This is not a long diary, but it contains a connection that I haven't seen others make yet. If there has been a diary on this topic, I missed it and apologize in advance.
Wednesday, January 12, 2011:
A day planned to be a National Celebration of Life - honoring and celebrating the lives of those we lost and celebrating the joy of the lives which were miraculously saved...
Cancellation of all business in Congress except the honoring of heroes and the celebration of life...
A Celebration of Life open to over 14,000 citizens in Tucson...
Suddenly, at the strange hour of 5:49 am, someone woke up to kidnap the news cycle...
The connection is below the fold.
UPDATE: I never was good at spelling. Thanks to those of you who can spell hijack and apologies.
As Politico points out:
As Democratic and Republican lawmakers filed into the well of the House to offer prayers for the severely wounded Giffords and the six people who were killed, Palin’s eight-minute Facebook video — in which she accuses her opponents of "blood libel" — dominated the national political conversation...
The video, released shortly after 6 a.m. (actually posted to facebook at 5:49 am), was the top topic on MSNBC’s "Morning Joe," Palin’s name had appeared 16 times on the front page of The Washington Post’s website by midafternoon, and "blood libel" was the No. 1 "hot" search on Google...
Others continue to debate the self-centered defensive content and word choice in that teleprompted prepared canned-video speech. That debate is not the the central theme of this diary and I have little to add to it.
After four days of absolute silence - not even a tweet - the poster of that prepared video elected to post it to facebook at 5:49 am. Obviously a deliberate timing choice - unless the video itself was actually recorded in the wee hours of the morning.
The second paragraph of the Politico quote above seems to identify the general consensus as to why the video was posted when it was - a deliberate attempt to hijack the news cycle on a national day of celebration.
Monday, January 17, 2011 - Martin Luther King Day:
A Federal Holiday to celebrate the life and teachings of Dr. King...
According to Wikipedia: (bolding mine)
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day is a United States federal holiday marking the birthday of Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It is observed on the third Monday of January each year, which is around the time of King's birthday, January 15. (It will be observed on January 17 in 2011).
King was the chief spokesman for nonviolent activism in the civil rights movement, which successfully protested racial discrimination in federal and state law. The campaign for a federal holiday in King's honor began soon after his assassination in 1968. Ronald Reagan signed the holiday into law in 1983, and it was first observed in 1986. At first, some states resisted observing the holiday as such, giving it alternative names or combining it with other holidays. It was officially observed in all 50 states for the first time in 2000.
Wikipedia also points out:
Sen. John McCain (Republican of Arizona) voted against the creation of the holiday to honor King, and later defended Arizona Republican Governor Evan Mecham's rescission of the state holiday in honor of King created by his Democratic predecessor. After his opposition grew increasingly untenable, McCain reversed his position, and encouraged his home state of Arizona to recognize the holiday despite opposition from Mecham.
CBS News reports that the infamous video poster:
...will appear on Sean Hannity's program on Fox News Monday, the New York Times reported Thursday night.
After more days of silence (and the absence of tweeting is soooo enjoyable), suddenly the video-poster and her lackey manage to select a national day of celebration to deliver volley #2.
Do we see the connection yet?
Another slam on John McCain?
Another slam on Arizona?
Another hijacking of a National Holiday?
Hmm, one can only wonder. The coincidences in life always amaze me.