Verbatim

'Peaceful Muslims, pls refudiate.'

SARAH PALIN, tweeting her disapproval of a plan to build an Islamic cultural center and mosque near Ground Zero; Palin was subsequently mocked for her use of a nonexistent word

'I'm addicted to perfection. Problem with my life is, I was always also addicted to chaos. Perfect chaos.'

MIKE TYSON, lamenting his erratic behavior during his heyday as a champion boxer 20 years ago

'This is a small town, and we have more moles here than a vegetable garden.'

JIM LANGAN, editor of the Hudson Valley News, on rumors that Rhinebeck, N.Y., will be the location of former First Daughter Chelsea Clinton's July 31 wedding

'The donkey screamed, and children cried.'

LARISA TUCHKOVA, police spokeswoman in southern Russia, after a donkey was made to parasail as part of an advertising stunt; an animal-cruelty investigation ensued

'I saw the bodies. My father-in-law's was quite well preserved. I recognized his black winter coat with some holes in it.'

MIRCEA OPREAN, son-in-law of former Romanian dictator Nicolae Ceausescu and his wife, whose bodies were exhumed in an attempt to confirm the location of their long-disputed graves

'This was my decision, and it was a decision I regret having made in haste.'

TOM VILSACK, Agriculture Secretary, apologizing for firing Agriculture official Shirley Sherrod (right) after a conservative website posted misleading video footage of a speech in which she appeared to make racist statements; it was later revealed that the editing of the video left out Sherrod's greater point about racial reconciliation

'Play, don't play. Goddamn, people are getting sick of it. I'm getting sick of it!'

BUS COOK, agent for NFL player Brett Favre, after learning that Favre is once again drawing out his decision of whether to return to the game this season

TALKING HEADS

Cord Jefferson

Explaining why the Old Spice Guy is good for black America, on theroot.com

"He's everywhere, topless and smoldering. And not only are his strength, intelligence and beauty at the forefront of his character, they're heralded as being at the apex of manhood. No man, black or white, can ever be as sexy, dynamic, talented and worldly as he ... In days past, Old Spice Guy would have been seen as threatening, aggressive, certainly unfit for a million-dollar ad campaign. But here in 2010, far from being fearful, America is rushing wildly into his sturdy embrace."

--7/14/10

Bill O'Reilly

Defending the Tea Party, in the Boston Herald, against accusations of racism by the NAACP:

"Even if they existed, is it fair to demonize an entire movement because a few nuts are associated with it? ... One of the weaknesses of the NAACP is that it has rarely acknowledged black racism. The organization is silent on the Rev. Jeremiah Wright and Louis Farrakhan. Yet it is outraged about the Tea Party. There might be something hypocritical about that."

--7/18/10