You know how Sarah Palin said Paul Revere warned the British? Well, he did. Now, who looks stupid?

You may have heard recently something about that Sarah Palin telling a reporter that Paul Revere warned the British on his famous rousing revolutionary ride.

Now, that so many Americans have wallowed in their smug confirmation that Palin is an idiot unqualified for anything but repeating sixth-grade history, how far, wide and fast do you think the contradictory news will spread that the former governor of Alaska was indeed correct?

That the Republican non-candidate, in fact, knew more about the actual facts of Revere's midnight ride than all those idiots unknowingly revealing their own ignorance by laughing at her faux faux pas? How secretly embarrassing this must be, to be forced to face that you're dumber than the reputed dummy.

As it happens, though, such phenomena are regular occurrences in American politics, reminding consumers of news to be wary when some fresh story seems to fit contemporary assumptions so absolutely perfectly.

The well-known fable is Revere's late-night ride to warn fellow revolutionaries that....

...the British were coming. Less known, obviously, is the rest of the evening's events in which Revere was captured by said redcoats and did indeed defiantly warn them of the awakened militia awaiting their arrival ahead and of the American Revolution's inevitable victory.

Palin knew this. The on-scene reporters did not and ran off like Revere to alert the world to Palin's latest mis-speak, which wasn't.

Like a number of famous faux gaffes in American politics, the facts of the situation no longer really matter.

The initial impression was eagerly grabbed by so many, starting with the reporter and millions of others gleefully sharing the story that reinforced their beliefs and/or desires.

This phenomenon is actually not a new one in American politics, although its immediate spread is obviously hastened by the Internet. Speaking of which, Al Gore did not invent it. Nor did he claim to, as often as you've heard otherwise.

In 1999, the hapless former journalist, who should have known to make a better word choice, told CNN that in Congress he "took the initiative in creating the Internet."

Democrat Gore never used the word "invented." That was part of another willful misinterpretation that fit expectations of Gore's boasts and was gleefully spread by opponents as further proof of his unseemly hubris. It lives on to this day.

Perhaps you remember how one day during a photo op President George H.W. Bush was overheard asking a store checkout clerk how this price scanner thing worked?

That quote was immediately transmitted as proof of how disconnected that Republican chief executive was, that he had no knowledge of something as ordinary as a checkout scanner.

The fact is, asking such inane and often obvious questions as "what are you doing here?" is a bipartisan ploy used by politicians to fill the awkward time void they are hanging around someone working while photographers snap their photos several hundred times.

President Obama likely said much the same thing last Friday in that Toledo Chrysler plant when for the benefit of nearby photographers he feigned interest watching assembly-line worker Anthony Davis install a dashboard instrument panel. (See photo below)

A classic example of this faux faux pas was in 1992 when Vice President Dan Quayle agreed to participate in a New Jersey classroom spelling bee.

Working from a placard, Quayle corrected one sixth-grader by telling him to add an "e" to "potato." Journalists gleefully noted the spelling misteak. And Quayle's dunce hat was glued in place.

Trouble is, that mis-spelled placard was actually written out by the classroom teacher herself, either through her own ignorance or, a few suspect, some sly political set-up. Quayle knew he hadn't written it and thought the error was the point of the lesson.

And because the classroom spelling bit was a last-minute addition, aides who would have foreseen the everlasting damage of their boss inexplicably adding a mistake to a student's work did not know what the placard said. Quayle subsequently forbade them from explaining the error to the media, for fear of embarrassing the teacher.

One of the immutable laws of public communications in politics and other fields is, if you have to explain something, you lose. Seeking to explain you were for something before being against it simply digs a deeper hole.

This time the mistake for Palin, who used to be accused of dodging reporters' questions, was bothering to answer such an amateur media gotcha question in a noisy, moving crowd. Better would have been a simple dismissive and cheery, "You're kidding, right?" Such are the ongoing lessons for primary candidates. Which she isn't now, of course.

Early in a previous race for the Republican presidential nomination almost 12 years ago, then Texas Gov. George W. Bush was in a jammed New Hampshire airport meeting room, answering questions from local media. Apropos of nothing, one reporter (perhaps prompted by an opponent's camp) asked Bush his pre-written gotcha: Name the new president of Pakistan.

Obviously, Pervez Musharraf had nothing to do with New Hampshire issues and is similar to some Democratic candidates flubbing the name of Russia's then prime minister during 2008 debates (Dmitry Medvedev).

Bush didn't know the Pakistani leader's name that day and looked clumsy attempting to answer. He could have brushed it away by instantly asking the reporter some arcane political who's-who, laughing off their mutual ignorance and quickly taking the next question. But he didn't and took media lumps for several days.

As everyone now knows, such a splashy gaffe can effectively doom any chance a candidate has of winning two terms in the White House.

Related:

Sarah Palin plays the media like a violin; They'll try to get even

Piper Palin shares her Mom's hot/cold attitude toward the media

Mitt Romney leads in Iowa poll, Sarah Palin comes in second, Ron Paul falls to 7th

-- Andrew Malcolm

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Photos: Jonathan Ernst / Reuters; Gary Hershorn / Reuters; Jeff Kowalsky / EPA (Obama at Chrysler, June 3).

Comments

[Keith]

Amazing ! I would never vote for Palin she is not qualified for the Presidency. With that said either is the current clown in office. It never fails to amaze me how biased the liberal machine can be. Was it not the fabulous, spectacular Obama that said "We've been to 57 states and we have a few to go."? Palin can not pass 6th grade history but Obama couldn't pass 1st grade geography. The part that really gets me is he was born in the 50th state, right? Having been born in the final state of the union you would think he would know how many we have.
When the Times calls me and asks if I would like to to purchase a subscription I let them have it with both barrels. Even if I were a liberal I wouldn't purchase such a one sided rag.

[Jojo]

I bet if you asked Sarah Palin to sign a document and date it right now, SHE WOULD KNOW WHAT YEAR IT IS.

Liberals seem to think they are perfect and are so quick to bash others. You are a bunch of hypocrites. Go Twitter a pic of your Wiener.

[Jorge2]

A stopped clock is right twice a day.

[rrm]

How many states are there? 57? maybe that's what the Pres was saying to the dashboard installer. What was the story behind that one?

[americanmom]

I wondered how long it would be before someone came along and tried to rewrite Palins history lesson...

[WILD WEEZIL]

Maybe she should repeat this story in all 57 states.

ww

[Throwing stones]

A certain someonme claimed the U.S. has 57 states, among other inane screwups.

[islandnupe]

I can't believe that this blog is on the Los Angles Times website. Andrew, Mr. Malcolm, I dub thee Admiral Apologist. Palin clearly had only a vague idea of what Paul Revere is widely known for. Revere is not known for warning the British. Have mercy. Yes he was captured and while in their custody he perhaps informed them in order to persuade them to not march to Lexington, as by this time he had already lit the lantern and warned the colonist.

Wow, and you try to revise Quayle's error too ? You do know there is video of this don't you ? If you have 16 seconds to spare, take a look at this video about Dan Quayle.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wdqbi66oNuI

[gloriaad]

All you have to do is go to Fax News and listen and see Sarah Palin's video comments on Paul Revere role in American history, right from the horses mouth, she is dead wrong. Her defenders,followers, Republicans and Tea Partiers feel bad because the world and nation now know that they worship at the alter of a whiney, ignorant cartoon politician.

[Doug Ernst]

What I read of the original article indicated that she had made it sound as if warning the British was part of the plan.

In typical "loose with the facts" methodology employed by Ms. Palin, taking an offensive, in your face, position once caught should not be confused with part of a pre-approved, pre-planned objective.

So, in the fact that he did defiantly "tell off" the British, once caught does not constitute the equivalent of warning the colonists that"The British are Coming!"

Therefore, Ms. Palin is again, less correct, and more the baffoon, that your followup story would suggest.

Perhaps, you, like Ms. Palin, still "Need to Get it Right!!"

[Wilbur Tibbetts]

Can we get on with warning the current citizens of the current obama threat? This got'cha crap is childish and provides cover for the real issues. It's re-aranging the deck chairs on the Titanic!

[Kenneth Johnson]

I am a conservative who can't understand the adoration of tea party activists for this woman. She's a patriotic soul to be sure but on many issues she has no clue. This is not the first time that she has displayed total ignorance of our history. In what should have been a lay down question by Glen Beck on who was her favorite founding father she gave a deer in the headlights stare and then said, "I like em all." It was an uncomfortable moment. She looked like an 8th grade algebra student that had just been asked to step in front of the class and explain string theory. "One if by land and two if by sea" is describing the light from lanterns not "shots and bells."

[TLCary]

Comments putting a Longfellow poem ahead of history is an example of the same elitist liberal arrogance. Do trouble yourself to actually read that shots and bells were used, though possible didn't rhyme correctly for Henry Wadsworth. Sara's speech in it's entirety, in context, and content was exactly correct.
Another note from history without a poem, so you are surely unaware of it...
The Republican party was formed for the sole purpose of repealing Democrat Legislation that allowed slavery to extend into the Western Territories. The first Republican President feed the slaves. All of the Governors that blocked black students from schools and let loose the dogs and fire hoses were Democrats. Republicans broke the Democrat Filibuster of the Civil Rights Act... and on and on.

[hassia]

'President Obama likely said much the same thing last Friday in that Toledo Chrysler plant when for the benefit of nearby photographers he feigned interest watching assembly-line worker Anthony Davis install a dashboard instrument panel'.

But he did not say it.

'The on-scene reporters did not and ran off like Revere to alert the world to Palin's latest mis-speak, which wasn't'.

The reporter just played back what she said.

Your dislike for he President and obvious love of Palin renders your opinion mute.

[Toad]

I would like to hear Obama or Nancy Pelosi's version of Paul Revere. That should be comical. I betcha Sara knows what year it is and that there are 50 states instead of 57. So you talk about stupid look at your president of the united states. My god what a idiot!

[EW]

Now the LA Times has helped to revise history to show that Sarah Palin's version of history is the accurate one. How many readers will believe this outrageous commentary as fact?

[Sarah Palin]

He who warned … uh… the, the British that they weren’t gonna be takin’ away our arms, uh, by ringin’ those bells and, and, um, making sure as he is riding his horse through town to send those warning shots and bells that, uh, we were gonna secure and we were gonna be free.

[Kevin]

Who looks stupid? You! Defiantly telling a British patrol, under gun point, that the colonial militia is going to fight is NOT a warning! You are just a Palin schill!

[Bill]

Don't forget the famous quote about being qualified in international affairs because "I can see Russia from my backyard." Actually it was a quote of Tina Fey. Sarah Palin never said it.

[acb]

The "Mission Accomplished" gaffe by Bush would be another example.

That sign was put up at the request of the Carrier crew, who had just finished a long deployment. If you watch Bush's speech in full, you may wonder how the MSM got away with pushing their narrative on that bit.

[pjean]

"If only she were on our team."

[Todd F.]

I like what Jeff Spross at Think Progress says, in this regard:

"At one point in the night, Revere was temporarily detained and interrogated by British soldiers at a roadblock. He intentionally provided them a falsely inflated description of the colonial militia’s strength, though only in the most strained metaphorical reading could this be considered a 'warning.'"

http://tinyurl.com/426d5gw

[Mark]

Were they not all British subjects at the time?

[W C Fields]

No. You have it wrong. Revere was captured, gave the British a greatly over-inflated number in terms of colonists and the Brits put him on a tired horse home. He did NOT warn the British.

Also, Palin stated that "as he rode down the streets" he rang bells. What happened to the lanterns? Do you actually believe she researched this? It's a very thin, untennable line to say that she got it right in any way.

[tgc]

They gleefully run around quoting this...but they never really mentioned the "57 states" screw up by their boy obama did they. Noooooooooo, he was just tired that's all. I know when I get tired the first thing that happens is I forget how many states there are! Losers!

[adice]

What I find amazing is that most of those critisizing her wouldn't know which end of the horse to aim forward

[tucker]

jack warned them

[gloriaad]

What a cunning and deceitful politician Sarah Palin is , she uses the patriotism of good decent hard working people and our historial monuments and sites to futher her money grabbing and political ambitions, she doesn't even care or tried to familiarize herself about the history of the historical places she visits, this beckons one, to wonder how much does she really care about her followers, probably sees them as money vehicles but don't give a hoot about them.

[kolonial]

I'm pretty sure this is some very subtle satire.

[Mike Adams]

Hey Andrew, it's YOU that looks stupid. Do you even read what you right? Paul Revere didn't ride to also warn the British. He got captured, then trahed talked them to psych them out. Big difference, buddy! All you article does is to try and run damage control for Quitter's screw up, and you ended up messing up more...

[WrathOfGod]

So, uh, I missed the part where Revere "rang those bells." She had no idea that there was a lantern in the bell tower, she thought Revere "rang the bells." Revisionst thinking to make the Idiot look better has no effect on me, unless you count rolling my eyes!!

[Matt]

One need only go to YouTube and listen to Palin's actual statement to see through this article. Here is Palin's direct quote:

"He who warned the British that they weren't gonna be takin' away our arms by ringing those bells."

Now let's go back to this article:

"Less known, obviously, is the rest of the evening's events in which Revere was captured by said redcoats and did indeed defiantly warn them of the awakened militia awaiting..."

If you are unable to understand that these are two completely different statements then you lack basic critical thinking skills. I mean, excuse me, was Paul Revere ringing those bells while he was in jail? Palin got her history wrong, end of story.

[M Derosa]

It's interesting that a woman in Politics that is a Democrat get the support of Hollywood and woman's groups around the country. But if she's a Republican she attracts scorn from these same people.

[unpundit]

Revere DID set out to warn the British, since on the evening of april 18, 1775, There was no America, ergo, there were no Americans. The inhabitants of Menotomy, Lexington and Concord still considered themselves loyal subjects of the Crown.
Palins still right.
Obama will ALWAYS be wrong.

[GMAN51]

Experts and college professors say Palin is correct about this. Yet the obots here and elsewhere still say she's wrong. :( What color IS the sky in America today? Maybe that depends on what the definition of 'is' is. It is so frustrating to be up against fools and half wits. Watch the documentary "Media Malpractice" to meet some of these obots. Sigh.

[andy]

I think Andrew Malcolm should be Sarah Palin's running mate! What a ticket! Dumb and Dumber!

[Dmitry]

Her answer, though factually correct, is not the right answer as I see it: his main achievement was to warn insurgents, after all. But it is a good SECOND PART of an answer: his defiant behavior with Regulars is brave and worth mentioning. Where one can find her FULL answer, not a cut-out?

And, more important, this has nothing to do with her Presidential qualities. As long as she is able to produce and implement coherent and meaningful politics, who cares what kind of gaffes she produces? Only low-level MSM clowns and their bored readers. She achieved more in her life than most, with lower starting position than most. She is political genius, and has proved she can do things, and do them right. MSM tried to put her into oblivion, and now follow her as pets, being outsmarted.

I predict that in 20-25 years she will be considered one of the better POTUS in history of US (I am sure that US will survive 4 years of Obama).

[HeatSeeker]

Palin, either through study or instinct, understands Sun Tzu.

"What the ancients called a clever fighter is one who not only wins, but excels in winning with ease."

"All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when we are able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must appear inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near" (or as a appropriate variant, "A military operation involves deception. Even though you are competent, appear to be incompetent. Though effective, appear to be ineffective.")

I do SO love this lady!

[Mark]

lol Hey Andrew, how does it feel to show an entire country that you are even more clueless than ms. pay-lin? Hilarious attempt to deflect from the latest gaffe from mama grizzly. Better luck next time!

[Clyde]

I know this is much worse then thinking there are 57 states in the union. But I understand the need hold a real American accountable to US history as opposed to a fake American.

[Michele]

Think of all the history gaffes Obama has made!! Look them up....scary! For example: Some of the soldiers we honor today are in the audienc....he was at a Memorial Day service!!

[Fact]

What is funny about this is that no matter what Palin does she still seems to be more intelligent than any Democrat on the planet.

[Sean Gallagher]

Sure, Paul Revere was captured and defiant. But that's not what the purpose of his ride was, nor did he fire "warning shots" and ring bells. He was a covert operator who was captured. The gaffe remains a gaffe -- if she had intended to talk about Revere's bravery and defiance in the face of capture, why didn't she just say it that way? This is disingenuous back-filling to try to put media in the "lamestream" box again.

[Mark]

"He who warned, uh, the British that they weren’t gonna be takin’ away our arms, uh, by ringing those bells, and um, makin' sure as he’s riding his horse through town to send those warning shots and bells that we were going to be sure and we were going to be free, and we were going to be armed." I am not sure but I think these words uh of uh wisdom speak for themselves uh.

Listen my children and you shall hear
Of the midnight ride of Paul Revere, as explained by sarah palin
On the eighteenth of April, in Seventy-five;
Hardly a man is now alive
Who remembers that famous day and year. Except for sarah who remembers it clear

He said to his friend, "If the British march
By land or sea from the town to-night,
Hang a lantern aloft in the belfry arch
Of the North Church tower as a signal light,--
One if by land, and two if by sea;
And I on the opposite shore will be,
Ready to ride and spread the alarm m
To tell every british soldier the secrets of the colonial army
Through every Middlesex village and farm,
For the country folk to be up and to arm." If those pesky brits don't take all of our guns because of the midnight ride of Paul Revere

[Citizen Joe]

Yeah, and? This lady's in the way. As they say: A broken clock is right twice a day. Palin can't cut it.

[jr]

Oh pleeeez, Mr. Malcolm, this can not be spun! What Sarah got right was that the British were in conflict with the colonists. She obviously is a scholastic snoozer/loser. Perhaps she should be tested for ADD.

[jim]

Meanwhile, our incompetent president--who makes meaningful mistakes that have meaningful consequences--golfs.

[elaine]

When Palin was asked her take on Chernobyl, her response was, "It's Cher's full name." #AccordingToPalin

the worst argument being made in this whole thing is "they were all british at the time". how stupid. there were british colonials (whom the riders rode to warn) and then there were the british regulars (whom the riders were warning the colonials about). it's obvious she can't make the distinction, and neither can those who keep trotting out this nonsense.

[Jim H]

It should surprise no one that there is a concerted effort to give cover to the Quitbull for her ridiculousness. There is an assault on the Wikipedia entry on Paul Revere http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Paul_Revere#Edit_request_from_Dajames.2C_5_June_2011
and there is a small pile of things like this opinion piece that misrepresent what she said and Revere's actions

She expressed explicitly that "Part of his ride was to warn the British" when in fact he spent the night trying very hard to avoid them. She said he was ringing bells and firing guns, which he seems to have neglected to mention in his first-person account http://www.historynet.com/paul-reveres-true-account-of-the-midnight-ride.htm

[Chance W. Taylor]

IF --
Some of you will appreciate this and some of you will not. I do not offer an apology, because all of it is true.

If any other of our presidents had doubled the national debt, which had taken more than two centuries to accumulate, in one year, would you have approved?

If any other of our presidents had then proposed to double the debt again within 10 years, would you have approved?

If any other of our presidents had criticized a state law that he admitted he never even read, would you think that he is just an ignorant hot head?

If any other of our presidents joined the country of Mexico and sued a state in the United States to force that state to continue to allow illegal immigration, would you question his patriotism and wonder who's side he was on?

If any other of our presidents had pronounced the Marine Corps like Marine Corpse, would you think him an idiot?

If any other of our presidents had put 87,000 workers out of work by arbitrarily placing a moratorium on offshore oil drilling on companies that have one of the best safety records of any industry because one foreign company had an accident, would you have agreed?

If any other of our presidents had used a forged document as the basis of the moratorium that would render 87000 American workers unemployed would you support him?

If any other of our presidents had been the first President to need a Tele-Prompter installed to be able to get through a press conference, would you have laughed and said this is more proof of how inept he is on his own and is really controlled by smarter men behind the scenes?

If any other of our presidents had spent hundreds of thousands of dollars to take the First Lady to a play in NYC, would you have approved?

If any other of our presidents had reduced your retirement plan holdings of GM stock by 90% and given the unions a majority stake in GM, would you have approved?

If any other of our presidents had made a joke at the expense of the Special Olympic Athletes, would you have approved?

If any other of our presidents had given Gordon Brown a set of inexpensive and incorrectly formatted DVDs, when Gordon Brown had given him a thoughtful and historically significant gift, would you have approved?

If any other of our presidents had given the Queen of England an iPod containing videos of his speeches, would you have thought it a proud moment for America ?

If any other of our presidents had bowed to the King of Saudi Arabia , would you have approved?

If any other of our presidents had visited Austria and made reference to the nonexistent "Austrian language," would you have brushed it off as a minor slip?

If any other of our presidents had filled his cabinet and circle of advisers with people who cannot seem to keep current in their income taxes, would you have approved?

If any other of our presidents had stated that there were 57 states in the United States , wouldn't you have had second thoughts about his capabilities?

If any other of our presidents would have flown all the way to Denmark to make a five minute speech about how the Olympic Games would benefit him walking out his front door in his home town, would you not have thought he was a self important, conceited, egotistical jerk?

If any other of our presidents had been so Spanish illiterate as to refer to "Cinco de Cuatro" in front of the Mexican ambassador when it was the 5th of May (Cinco de Mayo), and continued to flub it when he tried again, wouldn't you have winced in embarrassment?

If any other of our presidents had burned 9,000 gallons of jet fuel to go plant a single tree on Earth Day, would you have concluded he's a hypocrite?

If any other of our presidents' administrations had okayed Air Force One flying low over millions of people followed by a jet fighter in downtown Manhattan causing widespread panic, would you have wondered whether they actually get what happened on 9-11?

If any other of our presidents had failed to send relief aid to flood victims throughout the Midwest with more people killed or made homeless than in New Orleans , would you want it made into a major ongoing political issue with claims of racism and incompetence?

If any other of our presidents had created the position of 32 Czars who report directly to him, bypassing the House and Senate on much of what is happening in America , would you have ever approved?

If any other of our presidents had ordered the firing of the CEO of a major corporation, even though he had no constitutional authority to do so, would you have approved?

So, tell me again, what is it about Obama that makes him so brilliant and impressive? Can't think of anything? Don't worry. He's done all this in 21 months -- so you have at least that much time to come up with an answer.

Every statement and action in this email is factual and directly attributable to Barrack Hussein Obama. Every bumble is a matter of record and completely verifiable