Sarah Palin's Cheat Sheet

Sarah Palin gave a speech to the Tea Party Convention on Saturday night, followed by a question and answer segment after her speech. During the prepared speech, Sarah used note cards and mocked Barack Obama for using teleprompters. During the question and answer segment, Sarah answered pre-screened questions from audience members. At one point in her first answer, Associated Press reporters took pictures of Sarah staring down at her left hand. On her left palm, the words "lift the American spirit, budget cuts, taxes, and energy" were clearly visible in black magic marker ink. Sarah Palin had to write key word answers on her hand in order to respond to pre-screened questions. To clarify, Sarah couldn't remember the answers to questions that had been pre-approved for her and that she had read in advance before the speech, so she wrote out a cheat sheet on her hand. Who gave Sarah this profoundly stupid advice? Was she consulting with 7th graders that had flunked a spelling test? Did she really not see the irony of complaining that Barack Obama uses teleprompters to give speeches (like every other President since Dwight Eisenhower) while writing answers in magic marker on her hand? Would a chocolate Labrador outscore Sarah Palin on a standardized test? These are all reasonable questions.

The Fox News Bizarro Universe

Asked why Fox News cut away 20 minutes early from the question and answer session Obama held with House Republicans (which was largely seen as a big coup for the president), Ailes sidestepped the question, proclaiming, "We're the most trusted name in news."

Seriously, this is the textbook definition of a non sequitur. Arianna Huffington asks a more than reasonable question and Roger Ailes gives what can only be described as a profoundly bizarre response. This only reinforces the larger picture. Roger Ailes and most Fox News viewers spend most of their time living in an alternate, fantasy-based universe. They conduct separate, unrelated, detached-from-reality conversations with themselves. These outlandish responses are so common with conservatives for a reason. They're just not comfortable with facts or reality.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/01/31/roger-ailes-on-this-week_n_443555.html

Average citizen that doesn't watch Fox News asking Fox News viewer generic question in the course of polite chit-chat: I sure hope we don't get more snow. Do you think we'll get more snow?

Average Fox News viewer responding with typical disregard for fact-based reality: Probably the Celtics or the Lakers. Also, I'm pretty sure that brown people and homosexuals are plotting to poison the water supply.

Average citizen that doesn't watch Fox News: Um...that's outrageous. We're not hanging out anymore. Seriously, you're absolutely *&%#ing insane.

Fox News commentator Steve Doocy of "Fox and Friends" interacting with popular celebrity chef Rachael Ray: We're chatting with Rachael Ray. So Rachael, honest answer-do you think that Barack Obama is a homosexual pedophile or a homosexual secret Muslim terrorist?

Rachael Ray: I um...what? I don't know how to respond to the...are you for real? I mean, for the love of God...look, I was supposed to talk about my new fondue recipe and make a pitch for my cookbook. You people are bat*%#$ crazy. Seriously, this entire network makes me physically sick to my stomach. This interview is over. No, no, I'm leaving. I'm done. I don't even know what to say. This whole thing is wildly inappropriate. Just weird...