Chart of the day is....

...one that maps the numbers on polling report dot com yesterday concerning the popularity of Sarah Palin in The USA. The question asked by the CBS New/New York Times poll to 1038 people and with a margin of error of +/-3% was, "Is your opinion of Sarah Palin favorable, not favorable, undecided, or haven't you heard enough about Sarah Palin yet to have an opinion?". Here's how the answers to that question have evolved over the last two and a bit years:

The trend's your friend and a little of my faith restored in the US public, as for a moment back there I thought you guys were taking her seriously. This news is probably bad for gold though, reducing the fear factor and all that. DYODD.

UPDATE: Mail of the Day comes from reader 'JS' with, "To quote George W. Bush, you misunderestimate the American people.".

For some reason...

...Sarah Palin today decided to delete a whole bunch of messages from her twitter account. However, in the 21st century world of interwebnetpipes the screengrabs of her thoughts are still available, such as this one:

Y'know, when a politician's first reaction to a horrific and tragic incident, one that she will doubtless say had absolutely nothing to do with her soon enough, is to scramble around erasing her own words and images, there's something really and deeply fucked up going on.

Before going I'd like to make something clear. Apart from one person, I don't care who you guys up there have for President any longer. Black, white, rich, poor, man, woman, Rep, Dem, the degrees of difference between them all on the things that really matter are minimal (though you'd hardly notice it from where you're looking, it's much easier from afar). If you want Romney, Clinton, Bloomberg, another Bush or anyone else from your limited spectrum of politics next time, that's ok by me and you won't hear me moaning. But not Palin. She's not only a limited intellect but a liar, a vindicative petty-minded snake-oil salesperson, belligerent and dangerous not only to you but to the rest of us. I hope that's clear enough.

Bullseye, Sarah

Taken from Sarah Palin's site (because it wouldn't surprise us if this image disappears soon UPDATE: surprise surprise, the site was pulled by Palin&Co just minutes after your author visited...fortunately the images below now seem to be splashed across about a squillion web pages). The lower crosswires of the three in Arizona is aimed directly at Gabrielle Giffords.

Here's another pictorial special, just to underline Sarah Palin's wishes:

Don't worry, it's probably all part of God's plan.

UPDATE: Here's one of those quotes that float back at times like these. On March 25th 2010, Gabrielle Giffords said the following: "Sarah Palin has the crosshairs of a gun sight over our district and when people do that, they’ve gotta realize there are consequences to that action."

No further comment.

UPDATE 2: Holy crap, the incitement of the AZ Tea Party was this blatant. From Andrew Sullivan:

 UPDATE 3: Looks like the guy arrested for the shooting has a youtube site. And he's a whacko.

I just happened.....

....to be hanging over at the Twatter account when Bina retwatted this in my vague direction. And I like it. So here it is, filed under 'OT'.

Taken at an Alaskan bookstore, or so it's told. Secondhand shelf.

History will teach us nothing?

Palin accepts Chávez cash

Oh, this is far too good.

In true GOP style, there's no problem about calling a democratically elected leader dictator...and there's no problem about accepting sponsorship moolah from the dude at the same time either. Another episode of 'money talks bullshit walks' brought to you by Structurally Maladjusted.

Mark Sanford, Maria Belen Shapur and Bunge (BG)

It turns out that this South Carolina dude Sanford was doing things with a certain Maria Belen Shapur, who works for soybean people Bunge (BG) in their Buenos Aires office. The good news for Argentina is that right now its GDP is clicking up a notch or two thanks to the number of gringo journalists suddenly swarming round the Palermo barrio of town. A friend lives a couple of doors away from the alleged lair of Shapur and says the road is currently blocked due to linguistically challenged hacks and their photographers.

Meanwhile, sombrero tip to RG over at mexfiles for this screenshot photo of Sanford on Fox News yesterday....subliminal advertising, anyone?

God Bless the moral leadership you guys up there offer....an example to us all.

Dear Voters of the USA

This is not my patch, and I promise not to mention it again here. Honest. That said, here we go;

Please don't do this to yourselves. Don't do it to Latin America, either. Or anywhere else. Not least Russia. I really don't have anything much against McCain. He seems like a stand up guy from what I see down here, he is a true hero and if you say you like him more than Obama that's fine by me. But he's made a massive mistake in his pick for Veep. Admit it. Don't put this person that Katie Couric interviewed even close to anything that resembles executive power. From CBS today

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Katie Couric: You've cited Alaska's proximity to Russia as part of your foreign policy experience. What did you mean by that?

Sarah Palin: That Alaska has a very narrow maritime border between a foreign country, Russia, and, on our other side, the land-boundry that we have with Canada. It's funny that a comment like that was kinda made to … I don't know, you know … reporters.

Couric: Mocked?

Palin: Mocked, yeah I guess that's the word, mocked.

Couric: Well, explain to me why that enhances your foreign-policy credentials.

Palin: Well, it certainly does, because our, our next-door neighbors are foreign countries, there in the state that I am the executive of. And there…

Couric: Have you ever been involved in any negotiations, for example, with the Russians?

Palin: We have trade missions back and forth, we do. It's very important when you consider even national-security issues with Russia. As Putin rears his head and comes into the air space of the United States of America, where do they go? It's Alaska. It's just right over the border. It is from Alaska that we send those out to make sure that an eye is being kept on this very powerful nation, Russia, because they are right next to, they are right next to our state.