Palin Takes Two of the Top Ten.
As 2008 draws to a close, there are bound to be many “years in review” and “top 10 lists” as the media looks back at this year, which rivals any in recent memory for being absolutely steeped in colorful, and sometimes unbelievable political drama.
Sarah Palin will undoubtedly be writ large as we review 2008. She, and her good twin Tina Fey have both managed to land in the list of Top 10 Most Memorable Quotes compiled by Fred R. Shapiro.
First place was “I can see Russia from my house!” spoken in satire of Palin’s foreign policy credentials by Fey on the TV comedy show “Saturday Night Live.”
Palin’s actual quote was: “They’re our next-door neighbors and you can actually see Russia from land here in Alaska, from an island in Alaska.”
Palin also made the third annual list for her inability to name newspapers she reads. When questioned by CBS anchor Katie Couric, Palin said she reads “all of them, any of them that have been in front of me over all these years.”
Palin’s quotes were pivotal, said Shapiro, associate librarian and lecturer in legal research at the Yale Law School, who compiles the list.
“This quote helped shape the election results,” he said of the Russia quote. “As it sank in, the public realized this was someone really, really inexperienced and perhaps lacking in curiosity about the world.”
Shapiro issued his Yale Book of Quotations, with about 13,000 entries, two years ago after six years of research. He expects to release the next edition in about five years, but in the meantime plans to issue annual top-10 lists.
Picking the best quotes this year was especially challenging because the presidential race and financial crisis provided so much material, Shapiro said. Last year’s list was topped by “Don’t tase me, bro,” shouted by a Florida college student who was shot with a Taser stun gun.
Shapiro said that when he began the list he thought he would select the most profound, eloquent or witty quotes. But the celebrity culture and political discourse led him down a different path.
“What I have come to do is pick some quotes that really say something about our culture and they tend almost exclusively to be quotes that are notable for negative reasons rather than being admirable or eloquent,” Shapiro said.
I find it particularly amusing that Palin herself, whom I consider to be both linguistic comedic gold, and pure torture at the same time, only took third place, while her parody took the coveted first place slot.
I wonder what Vladimir Putin thinks of the first place quote? Actually, hold on a minute. I’ll ask him. I’ve just got to get my semaphore flags and get up on the roof… Now, where did I put those?
Oh for crying out loud. Will she never go away?
Although I do have to say, it cracks me up to no end that the top quote was actually Tina Fey’s parody of SP! And I hope she (TF) doesn’t go away!
AKM, if you can’t find your flags, perhaps you can just write the question in really big letters on poster board and hold it up for him to see!
How distingushed can you get for having your words in a most stupid catagory for quotes! LOL
LOL, alright!
Way to go, Tina Fey!
You know the word “semaphore” wouldn’t be in SP’s vocabulary…also, too.
Thank goodness for the commentary by the compiler of these quotes. SP is an embarrassment to all of us, but again, she helped Obama get elected, thank goodness. Now Alaska needs to hold her feet to the fire for all the shenanigans of the recent past….you go, Alaska!
When Putin rears his head…..
Too funny and fitting! You go SP, keep flappin’ your yappin’ (for amusement purposes only).
Another nice post, enjoyed at work.
Thanks! Breaks are nicer with a good post.
thanks for keeping us posted about Alaska and your gov, I am especially enjoying the 12 days of SP, love the way you turned French Hens into French pranks!
The best, tho, imo, was when Tina did the parody of SP using SP’s EXACT words from the Katie Couric interview. SP is too dim to realize that she’s being insulted. Big ego, small mind; lethal combination.
And, too, also, ya know, don’t forget “pallin’ around” w/ terrorists.
But, my personal favorite was from the Couric interview when she was unable to answer a question about McCain (sorry, I forget the details) and she finally said she would “find some and bring ‘em to ya”
Is it too early to start throwing shoes? This is a little off the subject, but when I saw the Baptist church on Huffington I thought what an ugly church, maybe they burned it for insurance purposes. Found out later it’s new & worth a whopping 5 million or so. MSNBC & others are questioning Caroline Kennedy’s qualifications for the Senate seat. How ironic…where were these people when Palin, Schwarzenegger & Blagojevich were running for office….talk about a lack of qualifications.
Phoebe!
What a vaild point!
That pretty much sums it up.
Where were they? (MSM)
I agree that the church is sure fugly. It resembles a hockey center in the Dakotas … except the hockey centers usually have a little bit more architectural oomph…….
The fire appears to be electrical as it would be difficult logistically to put flammables in the walls?
OT: About the shopping…
I must say that Palin out shopping by herself (at least that is the impression I got from your post AKM) I find interesting.
My Gov., our almost new Sec’y of Commerce never goes anywhere without his big, huge goons. Never. They move in tandem where ever he goes. You cannot get close to him, except at planned events by invitation only.
What’s up with Palin being out and about alone?
re: the church…. This is a common style for large modern-day “fundamentalist” (Bible-believing) churches. I suspect that this style is less expensive to build than something with more angles and windows. The “big-box” style is probably more economical to build. The church building usually houses the sanctuary (Wasilla’s evidently accommodates 1,000 people–perhaps in several services), offices for the pastor and his staff, a kitchen, classrooms, a nursery, and a recreation area or gym. My experience is limited to the two (Bible-believing) churches I have belonged to, but I suspect that most other churches finance their buildings the same way. We had a huge fund-raising drive, and then the church takes out a loan (similar to a home loan) to finance the building. Then, over 20 (or 30) years, the congregation makes mortgage payments (like house payments) until the debt is repaid. Often the church is built in stages; the sanctuary may be built and paid off before the classrooms, or the kitchen may be added later, and so forth. $4-5 million dollars seems like a lot of money, but I don’t know what land and building materials may cost in Wasilla. I doubt, though, that the entire amount has been paid off; I am sure there will be many years of monthly “church payments” to be made.
re: fires… So many churches have been set on fire in our history that Pres. Clinton formed a commission to investigate them. Many of the churches burned in the 90′s were in the South and housed black congregations; the arsonist’s motive was usually racism. Other churches, though, have been in other parts of the country and were not considered to be black churches; the arsonist’s motives in these cases varied. Because of our country’s history of church arsons, people whose churches suffer fire damage always consider arson. The motive, tho, when it is arson, is usually learned when the arsonist is captured.
re: SP’s comments about the fire… Although it is not unreasonable to consider arson as the cause in a church fire, SP’s comments were about herself, not about the fire. She (as we all know) believes that the world revolves around her, so of course she would make the church’s fire be about herself.
re: SP’s “membership” in this, or any, church…. SP ATTENDS church, but she is NOT a member. Members not only attend services, they work at the church, volunteering to help with the many things that need to be done. They spend time fellowshipping with one another, and they help each other (both physically and spiritually) in times of need. They donate money (tithe) and give extra to help with missionary work and other church-related projects. Members give of themselves and love one another. SP just shows up for herself; she is not a member.
Sue: Thanks for the informative and thoughtful summary. I agree with all of your points.
OT, but when will we get an update about Sarah’s soon-to-be-born “first” grandchild? Or Bristol’s wedding?
baby due this Thursday…
last report–wedding scheduled for next summer…
baby DUE this Thursday…
…..but I’ll bet it’s not BORN until the first week of February
Let’s see –
A — Bristol had Trig the 3rd week of April, 2008;
B — Bristol and Levi hooked up again soon after, late April, early May (little rabbits that they are)
C — Add 9 months and you get a good chance that Bristol’s second child might be a Groundhog Day baby !
I was just pointing out when the family said it was DUE, not when it was actually going to arrive…
Oh, now a People Mag. link from HuffPo is saying that Chuck Heath (SP’s father) says that the baby (a boy apparently) is due on 20 Dec….
InJuneau (15:15:43)
My dad thinks they thought she couldn’t get pregnant again because she was breastfeeding and that she’ll have “Irish Twins.” I’m thinking he’s probably right.
Poor Tina, I’m sure she liked the boost the impression gave her own show & career, (her problem is being too good, at too many things), but she was pretty emphatic she “would not have to play Palin after Nov. 4″. This month she was asked by her boss at NBC to do a Dem Caucus dinner in NYC, and do “Palin”. As reported in HuffPost:http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/12/15/tina-fey-plays-sarah-pali_n_151024.html
Said the organizer: “She seemed incredibly uncomfortable,” and “he promised that for now, “Palin is still retired.”
Now it’s up to us to make sure Palin retires from the Guv job, as well.
@nswfm CA (15:35:36) :
Yeah, had a friend at work who had a friend who had “Irish Triplets”! So, it does happen…
@I Own You ….
You know there are blogs that folks like you can go and visit and do all the Palin worshiping you want. This one is for the intelligent folk who actually know better. Move along….
Mudflats is here to stay and turning the world muddy as I write.
Goalie–you may notice that the troll has been flung to the ‘flats!
@Goalie & InJuneau,
Yes, that one was fun. I flung it far. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~>splat!<
It came from Hawaii….should have stayed where it was. The beach is better than the Mudflats!
Ooo, why would it travel here and risk the Mudflats? The HI beaches are much better!
@AKM & InJuneau,
Go figure….too bad though, mud is going to invade HI eventually!
Can’t you just see the muddy beaches? Heh, heh…
excuse me..I know that I’m just some ole redneck from Texas, but I can tell time..and I’m pretty sure her 15 minutes is up….waaaaaaaaaaay up..
Palin followers are doing all they can to keep dope alive. The new motto – Strange we can believe in.
Did ya all hear about the recent interview of Bush about Al Queada and Iraq? When it was pointed out that AQ did not arrive in Iraq until a few years after Bush invaded, he looked blankly and then said “that’s true… but so what?”
Not as funny as “I can see Russia from my house” but it’s very telling about the arrogance of certain politicians who believe they are untouchable.
Too bad gross stupidity is not an impeachable offense.
I love it. Sarah is being lauded for Palin-speak. Incompetence and inadequacy all rolled into one unending sentence fragment. So very Sarah.
Texas Obamadillo (17:51:22) :
What a great handle. AND the mugshot. Big smile.
sauerkraut…I saw that too. Proves he never had a conscience…no soul. That shoe really should have bonked him in the head, to say the least! How he lasted 8 years without an impeachment is beyond me…just like Palin lasting her entire term without consequence…it’s so maddening!
@Lainey
Sarah’s term is not up yet, and the legislature convenes in January. She may yet have to face some unpleasant consequences. We don’t know what’s brewing.
A girl can hope, anyway!
Hmmm….. I read all ten quotes. Some of SP’s goofy, non-cerebral quotes definitely belong in the top ten but I’m not sure about the rarified air at the pinnacle. She might misinterpret her standing as cause for inclusion in Bartlett’s, preferably Palin with a “P” next to Plato with a “P.”
Furthermore…I wonder just a wee bit about this Fred Shapiro’s love life. Does he seem a tad preoccupied with the Thrilla from Wasilla? I mean….come on….there were some “great” quotes about the current dire economic situation in his top ten list. Doesn’t this guy have a stock portfolio or 401K?