Visitors' civil comments encouraged.
"The triumph of feminism" - The Economist
Once again, in amongst all the clutter and crap I read. Once again The Economist gets right down to the point and clarifies an issue for my little boy's brain. I don't know if it's just the make up of the brit's brain or the outsider's freedom of expression, but these folks continually prove my most valuable resource.
From the September 13th 2008 Issue
THIS was supposed to be the year in which America’s feminists celebrated the shattering of the highest glass ceiling. They had the ideal candidate in Hillary Rodham Clinton, a woman who had been tempered in the fires of Washington. And they had every reason to think that she would whip both the young Barack Obama and the elderly John McCain.
But it was Mrs Clinton who got the whipping. She not only lost an unlosable primary race. She was dissed and denounced in the process. Chris Matthews of MSNBC said that she owed her Senate seat to her husband’s infidelity. One lobbyist created an anti-Hillary pressure group called Citizens United Not Timid. A couple of young men ordered her to “iron my shirt”. Mr McCain, whom she regards as a good friend, looked on benignly when a Republican asked him “How do we beat the bitch?”
Mr McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin as his running-mate has turned the defeat into Armageddon. Mrs Palin is everything that liberal feminists loathe: a gun-toting evangelical, a polar bear-hating former beauty queen, a mother of five who opposes abortion rights and celebrates the fact that her pregnant teenage daughter has “chosen life”. During her campaign for Alaska’s lieutenant-governorship in 2002 she called herself as “pro-life as any candidate can be”.
I won't quote the entire article and ask you to please go read it. I will however skip to the conclusion, then ask you to go fill in the blank.
The new Madonna
It is even plausible to argue that there is feminist-friendly news buried in the recent headlines. One reason why younger women did not coalesce behind Mrs Clinton in the same way as their mothers must surely be that they have simply become accustomed to living in a world of opportunities. On Super Tuesday, for example, Mr Obama did very well with women under 30, while Mrs Clinton won easily among
women over 60. Convinced that they will see a woman in the White House during their lifetimes, they did not feel the same “fierce urgency of now” (to borrow a phrase from Mr Obama) as 70-somethings like Ms Steinem.
In her idiosyncratic way, Mrs Palin also represents the fulfilment of the feminist dream. She demonstrates that gender is no longer a barrier to success in one of the most conservative corners of the land, the Alaska Republican Party. She also proves that you can be a career woman without needing to subscribe to any fixed feminist ideology. Camille Paglia hails her as the biggest step forward for feminism since Madonna. One can argue, as we have, that it was astoundingly reckless of Mr McCain to have picked her on the basis of having once met her for 15 minutes. But if feminism means, at its core, that women should be able to compete equally in the workplace while deciding for themselves how they organise their family life, then Mrs Palin deserves to be treated as a pioneer, not dismissed as a crackpot.
Hear! Hear!, Cheers and all that!
How could any thinking feminist or feminist supporter 
not agree 100% with that conclusion? Here it is again for emphasis. But if feminism means, at its core, that women should be able to compete equally in the workplace while deciding for themselves how they organise their family life, then Mrs Palin deserves to be treated as a pioneer, not dismissed as a crackpot.
I may hate the woman's stance on issues, I am as anti-gun as they come and I'd rather park my car forever than drill a single hole in ANWAR but damnit this woman is a woman and needs to be recognized for Her success.
- NewHampster's blog
- Login or register to post comments
-
Amazing how Paglia likes Palin, but hated Hillary. These "feminists" and their unfathomable treatment of Senator Clinton will never cease to piss me off.
Maybe they aren't feminists. Maybe it's just about the money and career.
Civil Discourse - ERA - A Mother President - Women's Rights - Primary Reform
there's no doubt. Gloria Steinem, however...what happened to her?!
I don't know but I think many public people (like markos) put their personal views in a vault somewhere so they can focus on speaking to their core, or what they perceive as their core audience.
I think Maureen Dowd writes to shock. I think Markos is a true progressive at heart and probably can't stomach Obama but does what he needs to do to satisfy the great majority of his income producing readership.
Civil Discourse - ERA - A Mother President - Women's Rights - Primary Reform
Oh, NH.
Hate is not a liberal or progressive value. Do you not know what happened to all the Hillary supporters on his forum?
Did you not read this wonderful screed from 2006?
Kos has been in the tank for Obama from the get-go.
Here is my last post.
http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2008/3/14/185232/912/173/476818
Civil Discourse - ERA - A Mother President - Women's Rights - Primary Reform
Awesome!
is that people are now talking about feminism. It used to be considered a dirty word---representing angry, irrational, unshavened women. Now we are learning just how varied and encompassing feminism can be. Steinem and Paglia are both self-identified as feminists, and yet they are two different peas in the same pod.
...HAMPSTER, you know she personally hunts down those wolves like the mangy dogs they are and commits wolf genocide!
You know that, right?
But thank God she's a KILLER, because we wouldn't want to stop this activity:
Native American Times / January 14, 2008
"The Native People of Alaska are dealing with issues only those of us in the lower 48 states hear about in movies or read about in the papers....one village is dealing with rabid wolves roaming the area, attacking their sleigh dogs and posing a threat to children.
According to Nick Andrew, Jr., Tribal Administrator for the Ohogamiut Traditional Council, people in the Southwestern Alaska town of Marshall are very concerned about the likelihood of a widespread rabies outbreak based on the fact that approximately 25 dogs were directly and indirectly affected by the wolf attacks.
"People here are on alert status, parents or guardians are escorting their children to and from school, and all children are ordered to be home before dark for their safety," Andrew stated in a public notice.
Three sled dog yards were attacked by wolves on October 25, 2007. Alex Evan who lives in close proximity to all three kennels began hearing the dogs barking wildly and fighting for their lives at about 7:30 P.M.
Tests performed by the Alaska State Virology Laboratory (ASVL) confirmed a 17 month old female wolf, which was killed by a resident of the village, was positive for rabies virus.
Alaska Department of Fish and Game (ADF&G) Wildlife Veterinarian Kimberlee Beckmen said it is possible other wolves in the pack have the disease as well.
"Rabies virus is present in saliva, and when several animals eat from the same source, the virus can be quickly spread to other members of the pack," Dr. Beckmen said. "However, rabies is extremely rare in wolves in Alaska."
Clem Kameroff whose dogs were also attacked mentioned hearing all the commotion during the same timeframe. It was later that evening that it was confirmed that wolves had attacked the dogs when Tony Boliver, whose dogs were also attacked, found a female dog and all the pups dead along with 11 or more bloodied dogs.
Following Boliver, another resident later found two of his sled dogs injured from the wolf attack. By approximately 8:30 P.M., yet another villager's dogs were attacked near a wooded area which provided cover for the marauding wolves.
According to Andrew, local men armed themselves to protect the sled dogs and the community. During the hours to follow the men noticed the wolves had no real fear of them and at times ran within a few feet of them. [HEY, I've got an idea, let's shoot the innocent little bambis from airplanes to keep the citizentry safe!]
In the press release, Andrews stated that a local Yup'ik Eskimo Elder Paul Boots informed him that wolves are highly intelligent.
"Uncertainty is our biggest fear, at this time we don't know the extent of the spread of rabies because rabies is spread through bites and saliva.
"Right wing sledge hammers never, ever help us." Pacific John
than a Wimp. I would not be a good VP.
Civil Discourse - ERA - A Mother President - Women's Rights - Primary Reform
Truly speechless.
Civil Discourse - ERA - A Mother President - Women's Rights - Primary Reform
Michelle Obama: Don't vote because 'she's cute'
Please keep her on the stump. And let her bring her preacher with her.
Civil Discourse - ERA - A Mother President - Women's Rights - Primary Reform
A sexist marries his mirror image.
"Right wing sledge hammers never, ever help us." Pacific John
she knows exactly what she's doing. Like Madeline Albright said, there is a special place in hell...
is almost as bad as the thought of hearing Obama on the TV or radio every day for 4 years.
Civil Discourse - ERA - A Mother President - Women's Rights - Primary Reform
...for what it is. She's a liar. Ask yourselves voters, is this the personality you want representing our country at home and abroad as sidekick-in-chief for the next four years? Why would anyone ever believe anything she says? The middle-school girly head games are unbecoming for a woman who purports to be an adult. I'm sorry for her daughters if this is the example of womanhood she sets for them.
"Right wing sledge hammers never, ever help us." Pacific John
She was the most impressive speaker for me. I was outside having a cigar and just somehow didn't get back inside in time.
Now, Dennis. He was kicking ass.
Civil Discourse - ERA - A Mother President - Women's Rights - Primary Reform
My boss gets the Economist ($100/year) so I sneak in a look during lunch. I thought that was a super article to post and glad some did.
thanks Hampster