Palin's problems with the truth, and her newfound taste for threats of lawsuits

July 5, 2:14 PMDC Ethical Issues ExaminerLaura Harrison McBride

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Palin screechin' (AP Photo/DeBerry)

Liar, liar pants on fire…or, why wasn’t the news media all over Palin’s request that the GOP lie for her during the presidential campaign?

A Huffington Post blogger pointed out today the several reasons why it was a bad week for the Palin, including an unflattering article in Vanity Fair, and a CBS report about her emails during the campaign, most particularly, the one in which she asked the campaign to lie about her husband’s membership in the secessionist party. A McCain strategist said no dice, but not, apparently, because to do so would be unethical and dishonest by itself (although, to be fair, he did point that out, too, according to HuffPo.) Rather, he pointed out, it would create a new issue in the media if it ever got out.

It has.

Despite the very real joy in many hearts about Palin’s stepping down as governor, apparently there is at least one cause for rejoicing in the blogosphere: Palin, like Cheney, seems to be the gift that keeps on giving. One might reasonably ask, “Is there no end to her self-serving addlepated machinations?”

One might reasonably reply, “Apparently not.” It appears we will have Alaska's queen bee buzzing in our ears for a while yet.

Especially we will have to listen to her imbecilic droning on if, as she’s threatening, she sues Shannyn Moore, a TV presenter and blogger who has written early and often about Palin’s adventures in a relatively frigid Never, Neverland where it’s OK to ask others to lie for you so you can attempt to obtain the second highest office in the richest nation on earth. (Mind you, I'm not saying it's OK to lie in Alaska, only in Palin's small, ice-hearted portion of it.)

Life is different in that Palin-built Never, Neverland where all it takes to leave the Wal-Mart checkout line for personal service at Neiman Marcus is someone else’s checkbook, thereby giving an instant lie to her claim to being an average person who likes being middle-class. (Just for contrast, although Michelle Obama wears some designer clothes because she can afford them on her own checkbook, she also shops at Old Navy. And she’s Mrs. POTUS, not the former mayor of a one-sled town in the tundra.)

Palin threatened to sue some others, it seems, including MSNBC. At least they have the advantage of deep pockets, a characteristic Ms. Moore probably cannot offer on the same scale. So, on one level of Palinesque thought, at least the MSNBC threat holds some promise.

On the other hand, it is more likely that suing Moore could do some real damage to Moore’s pocketbook, although it might not, considering that the increased fame alone might make up for the expenditures as book deals and such came down the pike. If Palin can’t get a financial payout…OK, never mind, she probably won’t sue Moore.

Still, it might be poetic justice for Moore to earn more on a tell-all about her wrangles with the airborne baby seal wrangler of the Alaskan outback than the reported $11 mil Her Governorship reportedly sought for her own tell-all book deal.

It would seem, from the maneuver reported by CBS, that it wouldn’t even be necessary to read between the lines of that one for the truth. All you’d need to do would be to read the lines and then understand the exact opposite.