Sarah Palin and California State University - The missing piece of the puzzle

Many people were confused and outraged about CSU Stanislaus inviting Sarah Palin to headline their black-tie event in June, considering the positions of their president, Dr Hamid Shirvani:

His management focus is, first and foremost, on bringing a humanistic perspective to decision-making, with a focus on ethics and transparency in institutional behavior.

Humanism is a worldview and a moral philosophy that considers humans to be of primary importance. It is a perspective common to a wide range of ethical stances that attaches importance to human dignity, concerns, and capabilities, particularly rationality. Although the word has many senses, its current philosophical meaning comes into focus when contrasted to the supernatural or to appeals to higher authority. Since the 19th century, humanism has been associated with an anti-clericalism inherited from the 18th-century Enlightenment philosophes. The term covers organized non-theistic religions, secular humanism, and a humanistic life stance.

Dr. Shirvani is also in demand as a book reviewer in the field of architecture, and has spoken, lectured and made numerous conference presentations on higher education, art, architecture, and urban design.

What would Dr Shirvani write about Sarah Palin's Wasilla? (Click on the link for more photos)

CSU Stanislaus has changed a lot in the last 50 years. So have some of the people who were very vocal regarding the Vietnam war in the 60s but have changed their views since then, such as Jon Voight.



These days CSU Stanislaus prefers more conservative celebrities to shine at their events:



Another member of the board of the CSU Stanislaus Foundation is quite interesting:

Matt Swanson is a visionary leader in agri-business, manufacturing and pet-supply retail. He serves as president of both Associated Feed & Supply, a leader in the animal feed industry, and Virtus Nutrition, a developer and marketer of value-added feed ingredients for dairy cows. He is president of Nutrias, which manufactors vitamin and mineral supplements for livestock, poultry and companion animals. He is also founder and president of Pet Extreme, Inc.

His varied interests in film and music culminated in founding The Creation Lab, Turlock’s own recording and video studio. He also serves as president of the California State University, Stanislaus Foundation Board and is a Turlock Christian Schools board member.

Sarah Palin doesn't have any known connections with dairy cows apart from Dairygate, but perhaps the clue is in the last sentence.

Mr Swanson is a member of the executive team of Harvest Crusades, started by a Greg Laurie, who sits on the board of directors of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association and Samaritan’s Purse.

Well, it didn't take long to find that last missing piece of the puzzle...

Sarah Palin is very enthusiastic about the Samaritan Purse. She travelled with Franklin Graham to Western Alaska to dish out some cookies and Evangelical pamphlets to Alaska Natives who were going through a very serious crisis and didn't hesitate to pass her baby-prop Trig to Franklin Graham when she arrived for a visit with Franklin's father, Billy Graham, during the "bus" tour to promote Going Rogue.


Franklin Graham was the speaker at the Alaska Governor's Prayer Breakfast in 2007 and 2008. He was also influencial in Sarah Palin's choice of Commissioner of Public Safety after she fired Walt Monegan. Unfortunately, Graham's protege, Chuck Kopp, had a few demons, having been previously reprimanded for sexual harassement when he was police chief in Kenai.

I can understand Sarah Palin's and Matt Swanson's motivations, but I have difficulty in understanding Dr Shirvani's inclination to sell out his humanistic soul.

Sooner or later, most people seem prepared to sell their souls to the real devil: MONEY.

(H/T to Crystalwolf)
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Max Blumenthal speaks about "Republican Gomorrah" (Video) - Why John McCain chose Sarah Palin

Today we had a pleasant surprise: A parcel arrived, and it contained a book which instantly proved to be a real "page-turner": Max Blumenthal's bestseller "Republican Gomorrah" - subtitle: "Inside the movement that shattered the party".

In this book, Max Blumenthal "is excavating secrets about the nation’s ultra-conservatives. Showing us their text messages, exposing the psychology behind their actions, and getting behind the curtain to show us who holds the strings", according to the LA Times (Q & A with Max Blumenthal).

Just like Frank Schaeffer's "Crazy for God", which also proved to be a truly gripping read, Max Blumenthal's observations and his fearless analysis are invaluable in order to understand the history and the background of the ultra right-wing, evangelical movement which exerts such an "unholy influence" on the GOP today.

Sarah Palin certainly has to be seen as a part of this "unholy" group. Although she never seemed to be very keen to talk about her religion after having been thrown in the spotlight in August 2008, she had been a member of the Pentecostal Wasilla Assembly of God for about 25 years, after having been re-baptised there with her whole family at the age of 12. We can safely assume that this radical church, to which Sarah Palin still keeps contact, played in important part in shaping her religious views.

Max Blumenthal made a very revealing video about the Wasilla Assembly of God in 2008, including secretly filmed footage during an appearance of "witchhunter" Thomas Muthee - who in 2005 prayed over Sarah Palin explicitly in order to give her spiritual support for her aim to become Governor. As I had shown in my compilation titled "Sarah Palin: Witchcraft and War", Sarah Palin made it clear in a later appearance at the Wasilla Assembly of God that she believed that the prayers of Thomas Muthee secured her the governorship.

It is necessary to learn more about the background of this right-wing movement with their core issues such as abortion and homosexuality. There can be no doubt that Sarah Palin's nomination as the Republican VP-candidate for example with her extremely strict views on abortion rights pleased this group.

Max Blumenthal writes in "Republican Gomorrah" (pp. 285, 286):

"During a June radio broadcast, James Dobson presented McCain with a stark decision: Pick an anti-abortion politician or lose movement support as Bob Dole had in 1996. 'I am not endorsing Senator Mccain today,' Dobson said . ' I don't know who his vice presidential candidate would be. He might even chose a pro-abortion candidate, and it would not be unlike him to do that because he seems to enjoy frustrating conservatives on that account. ... While I'm not endorsing John McCain, the possibility is there that I might.'

Once again, the maverick buckled. McCain's choices were reduced to Mitt Romney, a favourite of the Bush family, and Karl Rove whom he personally disliked; Florida governor Charlie Crist, an uncharistmatic lifelong bachelor who suddenly became engaged to a woman after his name appeared on McCain's VP shortlist; Minnesota Governor Tim Pawlenty, a competent establishment dullard; and the glamorous Sarah Palin. In the end, McCain and his advisors made what they believed to be the 'maverick' decision, selecting the woman. But their haphazard vetting of the Alaska Governor failed to cover her large family, which turned out to contain enough intrigue for a season's worth of Jerry Springer Show episodes."

Max Blumenthal goes on to remark that McCain's choice of running mate prompted James Dobson to endorse his campaign - and the reason was a baby born with Down Syndrome:

He explains that James Dobson wrote Sarah Palin a letter congratulating her for having what he called "that little Downs Syndrome baby." "What a way to emphasise your pro-life leanings there," Dobson declared on a September 2 radio broadcast. Finally, Dobson announced that he was reversing his vow to oppose McCain. Max Blumenthal states:

"McCain had suffered torture in a North Vietnamese prison camp and given over thirty years of his life to public service, but he earned James Dobson's vote only for selecting a running mate who decided not to abort her disabled child." (p. 287)

In fact, the truth is likely to be even worse. We believe that what Max Blumenthal has missed in his book is the fact that Sarah Palin claimed that the child was her own in order to boost her pro-life credentials.

Confirmation for this impression can be found in an interview which James Dobson conducted with Sarah Palin on October 22, 2008. Sarah Palin said in her classic "holier-than-thou" fashion:

"I've always had near and dear to my heart the mission of protecting the sanctity of life and being pro-life, a hardcore pro-lifer, but I think this opportunity for me to really be walking the walk and not just talking the talk. There's purpose in this also for a greater good to be met. I feel so privileged and blessed to have been, I guess, chosen to have Trig enter our lives because I do want it to help us in our cause here in allowing America to be a more welcoming nation for all of our children."

Therefore I hope that you will take the time to listen to this excellent speech by Max Blumenthal, in which he also talks about Sarah Palin and his experiences in the Wasilla Assembly of God:



Alternatively, another speech by Max Blumenthal about "Republican Gomorrah" can be viewed on flora.tv here.


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