Posted on 07/02/2015 7:50:48 AM PDT by SeekAndFind
Let me begin by clearly stating my biases I like the Palins. They are dear family friends. My wife, Nancy, worked with Sarah on her most recent book, she worked with Bristol on her book, she edits Bristols blog on Patheos, and I represented Bristol in a lawsuit when a man sued her after he profanely accosted her at a bar. (He lost.) In the years since my wife first flew to Wasilla to meet the Palins and work with Bristol, Ive seen just a fraction of the non-stop hatred and vitriol directed at the family.
Much of the hatred is quite public and publicized. Imagine, for a moment, how youd feel if a hostile journalist quite literally moved next door to monitor your family. Then there are the periodic stalkers including one who recently invaded Bristols home. Like many celebrities, the Palins live in a world where people can make money by selling rumors about them. And the press is all-too-eager to humiliate them.
So, while it hasnt been much noted in conservative press, it should surprise no one that the liberal side of the Internet has virtually melted down over the news that Bristol Palin is pregnant. Crowing over the unwed pregnancy of an abstinence advocate, many on the left arent letting the facts or their alleged principles get in the way of a good mocking. To be very clear, while Bristol has said that she aspired to abstinence herself after becoming pregnant as a teen and experiencing the challenges of teen motherhood, shes also advocated both abstinence and birth control as means of preventing teen pregnancy even cutting a Public Service Announcement with an MTV reality star where she supported abstinence, he supported contraception, and they agreed that both methods kept kids from having kids.
This nuance is of course lost in the avalanche of mockery, always justified by the ever-present reminder that, She has a blog or She puts herself in the public eye as if rules of decency simply no longer apply if you appear on television or write on the Internet. Yet its always worth remembering that the Lefts principles are situational, as the Palins know better than most.
Crowing over the unwed pregnancy of an abstinence advocate, many on the Left arent letting the facts or their alleged principles get in the way of a good mocking. Remember how its important to #BelieveAllWomen when they tell stories of date rape or sexual assault? Not when the woman in question is Bristol Palin. When she wrote in her book of her first, drunken encounter with Levi Johnston, noted sex columnist Dan Savage wrote, Its just that Bristols story which comes so long after her two broken engagements to Levi is the kind of self-exonerating bullshit that scared teenagers offer up to parents and other authority figures when its just their good-girl reputations and saving-myself-for-marriage self-images that are on the line.
Remember how its beyond the pale to joke about violence against women? Yet when taped evidence emerged that Bristol was physically beaten at a party and dragged through the mud by her attacker, CNNs Carol Costello called the police recording of a hysterically crying Bristol quite possibly the best minute and a half of audio weve ever come across and urged readers to sit back and enjoy.
Remember when Rush Limbaugh was so out of bounds for calling Sandra Fluke a slut that President Obama himself called to see if she was okay? Well, Bristol is still waiting for the presidents call after his million-dollar-donor Bill Maher crassly declared years ago that Bristol was f***ked so hard, a baby fell out.
But few things top Gawkers latest a piece declaring that Bristol made a great argument for abortion when she announced her second pregnancy. That announcement, which expressed the pain of letting down family and friends, also declared her resolve and her trust in God, ending with Tripp, this new baby, and I will all be fine, because God is merciful.
As we ponder this level of hate, its worth remembering the Original Sin that put Sarah, Bristol, and the entire family in the Lefts crosshairs in 2008, Sarah Palin stood in the way of The One. For a very brief time, after McCain selected Palin as his running mate and after Palins convention speech, McCain actually pulled ahead of Obama.
Palin, the key to McCains resurgence, had to be destroyed. Its not worth recounting here the avalanche of lies and vitriol that poured down on Governor Palin. Ive followed politics for a long time, and Ive never seen anything like the combination of leftist hate and Republican-insider betrayal that Sarah Palin endured. The attacks went beyond politics to include a targeted effort to financially ruin the Palin family.
After Obama won in 2008, Palin didnt do what the Left demanded slink off, defeated, into obscurity. Instead, she (and Bristol) used their public platforms to continue to advocate for their beliefs and values. So the destruction continues, and it will continue until the Left gets what it wants which is for the Palins to simply go away.
The Christian experience so often means trying, failing, and repenting. We dont all fail in the same ways, but we all fail. Sometimes, we even fail to try. The grace of God gives us not just the humility to acknowledge failure and disappointment but also the resolve to face an uncertain or intimidating future. Ive admired Bristol and the rest of her family for enduring hatred I cant imagine confronting in my own life, and Ive appreciated Bristols longstanding willingness to publicly and honestly own up to her own failings.
Despite the Lefts best efforts, Bristol has actually built a large and loyal following, people who mainly appreciate her strong voice for life. So, no, shes not going away. In true Palin fashion, shell persevere and if the Left doesnt like it, they dont have to watch.
David French is an attorney and a staff writer at National Review.
I’ve ALWAYS known the Left’s true colors: RED.
Bristol will tell you that abstinence is not a reliable method of birth control, especially if you are drunk and horny.
Well said!
This article is longer than a bumper sticker. Big problem.
The Left and Bishop Romney began these attacks
to ensure that McCain-Palin would not win,
as they were ahead, weeks before the Election.
Casting stones now are we.
Many on FR would do well to appreciate this.
Never forget!
Like many celebrities, the Palins live in a world where people can make money by selling rumors about them.
*************
Yep the choice is theirs and I expect they’ll survive just fine.
This is not the Virgin Mary, so why is this young woman with the horrible judgement still in the news; didn’t she make enough on her speeches about chastity to be out of the spotlight?
Charming.
Ive ALWAYS known the Lefts true colors: RED.- OldSarge
Pick a Target, Freeze it, Personalize It. Polarize it.
(I am at work and don't have access to any Sarah/Bristol Pics sorry about that)
I, for one, firmly believe that the psychotic hatreds shown by the left, such as the treatment of the Palins, Romney’s “Dog on the roof”, and now a Republican hopeful’s heinous crime of accumulating a couple of parking tickets, has caused terrible harm to the country.
At virtually ALL levels, from the local to the state to the Federal government, the people who you would really want to see in office, will have nothing whatever to do with the sewer that politics has degenerated to.
For example, take the family history of my state’s, the Peoples’ Republic of Massachusetts, leading political family, the Kennedy Family. Now change the last letter of their name (D) to, gasp (R) and imagine the explosion of hatred, vilification, scorn and bad publicity that would fall on their heads.
With today’s LEFT, it all depends on Who does What, depending on their political identification.
Seems a lot of them have accounts on FR judging by the speed in which the PDS hit this thread. Be nice if Jim fixed that oversight someday.
Yes, the left is all about anger and hate. It is what they thrive on.
The left lives on lies, and dies with the truth.
yep. it was a bit disgusting last week to see so many Freepers piling on Bristol Palin and mocking her while echoing the same talking points of the libtard sites.
is there anyone on this site who would rather have Lady Gaga or Miley Cyrus as a daughter instead of Bristol Palin? ...i didn’t think so.
she made a mistake (fornication), but at least she isn’t going to compound it with an even bigger one (abortion).
Personally I think there are a lot of that crew that should talk to the Commie pope about cannonization. Because they must have led some pure and sheltered lives. Never drinking, partying, having sex.
We should all learn from their perfection and pray to them.
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