Sarah Palin: A flip-flopper before she wasn't; went to 6 colleges in 6 years

[annulla]

Sampling schools as if they were ice cream flavors, Republican vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin switched colleges six times in six years - sometimes because she just didn't like the weather.

http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2008/09/05/2008-09-05_sarah_palin_a_flipflopper_before_she_was.html

By the way, her t-shirt says, "I may be broke but I'm not flat busted." Klassy!

http://assets.nydailynews.com/img/2008/09/06/amd_palincollege.jpg

[TooOlduvai]

What a skoller.

[core_17]

I take my education very seriously, and I would hope that others do, too.

You certainly won't find me in the very bottom of my class, or voting for someone who is, either.

[jaklackus]

The quality of one's education is not dependent on the name on the school, At the end, of the day, the quality is dependent on how well the student absorbed and understood what was taught. And what they taught themselves along the way.

Having worked around an ivy league school, interacting with students and professors alike and working with several people over the years that attended the 'elite' schools...I am not automatically impressed with the 'brand name' attached to their education. Some of them were absolutely brilliant, some were perfectly average and were just happy to be able to afford the tuition to get to name the school on their resume and some of them just drooled...literally.

[lisacna]

Not in this society!
After all, remember the current leader of the free world.

Do you think its because college is becoming hard to afford for so many? Just a thought.

ETA: in reference to the thought that more people equate college educated with bieng elite. After reading my post I thought I should clarify what I was talking about;

[AnnaMolly]

Do you think its because college is becoming hard to afford for so many? Just a thought.

In a small part I do. I love and adore learning and school. I go to a community college and I love it there, but it's hard to afford it with a crappy retail job. All I can take is one class and I had to put it on my credit card but I crave school so I did it. I think though, that some are worse off than me, so college is not even an option that enters their mind.
But I think more than anything that the importance of knowledge is still not emphasized enough. I've known quite a few kids at my school that go to school because it's the thing to do but they're not really getting anything out of it. Most of them are still dumb as rocks when they leave. We live in this society that glorifies money and sex and all of this crazy crap so kids see this junk on tv and want this "easy way". There's so much in our mainstream culture that glorifies stupidity that some follow it blindly because it's cool or "easy". All they see is dollar signs not betterment of themselves. Oh man I could write pages on all of this..

[sascha_b]

[QUOTE=turtle33;7725024]I understand what you are saying, but having formal education does not always mean that someone is necessarily smarter than someone else. Joe Schmo may know just as much about history, law, physics, etc. as a a college degreed person. They just don't have the paper to prove it.

The quality of one's education is not dependent on the name on the school, At the end, of the day, the quality is dependent on how well the student absorbed and understood what was taught. And what they taught themselves along the way.


There's wisdom in all of these posts. There are different types of intelligence.
I'm not suggesting that a paper from Harvard is the end all...Intelligence and education in terms of the ability to synthesize information is what I'm talking about. It's more discriminatory rather than spewing of facts. I appreciate a evaluative ability in people regardless of their misspellings or speaking manner.


I want to vote for someone who is smarter than me, who has more education than me, who isn't just Joe Schmo from down the street.

One of my priorities, also.

[TooOlduvai]

Some posts in this forum reek of the "I am smarter than you and I am never wrong" type of attitude.

There are know-it-alls everywhere. It's not tied to education.

[LastLaugh]

Some posts in this forum reek of the "I am smarter than you and I am never wrong" type of attitude.
and I haven't even posted in this thread yet (or at least none of them survived).

[HistoryMystery]

I love how people with education are labeled elitist and stuck-up. I'm not terribly offended when I'm called a grammar snob or a history nerd--however, I am saddened knowing that society has somehow managed to place an "elitist" sticker on "knowing how to spell." This isn't 1750; we ALL have access to education these days. It's no longer elitist to have graduated from college or even graduate school (as it was 200 years ago), but to actually USE that knowledge? As if we earned it? Heaven forbid.

[bidred73]

I love how people with education are labeled elitist and stuck-up. I'm not terribly offended when I'm called a grammar snob or a history nerd--however, I am saddened knowing that society has somehow managed to place an "elitist" sticker on "knowing how to spell." This isn't 1750; we ALL have access to education these days. It's no longer elitist to have graduated from college or even graduate school (as it was 200 years ago), but to actually USE that knowledge? As if we earned it? Heaven forbid.


I do not believe that an educated intelectual person=elitist. Nor am I prone to believe that less educated=idiot. There has been a small section of scholars since the beginning of modern time, who have looked down their noses at the less literate. They consider them persons with no culture. Thus, it has forced those without the benifit of organized education credentials to feel inferior without cause. Another example of "class" war perhaps.

Just thinking, college or not, our education should continue till the day we die. Diploma or no diploma, everyday is a learning curve.

[Reverie]

Some posts in this forum reek of the "I am smarter than you and I am never wrong" type of attitude.

The same can be said of those who declare they personally know without a doubt "what the bible says" and "what god wants" - wouldn't that be religious elitism?

Perhaps elitism is in the eye of the beholder.

Personally, I find that anyone considered of the "educational elite" is much more willing to explore new ideas and listen to opposing viewpoints - much more open minded. And that's a deal-breaker for me.

[psipsina]

Can you give us an example of someone who has done that? With a link to the source, please. Every educated person I know is the first to admit that they are constantly learning. It would be asinine for anyone to say they know everything.

Srsly! I'm in my 6th year of post-high school education and I still feel like a moron on a daily basis!! I have 10-11 years more of formal education before I'll even be deemed knowledgeable enough to have my doctor training wheels taken off and even then I'll be studying new scientific developments for the rest of my life. And thats just my scientific knowledge. I could read for centuries and never fully reach the depth that would be considered "expert" in the various subjects I'm interested in!! I've rarely met someone who had a know it all attitude because they were educated . . . maybe they had that attitude about their specific field but when you've spent two decades studying a little niche I think its ok to get a bit cocky about that niche. Most of the educated people I know are MORE aware of how little they know because they've jumped out into the ocean of knowledge and realized just how far down and how far out it goes. The close minded people are those who stick their pinky toe into the kiddie pool and assume that the ocean will be just as disappointing. (which in itself is commentary on our education system which fails to show the kids the ocean early on). There are plenty of non-formally educated people who have jumped into the ocean on their own so I'm not making an educate vs non educated comment hear, more of a open minded vs close minded comparison.

[TooOlduvai]

Srsly! I'm in my 6th year of post-high school education and I still feel like a moron on a daily basis!! I have 10-11 years more of formal education before I'll even be deemed knowledgeable enough to have my doctor training wheels taken off and even then I'll be studying new scientific developments for the rest of my life. And thats just my scientific knowledge. I could read for centuries and never fully reach the depth that would be considered "expert" in the various subjects I'm interested in!! I've rarely met someone who had a know it all attitude because they were educated . . . maybe they had that attitude about their specific field but when you've spent two decades studying a little niche I think its ok to get a bit cocky about that niche. Most of the educated people I know are MORE aware of how little they know because they've jumped out into the ocean of knowledge and realized just how far down and how far out it goes. The close minded people are those who stick their pinky toe into the kiddie pool and assume that the ocean will be just as disappointing. (which in itself is commentary on our education system which fails to show the kids the ocean early on). There are plenty of non-formally educated people who have jumped into the ocean on their own so I'm not making an educate vs non educated comment hear, more of a open minded vs close minded comparison.

Absolutely agree. Every day I'm in class, the more aware I am of how little I really know.

[CheckedOut]

Lol. She's not qualified to drive past Harvard.

snap!


why is harvard a knock for barack, but yale (skull and cross bones membership included at no extra charge...oh but wait, i guess that IS gonna cost us about $10 billion a month) not a knock on bush?

people with a "community college intellect" (no one specifically) who clamor for their intellectual equal in the white house cant even see this glaring inconsistency/oversight.

its sad that half of this country is hell bent on making everyone more stupid so they feel better about their own selves. FOX, regurgitating and feeding everyone exactly what they want to hear is leading the way by perpetuating these very things and if you can't see that, then they are succeeding (by the way, they are succeeding).

[alycep06]

when will we understand that education does not equal intelligence?
I also believe that the value of a formal education depends a lot on the teachers, the schools standards and your own initiative and what you put into learning. Having attended both local community schools and one of the most prestigious universities in the country I can attest to there being a big difference in the level of education.

It is also my opinion that experience (including travel and a first hand knowledge of other areas and peoples) is the best teacher, especially when added to a strong core IQ, which you are basically born with...........

having said that we know Sarah does not have much worldly experience and while we do not know her IQ, we do know that she seemed to having trouble focusing and completing her formal education in none top of the line schools, I would conclude her to be slightly below average in the intelligence/knowledge area. I personally want someone with a very balanced(=life exp. +formal ed) education that I believe is smarter than I am...........otherwise I would run myself and I would have trouble respecting their decisions, hence my frustrations the last 8 years........

[prezli]

I had to delete many off topic posts from this thread. The thread needs to stay on topic. When a thread is supposed to be about one candidate we must stop making it all about or trying to distract members from the original subject of the thread.

[jaklackus]

Based on the information in a Fox News piece last night she had to switch schools because her parents had 4 kids in college at once and couldn't afford to keep her in her first school in Hawaii.

And this is the same time she became involved with beauty pageants in hopes of winning scholarship money...she sounded as if she did not really enjoy the experience all that much. She definitely was not recommending the experience to anyone else. She sounded almost disgusted with the experience.

The Fox News piece used parts of a interview with her done in April.

[psipsina]

snap!


why is harvard a knock for barack, but yale (skull and cross bones membership included at no extra charge...oh but wait, i guess that IS gonna cost us about $10 billion a month) not a knock on bush?

people with a "community college intellect" (no one specifically) who clamor for their intellectual equal in the white house cant even see this glaring inconsistency/oversight.

its sad that half of this country is hell bent on making everyone more stupid so they feel better about their own selves. FOX, regurgitating and feeding everyone exactly what they want to hear is leading the way by perpetuating these very things and if you can't see that, then they are succeeding (by the way, they are succeeding).

I think the difference between Barak and Bush is that Bush got into yale on a legacy whereas Barak got into harvard based on his merits alone. I personally had the opportunity to use a legacy to get into a top namebrand school and didn't because I really wanted to know if I could do it on my own. I'm much more proud of my admission to my state school than I would have been if I'd known that big ivy league school had only let me in because of who my grandaddy was. That being said I know what it takes to get into a harvard grad school program on your own merits and its nothing to knock. I think I'm pretty darn smart and those schools for the most part didn't even bother to interview me. The kids who get into those programs are truly exceptional and we should value that.

[TooOlduvai]

snap!


why is harvard a knock for barack, but yale (skull and cross bones membership included at no extra charge...oh but wait, i guess that IS gonna cost us about $10 billion a month) not a knock on bush?

people with a "community college intellect" (no one specifically) who clamor for their intellectual equal in the white house cant even see this glaring inconsistency/oversight.

its sad that half of this country is hell bent on making everyone more stupid so they feel better about their own selves. FOX, regurgitating and feeding everyone exactly what they want to hear is leading the way by perpetuating these very things and if you can't see that, then they are succeeding (by the way, they are succeeding).

absolutely agree. Mediocrity is now the goal of many americans, and I think it's the result of the egocentrism our society promotes. They don't want anyone to be more educated, more intelligent, or more talented than they are, so they aim for the lowest common denominator in politics. Bottom of his class POW, paired with beauty-queen mayor/governor. People who got ahead - DESPITE their lack of talent - not because of it. I'm afraid it will ultimately be the downfall of this country.

[Meadow]

absolutely agree. Mediocrity is now the goal of many americans, and I think it's the result of the egocentrism our society promotes. They don't want anyone to be more educated, more intelligent, or more talented than they are, so they aim for the lowest common denominator in politics. Bottom of his class POW, paired with beauty-queen mayor/governor. People who got ahead - DESPITE their lack of talent - not because of it. I'm afraid it will ultimately be the downfall of this country.

I totally agree.

[jaklackus]

I think the difference between Barak and Bush is that Bush got into yale on a legacy whereas Barak got into harvard based on his merits alone. I personally had the opportunity to use a legacy to get into a top namebrand school and didn't because I really wanted to know if I could do it on my own. I'm much more proud of my admission to my state school than I would have been if I'd known that big ivy league school had only let me in because of who my grandaddy was. That being said I know what it takes to get into a harvard grad school program on your own merits and its nothing to knock. I think I'm pretty darn smart and those schools for the most part didn't even bother to interview me. The kids who get into those programs are truly exceptional and we should value that.

From what I understand a letter was written for Obama by someone who had friends at Harvard....he did get some help to get in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EcC0QAd0Ug&NR=1

[lisacna]

From what I understand a letter was written for Obama by someone who had friends at Harvard....he did get some help to get in.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4EcC0QAd0Ug&NR=1

forgive me if I am wrong but dont you need letters of recomendation to get into any good college. Its competitive,,right ?anyone wanting to get into a good schools has help by way of letters?

[TooOlduvai]

forgive me if I am wrong but dont you need letters of recomendation to get into any good college. Its competitive,,right ?anyone wanting to get into a good schools has help by way of letters?

Sure do. I'm going to need some to get into grad school.

[jaklackus]

forgive me if I am wrong but dont you need letters of recomendation to get into any good college. Its competitive,,right ?anyone wanting to get into a good schools has help by way of letters?


yes you do....I always thought that they needed to be from someone who knew you personally(mine were) and I thought that they got attached to the application(mine were). From the interview that I heard...Mr. Sutton was doing a favor for a friend to get Obama into Harvard by contacting his friends who had a hand in the selection process.

[psipsina]

yes you do....I always thought that they needed to be from someone who knew you personally(mine were) and I thought that they got attached to the application(mine were). From the interview that I heard...Mr. Sutton was doing a favor for a friend to get Obama into Harvard by contacting his friends who had a hand in the selection process.

Recommendations don't = legacy. A req from a prominent person would be a small positive if comparing to otherwise equally qualified candidates. A legacy can get someone's application looked at who otherwise would have been an automatic reject. Huge difference. At some schools legacy = admission unless GROSSLY underqualified. The IVYs are particularly notorious for that. There was a case at a florida medschool this year where an applicant was admitted as a legacy who hadn't even taken the MCAT!

[AlaskanSweeper]

Why debate the issues when you can ridicule someone for a tee-shirt they wore when they were a teenager and laugh at the fact that they had trouble paying for college? Some people would consider her six-year pursuit of a college degree a testament to her determination to finish.

[TooOlduvai]

Why debate the issues when you can ridicule someone for a tee-shirt they wore when they were a teenager and laugh at the fact that they had trouble paying for college? Some people would consider her six-year pursuit of a college degree a testament to her determination to finish.

Six years for a degree is fairly normal. Six colleges is not.

From the original article: ""I was always asking everyone the questions, and I still am today," Palin told the magazine." Too bad she's not as equally interested in answering questions.

[AlaskanSweeper]

Six years for a degree is fairly normal. Six colleges is not.

From the original article: ""I was always asking everyone the questions, and I still am today," Palin told the magazine." Too bad she's not as equally interested in answering questions.

Articles on this subject differ, but to my knowledge she attended four. It sounds as though Hawaii turned out to be too expensive. Northern Idaho is a "feeder" college that does not grant four-year degrees. That's been clearly stated in several articles I've read. This is also true of Mat-Su Community College. Following is a quote from their web site.

MSC offers a general program for the first two years of college courses leading to the Associate of Arts; the curriculum provides a strong foundation for the pursuit of a baccalaureate degree.

I have known people who attended less expensive colleges to build credits and then transferred to a four-year degree granting institution for their bacherlor's degree.

Ultimately Sarah obtain her degree from the University of Idaho.

[sascha_b]

Why debate the issues when you can ridicule someone for a tee-shirt they wore when they were a teenager and laugh at the fact that they had trouble paying for college? Some people would consider her six-year pursuit of a college degree a testament to her determination to finish.

Ummm...did you happen to read the article. A good friend of Palin who took classes with her and school skipped with her and stated it had more to do with disliking the weather. Not all of those skips were financially motivated.

"Once we got there, we hated it," Tilly Ketchum, one of Palin's friends, recalled in the bio, written months before she was named the GOP's vice presidential nominee.

To get away from the rain, Palin and her friends quickly transferred to Hawaii Pacific University on sunny Oahu. When they weren't studying, the women visited the set of "Magnum P.I.," the biography noted.

Oahu's unlimited sunshine quickly lost its appeal for the Alaska girls.

"It was always 82 degrees," Ketchum said. "When Christmas comes around you want cool temperatures and a change of season."

[TooOlduvai]

Articles on this subject differ, but to my knowledge she attended four. It sounds as though Hawaii turned out to be too expensive. Northern Idaho is a "feeder" college that does not grant four-year degrees. That's been clearly stated in several articles I've read. This is also true of Mat-Su Community College.



I have known people who attended less expensive colleges to build credits and then transferred to a four-year degree granting institution for their bacherlor's degree.
Ultimately Sarah obtain her degree from the University of Idaho.

Which is what I'm doing. But from the time I took my first community college class in 1976, to my current enrollment at a 4 year university in Florida - I've only attended 3 schools. And I never changed because of the climate.

The original article shows 6. Do you have a source showing she changed schools due to cost? Because it sounds to me as though she didn't like the weather. I found it boring when I lived there also.

[AlaskanSweeper]

The original article shows 6. Do you have a source showing she changed schools due to cost? Because it sounds to me as though she didn't like the weather. I found it boring when I lived there also.

I don't have a quotable source. In a tv interview I watched Palin mentioned going to school in Hawaii and that it was expensive for her parents to have several children in college. She then talked about entering beauty pageants for the scholarship money.

If I remember correctly I saw this in the Greta van Susteren interview.

[TooOlduvai]

I don't have a quotable source. In a tv interview I watched Palin mentioned going to school in Hawaii and that it was expensive for her parents to have several children in college. She then talked about entering beauty pageants for the scholarship money.

If I remember correctly I saw this in the Greta van Susteren interview.

It sounds a bit like revisionist history on her part to me.

[sascha_b]

I don't have a quotable source. In a tv interview I watched Palin mentioned going to school in Hawaii and that it was expensive for her parents to have several children in college. She then talked about entering beauty pageants for the scholarship money.

If I remember correctly I saw this in the Greta van Susteren interview.

No quotable source versus the article that quotes a good friend and schoolmate who was there with her, took classes with her, skipped colleges with her, and was quoted for bio material on Palin written months before she was tapped as the VP candidate.

[AlaskanSweeper]

It sounds a bit like revisionist history on her part to me.

I should have worded it differently. Greta narrated the program, but the Palin clips in the program were from an April 2008 Fox interview. It was one of those programs where someone, in this case Greta, ties the program together by giving comments in between the clips from the different interviewees.

[AlaskanSweeper]

No quotable source versus the article that quotes a good friend and schoolmate who was there with her, took classes with her, skipped colleges with her, and was quoted for bio material on Palin written months before she was tapped as the VP candidate.

The program can be viewed here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pq4ljBIlOTY

There are five clips. The quotes from Palin are taken from interviews last spring before she was running for VP.

[Ron C]

No quotable source versus the article that quotes a good friend and schoolmate who was there with her, took classes with her, skipped colleges with her, and was quoted for bio material on Palin written months before she was tapped as the VP candidate.

The program can be viewed here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pq4ljBIlOTY

There are five clips. The quotes from Palin are taken from interviews last spring before she was running for VP.

So sascha_b watch the interview?

[TooOlduvai]

I should have worded it differently. Greta narrated the program, but the Palin clips in the program were from an April 2008 Fox interview. It was one of those programs where someone, in this case Greta, ties the program together by giving comments in between the clips from the different interviewees.

Yes. It sounds as though in 2008 she "rewrote" her own history so that it sounds more favorable to her. The original record of her friend's statements predate that, and contradict it.

[AlaskanSweeper]

Yes. It sounds as though in 2008 she "rewrote" her own history so that it sounds more favorable to her. The original record of her friend's statements predate that, and contradict it.

Palin's Fox interview and the book were both published in April of 2008. At the time, she was a highly popular governor with absolutely no need to rewrite history.

I don't think the issue of whether she switched colleges because of weather or money is of interest to most people who want information on important issues. Its possible that she hated the weather and had financial difficulties at the same time. Who knows? The only people who seem to care are a few Obama supporters who can't find anything more substantial to discuss.

[TooOlduvai]

Palin's Fox interview and the book were both published in April of 2008. At the time, she was a highly popular governor with absolutely no need to rewrite history.

I don't think the issue of whether she switched colleges because of weather or money is of interest to most people who want information on important issues. Its possible that she hated the weather and had financial difficulties at the same time. Who knows? The only people who seem to care are a few Obama supporters who can't find anything more substantial to discuss.

A highly popular governor with no political ambitions whatsoever? She was a journalism major. she knows the importance of appearance.

I've posted several articles about substantial issues. No conservative has bothered to respond.

[sascha_b]

So sascha_b watch the interview?

I did. And the bio they referred to was the one in which her BFF discussed how they went to school together and left together to the next one and why; in the article originally posted in starting this thread.

She also said her and Todd eloped to spare her parents the expense (in you video), and I'm thinking that might not have been the only reason. ;-)

[jazzyk55]

I did. And the bio they referred to was the one in which her BFF discussed how they went to school together and left together to the next one and why; in the article originally posted in starting this thread.

She also said her and Todd eloped to spare her parents the expense (in you video), and I'm thinking that might not have been the only reason. ;-)

oooooo, perfectly valid innuendo.

[TooOlduvai]

I did. And the bio they referred to was the one in which her BFF discussed how they went to school together and left together to the next one and why; in the article originally posted in starting this thread.

She also said her and Todd eloped to spare her parents the expense (in you video), and I'm thinking that might not have been the only reason. ;-)

It wasn't. Her first born arrived 8 months after the wedding. i guess the abstinence-only policy is a recent development.

[sascha_b]

oooooo, perfectly valid innuendo.

And a very easy one for her to disprove. If, of course the birth, certificate isn't faked.
You did notice the wink, I hope.

[Meadow]

It wasn't. Her first born arrived 8 months after the wedding. i guess the abstinence-only policy is a recent development.

It was the 80s, birth control was hard to come by and abstinence only was merely a gleam in the fundies eyes.

[Meadow]

And a very easy one for her to disprove. If, of course the birth, certificate isn't faked.
You did notice the wink, I hope.

Birth Certificate? Birth Certificate?

Did I just hear a call for a Birth Certificate???

[jazzyk55]

And a very easy one for her to disprove. If, of course the birth, certificate isn't faked.
You did notice the wink, I hope.

Got it. I knew you were just funnin.

[sascha_b]

Got it. I knew you were just funnin.

No, in all honesty, I'm wondering.
But I have no proof.