I like Sarah Palin both as a person and as a strong conservative voice in America today, but I have serious concerns about her leadership role in the political arena. I am basing my opinion on the facts as I see them:

1.) She has not been on the mainstream political stage very long and seems shocked on how the game is played with the big boys.
2.) She has not shown foresight in predicting what political enemies will do to her and taken reasonable steps to avoid or stop them.
3.) She quit her elected position as governor in Alaska because (based on what she said) that the attempts to destroy her were distracting her government from working effectively.

As Sarah is an ordinary person with a mainstream (average) American's perspective, these types of ”issues" are expected and normal in her interaction with the political arena. However, if she is going to be a serious player in America and the world, she will have to accept the reality of the failed political system and find a way to work either around these people or she will be forced to work WITH these people and I don't think she is ready for that.

My most serious concern is #3. If she gets elected and runs into the opposition that we all can see coming, what will she do? In Alaska, she quit. I need a better explanation than the one provided to overlook that withdrawal. I think that Sarah Palin needs some serious weaponry and combat training if she intends to be a political force in America today. I hope that by 2012 she is ready.

Postcard winners!

We wish to extend our heartfelt gratitude for sending so much joy our way. Frank is still blushing with excitement over the love notes, proposals, propositions, and occasional intimate photos sent from his admirers around the world (China, Norway, Japan, and Poland just this week)! At his request, we blindfolded Justin, one of Frank's BFFs, spun him around in five dozen counterclockwise circles, and asked him to point to ten random postcards/envelopes pasted to the wall. After a brief trip to the bathroom, he chose the following lucky winners, to whom we will give a six-month paid account token (for paid, basic, and plus users) or, for our permanent account holders, a $15 voucher for the LiveJournal gift shop.

So, without further ado, the winners are:

1. seraphene
2. fotog
3. boykitten
4. seshat_6
5. anti_aol
6. lisalees
7. katrinkacat
8. mistyboston
9. _woody_lein
10. another_slender

Bugs, Tweaks, and Enhancements

1. We fixed a bug from the last release that was causing screened comments to become unscreened if they were edited
2. If you happen to be gaming around the corner, check us out on Facebook and be sure to spread the word!
3. We've added new vgifts to celebrate Thanksgiving! Check out our feathered friend, below!

Give more with charitable vgifts

In honor of national adoption month, we're offering a charitable vgift (priced at $2.99) to support Love Without Boundaries, an organization that provides healthcare and adoption to orphans suffering from life-threatening diseases. LiveJournal will donate 100% of gross proceeds from the sale (we'll cover the cost of credit card transaction fees). To learn more about Love Without Boundaries, please visit lj_cares. You can purchase your Love Without Boundaries vgifts in the Virtual Gift shop. We'll keep you posted on how much we raise!

Photos of the week

We're delighted to showcase yet more incredible photos from some of our brilliant LiveJournal photographers around the world. Keep posting (and tagging). And be sure to show some love by commenting on the awesome view at lj_photophile.

Check out this week's photos and more amazing user content after the jump!

Curtains

Thanks, again, for joining us. See you next week!