Sarah Palin's Church Burned
ANCHORAGE, Alaska — Gov. Sarah Palin's home church was badly damaged by arson, leading the governor to apologize if the fire was connected to "undeserved negative attention" from her failed campaign as the Republican vice presidential nominee.
Damage to the Wasilla Bible Church was estimated at $1 million, authorities said Saturday. No one was injured in the fire, which was set Friday night while a handful of people, including two children, were inside, according to Central Mat-Su Fire Chief James Steele.
He said the blaze was being investigated as an arson but didn't know of any recent threats to the church. Authorities didn't know whether Palin's connection to the church was relevant to the fire, Steele said.
"It's hard to say at this point. Everything is just speculation," he said. "We have no information on intent or motive."
In response, many on the right have already assumed that the arson was carried out by some liberals seeking further retaliation against Palin's failed bid for the Vice Presidency. "Our obvous assumption is that this is the work of a liberal pundant who is not fully satisfied with a November victory. Burning the church must have been icing on the hate cake! Regardless weI hope the offender is identified and punnished severely. If this kind of issue is treated lightly we will observe the burning of abortion clinics, acorn offices, homes in Chicago and news agencies among plenty of other potential targets. Here is to hoping that some idiotic liberal didn’t start a chain of events too big to stop!"
The notion that the arson was the "work" of a liberal is absurd. The arson was more likely the work of extremists of the radical right who have already left a decades long trail of hate, violence and arson during the campaign and long before it. Who would serve to gain from such an act? We've had our progressive victory and now is the time address the many problems we face in a productive manner.
As progressive populists we deplore all acts of violence, hatred and vengence. Why would we attack symbols or personalities of the right because they speak for themselves? Whether on Eons or as politicals personae, the radical right speaks for itself; they are their own harbingers of hatred and vengence. All we need do is call them for what they are. It is not yet time to embrace them as brethern in love, nor will it ever be time to roll over to the religious right and allow them to hijack and bury the Gospel Christ in hatred and vengeance. The Fundamentalists of the Right are giving us one of the worst exhibitions of bitter intolerance that the churches of this country have ever seen.
As to the question of who dunnit, that verdict is yet to be determined. I would be as surprised if that were never resolved as it was ever determined to be the "work" of a "liberal". I suspect it was an act of an even more "whacked out" member of the radical religious right as a means of justifying more brutal attacks against institutions of the left.
posted by feywon
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posted by Skids33
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posted by Skids33
The AIP founder, Joe Vogler, made the comments in 1991, in an interview that's now housed at the Oral History Program in the Rasmuson Library at the University of Alaska, Fairbanks.
"The fires of hell are frozen glaciers compared to my hatred for the American government," Vogler said in the interview, in which he talked extensively about his desire for Alaskan secession, the key goal of the AIP.
"And I won't be buried under their damn flag," Vogler continued in the interview, which also touched on his disappointment with the American judicial system. "I'll be buried in Dawson. And when Alaska is an independent nation they can bring my bones home."
At another point, Volger advocated renouncing allegiance to the United States. In the course of denouncing Federal regulation over land, he said:
"And then you get mad. And you say, the hell with them. And you renounce allegiance, and you pledge your efforts, your effects, your honor, your life to Alaska."
You can listen to audio of the relevant section of the Volger interview here. Bill Schneider, curator of oral history at the library, verified the authenticity of the interview and the quote to me a few moments ago.
Palin has courted the group over the years.
Three years after the controversial interview, in 1994, Palin attended the group's annual convention, according to witnesses who spoke to ABC News' Jake Tapper.
The McCain campaign has confirmed she visited the group's 2000 convention, and she addressed its convention this year, as an incumbent governor whose oath of office includes upholding the Constitution of the United States.
Palin's husband, Todd Palin, was a member of the party from 1995-2002 with a brief exception in 2000.
It's worth noting that Vogler isn't just some figure from ancient history. He is still being hailed on AIP's site this year, the same year Palin addressed the group's convention.
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posted by feywon
And i totally agree it could be a 'manufactured' excuse for retaliation.
Also meant to tell you the "undeserved negative attention" should indeed be in quotes because i feel she deserved every bit of it she got, and like a spoiled child would rather get negative than none at all.
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posted by Lollykoko
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