What, they’re against science? /s

just one point i’d add (and apologies if someone has already mentioned it; no time today to review comments, dang it!):
regarding the public scrutiny palin is requesting be removed from her daughter, i’d have to say that she herself brought that on by agreeing to be placed on the repug ticket.

what self-respecting and child-loving mother would consider putting her child through the inevitable feeding frenzy that her own ambitious grab at fame will bring?? this could have easily been kept a relatively manageable (as could be expected even within the confines of alaska) crisis for bristol had palin declined the offer. instead of putting her child first, she chose her own greed for power. consistent with her choice to fly to DC and dallas in her 8th month with a risky pregnancy (…in the first place; thanks for placing that question in the mix); what astoundingly myopic and selfish decisions!!.

actually, just one more thing. there seems to be this free pass because, one would presume, the father will marry bristol. mccain’s campaign clearly did NOT vet this kid! huffpo has pics and links to his mypage, where he says he’s a f**kin’ redneck and he does not want kids. bad enough, but my question is this: if bristol is five months along, what exactly are they waiting for with these asserted wedding plans? they’ve known for all this time, and the boy does not want kids, yet now there’s talk of a wedding?

ya gotta wonder just how much that little event is gonna cost, and i’m not talking about the festivities; i’m talking about the payoff. (some very industrious reporter needs to keep on top of that intriguing question.)

sweet jesus, what a nightmare for this poor young woman!

If you are pro-life, you don’t get to pretend that you have the option of terminating a pregnancy – ever – for any reason – rape or incest included. Bristol Palin can not be admired for her grit in deciding to keep the baby.

The answer is, ultimately, that’s a decision that Palin and her doctors made. But that’s precisely the decision that Palin would deny other women, the ability to make reproductive choice decisions based solely on the expert advice of her doctor.

Similarly, the Palins are making much of the fact that Bristol made a “decision to have her baby”–suggesting that she, their daughter, is entitled to a choice that Governor Palin thinks other women should not have

EW you have hit it out of the park again. Amen. Palin’s hpocricy in policy and her “private life” are glaring!

I am going to continue to demand that faith based initiative money stop going to their faith, and I’ll back it up by saying that it doesn’t belong in any faith. I have tried to track the money that has gone to evangelicals and compare it to other faiths. Because of President Bush’s executive order to start this faith based initiative, the bookkeeping for this money is not overseen by Congress in an organized way.

Millions upon millions of US tax dollars have gone for this faith based, anti-science, teen bootcamp, God infused sexual identity healing, abstinence only, pray your way to healing ministry. And these ministries are held in big buildings built by tax dollars. Each of these tax supported ministries needs to be accounted for.

Why?

Because in their minds, God chose to give them this money. God chose these programs. God annointed these ministers.
Ministers of youth
Ministers of education
Ministers of drug education and healing
Ministers of women’s issues

And they get paid with tax dollars.

———-

As EW has written, they get to choose.
The thing is, they are sure that they didn’t choose this, God did.
God is in control.
God brought Sarah safely back to Alaska to give birth to her precious baby.
God has brought forth Bristol as an example for the world.
They are His vessels for His plan.

Yes, this evangelical archetype will show the world that in this culture (and in their minds it’s God’s culture) women put children in their fetal forms first. Always. The thrill in their voices as they gush about this on talk radio is palpable.

If you find your right wing stations and listen, you’ll hear them gush, condescend toward liberals and wonder, Gee, how will Sarah do all of this. She’s so NORMAL. (This was the meme put out by the host and they took it and ran with it.)

I actually heard one woman say Sarah must be one special woman: five kids, one with special needs and teenagers, one of them having a baby herself. It’s amazing that four months after giving birth she’s been plucked out (a trained ear hears BY GOD) to have the second most important job in the world. The woman went on to say, “Sometimes, I’m overwhelmed and I only have two kids.”

wait for it

“Sarah must be very special to have been given this opportunity.”

And off we go on another evangelical ride. Perfectly orchestrated. Last time, God called W, this time He’s called the amazing Sarah.

They’ve suspended the power of disbelief again.

We better be one brilliant chorus.

Of course. The function of the press is to do as they are told. They are not to be curious, or suspicious. And they must never, ever, think for themselves.

Bob in HI