theCLog

Oprah needs viewers. Sarah needs more conservative groups to buy her book in bulk so they can give it away for free or sell it at a discount.

Ah, capitalism. As long as everyone’s making money, anyone can jump under the fiscal sheets together.

But, don’t feel pressured to run out and pre-order a copy of Palin’s book. If you’re patient, you can pick a copy up on the Conservative Book Club’s one cent list in a couple months.

And before you get excited about how much Palin’s grammar has improved over the last year, don’t forget that Lynn Vincent actually wrote her book.

Oprah Winfrey, on a campaign to climb back from last season’s ratings slump, will attempt to kiss and make up with conservative viewers on Nov. 16 when she has Sarah Palin on her syndicated talk show .

You may have noticed that the appearance by the former Alaska governor and Republican vice presidential candidate is happening smack dab in the middle of the November ratings derby.

It’s also the day before Palin’s new book, “Going Rogue: An American Life,” is scheduled to hit bookstores.

Oprah’s production company, Harpo, claims it will be Palin’s first interview about the book. We’ll see about that.

…

Oprah has largely abandoned her whole aspirational programming mantra this season and gone in for the more purely commercial.

That has translated into the longest-two-day-interview-ever with Whitney Houston to kick off Houston’s latest comeback attempt; Oprah’s deliciously detailed interview with Erin Andrews, the ESPN reporter who was unknowingly videotaped nude in a hotel room by some stalker guy; and her highly touted, things-could-get-rough, face-to-face meeting between former world champion boxers Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield — their first meeting since Tyson bit off part of Holyfield’s ear during a 1997 WBA heavyweight title fight.

And now, add to that list Palin, whose book was No. 2 on Amazon.com’s bestseller list Tuesday afternoon.

Read more from The Washington Post.

Conservatives don’t seem too excited about Palin’s interview with Oprah, either:

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The entire article about Sarah Palin’s inability to secure speaking engagements, as it appears in The New York Post, is pasted below.

A note: The fact that this is in The Post is amazing since this is a Rupert Murdoch-owned paper. Murdoch, of course, also owns the Palin fan club (aka Faux News). Of course, depending on who you ask, it’s nothing more than a tabloid. Still, this is one amusing article from a paper known to have a conservative bias.

Did you catch that last part? Palin didn’t write her own book (most celebrities don’t, by the way). Just want to clear that up before it drops and everyone’s like, “See, she can write a non-run-on sentence.”

Maybe Palin’s reps would have better luck booking Tina Fey:

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Former Alaska governor Sarah Palin gave a speech on … mmpphh . . . excuse me. Sarah Palin gave a speech yesterday in Hong Kong on … mmphh, hahahahahahaha … foreign policy. Sorry, but can you believe this stuff? Sarah Palin, Caribou Barbie, the hick who didn’t even know Africa was a continent and, according to John McCain’s aides, couldn’t name the three nations of North America, was paid beaucoup money to speak to an international trade organization in Hong Kong. What’s even more priceless is that she didn’t even stick to matters of foreign policy or foreign trade. Instead, she blamed the economic downturn on — what else? — too much government interference in business (I know. Hey, I’m just reporting this), and even brought up her current favorite subject, death panels.

Yep, now that even strong opponents of health care reform have admitted that no one is proposing anything even resembling death panels, Palin is still aligning herself with the true crazies in the ongoing national debate. And of course, there’s not even a hint that she realizes that when health insurance companies won’t pay for, say, cancer treatments, they are, in effect, a genuine “death panel.” But that’s our Sarah — what a national treasure, huh?

Hey, commies, take your death panels and get outta here

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Bill Maher was on the Tonight Show last night and brought his politics with him. Talking about the “birthers,” those people who’ve been spending way too much time worrying about Pres. Obama’s birth certificate, Maher summed up our current moment in history: “I will show you Obama’s birth certificate if you show me Sarah Palin’s high school diploma.”

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Was Sarah Palin’s latest communiqué to the world an abrupt about-face? Or did she finally hire someone literate to write for her? Palin made headlines late last week — surprise — by spewing nonsense. The former Alaska governor, whose resignation and farewell speeches garnered rave reviews from fans of manic incoherence, made a Facebook entry last week in which she accused Pres. Obama of wanting to set up “death panels.” She denounced a future situation “in which my parents or my baby with Down Syndrome will have to stand in front of Obama’s ‘death panel’ so his bureaucrats can decide, based on a subjective judgment of their ‘level of productivity in society,’ whether they are worthy of health care.”

That statement, based on, well, nothing contained in any bill before Congress, created yet another shitstorm for Palin, even from several prominent conservatives (although, Newt Gingrich defended her).

Wasilla’s wonder woman has now released another message: “We must stick to a discussion of the issues and not get sidetracked by tactics … leading to intimidation or harassment. Such tactics diminish our nation’s civil discourse … Let’s not give the proponents of nationalized health care any reason to criticize us.” Reasons like, umm, say, spreading outrageous, ignorant lies about a critical national issue?

Kind of makes you wonder whether whether the articulate person she hired to write the new message had read the Facebook entry. Or whether she just now realized she doesn’t have a personal security detail anymore. Personally, it makes me wonder whether American politics has entered a new, surreal, Alice in Wonderland phase, in which an ill-educated, inarticulate show-horse like Palin can sound like a crazy person ranting before a city council meeting and still be considered Presidential material by a major political party.

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Sarah Palin and husband, Todd are not getting divorced. Just a little internet rumor created for “fun.” Seriously, we must re-evaluate that word.

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Isn’t it funny how conservative radio, print publications and Faux News are always squawking about how the media isn’t on their side? Are they serious? They are a big part of “the media.”

The amazing thing is people listen to them and — not only do they believe every word — they repeat their talking points verbatim. When people do that, they make it obvious where they’re getting their “news.”

Here’s a better idea: Try exploring several different types of news sources. Why? Because “the truth” everyone is seeking isn’t going to be found on one station, in one paper or on one radio setting. “The truth” is likely a mixture of various points of view.

Check out some international news. Don’t stop at the “World” section of the newspaper. Check out an actual international news source like the BBC, AllAfrica.com, Al Jazeera and more. What are other countries concerned about today? What are they saying about America?

Spend some time with NPR, “Frontline” and “The News Hour” with Jim Leher. Notice how the commentators aren’t screaming or being confrontational. That’s because they’re goal isn’t to entertain, it’s to inform.

Purposely seek news outlets you believe you’ll disagree with. What are they talking about? Can you relate to their point of view?

Interested in a particular issue? Go to the library. Read a book. Heck, read two. Educate yourself on the issues. Don’t assume any media outlet or personality has their facts straight. They might, they might not. But, how will you know if you aren’t armed with facts? Note: An opinion is an opinion, not a fact.

And, here’s a truth for you: We’re all more alike than we are different. We all want the same basic things: Safety, a good job, a loving family, a healthy community.

So, what’s all the shouting about? Stop bitching like belligerent children and start discussing the issues like grown folks intent on bettering the world for the next generation.

Why elide the fact that Sarah Palin is a darling of Fox News, the highest rated cable news network in America? Or that she is regularly defended by Mr. Limbaugh, famous television personality Sean Hannity, and Mark Levin, a nationally syndicated radio host whose latest book just ended a run atop the New York Times bestseller list? Or again, surely these savvy Sarah Palin defenders know that the editors of National Review and The Weekly Standard, tenured members of the political establishment, lined up behind her candidacy, and that Gov. Palin herself is a millionaire who enjoyed a six-figure family income before she ever took the statehouse—never mind the lucrative book contract and pricey speaking fees now available to her.

More from The Daily Beast.

Here’s a preview of a documentary everyone should watch, “Out Foxed.”

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On the Fourth, people at the big cookout we attended talked a lot about Sarah Palin’s resignation announcement. That is, when they weren’t talking about Mark Sanford (best overheard exchange: “I want to send an e-mail to Jenny Sanford but I don’t know her address.” “Try jenny@luvguv.com.”). But back to Palin, whose resignation led to lots of jokes and even a few interesting political insights, but the whole time, I kept thinking how badly Palin needs a good inner editor. “Rambling” doesn’t begin to describe her off-the-cuff speaking style.

In Palin’s hands, or rather mouth, what could have been a short, clear statement of intentions and reasons turned into a meandering, only occasionally coherent 3000-word trip through every nook and cranny of Palin’s amorphous inner mix of Positive-Thinking Happy Thoughts and Resentful Anger. Self-important pronouncements bumped up against conservative catchphrases, but that’s OK because no sooner had she started talking about one thing, then she was on to another one, and then she’d take time for a couple of tangents, and then maybe if you’re lucky, she’d circle back around to what It was she’d started talking about in the first place. It was probably fascinating for those who study self-absorption in fast-talking ADD sufferers.

Coming after Palin’s incoherent TV interviews during the 2008 campaign, her performance Friday should eliminate her from consideration for future political office. But this is the country that re-elected George W. Bush, so, like it or not, anything’s still possible. In case you missed it, here’s the official text of Palin’s speech, along with a video.

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She thinks she is.

Palin spokeswoman Meghan Stapleton vouches for the authenticity of the (Facebook) posting in which Palin casts herself as someone who has been misunderstood:

“How sad that Washington and the media will never understand; it’s about country. And though it’s honorable for countless others to leave their positions for a higher calling and without finishing a term, of course we know by now, for some reason a different standard applies for the decisions I make.”

How sad that we misunderstand? What is she talking about?

How about this: How sad that you fail to understand, Sarah Palin.

The citizens of the U.S., most of them at least, are not as dumb as you think. You seem to be under the false impression that if you rattle off enough key words we won’t notice that you’re just jibber jabbering. Sorry to break it to you, governor: We notice.

Listen, Sarah. Go hole up in the Wasilla library. Spend some time reading history, geography and civics books.

When you’re done there, head right over to the town shrink. You’ve got issues. Deal with them in the privacy of a psychiatrist’s office, not on camera. You’re not misunderstood. Your doctor, and perhaps a few meds, will help you realize that.

In fact, we see right through you. You’re a power hungry bitch who isn’t getting her way, so you’re pasting on a fake smile right before dashing off to fulfill your “higher calling.”

We get it. Now, run away damaged star. Lick your wounds and get your head straight. And, for goodness sake, stay the hell away from the media (and off of Facebook and Twitter). We’ll stop covering you as soon as you stop making an ass out of yourself.

Sarah’s greatest (misunderstood) hits:

Further reading: Palin’s lawyer threatens to sue the media

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Here’s a Twitter-flavored report about Palin’s resignation on PoliticsDaily.com.

And here’s another a straight-up news thingie about the story from KTUU-TV in Alaska.

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