It was a breaking point for me. I finally reached my limit. The recent media and political lunacy over crib notes and teleprompters did it for me. Everyone -- politicians, pundits, media, and the electorate -- are responsible for what we have become: a petty nation.
To reiterate: former Governor Sarah Palin accused the President of being "a charismatic guy with a teleprompter" in her speech to Tea Party Nation last Saturday night. Later in a Q&A session at the convention she was seen reading crib notes written on her palm.
This sparked a media frenzy. Even Press Secretary Robert Gibbs got into the act by mocking Palin when he showed a grocery list written on his hand.
Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert had a field day, which is fine because they are political comics. But watching Keith Olbermann
The left justify their petty reactions by saying (like a two-year old), "Well, she started it by mocking President Obama's use of teleprompters." Yes she did, but do two wrongs make a right?
The right have never stopped criticizing Obama's gaffes and their perceived teleprompter crutch. Did they not hear or see his Q&A with the GOP representatives in January? His engaging conversation should have put to rest the myth that he can't speak or communicate without his teleprompter.
So both sides are acting childish and petty. No wonder the American public is so angry at Washington! We have a high unemployment rate, a mortgage crisis, two wars, Wall Street greed, a broken health care system, blizzards and natural disasters due to climate change, and an energy crisis. Why can't our politicians do what they were elected to do: work together to solve these problems? Why can't the media hold them to the fire to do that and stop reporting these petty issues about crib notes and teleprompters? I just have two words for you all: grow up!
Palin cheated.
Palin secretly got the Q&A questions beforehand, did not disclose that she had the questions in advance, wrote the answers on her palm, and did this all after reading from the text of her prepared speech where she was paid $100,000 to attack the President for reading from a Teleprompter. Palin got caught, blackhanded, cheating like a bad high school student.
Cheating? Dishonesty? Hypocrisy? I don't know where the blogger comes from, but where I come from dishonesty is a big deal.
But there is NOTHING WRONG with either practice.
It's is Palin's hypocrisy that is wrong.
The bulk of gotcha-moments in the media today (at least on the shows I'm watching) usually involve politicians who say or do something "today" that totally contradicts something they said or did "yesterday". Does "she was for the Bridge to Nowhere before she was against it" sounds familiar? I want the hypocrites publicly outed. I don't care what party they're affiliated with, I want the media, and other politicians for that matter, to red-flag these frauds so that I can make an informed decision on who's word I should be trusting. Politicians have been getting away with waffling on what's popular "at the moment" for too long.
the president does quite well answering questions without a teleprompter, but the media would seemingly rather report on sarah palin disparaging the president. for what reason, i do not know.
she is the queen of false equivalences, blatant hypocrisy, and circular logic.
and here is the flaw in your cry for rational discourse. sarah palin is not a politician. she is not elected to do anything, but the media seem to feel she must have her time to have her say. for some reason, the media feels compelled to report on every nonsensical utterance from her rather than to report on the rational members of our true political class. they do indeed need to stop quoting sarah palin. stop quoting ex-vice cheney. stop quoting each other!
There is a temptation to buy into the false equivalence of "both sides do it, both sides are being childish/petty". That is just intellectual laziness.
There is an organized campaign underway to discredit Obama. Everything he does is criticized and offered as proof of his incompetence/socialism/fascism.
This teleprompter thing is just the latest example of the glaring hypocrisy. While the backlash that Palin is getting over her notes might be a little over the top, calling her and other out is very important.
Look back at the swiftboaters. Kerry didn't fight back because the charge was both silly and inaccurate and he thought no one would buy it. That probably cost him the election.
The lesson is that you must fight back against these type of smears. Even if you think it is a bit silly. Even if you think it is beneath you to do so. Only them can the right possibly be shamed into acting like a responsible political entity.
This is how politics work in this country, on both sides of the aisle. That is what people are sick of. The Swiftboating, the personal attacks, the racism, the sexism, the smears. You can't shame people into being responsible. You set an example by being above the muck.
The reason it has gotten more play is because of the flagrant hypocrisy.
Every president in modern times has used a teleprompter. Nobody cared about it, until Obama used one. If you are going to be one of those who are loudly mocking him for it, expect to get called out if you need to write your core beliefs on your hand.
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The hand wringing begins.
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Posish!
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R/ PRONESE