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The Real Issue: Governor Palin and the Survival of the Republic
I was reading Jake Tapper's blog post on ABC News and became quite disturbed over Governor Palin's association with the secessionist Alaska Independence Party (AIP). I can slough off the baby rumors. I can live with the Governor's conservative ideology. What I can't stand for is the possibility that the first time since before 1860, there is a person of national political importance who believes that the destruction of the Union is a good idea.
A bit of background. I spent three years at Fort Wainwright, Alaska (in Fairbanks) as military police company commander and Provost Marshal (the military version of a chief of police). It is a stunningly beautiful region, filled with wildlife and a pristine view equaled by none in the U.S. Alaska is also the home of a very, very independent strain of Americans, who see themselves, in general, as the last frontiersmen (and women). It is a mixing bowl of ethnic groups, from Russian Orthodox Inuits in Sitka to Chinese and Japanese communities in Anchorage. And not a few fringe elements as well.
The AIP is one of these, but it is one that has substantial political support in the state. The AIP has one unifying goal for the organization (along with a long roster of party planks of a distinctly conservative bent): a "do-over" of the 1958 referendum for statehood. AIP states its objective as:
"The Alaskan Independence Party's goal is the vote we were entitled to in 1958, one choice from among the following four alternatives:
1) Remain a Territory.
2) Become a separate and Independent Nation.
3) Accept Commonwealth status.
4) Become a State.
The call for this vote is in furtherance of the dream of the Alaskan Independence Party's founding father, Joe Vogler, which was for Alaskans to achieve independence under a minimal government, fully responsive to the people, promoting a peaceful and lawful means of resolving differences."
In the 1850's, as pressure to end slavery was applied first by the Abolitionists, then the Free Soilers, and finally the Republican Party, South Carolina's powerful and slave owning elite began to panic. The distinct likelihood that their human chattel would be taken from them drove them to adhere to the idea of "State's Rights." "State's Rights" sounds so, so much better than "the right to own other human beings and work them to death whenever I feel like it." The 'Right' being defended was the right to own slaves; South Carolina was not irate over their inability to coin money or raise their own tariffs.
What we are talking about is the fact that the 1860 planter elite was afraid that the bad old Federal government was going to come and take their property from them. Oddly enough, the AIP makes the same argument in their party platform -- "To support and defend States' Rights, Individual Rights, Property Rights, and the Equal Footing Doctrine as guaranteed by the constitutions of the United States of America and the state of Alaska," "To foster a constitutional amendment abolishing and prohibiting all property taxes," "To support the privatization of government services," and "To oppose the borrowing of money by government for any purposes other than for capital improvements." Simply put, the AIP wants the public land owned by the American People (read: ANWR) to be turned over to Alaska to be used as it sees fit. I can only suppose the fitting use involves digging oil wells, gold mines and other efforts to pull every remaining resource in the state out of the ground. If they can do it as part of the USA, great; if not, they want to do it as a Commonwealth or as an independent nation.
Last week Governor Palin, who presumably still adheres to the values and ideals of the AIP, was named as GOP Vice Presidential candidate. While much of the media attention has focused on her daughter's pregnancy and other soft issues, many of the real questions have been ignored, to include her involvement with the AIP.
While many of the AIP planks are fairly benign ("To provide for the development of unrestricted, statewide, surface transportation and utility corridors as needed by the public or any individual," and support for home schooling), the simple fact remains that it is a political party aimed at forcing a re-vote on statehood. It is, in effect, a secessionist movement, just like that which caused the Civil War.
And the United States is facing a situation where for the first time since 1860, we could end up with an elected official who is in favor of breaking up the Federal Union. On one side, we have a person who has favored, by her membership, secession from the American Republic on the basis of "States Rights." On the other, we have a black Presidential candidate who could finally heal the open scar of slavery and civil war, who could be President of the United States on the 150th anniversary of the firing on Fort Sumter.
We can go forward or we can go back. That is what this election is about.
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As the new kid on the national block, and w/ potential to be a "heartbeat away" from the presidency, Palin should be undergoing intense public and media scrutiny of her life--both public and personal. She has clearly come out swinging in attack mode of her opponents, and has previously made disparaging remarks re: Hillary not being able to take the heat. The ironic ineffectiveness of her opposition to sex education, contraceptives, and her support of the "Just Say No" policy is blatantly/ and publicly being played out in her family life, and represents more than just a personal matter. Her beliefs and previous actions could effect important public policy for women--and should be debated. Both her and her husband's patriotism should be questioned as a previous members in the Alaska Independence party.
Please explain to me why a man who claims to be a patriot can do such a thing as to hire this woman and put her a second away from the presidency? My husband is a member of several military organizations and he cringes every time he sees him "parade" in front of vet groups to enhance his credentials. Are so many of our vets so gulible or perhaps are they computer illiterate and can't check his voting record ?
I saw it. Apparent,l many others did'nt. To me this was the biggest issue. crickets.....
This commentary is simply ridiculous. No objective person would believe this sitting governor is seccessionist. seriously debate her issue stands or stop wasting our time.
What uneducated comments written here. Obama is the least qualified of ANY Presidential candidate in the history of the US, of ANY party. Yet here the pandering of "change" continues, while the trashing of a VP choice takes front and center of the discussion. Is this to mask Obama's inadequacies? One has to wonder why no one here is stating all the great achievements of his career. Maybe because there are none. Sad truth that lemmings follow lemmings. Oh, and BTW, let me state that I'm "PRESENT", cause I would hate to make a stand one way or the other. Guess now all of you must luv me since I'm exactly like your candidate!
Obama's experience:
B.A in political science from Columbia University, with a specialization in international relations
J.D. in Law from Harvard, graduated magna cum laude;
President of the Harvard Law Review
12 years (92-04) teaching constitutional law
7 years State Senator. Sponsored more than 800 bills.
4 years Senator for Illinos, a state with 12.8 million people
The list of things Obama did in response to Katrina is longer than your arm while BushCo did virtually NOTHING.
It's not how LONG you've been doing something, but how good you are at it.
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Amen Amen
Read shz reply as often as necessary. Compare with your own miserable existence and that of the bulk of McCain voters. Repeat as needed.
After reading all this stuff about Sarah Palin, I really do wonder about John McCain's judgment. Sarah and her family's business is their own, but McCain made it public and Sarah apparently concurred. None of this makes much sense to me. OK her daughter "made a mistake". Lots of girls do, and it's really sad. But that doesn't make her a heroine for keeping the baby. She is just making a choice in line with her beliefs. As for all the rest: troopergate, the AIP, etc. I'm beyond scratching my head. I'm truly embarassed by McCain, a guy I really admire for what he went through in Vietnam. But presidential material? Makes me REALLY wonder....As for VP material...... It's too frightening for this woman.
Does it really matter if Alaska goes its separate way?
Tactically? Of course, yes. They hold the extreme northwest flank of the nation.
But beyond that?
Why, economically!
God forbid their natural resources become their own rather than "the nation's."
So we realize the south wanted to secede because they wanted to hold on to slavery, and "states rights" does sound so much better than "working a human being to death," etc. This is an excellent point, and well taken.
But, wouldn't national hullaballoo about Alaska independence boil down to the very same thing?
Sure, no one would come out and say it - everyone would use a high-minded moral "national unity" argument like Mr. Mackey - but (besides tactical) the only other reason for demanding Alaska stay a part of this nation would be economic!
I just figured it out. McCain's not pandering to women; he's pandering to Southern secessionists!
If McCain is pandering to Southern secessionists he really is a Reagan Republican. For his second term , I believe, he chose to kick off his campaign with a speech in Philadelphia, Mississippi on State's Rights. Philadelpjia was the place where the three civil rights workers were killed by the KKK. It was also the home of the KKK Grand Dragon. I don't now if that stupid old bastard actually knew what he was doing, but not knowing a damn thing about anything real has always been a proud hallmark of most Republican political candidates, exemplified by Bush and now being vied for by McCain in his selection of Tundra Tess to share his presidency.. However, it beats hell out of Cheney by trading evil for ignorance.
John McCain has insulted our though process again. Sarah ? Palin is simply unacceptable.
As governor of a state where possession of marijuana is legal, what is her position on expanding it to the entire USA ?
I sincerely hope she's for it, you just dented my opposition to this person.
Just watched Carly Fiorina from the McCain camp interviewed by Andrea Mitchell on MSNBC.
Carly was asked about Sarah Palin and earmarks she lobbied for while she was mayor of Wasiila.
She explained Sarah was just doing what she could for her town.
But when she became Governor of Alaska she realized that earmarks corrupt people.
So does this mean Carly Fiorina just admitted Sarah Palin was corrupt !!!
How can the Christian Right judge and condemn others’ sense of values and morality; and claim the mantra of pro-life, when they defend their own for engaging in pre-marital teenage sex and exercising the choice of life? One article after another. I’m reading Christian Evangelical Conservatives praising the misguided child for “making the right decision” – choosing life but nonetheless, exercising the right of choice. Failure to abstain from sex and the freedom to make the decision is opposed by most evangelicals; but because this particular child “chose” life, she is somehow exempt from customary judgmental scrutiny. How convenient. It is commendable that the child chose to give life and to marry the teenage father. Being the child of a self-righteous leader, however, one may be caused to question the judgment and leadership skills of the heads of the household. Perhaps if the heads of all households and governments were to actually focus more on family, community and country rather than fascism, separatism and secessionism under the pretext of “family values” – we might strengthen our country as a nation despite our ethnic and religious diversity and despite our sexual differences or affiliations. However they couch their agenda, the GOP clearly seeks to fulfill the GOP Contract with America by any means necessary, including doublespeak – i.e. to usher in the New World Order – one world government and one world religion, all controlled by one association of self-righteous and reactionary, but craftily deceptive clones.
Couldn't agree with you more.
this woman is no maverick. she ran a state that pays no state income or sales tax & receives all it's revenues from oil royalties. anyone can sit in a chair & run a state like alaska under simular conditions.
False. She instituted a sales tax where none had ever existed before. Even food was taxed.
Her predecessor left her with zero debt. She took 27 million dollars in federal money and left her jusisdiction with 22 million dollars in debt.
This is fiscal conservatism?
Where did all the money go?
This is a corruption fighter?
Excellent. Thanks.
I am interested in where you got this info about her fiscal policies - I would like to follow up.
any monkey can suspend the sales tax & ballance the state budget in a small populated state like alsaka that recieves alsmost all it's revenues from the oil companies. it don't take a rocket scientist.
can she do the same in california or ny,no.
.This convention is really an historical study of political hubris and the selling of nothing but empty political BS. The Republicans are successfully transforming themselves into this new party that will descend upon Washington to change and fix the bad economy, the corruption, the earmarks and all of the illegal activities that their party has been solely responsible for perpetrating over the last eight years without naming the perpetrators responsible. Plus, they take absolutely no responsibility for any of what transpired on their watch.
They have successfully eased Bush-Cheney out using Gustav as an excuse--BRILLIANT MANEUVERING BY THE WAY. They are simply selling the heroic celebrity and personality of McCain and the new "maverick" that Sarah Palin is reported to be and no real political issues are being mentioned whatsoever. This old Republican party has somehow morphed into the new Obama party of change.
Experience obviously wasn't working for McCain given his position in the polls--close but he was still trailing. The Republicans were talking about experience, experience, experience the last three months. Yet, experience has not been an issue since Palin snow-mobiled down from the Alaskan slopes. McCain and Palin are now the new agents of change and will come to fix all that is wrong in Washington without naming those responsible for its condition. And you know what? It seems to be working by simply usurping the Obama platform for change.
But mccain's campaign manager said theis election was not about issues, but personalities. He's right, no Americans care anything about the economy, healthcare, the war, the deficit, security. They want a beauty contest and mccain just gave them a contestant for Miss Alaska. Way to go, gop!
I beg to differ. I am an American and I care about the war in Iraq, the growing disparity between rich and poor, the inequities in taxation, the loss of civil liberties right before our eyes, war crimes that have been committed and ignored, the unchecked corruption of this administration and on and on...The GOP has been successful, with the aid of Karl Rove, of dissecting voters into groups of special interest constituencies and then pandering to those who will tip the vote. They always exploit the evangelical vote by emphasizing all those dangers lurking in the bushes - gays, abortionists, atheists, Muslims, Communists, liberals, whatever. They shift the focus from real issues to divisive moral issues. It is a lowest common denominator strategy that works. And they are about to do it again. It would be hilarious if it wasn't so damned serious. People better wake up and start paying attention. We're about to usher in another four, eight, twelve years of the Bush power structure.
It wasn't their brilliance.
Instead it was:
* The full and complete complicity of the media
* The willful lack of interest in the truth on the part of a large fraction of electorate - of both frivolous and legitimate cause.
* The intentional lack of investigation as to whether people are in fact believing their BS or just holding their breath, so to speak, waiting for a new administration.
.
The whole point of this article seems to be that all secessionist movements are equal—and proslavery. Obviously, there's a logical fallacy in there somewhere.
Not a logical fallacy in the article, but a bald falsity in your claim about the point of the article, which very plainly was that: "... the United States is facing a situation where for the first time since 1860, we could end up with an elected official who is in favor of breaking up the Federal Union."
The bit about 1850 was an analogy. Those secessionists hid their economic motives behind the higher-sounding "state's rights". Palin's associates in Alaska use the same term, arguably for the same reason.
No suggestion was made or alluded to that Alaskan seccessionists Palin is so close to favor slavery. They do however want to destroy the United States of America as we know it for what they perceive as their personal economic benefit.
OPEC on the Arctic, you might say. As their founder (still lauded on their website today) said in 1991:
""The fires of hell are frozen glaciers compared to my hatred for the American government,"
"And I won't be buried under their damn flag, I'll be buried in Dawson. And when Alaska is an independent nation they can bring my bones home." "
*That* is the group that Palin has repeatedly accepted invitations to speak in front of, that she may or may not have been a member of, and of which her husband was clearly a card-carrying member for seven years.
Does Palin want change?
Well, does dissolution of the Union count as change?
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