President, should be polite with public servants, like teachers, police, and fire fighters, and this incident won’t help her popularity. Actually, from the transcript, the conversation went like this:
Sarah: “What do you do here?”
Gustafson: “I’m a teacher. I thought of a few other jobs. I’m married to a commercial fisherman.”
Sarah: “So am I. I’m married . . . We probably have a lot in common.”
Gustafson: “I think that we do. I think that we do.”
(Some mumbling about a video)
Gustafson: “I’m more of a still camera girl. I am, I am. I will tell you I’m very pleased to meet you.”
Sarah: “I’m honored to meet you. I really am and though we both agree on the freedom of speech, you know, the protection of that, so, no, I’m, and ya know, best of everything to you too, and ya.”
Gustafson: “Thank you.”
Now, how New York’s Dan Amira and Newsweek’s Ben Adler can think that the conversation ended badly is beyond my ability to understand. While I can’t stand Palin’s politics, she has a politician’s knack for winning over and disarming her detractors when she faces them, either with her stupidity, which makes them see the futility of debating her and simply give up, or her sweetness, which makes them think they’ll save their arguments for another time.
If you are going to attack her, attack her for the stupid things she says and Tweets ("Pls refudiate"). Don’t attack her for her looks or her family, and certainly don’t get snarky (whatever that means) with her.
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