By the continued Golden One Annointment on the media. I can barely stomach watching ANY news now because every time I turn it on, there is Obama giving a speech. Then, the commentators gush over him. Blech.
And so sad because of Hillary's losses. The African American community is CLEARLY voting in a bloc, something women sure aren't doing. I don't want to hear that it is just THIS woman they won't support. I thnk Campbell Brown's reaction to Paul Begala last night says it all. He said that Hillary has proven she can TAKE a punch; now she has to prove she can THROW a punch and go on the attack. Campbell all but said that would not be lady-like. Begala responded that Obama has been attacking Hillary in every single speech, and she needs to respond in kind. "But ladies don't DO things like that." And when Hillary DOES confront him, like about his whole nuclear energy legislation reported recently in the NY Times? He calls her a liar, and the press lookis no further into it.
Which is all to say that I am tremendously sad that this nation seems nowhere closer to being able to vote for a woman for president now. The blatant sexism in discussing Clinton (as I have already noted) is just rampant - it seeps into EVERYTHING I have heard about her. Her voice, her dress style, her mannerisms, EVERYTHING. I am so sad, and angry, that the Feminist movement has been pushed back so hard over the past 20 years, that young women have NO idea how hard we fought for them to have what they have, and many older women have become too complacent, or just gave up. So, some smooth talker comes along, and they fall for it hook, line, and sinker.
Every time they rag on Hillary, they are ragging on ALL women. And I am sick and tired of it - sick and tired of having put up with this all of my life; sick and tired that their attacks on Hillary for being a woman are WORKING, sick and tired of women not sticking with women. And hell to the yes, it IS a gender thing! Same as it is for African Americans to vote predominantly for Obama. It reminds me of something my chosen brother, Patrick, has said over and over and over: women will NEVER vote in a bloc, which means they end up voting against their own self interests. Amen to that. And that makes me sad, too. I am sick of living in a country where women can be raped by their fellow employees (Halliburton), and have the company cover up for the rapists. I am sick of living in a country where a woman soldier can be raped by her commanding officer and SHE'S the one in the brig. I am sick of living in a country where men who rape women serve less time in prison than someone who commits a robbery, Sadly, I could go on and on (and I haven't even TOUCHED the issue of domestic violence, and the preponderance of it being directed at women). I am sick and tired of being a second class citizen in my own country.
Don't even get me started on what it is like being a lesbian in this country (still illegal in 31 states). Talk about second class citizenry. Add to that our representatives actively lobbying AGAINST us, and oh, whew - am I fed up with THAT. I have been out for over 31 years. Unless you are also lesbian/gay/bi, you cannot imagine how it feels to watch these legislators stand up there and talk about you in the most demaning ways possible, and want to change the Constitution to EXCLUDE you. You cannot imagine the anger, the pain, the sorrow that your own country has not only forsaken you, but wants to increase the criminality of who you are. No matter how much you have done to give back, no matter how much you pay in taxes, no matter what you bring to the table, no matter that you ARE a US citizen. To constantly hear your community affiliated with pedophilia and beastiality...If this was ANY other group, you wouldn't hear this - but as I have said in a previous posts, women, lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, and transgendered people are all fair game. There are no holds barred when it comes to us.
And I am fed up that the freakin' Senate just voted to give the telecom industries immunity from spying on US! AND gave Bush the expanded spying powers he wanted! WHAT THE FREAK????? So much for having a Democratic majority - they are still handing this horrendous president with HORRIBLE poll numbers EVERYTHING HE WANTS!!!
I have worked on political issues since I was in high school, and I am so sick and tired of our representatives not listening to US, and allowing corporations to dictate our policies.
My partner just reminded me of a line in "The American President": "You don't fight the fights you think you can win; you fight the fights that need fighting." I'll try to remember that, though it is mighty hard at the moment...
3 comments:
This reminds me of a situation that occured just last night at our annual sales meeting. Here we are in the beautiful grand ballroom of the Queen Mary with people from all over the globe, and the time came for awards to be presented. The man in change of the Americas went through his entire list and left out someone from my organization. His 2nd in command, Kristin, rushed to the front to let him know about his oversight, and he said ... I kid you not! ... "and luckily I have this "pixie" to remind me of someone I missed". Excuse me? Pixie? Do you think he would have called a male subordinate an elf? A fairie?
Sexism is alive and well in all parts of my world - business and politics are just the most blatantly obvious.
How sad.
We may "have come a long way, baby," but we sure as hell have a long way to go!
WOW abt Kristin!!! Dear goddess...
I have been amazed in this campaign to see young women turn against Hillary. I don't think my friends *have* to vote for her, but I do think they owe her some respect. Okay, a lot of respect.
I was talking to a good friend who is in her mid-twenties, and was shocked at how much hostility she had toward Hillary. Her reason? Because Hillary "is running on 'experience' and her only experience is being married to someone famous"! Which my friend says offends her as a feminist. She also claims there are plenty of women in politics who got there on their own merits, thank you, and we should support them.
Wow. I don't get mad that easily. But. I had to point out: a) Hillary has done plenty of things in her life besides be first lady (such as, oh, being a senator for 7 years); b) she did a lot in the white house too, regardless of how you feel about why she was there c) it's not as though the, uh, gentleman currently in the white house got there exclusively on *his* own merits, either, no one in politics does. Also, as far as I'm concerned Bill is an albatross around Hillary's neck most of the time, rather than some kind of political asset. And, please *show* me the other women in politics who have Hillary's level of competence and power and steadiness and ethics and prominence, and I will happily support them too.
Meanwhile, CLEARLY YOU HAVE NO EFFING IDEA WHAT IT WAS LIKE FOR WOMEN JUST A FEW DECADES AGO WHEN HILLARY WAS YOUR AGE. Have some respect: it's people like her that have allowed people like you to be so sure that you'd never be like her.
So I got all mad about this, and then remembered when I came out in college. Everyone was all feminist about it (remember "feminism is the theory, lesbianism is the practice"?) and a big part of the dialogue involved criticizing the previous generation of butch/femme lesbians as "mimicking the patriarchy, perpetuating oppressive gender roles, identifying with male power and domination", etc. It took years before I understood how brave and radical and amazing these women were, and how much easier I had it because of them. Including the leisure to criticize other lesbians for *how* they lived as out lesbians.
I guess it's the same thing. Still, it makes me sad, to see women disrespecting someone who is such an incredible pioneer and role model.
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