# Sarah Palin: American law should be based on "God of the Bible and the Ten Commandments" **URL:** \ **Category:** The BBQ Pit\ **Created:** [May 11, 2010, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098 "2010-05-11T21:17:36Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 5
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/81 "2010-05-15T16:53:16Z")
> [@Laudenum](#): > > She was already the governor of one of your states - surely that is mainstream? Alaska is not one of the continental states and it doesn’t get much national attention. The majority of Americans had never heard of her before McCain picked her. McCain himself barely knew who she was. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2010, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/82 "2010-05-15T19:30:52Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Alaska is not one of the continental states and it doesn’t get much national attention. Alaska is about 7 times the size of the entire UK, or about half the size of the whole of Europe, yet has less than 700,000 people living there. Sarah Palin was elected governor by getting about 115,000 votes. That’s barely the size of a large suburb in many cities. ---
**Author:** ![digs](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/digs/32/14889_2.png) [@digs](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/digs)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2010, 1:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/83 "2010-05-16T13:54:58Z")
> [@DanBlather](#): > > What was the term for a guy who never had a date? We called them Dopers. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2010, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/84 "2010-05-16T14:47:08Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Alaska is not one of the continental states… I beg your pardon !!! Just because you can’t see Alaska from any other state in the union… ---
**Author:** ![Rhythmdvl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/85f322/32.png) [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2010, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/85 "2010-05-16T15:25:42Z")
> [@t-bonham@scc.net](#): > > Alaska is about 7 times the size of the entire UK, or about half the size of the whole of Europe, yet has less than 700,000 people living there. Sarah Palin was elected governor by getting about 115,000 votes. That’s barely the size of a large suburb in many cities. The population of [Alaska](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska) is about the [same size](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_cities_by_population)as Fort Worth, TX or Charlotte, NC. Her electoral victory is kind of like getting the entire town of Evansville, IN to vote for her. Does anyone not in those towns know who the mayors are? Are they considered mainstream? ETA: In all fairness, Senators are a different story–Ted Stevens (NO!) was a household name, and Vermont and North Dakota have smaller populations but very influential Senators. ---
**Author:** ![DanBlather](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/f4b2a3/32.png) [@DanBlather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DanBlather)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2010, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/86 "2010-05-16T15:36:08Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Alaska is not one of the continental states and it doesn’t get much national attention. Then pray tell what continent it’s on. It’s not one of the _contiguous_ states. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/87 "2010-05-17T00:04:51Z")
> [@DanBlather](#): > > Then pray tell what continent it’s on. It’s not one of the _contiguous_ states. I waited for an answer but he’s clearly had his chance This is one of those black and white, no getting around it challenges where\*\* DtC\*\* simply has no face saving comeback. I’d wish that he’d just man up and admit that once in a while he simply fucks up. Sticking his head in the sand and hoping that no one will notice or remember is such a largely fowl response. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/88 "2010-05-17T00:34:34Z")
There’s an easy response. While technically incorrect, I know a lot of people who refer to the lower 48 states as the continental states. Merely using the term as it is commonly used does not make a person wrong, if they are aware that it is not technically correct. It is quite common for two words put together not to mean exactly what they’d mean separately. ---
**Author:** ![Sitnam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/6a8cbe/32.png) [@Sitnam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sitnam)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/89 "2010-05-17T00:39:32Z")
‘The liberals are afraid’ my ass, I **HOPE** she runs in 1012. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/90 "2010-05-17T02:10:14Z")
> [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](#): > > I waited for an answer but he’s clearly had his chance This is one of those black and white, no getting around it challenges where\*\* DtC\*\* simply has no face saving comeback. I’d wish that he’d just man up and admit that once in a while he simply fucks up. Sticking his head in the sand and hoping that no one will notice or remember is such a largely fowl response. Really, you were waiting for an answer to this kind of trivial pedantry? This is a big gotcha moment to you? As **BigT** said, referring to the lower 48 as the “continental” states is pretty common in the vernacular, so who gives a shit? ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/91 "2010-05-17T14:58:16Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Really, you were waiting for an answer to this kind of trivial pedantry? This is a big gotcha moment to you? > > As **BigT** said, referring to the lower 48 as the “continental” states is pretty common in the vernacular, so who gives a shit? So? Of course the lower 48 are continental states. No argument there. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 3:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/92 "2010-05-17T15:26:50Z")
> [@](#): > > Continental United States is a term that is used to describe part of the United States of America. It describes the 48 states and Washington, D.C., which are all grouped together and touching each other, on the central part of the North American continent. **The term Continental United States does not include Hawaii which is a group of islands, or Alaska, which is separated from the other states by Canada.** [1][2][3] > **[Continental United States](https://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continental_United_States)** > > The continental United States is the area of the United States that is located in the continent of North America. It includes 49 of the 50 U.S. states (48 of which are located south of Canada and north of Mexico, known as the "lower 48 states," the other being Alaska) and the District of Columbia, which contains the federal capital, Washington, D.C. The only state that is excluded is Hawaii, which is a state consisting of islands in the Pacific Ocean that are not part of North America but rather,... ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 3:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/93 "2010-05-17T15:38:28Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > [Continental United States - Simple English Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia](http://simple.wikipedia.org/wiki/Continental_United_States) Humph. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/94 "2010-05-17T15:44:20Z")
> [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](#): > > Humph. Humph yourself. The wiki piece is cited by two dictionaries and the US census. ---
**Author:** ![Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/8edcca/32.png) [@Hentor\_the\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hentor_the_Barbarian)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/95 "2010-05-17T15:48:58Z")
> [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](#): > > Humph. Pedantry averted! ---
**Author:** ![The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/9fc348/32.png) [@The\_Flying\_Dutchman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Flying_Dutchman)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 3:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/96 "2010-05-17T15:54:48Z")
> [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](#): > > Humph yourself. The wiki piece is cited by two dictionaries and the US census. I was merely expressing my displeasure at losing this pissing contest. see [Urban Dictionary: humph](http://www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=humph) > [@](#): > > Interjection used to express displeasure when something doesn’t come out the way you wish ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/97 "2010-05-17T16:00:11Z")
Sorry. I misinterpreted. ---
**Author:** ![Euphonious\_Polemic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/euphonious_polemic/32/3002_2.png) [@Euphonious\_Polemic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Euphonious_Polemic)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/98 "2010-05-17T16:13:09Z")
Hugs all round! ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2010, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098/99 "2010-05-17T16:21:47Z")
> [@Sitnam](#): > > ‘The liberals are afraid’ my ass, I **HOPE** she runs in 1012. Well, she’d fit right in. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sarah-palin-american-law-should-be-based-on-god-of-the-bible-and-the-ten-commandments/539098.md?page=4)