Palin's message from the holy Elvis: "the Iraq war is a task from God!"

Oh, good grief. Thank you, vulgarweed, for bringing this to my attention.

McCain's token woman for his campain is a right-wing religious nutjob. And I'm speaking as a very religious Buddhist who reserves the term "religious nutjob" for the kind of cuckoo that advocates violence in the name of religion.

Or in this case, the Iraq war as a "task from God."

Speaking before the Pentecostal church, Palin painted the current war in Iraq as a messianic affair in which the United States could actout the will of the Lord.

"Pray for our military men and women who are striving to do what is right. Also, for this country, that our leaders, our national leaders, are sending [U.S. soldiers] out on a task that is from God," she exhorted the congregants. "That's what we have to make sure that we're praying for, that there is a plan and that that plan is God's plan."

She's not kidding. She's not just playing to the crowd. She's a member of a church group that believes wholeheartedly in Armegeddon and hopes it comes soon, by golly.

But in case you too feel that the Iraq war is a holy war, there's also her... oh, joy... book banning to take into consideration. No shit.

...as mayor, Palin continued to inject religious beliefs into her policy at times. "She asked the library how she could go about banning books," he says, because some voters thought they had inappropriate language in them. "The librarian was aghast." That woman, Mary Ellen Baker, couldn't be reached for comment, but news reports from the time showthat Palin had threatened to fire Baker for not giving "full support" to the mayor.

Retaliation against the librarian is an endearing touch.

The point of the Palin nomination is to secure the support of the far, far, far, far, far religious right. Lest we forget: her church is connected to hate groups gunning for a "racial holy war" and abortion clinic bombers. From 1992-1996 Palin was a card-carrying member of the "Constitution Party," a political group whose members crosspolinate with the racist League of the South.

I despise McCain for offering this woman up as a substitute for Hillary Clinton. I used to like the guy. I thought of him as different from the rest of the GOP, a tempermental fireball sitting uneasily at its head... round peg... square party. But this VP pick? Palin is one step up from offering us the bag lady who receives messages from Elvis.

The ow report, brought to you by the letter "oh."

The "ow" report, brought to you by the letter "Oh."

Hel-lo, doctors' appointments.

WG and I were supposed to see his family and then go whitewater rafting this weekend. Unfortunately he's had an ear ache since Sunday and it's persisted. Oh no. We went to the doctor yesterday and he's getting treatment, and has a follow-up appointment tomorrow. But ear ache + white water = bad idea, so we decided to cancel our trip, to the tune of $150 in fees to change our tickets. Ow.

Today I went to ze dentist to fix a filling that came out. It's almost under the gumline and the dentist started throwing around scary words like "root canal." Uh-oh. We're going to see what happens in the next six weeks. Next week: I get my wisdom teeth out.

The Republican pundits left the mic running on MSNBC: they are not impressed with Palin.

The Republican pundits are not impressed with the choice of Palin as VP. They goofed and left the mic running on MSNBC.

( Cut YouTube video. )

Mike Murphy (former McCain advisor): You know, because I come out of the blue swing state governor work. Engler, Whitman, Thompson, Mitt Romney, Jeb Bush. And these guys, this is all like how you want to (inaudible) this race. You know, just run it up. And it's not gonna work.

Peggy Noonan (former Reagan speechwriter): It's over.

Mike Murphy: Still, McCain can give a version of the Lieberman speech to do himself some good.

NBC's Chuck Todd: Don't you think the Palin pick was insulting to Kay Bailey Hutchinson, too (inaudible)

Peggy Noonan: I saw Kay this morning.

Mike Murphy: They're all bummed out.

Chuck Todd: I mean, is she really the most qualified woman they could have turned to?

Peggy Noonan: The most qualified? No. I think they went for this, excuse me, political [B.S.] about narratives and (inaudible) the picture.

Mike Murphy: I totally agree.

Peggy Noonan: Every time the Republicans do that because that's not where they live and it's not what they're good at and they blow it.

Mike Murphy: You know what's really the worst thing about it? The greatness of McCain is "no cynicism" and this is cynical.

Chuck Todd: And as you called it, gimmicky.

Ooops?

Hey, a friend met Rick Anderson.

Cool. I just heard that a friend of a friend was working up in the arctic circle when an MGM television crew stopped by their cooking camp.

Apparently how it works is that they fly people up there, set up a camp, and then anyone who's doing anything in the arctic goes that camp for supplies and food.

MGM was filming Stargate Continuum.

She met Rick Anderson and the entire SG-1 crew. I'll let you know if I hear any anecdotes.

Fish out of water.

Typed as I watched Palin's speech:

Welcome to amateur hour. She's totally out of her league. She's not used to being on camera and keeps twitching her hands in a weak sort of hammer motion. Her voice is nasal and strangled. She's not very dramatic as a speaker and has the pedantic manner of a first grade teacher. Her hair is in her eyes. She keeps smirking at her own jokes.

She can deliver a cutting remark. But falls apart when it's supposed to be inspiring. How is she able to kill a section on McCain's torture and survival?

A well-written, should-be-stirring, but poorly delivered speech. She knows it's dying. Her manner is scared and growing dispirited. She's not able to hide it either, she just doesn't have the experience. The audience seems more professional than her.

Ah. They've trotted out her family. That works. What a cute baby.

McCain just came out. Oh, what a relief to see him. Here is a pro who belongs at this level.

Palin is a fish out of water, more like a city council member than a governor. I guess Alaska is pretty low-key and local. There's no way this woman could handle beltway politics.


ETA: Republican bloggers say that she seemed off-balance because her teleprompter broke. That story is bullcrap.