Except for the kicker: “I’d like to use one of my lifelines, Katie.”

What, by being dead and all?

Indeed. In the Couric Interview Sketch, one of Fey’s answers was verbatim (literally, yes, word for word) what Palin had answered to the same question. Astonishing.

Off the top of my head I can’t recall another SNL parody that required literally no exaggeration.

and then express shock at the thought of a public plan because the gov’t will run it so well it will but private insurance out of business.

To be fair, I think the argument is more that the government plan will operate w/ a deck stacked in their favor, and set up incentives for employers to drop private plans. I don’t believe that’s actually what will occur for reasons already listed, but the argument -isn’t- that the government plan will be superior.

One could add that public universities haven’t driven Harvard out of business. Nor have public defenders driven private defense lawyers out of business.

Those are both excellent examples. Both public defenders and public universities operate at enormous unnatural advantages to their private counterparts. Both private systems existed a while prior to their public counterparts. And both public systems democratized access to the service they were offering.

Apparently you believe that both you and Mr. Obama can know the future.

Hmm.

And such as.

For the children.

“Ultimately, what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the health care reform that is needed to help shore up the economy- Helping the — Oh, it’s got to be about job creation too. Shoring up our economy and putting it back on the right track. So health care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to accompany tax reductions and tax relief for Americans.”

With the sentences that trail off and then turn into tossing out a buzz word (“Oh, and job creation, too!”), does anyone else just hear Tina Fey’s voice when reading that?

I swear, Palin just sounds more and more like a caricature of herself every time she pops up.

What the Dixie Chicks forgot is that, as country singers, they might be “artists,” but they’re not entitled to the alienated self-righteousness assumed by most every other artist in the country.

But you know what, Richie? As American citizens, they are.

Sorry: 12:08

Wilbur,
Since the term simian would undoubtedly be termed racist if directed towards Obama is it appropriate to use it at all?

Of course it is. Some words, like p0la¢k, d&g∞, h*nk3y and j!g@boo, are intrinsically racist; others depend on context. “Boy” for instance, has racial connotations in certain contexts; in others there is no racial connotation whatsoever. Same with “simian.”

No charge for the lesson in elementary semantics, a.o., happy to be of service.

Public vs private universities. THAT‘s the other example I was trying to think of.

Despite costing significantly more than public schools, private education (at all levels) continues to thrive. Having a public option for education hasn’t put private schools out of business.

And I’ll remember the public defender for future reference, although it’s not quite the same thing since if it’s determined you are able to afford a private attorney you don’t get to make use of the public defender’s office. That is, it’s not like you can choose to use a public defender. You have to qualify.

Our disdain for your typically irrational posts? Our amusement that you think you actually say anything relevant or meaningful?

If you had better reasoning skills and a better grasp of history and economics it might occur to you that Fed. Express and UPS are private sector solutions created to compete with the shortcomings of the govt. run postal system that had been in existance 200 years prior to their founding.

UPS has been around over 100 years, 0. But don’t let the facts stop you from casually tossing your ignorance around in an attempt to make a point.

And if you had a better grasp of current reality it might occur to you that the gov’t run post office has added many of those solutions (overnight delivery, real-time tracking of package status, etc. etc.) and still hasn’t been able to put any competitor out of business.

-
I’m amused at those folks who complain that government can’t run anything efficiently, and then express shock at the thought of a public plan because the gov’t will run it so well it will but private insurance out of business.

A wise man once said, “Turnabout is fair play, bitch”.

Here’s Starburst Boy, after the Dixie Chicks said something mean about George W. Bush overseas, in 2003.

What the Dixie Chicks forgot is that, as country singers, they might be “artists,” but they’re not entitled to the alienated self-righteousness assumed by most every other artist in the country. No, they are part of the Country Music Nation, the red-white-and-blue musical heart of America, where our enemies are evil, our cause is righteous, and comments critical of the commander in chief on foreign soil on the eve of a war are, uh, shall we say, not appreciated.

And here’s his reaction when his crush Sarah Palin gave a lengthy speech in Hong Kong in which she criticized Obama’s handling of the current war in Afghanistan, his foreign policy, domestic policy, economic policy — pretty much trashed his entire administration.

Palin is an authentic, powerful voice of the populist right and in the speech she implicitly connects its call for limited government and sensible fiscal policy with America’s role as a world power.

It’s official: the “Country Music Nation” has changed its policy about criticizing white Republican commanders-in-chief overseas.

Good to know!

“We got into this mess because of government interference in the first place,” the former Republican U.S. vice presidential candidate said Wednesday at a conference sponsored by investment firm CLSA Asia-Pacific Markets. “We’re not interested in government fixes, we’re interested in freedom,” she added.

“Ultimately, what the bailout does is help those who are concerned about the health care reform that is needed to help shore up the economy- Helping the — Oh, it’s got to be about job creation too. Shoring up our economy and putting it back on the right track. So health care reform and reducing taxes and reining in spending has got to accompany tax reductions and tax relief for Americans.”

But Palin’s primetime disaster didn’t end there. Far from criticizing government regulation as she did today, Palin insisted, “John McCain will reform the way Wall Street does business.” But when pressed by Couric to “give us any more example of his leading the charge for more oversight,” Palin famously looked for a lifeline:

COURIC: I’m just going to ask you one more time – not to belabor the point. Specific examples in his 26 years of pushing for more regulation.

PALIN: I’ll try to find you some and I’ll bring them to you.

Yes it is, “Amused Observer.” Yes it is.

What about Sean’s ensuing example (the very next sentence)?:

And just like the existence of Medicare has resulted in nobody over 65 being covered by private insurance.

One could add that public universities haven’t driven Harvard out of business. Nor have public defenders driven private defense lawyers out of business.

http://www.oliverwillis.com/2009/09/23/sarah-palin-attacks-the-president-on-foreign-soil/#comment-180610