PROFESSOR: Sarah Palin Probably Staged A Gigantic Hoax About Being Trig's Mother

[cleanhippie]

PROFESSOR: Sarah Palin Probably Staged A Gigantic Hoax About Being Trig's Mother

Professor Bradford Scharlott of Northern Kentucky University has looked into this story in detail and written a long academic article about it. He concludes two things:

First, that the "conspiracy theory" is likely true--Sarah Palin staged a huge hoax, and, second,

The American media is pathetic for not pursuing the story more aggressively

Scharlott's article walks through all the evidence supporting the theory, including the photos of Palin in what is said to have been a late-stage pregnancy, the leisurely 20-hour trip home that Palin took after she supposedly went into labor in Texas, the refusal of the hospital where Trig was supposedly born to even confirm that he was born there (let alone who was the mother), strange statements from Palin's doctor and the McCain campaign, and so on.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/sarah-palin-baby-hoax-2011-4#ixzz1JXTVN600

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I think we all knew this already, but the Prof is right about the MSM not following this up.

[Drale]

1. I bet he was born in Kenya

Look at the evidence people!!! :rofl:

[BrklynLiberal]

83. BINGO!!!!!!!!!!!

[polichick]

2. Well, well, well - I guess we weren't so silly thinking this might be the case.

[cali]

30. yes, and you still are.

[polichick]

45. Perhaps as silly as those who thought the rumors about John Edwards might be true.

[Spyderama]

3. No Doubt About That!

Dr. Scharlott's professorial paper is only a tiny part of the story. Bachmann and Trump can talk about the silly birther story concerning our President all they want, but Sarah is a mite skittish on this issue. Why is that? Read the whole story in The Palin Matrix. Thank you, DU readers, for representing the true progressives of America!

[bluestateguy]

4. I really don't care to invest the time in Palin birther conspiracies

or anything else having to do with her.

[bahrbearian]

7. but then here you are

[cleanhippie]

26. +1

[HysteryDiagnosis]

5. But but but can she see a circumcision in Russia from Alaska? n/t

[scarletwoman]

6. Oh good grief. This is as big a steaming pile as anything the birthers on the right come up with.

It's disgusting.

And, seriously, what the frick difference would such a thing make anyway?

Let us bear in mind that the mendaciousness of U.S. politicians regarding their personal lives is a fine old tradition that has never yet led to a national catastrophe.

I despise the mindset that finds sniffing around women's uteri, and the progeny that issue forth from same, some sort of worthy exercise in the political sphere.

:puke:
sw

Edit for a missing word in the subject line which I neglected to proofread before posting.

[DURHAM D]

8. +1000

Its beyond creepy the way men on the right and left are so uber-focused on women's reproductive activities.

[scarletwoman]

12. Thank you. I find it disturbing to see these tendencies so universally evident.

I grew up in the 50s, I remember well those days when it was was common over many generations of families for grandmothers to pass themselves off as the mothers of the grandchildren begotten by young daughters.

And it didn't matter how many people in the women's communities knew or suspected that it might be a charade, it was considered far beyond the bounds of civil and polite behavior to discuss it publicly.

Unless the child is an heir to a throne, his or her parentage ought to be recognized as being utterly irrelevant to anyone but the immediate family.

sw

[wickerwoman]

42. To me this is kind of why it is a story.

It represents Republican shame and hatred of sexuality, especially teen sexuality, as if having a child at 17 is such a horrendous violation of the social contract that everything about it much be shrouded in secrecy to avoid shame to the family.

I like to think that civilized America left this kind of stigmatization of teen sexuality back in the 1950s, especially in light of the developmental and psychological damage it is known to do to tell children that someone is their biological parent when they really aren't.

Plus there is the fact that Palin continues to advocate "abstinence-only" education and further evidence of the complete failure of that policy within her own family seems to be fair political game.

It's ridiculous that her daughter is making a six figure salary advocating for abstinence-only and against abortion when her situation as a single mother that "chose life" has absolutely nothing to do with the situation of pregnant teens whose parents aren't millionaires and who can't milk their minor celebrity for a nice fat paycheck.

Anyway, I agree that the evidence is somewhat circumstantial, but I don't think it's necessary to shut down the discussion with quite the vehemence being demonstrated by some on this thread. There are legitimate issues surrounding hypocrisy, sex-ed policy, abortion rights and teen pregnancy attached to this story. So where's the harm in having an adult discussion about it?

[scarletwoman]

46. It's not about Palin, it's about US. Is this really where we want to go?

Can we at least make an honest attempt to address why this should matter the least bit? How much have all the other personal pecadillos of all the other politicians over the years mattered?

What does it profit us to flog this particular story?

sw

[wickerwoman]

52. I think it benefits us to flog it as long as

Republicans continue their assault on reproductive rights. We didn't start the fire, as it were.

Republicans think abortion should be illegal because teens can always "chose life" using Bristol as an example? Bullshit. Bristol's situation has nothing to do with the average pregnant teen.

Abstinence-only is the best way to deal with teen pregnancy? Bullshit. It didn't work for Sarah's own kids. How is it going to work with kids who don't have the "benefit" of her moral guidance?

I don't want to go back to the days when girls getting pregnant was shrouded in shame and secrecy and kids sometimes found out that the person they'd been told their whole life was their mother wasn't.

If there are people who continue to think this way, and who have the potential to get into a position to legislate based on those beliefs, then I think it is relevant that that be exposed, just as it would have been relevant to expose Scott Walker's anti-labor affiliations *before* he was elected rather than after.

[inna]

32. +1 and thanks again; it felt surreal to see this story at the very top of the front page. nt

[Doctor_J]

82. What difference would it make?

Are you serious? She used the little brat for political gain, like a prop or a battle with cancer. The whole story that she based her campaign on would be bullshit.

[Keith Bee]

9. Dupe threads RULE this evening!

[cleanhippie]

It happens. Stop whining about it.

Your OP has some 146+ recs. Dupes happen. It's not a contest, at least not for me.

[athenasatanjesus]

10. This story is a trap for liberals.

Even if it is true,it's designed to get some liberals to look as bad as the birthers,so the media can create another false equivalent between liberals and conservatives.

[polichick]

11. It could be - interesting idea.

[scarletwoman]

13. The really deplorable thing is that it apparently works to some degree.

This is a trap that will only work if people let getting their hate on override their critical thinking and compassion.

sw

[FiveGoodMen]

17. Yes, we don't want liberals to get all tangled up in that pesky truth stuff

[athenasatanjesus]

19. It's not that,it likely is true,

we just don't want to get caught up in these silly tabloid stories.
Sarah Palin exists in the media as a taunt for liberals,to sucker us into this type of nonsense to begin with.

[scarletwoman]

27. Truth? What sort of egregious risk to our democracy does not knowing whose womb bore Trig represent?

Please explain why giving Donald Trump's birther campaign a perfect "equivalent" to point to is a smart thing to do.

sw

[Bucky]

22. This story is only a trap for morons.

[robcon]

14. Birther bullshit.

I thought this silliness/stupidity was over.

Well, if a PROFESSOR thinks it's true, then it must be true! :sarcasm:

[scarletwoman]

16. Thank you. This shit needs to be called out as the disgusting vagina sniffing that it is. (nt)

[Bucky]

21. I've never heard that phrase before.

I hope to never hear it again.

[scarletwoman]

24. Well? What would YOU call the people who are obsessed about which womb a child has emerged from?

Such emerging often involves a vagina.

[Bucky]

40. I'm not saying it's not accurate

But now I'm begging you. Can we please quit talking about Sarah Palin's vagina? I'm sure she has a very nice vagina. Perhaps I'll even visit it one day. But right now I'd just as soon focus on politics.

[polichick]

53. Good grief, it's not about body parts - it's about LIES.

[scarletwoman]

55. How many politicians lie? Explain why this particular lie is important.

Are you saying it's immoral and unacceptable for a grandmother to raise her grandchild -- a special needs child at that -- as her own? And to want to keep this private family business private?

[polichick]

57. It won't matter much if she's not running, but if she is, voters have a right to know...

...if she's been telling a bunch of lies.

(Of course there's nothing wrong with a grandmother raising a grandchild.)

[scarletwoman]

60. Voters have plenty of other matters to judge her by.

If discrediting politicians for lying about their personal lives worked, there'd be hardly any Republicans in government, ever.

One of my main objections to this is that it is NOT a useful political strategy.

sw

[polichick]

61. So you'd be fine with John Edwards as president?

[jmowreader]

71. It's immoral...

for her to claim this child as her own instead of her daughter's, if this story is true and it probably is.

It's also immoral for her daughter to be having sex at 15, at least according to Palin's friends.

[cleanhippie]

76. +1

[jberryhill]

78. Bullshit - parents have long raised their children's children

It used to be more common practice, but there is NOTHING wrong with parents who raise their teenage children's kids as their own. That sort of thing has been going on for a long time, and there is NOTHING wrong with it.

[jmowreader]

86. Back up a step or two.

Yes, parents have raised their children's children as their own.

Most of them, though, will tell their friends "this is my daughter Betty's son. He was fathered by a no-good idiot we had thrown in jail. We shipped Betty off to State University so she could get a good job and give this child the upbringing he deserves. We're hoping she meets a nice young man and marries him so our grandson will have the father figure in his life he so desperately needs."

Or something like that.

They do NOT, OTOH, tell their friends, "this is my child." Which is what the Palins are doing.

[jberryhill]

87. You obviously weren't around in the 50's, 60's, or 70's for that matter

It was one of the social mechanism by which families kept teen pregnancies under wraps.

If true, the story loses Palin no support among her supporters, who see the exposure as the result of nosy hypocritical busybodies prying into family matters; and among her non-supporters doesn't make them any more non-supportive.

It is a do-nothing, go-nowhere story that only makes those pursuing it seem to be a wee bit too fascinated with the reproductive privacy of two women.

[jberryhill]

77. +1zillion - Even if true, you nailed it

[scarletwoman]

15. I can't believe people are rec'ing this piece of crap!

Where the hell are your heads at?!?

Do you honestly believe it's your business to know exactly whose uteris Trig emerged from?

Do you honestly believe that this is some extraordinary milestone in mendacity about a politician's personal life?

Are you THINKING or just getting your hate on?

[inna]

28. +1 and thank you! :sigh of relief: I was starting to wonder if I was the only one

who thinks this is complete crap.

This whole thing doesn't make sense, anyway (IMO at least) - it's in the same category as birtherism; at least it strikes me as such.

[scarletwoman]

35. I am utterly appalled! There's another thread on this same piece with 149 recs!

If so many DUers are so eager to take the bait, what fucking hope is there?

This may be one of the most profoundly disappointing of all my days on DU. :(

[cali]

33. sure you can.

you know people believe any old stupid dog shit if they want to believe it.

[Motown_Johnny]

18. If this woman were capable of caring for a special needs child that is not hers

I would gain some respect for her


I really think that leaving the family out of things is the best way to go, but if you insist on this kind of thing I would just like you to know that for some people the effect may be the opposite of what is intended.

[Bucky]

20. Oh give it a rest! This isn't a conspiracy theory... it's a parody of a conspiracy theory.

Trig was born on the Grassy Knoll. His birth was a "controlled demolition" and Todd LIHOP.

Oh, bruddah :eyes:

[nilram]

73. Suitable, since Palin is a parody of a politician.

I want to be at her nominating convention, with the crowd chanting "Two-and-a-half more years! Two-and-a-half more years!"

[Bucky]

81. !!!!

:rofl: excellent!!

[sfwriter]

23. I believe. A 20 hour wait for a premature delivery?

Plus plane flights after your water broke is unbelievable......unless the person doing it is unconscionably stupid and has no empathy for another living, including her own baby... Oh wait. That is possible.

Well, the records, how could there not be any records unless she was incompe...

no, wait... I just figured it out.

Never mind.

-Sandy

[emilyg]

25. unrec.

[cali]

29. idiot moron version of left birtherism.

[polichick]

36. Funny how you overreact to this story.

[scarletwoman]

38. Understand, the reaction is to the RESPONSES to this story.

And it is no "overreaction" to deplore the fact that so many DUers are eager to jump on this particular birther bandwagon.

[polichick]

39. This whole place is full of crazy stories all day long - so what?

[scarletwoman]

43. So we should never attempt to light a candle in the darkness?

I guess I'm just not that cynical yet. Too old to change my ways, I suppose.

sw

[polichick]

44. This story reminds me of the John Edwards story...

I remember people here being outraged about the rumors - and they turned out to be true.

[scarletwoman]

48. How is this matter politcally revelvant? Proof that politicians lie about their personal lives?

How does Palin's personal family life effect the course of history?

sw

[polichick]

50. It's just a matter of who she really is - same as with Edwards.

[scarletwoman]

58. Yes, how evil to pretend to be a mother of a special needs baby!

Only an evil woman would do such a thing. Burn her!

[polichick]

59. LOL - you really don't get that it's not about the baby; but the lies...

Politicians aren't supposed to weave a whole tale of lies because people need to know who they're voting for.

[scarletwoman]

63. No, YOU don't get that this is political poison.

But thanks for giving the birthers the perfect ammunition for saying that "both sides do it."

[polichick]

64. I don't think it's "poison" to expect politicians to tell the truth...

Who knows how this story will turn out.

[scarletwoman]

67. "How this story will turn out"? What story? That Sarah Palin is mothering her grandson?

And this is a terrible scandal...why?

Are there people who lie about their personal lives? Is that a shock to all the many multitudes of people who have never lied about their personal lives?

[Raschel]

72. If it turned out that she did lie, it's a huge psycho lie, a psycho story told by a psycho woman.

Someone who is not mentally stable.

If it's true that she lied it's twisted beyond belief.

[Ikonoklast]

49. As well as the lies told.

Which, of course, is the real story.

[polichick]

51. Yes, it's all about the lies.

[Terra Alta]

31. Who cares?

Does it matter who gave birth to Trig? Personally, I think it was Sarah(older women have a much higher chance of giving birth to babies with Down Syndrome) but I'm not going to make a big deal about it.. the last thing we need to do is start acting like the birthers.

[leeroysphitz]

34. A full blown professor?

[Bucky]

41. Well, how else could he generate this much hot air?

Certainly a half-blown professor wouldn't be focusing on this.

[Liquorice]

37. There are republicans who

do not buy into the whole Obama birther BS, and I tend to have a little more respect for them. I feel the same about this so-called story. I would lose all respect for any democrat who came out and started questioning Trig's maternity.

[cynatnite]

47. At least this crap hasn't taken over the Democratic party...

like the birther bullshit has taken over the repuke party.

[BzaDem]

54. +1. n/t

[scarletwoman]

56. Not for lack of plenty of DUers trying, it seems. (nt)

[cleanhippie]

62. Considering your significant input to this thread, you are big part of the problem

That you are complaining about.

:rofl:

[scarletwoman]

65. I am purposely posting on this thread in the possibly vain hope that *some* people might "get it."

So, please, keep responding to my posts. I sincerely appreciate the opportunity to continue elicidating my viewpoint.

:hug:
sw

[cleanhippie]

66. Oh, I "get" it. I get that you disagree. You have made that very clear.

Unless you have something more to add, you are just repeating yourself, ad nauseum.

[jberryhill]

88. As opposed to the continued recycling of this bullshit story itself?

The fact that some associate professor at a nothing college published a non-reviewed piece on an old story doesn't make this plate of cold leftovers any more newsworthy.

[cleanhippie]

90. Well, you are entitled to your opinion.

[Arkana]

68. Can we cut this the fuck out?

Sarah Palin is a worthless waste of oxygen. Let's spend our time talking about why she's unqualified to even be a dog catcher instead of whether or not Trigger's her kid.

[Logical]

69. Please tell me people are not believing this crap! n-t

[Dorian Gray]

70. I looked at the "evidence."

It's all conjecture.

[Blue_In_AK]

74. If one believes Sarah's own account of what happened,

it's even worse. What kind of a mother, knowing she was carrying an at-risk child, would fail to go to a hospital in Texas to be checked out after her water broke, instead choosing to go on a long flight to Alaska, with a layover in Seattle, bypass the two very good hospitals in Anchorage, and drive all the way out to Wasilla (another hour) to give birth? Was she trying for "abortion by accident"? And why would she take the chance of inconveniencing all the other passengers on those flights?

I don't know what to think of the "birther" stories. What Sarah says herself about her "wild ride" paints a more unflattering picture.

[cleanhippie]

75. +1

[PRETZEL]

79. Todd and Sarah's Excellent Adventure

never really made sense to me either,

Add to what you've already said, I think I remember reading that the medical center she went to wasn't equipped for a special needs birth and to top it off, the physician who delivered the baby was not a specialist.

[Blue_In_AK]

84. That is correct.

The Mat-Su Hospital is an okay hospital, I suppose, but certainly Providence in Anchorage is better equipped with a state-of-the-art NICU. Cathy Baldwin-Johnson, the doctor involved, is a well respected family physician, but she had no specialized knowledge of special needs births.

CBJ was a Palin appointee in 2007 to her Alaska Health Care Strategies Planning Council. This is the biography posted for her at the web site http://www.hss.state.ak.us/hspc/members.htm

Dr. Cathy Baldwin-Johnson of Wasilla is a private practice family physician and the 2002 National Family Physician of the Year from the American Academy of Family Physicians. In 1999, Baldwin-Johnson co-founded and is the volunteer medical director of The Children’s Place, and since 2005 has served as a consultant and trainer on child abuse issues. Baldwin-Johnson graduated from the University of Washington School of Medicine where she participated in the WWAMI Medical School program.

CBJ never did provide full medical records for Sarah during the campaign, just a one-page summary.

[Initech]

80. Show us the birth certificate!!!

[GeorgeGist]

85. Ding, ding, ding. We have a winner!

Fighting stupidity, with stupidity.

[cleanhippie]

89. +1