A family of say five will get 10-11,000 dollars from the oil fund and an aditional 6,000 from the state this year. (16-17,000 total)

It has no limitations as to income or wealth.

Is it any wonder that many want to drill for more oil in that area of the world?

Not very many people in Alaska work, or work very hard! They can't even get to work in the winter (all of the time).

Yet, the Governor of Alaska is a died in the wool "conservative."
An evangelical who wears lipstick and has trouble with her and daughter's morals. (Mother was pregnant when she married, also.)

Not that there is anything wrong with a slip up occasionally! It is the constant hypocrisy that is the problem!

Barack Obama's mother was pregnant and unmarried at 17, so what are you getting at here?

I'll take your word for Obama's Mothe being pregnant when she married, I don't know.

That is not the problem or the point.

The hypocrisy is preaching all of the time against protecting girls against disease and pregnancy and then when your own children, and you, were not practicing abstinence!

These sort of things rarely happens with just one moment of passion which could't be stopped! They go at it all the time!

Take the pill, wear the condom!

The Alaska Permanent Fund is funded by the gasoline we buy for our cars down here in the lower 48. What do you mean "share"? They should "return" the money they're taking from us!!

The Alaska Permanent Fund was established in 1976 as a way to invest the mineral rights royalties for Alaskans. Because savvy people found a way to invest this money wisely, it has grown tremendously. Evidently this is legal, and since it was established 32 years ago, Sarah Palin cannot be blamed for this. I read about this many years ago and when I was in Alaska several years ago, I visited the alaska pipeline and read the history of this fund.
If the monies received from this fund had been invested foolishly there would not be this huge amount of money to distribute. I think they should be applauded for making these wise decisions.

If I am not mistaken, many Alaskan families are financially below the average established for poverty level.

Did you and other Americans return your stimulus checks the government sent out recently? Thought not, and that was a 'give-away'. Why should the Palins not receive the same compensations every Alaskan resident has received for the past thirty two years? Next someone will be saying she had that many children so she could collect more of this fund.

The nitpicking has begun.

Alaskans pay much more for almost everything they buy. These payouts help cover the extra expense for living there.

Alaskans get higher salaries to cover the higher cost of living there.

These oil payouts are on top of this.

Bottom line: Palin and other Alaskans are bribed to support oil drilling.

to rely on the kindness of OPEC to provide us with oil or maybe you don't use any.

I would prefer more honesty in the debate about whether to drill more or not.

When Sarah Palin takes a position on the issue and oh by the way gets a financial benefit because of that position, we should all ask some critical questions about what is really behind the view she takes.

I know that she is an "expert" on energy issues. In Alaska that means cashing that check each year.

Republican VPs are SUPPOSED to profit off their time in government service...that is what it is all about. Getting the most from the government. Why should Palin be any different than Cheney? Keep the faith.

Democracy is not a spectator sport.

Of course we will be drilling for more oil in Alaska, and in the Gulf of Mexico. We are not casual users of petroleum, we are hard core addicts, and our addiction is being treated by quacks. Cash money is strong medicine for the corporate witch doctors.

"I can't wait until tomorrow, because I get more lovable every day."

Yeah, but even the stupid French knew not to depend on oil---theirs or ours!
They use nuclear mostly!

We like oil companies to much (and car companies) for that! Or at least in the past we have!