Sarah Palin for Primetime Host

May 27, 2011 2:56 PM

Fox News keeping Sarah Palin on board despite Bus Tour Sarah Palin not running for President.

Despite terminating the contracts of potential presidential candidates Gingrich and Santorum in early March, Sarah Palin remains on the Fox payroll on the eve of her much-hyped cross-country tour and feature film.

Lawrence O'Donnell is unimpressed with the "will she or won't she?" stories flooding the political press

posted by pjenks (132 comments total)

The political ambitions of Sarah Palin are truly inscrutable until you begin to understand that she has none.
posted by Rubbstone at 2:59 PM on May 27, 2011 [8 favorites]

I think the idea of her moving to Arizona to mount a run for John McCain's senate seat is the most delicious idea floated in recent days.
posted by crunchland at 3:01 PM on May 27, 2011 [4 favorites]

O'Donnell has it wrong: The New York Times jumped the shark back with Judith Miller.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 3:03 PM on May 27, 2011 [3 favorites]

I can see Andrew Sullivan's boner from my house.
posted by (Arsenio) Hall and (Warren) Oates at 3:04 PM on May 27, 2011 [24 favorites]

It's just a short bus tour, not a full campaign.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 3:06 PM on May 27, 2011 [28 favorites]

Nate Silver just won a bet.
posted by klangklangston at 3:08 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

It's just a short bus tour, not a full campaign.

Your sentence is missing a hyphen.
posted by phunniemee at 3:08 PM on May 27, 2011 [121 favorites]

And I have to say that I'm amazed that Santorum is seriously running for president. Doesn't he have google?
posted by klangklangston at 3:10 PM on May 27, 2011 [20 favorites]

The Obama campaign recently endorsed Palin.
posted by gman at 3:11 PM on May 27, 2011 [6 favorites]

Where's Leni Riefenstahl when you need her?
posted by Trurl at 3:12 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

And I have to say that I'm amazed that Santorum is seriously running for president. Doesn't he have google?

The other Repubs have fire in the belly, but Santorum has the runs.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 3:13 PM on May 27, 2011 [4 favorites]

Sarah Palin's sitting on the political beach, soaking up the rays and sipping on fruity drinks. Why go into the political ocean to be knocked around by the waves, taste the brackish water, and get a sunburn? If you can get paid seven figures to sit on a beach towel and complain about how Obama sucks at surfing, you'd be an idiot to go out in the water, especially if you don't know how to swim.
posted by 0xFCAF at 3:14 PM on May 27, 2011 [63 favorites]

Campaigning is hard and costs lots of money, whereas babbling inanely is easy and very lucrative. Maybe she's not quite as dumb as I thought.
posted by doctor_negative at 3:14 PM on May 27, 2011 [3 favorites]

Sarah Palin couldn't even get through a full season of a reality show. C'mon.
posted by boo_radley at 3:15 PM on May 27, 2011 [3 favorites]

Lawrence O'Donnell is unimpressed with the "will she or won't she?" stories flooding the political press

Isn't this post just another victim of what may be a deliberate viral "will she or won't she?" marketing strategy?
posted by UbuRoivas at 3:15 PM on May 27, 2011 [2 favorites]

much-hyped cross-country tour

The Eclectic Fool-Aid Asshole Test.
posted by benzenedream at 3:16 PM on May 27, 2011 [73 favorites]

“We are not changing Sarah Palin’s status,” Bill Shine, executive vice president of programming for Fox News, said in a statement Thursday.

He continued, "We know she's still a marketable property."
posted by Capt. Renault at 3:16 PM on May 27, 2011

Sarah Palin couldn't even get through a full season of a reality show. C'mon.

Or a single term as governor of a sparsely populated, cash flush state.
posted by PenDevil at 3:18 PM on May 27, 2011 [19 favorites]

I eagerly await Erick Erickson's Election Eve "Hold your nose and vote for Romney" post at Red State.
posted by Trurl at 3:19 PM on May 27, 2011 [4 favorites]

It's just as well if she does not run.
The only Republican with a hope in this mess is Mitt Romney, and I don't want a Republican president. Newt Gingrich? Mwaha. Michele Bachmann? Mwuuuhahaha! Rick Santorum? *crickets*

Just for grins let's have Tom Tancredo and Joe Arpaio. Yay we hate brown people and aborters and homos!!

And, for the most delicious of ironies, Sarah Palin as pundit. Yeah, with Sean Hannity. Wow.
posted by nj_subgenius at 3:22 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

In before the election.
posted by box at 3:23 PM on May 27, 2011

box: In before the election.

You should always wait for it to be fully elect.
posted by gman at 3:25 PM on May 27, 2011 [6 favorites]

Thing is, even Sarah Palin knows she's not really competent to hold a major political office. After all, she quit the last one she had for a cash advance on a career as a poster child and mouthpiece. She doesn't have anywhere near the kind of numbers for anyone to sink any real money into an actual campaign. On the other hand, so long as she doesn't declare, they can rake in all that "exploratory" money and appearance fees and use her to raise a ruckus from the front so the real candidates can attack from the sides. Clever girl.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 3:27 PM on May 27, 2011 [2 favorites]

Waitwaitwait, what? Feature film? Called The Undefeated The Undefeated? Oh, it's "a call to action" for Palin, not something she endorsed.

Wait, a TWO HOUR fan-film? And she's not interviewed?

And they're really calling it "The Undefeated"? Well, I guess "she who fights, yet runs away, lives to run another day." It's not called defeated if you don't finish the bout, is it? Anyway, "The Forfeiter" doesn't have the same ring to it.

And technically, she was defeated in 2008. It was Obama/Biden vs McCain/Palin, remember?
posted by filthy light thief at 3:31 PM on May 27, 2011 [3 favorites]

I prefer Bachman. she is experienced and stands for good things. She will help us take back our country.
posted by Postroad at 3:31 PM on May 27, 2011

She just bought a house in Arizona.

I wonder if she can see Mexico from there.
posted by MrVisible at 3:33 PM on May 27, 2011 [15 favorites]

The only Republican with a hope in this mess is Mitt Romney, and I don't want a Republican president. Newt Gingrich? Mwaha. Michele Bachmann? Mwuuuhahaha! Rick Santorum? *crickets*

What about tim pawlenty? Not a fan myself, but boy is it weird how many democrats i see excited for him. Honestly best of the bunch from what i can see, but still...
posted by usagizero at 3:33 PM on May 27, 2011

I prefer Bachman. she is experienced and stands for good things. She will help us take back our country.

But is she a witch? How can we be sure if she won't get on the scale with the duck? Why won't she get on the scale with the duck?
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 3:40 PM on May 27, 2011 [9 favorites]

usagiero, yeah, you're right, it's probable. However, Tim Pawlenty has to make a daily news cycle work for him. So far, no, but you have a good point.
posted by nj_subgenius at 3:43 PM on May 27, 2011

Relax. Rick Perry is thinking about running for president.
posted by birdherder at 3:44 PM on May 27, 2011 [2 favorites]

What about tim pawlenty? Not a fan myself, but boy is it weird how many democrats i see excited for him.

I don't even see Republicans excited for him. Is his staff excited for him?

Herman Cain is my favorite Republican to watch at the moment, if he made it to the general mostly gaffe free he would have as good a chance as any other Republican right now. His favoriability is really high among Republicans who have actually heard of him. That can mean nothing (Ron Paul) or it can mean you are looking at someone who will do well once their name is out there.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 3:44 PM on May 27, 2011

I can't decide whom to cheer for... of course, ideally it would be a reasonably sane yet highly unelectable Republican, but of course the two variables are at least somewhat negatively correlated. I guess I'll go with Romney; I assume that if he wins the nod either Sarah or Michelle or some other crazy person will run a third-party campaign from the right.
posted by tivalasvegas at 3:45 PM on May 27, 2011

I can see Andrew Sullivan's boner from my house.

Really? Can I come over? I'd like to see that.

but not his freakishly tall husband. that guy freaks me out
posted by hippybear at 3:54 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

The Undefeated

"Silver medallist"
posted by Artw at 3:56 PM on May 27, 2011 [2 favorites]

filthy light thief: Even better about that Palin film -- apparently the filmmakers compare her struggles to those of Joan Of Arc, and the whole thing is full of religious symbolism.
posted by hippybear at 3:56 PM on May 27, 2011

Wasn't Joan of Arc a hell-bound Catholic?
posted by TrialByMedia at 4:05 PM on May 27, 2011 [3 favorites]

Palin's secret life and strategy are revealed in "My Night with Sarah Palin"

Excerpt: "I admired her stamina. Her ability to Charlie Sheen it night after night."
posted by joetrip at 4:08 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

Was she lacking in support from religious folks? Ooh, maybe they're mocking her as "an illiterate farm girl who claimed that the voice of God."
posted by filthy light thief at 4:09 PM on May 27, 2011 [3 favorites]

OK
There's a lot more.
posted by nj_subgenius at 4:09 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

Was she lacking in support from religious folks? Ooh, maybe they're mocking her as "an illiterate farm girl who claimed that the voice of God."

I haven't seen the film. I only know what our friends from across the pond have said about the film.

The Telegraph: "According to Conroy, it is rife with religious metaphor, with "unmistakable illusions to Palin as a Joan of Arc-like figure" and clear distinction between good and evil."

The Guardian: "A new film commissioned by Palin, the former governor of Alaska, will present her as a Joan of Arc-like figure beset at every turn by vicious leftwing enemies seeking to thwart her ambition of reviving the conservative legacy of Ronald Reagan."
posted by hippybear at 4:14 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

SARAH PALIN IS A FRENCH TERRORIST!
posted by Artw at 4:22 PM on May 27, 2011 [13 favorites]

"SARAH PALIN IS A FRENCH TERRORIST!"
posted by Artw at 12:22 AM on May 28

Worth pressing "Show Comments" for.
posted by marienbad at 4:33 PM on May 27, 2011

Tim Pawlenty? Well, he has the evangelical thing going and that oh, shucks darn thing but seriously, he has no innovative ideas and no charisma. So no charisma, no innovative ideas and a track record in a state that always throws out a quirky third party candidate to make elections interesting. Voting for Pawlenty is voting for a march to mediocrity.
posted by jadepearl at 4:36 PM on May 27, 2011 [2 favorites]

She run out of money already?!

That film looks like a hoot! It's gonna bury Atlas shrugged part I.
posted by Max Power at 4:38 PM on May 27, 2011

Pawlenty is such an empty nothing. I don't get this Tim Pawlenty person. He's so milquetoast and a nothing face he's got to be evil.
posted by Skygazer at 4:41 PM on May 27, 2011

I prefer Bachman. she is experienced and stands for good things. She will help us take back our country.

Not sure if you're serious..
posted by chronkite at 4:43 PM on May 27, 2011

If recent history has taught me anything it's that reality turns out to be considerably stupider than anything I might have suspected.

By October 2012, we'll be looking at the GOP candidates wishing openly for the calm statesmanship of Sarah Palin.
posted by Grangousier at 4:43 PM on May 27, 2011 [10 favorites]

nj_subgenius: "OK
There's a lot more."

OMFG. "They can't show CO2 is a harmful gas. It's a harmless gas."

Dear Michelle. I urge you to engage in a bit of basic science testing. It's not very hard. Go into a car in a garage. Shut the garage door. Roll down the window just a smidge. Take a tube from the tailpipe and lead it into your window. Now continue to inhale that wonderful harmless CO2.

Just like my old friend did. Really fucking harmless you fucking idiot.
posted by symbioid at 4:47 PM on May 27, 2011 [5 favorites]

I'm going to go ahead and mark my spot as a prognosticator right here, so that we can either look back and weep, or you all can look back and laugh at me, which I hope you will do heartily, but I predict that Rick Perry will be the Republican nominee in 2012.
posted by Devils Rancher at 4:48 PM on May 27, 2011 [2 favorites]

Dear Michelle. I urge you to engage in a bit of basic science testing. It's not very hard. Go into a car in a garage. Shut the garage door. Roll down the window just a smidge. Take a tube from the tailpipe and lead it into your window. Now continue to inhale that wonderful harmless CO2.

Just like my old friend did. Really fucking harmless you fucking idiot.

Beautiful.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 4:50 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

She just bought a house in Arizona.

As a resident of California, which neighbors Arizona, this is freaking me out and is too close for comfort. I never considered how much Sarah Palin sincerely creeps me the fuck out until now, knowing that she may be residing only a mere state away.

I don't say much about Palin, especially here on Metafilter, because I don't think it very sportsmanlike to make fun of stupid people. Or people that say and do stupid things. She's one of those. But the mere thought of her vapid visage gallivanting within a half-day's drive is freaking me out. As if Arizona's proto-conservatism wasn't turbulent enough as is, I fear that her presence will cause the entire state to collapse on itself and become some sort of black hole that will violently absorb California.

It's an irrational fear, I know, but I will not sleep well tonight, because, what if she's hiding under my bed with those evil glowing eyes and fangs?
posted by jabberjaw at 4:52 PM on May 27, 2011 [2 favorites]

actually, isn't it the CO that's the harmful part in that circumstance?
posted by kaibutsu at 4:56 PM on May 27, 2011 [13 favorites]

Yeah, jabberjaw. I live in Tucson (if you look on the map, it's the city with the glowing outline of sanity around it, just to the south of Phoenix). The idea that Sarah Palin is going to take a shot at representing our state in the federal government... and that she might win...

It's just too bizarre to be really terrifying.
posted by MrVisible at 4:57 PM on May 27, 2011

"I've said many times that America doesn't need a 'fundamental transformation,' instead we need a restoration of all that is good and strong and free in America! So, together let's prepare ourselves for the days ahead by reminding ourselves who we are and what Americans stand for."

Huh. I agree with Sarah Palin. Except that I suspect she and I have very different definitions for the words "good" and "strong" and "free." I believe returning to the days of good would include bringing back the middle class, improving education at every level, and returning to the days when corporations were not persons. I believe a strong America would be an America where all people of all races, colors, religions, and economic backgrounds would have a chance to better themselves, an America less dependent on foreign imports, an America that engages with the rest of the world with real diplomacy, not guns. I believe a free America is one in which we no longer fear our every movement, email, telephone, and financial transaction is being scrutinized by some level of government without just cause, where all women are free to maintain control over their reproductive systems, and where an end to a War on the poor means most of our prisons remain half full instead of holding twice as many prisoners as they were built to house.
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 5:01 PM on May 27, 2011 [14 favorites]

Pro Tip: Sarah Palin is not running for President.
posted by Trurl at 5:07 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

Thing is, even Sarah Palin knows she's not really competent to hold a major political office.

Oh, how I wish this were true. Unfortunately, I'm convinced she thinks she's as good or better than anyone else, like the rest of her uneducated ignoramus pals.
posted by Aquaman at 5:07 PM on May 27, 2011

Re: Sarah Palin's opinion of herself: Dunning/Kruger 2012
posted by mccarty.tim at 5:10 PM on May 27, 2011 [4 favorites]

I occasionally re-watch The Matrix, and more and more the creepiest thing about it is when Morpheus is explaining the truth to Neo, and says, "Here we are, 1999, the peak of human civilization."

Because while it's only been 12 years since then, so far he's been right on the money.
posted by Navelgazer at 5:20 PM on May 27, 2011 [9 favorites]

Secret Life of Gravy,

You're right -- you sound like a Republican to me.
posted by tivalasvegas at 5:25 PM on May 27, 2011

Dear Michelle. I urge you to engage in a bit of basic science testing. It's not very hard. Go into a car in a garage. Shut the garage door. Roll down the window just a smidge. Take a tube from the tailpipe and lead it into your window. Now continue to inhale that wonderful harmless CO2.

Just like my old friend did. Really fucking harmless you fucking idiot.

That's carbon monoxide. Carbon dioxide is what people breathe out, and not directly harmless except in such huge quantities that it displaces oxygen-bearing air. Global warming is an indirect harm resulting in part from atmospheric CO2 buildup.

You should probably stop now.
posted by anigbrowl at 5:25 PM on May 27, 2011 [10 favorites]

Er, not directly harmful. EDIT BOX.
posted by anigbrowl at 5:25 PM on May 27, 2011

While I agree that he was thinking of carbon monoxide, carbon dioxide is surprisingly toxic. It's only in extremely trace amounts that we can tolerate it without ill effect (it only comprises about 1/2500th of the atmosphere).
posted by Flunkie at 5:35 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

Breaking news: Michelle Malkin expired today of blackdamp after liberal bloggers dared her to prove that CO2 is completely harmless. Palin's Response: Malkin was America's Canary in the Coal Mine, Freedom to be Smothered Next.
posted by benzenedream at 5:54 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

Rick Perry is thinking about running for president.

Governor Goodhair will come riding in on his white horse to get the nomination, lose the race, then go back to fucking up Texas some more.

On the upside, while he's busy running he'll have to delegate the fucking up Texas part.
posted by emjaybee at 6:24 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

I'm going to go ahead and mark my spot as a prognosticator right here, so that we can either look back and weep, or you all can look back and laugh at me, which I hope you will do heartily, but I predict that Rick Perry will be the Republican nominee in 2012.

I'm not sure about that Devils Rancher. The Governor of Texas doesn't have a lot of power, which is one of the reasons Gov Good Hair keeps getting elected. There have been all kinds of rumors in Austin that he has a lot of dirty laundry, most of it having to do with his sex life, and his people have had a really hard time keeping a lid on it. The old white guys who actually run Texas really don't care what he dips his wick into, as long as he keeps the corporations happy, so they tolerate him. But a national campaign? I'm not sure he can stand up to the scrutiny.

I would normally pass off the gossip as just that, but if you've lived in Texas long enough you hear it from people all over the political spectrum. His wife has allegedly tried to leave him twice, threatening to spill the beans, but his handlers have been able to keep her quiet. I really don't think he can do it successfully.
posted by lootie777 at 6:25 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

lootie777, how did I not know this? Now I really want him to run!
posted by emjaybee at 6:27 PM on May 27, 2011 [3 favorites]

And they're really calling it "The Undefeated"?

Word is, the original title was Only A Flesh Wound, but that didn't poll well.
posted by octobersurprise at 6:29 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

I think the last time his wife tried to make a break for it was 5 or 6 years ago? There was a lot of buzz in the alternative press that she had left and was going to speak to the press or make some kind of announcement.

But she has/had a prescription drug problem and many think that's what keeps her in line.

Really, it is all just gossip, but Texas is like the biggest small town you've ever lived in. Perry is that guy at work that keeps getting promoted because he does all the nasty crap that rakes in the dough, but he makes the mistake of believing his own press. He thinks he's running the show, but it's big oil and finance that really runs this state. And they are damn satisfied with the status quo.
posted by lootie777 at 6:35 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

So help me understand this. Every time we post a comment in a Palin related thread, does it get added to a grand total of all comments in all Palin threads? Because I may have just won MetaKeno.
posted by Joey Michaels at 6:46 PM on May 27, 2011

Back to Palin, I think the Rude Pundit has really said it all:

You see that thing up there? That sweet ride all pimped out to show that its occupants are so got-damn Uhmerkan that everyone else can suck their patriotic fumes? That shit's so sick that it's got the motherfuckin' Constitution, words from the Pledge o' Allegiance, and purple motherfuckin' mountains majesty, like Lady Liberty's titties just thrustin' up all hard and ready for pinchin'. And who gives a damn if it looks like the tires are running over the American flag and gettin' it all muddy on rainy days? This is Sarah Palin's Magic Bus, motherfuckers, with her autograph next to the Liberty Bell. Yeah, lick the stiletto heels of her red, white, and blue pumps, bitches, and love it.
posted by emjaybee at 6:48 PM on May 27, 2011 [2 favorites]

I think the idea of her moving to Arizona to mount a run for John McCain's senate seat is the most delicious idea floated in recent days.

Palin would not be running for McCain's seat. McCain just won re-election less than a year ago. If she were running for McCain's seat she'd have to wait 4 more years. She'd be running for the seat being vacated by Jon Kyl, who's retiring.
posted by blucevalo at 7:08 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

I don't get this Tim Pawlenty person. He's so milquetoast and a nothing face he's got to be evil.

In 2002, we got stuck with Norm Coleman for Senate and Pawlenty for Governor. Of the two, the expectation was that Coleman would be the awful one and Pawlenty wouldn't be that bad.

Coleman ended up being forgettable and was voted out of office in 2008 (making way for the much better Al Franken). Pawlenty went on to practically ruin the state--the current Minnesota deficit is basically his fault.

Point being, Pawlenty has stealth evil in his resume.
posted by gimonca at 7:24 PM on May 27, 2011 [2 favorites]

If I'm reading this MSDS right, the LC50 for CO₂ is an atmospheric concentration of 10% for one minute, which is pretty high. So, not particularly toxic. Apparently, the monkey LC50 for mustard gas is 80 mg/m³ for 10 minutes. (A cubic meter of air is about 1.2kg.)
posted by Coventry at 7:25 PM on May 27, 2011

You know a Palin thread is going right when the derail is a scientific analysis of the dangers of CO₂.
posted by Chichibio at 7:35 PM on May 27, 2011 [6 favorites]

Palin would not be running for McCain's seat. McCain just won re-election less than a year ago. If she were running for McCain's seat she'd have to wait 4 more years. She'd be running for the seat being vacated by Jon Kyl, who's retiring.

I think Arizona will be used as a home base. I do not think she'll run for anything there. I doubt she'll even change her official address. Scotsdale will be her second home.
posted by spaltavian at 7:45 PM on May 27, 2011

Fucking snowbirds.
posted by klangklangston at 7:54 PM on May 27, 2011 [3 favorites]

Sarah Palin often seems like a good test case of The Anosognosic’s Dilemma (man, that's tough to spell). I can't quite make up my mind and it seems like an important question: Does she, in fact, comprehend that running the country is pretty difficult and that there are vast, important areas of world affairs that she doesn't know much about? If she has an appreciation of the sweet spot she's in now, she probably won't run. If, on the other hand, she believes most of what she says and thinks that a firm hand, good instincts and her previous political experience are more than enough to prepare her to be President, she well may. Everyone who runs has to believe they are worthy of the gig; only for the winners does this ever seem like anything other than an arrogant delusion...
posted by Diablevert at 7:57 PM on May 27, 2011 [1 favorite]

There's a lot of ways to interpret this, but here's one: she doesn't think she has a chance of beating Obama. If she thought she had a chance, she'd run.
posted by scunning at 8:18 PM on May 27, 2011

It's just a short bus tour, not a full campaign.

Your sentence is missing a hyphen.

Wrong! The original sentence is missing an em-dash. Hyphens are used for hyphenation, which this is not. Kudos to metafilter for getting it right in the blurb below:

Note: Help maintain a healthy, respectful discussion by focusing comments on the
issues, topics, and facts at hand—not at other members of the site.

See?
posted by GIFtheory at 9:09 PM on May 27, 2011 [3 favorites]

For the record, I can never snark that well on my own.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 9:12 PM on May 27, 2011

Short-bus requires a hyphen.
posted by Devils Rancher at 9:12 PM on May 27, 2011 [10 favorites]

>There have been all kinds of rumors in Austin that he has a lot of dirty laundry, most of it having to do with his sex life, and his people have had a really hard time keeping a lid on it. The old white guys who actually run Texas really don't care what he dips his wick into, as long as he keeps the corporations happy, so they tolerate him. But a national campaign? I'm not sure he can stand up to the scrutiny.

I would normally pass off the gossip as just that, but if you've lived in Texas long enough you hear it from people all over the political spectrum. His wife has allegedly tried to leave him twice, threatening to spill the beans, but his handlers have been able to keep her quiet. I really don't think he can do it successfully.

Boy, I hope you're right. I do recall rumors swirling pretty good on a couple sites a few years ago, but then it all just dried up.
posted by Devils Rancher at 9:22 PM on May 27, 2011

LC50 for CO₂ is an atmospheric concentration of 10% for one minute, which is pretty high. So, not particularly toxic.

Not particularly toxic, certainly not as toxic as monoxide, but it definitely is toxic— that's a much lower lethal concentration than if the method of action were just displacing oxygen. (I am not your physiologist, but iirc it acidifies your blood and mucks with gas transport somehow.)
posted by hattifattener at 9:27 PM on May 27, 2011 [2 favorites]

It mucks with gas transport by competitively inhibiting oxygenation of hemoglobin at a sufficiently high concentration. This will presumably lead to lactic acidosis from anaerobic metabolism, which may cause the bood acidity you heard about. (NYP, either, but I helped someone dying of lung cancer, recently.)
posted by Coventry at 3:27 AM on May 28, 2011 [2 favorites]

So this is a work computer, and not my usual one, and so I started reading this page before I logged in.

And, as usual, the Google ad is perfect.
posted by box at 7:16 AM on May 28, 2011

She's totally going to run, I think. And it's gonna be scary.
posted by cashman at 7:23 AM on May 28, 2011

Latest CNN poll shows 16% GOP voters would choose Guiliani :

Behind Giuliani in the poll is former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney with 15% supporting him. Sarah Palin who is launching a bus tour in hopes of running, came in with a whopping 13%. Ron Paul pulled in 12%. Herman Cain brought in 10% support and Newt Gingrich: 8%. Michele Bachmann came in with 7% support and Tim Pawlenty, only 5%. Santorum came in with a meager 2%.

posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 7:25 AM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

Latest CNN poll shows Guiliani still has name recognition.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 7:30 AM on May 28, 2011

GIFtheory: "It's just a short bus tour, not a full campaign.

Your sentence is missing a hyphen.

Wrong! The original sentence is missing an em-dash. Hyphens are used for hyphenation, which this is not. Kudos to metafilter for getting it right in the blurb below:

Note: Help maintain a healthy, respectful discussion by focusing comments on the
issues, topics, and facts at hand—not at other members of the site.

See?"

Woosh?
posted by symbioid at 7:37 AM on May 28, 2011 [4 favorites]

Cain will have a lot more support when social conservatives and values voters learn that he murdered his brother after an argument about ritual animal sacrifice.
posted by box at 7:38 AM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

Interesting, not one mention of Gary Johnson?
At Cpac he tied for third, beating Palin handily. It seems like many who oppose R(epublicans) are trying to elevate the self-promoting Palin, where not even Conservatives do...

Anti-war, anti-drug-war, returns of Civil Liberties, and many more positions that, like Paul, are 'closer' to many liberal positions, that many big D Dems run away from... without the Paul baggage, and without his son being Rand Paul... Not saying he's my candidate, just that the topics he raises are the sort of things that would force discussions of important topics; perhaps actually bringing us an intelligent debate, rather than a series of unfortunate drummed up 'controversies', slander and issue-dodging, as '08 gave us.

Although he says “we shouldn’t stop what we’re currently doing” to secure the border, Johnson rejects the idea of building a fence or deploying the National Guard as “a whole lot of money spent” without much effect. Instead, he thinks, we should create “an easy way to come across the border documented.” He defends Bush’s botched immigration package — “amnesty is not citizenship,” he reminds us — and warns against the “vilification of foreigners.” Comparing worries about illegal immigration to Cold War–era red-baiting, Johnson dubs immigrants “the new Russia.”

A 'loyal opposition' mentality has been lacking far too long. Not saying that he is "best" (actually, not commenting on that idea at all, merely adding a point on the chart of people who are candidates), just wish to caution people against doing the "pre-emptively hyper-focused knocking Palin" thing... while your eyes, outrage, and consternation are on the outrageous, there are people who most certainly possess the ability to appeal to wide demographics (he does Ironman Triathlons and CLIMBED EVEREST [fitness being the 2012 "would have a beer with him metric]).
posted by infinite intimation at 2:25 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

I love Gary for the drug war stuff but not so much for the economic libertarianism. I would still vote for him if he was nominated just because I can be single issue on the drug war at times.

That said, take a look at his performance in the first debate if you get a chance. He was goofy as hell and clearly not ready for primetime. Oh, and he is pro-choice so good luck with that.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 2:28 PM on May 28, 2011

Serious question: Have any of those anti-drug-war libertarian-leaning Republicans accomplished anything to stop or slow down or even shrink the drug war?
posted by box at 2:31 PM on May 28, 2011

Has anyone?
posted by furiousxgeorge at 2:35 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

Has any Democratic candidate done anything to stop or slow down or even shrink the (Federal mind you, [the "anti-drug-war libertarian Republicans" are generally state legislators]) drug war?
(it is a machine... really, a train in motion is not "stopped" by one person laying down on those tracks [which is why it wouldn't makes sense for President Obama to "lie down" on that issue] it takes people on 'both sides' putting things into those cogs... together, or at least in concert; otherwise, yeah, it is just talk)

He was goofy as hell and clearly not ready for primetime. Oh, and he is pro-choice so good luck with that.

Really? Not ideologically being "like him", I still fully appreciate his first point here in this debate... maybe you meant another debate? He seems pretty prime time in his (DING DING) responses to the (DING DING) questions here.
posted by infinite intimation at 2:44 PM on May 28, 2011

The points are fine, the delivery was not so good. He also fumbled some softballs at the end like the "reality show" question.
posted by furiousxgeorge at 3:43 PM on May 28, 2011

there are people who most certainly possess the ability to appeal to wide demographics

I think you can think that Johnson is the best of a bad bunch (which I do) and that you can think that a better, more intelligent, more humane American political scene would have a lot more Johnsons in it (which I do), without mistaking Johnson for someone who will ever get much broad support in the contemporary Republican party. Simply put, Gary Johnson is the Mike Gravel (or the John Anderson) of the 2012 elections.

(Though I would so buy a t-shirt that said "Gary Johnson 2012: I need my fucking Johnson!")
posted by octobersurprise at 7:22 PM on May 28, 2011

Have any of those anti-drug-war libertarian-leaning Republicans accomplished anything to stop or slow down or even shrink the drug war?

Well, for what it's worth, Gary Johnson TRIED while he was governor of NM. Here is a bit of a roundup of what he tried and how it went for him.

He was a bit of a mixed bag overall for New Mexico, but if a Republican were to win in 2012, I'd probably rather it be Johnson than anyone else in the probable field thus far.

(I doubt a R will will in 2012, but one never knows. It's a long time from now in campaign terms.)
posted by hippybear at 7:22 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

Simply put, Gary Johnson is the [Jon Anderson] of the 2012 elections.

Are you saying, he might win but it would be a long distance runaround?
posted by hippybear at 7:26 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

I think it would be close to the edge.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 7:33 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

No, more likely he'll come out of the sky and stand there.
posted by octobersurprise at 7:34 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

So the answer to your question is, of course, "Yes."
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 7:34 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

Come out of the sky and stand where? At the heart of the sunrise?
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 7:36 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

90125 votes would put him over the edge.
posted by octobersurprise at 7:37 PM on May 28, 2011

Hey, it can happen.
posted by octobersurprise at 7:40 PM on May 28, 2011

I've seen all good people make that same mistake. But I think it's just a wonderous story at the gates of delirium.
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 7:44 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

and to think I actually snuck back into this thread to make a lame Ted Turner puts Michele Bachmann campaign into overdrive joke
posted by It's Raining Florence Henderson at 7:48 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

golf clap
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 10:15 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

I'm really looking forward to the moment when Rick Perry says he wants to be President, and someone asks him how someone who's advocated for his state to secede from the country can turn around and want to be the leader of the country he wanted to leave so badly.
posted by threeturtles at 11:59 PM on May 28, 2011 [1 favorite]

I just went ahead and favorites all those comments. But then, I'm pretty progressive.
posted by Potomac Avenue at 12:58 AM on May 29, 2011

Wait, what? No Going For the One?
posted by Grangousier at 8:45 AM on May 29, 2011 [1 favorite]

His favoriability is really high among Republicans who have actually heard of him.

My first impression of Cain is he is very mealy mouthed and slippery but tries hard to appear pragmatic. He seems to stumble on some serious policy questions and tends to fall back to talking points when cornered. He is very new to the whole parade, so maybe he'll figure it out in time and get coached, but he looks pretty weak to me. His biggest strength seems to be his air of the commonsense bureaucrat, but not so much a leader with ideas, and I don't think he's got what it would take to inspire people enough to get nominated.
posted by krinklyfig at 11:41 PM on May 30, 2011

I'm really looking forward to the moment when Rick Perry says he wants to be President, and someone asks him how someone who's advocated for his state to secede from the country can turn around and want to be the leader of the country he wanted to leave so badly.

Isn't this just a variation on the often unasked question of Republicans, that if they dislike the government so much why would anyone trust them to run it? Or for that matter why would anyone who dislikes government so much want to become a part of it?
posted by krinklyfig at 11:43 PM on May 30, 2011

Has any Democratic candidate done anything to stop or slow down or even shrink the (Federal mind you, [the "anti-drug-war libertarian Republicans" are generally state legislators]) drug war?

At least some of them try ...

Mark Leno and John Vasconcellos spring to mind.

Oh, national (it really is a state issue, though ...) ... Barney Frank (D-MA)?

Barney Frank again

Sam Farr (D-CA)

Jim Webb (D-CA) (indirectly)
posted by mrgrimm at 1:28 PM on May 31, 2011 [1 favorite]

Listen my children and you shall hear,
Of the midnight ride of...wait, what?
posted by scalefree at 8:02 AM on June 3, 2011

f-f-foo... fool... fool me once...
posted by Devils Rancher at 1:15 PM on June 3, 2011 [1 favorite]

Washington Post checks some of Palin's "facts."

Don't want to click? No big surprise that the Queen of Pulling Shit out of her Ass is at it again.
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 4:37 PM on June 3, 2011 [2 favorites]

#accordingtopalin
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 5:06 PM on June 3, 2011 [1 favorite]

I have no words. But then, she doesn't either. This fool was almost VP. I am scared at how Dubya-like she sounded though. The world ends if she runs and wins.
posted by cashman at 1:20 PM on June 4, 2011

Slate reports this morning that edits were attempted to the Wikipedia page on Paul Revere that would justify Palin's remarks (the rationale apparently being that her confused version of Revere "warning the British" could be sort of correct since at the time many colonists still considered themselves British).
posted by aught at 9:19 AM on June 6, 2011 [2 favorites]

aught, I laughed sooooo hard at that. Thank you for posting.
posted by Secret Life of Gravy at 9:58 AM on June 6, 2011

This is such a small mistake. Subtitute "inform the British" for "warn the British" and the mistake goes away.

It's such a tiny misstep compared to her massive lies. I'm kinda boggled it got so much attention. It more of a malapropism, i.e. misuse of "warn."

I feel mostly sorry for Sarah Palin. One day she will get old.
posted by mrgrimm at 11:54 AM on June 6, 2011

I don't feel sorry for her. You can't Harley-Davidson your way up to and then into a bus emblazoned U!S!A! with America! America! America! neon signs in the windows, traveling from American history site to American history site and then bumble through a pitiful understanding of the landmark you just visited. Much of what was scary wasn't her obvious lack of knowledge, it was her George W. Bush like delivery.
posted by cashman at 12:51 PM on June 6, 2011

Santorum's In
posted by homunculus at 1:12 PM on June 6, 2011

Santorum: D-Day Troops Fought For Health Care Freedom
posted by homunculus at 1:13 PM on June 6, 2011

I was most definitely wrong:

Palin: You know what? I didn't mess up about Paul Revere. Here is what Paul Revere did. He warned the Americans that the British were coming, the British were coming, and they were going to try take our arms and we got to make sure that we were protecting ourselves and shoring up all of ammunitions and our firearms so that they couldn't take it. But remember that the British had already been there, many soldiers for seven years in that area. And part of Paul Revere's ride -- and it wasn't just one ride -- he was a courier, he was a messenger. Part of his ride was to warn the British that we're already there. That, hey, you're not going to succeed. You're not going to take American arms. You are not going to beat our own well-armed persons, individual, private militia that we have. He did warn the British. And in a shout-out, gotcha type of question that was asked of me, I answered candidly. And I know my American history.
posted by mrgrimm at 9:24 AM on June 8, 2011

So, when the bus goes from place to place, and she goes from place to place, is she actually on the bus? IIRC last time they traveled separately a lot of the time last time.
posted by Artw at 9:32 AM on June 8, 2011

Speaking of American history: The Right's Favorite Historian: Founding Fathers Opposed Darwin
posted by homunculus at 9:30 AM on June 9, 2011

If it hasn't already been linked, here is Paul Revere's own accounting of the incident.
posted by jabberjaw at 10:33 AM on June 9, 2011 [1 favorite]

Holy fuck that David Barton shit is scaaaaaaaaaaary. Not only that, did you follow the link to "Jesus opposed Minimum Wage"? Funny how he can see it that way and I can see it as a sort of Communism where all are paid regardless of effort.

What a jagoff. *sigh*
posted by symbioid at 11:40 AM on June 9, 2011

Those founding fathers were AMAZING! Godlike, even.
posted by Devils Rancher at 1:13 PM on June 9, 2011

Not only that, did you follow the link to "Jesus opposed Minimum Wage"?

I didn't watch the video, but the passage cited is the parable of the workers at the vineyard. My mind boggles how that can be a call to reject a minimum standard of living for everyone.

No, I'm not going to watch that drivel.
posted by mrgrimm at 2:23 PM on June 9, 2011