Leave the Kids Alone! Except the Kindergarteners

"Leave his kids alone!"

Thus spake the ex-almost-one-term governor of Alaska. She was talking about newly installed Acting Governor Sean Parnell and his "nice family." And the media, obediently heeding her hand-wringing plea, has not invaded Alaska to seek out the innocent children of Governor Parnell, even though he and his wife mention them all the time, and dangle them in front of cameras, and talk about their unplanned pregnancies and lemonade stands, and military service and basketball prowess to the national media, using them as examples of the kind of people the Parnells are. Oh, that's right. They don't.

Anyway ... the "leaving kids alone" philosophy shouldn't be applied too broadly, according to the Palins. The latest dastardly deed from Palin lawyer and Snidely Whiplash Wannabee, Thomas Van Flein, involves bringing down the iron-fisted, pointy-knuckled wrath of Sarah Palin in front of...(wait for it)... a classroom full of five-year-olds.

The Palin legal team thinks it's a great plan to keep threatening to sue people, like local Alaska bloggers and media outlets like the Washington Post and the New York Times because they won't "quit makin' things up." The last Alaska blogger to be threatened by Van Flein, Huffington Post contributor Shannyn Moore, knuckled under to intimidation by standing before a group of TV cameras and journalists in front of Palin's office and saying, "Sue me!" All eyes turned to the Palin camp. (crickets)

Never ones to learn a lesson from epic failure, they're at it again. The best way to deal with a strategy that didn't work last time? Try it again. This time, it's the newly outed blogger of The Immoral Minority blog who goes by the pseudonym Gryphen, and Dennis Zaki of The Alaska Report. Zaki and Gryphen each received an ominous letter from Van Flein this weekend. They each, citing separate sources, claim among other things that the Palin's are in "splitsville." This was met with an almost immediate Facebook response from Palin mouthpiece Meg Stapleton. Soon afterward, Van Flein had fired off an email to Gryphen.

This one had something new -- a time limit! That added a nice dash of drama...like one of those movies where you see the glowing red numbers on the explosive device ticking down... :05, :04, :03, :02, :01... and then exactly at 3:00pm... (crickets) Yup, the announced deadline, sent via email, came and went.

In addition, the letter included a thinly veiled threat to pull a "gotcha," by serving a complaint and summons in a kindergarten, where Gryphen works as an assistant. Way to keep kids out of it.

Apparently, it's only the kids of governors the Palins are concerned about. Regular Alaskan kindergarteners can just suck it up and watch Mr. Gryphen get served with legal papers by Snidely Whiplash during "circle time." Nice.

Non-government Mommies and Daddies can just deal with the emotional cleanup later. Maybe it's a good "teachable moment" about bullies.

This dubious legal strategy appears to do one thing, and one thing only successfully - make Alaska bloggers relevant to the conversation. If you give someone power, they have it. So, unless Palin's strategy is to shine the national media spotlight on everything the Alaska bloggers have been reporting about her transgressions and her track record in Alaska, and the big fat mess she's left the state to clean up, it might be a good idea to have Van Flein and crew take out one of those little roll-up rugs, and lie down in the corner with a book for some quiet time.

[Cross-posted at The Mudflats]

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Comments

[ForVivi]

Dear AKMuckraker I always look forward to your excellent writing. Thank you for your insights and fine delivery.

[PepperzMom]

"...it might be a good idea to have Van Flein and crew take out one of those little roll-up rugs, and lie down in the corner with a book for some quiet time."

Nope on the quiet time.

A very l-o-n-g time-out, with no milk or cookies!

[TwoSpirits]

And take away his bar card.

[indychick]

"Shannyn Moore, knuckled under to intimidation by standing before a group of TV cameras and journalists in front of Palin's office and saying, "Sue me!" All eyes turned to the Palin camp. (crickets)"

Laughed out loud at this line;can I just say, this blogger helped me keep my sanity during the election. Thanks AKMuckraker for your insightful, creative and hilarious posts.

[AslanRules]

The irony in this base and purely vindictive threat is astounding.

Does Ms. Palin incite this kind of behaviour in everyone close to her? Or does this "great legal mind" feel this is an appropriate way of conducting legal matters--in front of a classroom of children?

It seems to me that it may have been an even deeper form of intimidation: I know who you are or I'm leaving enough information for others to conclude who you are.

Unbelievable.

[Kiri sute gomen]

Bravo! I thank you for taking on this task and truly hope your efforts turn out better than Sisyphus.

[GreatNews27]

Mrs. Palin, Playboy magazine is on the phone. Will you speak to them?

Yer darn tootin' I will. Oh, and get my plastic surgeon on the phone.

Sarah 2015.

[noneIn2008]

Don't waste our time with these red herring arguments. Focus people, focus. We need to pick off one item at a time and not allow them to distract our attention with the trivial. Focus on getting us out of needless wars. Finish one item then move to the next. Do not be distracted.

[Akat1973]

Well we all know sarah doesnt care about her children, or she wouldnt have dragged them to every single country first rally and shouted slanderous remarks,inciting hatred and stirring up such patriotic terms as "kill him" in front of their innocent eyes. And as for other peoples children well,she wanted to force any young girl who has suffered incest or rape to bear their attackers child.....­....'nough said. Guess she really doesnt understand that freedom of speech is not just for her

[RedDogBear]

A very revealing moment I saw was when Palin brought her kids on to some daytime show recently (think it was Good Morning America). The interviewer talked to the girl (not the one who's a mom the younger one) about being on the campaign trail with mom. "So did you miss a lot of school?" She emphatically shakes her head and says "lots" then "Is it hard to catch up?" she makes a face and says emphatically "yeah its really hard". Kind of says it all.

[BonesAK]

Talk about 'taking the low road' sarah and van flea are in the underground.

[mychagal]

Palin should serve Van Incompetent Passive Aggressive, Esq. papers for making things worse than they already are. I would imagine he's working for free since Palin has a massive legal debt and is prohibited from using any of the one million dollars of the Alaska Fund Trust, or she will be indicted.

What a mess!

[Rogan]

Oh, don't imagine he's working for free. Don't even begin to believe that all the money available to a small-town crooked politician is immediately visible. It isn't.

[crystalwolf]

This article goes with AKM article above...
http://www.politicususa.com/en/node/7033

[Freesia2]

That was a good read. And it also gave a sentence that I think should be on a bumper sticker.

“Sarah Palin, what now?”

She's the most high mainanence creature. She demands constant attention and if it's not forth coming, she'll create something to get it then pull a Garbo and cry "i want to be alone!". Ridiculous woman. And tawdry down to her gizzard.

[Rogan]

I'm still waiting for Palin's definitive "Orly Taitz meltdown" moment... it's coming... I can FEEL it... it's coming...

[mychagal]

While Palin's attorney, Van Pushover is at it, he should threaten to sue Katie Couric, Charlie Gibson, The Turkey killer, Ashly Judd, the camermen who made her look bad, "all of them" newspapers she never read, the enire kindergarten class (guilt by association), and all the lame duck governors out there who know Palin's not a lame duck until her second term, of which she served less than one.

Van Flein and Palin have cried wolf once too many times. Actually the wolves cry too, whenever their cubs are gassed by Sarah Palin. Now that's something to cry about.

[ObamaYouBetcha]

Another EXCELLENT post - thank you! Keeping shining the light on Palin's hypocracy, especially as we wait to learn more about her "higher calling" [shudder]

[cgr]

I, with many "lower 48ers", owe Alaska bloggers a sincere, deeply-felt thank you. You have produced such a volume of verifiable evidence that Sarah Palin is inept, irrational, unethical and literally dangerous, that she could not survive (politically) a campaign for...well, anything now. The insane possibility that she could become President of the U.S. has been effectively ended, and that in my book counts as service to the country. Thank you!

[Pippen]

Agreed cgr fully agreed. Full / Salutes are in order. Carry on soldiers Keep up the good work.

[blisster]

The only "kid" palin is concerned with, is the little girl that resides in Sarah that still hasn't resolved the second place showing in the Miss Alaska. She should have worn that crown. Boo Hoo.
I also think she has some Daddy pleasing issues. She can field dress a moose but coming in second place honey, well that's not good enough. She superceded everyone's expectations. She should never have been elected to the Wasilla town council. That that began this circus

So Daddy Palin please give your daughter a hug and a kiss and tell her she's done good and take her back to Wasilla to raise her family and we will never speak of this again.

[mychagal]

blisster,

Good point! There was a poll taken recently by republicans who supported Sarah Palin. When asked whether she should pursue politics, or any other career, a large percentage of them said that she should be a homemaker. That should tell Palin something about her own supporters..