Maurine H

My Comments (2243 so far…)

Sarah Palin to Grace 'Portfolio,' Staff Split

S.J. The two operative words in your post are "Palin spokesperson"

Sarah Palin to Grace 'Portfolio,' Staff Split

Sarah Palin and Big Oil

"And when that deal was struck, we began a nearly 40 billion-dollar natural gas pipeline to help lead America to energy independence. That pipeline, when the last section is laid and its valves are opened, will lead America one step farther away from dependence on dangerous foreign powers that do not have our interests at heart." Sarah Palin (acceptance speech, RNC)

An examination of the project has found that she has overstated both the progress that has been made and the certainty of success.The pipeline exists only on paper. The first section has yet to be laid, federal approvals are years away, and the pipeline will not be completed for at least a decade.In fact, the pipeline might never be built. (Chron.com - Houston)

Sarah Palin - just talk. Is that the best the Republican Party has? If so, they’re in deep, deep trouble.

Report: Natasha Richardson 'Brain-Dead' After Ski Accident, Near Death (Update)

I’m not sure your news is correct. None of the other on-line news sources has reported her condition as being this critical. In fact, one source says that Natasha Richardson is on a plane to the U.S.

"Actress Natasha Richardson, critically injured in a skiing accident, was on a flight to the United States, Britain’s Press Association news agency said Tuesday, quoting Sacre-Coeur Hospital.The report didn’t say where in the U.S. the flight was headed. "According to the family’s press agent, the lady has left Canada around 12:30 today," said Michelle Simard of the Sacre-Coeur hospital in a recorded message." Associated Press 4PM EDT

I certainly hope she will recover completely.

Meghan McCain Knocks on Laura Ingraham on 'The View' (Video)

I’ve been saying since the Presidential campaigns that I have a strong faith in the young people of this nation. Meghan McCain is one young person who, along with her contemporaries, will be directing the course of this nation. Do I agree with her politics? No, not much. But I do respect her frankness and her honesty. Apparently, she’s not in anyone’s pocket -at least not for now. She’s lucky, because of her connections, to have a bully pulpit, and she’s making the most of it. I’m glad she’s sticking to her principles and I respect her frankness. Her generation will have to shoulder the responsibilities and face the dangers of a highly complex, unsettled world. I think they’re up for the job.

Dana Perino Claims Bush Deserves Credit for Wall St. Rise (Video)

The final part of the interchange —-

Thomas: That’s not my question. My question is why did he state publicly that we do not torture?

Perino: Because we do not.

Perino is not to be believed. She is a (well-paid) tool of the Bush administration who still has problems distinguishing between truth and fiction.

Couric Wins Cronkite Award for Palin Interview

deber - "The Pulitzer Price (sic) award is also a joke…" I refer you to this link which gives a list of Pulitzer Prize winners - you may be humbled by their accomplishments.

http://www.pulitzer.org/bycat

Comments of the Week 3/7 to 3/13

Great choices this week! Congratulations to those who wrote so informatively, humorously, creatively, and…thank goodness, civilly.

Lily Tomlin's Numbers Obsession

Dear Lily - I had a little, teeny bit of trouble following your logic about the number thing, but, as a grammarian, I loved your correct use of the pronoun "I". Of course… if you put two "I’s" side by side, the result is "II". Oh, dear.

Candice Bergen: Art World Has the 'Moral Compass of a Mobster'

Candice - you are taking a lot of flack here, and rather than add my own "what were you thinking?" (which I’m most tempted to do), I would direct your thoughts to where we would be as a nation without great, sometimes expensive, sometimes not so, art. One of my favorite traditions is to visit my local museums, with a beloved grandchild in tow, and to watch the magic of her/his awakening to the world of art treasures. It would be a great loss to me and to my family if we couldn’t walk from room to room, drinking in the beauty of color and shape surrounding us. Someday, art that is being created today will find its way into museums and private collections - if, and only if, we continue to purchase and support our artists.

Artists, generally, are poorly paid for the many hours of labor and love they put into each work. But they do not stop painting or sculpting or carving because, Depression or no Depression, their creative gift drives them on. They will be found donating their time and their talent to community organizations, hospitals, homeless shelters - whenever and wherever they are asked. It shows good judgment and good taste to invest in their work.

My guess is that you have some lovely works of art in your homes, and that you appreciate them. I wonder if you could graciously extend that appreciation to the thousands of artists who will carry on and inspire, despite the econmy.

Bristol Palin Dumps Levi Johnston, Baby's 'White Trash' Daddy

Well, let’s see. We would not have known who Levi Johnston (the so-called "white trash") was if Sarah Palin hadn’t paraded him and her pregnant daughter out during the Republican campaign. But wait, wasn’t at least part of her motivation to dispell rumors that Bristol might have been the mother of baby Trigg, because there she was, for all the world to see, pregnant and holding hands with Levi-white-trash, the gum-chewing father? So Sarah was looking out for Sarah, at the expense of her daughter’s privacy. Now, Bristol has supposedly "dumped" Levi (although I read that she was "devastated"), and suddenly he’s the bad guy.

From an interview with Sarah Palin:

Q. Will you support funding for abstinence-until-married education instead of for explicit sex-education programs, school-based clinics and the distribution of contraceptives in schools?

Palin. Yes, the explicit sex-education programs will not find my support.

Sarah, Sarah, you really should have thought that one over.

Steele Clarifies Abortion Comments: 'I'm Pro-Life'

Frankly, I don’t know of a single person who isn’t "pro-life", but I know plenty of narrow-minded people who are "anti-choice." Michael Steele has finally voiced something I can admire him for - he is strongly pro-life, but he believes a woman’s has a right to reproductive choice. The two are not mutually exclusive. It’s likely that Steele won’t survive as RNC Chair, but for this one statement I applaud his courage to state his convictions.

Couric Wins Cronkite Award for Palin Interview

Congratulations to Katie Couric! A well-deserved award for a key interview that seasoned journalists and educated members of the public recognize as being key to seeing the "real" Sarah Palin. Were I being interviewed by Katie Couric and asked the same questions, I would not have felt attacked. But then I read……..

Couric Wins Cronkite Award for Palin Interview

Margaret, you’re a voice of sanity in the midst of otherwise, silly, childish comments.

Liz Smith: What <i>Is</i> It About Rachel Maddow's TV Success?

Thank you, Lou, for that succinct lesson in Southern Hospitality (capitalized because it really is a "proper" noun phrase). I’ve never seen it so well defined in a single, brief paragraph. Though I’m not from the South, I really admire the ability of Southerners to strongly, but politely, disagree. And your hospitality is a trait that the whole country should adopt (IMHO). (I do think Midwesterners have a similar way of treating visitors and guests.) I’m going to have to keep a closer (!) eye on Brenda. Her character is delightful but I’ve never really given much thought to her Southern manners before.