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Getbig Main Boards => Politics and Political Issues Board => Topic started by: youandme on August 31, 2008, 10:50:04 AM
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As more information about her leaks into public view.
(http://content-7.powells.com/cgi-bin/imageDB.cgi?isbn=9780307237927)
Palin electrifies conservative base
by Jonathan Martin
ST. PAUL, Minn. — The selection of Sarah Palin as John McCain’s running mate has electrified conservative activists, providing a boost of energy to the GOP nominee-in-waiting from a key constituency that previously had been lukewarm — at best — about him.
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By tapping the anti-abortion and pro-gun Alaska governor just ahead of his convention, which is set to start here Monday, McCain hasn’t just won approval from a skeptical Republican base — he’s ignited a wave of elation and emotion that has led some grass-roots activists to weep with joy.
Serious questions remain about McCain’s pick — exactly how much he knows about her and her positions, past and present, on key issues. But for the worker bee core of the party that is essential to any Republican victory, there are no doubts.
“I woke up and my e-mail was just going crazy,” said Charmaine Yoest, head of the legislative arm of Americans United for Life and a former top official in Mike Huckabee’s presidential campaign. “And then when it was announced — it was like you couldn’t breathe.”
The media elite — as well as elite members of the GOP consulting community — have all but mocked Palin as a former small-town mayor with zero Washington experience. But that view of her totally misses the cultural resonance she carries to crucial Republican power centers and could not be more at odds with the jubilation felt among true believers that one of their own is on the ticket.
Palin, say conservative activists, has instantly changed how they feel about McCain’s campaign and spurred them to go to work for the Republican ticket.
First, though, they’re expressing their newfound fondness for McCain with their checkbooks. Since tapping Palin, the campaign has raised nearly $7 million online, according to McCain aides.
Most importantly for McCain, the two constituencies who are most energized by Palin just happen to be the twin grassroots pillars of the GOP: anti-abortion activists and pro-Second Amendment enthusiasts and sportsmen. Without these two camps making phone calls, stuffing envelopes and knocking on doors, Republican presidential candidates would severely lack for volunteers. They are critical to the health of the conservative coalition that has dominated Republican politics for a generation.
Republicans say the primary source for the passion can be found in Palin’s example and authenticity.
Not only is the 44-year-old governor opposed to abortion rights — but she carried and gave birth to a child with Down syndrome earlier this year, a profound and powerful motivating force to both opponents of abortion rights and the parents and relatives of special needs children.
And not only is she a supporter of the right to bear arms — but she’s a lifetime member of the NRA and an avid hunter and fisherman whose gubernatorial office couch is adorned with a massive grizzly bear pelt.
“She’s lived it!” exulted Yoest. “It’s so satisfying as a conservative woman. When she walked out on that stage there was just this moment. It was really emotional for a lot of us.”
After hearing the news, Yoest, who was in St. Paul preparing for the convention, said she and other Republican women here “were grabbing each other and jumping up and down.”
Steve Duprey, a former New Hampshire GOP chairman and top McCain backer who hails from the moderate wing of the party, was also in the Twin Cities when the news broke.
“I was in the Rules Committee with about 150 people in the room. They had TVs set up and we took a break to watch the announcement. For a second after she came out, it was silent. Then there was a gasp and everybody stood up and started cheering and clapping. We stayed standing the whole speech.”
After Palin finished, he said, the emotion set in.
“There were 10 or 12 women, party stalwarts, in tears, using napkins and handkerchiefs.”
Part of the reason for the joy is what President Bush once called, in another context, “the soft bigotry of low expectations.” Social conservatives just didn’t expect one of their own to be tapped and were actually bracing themselves for the selection of a supporter of abortion rights.
“There is an electricity going through the social conservative crowd right now; it’s unbelievable,” said James Muffett, head of Michigan’s Citizens for Traditional Values, who had met with McCain in the weeks leading up to his selection of a running mate. “Especially given all the set-ups and head fakes — it’s amazing. A lot of people were sure he was going to show his more moderate colors.”
Muffett said the effect on his conservative comrades in arms has been immediate and visceral.
“My wife and I watched an MSNBC special on her last night,” he said. “My wife knew nothing about this woman. But she was in tears listening to her articulate the views she had.”
Since the pick, Muffett said, he’s gotten “dozens of e-mails and the phones have been ringing off the hook” from other social conservatives who had assumed McCain would spurn them.
“They were taunting me, saying ‘McCain’s going to disappoint you,’” he said of the sentiment before the pick.
Since?
“’Boy, what kind of prayers have you been saying for McCain?’” he said with a chuckle about the question asked on one phone call. “He went and chose a Pentecostal for his running mate!”
The adoration goes beyond Christian conservatives.
Sportsmen are also overjoyed at the addition of one of their own, and can’t get enough of video and pictures showing Palin firing a weapon.
“She's one of us,” wrote Michael Bane, a prominent Colorado-based gun enthusiast who has a show on the Outdoor Channel, on his blog. “FINALLY, we can get 100 percent behind the Republican ticket ... change we can believe in!”
“You know I've had my problems with McCain, but he has reached out a hand to us both at the NRA Annual Meeting [earlier this year] and with the amazing selection of Sarah Palin as his running mate,” Bane added.
And then there is the contrast: “While [Barack Obama] wants to ban AR-15s, Palin shoots AR-15s, and apparently pretty well.”
“Every shooter, every hunter, every gun owner, every competitor needs to understand that it is time to, in the words of Bruce Willis, ‘cowboy the 'f...' up.’ ”
Chris Cox, the top political aide at the NRA, suggested that his job just got a whole lot easier, not just with a pro-gun Republican vice presidential nominee but a Democratic number two — Delaware Sen. Joe Biden — who is anathema to the Second Amendment community
“We’ll be able to have some fun contrasting not just McCain and Obama, but Biden and Palin,” said Cox, whose organization is giving "I'm a Bitter Gun Owner and I Vote!" signs and T-shirts to its members. “She’s great on our issues and [Biden’s] been terrible for 35 years.”
Her image as a pistol-packin’ mama could prove especially key in the hunter-filled Rust Belt, said Paul Erhardt, a longtime political strategist who specializes on gun issues.
“Palin could play strong in the sporting states like Michigan, Ohio and Pennsylvania, depending on how they use her,” he said. “Most pundits will underestimate her appeal in these key areas because they don't know her and they are unfamiliar with the sporting scene. But among sportsmen, authenticity counts and Palin's got that and then some.”
Palin also reassures those concerned about McCain's judgment on judges. Said Gary Marx, head of the Judicial Confirmation Network and a former Mitt Romney aide: "I can tell you that this pick tells millions in the base of the party that they can trust McCain. More specifically that they can trust him with Supreme Court picks and other key appoitments"
The sense of rejuvenation is not just limited to party activists, though. Conservative elites, among the most disdainful of McCain, are also coming around.
James Dobson, long a McCain skeptic, said after the announcement Friday that he’d support Palin.
And he’s not alone.
“I’ve talked to two prominent social conservative leaders in the past 24 hours who told me they had previously not planned to attend the convention, but were now coming to Minneapolis after the Palin pick,” wrote Ralph Reed, a Christian conservative leader who has tangled with McCain, in an e-mail. “One scrambled to find a hotel room and is coming tomorrow; the other rearranged his schedule and is flying in Wednesday. I got a call this afternoon from an evangelical business leader who told me he was contacting the McCain campaign and offering to host a fundraiser with his friends for McCain (sans the candidate) before the Thursday deadline [when McCain shifts to the public financing system]. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a veep pick energize the grass roots like this.”
Rush Limbaugh, who exulted on the air this week, summed up the response he’s gotten from his loyal listeners: “Home f***ing run.”
“Palin=Guns, Babies, Jesus,” he wrote in an e-mail. “Contrast that to Obama's bitter clingers. Obama just lost blue-collar, white Democratic voters in Pennsylvania and other states.”
And, he said, the line that the pick was aimed at picking off Democratic women who backed Hillary Rodham Clinton doesn’t get it right.
“[The] choice is to shore up the conservative, pro-drilling base,” he said. “This is an aggressive, on-offense pick, not a defensive pick.”
The pick caps off what has been a turbulent few weeks for conservative Republicans.
Muffett, who was talking on his cell phone from a church outing at Ohio’s Cedar Point amusement park, likened McCain’s campaign to the world-record 17 roller coasters that dot the park on the banks of Lake Erie.
“Oh my gosh, holy moly,” he said. “He floated the pro-abortion running mate, then there was his performance at the Saddleback debate, and then you had the Lieberman headfake and now this.”
“Up and down, up and down.”
For now, though, at least as it relates to the long-mistrustful conservatives he’ll need energized to win, McCain is sky-high.
“Now that he has so thoroughly exceeded their expectations for his candidacy (first with his stellar performance at the Saddleback Showdown, now with his selection of his running mate), social conservatives are finally putting on their cleats and getting on to the field,” wrote Reed. “It’s really quite remarkable, and something that no one would have guessed would happen even three months ago.”
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She sure has. Electrified the social conservative base, caused liberals to start throwing tantrums.
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I got some live feed, from their stop in Washington yesterday, I saw tons of "McCain for Women" signs, and younger than usual republicans. When McCain introduced her, they went wild.
When he introduced Palin, you felt like you were no longer at a McCain rally,where people listen intently as McCain speaks but at an Obama rally where it's just cheers and jeers, the fever pitch of excitement in the air was...refreshing.
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She sure has. Electrified the social conservative base, caused liberals to start throwing tantrums.
throwing tantrums?
a tantrum would imply disapproval and why would dems have any say over the opposition party ticket.
The only thing I see from the Dems (and some Republicans) is mocking the blatant pandering to the religious right.
Palin's role is to be the symbolic madonna figure to energize the religious right.
It's all about Abortion and the Supreme Court
That is why the jesus crowd is peeing their pants with excitement
Once again - something that's so far down on the list of issues for most American will serve as a wedge issue to keep us distracted from the real issues
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Once again - something that's so far down on the list of issues for most American will serve as a wedge issue to keep us distracted from the real issues
If it is so far down the list on issues, why has it hit fever pitch, and in some ways overshadowed the win in Iraq, and an economy that is showing signs of relief.
In the coming weeks the US has many reports due out or release
Manufacturing PMI (it will increase a bit)
Non-Manufacturing PMI (increased, will)
Non-Farm Employment Change (it's going to show very good results)
Unemployment Rate (stays the same for now)
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If it is so far down the list on issues, why has it hit fever pitch, and in some ways overshadowed the win in Iraq, and an economy that is showing signs of relief.
In the coming weeks the US has many reports due out or release
Manufacturing PMI (it will increase a bit)
Non-Manufacturing PMI (increased, will)
Non-Farm Employment Change (it's going to show very good results)
Unemployment Rate (stays the same for now)
The "fever pitch" is mostly from the regligious right and they're are reacting in a predictible way to the symbolic gesture of Palin. She's on the ticket to draw them in and it seems to be working.
Sadly, these folks think that legal abortion is the most important issue facing this nation.
Palin = Abortion = Supreme Court
That will be her role in this election (IMO).
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The "fever pitch" is mostly from the regligious right and they're are reacting in a predictible way to the symbolic gesture of Palin. She's on the ticket to draw them in and it seems to be working.
I agree, but she is also going to pull in women that don't even believe in the stance of pro-life as well.
Maybe they will tone down the pro life stance to pull in more of the center, or maybe when the campaign sees some new numbers they will beat the pro-life drum harder and louder. Wait and see I guess.
This is a on the edge of your seat election.
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I agree, but she is also going to pull in women that don't even believe in the stance of pro-life as well.
Maybe they will tone down the pro life stance to pull in more of the center, or maybe when the campaign sees some new numbers they will beat the pro-life drum harder and louder. Wait and see I guess.
This is a on the edge of your seat election.
yeah - I think they're hoping that pro-choice gyno-americans will fall in line behind Palin but I think (again my opinion) her primary role is to draw in the religious crowd.
It will be interesting to see what role Hilary takes in the Obama campaign in the next few weeks/months
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It will be interesting to see what role Hilary takes in the Obama campaign in the next few weeks/months
I'd be more interested in the role or antics Bill assumes. His speech is what lead to the the DNC bump. Hillary did not say much about Obama, yet Bill said alot on Obama and the week before said "Obama has the instincts of a Chicago thug"
But the role Hillary takes, big or small will push the voters over to either Palin or Obama.
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I'd be more interested in the role or antics Bill assumes. His speech is what lead to the the DNC bump. Hillary did not say much about Obama, yet Bill said alot on Obama and the week before said "Obama has the instincts of a Chicago thug"
But the role Hillary takes, big or small will push the voters over to either Palin or Obama.
My thought was if Palin is there to appeal to dissaffected Hilary supporters then it will be interesting to see if Hilary steps in and attacks Palin and if so, on what issues.
I'm not so sure adding her (Palin) wil result in a net increase of women voters for McCain (it didn't give Mondale any increase in the female vote) There could be many women who think Palin is simply not ready to assume the role of POTUS.
The next few months should be interesting
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Is Palin a grandmother?
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My thought was if Palin is there to appeal to dissaffected Hilary supporters then it will be interesting to see if Hilary steps in and attacks Palin and if so, on what issues.
I'm not so sure adding her (Palin) wil result in a net increase of women voters for McCain (it didn't give Mondale any increase in the female vote) There could be many women who think Palin is simply not ready to assume the role of POTUS.
The next few months should be interesting
Palin won't garner one Clinton vote. Clinton's supporters hold basic political views entirely opposite to those held by Sarah. That's just a big Mac pipedream.
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VPs don't garner the opposing party's votes, because people generally vote the top of the ticket. What she will garner is the social conservative vote, which McCain needs to win.
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VPs don't garner the opposing party's votes, because people generally vote the top of the ticket. What she will garner is the social conservative vote, which McCain needs to win.
::) i guess someone should have told her that before she made her acceptance speech and referenced hillary constantly.
Douche.
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::) i guess someone should have told her that before she made her acceptance speech and referenced hillary constantly.
Douche.
Did you say something flunky? :)
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::) i guess someone should have told her that before she made her acceptance speech and referenced hillary constantly.
I call bullshit.
No way would Palin so obviously pander for the vagina vote.
No way she brings up hilary, no way she makes it about gender and not the issues.
Why the fck would you make something like that up, calmus?
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I call bullshit.
No way would Palin so obviously pander for the vagina vote.
No way she brings up hilary, no way she makes it about gender and not the issues.
Why the fck would you make something like that up, calmus?
I'm sorry, I shouldn't have brought that up.
By the way, what do you think the odds are that BB's wife suddenly has a new baby?
he has a daughter about Bristol's age.... :)
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Did Obama pass the bar the first time?
I say the flunky falls under numbers 3 and 5.
10 Reasons Why People Fail the Bar Exam
1. You are not worried enough.
2. You are too worried.
3. You have not learned the law.
4. You are the Dreamer.
5. You have weak reading comprehension skills.
6. You are a Practicing Attorney in Another Jurisdiction.
7. You write illegibly.
8. You don't manage time well enough.
9. You are not ready to be a lawyer.
10. You are simply unlucky.
http://www.passlaw.com/whyfailexam.htm
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Did Obama pass the bar the first time?
I say the flunky falls under numbers 3 and 5.
10 Reasons Why People Fail the Bar Exam
1. You are not worried enough.
2. You are too worried.
3. You have not learned the law.
4. You are the Dreamer.
5. You have weak reading comprehension skills.
6. You are a Practicing Attorney in Another Jurisdiction.
7. You write illegibly.
8. You don't manage time well enough.
9. You are not ready to be a lawyer.
10. You are simply unlucky.
http://www.passlaw.com/whyfailexam.htm
You cut me deep, mark. Deep. :(
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You cut me deep, mark. Deep. :(
So how much did mommy and daddy pay for your law school education?
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So how much did mommy and daddy pay for your law school education?
I don't know.... they paid for it. :-\
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Definitions of failure on the Web:
an act that fails; "his failure to pass the test"
an event that does not accomplish its intended purpose; "the surprise party was a complete failure"
lack of success; "he felt that his entire life had been a failure"; "that year there was a crop failure"
a person with a record of failing; someone who loses consistently
an unexpected omission; "he resented my failure to return his call"; "the mechanic's failure to check the brakes"
bankruptcy: inability to discharge all your debts as they come due; "the company had to declare bankruptcy"; "fraudulent loans led to the failure of many banks"
loss of ability to function normally; "kidney failure"
wordnet.princeton.edu/perl/webwn
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Palin won't garner one Clinton vote. Clinton's supporters hold basic political views entirely opposite to those held by Sarah. That's just a big Mac pipedream.
This coming from the same person that said Clinton supporters would vote for Obama and he would not lose votes by not putting her on the ticket ::)
You need to come back to reality, several Democratic groups have emerged against Obama, all in support of Clinton.
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Palin won't garner one Clinton vote. Clinton's supporters hold basic political views entirely opposite to those held by Sarah. That's just a big Mac pipedream.
I agree but I don't think McCain put her on the ticket for that reason or he would have picked a more qualified woman. She there to draw in the "single issue" christian zombies (IMO)
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This coming from the same person that said Clinton supporters would vote for Obama and he would not lose votes by not putting her on the ticket ::)
You need to come back to reality, several Democratic groups have emerged against Obama, all in support of Clinton.
Do you think that Hillary's supporters are so bitter and jaded that they would vote McCain so they can vote Hillary in 2012?
Giving McCain 4 years to fuck things up is a nice set up for her.
If Obama fucks things up he gets another swing and she ain't getting younger.
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Do you think that Hillary's supporters are so bitter and jaded that they would vote McCain so they can vote Hillary in 2012?
Giving McCain 4 years to fuck things up is a nice set up for her.
If Obama fucks things up he gets another swing and she ain't getting younger.
I think that many Clinton supporters know that McCain and Hillary have been friends for a very long time, and realize that McCain reaches across the party aisle to solve issues that affect America.
And yes, I believe that the 28% of Clinton voters not on Obama's side are going to vote for Hillary in the hopes of a 2012 election, which she will have if McCain is elected president.
I also feel that Dean, Pelosi, and Gore, are going to be desposed when the time comes as well as Obama, when Bill Clinton begins to talk frank with reporters come January.
The Clinton's were wronged by their so called friends, and they are working on making sure those so called friends such as Oprah know they were and are in the wrong.
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I think that many Clinton supporters know that McCain and Hillary have been friends for a very long time, and realize that McCain reaches across the party aisle to solve issues that affect America.
And yes, I believe that the 28% of Clinton voters not on Obama's side are going to vote for Hillary in the hopes of a 2012 election, which she will have if McCain is elected president.
I also feel that Dean, Pelosi, and Gore, are going to be desposed when the time comes as well as Obama, when Bill Clinton begins to talk frank with reporters come January.
The Clinton's were wronged by their so called friends, and they are working on making sure those so called friends such as Oprah know they were and are in the wrong.
Will the Clinton's leave their characteristic pile of dead bodies behind like they did before?
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/2917/clinton.html
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Will the Clinton's leave their characteristic pile of dead bodies behind like they did before?
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/2917/clinton.html
Can you post some evidence that is non conspiracy related so it can be refuted?
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VPs don't garner the opposing party's votes, because people generally vote the top of the ticket. What she will garner is the social conservative vote, which McCain needs to win.
Bum - what is your definition of a social conservative?
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Bum - what is your definition of a social conservative?
People who are conservative on social issues.
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I call bullshit.
No way would Palin so obviously pander for the vagina vote.
No way she brings up hilary, no way she makes it about gender and not the issues.
Why the fck would you make something like that up, calmus?
nice :-\
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nice :-\
I like it when vaginas vote for me.
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I call bullshit.
No way would Palin so obviously pander for the vagina vote.
No way she brings up hilary, no way she makes it about gender and not the issues.
Why the fck would you make something like that up, calmus?
haha nice ;D
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People who are conservative on social issues.
come on professor
you know what I'm asking you
give me some specific characteristics/beliefs
this might be something we can actually agree about
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come on professor
you know what I'm asking you
give me some specific characteristics/beliefs
this might be something we can actually agree about
Why?
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Why?
good point
let me think (scratching my chin as a I type this)
Why would I ask Beach Bum for his/her opinion?
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good point
let me think (scratching my chin as a I type this)
Why would I ask Beach Bum for his/her opinion?
I have no idea, given that it is well known Beach Bum thinks Straw Man is a disingenuous nincompoop. :)
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I have no idea, given that it is well known Beach Bum thinks Straw Man is a disingenuous nincompoop. :)
nincompoop?
how old are you now granny?
I asked for you to define (your opinion) a term which we and many other people use
first you restate the question as an answer and then you ask me why I'm asking you the question
it's a simple question
If you don't want to answer it (for whatever reason) then just say so
or you could even ask me my definition and then we can discuss that
if you aren't capable of engaging in a conversation then what are you doing on this board?
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nincompoop?
how old are you now granny?
I asked for you to define (your opinion) a term which we and many other people use
first you restate the question as an answer and then you ask me why I'm asking you the question
it's a simple question
If you don't want to answer it (for whatever reason) then just say so
or you could even ask me my definition and then we can discuss that
if you aren't capable of engaging in a conversation then what are you doing on this board?
What mystifies me is why people like you and 240 and Decker dignify Douche Mark's posts with responses longer than a sentence long... and which don't include the word douche or some other insult in them. ???
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nincompoop?
how old are you now granny?
I asked for you to define (your opinion) a term which we and many other people use
first you restate the question as an answer and then you ask me why I'm asking you the question
it's a simple question
If you don't want to answer it (for whatever reason) then just say so
or you could even ask me my definition and then we can discuss that
if you aren't capable of engaging in a conversation then what are you doing on this board?
::)
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Can you post some evidence that is non conspiracy related so it can be refuted?
No I can't b/c I was making a joke.
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What mystifies me is why people like you and 240 and Decker dignify Douche Mark's posts with responses longer than a sentence long... and which don't include the word douche or some other insult in them. ???
what mystifies me is why Beach Bunny is a moderator on a message board. Seriously, he/she is the only person on this site who runs away from simple questions and plays semantic games rather than engage or encourage dialogue,
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I definitely want to hear more from Palin herself. More on her knowledge and specifics with issues.
Overall, I like her but we need to hear more. Hopefully, she'll be getting more attention again after the storm passes.
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What mystifies me is why people like you and 240 and Decker dignify Douche Mark's posts with responses longer than a sentence long... and which don't include the word douche or some other insult in them. ???
I like Beach Bum. I think his sometimes tortured Q&A does force clarification and if need be, rectification (that's a funny word). Sometimes he overplays that hand. Oh well.