Thanks, Frank.  I guess I got “Tripp-ed” up there because I was too quick to pull the “Trigg-er” and didn’t do my research;-)

Actually, “sole custody” does not preclude visitation.  It just determines who will make life decisions about the child while he is a minor.  It similarly does not nullify support requirements.  So Levi would have access to Trigg prescribed by the court and also his monitory contributions, but would have no say in raising his son.

Hmm.  Interesting article.  However, Ms. Marcus fails to address the fact that
Miss Palin’s action disparages Mr. Johnson’s reputation by inference if nothing
else.  Sole custody suggests that young Levi is unfit to be around his own
child-ever, at all.  Is it possible that someone put Bristol up to taking such a
harsh action?  Because the action is so harsh I think the sitting Judge was truly
wise in determining that the case should be public. Not because the public
needs to know, but because the transparency will clearly reflect what is actually
going on.

It will be interesting to see if Miss Palin decides to back away from the court
request to ban her (former) boyfriend and father of her child from visiting his
child. To present such a request in court requires truly egregious conduct.  If
one of them knows the action is either malicious in its presentation to the
court, or in the alternative, one recognizes a need to improve parenting skills
fairness to all requires a fair and public hearing.

What planet are you from, FiftyGigs?

Ruth, the whole bunch are slackers. Oh, duh.

They also invite “slackerism”, the phenomena whereby no one bothers to make the lady answer whether or not she or her husband believe Alaska ought to secede from the union.

What you’re talking about is the media. Yourself, in fact, and I don’t know you, so I have no grip with you personally.

Rolling Stone, on the other hand, appears to be buying-in to the conservative media culture. The recent piece of “journalism” by Matt Taibbi should garner them a pretty good piece of the liberal pie.

Taibbi has fashioned a nice corner in which a liberal writer, with no special knowledge or experience in the field(s) he’s chosen to write about, scrapes out a living with an honestly classic writing style. Several paragraphs of “gosh, can you believe?”, followed by a hint of real fact, the relevance of which is reinforced by a few more “Ohmigoshes”.

Go back and read Matt’s first pieces, in which he admits to knowing nothing about the economy, so he goes to get some understandable answers. Nice! And admittedly, he’s acquired a remarkable layman’s knowledge of a broad field, including economics and politics. Well, the intent of Wall Street too. White House maneuverings, global commerce, and oh yes don’t forget human nature. Hey, it’s a great gig, and Matt’s curiosity is his strength and appeal.

So, why did RS bemoan their own showcase with an editorial about how reluctant they were to run it? “Please, God, Rush didn’t really say he was giving up broadcasting, did he?” Might RS also just give up publishing one day? Could they ever get so bummed? Maybe I’ll find out in the next issue.

Sandwiched in-between, a 5-star article about a television show—a tv show not about music, I don’t think—the relevance to RS of which appeared to be the prominent presence of a Rolling Stone logo on stage. And for a long time. I understand cultural cool. My point isn’t that RS isn’t cool.

And I don’t really want to denigrate Taibbi’s article by juxtaposing it against how surprised RS must have been when a big tv production “decided” to slap on the ole RS logo unbeknownst to RS because certainly that might suggest that someone in the industry knew what was happening in the industry resulting in something coincidentally fortunate for the industry. That’s different from what Matt’s talking about, isn’t it?

Let me be crystal clear: I really don’t think anybody did anything illegal or even wrong. Not for one single moment.

But I could make a great story out of it.

Taibbi’s article, and the editorial lead-in, were biased. Only certain facts were presented, enough to justify the sensationalism of the promotion, but the entire piece fundamentally presumes the reader must accept RS’ and Taibbi’s self-reached conclusions as righteous. If you do, then waft along on wonderful words.

But without presenting the balancing facts that provide the foundation for the “‘tude”—too much to hope for any semblance of truth in any media—RS deprives its liberal readership of the point.

Are you going to (shhh) secretly start “grass roots” campaigns next? I hope you charge less than Republicans.

I know whatI am doing wrong on this site I read the Article make a comment then Read the other comments!!!! what A fool I am just think If I didnot waste my time reading the Articles Iwould not knwo that over 1/2 the postings are so far off topic by the 50th post that no one from that point on Reads anything but the Blogs
......From nowon I will juststart by commenting on the Weather and my postion with regards to which ever political Jack has enraged me that day ...YEA   that is it I have relly learned to Ramble on YOU RAMBLERS…
I learned that from the bomber story the entire thing was gone and only Ahab(the Arabian ) was spouting about something and on and on and on

The family was lucky not to have him in it anymore than they did. Idonot believe any familys privacy is open to public observation unless one is considering being A peeping tom or Pedifile.
THIS guy was looking to mske money simply put .As for PAlen family wE are human and if there is one fact about people they all have problems ,skeletons, or things they would rather not air publicly….....HAd john kennedys life been on display before and during his presidency The out come would have ruined the protracted views of millions of people who had other things on their mind.
Had we know that the most decorated hero in American history Audy Murphy was an alcoholic and felt inferior what good would it have done.
What help was served by knowing the personal life of Micky Mantle…... and Of course what good has it done to know how CLINTON liked to Smoke or
Whether Tiger Woods great golfer has PENIS envey
seperate Family and State along with Religion State ...We each pay at the final Bell and only hope that we kept our forks for the Dessert

bozhidar balkas, vancouver: I gotta say that as despicable as they were when you say “Cheney and Bush are more honest on verbal level than Obama, Clinton, Kennedy, et al.”...um, yeah, I can’t argue with that. They were evil but they said that they were going to do the creepy stuff they did and then did it. Obama? Hell no. He pretends he is left of center, when he’s the worst sort of war-mongering corporatist. So yes, no less evil (well, not much less at any rate), but far, far, far more honest about the evil they wanted to perpetrate? Sure, Bush and Cheney were definitely that.

Barracudas are known for their viciousness, not for their ethics.

A lot of people have invested a great deal of time, effort and money to make public the copious documentation which absolutely proves Sarah Palin is dishonest and vindictive to the point of sociopathy.

It’s a shame Ms. Markus is apparently so ignorant of these facts.

Abusing the power of office to bully ex-brother-in-law Mike Wooten ... her $150,000 shopping spree at the start of the 2008 campaign (complete with a $95 baby pacifier ?!?)... the stream of inconsistencies, misrepresentations and outright lies in her “book” ... and now she’s been recognized for creating the Biggest Lie of 2009:  “Death Panels” ...

In light of such behavior, Levi’s “What else can you do?” comment reveals pragmatic wisdom, not immaturity.

Thanks to his extensive knowledge of Ms. Palin’s true character, he knows only too well that during this custody battle,  court-imposed transparency will be his only protection.

And no doubt by now he must really regret not using protection in the past.

Levi Johnston is nothing less than heroic.  He is the only one, to my knowledge, who discussed Dragon Lady Palin’s true reason for resigning as Alaska’s governor.  She was thus—the only way—set free to write her “book” and to earn fees for her apperances.  Money was the reason, and Levi Johnston exposed that clearly in his brave Vanity Fair article.  He is more than justified to get custody of his child.

It would be interesting to know whether Sarah Palin’s position in favor of
“traditional marriage” - by which she means between a man and a woman, of
course - might run into conflict with her daughter’s petition to be a single parent,
subjecting Tripp to being deprived of a male parent who has a coequal role in the
upbringing of his child.

As for the judge’s decision to rule against Ms. Palin’s request, it seems to me that
he is simply conceding that the two parties in the custody case, Bristol and Levi,
are adults and do not need meddling from a third party.

Levi(Louse)Johnston is a deadbeat dad and lazy loafer who should be denied any & all contact with Bristol or Tripp. Let him hang out with Joy Behar or the editorial staff at Vanity Fair. You know, someplace far, far from Alaska.

Ms. Marcus,  Might I suggest that you mind your own business, especially if this matter bothers you so much.  It’s really none of your business.

Now for my opinion….. Granny Palin has been an absolute b i t c h throughtout this whole thing so she should keep her nose out of the custody fight too.  We’ve seen what she tried to do to her ex brother in law.  I agree with Levi Johnston….one way to keep her away is to keep the records public.  That does not necessarily mean that TV reporters, etc., should be allowed in the court room.

I am uncertain which is worse, the article itself, prying into a tabloid topic that is only peripherally political due to the presence of Palin or the execrable comments of several posters.

I agree with the perceptive comment of Outraged and hope for the very same outcome.

Outraged,,,

Thank you for your kind words and the “amen.”

Re: montanawildhack

Your comment: “Can I get an “Amen.”

I doubt it, however with a measure more of your baseless nonsense I think I could “get you” a rousing GOOD RIDDANCE…...

Go for it… you ol’ dog.

It’s all a lot of nonsense.  No one’s going to get sole custody, that doesn’t happen unless one parent is putting out cigarettes on the kid’s feet or unless one parent simply doesn’t want to be a parent.  Failing either of those scenarios, they’ll have some form of shared custody.  End of non-story.

Publicity is the mother’s milk of politics.

And in America a Guargantua is born every other minute.

“I have a hard time seeing why the custody fight between Bristol Palin and Levi
Johnston ought to be splayed out on the public record for all to see.”

Well you just wasted an article blathering about it. You could have written
something of substance, instead you waste our time with this garbage.

“As a journalist…,” isn’t Ruth Marcus “supposed to” leave herownself out of her reportage.  She seems regularly to assume that we’re all breathlessly eager to learn how she feels about this-or-that.  Come to think of it, this self-centeredness is increasingly a feature in the work a number of self-styled “journalists,” not only on this site but all over the media-scape.

It looks to this old Savage like Ms. Marcus has a bone to pick with young Levi Johnston (perhaps as a surrogate for any number of his peers), and took the occasion of the custody case to vent.  If she is really so concerned about the effects of an open record on the child, she could’ve lessened those at-least a little by refusing to drag the boy’s situation, which she says is nobody else’s business anyhow, into even more public view.

Maybe this article would’ve been more accurately and honestly introduced by:  “As a gossip columnist…..”   

HokaHey!

Do not donate any money to truthdig!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tabloid “journalism” on this site is unexcussable…

If they keep posting articles like this I will stop posting my opinions and then watch your ratings fall through the roof because I guarantee that more people look forward to reading what I write than corporate shill Ms. Marcus.

Can I get an “Amen.”