Let’s Have a Show of Hands for Sarah Palin
Cidu Bill on Feb 15th 2010
Okay, this is a reference to Sarah Palin apparently relying on notes written on her hand when she gave a recent speech; but what’s with Diane and Angela?
Filed in Bill Bickel, CIDU, Far Left Side, Mike Stanfill, Sarah Palin, comic strips, comics, humor | 32 responses so far
Keynote Feb 15th 2010 at 12:10 am 1
I’d say he’s cheating on Dianne with Angela.
src666 Feb 15th 2010 at 12:10 am 2
I think it refers to the fact that she had to write down things that would normally be very simple to remember. Simple things, like “Energy”, “Tax Cuts” or the name of your spouse.
Tim O'Shenko Feb 15th 2010 at 12:38 am 3
Is it really such a terrible thing that she would be using notes for her speeches? Or that said notes were written on her hands? Or even that the notes may be simple things like “tax cuts” (though I think it’s interesting she would worry about forgetting to talk about taxes)?
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not a Palin fan by any stretch of the imagination. But I think it’s a bit excessive to call her a cheater for using notes during a speech.
fett101 Feb 15th 2010 at 12:41 am 4
I wouldn’t say it’s just because of the notes but because she insists that President Obama. using a TelePrompTer is somehow wrong.
Cornbread Feb 15th 2010 at 12:45 am 5
Maybe I’m reading too much into it, but I read it as the guy’s saying the “easier way to cheat” is to just say a lot of things that are downright wrong and get away with it. Like Sarah Palin, who often seemed like she just never bothered learning the material she was going to speak on, but didn’t have to because she obviously didn’t care about getting it right.
Charlene Feb 15th 2010 at 12:59 am 6
I’m with fett101. She feels she’s entitled to use help, but she screeches in rage when Obama does the same thing.
RyanE Feb 15th 2010 at 01:14 am 7
If Obama wants to use a Teleprompter, that’s his prerogative. People are certainly waiting on his every word to catch him making a mistake, but some cases seem a bit silly… He used one in an *Elementary School Classroom*, for heavens’ sake.
Personally, I think she just comes off looking more foolish than if she had just written the few notes of what she wanted to make sure she covered on a 3×5″ card.
L. Hollyfeld Feb 15th 2010 at 01:58 am 8
@RyanE: I think you may have been duped. See http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/photos/6thgrade.asp
mkilby Feb 15th 2010 at 04:23 am 9
Needing to keep notes is understandable. Using ball point on skin is ludicrous. Several years ago I saw a (German) MTV moderator with visible pen notes on her hand conducting a taped TV interview with a well-known German comedian. Even if she was stupid enough to pull such a stunt, I still could not understand why someone at MTV did not edit the tape to cover over the faux pas.
chuckers Feb 15th 2010 at 04:37 am 10
Not sure if this is going to work right or not:
http://img.timeinc.net//time/cartoons/20100212/cartoons_01.jpg
Igelino Feb 15th 2010 at 09:10 am 11
mkilby: or to cover the filthy paws
Catelli Feb 15th 2010 at 09:15 am 12
Keynote nailed it methinks.
Morris Keesan Feb 15th 2010 at 09:18 am 13
Maybe nobody has actually said this here because it’s so obvious: what the cartoonist is implying here is that Palin is so stupid that she can’t even remember the name of the person who’s interviewing her, if she didn’t write it down on her hand.
I don’t watch TV news, but I’m guessing that Dianne and Angela are names of television news hosts, probably on two different networks.
src666 Feb 15th 2010 at 09:25 am 14
I’m sorry, but yes, cribbing “Energy” on her hand was outrageously stupid. Politicians use notes and prompters to help keep speeches and complex issues in focus. Things like statistics, exact phrasing, or longer points that they want to make sure they get right.
“Energy”? “Tax Cuts”? She can’t keep _those_ in her head? Those are the two core points she has been parroting for several years now, and she _still_ can’t keep them both in her head? She needs a reminder to “Lift American Spirits”?
And people want her running the country? What will her hand look like in 2013? “Red Button = Blow stuff up”?
Adam? Feb 15th 2010 at 10:01 am 15
This one was an LOL for me. Not because of the political context, but because I really liked the Diane / Angela gag. I think it would’ve worked on its own.
RHJunior Feb 15th 2010 at 10:22 am 16
Yeah, why cant she use a teleprompter like a REAL professional?
“Cheating?” She was just keeping track of points she wanted to address. Public speakers have been doing this since the day of Demosthenes, whether on a 5×8 card (like most of YOU would do) or writing them on their shirtcuffs.
No, my friend, “cheating” is using a pool of professional writers, a pre-written speech, and several thousand dollars in electronic equipment to simulate the ability to think.
John DiFool Feb 15th 2010 at 10:25 am 17
“…but didn’t have to because she obviously didn’t care about getting it right.”
No, the point is that her fans obviously don’t care if she gets things right. If they did, she’d be yesterday’s news.
zbicyclist Feb 15th 2010 at 10:28 am 18
Who cares whether Palin writes on her hand? It’s one more indication of the media focusing on stupid trivia (much better reasons to dislike Palin).
I don’t get Diane/Angela either.
Rumpeltskin Feb 15th 2010 at 10:41 am 19
Diane Sawyer, methinks. Only Angela I can think of in the same business is Angela Yee, but she does radio so it wouldn’t really fit the gag.
David N Feb 15th 2010 at 10:51 am 20
I thought Keynote hit it too. The politics switcharoo gag kind of derails it some, though.
Really, RHJunior? Cheating? Only when it’s someone you don’t like doing it, I’ll bet. George Bush musta been “cheating” big time then, and Ronald Reagan was a master of giving a speech that didn’t look like he was reading it. But he still had a pool of writers and equipment. You believe Palin doesn’t have writers and doesn’t ever use a TP? Please. I don’t take that as a sign or a lack of intelligence.
DonBoy Feb 15th 2010 at 11:26 am 21
FTR: it is true that Obama “used a teleprompter in an elementary school classroom”, but not when speaking to the kids — it was for a statement to press before or after, in a different room.
http://www.snopes.com/politics/obama/photos/6thgrade.asp
Scott Feb 15th 2010 at 12:01 pm 22
The notes, by the way, weren’t for the speech but for the Q&A. Remember that this is the dingbat who, during the debate with
Biden, straight out said that she wasn’t going to answer the question, but use her (poorly) memorized soundbites instead.
turquoise cow Feb 15th 2010 at 12:35 pm 23
I don’t care if she uses notes. A long speech is hard to remember. And I don’t care what the notes are about, because sometimes memory is triggered by different key words. The thing that makes me mad is the sneakiness of it. Who writes notes on their hands? Kids in school who are cheating on tests. They don’t write those notes on paper because they’re not allowed to have paper out during the test.
If she had given a speech using a pile of papers or used a teleprompter, that would be a respectable adult action. Lots of politicians - I’d bet *MOST* politicians and public figures do not write their own speeches and memorize them. They haven’t got the time to do either, and that’s the point of having trained speechwriters - they can do a better job. If a politician gets up in front of an audience without a teleprompter or papers or notes, that means either they have given the same speech a thousand times or they’re going to just wing it. Sarah Palin isn’t capable of winging it, she doesn’t seem to have the mental capability to grasp either the English language or the subjects she’s talking about. So she ends up being like the kid who’s trying to impress his teacher by “knowing” things he doesn’t understand, because he hasn’t studied or paid attention in class.
I really wish political commentators would cease paying attention to her.
Beckanva Feb 15th 2010 at 12:40 pm 24
Back to the actual cartoon, it depicts a guy and a girl sitting on a couch in front of a tv of the Sarah Palin speech. They are not reporters (ie NOT Diane Sawyer). He’s telling her that there are easier ways to cheat, by implying the either he’s cheating on her (Angela) with Dianne, or the other way around.
What I want to know is how cheating on a spouse or girlfriend would be easier than writing some notes on your hand?
Rumpelstiltskin Feb 15th 2010 at 03:04 pm 25
@Beckanva
I think you are so correct. I thought the dialog was coming from Palin and an unseen reporter. It’s almost funny with the couple on the couch talking.
Xouts Feb 15th 2010 at 04:26 pm 26
All seem to have missed the story that actually 20 years ago, Democrat Dianne Feinstein used notes on her hand during a debate! Humm…
Robert Feb 15th 2010 at 04:29 pm 27
I almost think that the Polar Pageant Princess wrote that on her hand to try and ‘punk’ the POTUS.
That is, it was a ’see how down-home and folksy I am - no TelePrompTer for me, by golly! I just wrote the MOST IMPORTANT STUFF on my good ol’ hand, ya betcha!’ thing.
I don’t know if that degree of calculating cynicism would be better or worse than what most of us are thinking.
The Bad Seed Feb 15th 2010 at 08:02 pm 28
Yeah, the humorous part was that there were only three pretty basic things she needed to remember (“Energy,” “Tax Cuts,” and “Lift American Spirits”) yet she needed the Hillbilly Palm Pilot. She mocks teleprompter use, but she can’t even remember that little bit? It’s crazy to write it on your hand in such a childish and conspicuous way, to loudly proclaim to the world both how little you really have to say and that you can’t even remember that little bit. Too bad the uber-fans won’t see it that way…
RyanE Feb 16th 2010 at 12:14 am 29
A couple of the commenters on McLaughlin group this week thought she’d actually score points with soccer moms who might write something on *their* hands, but yeah, it’s still pretty dumb.
paperboy Feb 16th 2010 at 01:58 am 30
At least she doesn’t say “uh” every three words when not reading from a teleprompter.
Ted in Fort Lauderdale Feb 16th 2010 at 01:04 pm 31
Paperboy - no, it’s “you betcha!”
Paperboy Feb 16th 2010 at 01:13 pm 32
Wrong,Ted; That’s at the END of every sentence.