Re: Palin – I thought it Might be This
Read some of the comments from other, not anonymous McCain staffers here.
Similar Posts
The Loom Moves
Byhenry
Carl Zimmer is a great science writer, and he will now be a columnist for Discover Magazine. Accordingly, his blog, The Loom, has moved there.
Series on Women in Ministry
Byhenry
I found a series on women in ministry via my Blogrush widget (look right and down a bit). It’s quite good, in four parts, part 1, part 2, part 3, and part 4. Check it out.
Freaking Out About Ayn Rand
Byhenry
As someone who read Ayn Rand starting back in my college days, found her intellectually stimulating, yet disagreed in many ways, I loved this cartoon from Reason.com. (HT: The Agitator)
Gray Areas
Byhenry
Here’s a good post/discussion on complexity and the gray areas. HT: Kouya Chronicle.
Florida Science Standards Petition Comments
Byhenry
Wesley Elsberry has posted his comment on the petition for the Florida science standards at The Panda’s Thumb. If you haven’t signed, consider signing and commenting.
This is Disgusting
Byhenry
Here’s another incident of mandatory religion in the Air Force (HT: Metacatholic). Besides the fact that it is quite improper for the Air Force to provide mandatory religious indoctrination, this program clearly denigrates the faith of many who would disagree with a number of elements of the presentation.
I’ve been somewhat dismayed at this brouhaha.
I think Palin was a disaster, and appeared way out of her depth. But on the other hand, some of the recent reports have been over the top. Most specifically, I never considered the “Africa is a country” slur to be at all plausible. The basis for this was only ever third hand innuendo, with no record of context or names for who inferred that Palin was unaware Africa was a continent, or why.
A whole pile of folks who should have known much better jumped on this story at once, apparently willing to believe the worst on the basis of nothing. It was shameful; especially from people who would generally like to think of themselves as part of the “reality based community”… folks who like to think of themselves as rationalists and people who follow evidence and reason. But in a couple of cases that went out the window.
An alternative picture on whether Palin thought Africa was a continent or not is given at ABC news, by Palin staffer Meg Stapleton. Read it here: Palin Aide Fires Back at Reported McCain Camp Slams.
But “she knows it’s a continent,” Stapleton said. “It was just a human mistake, just like Obama saying 57 states. I don’t think anyone ever doubted that Obama knows there are 50 states.”
One can reasonably say we have a “he said, she said” situation. But the onus is most definitely on the anonymous sources who give no detail; and in the absence of better documentation, Stapleton’s story on this is far more credible.
The failure of some allegedly pro-rational bloggers to handle this with more common sense and reason is very disappointing.