AMERICA'S DIRTY LITTLE SECRET
Whether or not we're already tired of the skirmishes MONTHS ahead of time, this IS the most exciting political race to come along in years. It's no wonder that the Clinton and Obama camps have to hit below the belt--it's SUCH a difficult choice that hair-splitting becomes a desperately needed aid.
But as I listened the other night in a restaurant as someone described an unattributable claim of the KKK backing Obama just to avoid having Hillary in the White House, I realized how deep the national fear is of . . . a woman. It is absurd, of course, that it has taken this long for this country to treat a black man as a man of equal stature, and there is something positive in the fact that there are those who will finally overcome their bigotry to vote color-blind. (And he is, of course, an estimable candidate.) But if they are overcoming their bigotry just so they won't have to overcome basic misogyny . . .
Every intelligent, modern nation but the U.S. has had a woman leader at one point. It many cases, it has been the most stable and productive tenure these countries have had. Why are the men of this country so scared? Why are so many women willing to bash a leader from amongst their ranks?
You want to try killing ALL conversation somewhere? You won't believe me, but if you casually ask a group of women to name a woman they most admire, they will be stymied! And if all they can come up with is Eleanor Roosevelt or Mother Theresa . . . we're in trouble.
Polls everywhere are showing that Hillary Clinton is considered more experienced and better equipped, and yet the same polls show people PREFER Obama, who so far is just claiming he's going to change things. DON'T WE EVER LEARN? George W. was deemed a more pleasant Sunday dinner guest than Kerry, and so we got another four years that have sent us down the toilet. We still, after all this press coverage, really don't know much about where Obama stands, other than that he wants to make changes. And when things don't go his way, he tenses up and gets rather whiny. With the mess that needs to be cleaned up, don't we need someone who just doesn't care anymore about what someone says about them? It's a dirty business, people, politics. Let's choose someone who can survive it. LET'S VOTE FOR COMPETENCE, FOLKS!
And this fear that a woman can't lead us effectively--GET OVER IT!
photo credit: Hillary Clinton: © Jose Gil | Dreamstime.com ; Barack Obama: © Misty Pfeil | Dreamstime.com"
6 comments:
Here Here!!!!!!!!!
I'm pretty sure that most people who prefer Obama over Clinton do not do so based on the fact that Clinton is a woman. Just as I'm sure you don't prefer Clinton over Obama because you aren't ready to have a black person as the president. There are always going to be bigots in society, but to imply that those of us (and yes, I'm a woman) who support Obama over Clinton secretly don't want a woman in office is just insulting. Believe it or not, I actually read the books written by both Clinton and Obama, watched the debates, and considered each candidate's professional history prior to making an informed decision. In other words, my decision wasn't based on either candidate's gender, or the sole fact that Obama made a couple of inspirational speeches. (As you know, one of Clinton's favorite topics is how we Obama backers are so stupid that we are swayed by mere pretty words). I completely respect your decision to favor Clinton, but please don't underestimate the intelligence of Obama backers.
Fair enough--and I hope you're right.
More than anything, I want people to decided based on something more than "I just like this person," which of course means that they like the image the candidate has been given. It was the "likability" factor that supposedly got us in trouble in the last election--people said they didn't feel they could sit down to Sunday dinner with Kerry but they could with George W! And we know where that led us . . .
And I don't think that George W. had dinner with that many of us . . .
I totally hear you on the whole likability thing, and I completely agree that it should not be a factor (or at least a major factor) in voting for a particular candidate. And really, I'd much rather have a president that I know can run intellectual circles around me, vs. someone who will eat my terrible meatloaf with a smile.
Sorry I got so worked up previously. This whole election is already wearing on me. I just hope the dems don't implode before the actual election. Although I prefer Obama, you can bet that if Clinton is the democratic candidate, she will get my vote.
It is indeed a long process--and the campaigns started so early that the election itself will most likely seem anticlimatic. But in actuality, we are watching the system work the way it's designed to--more or less. (Although Michigan and Florida voters should not be penalized for the actions of their local party leaders--and the Democratic National Committee should realize that their FIRST obligation is to the voters and not to slapping local branches at the voters' expense. It will be embarrassing indeed if all states are not properly represented at the Convention.)
But I also suspect everything started early because the country was depressed by the state of affairs the current administration placed us into--the only way to cope was to think of the future!
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