OffTheBus has received tons of submissions from contributors who watched Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin accept the Republican Party nomination last night. Many OffTheBus writers found Palin's remarks to be full of anger and light on substance. Here are some examples:
Ron Hebshie called her speech a "venting session."
"It was too partisan and too nasty. While her personal story might connect with a segment of the electorate, she shot herself in the foot with a constant stream of negativity that seemed unnecessary and out of place. "
Robyn Ewing called the speech a "rhetorical lynching."
"Her philosophy on the reason for governing was, "To leave this nation better than we found it."
Uh. Where have you been for the last eight years, Palin? The country's in the toilet and guess which party was at the wheel?"
Many contributors, like Patrick Kelty, took issue with Palin's argument that Obama has little significant experience because he was merely a community organizer.
"The irony of Gov. Palin's ignorance is that during the same speech in which she proclaimed to be a fighter for the "regular American" and introduced her husband as a proud member of the Steelworkers union, she attempted to diminish and belittle the efforts of someone whose first path in public service was to assist many of the people she now claims to be fighting for. "
Another contributor, Brandon Mersman, took issue with the accusations throughout the night that Obama has been a so-called flip flopper.
"This is interesting considering the position changes McCain has made in order to run for president. McCain would not even support his own immigration bill if he had to vote on it today. "
Contributors like Barbara Fischkin also responded to Palin's reference to being a "hockey mom" and gave some parental advice of their own.
"Sarah Palin said that the difference between a pit bull and a hockey mom is lipstick. I think the true answer is deeper than that. I think that a true hockey mom tells her sons and daughters that being a good parent takes maturity. That if you are a teenager you might look for the resources in your parents' night table drawer. (condoms?)"
Many writers thought Palin's attacks on Obama were completely false and uncalled for. Rusty Russell wrote that Palin spoke with confidence and poise, but her "diatribe" about Obama was hateful.
"Basically, Sarah wanted us to know from the get-go that Obama intends to tax us into a naked, sniveling mass of goo, sell our homes & spend the money buying copies of the Koran for illegal-alien Islamic extremist porn-producing gang members, give all the oil in Alaska to, I don't know, France, maybe, kill all the babies, burn all the small businesses to the ground and level most of small-town America to make room for resorts for lobbyists."