Sarah Palin: Ten Years Ago

As posted on Facebook:
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Ten Years Ago

Ten years ago today, ordinary Americans went to work or boarded a plane and found themselves fighting on the front lines of a battle they did not choose. They acquitted themselves with grace and courage, just as the thousands of men and women who enlisted to fight in our armed forces—many on the anniversaries of this day—in order to exact justice for their fellow Americans. We will never forget those who died ten years ago today, we will never forget those who died in the war that started on that day, and we ask God to comfort and bless their families. From across this great nation, grateful Americans honor those who defend our homeland. God bless America.

- Sarah Palin

- JP

ADN: Gov. Palin introduces Glenn Beck to enthusiastic Anchorage crowd

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Sarah Palin introduced Glenn Beck at an event in Alaska Saturday night, telling an enthusiastic crowd of thousands that the conservative commentator has been an inspiration to millions of Americans. According to an Anchorage Daily News report, the 2008 vice presidential candidate told Beck that he represents why so many citizens never have to apologize for being American:

Palin and Beck, a popular Fox News Channel personality, took turns recalling what they were doing when they heard of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Palin, who was mayor of Wasilla at the time, said she got a call from the town's police chief about the attacks, then turned on her television.

"It looked unreal that this was happening to our country," she said.

She said she shut down city hall, then went over to her church to pray for the country.

Thousands of fans who paid between $73.75 and $225 for tickets gathered inside the downtown Anchorage center to see the two.

Palin and Beck joked about speculation that they would make an announcement at the event about a possible 2012 presidential run. Beck told Palin that he would not be a candidate, while Palin did not answer a similar question.

"I'd like to announce that in 2012, we will both be ... voting," Beck said.

Christopher Balfe, president of Beck's media company, said Beck will donate his speaking fee from the Saturday night event to the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, and Gov. Palin wasn't paid for her appearance.

According to Bloomberg's account of the event, both Beck and Gov. Sarah Palin told their audience that America has grown complacent about protecting itself since the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001:

“I fear that we are forgetting what it takes,” Beck told about 4,000 at a convention center in Anchorage. “How do we not make the same mistake again?”

Palin, a former Alaska governor and the 2008 Republican vice presidential nominee, pointed the blame at President Barack Obama.

“It starts from the top,” she said. “Those who kind of set the tone in our country that would lead us towards a complacency that is very, very, very dangerous. I fear that is why we are seeing the patterns we’re seeing right now, especially over the last 20 months.”

The Anchorage event, on the ninth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, came two weeks after Beck and Palin appeared together at the “Restoring Honor” rally on the National Mall in Washington, where they urged hundreds of thousands gathered there to embrace traditional American values.

The Aug. 28 rally was held on the 47th anniversary and on the site of Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech. While the timing drew criticism from civil rights leaders, Beck said it was a coincidence the event was held on that date.

Beck, 46, and Palin, a contributor to News Corp.’s Fox News, are both stars of the Tea Party movement, a loose-knit coalition of voters seeking limits on government spending, taxes and debt.

Palin, 46, is scheduled to speak Sept. 17 at a Republican Party event in Iowa, the state that holds the first presidential nominating contest.

After she gave a brief speech at a Sept. 11 commemoration in her hometown of Wasilla, Alaska, several in the audience approached her to encourage her to run for president in 2012.

“Bless your heart,” she told one man.

Palin said she was entertained by media speculation before the Anchorage event that she was going to announce a presidential bid with Beck at her side. If she did make such an announcement, Palin said it would be on an Alaska radio show.

“I laughed about some big 2012 announcement because, hey, if there’s going to be some big national announcement, I am going to do it where it is most worthy,” she said. “It’s going to happen on the Bob & Mark Show.”

Beck later asked Palin whether she planned to run for president. “Are you going to run, Glenn?” she responded, without answering his question.

Beck, 46, said the Anchorage event was not specifically designed for Sept. 11. Organizers had originally considered Sept. 4, and decided against it because they did not want to compete with the Alaska State Fair.

[...]

One woman was removed from the hall after she shouted during the program, “Both of you are imbeciles.” Audience members were scanned for weapons as they entered the building.

ADN's photo gallery of the event is here. The leftist Alaska Dispatch has a more detailed -- but condescendingly elitist and quite snarky -- story about the event here. The AP's article is here. KTUU's coverage is here and here. That "large group of protesters" KTUU focused on in its unbalanced video package was a relatively small band of what ADN pegged as "several dozen," while the crowd of ticket holders numbered over 4,000.

- JP

Sarah Palin and Joe Miller attend ‘9/11 Remembrance Rally’ in Wasilla (Updated)

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Gov. Palin joined the crowd at an event hosted by Alaska's main tea party faction, the Conservative Patriots Group, in her home town of Wasilla Saturday to remember the 9/11 terrorist attacks, according to the Anchorage Daily News:

In a brief speech at the event marking the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, Palin praised service members. The home state public appearance was a rare one for Palin...

[...]

Palin received an enthusiastic welcome, with people surrounding her for autographs and pictures.

Joe Miller, Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate, also appeared at the rally. In remarks to the crowd, he talked about the need to protect American liberties.

The Alaska Dispatch reports that Gov. Palin was well received by the Wasilla crowd:

Much to the delight and surprise of many, Palin showed, got on the stage, and asked the now-familiar, "Do you know your freedom?" question. The response indicated that yes, they did. And that wasn't the only thing they loved.

She then asked all military veterans to stand and led a round of huge applause before saying, "It's really, really good to be home, and tonight I think I'll see some of you at the Glenn Beck event."

[...]

After her speech, Palin stepped off the stage and began a long round of handshakes and autograph signing, where she shook hands with everyone from Mead Treadwell to Sam Little, and signed everything from copies of her book to the back of a little girl's shirt to a small rock that a middle-aged woman handed her with a smile.

The crowd was happy and excited to be so close to their former governor, pressing close to shake her hand and get a quick picture. When a reporter asked Palin to identify the biggest threat to the U.S., she answered "Our debt, which is a natural security issue," before turning back to her admiring fans. Palin's daughter, Piper, quickly became bored with the whole scene and asked her mother when they could go.

As Palin walked outside the sports center into the bright Wasilla sun and stepped up into a black Escalade, men standing in the parking lot yelled out "Praying for you!" and "Love you, Sarah!"

The rally was conducted just hours before a Glenn Beck event was scheduled to begin in nearby Anchorage. Thousands are expected to attend tonight's event, where Gov. Palin will introduce Beck. All but 700 of the 4,500 tickets for the Beck event have been sold, says Therin Ferrin, who is with a private contractor that operates the city's convention centers.

Update: ADN's photo gallery of the event is here.

- JP

A busy 9/11 Saturday in Wasilla, Alaska

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An organization called the Conservative Patriots Group is hosting what it calls "a non-partisan, non-political remembrance rally" at the Curtis D. Menard Memorial Sports Center in Wasilla from noon to 2 p.m. Alaska Time today.

In a letter to the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman last week, Frank Betti, a member of the group's directors, said the theme of the event is "Standing Strong for America":

We invite the entire community to join together with us to respect and honor those American civilians, military, police and emergency responders who lost their lives as a result of this horrific and unprovoked terrorist attack.

Wasilla Mayor Verne Rupright, U.S. Senate candidates Joe Miller and tentatively Scott McAdams will speak at this event on how the 9/11 tragedy has affected America and what we can do to prevent future attacks.

But according to the left-leaning Alaska Dispatch, a McAdams spokesperson said the Democrat will not attend due to a "scheduling conflict."

The Dispatch quotes a very unreliable source who claims that Gov. Palin will be at the rally, and that "attendees will follow her to Anchorage in a giant motorcade for her scheduled speech at Glenn Beck's event at Anchorage's Dena'ina Civic and Convention Center." A Palin rally appearance and motorcade was not mentioned in the Conservative Patriots Group's letter and has not been confirmed by the Palin camp, to our knowledge.

A local group of leftists has been busy organizing to protest the rally because, hey, "Standing Strong for America" obviously must be a bad thing to do. /sarc

- JP

No, media tools, Glenn Beck and Gov. Palin are NOT making money off 9/11 event

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We expect hysterical leftist sites to slam Sarah Palin for actions she never took, for words she never spoke and for being paid fees she neither asked for nor received. The left never even blinks when it tells a lie about her. But they couldn't care less if they use lies to attack the governor.

That why it's no surprise to see garbage like this from Washington Post left wing columnist Jonathan Capehart:

"Restoring America" apparently wasn't enough for Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck. They now appear to be cashing in on the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. Politico reports that tickets for their Anchorage, Alaska, event this Saturday range between $65 and $115. If you pony up $200 you get VIP seats.

[...]

If building a Muslim community center dedicated to human understanding and tolerance two blocks from Ground Zero "stabs hearts," then how should taking money from people at an event "to commemorate 9/11" be described? Disrespectful. Distatesful. Shameful. Greedy. Narcissistic. Did I leave any adjectives out?

But this statement from a Beck spokesman catches Capehart and a lot of other lying leftists with their adjectives, not to mention their hubris, down around their ankles:

“Glenn had always intended to donate the speaking fee from the event on Saturday, September 11th in Alaska to Special Operations Warrior Foundation. Governor Palin is not and was never going to receive a fee for introducing Glenn at this event.”

To his credit, Capeheart at least posted an update after the fact to reflect the that neither Beck nor Gov. Palin will be making money off of the Anchorage event. He should have also included an apology, because his column was a particularly nasty piece of leftist manure. But at least he posted the correction. Few, if any, nutroots leftist websites will follow suit. The truth just doesn't fit their Haterade-fueled narrative.

We expect a little more, however, from conservatives. We expect conservatives not to jump the gun and simply rush into print with "me too" pieces that just echo what the leftists say when they cast dispersion on Sarah Palin and Glenn Beck. Like Gov. Palin says, "keep your powder dry" and get the facts before posting accusatory pieces that make other conservatives look bad.

- JP

Sarah Palin: Join Glenn Beck and me Saturday at the Dena’ina Center

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Gov. Palin went on Facebook today to make it official. She and Glenn Beck will appear together in Anchorage this Saturday:

Glenn Beck Visits Alaska on 9/11

Glenn’s coming to the Last Frontier! I hope my fellow Alaskans (and anyone visiting from Outside) will join me this Saturday, September 11, 2010, at Anchorage’s Dena’ina Center at 8:00 p.m. Glenn Beck will be there – you won’t want to miss it. Tickets are available at Ticketmaster.com.

We can count on Glenn to make the night interesting and inspiring, and I can think of no better way to commemorate 9/11 than to gather with patriots who will “never forget.” Hope to see you there!

- Sarah Palin

- JP

The Jazz Patriot: Media obsfucates substance on mosque issue

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When Sarah Palin re-coined the word “refudiate” on Fox News' "Hannity" program, the lamestream media quickly launched its missiles of mass distraction, a tactic designed to divert attention away from the substance of what she said. This is part of a long-term strategy which they have successfully employed for the better part of the past two years. they do it every time.

The essence of her commentary about the construction of a mosque near ground zero in New York, an act she condemned as deplorable, was lost in the media-generated roar over the word "refudiate." This is a shame, because what she had to say about the ground zero mega-mosque was important, and the opinion she expressed on the issue is one shared by a majority of both New Yorkers and voters nationwide.

On his blog The Jazz Patriot, Tom Wholley, a retired Navy Senior chief, weighs in:

I couldn't agree with [Gov. Palin] more, despite commentary from Muslim clerics responding to criticism from the families of many of the 9/11 victims that it will bring people together. Are you kidding me? It’s just the Muslim community rubbing 9/11 into the faces of the “infidels” as they have been doing for centuries. During an earlier period in history, Muslims built one of the most sacred places in all of Islam, the Dome of the Rock, on top of the old Jewish Temple in Jerusalem while the Jews had been driven out of the land and we’re living in exile, so it’s not like they haven’t done something like this before.

Despite the substantive nature of her comments, the writers of propaganda at the former mainstream news outlets and the late night comedians have been having a field day “refudiating Sarah” and ignoring the abominable nature of the plans they are making for that sacred area of turf in the heart of Manhattan where two of the most magnificent buildings in the history of the world once stood and 3, 000 innocent civilians were killed by radical Islamic terrorists on September 11, 2001.

You can bet your bottom dollar (which is about all that Obamanomics has left us with) that the next time and every time Sarah Palin says something of substance on the issues of the day, the journos will not report on the common sense of her commentary or even on the issue itself. They will instead reactivate Operation Shiny Object to bury the steak and drench the mediascape with the sizzle.

Read Tom Wholley's full post at The Jazz Patriot.

Related: 9/11 Families for a Safe & Strong America thanked Gov. Palin for standing with them on this issue.

- JP

Sarah Palin: An Intolerable Mistake on Hallowed Ground

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In a Tuesday night Facebook posting, Gov. Sarah Palin explained that opposition to the construction of a "mega-mosque" at Ground Zero in Manhattan is not about religious intolerance, but rather about common decency:

An Intolerable Mistake on Hallowed Ground

Earlier today, Mayor Bloomberg responded to my comments about the planned mosque at Ground Zero by suggesting that a decision not to allow the building of a mosque at that sacred place would somehow violate American principles of tolerance and openness.

No one is disputing that America stands for – and should stand for – religious tolerance. It is a foundation of our republic. This is not an issue of religious tolerance but of common moral sense. To build a mosque at Ground Zero is a stab in the heart of the families of the innocent victims of those horrific attacks. Just days after 9/11, the spiritual leader of the organization that wants to build the mosque, Imam Faisal Abdul Rauf, suggested that blame be placed on the innocents when he stated that the “United States’ policies were an accessory to the crime that happened” and that “in the most direct sense, Osama bin Laden is made in the USA.” Rauf refuses to recognize that Hamas is a terrorist organization dedicated to the destruction of our ally, Israel, and refuses to provide information about the sources of funding for the $100 million mosque. Rauf also plays a key role in a group behind the flotilla designed to provoke Israel in its justifiable blockade of Gaza. These are just a few of the points Americans are realizing as New York considers the proposed mosque just a stone’s throw away from 9/11’s sacred ground.

I agree with the sister of one of the 9/11 victims (and a New York resident) who said: “This is a place which is 600 feet from where almost 3,000 people were torn to pieces by Islamic extremists. I think that it is incredibly insensitive and audacious really for them to build a mosque, not only on that site, but to do it specifically so that they could be in proximity to where that atrocity happened.”

Many Americans, myself included, feel it would be an intolerable and tragic mistake to allow such a project sponsored by such an individual to go forward on such hallowed ground. This is nothing close to “religious intolerance,” it’s just common decency.

- Sarah Palin

- JP

Lori Ziganto: Sarah Palin Rightly Rejects Ground Zero Mosque

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Libertarian-leaning conservative Lori Ziganto joins Pamela Geller, Benyamin Korn and others who commend Gov. Palin for her stand on the Ground Zero mosque outrage:

On Sunday Sarah Palin, exhibiting common sense and courage of her convictions, called for a rejection of the planned mosque at Ground Zero. The planned mosque has been causing controversy, controversy that was easily foreseen by anyone with a brain and, you know, an ounce of true as opposed to feigned sensitivity. Apparently, this does not include a New York City Community Board nor Mayor Bloomberg... [and] Not if you are an aide in Nanny Mayor Bloomberg’s office.

[...]

Sigh. Firstly, “mind your business” is hilariously ironic coming from Bloomberg’s administration. An administration that is striving to stick it’s nanny nose in every aspect of everyone’s business, down to how much salt they use. Furthermore, this was, of course, followed by the good old “you haters! So Racist ™ !” narrative. Not surprising, coming from an aide for Mayor Bloomberg. Remember, when the car bomb was found it Times Square, Mayor Bloomberg went on air and accused “somebody with a political agenda that doesn’t like the health care bill or something” as the perpetrator. Then, when even he could no longer deny the obvious and was forced to admit that it was an attempted terrorist attack, he fretted about a “backlash” against Muslims. His first thought was that Americans are racist and bullies. I’ve always said that everyone has the right to be stupid, but Mayor Bloomberg totally abuses the privilege.

After Palin’s tweet, a fracas on Twitter ensued, with the most prevalent, and intellectually dishonest straw man being “It’s not at Ground Zero! Stop discriminating, you discriminator-y wing nuts!” Only, it is at Ground Zero and only someone suffering from acute moral relativism and cognitive dissonance wouldn’t recognize that fact. The mosque is to be built at the site of the destroyed Burlington Coat Factory. The building was destroyed by fuselage from one of the planes that were purposely flown into the World Trade Center, by Islamic terrorists, killing nearly 3,000 innocent people on September 11, 2001.

There is another fact conveniently overlooked by those who wish to sanctimoniously condemn others as haters while patting themselves on the back for being oh-so-faux-tolerant, even at the expense of human decency. In Islam, a religion that demands the conquering and conversion of those it deems to be infidels, “mosques of war” are often built at the sites of odiously perceived victories over infidels. Even if this particular mosque isn’t being built for that reason, to the jihadists that is exactly what it will be. A shrine of conquer and honor. Where almost 3,000 innocent ‘infidels” were killed.

Mayor Bloomberg supports this. Until now, it has remained primarily a local New York City issue. Sarah Palin, once again bravely speaking her mind without fear of being not politically correct, has hopefully brought this to the forefront nationally. This mosque must not be built. We must stop cowering in fear of the politically correct and we must stop condoning blatant provocations as a form of deluded tolerance and appeasement. Instead of busily demonizing American citizens, apologizing to those who wish to kill us, and frantically avoiding perceived “profiling” out of the insane fear of looking non-politically correct, Nanny Bloomberg can learn from the Mama Grizzly. Let’s hope that he does.

Perhaps Lori is setting the bar too high for Bloomberg, who doesn't have a clue and isn't likely to get one, even if he trips over it. Read her full commentary at the NewsReal Blog.

- JP

Pamela Geller: You betcha! Sarah against Ground Zero mosque

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As we reported Sunday:

Pamela Geller posted this afternoon on Atlas Shrugs:

Gd, I love this woman! She is not afraid of the jackals, hyenas, and vultures who troll her home, her garbage cans, and her most prized possession, her children. She has spine, character, ethics, integrity, and above all, true grit. If she runs, I'll be right behind her.

Here is Sarah's twitter: (hat tip MZ)

Peaceful New Yorkers, pls refute the Ground Zero mosque plan if you believe catastrophic pain caused @ Twin Towers site is too raw, too real

The Islamic supremacist mega mosque is a stab in the eye of every American. The question is, why there?

[...]

And let me add that I am proud to be a National Advisory Board member of Jewish Americans for Sarah Palin.

UPDATE: Another Palin tweet. Go Sarah!

SarahPalinUSA

Peace-seeking Muslims, pls understand, Ground Zero mosque is UNNECESSARY provocation; it stabs hearts. Pls reject it in interest of healing
about 1 hour ago via Twitter for BlackBerry®

Now, two days later, Pamela has revised and extended her remarks in a WorldNetDaily commentary. Here are some choice excerpts:

Palin has sided with Americans and American interests. Palin, once again, does the right right. And it's wildly refreshing. The Left is twisted in knots. That's what she does. She twists up the morally bankrupt liberals. The Islamic supremacist mega-mosque that liberal politicians support is a stab in the eye of every American. The question is, why there? Why did the terror-tied Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf, the leader of the initiative to build the mega-mosque at Ground Zero, spend nearly $5 million in cash to buy the property for a triumphal mosque a mere 600 feet from the site of the largest attack – an Islamic attack – on American soil in our history?

[...]

Palin restates the obvious. She is unafraid, and so she just gets better and better – and she was brilliant to begin with. And Palin is onto Obama, and has consistently taken him on, again unafraid. It is no wonder that the post-American president and his left-wing thugs are scared to death of her.

This is what the leader of the free world should sound like. The woman is singular. She takes on all comers in defense of liberty and America's founding principles. She has more testicular fortitude than all of the GOP. The Left quakes at the mere mention of her name. No matter how the destroyers come at her, she never backs down, never gives up, never gives in. Is it any wonder that the New York Times ran a front-page story on Palin's emergence as the most influential figure in Republican politics? If the Times is admitting it, pigs are flying.

Obama's hatred of the good for being the good manifests itself in his contempt for Sarah Palin. His contempt is a badge of honor.

Palin is everything Obama isn't: quintessentially American, proud, patriotic, decent and good. Sarah has something Obama can only dream of – heart and soul. Her courageous opposition to this mega-mosque, while the politically correct flock to endorse it, shows that once again.

Read the full Pamela Geller WND op-ed here.

h/t: roy y

- JP

Forget 'refudiate' -- the real issue is the location of the mosque

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The moonbatosphere is trying like crazy (heh) to divert attention away from the fact that a majority Of New York City voters oppose construction of a mosque near ground zero. Ignoring the real issue, the left is pushing hard on the trivial matter of a word Gov. Palin used in a tweet on the issue. DaTechguy ignores the left's furious footwork and focuses on the real issue they don't want to talk about:

The reason why this memeorandum thread has so much action is the absolute apoplexy.

Sarah Palin has the courage to bluntly say what everyone knows, but the left wants to pretend isn’t true.

A Mosque could be built anywhere on the subway line to have easy access, building it near ground zero is a deliberate attempt of Islam to assert power. Every radical Islamist worldwide will see it as a sign of submission, particularly when the towers have not been rebuilt. Pretending otherwise is a delusion of the type we’ve talked about before.

Yet Sarah Palin comes right out and says it. Not only is the uncomfortable truth expressed but it is expressed by the one the left hates most of all.

Read DaTechguy's full blog post here.

- JP

Benyamin Korn: Gov. Palin Boosts Opposition to Mega Mosque at Ground Zero

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Benyamin Korn, director of Jewish Americans for Sarah Palin, credits Gov. Palin for being "the first national political personality" to support the resistance movement in the U.S. against Islamization:

As one caller to a Sunday talk show put it: “This is like the Japanese wanting to put a Shinto shrine at the entrance to Pearl Harbor.”

Now Sarah Palin has joined the fight.

How wonderful that the latest “Palin endorsement” comes on the very day The New York Times runs a page 1 Sunday story of Gov. Palin’s emergence as the most influential figure in Republican politics. When the Times admits it, Sarah Palin has really arrived.

Gov. Palin has demonstrated once again that she is not afraid to listen to the warnings of our latter-day Paul Reveres. And to add her voice to theirs.

As with the other famous “Palin endorsements,” may this one be for a game changer.

Read Benyamin's full post here.

- JP

Pamela Geller: Sarah Palin Opposes Ground Zero Mega Mosque

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Pamela Geller posted this afternoon on Atlas Shrugs:

Gd, I love this woman! She is not afraid of the jackals, hyenas, and vultures who troll her home, her garbage cans, and her most prized possession, her children. She has spine, character, ethics, integrity, and above all, true grit. If she runs, I'll be right behind her.

Here is Sarah's twitter: (hat tip MZ)

Peaceful New Yorkers, pls refute the Ground Zero mosque plan if you believe catastrophic pain caused @ Twin Towers site is too raw, too real

The Islamic supremacist mega mosque is a stab in the eye of every American. The question is, why there?

[...]

And let me add that I am proud to be a National Advisory Board member of Jewish Americans for Sarah Palin.

UPDATE: Another Palin tweet. Go Sarah!

SarahPalinUSA

Peace-seeking Muslims, pls understand, Ground Zero mosque is UNNECESSARY provocation; it stabs hearts. Pls reject it in interest of healing
about 1 hour ago via Twitter for BlackBerry®

- JP

Quote of the Day (September 11, 2009)

Kyle-Anne Shiver: 

"During the presidential campaign, when Charlie Gibson asked Sarah Palin (rather condescendingly, I thought) whether she believed we were fighting a holy war, he had the whole situation inside-out. It really doesn't matter one whit whether we Americans think of it as a holy war. What matters is that the Islamists do indeed believe -- fervently unto death -- that they are fighting a holy war."

- JP

Sarah Palin - Remembering 9/11: We Are Americans

Sarah Palin posted the following on her Facebook Notes page Friday morning:

Remembering 9/11: We Are Americans

It has been eight years since the United States suffered the worst attack on our soil since Pearl Harbor. As we look back, we should take stock of what has transpired since then. We have sent our nation's soldiers into battlefields far from home to defend us. These brave men and women live in treacherous conditions, facing improvised roadside bombs, suicide bombers and other attacks. Yet they fight on in their mission to defend the United States and all of us without complaint.

Our all-volunteer service is made up of Americans of all races, creeds, and economic backgrounds. These soldiers are on the front lines of this battle, and there are others in the fight as well. We must continue to give our utmost support to the United States military and those that support their efforts. In light of this, I have added my name to a letter sent to President Obama urging him to remain committed to prosecuting the War on Terror in Afghanistan. Never have so few defended the liberty of so many. We must continue to support their mission because they will continue to fight for us.

President Reagan ended his first inaugural with this story:

Under one such marker lies a young man-Martin Treptow-who left his job in a small town barber shop in 1917 to go to France with the famed Rainbow Division. There, on the western front, he was killed trying to carry a message between battalions under heavy artillery fire. We are told that on his body was found a diary. On the flyleaf under the heading, "My Pledge," he had written these words: "America must win this war. Therefore, I will work, I will save, I will sacrifice, I will endure, I will fight cheerfully and do my utmost, as if the issue of the whole struggle depended on me alone." The crisis we are facing today does not require of us the kind of sacrifice that Martin Treptow and so many thousands of others were called upon to make. It does require, however, our best effort, and our willingness to believe in ourselves and to believe in our capacity to perform great deeds; to believe that together, with God's help, we can and will resolve the problems which now confront us. And, after all, why shouldn't we believe that? We are Americans. God bless you, and thank you.

As we look back to that tragic day eight years ago we take pride in the fact that we came together as a nation in the days, months and years that followed. We rose to the challenge that fateful day and we still can. And why shouldn't we believe that? We are Americans.

I thank all our servicemen and women, in and out of uniform, for keeping us safe over the last eight years in the face of enormous odds.

Please thank a veteran today. They certainly do not look for those thanks, but they have more than earned it.

- Sarah Palin

h/t: 2012 Draft Sarah Committee Chairman Randy Highsmith, in an e-mail in which he also says this Alan Jackson song still makes him misty-eyed:



It has the same effect on us, brother.

- JP