Strollerderby : the eighties

Maybe The 80s Are Retro

Brett Singer — Sat, 22 Nov 2008 17:30:00 GMT

When I first started to notice that television producers and marketing executive was using the 80's to induce nostalgia and/or referring to it as retro, I was annoyed. Eventually I got used to it, but still found it troubling. Come on, I said. It wasn't THAT long ago. Sure, lots of things have changed. But 1988 was only 20 years ago. That's not retro, is it? Translation: I'm not THAT old, am I?

Take a look at these TV commercials from 1988.

That hair. Joe Isuzu. Geraldo Rivera braying that our children may become victims of a Satanic cult.

Ouch. I guess I am that old.

Barack Obama Asked If Bill Clinton Was The First Black President

The Candy That Time Forgot

Guy Changes Name to Captain Fantastic

Babble Podcast for November 3, 2008

Japanese Spiderman Video

Is The Incredible Flying Baby Video Real?

Was Trig Palin drugged?

Brett Singer — Thu, 04 Sep 2008 18:30:00 GMT

This comes from a reader, who asked what I think is an interesting question that I haven't heard anyone else ask: how exactly is the Palin family getting Trig to stay so calm while in the public eye?

I've forgotten (or blocked out) some of what my kids were like at that age. I can say, though, that I can't imagine either of them being that calm in the face of so much clamor and activity.

One explanation is that the kid is, well, drugged. Now, I don't mean Quaaludes, just a little Benadryl or Tylenol. I freely admit that I've done the same thing, although not recently and only in certain situations, like on an airplane. The idea of doping the kids wouldn't have occurred to be except that our pediatrician suggested it. So this isn't a judgment thing, unless you want it to be.

Another possibility is that baby Trig (short for Trigonometry?) is just a mellow baby. They do exist, although in my experience they are almost as rare as unicorns. There are babies that work in television, or even theater: I saw one in a play who, much to my amazement, managed to stay quiet during a very long and loud scene.

So it's possible that the kid is just naturally low-key. But wow, talk about good behavior.

Me, I would've maybe not put the kid on camera quite so much, but that's a separate issue. (Some say that Trig "has definitely become a central prop in [the McCain] campaign," which unfortunately seems to be true.)

For those of you who currently have children that age, or who haven't erased that period of time from their memory banks, how do you think your little one would have withstood the tumult of a political convention?

image: bagnewsnotes

McCain, Palin oppose teen pregnancy aid and sex education

Red eye? Nope, eye cancer

Man ejected from Yankee Stadium for lack of patriotism

Sarah Palin, Sportscaster

Dadcentric endorses Obama

Shawn Johnson, Democrat? (UPDATE: Now with video)

Elizabeth Edwards slammed for keeping hubby's affair a secret

Sarah Palin Nude?!

Levi Johnston (aka: Mr. Bristol Palin) Meets McCain ... With Pics!

Can a Presidential Candidate Be a Family Man?

Palin’s Daughter’s Redneck Baby Daddy: “I Don’t Want Kids!”

'Palin Should Go Back to the Kitchen' and 4 More WTF Comments About the VP Pick

Political Nanny: Sarah Palin Punches Hard

Political Nanny: Oops! Conservative Pundits Call Palin Pick 'Gimmicky,' 'Bull**it'

Palin family online - real or fake?

Brett Singer — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 19:45:00 GMT

If the Internet is to be believed, John McCain has chosen a running mate whose family life is just thisclose to being a full season of The Jerry Springer Show. However, as we all know, not everything you read (online or in print) is true.

So in the interest of being fair and balanced (ahem), we present to you a list of what we've found out regarding the veracity of the various blogs, photos and assorted Palin hoo-ha.

Levi Johnston's blog: FAKE
This is clearly fake, but amusing (well, slightly). The tone is pretty close to what was on Levi's now gone MySpace page.

Willow Palin's blog: Unknown
This one could be real but seems very fake to me. I haven't seen any official debunking of it but I can't imagine the Republicans would allow anyone in the Palin family unfettered blogging rights at this point.

Bristol Palin party pics: Unknown

If I had to guess, I would say that these are real. These shots are more than a little bit creepy since Bristol is 17, and may have been younger when these photos were taken. However, if they are real, she posted 'em. I really hope MySpace and the rest have gone the way of other dot-bombs by the time my kids are old enough to care about them. If not, I think I'm going to have a little chat about not posting any and all photos online for the world to ogle at.

Sarah Palin nude shots: FAKE
Let's go one by one:

SO fake. But funny.

The Naked Shot
Click here to see it (not safe for work). Nerve says this looks like Julia Louis Dreyfus, and after seeing the photo they link to, I kind of agree. HOWEVER, Snopes (a good source for all internet fakery) says even that one is a phony. Damn you, Photoshop!

This shot of Palin in a mini-skirt isn't too racy, although someone did Photoshop it onto a Playboy cover.

Alas, Snopes says that one is fake as well. They don't offer as much evidence of said fakery as they do for the other pics; all they have is a shot of Palin with the same facial expression, hairdo, etc. I’m not saying it's real, just saying the evidence isn't as compelling. It's probably fake.

Less widely circulated is this shot from GrizzlyBay.org of Governor Palin with, um, Vikings:

That one is real. I think.

So now y'all know who to vote for, right? What? This doesn't matter at all? Oh…

Images/Sources: Nerve, GrizzlyBay, Snopes, Facebook, et al.

Sarah Palin Nude?!

Man ejected from Yankee Stadium for lack of patriotism

Levi Johnston (aka: Mr. Bristol Palin) Meets McCain ... With Pics!

Political Nanny: Mr. Sarah Palin, Alaska 'First Dude'

Proof That Baby Trig Is NOT Sarah Palin's Son?!!

McCain, Palin oppose teen pregnancy aid and sex education

Can a Presidential Candidate Be a Family Man?

Palin’s Daughter’s Redneck Baby Daddy: “I Don’t Want Kids!”

'Palin Should Go Back to the Kitchen' and 4 More WTF Comments About the VP Pick

Introducing Young Mr. Bristol Palin

Trig and Bristol: Palin Family Names Run Amok

Political Nanny: Obama Tells Reporters to 'Back Off' Palin's Pregnant Daughter

McCain, Palin oppose teen pregnancy aid and sex education

Brett Singer — Wed, 03 Sep 2008 14:20:00 GMT

Ah, running for President. Everything you've ever done is fair game. But hey, stay out of their personal lives! But hang on – this is about their political views? Oh. Um. OK.

"Republican John McCain, whose running mate disclosed that her unmarried 17-year-old daughter is pregnant, has opposed proposals to spend federal money on teen-pregnancy prevention programs and voted to require poor teen mothers to stay in school or lose their benefits."

Palin herself wrote in a questionnaire during her gubernatorial campaign in 2006, "The explicit sex-ed programs will not find my support." (Not sure what she means by "explicit sex-ed" -- plaster genitalia are out, but bananas are cool? Use "va-jay-jay" and "hey-nonner-nonner" instead of the word "vagina"?)

Some have said this is a "karma's a bitch" situation, but that seems unfair to me. Stuff happens, regardless of your personal beliefs. At best, it's ironic (don'tcha think? Sorry, couldn't resist). One good result of this particular scrutiny is that it shines a spotlight on McCain's voting record, and also on statements made by Palin. That sort of information is what people should be basing their voting decisions on, not whether or not Ms. Palin would be better off at home making brownies, rather than running for veep.

source: Yahoo News

Sarah Palin, Sportscaster

Palin’s Daughter’s Redneck Baby Daddy: “I Don’t Want Kids!”

'Palin Should Go Back to the Kitchen' and 4 More WTF Comments About the VP Pick

Trig and Bristol: Palin Family Names Run Amok

Sarah Palin, Sportscaster

Brett Singer — Sun, 31 Aug 2008 16:00:00 GMT

Before she entered politics, way back in 1988, Sarah Palin was known as Sarah Heath. She was, as you may have heard, a sports anchor for KTUU-TV in Anchorage, Alaska. Video was bound to surface eventually; I'm actually surprised it took this long.

It's not all that remarkable. She reads sports scores, makes less than snappy patter with an anchor that Deadspin describes as, "a weird amalgam of Ron Burgundy and Carl Monday," and she has big ol' 80's hair. There's also that voice, which I think is verrry close to Frances McDormand's in 'Fargo.'

Before I'm accused of "bashing" her, I'm not. That said, I think when the McCain campaign (McCampaign? Hmm...) tells us that she was a "journalist," that's pushing it a little bit.

Enjoy.

Source: Deadspin