The Wolves Are (Back) At The Door

The wolves are back!  Four years ago they were terrorists out to destroy America (and we all knew John Kerry couldn't protect us from them).  Now they are Democratic Party operatives (practically the same thing!) out to destroy America's Super Mom, Sarah Palin.  Hmm - why doesn't she get in a small plane and gun them down like, well, dogs?

I'm kinda looking forward to 2012.  Maybe the wolves could go unite the nation by going after the agent for Britney Spears.

Comments

[bgates]

I'm kinda looking forward to 2012.
I predict that will be the year the election cycles start piling up on top of each other. You'd expect 2012 to be the start of the 2016 campaign, but it will also be the start of the 2020 campaign. The fresh face in 2012 (Chelsea?) will be able to avoid the "inexperience" tag by saying, "sure, I am now, but imagine what I'll be like in 8 years!"

[Enlightened]

Dammit. McCain's team needs to stop this.

Focus on important issues fercrissakes. This is getting irritating - not to mention this one overstepped their bounds wrt factcheck.org

[Elliott]

Speaking of sequels, Perfunction (via the Corner) has directed my attention to what I think, despite its presence in a gallery of photos from a political rally, is really a still frame from the remake of The Parent Trap.

[Patrick R. Sullivan]

We still have journos who have some interest in the truth; this from Lynn Sweet is the most thorough debunking of the idea Palin ever supported the BTN.

[Thomas Collins]

Maybe we all get a little too exercised about boisterous 21th century campaigning. Compared to the 19th century, this is still a pillow fight. It's just that with our technology, it's easier for gossip to travel far and wide. Imagine if Grover Cleveland were running today!

LUN

In any event, I suspect that all the Dem "wolves" are acomplishing is eating Obama's chances to win. There have been so many ridiculous attacks on Palin from supposedly sober sources (Fowler of South Carolina wins my award for most stupid attack on Palin) that Palin, among the persuadable voters, is going to be insulated from any possibily legitimate critique of her record.

And in my opinion, if the Dems succeed in destroying their own credibility, it couldn't happen to a more deserving group of folks. Maybe after this election someone will write a book titled "What's the Matter With the Coastal Pseudo-Elites?" and the Dems will learn something.

[DebinNC]

My first thought at that pic, Elliott, was "I hope the secret service folks are protecting Palin's children."

[Jane]

TC,

Do you see any change in the electorate in Boston? Are people excited about Palin?

[Enlightened]

Elliott - Awesome slideshow. And yes - the one of her running to Piper is just fabulous. I do not understand, and I never will, how this woman is so threatening to leftwingers.

But if this slideshow is any indication, Obama better make sure he never says lipstick again in this campaign.

He can say he didn't mean it that way all he wants - but pictures say a thousand words - and there was alot of lipstick in that crowd.

I think Piper Palin is someone to be reckoned with. You can tell she has something going on. And she is totally oblivious to it, it is just inherent.

If nothing else, Sarah Palin has invigorated everyday women. It's breathtaking to see.

[Appalled]

From gamble to disaster to triumph to overreach, all in two weeks. The McCain folks are going too far too fast right now.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Enlightened, it has been obvious for days that you have a real problem with the Palin pick. The Wolves ad quotes newspaper headlines, if factcheck.org has a problem, take it up with the WSJ.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

I do not understand, and I never will, how this woman is so threatening to leftwingers.

She is a mirror that shines back at them and lets them know what pathetic and shallow lives they live and how silly, yes silly, their view of America is. They are shocked to learn that a good portion of America does not hang on their every word and opinion, and instead hold them in disdain and contempt. Most of all they are having to admit that a large number of Americans would not want to change places with them, that they don't hold their Ivy League degrees in high repute, nor do they think that being Hahvahd educated prepares you for life or a position of leadership. In other words, they aren't as special as they've pretended to be.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Just want to note, crankily, that people who live east of the Hudson River really don't have much of a clue about dealing with wildlife issues. The reason they want to shoot wolves from the air is that Alaska is big, hunting on foot is difficult, and they need to cull the wolf population to keep them from culling the reindeer population too much.

Oh, and wolves are not endangered in Alaska, dammit.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Just want to note, crankily, that people who live east of the Hudson River really don't have much of a clue about dealing with wildlife issues. The reason they want to shoot wolves from the air is that Alaska is big, hunting on foot is difficult, and they need to cull the wolf population to keep them from culling the reindeer population too much.

Oh, and wolves are not endangered in Alaska, dammit.

[Neo]

Very instructuve stuff

[Enlightened]

Sara - I don't have a problem at all with the Palin pick! I love it, love it, love it!

I just don't want Team McCain to sink into the tit-for-tat mentality of the left. I want them to stay above the fray (which I think they are teetering right on the edge, but still better than the other side), and now go for the juggler based on her credntials and not this endless tornado of lies and smears.

My fear is that some of the voters Palin has clearly captured will get turned off by negative campaigning - let the loser side juggle those balls, our side is and should be better than that.

Its just the natural born pessimist in me - I manage to tamp it down most of the time.

[Jane]

I do not understand, and I never will, how this woman is so threatening to leftwingers.

I have a friend at the gym. She is 29. She has a 7 year old daughter whose father she is trying to divorce. She was pregnant before marriage and "had" to get married. She thinks the fact that Sarah has a daughter who is pregnant and unmarried is "disgusting" and a disqualifier for the office.

She is of course, a liberal.

[Extraneus]

From gamble to disaster to triumph to overreach, all in two weeks. The McCain folks are going too far too fast right now.

Except for the disaster part (huh?), I'm beginning to agree with you, Appalled. There's no need to counter-attack, because the lady is kindling the protective instincts of real people like no politician we've ever seen. Stay above the fray, McCain. She has a lot of other people who are willing to help.

[boris]

IMO some want a squeeky clean by the book campaign and lacking influence with the other side try to get this side to behave like saints.

BTW game theory has established that tit for tat is a necessary option to encourage honest cooperation and competition. Taking it off the table encourages cheating.

It is unwise to give the deranged and delusional the incorrect expectation of escaping consequences. Bin Laden for example.

[boris]

The whole point of OODA is to get the opponent to make forced and unforced errors so you can take the shot. McCain is going to take the shot as long as it is honorable, and that's better than the other side is doing and good enough for me.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

The reason they want to shoot wolves from the air is that Alaska is big, hunting on foot is difficult, and they need to cull the wolf population to keep them from culling the reindeer population too much.

Hunters can not shoot wolves from the air, only legit. game/wildlife officers are permitted to cull limited numbers this way as part of their duties of wildlife management.

[Porchlight]

Love that photo set - thanks Elliott for the link. I agree that Piper has that "something."

Thanks also for helping me solve a mental problem. I finally figured out who Todd Palin reminds me of.

It was bugging me.

[Thomas Collins]

Jane, in my workplace and among my friends, the reaction to Palin is as follows. The folks who vote her down would tend not to be persuable voters, in my estimation. Of voters on the fence, about a half express neutrality, and the rest are positive. A couple of faces lit up when I mentioned her name. In my admittedly non-scientific survey without weighting for likely voters (Rasmussen and Gallup would be horrified by my methodology), I would say that she won't turn any solid Dems to McCain (meaning that states such as Mass. still will be in Obama's column), but in states in which the persuables hold the balance, she will really help McCain.

By the way, those who snicker when I mention her name (with references to lip gloss and Bristol's pregnancy) I would consider to be unlikely to vote for McCain in any event.

[Cecil Turner]

. . . not to mention this one overstepped their bounds wrt factcheck.org

Not to put too much weight on it, but the factcheck.org bit is itself a bit misleading. Ran into several researchers at the Anchorage library (the librarians were commenting about the crowds), and one that would identify themselves mentioned getting the data dump from the Obama guys (in particular mentioning the censorship flap, complete with list of books including Harry Potter, that couldn't have been correct). Perhaps they were already in place, but the idea that they're not here is hard to credit. (Caveat: I haven't run into one that I can positively identify, but then I haven't been asking.)

The feeding frenzy is unseemly, and drawing attention to it legit, IMHO. Wish they'd done something a bit more subtle, though.

[Porchlight]

From an aesthetic standpoint, I would probably prefer the McCain campaign to avoid being seen as whiny or "playing the gender card." However, I am in no position to second guess Team McCain, as they have succeeded wildly thus far without taking any of my advice.

FWIW, Jay Cost hit on this very point today (I'm including the long quote b/c it's so topical):

Obama On His Heels

The Obama campaign's decision to attack is a risky one. Negative campaigns are always tricky, but this one is especially so. To some degree, Palin has been treated unfairly since her debut as McCain's vice-president. What the McCain campaign wants to do is tie all criticisms of Palin to the unfair ones, and ultimately remind people of how Hillary Clinton was treated. Team McCain is especially eager to do this for anything that comes out of Obama's mouth - hence the "lipstick on a pig" spot, which in turn induced a response from Obama.

We can assign winners and losers in this little skirmish; we can decide who has truth on his side and who does not. But that misses the point. Here we have yet another day when the focus is on the GOP's youthful, smiling, attractive, witty, female vice-presidential nominee. And for yet another day our ears are filled with the sounds of the Democratic nominee decrying how unfair the Republicans are - as if only one side hits below the belt.

Ultimately, I'm not a huge believer in the importance of "winning" news cycles. I do think, however, that the battle for the news cycle is an exhibition of a campaign's ability to move its message. And it has become clear that the McCain campaign is better at this. This "lipstick on a pig" incident will probably not affect a single vote - but it shows that the McCain campaign is ready and able to defend any real gains it might have made among white women. Once again, it's doing a better job getting its message across.

[Rick Ballard]

Boris,

I'm not even sure what the fuss is about here. I would have gone for jackals rather than wolves but they were sent and Obama was lying about "new" politics.

Obama's Whine and Snivel Corps used up all the sympathy available for Captain Zero when they went after the Clintons. I'm scoring this as a solid fair blow by McCain and a good indication that his campaign is not over thinking proper response.

Let Obama keep his promise - it'll be a first and therefore newsworthy.

[Elliott]

Obama's Whine and Snivel Corps

I wish that were the extent of it, but I'm afraid the corps contains several active members of the Whine and Cheat crowd.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

From an aesthetic standpoint, I would probably prefer the McCain campaign to avoid being seen as whiny or "playing the gender card."

The one thing I am positive about is that neither John McCain nor Sarah Palin are whiners. If they don't like something or have something to say, they'll say it straight out, they will not whine about it.

And how do you avoid the "gender card" when you have 3 men on one side and one female on the other. Politically, Palin and McCain may be alike, but they are certainly a different gender and she will certainly bring a different perspective to some issues because she is a woman. She already has, only so far, it is her own gender getting the wake up call.

[bio mom]

They are threatened by this woman because she may defeat the Messiah.

[Charlie (Colorado)]

Uh, Sara, what's your point about the wildlife officers thing? I'm not getting it.

[Captain Hate]

I have a friend at the gym. She is 29. She has a 7 year old daughter whose father she is trying to divorce. She was pregnant before marriage and "had" to get married. She thinks the fact that Sarah has a daughter who is pregnant and unmarried is "disgusting" and a disqualifier for the office.

People that make bad choices in life couldn't support Palin because that would be a good choice.

[Extraneus]

Get a load of the AP headline...

Palin takes small steps out of her campaign bubble

[Extraneus]

The Alaska governor was sitting down Thursday for her first extended interview after days of preparation by the McCain campaign...

Days? Wow, that's a long time. And only her first 2-day interview? Geeze, that's pretty bad! [How much longer until the next chance to take her out? --BRETT J. BLACKLEDGE]

[larwyn]

JMH & SUE and RED SHOE SHOPPERS:::laughing::::

Paid for all the looking up at gutters with contractor yesterday, fell asleep with mouse in my hand before the 10th turned in the 11th. But did get to see Palin's arrival in AK and this AM noticed the RED SHOES.

So as I came out of the revisiting of grief and anger, I saw the post at the Corner and sent to Fausta, the shoe diva of the VRWC.

http://faustasblog.com/?p=6106

Red shoes to go!

Via Larwyn, Sarah Palin returns to Alaska wearing red high-heeled pumps.

Lisa Schiffren points out,

for the record, that is the second pair of ruby-red shoes she has worn in the last two weeks.

Going by that photo, I belive that she’s wearing Stuart Weitzman future, available at Zappos for $216.00.

A splendid choice, especially for us who love red shoes.

David All, who was at the RNC last week, sent photos of other shoe choices during the convention. McCain was wearing his Ferragamo loafers while Palin wore open-toe pumps:

Here’s the well-shod Palin family:

Following the Palin shoes:
The Ferragamo ticket?
The right Palin shoes
Palin’s shoes, and firing guns

Obama’s stuck on lipstick. The Anchoress has the perfect button for Obama.

[Thomas Collins]

Re Extraneus's reference to the Palin "bubble" article:

The McCain/Palin campaign is probably praying that the MSM continues harping on the "Palin is being protected" theme right up to the debate with Biden. Palin can obviously stand on her own two feet and debate with anyone. MSM is in effect lowering expectations for that debate for Palin, which is none too good for Biden, who is probably the more gaffe prone of the two. If I were Axelrod, I would be on the phone to my MSM pals begging them to put forth articles on Palin's coolness under fire to up expectations for her debate performance.

[Danube of Thought]

I'm with Porchlight--at this point, I'm very reluctant to second-guess anything the McCain campaign does. Given the state of the national mood at this point, bringing their candidate into a lead with less than eight weeks to go is the stuff of genius.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Uh, Sara, what's your point about the wildlife officers thing? I'm not getting it.

Not a point to you Charlie, but to those who keep saying that Palin supports hunting wolves from the air, implying that any lic. hunter can hunt wolves by air. They can't, and I just wanted to clarify that.

[Danube of Thought]

Look, I'm not a boastful man--am I?--but I must say that in 1993 I shot and killed the largest wolf taken in Alaska that year, and I have the plaque to prove it. A .270 Winchester at about 150 yards from the kneeling position.

I had not gone up there to hunt wolf, but when we spotted this one my guide implored me to shoot him--begged me to do it. I did, and afterward he explained that the wolves that year had decimated the Dall sheep population, and were making inroads into the caribou (although the latter are so numerous that it's hard for me to imagine the wolves making a dent).

A taxidermist in Anchorage made him into a full mount, and I put him in my office in downtown L.A. on the 45th floor of the Library Tower. I believe there are disputes to this day about what effect that may have had on client relations.

[DrJ]

I believe there are disputes to this day about what effect that may have had on client relations.

*grin* It could be taken a few different ways, I suppose.

[centralcal]

COOL wolf story, DOT!

[Danube of Thought]

I can only speak to Alaska law as it stood in 1993, but I do know that in thay year it was not only unlawful to hunt wolf from the air, it was unlawful to hunt on the ground a wolf that had been spotted from the air. My recollection is that violations of these laws were felonies, and Fish & Game officials policed them aggressively.

The reason I can only address 1993 is that the laws and regulations change pretty significantly in relatively short period of time. The reason for this is that the state geologist keeps very close tabs on the populations of various species, and tightens or loosens the restrictions on hunting according to variations among those populations. This is pretty much the case in every state in the U.S., and in the African countries with whose hunting laws I am familiar.

[matt]

One of the primary characteristics of Soviet Russian society was an abnormally puritan attitude towards most moral matters. Instead of the collectivist kumbaya "let's all get along" of say, the socialists, the communists were very uptight.

What we are seeing is the same philosophy with those who disagree with the modern Left's core values; abortion on demand, gay marriage, the Id driven life, etc.

The hypocrisy is stunning, really....using the tools of a Calvinist past to judge others while exempting themselves from any judgement whatsoever....

The key to the phrase "judge not lest ye be judged" in Christian doctrine that seems to be forgotten is the willingness to submit to God's judgement, not a license to remain silent in the face of serious sin.

If you start with the assumption that we are all sinners, then one finds acceptance, compassion, and understanding. There is a time and a place and a foundation for valid criticism and admonition which tends to cross religious faiths. Communism is a faith without religious foundation, and in practice uses the trappings of morality to enforce behavior.

The selection of Palin has basically check-mated the Left with their own tools, and it infuriates them.

[Buford Gooch]

DOT:
You probably scared the bejabbers out of the "wolves" who inhabit downtown LA.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

FYI:

NEW YORK (AP) - Charles Gibson's interviews with Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin will form the basis of a special prime-time edition of "20/20" Friday, ABC said Wednesday.

Gibson is traveling to Fairbanks and Wasilla, Alaska, for the first TV interviews with Palin since she was selected as John McCain's running mate. The first excerpts of the talks will be shown on "World News" Thursday.

Gibson is having three separate interviews with Palin, ABC said. Parts of the interviews will be spread around other ABC news programs, including "Nightline" and "Good Morning America."

The prime-time special, at 10 p.m. EDT, will also include a bio of Palin by ABC's Kate Snow and a round-table discussion on the presidential race moderated by George Stephanopoulos.

[section9]

I think the Palin is going to come off as far more polished and upfront than the Bambi people expected. Again, the concentration on her has sucked the O2 out of Teh Messiah's campaign, as it was designed to do. When they find that she can talk issues, that should administer the coup de grace on the Bambi Campaign.

Next stop: the Chicago Annenberg Challenge Hunt for the Missing Money!

[JM Hanes]

larwyn:

Thanks for the ruby slipper detective work! Sara sent me your message a couple days ago, but I have been in and out of the house, and in and out of my mind trying to write something up about Ayers in the Democratic Platform. Out the door again tonight, but smooches for the fashion tips! You're the bestest.

[boris]

Guess hope for a fair one from Gibson were in vain.

From Ace of Spades

At some point Sarah had said: "Let us pray that our national leaders are sending U.S. soldiers on a task that is from God."

Which she claimed was a variation on Abe Lincoln: "I would never presume to know God's will or to speak God's words. But what Abraham Lincoln had said, and that's a repeat in my comments, was let us not pray that God is on our side in a war or any other time, but let us pray that we are on God's side."

So quoting AP Gibson asks Sarah: "Our national leaders are sending U.S. soldiers on a task that is from God."

Which would be equivalent to quoting Lincoln as saying: "we are on God's side"

Effen bastard.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

Boris: She is correcting Gibson, making him look like an idiot.

[boris]

But he still didn't get it. He claimed the misquote was "exact words". That leaves the viewer with the choice "who to believe", Gibson's exact words or Sarah spinning like a top.

[boris]

Just look at his NEXT TWO QUESTIONS ...

GIBSON: I take your point about Lincoln's words, but you went on and said, "There is a plan and it is God's plan."

Equally misquoted

GIBSON: But then are you sending your son on a task that is from God?

What impression is that going to leave with anybody who doesn't know the accurate quote?

Gotcha Sarah!

[boris]

Do I sound pissed?

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

It is only 4:35 here, I won't be able to see the interview for 2 more hours. I only have the two questions given in the excerpts.

[Sara (Pal2Pal)]

3:35, 3 more hours.

[Rocco]

And the smears continue...they accused her of cutting funding for special needs children. They accused her of book burning. They accused her of being a member of The Alaskan Independence Party, a group that wants to secede from the US. They accused her of being a Nazi sympathizer. They accused her of wanting to teach kids creationism. They accused her son of being addicted to drugs. They accused her of not being the mother of her recently born child. They accused her of having an abortion. They compared her to Pontious Pilot. They called her a pig. And now on the anniversary of 9/11, Dan Payne from the Boston Globe compares Sarah Palin to the Taliban.

[Pofarmer]

Here's the deal though, boris.

It's common, all over the country, in all kinds of churches to ask, in Sunday services, or mealtime prayers, that our leaders are doing God's work. IF THIS IS PLAYED IN CONTEXT, I think it really does make Gibson look like an idiot. Most people aren't actively anti-religious, and most of the ones that are weren't going to vote for Palin anyway.

However, one way or another, Gibson and the MSM MUST SOMEHOW be held to account for their distortions.

[ben]

"From gamble to disaster to triumph to overreach, all in two weeks. The McCain folks are going too far too fast right now."

Don't you wish Appalled....aren't you soooo crushed.

[Rocco]

Right after Obama spoke of his grandfather joining Patton's army, he said "as we were talking about off camera." Now that could have meant during a commercial break or it could have meant before the debate. If they were speaking before the debate, wouldn't that be unethical?

[Rocco]

If they were talking during the commercial break, wouldn't it be more likely Obama would have said, "as we were talking about during the commercial break" or "as we were talking about during the break". Did they give him the game plan before the forum? One thing's for sure, They were talking about a topic "off camera" that was brought up during the forum.