Human Events Tony Lee (Twitter/TheTonyLee) does a great job of recapping the statements and Presidential rumors around Sarah Palin in his article:
Now I love Tony (even though he's an Alabama fan.) He and others miss a very important point in analyzing Palin's 'what fors' and 'whys' of motivations in my most humble opinion. (what? I can be humble.)
I am NOT a Palin apologist, campaigner or "Palinista" and, if I come across solid hard evidence NEGATIVE to her - but important to weigh on a candidate - I'll post it. (And I have including the recent issue on her handling of a reporter). But I haven't seen anyone point out a few inconsistencies in these arguments and this is a great opportunity.
The proverb, "Even a child is known by his actions," would have served the world well in evaluating the last Presidential election. Punditry is so pervasive we allow the talking heads to convince us that - never mind their actions of the past - the candidate NOW has declared that they are for/against a particular position and you should believe them.
Hogwash. (and know that is not a hidden attempt to promote the superiority of the Razorbacks)
I don't care what my neighbor says. If they promise to cut down the bush spilling over onto my property a dozen times - but never do it - guess what? They probably won't! But - we all try to be the polite, gracious Christians and keep giving them the benefit of the doubt. They are, at worst, a selfish procrastinator and more likely a liar!
Palin's life is likely MORE transparent than any other candidate. Not just in the vetting, but in the way she operated in her past public servant role. City slickers don't get it, but in a small town you CAN'T keep much private anyway. EVERYBODY knows your business. And those I know in Wasilla attest that the Palins were never 'secretive.'
So what do we know about her character?
- As per Tony's article - she doesn't brag.
- She is willing to do the "right thing" for others - even if she has to give up her income, position and spotlight.
- She believes and talks about 'principles' like honor, integrity and truth, and fiercely demonstrated them when it was politically and financially difficult to do so.
- As the UNDEFEATED shows, she has a keen political sense and doesn't pander for support.
- As demonstrated with Piper, she didn't think she would be less of a mother by holding down a full time position. (However, I fully understand the argument of others who believe differently.)
But do these qualities suggest a duplicitous, disingenuous publicty hound? One of the great theories of Christian Apologetics is the demonstration of the nature and actions of people versus what they say. For instance, do you really think 'liars' and 'opportunists' would lie about Jesus being raised from dead when they faced crucifixion (Peter/Andrew/Matthew), beheadings (James/Nathanael) and being boiled in hot oil (John)? Lying is weakness. It IS taking the easy way out. Liars don't suddenly show character by being valiant and fearless over the loss of their life. What people DO outweighs what they say about a billion to none.
No, Palin didn't face torture (except by mass slander.) But let's evaluate these suppositions of her actions in light of her ACTIONS of the past.
Family. Have the Palins shown any fear of public intrusion? Hell no. They've run head long into it and keep doing so. And she shows quick decisions on moral issues. She isn't wrestling over spending time with Trig. That decision for her would have been instinctive. If 'privacy' of family were an issue, then she would be a hypocrite. TIME is another matter. She has a new grandbaby but that isn't stopping her from hauling the entire family to Iowa. Palin demonstrated in Alaska she simply takes the family wherever she goes.
Playing with attention for cash. Pleeeeazze. Her frugality as Governor wasn't for show and she proved it even afterward with the dismissal of every lawsuit. It is who she's been her whole life and who she continues to be. She walks away from monetary conflict like you and I avoid Michael Moore films. Yes, she is comfortable in the limelight. I (and many others) have noticed a 'calmness' about her the past week or so that we haven't seen since her VP announcement. (For a while there she was getting on my nerves trying to be a little too emphatic and energetic.) But there is a big difference between being comfortable in the spotlight and seeking it to get attention. I hardly think someone that is reluctant to crow about her own accomplishments is the same type of person who wants attention for attention's sake.
She wants to be leader of the Tea Party. Really? So she is a liar every time she says that, "you do NOT need a title to make a difference"? This is the epitome of not making oneself the center of attention. She has consistently agreed that the Tea Party is NOT about a single personality. I don't think she has ever shown any penchant to lie about how she sees her role to get a 'position' or to acquire power for power's sake. As her story for Mayor and Governor show, mama grizzly don't mess around with talking when doin' needs done. She just do it. (Sorry for the bad grammar Mrs. Anderson)
Now TheTonyLee narrows in at the end of his article on truth like Trent Richardson off of the left tackle. (It's for Mr. Tony you non-Alabama fans. Don't worry about it). And that is this statement, "What if Palin thinks no candidate fits her description of the right person to take on Obama in the fall? "
THAT fits with nearly every statement she has made.
"I'm still looking for the right candidate and it's still a long road." (last weekend on Greta)
She called for Department of Education to be disbanded on Hannity's Iowa strawpoll show. Hardly an 'endorsing another candidate' type of statement.
Also at Iowa, she said it wasn't fair to her followers to not be released to follow other candidates if she wasn't running. Again, I don't think her character would allow her to KNOW this and not do something about it if she had already decided NOT to run. So at the very least i would suspect she is genuinely coming to terms with IF or WHEN.
She told David Brody two weeks ago that she would likely make a decision before the end of September or October. Coincidentally, THE UNDEFEATED is released to pay-per-view in September and on DVD in October. A very strange release pattern if you want to optimize returns on your film. Could it be that the rush into theaters and the rush to market is to avoid a conflict?
I find it much easier to believe that having been attacked for outright fabricated claims of conflict and misappropriation - Palin understands that declaring BEFORE the DVD is released could amount to the charge of an "in kind" campaign contribution. Therefore it would be helpfully LEGALLY to wait until it was out. It also would be a strong indicator of her true support or lack thereof. Something I'd want to have tangible measurement of before loosing the next year of my life engaging the MSM hoards.
Most of all, Palin is - undeniably - a woman of faith. To people who deride or despise such things my next statement may not make any sense. To these people they couldn't possibly fathom God at all, or believe that He is speaking to every one of us all the time, then they certainly can't believe someone could actually LISTEN and hear God's direction. True agnostics will say "everything works out for a purpose," but those of us who claim to belong to Him REALLY MEAN IT when we say want God's direction.
So when she says she is still thinking and contemplating - I believe fully she isn't "playing with the media" or being strategic.
Perhaps she is just waiting on God.
(Liberals and atheists: this is your CUE to laugh hysterically)
(Christians: this is CUE to pray that she hears Him clearly, and if she believes she is supposed to run - that she will have protection and favor).
I guaran-damn-tee ya one thing. If she does run and win, the prayer breakfast won't be cancelled and there won't be any pastors asking God to 'damn' America. Seems those prayers have already been answered.
2 comments:
Please forgive the typo's ahead of time. I wrote this on the fly outside of BLOGGER, spell checker and my normal support of grammatical helpers. (see what I mean)
Reagan didn't announce until Nov 13, 1979. I don't understand what all the hooha is about with regard to "keeping us in suspense." The average American could care less, and the Palin supporters aren't worried. When she used the words "Game On" from her speech in Wisconsin, we knew she would fight for us, regardless of any political title. I expect her to announce when she is ready. And speaking as a Palin supporter, she is NOT keeping me in suspense. Its the politicos and the beltway chatterboxes who are in suspense because they support establishment candidates and want her to fail.
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