We, the American people, as well as the media, have been led to believe that Sarah Palin is an expert on energy and has the expertise and the knowledge to do what is necessary for our nation regarding our energy consumption and our energy policies.
I, for one, question where, when and how she, allegedly gained this expertise. Does she truly have it or is it something that has been fabricated and force fed down the throats of the American people, and the media, by what has been a Karl Rove ltaught tactic that the republican party has used, with great success, for many years.
And that tactic, tell a lie often enough and people will believe it to be the truth.
So, that brings me back to the question, is Sarah Palin really an energy expert, and if so, where did she gain her expertise and knowledge? It's a question that, in my opinion, needs to be asked. Not just by me, but by the Obama campaign and, of course, by the media.
So, let's all take a little walk through the biography, in part, of Governor Sarah Palin.
Born February 11, 1964, making her 44 years old as of this writing. She was born in Sandpoint, Idaho and her parents were a school secretary (mother) and a Science Teacher and Track Coach. (father)
Still an infant, her family moved to Wasilla, Alaska and as a child, would go moose hunting with her father before school.
In High school she played on the women's basketball team and participalted in 5km and 10km races
She attended several colleges and universities (5 of them in 6 years) before completing and attaining her BS (that fits her nicely, BTW) in communications-journalism in 1987 at the university of Idaho after completing but three semesters there. She never worked on, or for, the college newspaper.
In 1988 she worked as a sports reporter for a local tv station and also helped out in her husband's commercial fishing business.
She was elected to the Wasilla City COuncil in 1992 and 1995 giving as her reason that she was concerned that the revenue from the Wasilla Sales Tax would not be spent wisely. In the two elections she piled up the huge totals of 530 and 413 votes to win election, and re-election. (Note my little sarcasm there )
She then served two terms as Mayor of Wasilla, a town with a population of 6,300 at the time.
Now, I can go on and on about her 6 years a mayor and all of the things that occured during her tenure, and tell you that not one item was related to oil, natural gas, or energy in any way. You can either believe me or just go and look it up yourself on Wikipedia.
Also, during this period, she loaded up with earmarks from Federal funds, for several of her pet projects, including a 14.7 million dollar multi purpose stadium/Arena.
When she left office, Wasilla was 22 million dollars in debt.
In 2002 she unsuccessfully ran for Lieutenant Governor.
OK, my friends, now we are getting to the GOOD STUFF. HER EXPERIENCE AND EXPERTISE REGARDING ENERGY....
Governor Murkowski appointed Palin to the Alaska Oil and Gas Conservation COmmission.. She chaired the Commission beginning in 2003, and served as Ethics Supervisor. Palin resigned in January 2004
She ran for, and was elected Governor of Alaska in 2006.
Palin promoted oil and natural gas resource development in Alaska, including in the ARTIC NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGE (ANWR), where such development has been the subject of a national debate.
In August 2008, Palin signed a bill authorizing the State of Alaska to award TransCanada Pipelines, the sole bidder to meet the state's requirements, a license to build and operate a pipeline to transport natural gas from the North Slope to the Continental United States through Canada.
The governor also pledged $500 million in seed money to support the project It is estimated that the project will cost $26 billion.Newsweek described the project as "the principal achievement of Sarah Palin's term as Alaska's governor but the project faces serious legal challenges from Canadian First Nations (aboriginal peoples).
OK, I will stop right there because that pretty much brings us up to present day.
As we go back, and look at her history, we see a few mentions of topics that deal with energy. Quite frankly, nothing that jumps out at us.
So, now go back to my original thought in this post, WHAT MAKES SARAH PALIN AN EXPERT ON ENERGY MATTERS? PLEASE SHOW ME WHAT I AM MISSING.
This, once again, proves the Karl Rove philosophy, IF YOU TELL A LIE OFTEN ENOUGH, PEOPLE WILL BELIEVE IT TO BE THE TRUTH.
WHAT MAKES SARAH PALIN AN EXPERT ON ENERGY ISSUES?????
Shouldn't the media be asking that question?