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You are here: Home / Picking Up DougJ’s Slack

Picking Up DougJ’s Slack

by John Cole|  July 6, 20091:23 pm| 140 Comments

This post is in: Clown Shoes, Daydream Believers

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Since our WaPo chat field reporter is vacationing in Stockholm, it is up to me to do the heavy lifting around here. Via email, this gem of an exchange at today’s WaPo chat with Philip Rucker:

Louisville, Ky.: Good morning, Philip. Thanks for taking questions. I’m very interested in Palin’s decision to step down from power and return to her work as a family commercial fisherwoman. In my mind this seriously ranks her with Cincinnatus, the Roman general who gave up his dictatorship to return to his plowing, and with George Washington, who was a hero in the American Revolution, but gave up his presidential command over the young nation to return to his farm. Do you agree with my assessment? Don’t you think that this brilliant move places Sarah Palin in the same league as George Washington and Cincinnatus?

Philip Rucker: There are lots of Palin questions, so let’s start with this one. You raise an interesting point. I’m not sure I ever thought of Sarah Palin as a modern day George Washington or Cincinnatus.

Oddly enough, I never thought of Palin as a modern day Washington or Cincinnatus.

I still don’t.

If you read the whole chat, Rucker spends most of it saying “interesting point” or “good point” or “that’s a fair point.” I think I have already cracked the Rucker code, and “that is an interesting point” is shorthand for “You are a moron, and they never told me I would have to do this crap in J. School.”

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Previous Post: « The Sequel Is Always Worse
Next Post: Not Privy to the Code »

Reader Interactions

140Comments

  1. 1.

    KCinDC

    July 6, 2009 at 1:27 pm

    But why did you say you were in Louisville, John?

  2. 2.

    Death By Mosquito Truck

    July 6, 2009 at 1:28 pm

    Since our WaPo chat field reporter is vacationing in Stockholm

    lolz

  3. 3.

    Keith

    July 6, 2009 at 1:29 pm

    The shapes some people will bend themselves just so they can avoid saying “I backed the wrong horse.”

  4. 4.

    Comrade Stuck

    July 6, 2009 at 1:31 pm

    I was thinking more like General McClellan in a skirt/

  5. 5.

    john

    July 6, 2009 at 1:31 pm

    Check out “Yes, Minister” and “Yes, Prime Minister” (I have the book to the first, it’s even funnier than the show) for a decoding of this sort of speech – IIRC,

    “With all due respect” -> an insult
    “Interesting idea” -> stupid idea
    “Novel idea” -> incredibly stupid and dangerous idea
    “Courageous” -> career ending idea
    (“How did that dreadful word get into this conversation?”)
    “Frank discussion” -> the cleaners had to mop the blood off of the floor.

    And so on.

  6. 6.

    The Grand Panjandrum

    July 6, 2009 at 1:33 pm

    Washington? Cincinnatus? More like Roberto Duran … no mas …

  7. 7.

    Stooleo

    July 6, 2009 at 1:34 pm

    I don’t know about Cincinnatus, but didn’t Washington serve 2 terms, you know, to completion.

  8. 8.

    Comrade Stuck

    July 6, 2009 at 1:36 pm

    Since our WaPo chat field reporter is vacationing in Stockholm

    The real Dougj would have tagged it Burkean Bells. I, for one, am disappointed by the oversight.

  9. 9.

    TJ

    July 6, 2009 at 1:36 pm

    I’m beginning to entertain the notion that Palin may have some sense. I’m looking at Paterson here in NY, and Ahnold in CA, and thinking that both of them are on a short ride into oblivion. If everybody’s going down, and she actually realizes the Presidency is out of reach, bailing out now might make some sense. It certainly won’t be any fun being Captain Smith on the Titanic and going down with the ship. Better to get in a lifeboat with the first class passengers.

  10. 10.

    Lesley

    July 6, 2009 at 1:37 pm

    That has got to be snark, right? I mean it has to be a joke. I only doubt because of the depth of weirdness I’ve witnessed on the right.

  11. 11.

    Ash Can

    July 6, 2009 at 1:37 pm

    @Stooleo:

    didn’t Washington serve 2 terms, you know, to completion

    How ’bout it. Along with a few other accomplishments, some while getting his ass shot at. Palin wouldn’t even survive the wooden-teeth part.

  12. 12.

    Brick Oven Bill

    July 6, 2009 at 1:37 pm

    Sarah Palin is not comparable with Washington or Cincinnatus. She is, however, orders of magnitude more qualified than Al Frankin, who goes around touching strangers as they are trying to get lunch.

    Sarah Palin does not go around touching strangers as they are trying to get lunch to my knowledge, but even if she did, it would not be as bad as Al Frankin going around touching strangers.

    This is because Sarah Palin is hot, and Al Frankin is creepy.

  13. 13.

    Dennis-SGMM

    July 6, 2009 at 1:38 pm

    Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus gave up his dictatorship after defeating the Aequins. That was the task for which he was made dictator.
    Washington returned to his plantation after defeating the British and presiding over a peaceful transfer of presidential power to his successor.
    Palin returned to whatever-it-is after finding out that she was no longer The Most Popular Girl in High School.
    Historical parallel FAIL.

  14. 14.

    Brian J

    July 6, 2009 at 1:38 pm

    Didn’t Washington give up power for the same reason a parent eventually lets go of a kid riding a bike–so that the nation could stand on its own? Wasn’t there also something about him not wanting the nation to resemble an aristocracy and/or monarchy influencing this decision, or is that merely the reason he refused to be a king? If I’m right, and I think I am, then I’m simply baffled by the comparison.

    If I am butchering history, by the way, please feel free to make fun of me.

  15. 15.

    Rob

    July 6, 2009 at 1:38 pm

    My read of that question is that it was completely facetious, and is only made funnier by the fact that Phillip Rucker actually considered it a serious question. Do we really think Palin sycophants really know who Cincinnatus is? Or, George Washington, for that matter?

  16. 16.

    ET

    July 6, 2009 at 1:40 pm

    I am sure Rucker was rolling his eyes while typing the response to Louisville but after “interesting point” he should have just typed “No.” an ended it there. Taking the idiot too seriously is playing into their mania in a way that is not too helpful even if you just trying to be polite.

  17. 17.

    Comrade Mary

    July 6, 2009 at 1:41 pm

    Louisville, Ky., my eye. That entire question stinks of Stockholm.

  18. 18.

    blogenfreude

    July 6, 2009 at 1:43 pm

    TBogg nails it:

    But somewhere along the line (I’m guessing when her Alaska Trust Fund only pulled in about $125,000 of the $500,000 that they were seeking for her mounting legal bills) she decided to cut bait and make a dash for the cash sooner rather than later. As we move farther away from the election and more little tidbits come trickling out of the McCain campaign, time is not going to be her friend.

    Sarah Palin isn’t smart in what we might call conventional ways, but she has grifter smarts and knows that she can make a better living working the wingnut welfare circuit preaching to the already converted than she can in politics. She’ll never be President; you know it and she knows it. Everyone should know it. But there are a lot of rubes out there who think she’s got a shot and they’re just dumb enough to pay good money thinking it will happen. That is what she’s counting on.

  19. 19.

    Xenos

    July 6, 2009 at 1:43 pm

    BOB- adult men who pause to pour themselves a glass of chocolate milk while chatting up a cute babe should not go around accusing other people of being creepy.

    Al Franken touching you in the queue is the coolest thing that ever happened to you. And I say that as a man who once sold cigarettes to John Malkovich.

  20. 20.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 6, 2009 at 1:44 pm

    @john: John, I’m so glad you mentioned “Yes, Minister” and “Yes, Prime Minister” — I, too, have both series complete on DVD and both books. They are quite simply THE best guide evah to bureaucratic double-speak and political power-plays (not to mention the funniest). YM and YPM have pride of place on the shelf next to my complete “West Wing” collection.

    And for a rather different take on (British-style) politics, have you seen the “House of Cards” trilogy? Wonderful, creepy stuff. “You may very well think so . . . I couldn’t possibly comment.”

  21. 21.

    BenA

    July 6, 2009 at 1:45 pm

    I really, really, really can’t figure out anymore what is a spoof wingnut and what is a real wingnut. I’m not sure it matters anymore.

  22. 22.

    GregB

    July 6, 2009 at 1:46 pm

    Sarah Palin is a latter day Molly Hatchett, a Joan of Arc Welding, a Rosa Parks on a snowmachine.

    She’s just like one of us.

    -The Faithful

  23. 23.

    Death By Mosquito Truck

    July 6, 2009 at 1:46 pm

    What Rucker should have replied with: lolwut?

    Ruckers.

  24. 24.

    gbear

    July 6, 2009 at 1:47 pm

    @TJ:

    I’d add Tim Pawlenty to that list except for the fact that Tim actively set course of the S.S. Grover Nordquist straight for the iceberg and defended the bridge from attack until he was sure that he’d hit it full force straight on. Now he’s going to make sure that the poor and the sick don’t get onto the lifeboats no way no how. People are honestly going to die on the streets after the way he finished up the legislative session here. TPaw would rather stay and watch than bail out.

  25. 25.

    SGEW

    July 6, 2009 at 1:48 pm

    I’m glad to see that the Cincinnatus meme is sticking around.

  26. 26.

    Keith G

    July 6, 2009 at 1:48 pm

    @Brick Oven Bill:

    She is, however, orders of magnitude more qualified than Al Frankin…

    Qualified for what? Mr. Frankin meets the qualifications for holding the position of Senator from Minn. His background and experience is not all the different from many elected to represent their communities in Congress.

    So…..what the hell are you talking about?

  27. 27.

    Death By Mosquito Truck

    July 6, 2009 at 1:49 pm

    @Xenos: I got yelled at by Ralph Waite once.

  28. 28.

    Ann B. Nonymous

    July 6, 2009 at 1:49 pm

    BOB, since that was obviously the last time you were touched by another human being, I would think that you would cherish the memory of Franken’s damp loving caress.

    Maybe you could get Glenn Beck to shake your hand, maybe pat you on the fanny. It’s good for the male ego to be acknowledged like that, right?

  29. 29.

    Trollhattan

    July 6, 2009 at 1:49 pm

    Yeppers, it’s just like Al Franken. Nice non sequitur there; how about bringing up “hoot-Smalley” for good measure before schlepping off to the next Glenn Beck super fanclub meeting?

    Greater wingnuttery has projected so much success and accomplishment upon saint Sarah she’s starting to resemble an Imax theater screen. They conveniently forget that before the wicked em ess em can tear her down she has to first build something up. Reality does indeed bite, but here is a small, petty woman with the attention span of a gnat who’s now magically going to deliver the party to the promised land, like zombie Reagan in a purloined designer suit.

    Good luck with all that folks, you’re going to need a metric buttload of it.

  30. 30.

    jl

    July 6, 2009 at 1:51 pm

    It is an unsubstantiated and defamatory rumor that Palin is not Washington, or Cincinnatus , or Catherine the Great, Elizabeth I, or Grover Cleveland, or other notable figures of history, so I would watch it or you might get sued.

  31. 31.

    gnomedad

    July 6, 2009 at 1:52 pm

    @Brick Oven Bill:
    Sarah Palin is hot. In a creepy way.

  32. 32.

    bayville

    July 6, 2009 at 1:55 pm

    Actually it’s the WaPo’s not-so-new marketing strategy of ignoring and insulting your readers while peddling its remaining influence to the poor, multi billion-dollar, multi-national corporations. (see: High Broderism, Froomkin Firing, Howie Malkin, Whores).

  33. 33.

    e.c.

    July 6, 2009 at 1:55 pm

    i could certainly buy the notion that someone might want out of the dogfight that has become politics.

    but the whole, “she’s moving on to greener pastures/back to her roots/shucking the world’s oyster” stuff just doesn’t jibe with the suprise presser where she came off more like some desperate huckster trying to unload the last bottles of snake oil before fleeing in the night than someone looking at a bright new future.

  34. 34.

    Comrade Stuck

    July 6, 2009 at 1:56 pm

    Maybe she’ll become a wingnut cult leader who serves a wicked cup of Kool-Aid, when the Mothership doesn’t show /

  35. 35.

    SiubhanDuinne

    July 6, 2009 at 1:57 pm

    @Death By Mosquito Truck: I once bought Mitch Miller a canteloupe.

  36. 36.

    Morbo

    July 6, 2009 at 1:57 pm

    You raise an interesting point.

    Cokie Roberts has taught him well.

  37. 37.

    zzyzx

    July 6, 2009 at 1:58 pm

    Wait? Palin is quitting to be a DJ for WKRP?

  38. 38.

    Da Bomb

    July 6, 2009 at 1:59 pm

    Wow, I feel like I am in the middle of an episode of HeeHaw. No maybe more like Benny Hill. You know where he starts to run after the women frantically and they all have those cheesy ass smiles. This is so surreal.

    I think from all this craziness, I have lost a few IQ points.

    I mean it. Really.

  39. 39.

    Ben JB

    July 6, 2009 at 2:00 pm

    In my comments to students, “interesting” usually means “you’re wrong, but at least you’re trying.”

    And I agree with the earlier comments on this historical analogy fail: Cincinnatus and Washington, you know, did stuff before “retiring” from the field.

    As Karen Tumulty over at Swampland pointed out, Palin has a history of quitting before accomplishing stuff.

  40. 40.

    LD50

    July 6, 2009 at 2:00 pm

    Sarah Palin is not comparable with Washington or Cincinnatus. She is, however, orders of magnitude more qualified than Al Frankin, who goes around touching strangers as they are trying to get lunch.
    Sarah Palin does not go around touching strangers as they are trying to get lunch to my knowledge, but even if she did, it would not be as bad as Al Frankin going around touching strangers.
    This is because Sarah Palin is hot, and Al Frankin is creepy.

    That is an interesting point.

  41. 41.

    Punchy

    July 6, 2009 at 2:02 pm

    Reading that blockquote, my spoofometer exploded. Your’s should have, too.

  42. 42.

    Patrick

    July 6, 2009 at 2:03 pm

    Rob:

    My read of that question is that it was completely facetious, and is only made funnier by the fact that Phillip Rucker actually considered it a serious question.

    But knowledge of Cincinnatus, and then calling returning to her family fishing business “brilliant” does give it away.

    I agree. And even funnier that most of the people here seem to agree with Rucker. Although in defense:

    BenA

    I really, really, really can’t figure out anymore what is a spoof wingnut and what is a real wingnut. I’m not sure it matters anymore.

  43. 43.

    Persia

    July 6, 2009 at 2:04 pm

    @LD50: I just want to know who this “Al Frankin” guy is.

  44. 44.

    Skullduggery

    July 6, 2009 at 2:06 pm

    The Roman tradition was for dictators to resign as soon as their task was accomplished. Cincinnatus did his thing/served his term and then resigned.

    Which is in no way similar to quitting halfway through a four-year governorship.

  45. 45.

    Face

    July 6, 2009 at 2:06 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne: I once chatted with a cocaine-less Michael Irvin.

  46. 46.

    slag

    July 6, 2009 at 2:06 pm

    @Rob:

    My read of that question is that it was completely facetious, and is only made funnier by the fact that Phillip Rucker actually considered it a serious question. Do we really think Palin sycophants really know who Cincinnatus is? Or, George Washington, for that matter?

    Seconded.

    Also: Note the adequate spelling and grammar in the question. Not to mention the shocking lack of ALLCAPS.

  47. 47.

    SGEW

    July 6, 2009 at 2:07 pm

    I keep forgetting that B.O.B. claims that he once met Al Franken, and Franken touched him, on the shoulder, and that it was “creepy.” So B.O.B.’s principle objection to Senator Elect Franken is literally “he touched me, and it made me feel icky.”

    It’s an odd reason to object to a Senator, but, hey, there are worse ones.

  48. 48.

    gocart mozart

    July 6, 2009 at 2:08 pm

    The best question is the last.

    Arlington, Va.: Given that President Obama is in Russia at the moment, I wonder if he can see Sarah Palin’s house from there?

  49. 49.

    ninerdave

    July 6, 2009 at 2:09 pm

    @Brick Oven Bill:

    Sarah Palin does not go around touching strangers as they are trying to get lunch to my knowledge, but even if she did, it would not be as bad as Al Frankin going around touching strangers.

    No she just winks at that camera during nationally televised debates.

  50. 50.

    TenguPhule

    July 6, 2009 at 2:09 pm

    Oddly enough, I never thought of Palin as a modern day Washington or Cincinnatus.

    The fact that this sentence ever came to pass makes History Textbooks weep.

  51. 51.

    ChrisB

    July 6, 2009 at 2:11 pm

    Thank you Rob, Comrade Mary and Patrick. What a hilarious question.

  52. 52.

    gocart mozart

    July 6, 2009 at 2:11 pm

    Oh and just for your information Brick Headed Bill, Franken has about 50 I.Q. points on your Sarah.

  53. 53.

    Joshua Norton

    July 6, 2009 at 2:13 pm

    The only thing the wingnuttia has left is their magical thinking. The truth of a situation sucks so they have to create conclusions that are based on the desire of what their warped reality should be. There’s not even a casual acknowledgment of what that reality actually is.

  54. 54.

    BDeevDad

    July 6, 2009 at 2:14 pm

    @gocart mozart: That made my day much better.

  55. 55.

    JK

    July 6, 2009 at 2:15 pm

    @john:

    With all due respect

    In addition to its use on Yes Minister, it was also used on The Sopranos Jon Stewart has kind of beaten it into the ground. Whenever I hear or read the expression, I immediately think of Stewart saying the words in an overly exaggerated thick New York accent.

  56. 56.

    TenguPhule

    July 6, 2009 at 2:16 pm

    Sarah Palin does not go around touching strangers as they are trying to get lunch to my knowledge

    That’s because you’re not rich enough or able to do her political favors, BOB.

  57. 57.

    slag

    July 6, 2009 at 2:17 pm

    @gocart mozart: I thought you were kidding. But was pleased to see that you were not.

  58. 58.

    Sarcastro

    July 6, 2009 at 2:18 pm

    I wish Sarah Palin was, like Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus, mythical.

  59. 59.

    SGEW

    July 6, 2009 at 2:21 pm

    @Rob, @slag:

    My read was that it might not have been facetious, but rather disingenuous. I almost suspect the question was written by a political hack who knew full well who Cincinnatus was and how absurd the comparison is, but wanted to float a trial balloon for a new spin.

    It’s a pretty good spin, actually. If Glenn Beck can get away with calling himself Thomas motherfucking Paine and Jonah Goldberg is the new George Orwell, why can’t Palin be Washington and Cincinnatus? Or better yet, more awesome than either!? Why the fuck not? Nobody in America knows who any of those people were, or what views they held.

    Those who don’t learn from the past are doomed to be lied to about it.

  60. 60.

    ninerdave

    July 6, 2009 at 2:23 pm

    @Joshua Norton:

    The only thing the wingnuttia has left is their magical thinking.

    “Second, we don’t know what she will do in the private sector. Will she write a thoughtful book? Become a syndicated columnist whose ideas make her a “must read” for everyone? Will she found an important new think tank? An important journal? Spearhead an effort to help the unemployed? Decide to launch a business? Or maybe she will start a new political party?” – Jim Prevor, Weekly Standard.

    A thoughtful book. Lolz!!

    (h/t) sully.

  61. 61.

    RememberNovember

    July 6, 2009 at 2:25 pm

    The PalinPAC ads on the left hand side make me lol. And make me wonder about her intentions for 2012. WIll she be the harbinger of the apocalypse?

  62. 62.

    jl

    July 6, 2009 at 2:25 pm

    Krugman, Nobel prize winner in economics, says that in his experience with Congress critters, Frankin is the second wonkiest, next to Rush Holt, who is a physicist.

    UnitedStatsians should be careful in judging the potential of people from their previous backgrounds, what with Benjamin Franklin and all, who started out getting rich as a printer and newspaper magnate known for spoofs, eponymous sock-puppetry, vulgar japes, and satire before he did the high class stuff.

    That applies to Palin too. So let us reserve judgment, and see what Frankin and Palin say over the next year, and compare notes.

    My bet is on Frankin, though. As some one who spent time growing up in Alaska, I would have been resentful if people said she was unqualified just on the basis of her residence. But, I think she has earned her reputation so far. I remember when even Kos said she might turn out to be a good moderate reasonable Republican -people where open minded. She said what she said, and is responsible for that. Let’s see what she does now. I think she will earn more justified dismissals again, but I will listen to what she says and Frankin says and judge on that basis.

  63. 63.

    JK

    July 6, 2009 at 2:30 pm

    Philip Rucker gives no meaning to the expression “mailing it in”. How much is the Washington Post paying this guy? I’ve never read an online chat transcript where the respondent seemed more breathtakingly disinterested than Rucker.

  64. 64.

    Mike G

    July 6, 2009 at 2:31 pm

    Will she write a thoughtful book? Become a syndicated columnist whose ideas make her a “must read” for everyone? Will she found an important new think tank?

    Will she flap her arms and fly to the moon?
    Move to Jupiter and mine bauxite?
    Solve Fermat’s Last Theorem?

    All equally likely.

  65. 65.

    Svensker

    July 6, 2009 at 2:32 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    ????

    !!!!

  66. 66.

    flukebucket

    July 6, 2009 at 2:32 pm

    I would definitely let Sarah touch my stranger.

  67. 67.

    RememberNovember

    July 6, 2009 at 2:33 pm

    @ninerdave: She can make a hat, or a terrdactyl…..

  68. 68.

    JGabriel

    July 6, 2009 at 2:33 pm

    Anon. WaPo Chatter:

    I’m very interested in Palin’s decision to step down from power and return to her work as a family commercial fisherwoman. In my mind this seriously ranks her with Cincinnatus, the Roman general who gave up his dictatorship to return to his plowing …

    That’s gotta be a troll or parodist taking the piss outta WaPo with a Hoekstra.

    .

  69. 69.

    Svensker

    July 6, 2009 at 2:35 pm

    @SiubhanDuinne:

    ????

    !!!!

  70. 70.

    jibeaux

    July 6, 2009 at 2:35 pm

    1. I definitely think that’s spoof, and
    2. There are still banner ads for SarahPAC on this very website. She alternates with the Filipina bride. What the he-yell?

  71. 71.

    Xanthippas

    July 6, 2009 at 2:36 pm

    In my mind this seriously ranks her with Cincinnatus…

    This bozo has probably only ever heard of Cincinnatus because he read about him on some right-wing blog.

  72. 72.

    JK

    July 6, 2009 at 2:37 pm

    @gocart mozart:

    The best question is the last.

    Agreed.

    Love your screen name. That’s one of my favorite Springsteen songs.

  73. 73.

    kay

    July 6, 2009 at 2:38 pm

    @jl:

    I saw a little bit of video of Franken walking around the Senate. He looks really happy to be there. I mean, suppressing-an involuntary-grin happy. That must be something, taking that seat, after such a close race. I don’t know anything about him, but I hope the reality matches his dream.
    Compared to the complaining Palin, he’s a breath of fresh air. He’s grateful. She’s sending angry Twitter missives. I’d rather be him.

  74. 74.

    Legalize

    July 6, 2009 at 2:38 pm

    Gotta be a spoof. Then again, it doesn’t matter if it is. Plenty of drooling wingnuts will dutifully nod their heads in agreement, spoof or no spoof.

  75. 75.

    JK

    July 6, 2009 at 2:41 pm

    @kay:

    Did Franken get to shake hands with Big Bad John Cornyn?

  76. 76.

    Phoenix Woman

    July 6, 2009 at 2:45 pm

    Totally off-topic, but is Tunch (the cat, not the former football player) a Turkish Van? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Turkish_Van

  77. 77.

    zmulls

    July 6, 2009 at 2:46 pm

    UnitedStatsians should be careful in judging the potential of people from their previous backgrounds, what with Benjamin Franklin and all, who started out getting rich as a printer and newspaper magnate known for spoofs, eponymous sock-puppetry, vulgar japes, and satire before he did the high class stuff.

    That applies to Palin too. So let us reserve judgment, and see what Frankin and Palin say over the next year, and compare notes.

    My bet is on Frankin, though.

    Wait….did Franklin touch you too?

    Or was that Frankin….

    …or Franken….

  78. 78.

    JK

    July 6, 2009 at 2:47 pm

    Weekly Standard douchebag Matthew Continetti is writing a book titled The Persecution of Sarah Palin.

    h/t http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-07-05/defending-sarah-palin/2/

  79. 79.

    kay

    July 6, 2009 at 2:48 pm

    @JK:

    I don’t know. I saw him walking around the hall. He looks like everyone looks on their first day. You know, when you think the job is GREAT.
    Well, almost everyone feels like that. Palin was probably composing an enemies list, on her first day.
    Remember how Sanford not resigning was self-sacrifice? Turns out Palin resigning is also self-sacrifice. They’re just breathtaking, these people. Never miss a chance to tell us how wonderful they are.
    One of her nitwit spokespeople:
    “She laid out exactly the reasons she had for stepping down and it was really a form of self-sacrifice.”

  80. 80.

    gbear

    July 6, 2009 at 2:48 pm

    @Phoenix Woman:

    Totally off-topic, but is Tunch (the cat, not the former football player) a Turkish Van?

    Oh now that’s just being cruel. Tunch isn’t any bigger than a small Japanese sedan.

  81. 81.

    JenJen

    July 6, 2009 at 2:49 pm

    As a Cincinnatian, allow me to say that comparing Palin to Cincinnatus is so money.

  82. 82.

    SixStringFanatic

    July 6, 2009 at 2:49 pm

    @Face:
    I once shared a hot tub with Mark Chmura but, since I wasn’t an underage girl, he did not appreciate my presence.

  83. 83.

    Cyrus

    July 6, 2009 at 2:53 pm

    Check out “Yes, Minister” and “Yes, Prime Minister” (I have the book to the first, it’s even funnier than the show) for a decoding of this sort of speech – IIRC,
    “With all due respect” -> an insult

    As a college newspaper editor put it to me,
    “Thank you for your comments” -> fuck you

  84. 84.

    Joshua Norton

    July 6, 2009 at 2:55 pm

    I’m guessing Tunch is whatever he damned well wants to be.

  85. 85.

    LD50

    July 6, 2009 at 2:56 pm

    @kay:

    Compared to the complaining Palin, he’s a breath of fresh air. He’s grateful. She’s sending angry Twitter missives. I’d rather be him.

    He just started a promising new career. She just killed her career. I think I’d rather be him, too.

  86. 86.

    numbskull

    July 6, 2009 at 2:57 pm

    Reserve judgement on Palin???!!! Wait to see what her actions are??

    Geeze, wait for what? How much data do you need?

    We have PLENTY of Sarah(!) actions to assess her on. She’s had two adult jobs. In the first, she bankrupted a small town to build a sports complex. In the second, she quit about half way through after it was clear that she was incompetent.

    This is a very, very simple call: She sucks.

  87. 87.

    JGabriel

    July 6, 2009 at 2:58 pm

    Ben JB:

    As Karen Tumulty over at Swampland pointed out, Palin has a history of quitting before accomplishing stuff.

    Which she did to her political advantage – alleging corruption in Alaska (I’m shocked, shocked!), then running as a reformer.

    It’s hard to see where the angle is in leaving the governor’s office the way she did though – quitting about ethics complaints, the media, and mean comedians ulitimately makes you look weak and unfit for leadership.

    That said, we’re still waiting for the other shoe to drop, and if it hasn’t done so by end of day tomorrow, we’ll have to assume that Sarah! really thought this was a brilliant political gambit like her last resignation – even though that doesn’t quite line up with the panicked and harried performance she gave at her announcement.

    Weird.

    .

  88. 88.

    lawnorder

    July 6, 2009 at 2:58 pm

    The guy confused roman figures. Sarah is not like Cincinatus but a lot like Incitatus which mad McCain Caligula almost made a consul.

  89. 89.

    fastandsloppy

    July 6, 2009 at 2:59 pm

    @JK:

    Actually Jon Stewart (or his writers) “borrowed” that “All Due Respect” thing from stand up comic Dom Irrera.

  90. 90.

    Trollhattan

    July 6, 2009 at 3:00 pm

    gbear #77 beat me to it. I was going to say Tunch was more like a Turkish kitchen appliance, but yours is best-er.

  91. 91.

    slag

    July 6, 2009 at 3:00 pm

    @SGEW: I don’t think so. I think this part:

    return to her work as a family commercial fisherwoman

    in particular gives it away. Does anyone really think Palin’s going to do this?

  92. 92.

    JK

    July 6, 2009 at 3:01 pm

    @kay:

    I mentioned Cornyn because he made the most extreme statements against Franken being seated. I expected him to stand in the doorway to block Franken from entering the chamber.

    The best self-sacrifice Sarah Palin could perform would be to duct tape her mouth shut so the country could be spared her barrage of criminally stupid comments.

    South Carolina voters should initiate a general strike to force that scumbag Sanford to resign.

  93. 93.

    Jim-Bob

    July 6, 2009 at 3:04 pm

    Oddly enough, I never thought of Palin as a modern day Washington or Cincinnatus.

    Didn’t Coach Finstock warn us about playing cards with a guy whose name is a city?

  94. 94.

    JK

    July 6, 2009 at 3:05 pm

    @fastandsloppy:

    Wherever Stewart picked it up from, he should just drop it. The first 2-3 times I heard him use it, it was funny, now it’s just lame.

  95. 95.

    HRA

    July 6, 2009 at 3:05 pm

    From gocart mozart:

    “Arlington, Va.: Given that President Obama is in Russia at the moment, I wonder if he can see Sarah Palin’s house from there?”

    WIN!!!!!!

  96. 96.

    Face

    July 6, 2009 at 3:07 pm

    @SixStringFanatic: A Chmura chimera?

  97. 97.

    The Moar You Know

    July 6, 2009 at 3:07 pm

    @Phoenix Woman: Former Van owner here. Tunch is not a Turkish Van. A Van has a tail that looks like a bottlebrush or a squirrel’s tail, and they’re usually a bit smaller than the Tunchinator.

    They also love water. From what I’ve gathered from John’s postings, Tunch does not.

  98. 98.

    Jim-Bob

    July 6, 2009 at 3:07 pm

    DBMS@

    “G’night, Skeetertruck!”

  99. 99.

    memory bank

    July 6, 2009 at 3:09 pm

    I like the line in HBO’s Rome, in which a Roman Senator said, “I’d love to retire to my country estate and enjoy my slaves, like Cincinnatus.”

  100. 100.

    gbear

    July 6, 2009 at 3:09 pm

    @JK:

    Cornyn was probably too busy licking his wounds from the tea party he attended on the fourth. He stirred it up and now it’s out of his control. Ha.

    According to TPM:

    Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), who is chairman of the National Republican Senatorial Committee, was booed at the event in Austin — on the grounds that he’s part of the problem in Washington, having voted for the Wall St. bailout last fall. “I’m not part of Washington,” Cornyn said in his own defense. “I happen to work there, but on behalf of Texas, and I can vote ‘no’ on these reckless spending bills, on the refusal to cut taxes.”

  101. 101.

    JK

    July 6, 2009 at 3:14 pm

    @numbskull: @JGabriel:

    On Friday and Saturday, I thought Palin resigned because of a pending scandal.

    Today, I think Palin resigned simply because she’s actually stupid enough to believe this is a logical strategy to lay the groundwork for her 2012 presidential run.

  102. 102.

    Roger Moore

    July 6, 2009 at 3:15 pm

    @SixStringFanatic: Jeez. The best I can offer is serving lunch to Stephen Hawking and Kip Thorne.

  103. 103.

    JK

    July 6, 2009 at 3:16 pm

    @gbear:

    It serves Cornyn right.

  104. 104.

    Comrade Stuck

    July 6, 2009 at 3:17 pm

    She’s the next John Paul Jones.

    We have not begun to spite

  105. 105.

    Keith G

    July 6, 2009 at 3:18 pm

    UnitedStatsians should be careful in judging the potential of people from their previous backgrounds, what with Benjamin Franklin and all, who started out getting rich as a printer and newspaper magnate known for spoofs, eponymous sock-puppetry, vulgar japes, and satire before he did the high class stuff.

    As in bedding most of the courtisans in Paris?

  106. 106.

    Punchy

    July 6, 2009 at 3:21 pm

    and they’re usually a bit smaller than the Tunchinator.

    As is almost every non-horse household pet….

  107. 107.

    John Cole

    July 6, 2009 at 3:22 pm

    2. There are still banner ads for SarahPAC on this very website.

    You. People. Will. Bitch. About. Anything.

    Let the wingnuts waste their money on her. Let Sarahpac waste resources putting money into my pocket.

    Or donate a grand everymonth via paypal and I’ll take down every damned ad and put pictures of Tunch licking himself in their place.

  108. 108.

    gbear

    July 6, 2009 at 3:27 pm

    @Comrade Stuck:

    She’s the next John Paul Jones.

    If she shows up on a Led Zeppelin reunion tour, I’m checking out.

  109. 109.

    Death By Mosquito Truck

    July 6, 2009 at 3:33 pm

    @John Cole:

    Or donate a grand everymonth via paypal and I’ll take down every damned ad and put pictures of Tunch licking himself in their place.

    How much do I have to pony up to get a Tunch-free version of the site?

  110. 110.

    kay

    July 6, 2009 at 3:33 pm

    @JK:

    I don’t think Al Franken cares, today, what the other Senators think.

    He has that great grinning look of the person who won the job lottery.

    Palin and her husband intervened in her sister’s contentious child custody case. They weren’t named parties. The judge eventually lectured Todd and Sarah, told them that destroying the father’s reputation and ability to earn a living was probably not in the children’s best interest.

    I spend a good part of every week in family court. I would suggest that people should run, not walk, from relatives like Todd and Sarah who intervene in child custody cases, where they are not the parents. They’re never, ever operating from anything other than vengeance.

    It’s my personal measure of “unfit for office”.

    She’s one of ‘them”. “Nuff said.

  111. 111.

    JGabriel

    July 6, 2009 at 3:35 pm

    John Cole:

    Let the wingnuts waste their money on her. Let Sarahpac waste resources putting money into my pocket.

    Exactly. I’ve been clicking on the Sarah!PAC ads everytime I see them. Can’t think of a better way to transfer GOP money to saner hands.

    .

  112. 112.

    Comrade Mary

    July 6, 2009 at 3:35 pm

    How much do I have to pony up to get pictures of DBMT licking himself?

  113. 113.

    Comrade Stuck

    July 6, 2009 at 3:42 pm

    Let the wingnuts waste their money on her. Let Sarahpac waste resources putting money into my pocket.

    Here Here. Having Sarah Serendipity on the sidebar of this blog, is a monument to snarkish paradoxity. It is the smell of delicious irony in the morning. Victory!

  114. 114.

    Comrade Sock Puppet of the Great Satan

    July 6, 2009 at 3:53 pm

    “what with Benjamin Franklin and all, who started out getting rich as a printer and newspaper magnate known for spoofs, eponymous sock-puppetry, vulgar japes, and satire before he did the high class stuff.”

    Hey, Benjamin F.’s Fart Proudly is not only a great diatribe, it anticipated the level of political discourse on teh internets more than two centuries ahead of its birth.

  115. 115.

    Zuzu's Petals

    July 6, 2009 at 4:02 pm

    @Death By Mosquito Truck:

    I lived across the way from Johnny Mercer when I was little. I was impressed because I thought he said he was Johnny Mathis.

  116. 116.

    Comrade Stuck

    July 6, 2009 at 4:04 pm

    Marlon Brando spilled a beer on me once, several beers actually.

  117. 117.

    Demo Woman

    July 6, 2009 at 4:11 pm

    @LD50: lol BOB will forever be known as the one who makes interesting points.

  118. 118.

    demimondian

    July 6, 2009 at 4:13 pm

    @John Cole:

    You. People. Will. Bitch. About. Anything.

    Yes.

    SATSQ, Vol TUNCH.

  119. 119.

    demimondian

    July 6, 2009 at 4:15 pm

    @Ben JB: Oh, for heaven’s sake.

    Sarah is not like Washington; she’s more like Lincoln, who did nothing of note himself prior to quitting office barely a few months into his second term.

  120. 120.

    Zuzu's Petals

    July 6, 2009 at 4:17 pm

    @John Cole:

    Just curious, John. If we click on the ad, do you make money?

  121. 121.

    Joshua Norton

    July 6, 2009 at 4:18 pm

    she’s more like Lincoln

    Actually she’s most like Lincoln is currently. A brain dead Republican with a hole in her head.

  122. 122.

    Wile E. Quixote

    July 6, 2009 at 4:19 pm

    @Brick Oven Bill

    Sarah Palin is not comparable with Washington or Cincinnatus. She is, however, orders of magnitude more qualified than Al Frankin, who goes around touching strangers as they are trying to get lunch.
    Sarah Palin does not go around touching strangers as they are trying to get lunch to my knowledge, but even if she did, it would not be as bad as Al Frankin going around touching strangers.
    This is because Sarah Palin is hot, and Al Frankin is creepy.

    You’re just pissed because it was Al Franken touching you. If it had been Sully Sullenberger you’d have dropped trou and bent and spread for him right then and there, ya big poof.

  123. 123.

    Wile E. Quixote

    July 6, 2009 at 4:23 pm

    @Xenos

    BOB- adult men who pause to pour themselves a glass of chocolate milk while chatting up a cute babe should not go around accusing other people of being creepy.
    Al Franken touching you in the queue is the coolest thing that ever happened to you. And I say that as a man who once sold cigarettes to John Malkovich.

    Please tell me that it was a really cool and existential brand that was chock full of ennui and not something like Kool Lights.

  124. 124.

    Cris

    July 6, 2009 at 4:23 pm

    Because they are exactly not what you expect on a “liberal” blog, I love the SarahPAC ads, the mail-order-bride ads, the Ann Coulter ads, and I loved the late Pajamas Media campaign. The incongruity of editorial vs. advertising content provides a faint flavor of uncertainty, reminding us of John’s own political journey. Balloon-juice will not be pigeonholed!

  125. 125.

    gbear

    July 6, 2009 at 4:26 pm

    Styx was having an after concert dinner at a Duluth restaurant where I was playing my first gig with a new band in the lounge upstairs (this was in about 1976 or 77). We got to join in the ‘festivities’ after our gig, and I made the mistake of mentioning a gig they played in St. Paul where they fled the stage after their equipment broke down. It probably wasn’t the best thing to do. Their guitarist was a jerk at any rate…

  126. 126.

    instarx

    July 6, 2009 at 4:30 pm

    numbskull: This is a very, very simple call: She sucks.

    No doubt, but how has she done in her jobs?

    Buddy Hackett once threw a poster at me.

  127. 127.

    Wile E. Quixote

    July 6, 2009 at 4:33 pm

    @BenA

    I really, really, really can’t figure out anymore what is a spoof wingnut and what is a real wingnut. I’m not sure it matters anymore.

    I’m kind of thinking that this is a spoof, I mean read it again, despite the insanity there are no grammatical errors and the way the author phrases the last part of the question makes it look as if he’s trying to prank Rucker into buying into this ridiculous comparison.

  128. 128.

    Cris

    July 6, 2009 at 4:35 pm

    @gbear: Their guitarist was a jerk at any rate…

    The one who looks like David Spade or the one who looks like a Wookie?

  129. 129.

    Wile E. Quixote

    July 6, 2009 at 4:38 pm

    @jibeaux

    2. There are still banner ads for SarahPAC on this very website. She alternates with the Filipina bride. What the he-yell?

    SarahPAC and Asian mail order brides, I really don’t think that Google is doing a lot of research into the demographics of this site.

  130. 130.

    gbear

    July 6, 2009 at 4:47 pm

    @Cris:
    The one who’s not Tommy (I don’t think Tommy was there). He just sat in his chair looking forward. I was sitting to the side and he’d just look at you out of the corner of his eye if he was talking to you.
    We were just a bunch of local yokels (and all guys) getting invited in at the end of a dinner. The other Styx were nice enough, but it wasn’t much of a party.
    I just remember it as being an awful week because I had just joined my first band that played a lot of disco music. I was making more money (enough to actually live on) but felt kind of awful about some of the tunes.

  131. 131.

    DougJ

    July 6, 2009 at 4:59 pm

    I just hope WaPo doesn’t get sued for that.

    Thanks to the person who recommended Olivet Twist in Sodermalm to me. Good beer selection!

  132. 132.

    Pasquinade

    July 6, 2009 at 5:25 pm

    Louisville probably got the idea the same place that the FReepers* got it:

    Sarah Palin, a modern Cincinnatus?

    Maybe they’ve heard of Cincinnatus. Deep down, though, they do not see how anyone could willingly relinquish political power. Sarah Palin must secretly be running for the presidency in 2012 or else, despite her tough talk, she is really a wimp who can’t stand the heat (i.e., the incontinent and disgusting attacks on her family).

    http://pajamasmedia.com/rogerkimball/2009/07/05/sarah-palin-a-modern-cincinnatus/2/

    * http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/2286559/posts

  133. 133.

    jacy

    July 6, 2009 at 5:35 pm

    @Death By Mosquito Truck:

    I once got hit in the face by beads thrown by Whoopi Goldberg at an Orpheus Mardi Gras parade. Broke my glasses. I don’t think she meant it though.

  134. 134.

    Chinn Romney

    July 6, 2009 at 6:24 pm

    I’m kind of thinking that this is a spoof, I mean read it again, despite the insanity there are no grammatical errors and the way the author phrases the last part of the question makes it look as if he’s trying to prank Rucker into buying into this ridiculous comparison.

    I took it as a prank too, for the same reason. It was just too perfect. The guy who stuck the last question in was pretty good too. I’m sure Rucker is in on it.

  135. 135.

    Wile E. Quixote

    July 6, 2009 at 6:43 pm

    @jacy

    I once got hit in the face by beads thrown by Whoopi Goldberg at an Orpheus Mardi Gras parade. Broke my glasses. I don’t think she meant it though.

    Please, please tell us that you weren’t yelling “show us your tits!” at her when this happened.

  136. 136.

    Wile E. Quixote

    July 6, 2009 at 6:59 pm

    @jibeaux

    2. There are still banner ads for SarahPAC on this very website. She alternates with the Filipina bride. What the he-yell?

    I wonder if SarahPAC and the Asian mail order bride place offer up a steamy hot BJ discount like Laura W. does.

    P.S. Has that been ridden into the ground yet?

  137. 137.

    jacy

    July 6, 2009 at 7:06 pm

    @Wile E. Quixote:

    We have a place in the French Quarter, we see enough tits walking to the corner market….

    Funny thing though celebrity-wise: my mother-in-law shares a courtyard wall with Laurence Fishburne. Every time we go over there I’m tempted to throw something over the wall and then go knock on the door and blame it on the kids. “Hi, Mr. Fishburne, can we have our ball back?”

  138. 138.

    Laura W

    July 6, 2009 at 7:13 pm

    @Wile E. Quixote:

    Has that been ridden into the ground yet?

    Rode hard and put away wet, you betcha.

  139. 139.

    Chuck Butcher

    July 6, 2009 at 8:25 pm

    @Xenos:

    Does a politician sitting in your saddle count?

  140. 140.

    Xenos

    July 6, 2009 at 10:17 pm

    @Chuck Butcher: Woah – I am definitely bested there. Malkovich was in a crappy mood and it was three o’clock in the morning. Wyden seems much cooler and lacks the hipster attitude.

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