A reader writes:
While Katie Couric's question to Sarah Palin wasn't as openly contemptuous as Palin made it sound, the original question does smack of condescension. I cannot recall any politician being asked what sort of reading material he or she used to become informed on the issues. The question, as originally posed by Couric, assumes a deficiency in the way in which Palin arrives at her views before anyone even knows what those views are.
Another writes:
I have to say that for most infrastructure scale projects, like pipelines, breaking ground is actually the beginning of the end. There is so much planning and approval involved that construction takes up maybe ¼ of the time from inception. Of course this can vary widely depending on the specific project, but you get the general idea. Having said that, I think there may be more to this story that does in fact debunk the “Caribou Barbies” claim - the project does not seem viable for several reasons. However, actually breaking ground doesn’t qualify, at least not in this professional's view.