Palin's Smiles and Smirks - Well Gosh, Ain't it Great???

Not exactly.

Let me tell you, I was all for seeing her fall flat on her face tonight. I do not like this woman in any way what-so-ever. I'm so left-leaning that I realize no matter what had happened tonight I would still vote for Obama on November 4th... however, that doesn't prohibit my ability to recognize inappropriate behavior when I see it.

No matter what the topic Palin smiles her way through the answer. Ya know, if this was a beauty pageant, a high school drama club audition or a political debate in a state where the population is low and 12-1 in favor of men, well then maybe it would fly.

However, this is a national Vice Presidential debate during some VERY SERIOUS times. We have troops at war. We have lost respect and standing around the world. 40 million Americans have no health insurance. Thousands of houses PER DAY are being foreclosed on, unemployment is up and we're on the verge of complete economic collapse. She wants to smile while she answers questions about her kids or her favorite movie, well fine, but when she's addressing questions about war and genocide, Wall Street bailouts and nuclear annihilation I'd prefer she do it without grinning from ear-to-ear.

Maybe it's just me, but I'm disgusted at petty one-liners and insulting jokes when the theme of the day is American families suffering. Call me callous but I'd like to know I'm voting for a "team" that not only says they take the global and American problems seriously, but actually looks like she means it.

Biden was smart, articulate and emotionally appropriate. To me, the clear winner. Palin... well she gets a big old F on my debate scorecard. She could have memorized and recited War and Peace, but if she keeps speaking at me with that grin and reminding me how, well gosh, she just doesn't take these most important topics seriously, then there's no other conclusion to draw than that she believes she's going to be the next American Idol, not the next American Vice President.

All Them Bitches is Just Sexist!!

Wow. Seems like no one can open their mouths about Sarah Palin, unless it's a glowing review, without being called sexist.

McCain's camp is now claiming the Saturday Night Live skit in which Tina Fey played Sarah Palin, was sexist. Mind you, Palin herself has already publicly said she thought it was funny. Did anyone remind John McCain that SNL isn't news or political punditry? Was he crying sexism over Baba Wawa way back when, or was he laughing along with the rest of us? My guess is he was laughing.

What happens the first time a world leader from a less-than-friendly country starts attacking or criticizing Palin? Is the secret service going to rush to her side and call them sexist? Ya know, McCain's camp needs to let her grow a pair if they expect her to stand up there with the big boys. Hmmm, sound familiar? That's because it's essentially what the republicans said, in response to accusations of sexism towards Hillary during the primaries. How soon they forget.

Did you hear the one today about Biden? Out on the stump he recently said, "I assume she thinks and agrees with the same policies that George Bush and John McCain think," Biden added. "And that's obviously a backward step for women." The women on The View today were discussing it and agreeing it may have had a sexist tone.

What is WRONG with people? If I disagree with Palin's policies, policies that I truly believe are a step backwards for women, it isn't sexist for me to say so just because she's a woman! If she weren't on the ticket, if it were just McCain's policies I were criticizing I would say the same thing... and I HAVE, before she even entered the picture. Overturning Roe vs. Wade and subsequently invading the privacy of women, by scouring through their medical records to enforce a pro-life law that takes away their choice, is SURELY a step backwards for women... at least for those of us that are pro-choice. It doesn't make me a sexist for thinking or saying it, it just makes me disagreeable to the platform in which republicans stand.

What's ironic about the republicans cry of sexism at every turn (whether true or not) is that most of us realize how politically calculated the choice of Palin as VP was, and that in-and-of-itself contained at least a little bit of sexism. How's that you ask? Imagine a bunch of old white guys sitting around a table deciding who McCain's running mate should be. Names fly around, mostly ultra-conservatives to pander to the extreme right, "the base". Sarah Palin's name comes up and there's all kinds of discussion about how they can tap into some of the Hillary vote, for the sole reason that she is a woman. Assuming it's even just a tiny bit true, it's an insult to women everywhere, an underestimating of our intelligence, and certainly a bit sexist to think we'll go right down to the voting booth and pull the lever for Palin solely because she shares our anatomy.

And another thing to consider... all these cries of sexism by McCain's camp to the media and critics, isn't the mere defense of her, the assumption she can't stick up for herself, sexist itself?

The closest thing  I've heard to what some considered truly sexist criticism may have been in response to her kids -- her troubled teen and special-needs infant -- and I honestly believe that to be more a criticism of her parenting. At least for me and probably several hundred family therapists, it equally applies to a male counterpart in the identical situation. Ask yourself what the republicans would be saying if Obama had a pregnant teenage daughter and a five-month old with downs syndrome. Lets not even get into the fact that she stands for abstinence-only education while her pregnant 17-year-old stood on stage with her as an example of how that may not be the best policy for the rest of us.

Let me spell it out... If I say she can't do the job because she's a woman, that's sexist. If I make statements that she slept her way to the top or that she'll get votes because she's hot (even though I've heard republicans say it), that's sexist. If I say she belongs at home pushing out more babies and ironing her husband's shirts, not in the whitehouse, that's sexist. I've yet to hear any political criticism in the main-stream media that includes ANY of these statements, or anything even in the same league.

If I say she's a religious fanatic, NOT SEXIST.

If I criticize her policies, NOT SEXIST.

If I share my belief that her policies have a negative impact on women, NOT SEXIST.

If I believe she lacks experience, NOT SEXIST.

If I question her intelligence on what comes out of her mouth, NOT SEXIST.

If I criticize her inability to tell the truth, NOT SEXIST.

I can even call her a bitch and it's NOT SEXIST. Why? Because if she had a penis I'd likely call her a dick, prick or bastard.

And, I'm entitled to just not like her without you calling me sexist! My dislike of her can (and does) come from a lot more places than what's hidden under her bra and panties.

With comedians, all bets are off. Just like David Letterman makes Bush look like the king of the idiots quite often, he's going to do it with Sarah Palin too. Get used to it.

By the way, should republicans choose to continue to believe that every bit of criticism about Palin is sexist they ought be careful. By their rules, every bit of criticism about Obama must, in fact, be racist.

You Don't Have to Be a Pitbull to Sway People

In the last week I have had two conversations about politics will women I knew. I started off by asking them if they've been following it, and if they don't mind sharing who they think they'll vote for.

In both cases, the answer was "McCain."

Without freaking out (though my inner, flaming-liberal was screaming), I asked "why"...

Both answers were different, but both contained information that was just flat-out inaccurate or incomplete.

So nicely, I went on to say I'm 100% for Obama and here's why... on the ISSUES... I started with statements like "did you know..." and cited my sources (independent sources, major news outlets, things they'd recognize) and how McCain/Palin frightens me, especially as a woman, and specifics on why... again ISSUES (not how I think she's satan)... keeping it all as low-key as possible.

And in both cases I walked away from the conversation knowing I had impacted them. Each woman told me "you've got me thinking about Obama now".

I planted a seed in their minds... I informed them on the actual ISSUES - not on personality or who I like better. This is what really matters. People out there are hearing only the sound-bites and ads. They are living their lives, not paying attention the way you and I do, and if some of then, if some of them at least knew what McCain and Palin actually stood for, they'd run for the Obama-Ballot Box... but they have to know first.

Some cannot be converted. Some are as far right as I am far left.... and I'm bent so far left I can press my ear to the floor with my feet still planted on the ground (okay, not really). Don't waste your time on those. However, there are a lot of folks out there who can be convinced, who you can reach if you're not afraid to talk about it.

and when the conversation is over...
if it goes well you can go home and celebrate and believe maybe, just maybe, you got another Obama vote.

If it goes badly, go home and take your blood pressure meds.

From the Party that brought us The Blue Dress and "he did WHAT with a Cigar?"

The republicans are a little mad that "everyone" is ganging up on poor Sarah Palin. Isn't it ironic from the party who spent how much money ($20 million dollars) going over every tawdry detail of the extramarital affair that President Bill Clinton dove cigar-first into. 

What's interesting in the case of Sarah Palin's personal life is that many of the details coming out are actually relevant to the public being able to make a decision on whether they will vote the ticket she belongs to. These topics actually relate back to her own political platform.

Baby-Gate: Her 17 year-old is pregnant. "Leave her alone" they cry, she's just a kid.

I agree. Bristol, the daughter, is just a kid. But the policy of abstinence-only education that her mother, the politician, stands behind seems quite flawed if she can't enforce it in her own home, don't you think? I'm not real confident she can make decisions about the education of my children and your children if she has a tough time making those decisions for her own effectively.

Baby-Gate II: Her 17 year-old is pregnant. She's keeping the baby. Isn't that wonderful (pro-life pandering).

Yes, of course it's wonderful that we have one less abortion in the world, but how unfortunate we have one more teen pregnancy. Conservatives are all about family values... well there are some liberals, like myself, who believe in them too... difference is, in MY family my goal is not to have my teenage daughter end up pregnant, and if she does, to then marry her off to her self-proclaimed redneck boyfriend before she's even old enough to vote.

I also don't think you get a medal for keeping the baby when you come from a well-off,  privileged family that is adamantly pro-life. Though to the last point, we are told Bristol "chose" herself to keep the baby. I think Sarah missed the operative word in her own statement... her daughter had a choice. Something she wishes to take away from the rest of us.

We could probably easily draw the conclusion that Bristol had no choice at all, in her family, because of her Mother's politics. And sure, if choice is taken away, as Sarah Palin and her pro-life comrades would like to do, isn't it easy to make that decision for the rest of us who aren't quite so privileged. How does she expect to support a country full of uneducated teenagers who were taught abstinence-only, who then end up pregnant, unwed, penniless and without support.

It's a valid issue.

Gender-Gate: If I comment on the fact that she has too much on her plate, that doesn't make me sexist. Sometimes common-sense just tells us that a parent with a special-needs five-month-old and a pregnant teenager might just have her hands full already. Sure, she can work, but does that mean I have to sit back and believe no one suffers if she chooses to be 2nd in command only to the President? The hypocrisy of it all is that if she were counseling another parent on the matter, as a conservative, she might say "you might want to cut back your hours at work and spend more time with your family" and that would be a reasonable suggestion to any family, mom and dad, struggling with such issues. I don't think there's any job more taxing than that of a high-powered political position, in which you can't just cut down your hours to cater to your family... is she capable as a parent to juggle it all? And if she can't, which wouldn't at all be a bad reflection on her, who suffers first? Her family or us, the American People she serves?

Notice, I said PARENT, not MOTHER. I'd be asking the identical questions if she had a penis.

Gender-Gate II: I'm not sexist because I say she isn't ready to be VP. If I am, then under those rules I guess all republicans are racist for saying Obama isn't ready to be President.

Kitchen-Sink-Gate: There are lots of other issues that have cropped up with Sarah Palin, including Trooper-Gate (she allegedly fired the Public Safety Commissions for failing to entertain her family feud by firing her brother-in-law, who was in the middle of a vicious divorce from her sister),  AIP-Gate (her and her husband's affiliation to the Alaskan Independence Party and the party's desire to secede from the United States), and even now, her very own Monika-Gate (also seemingly tied to her family feud as the accusations of her philandering  seems to come from her own estranged extended family).

Interesting that we end where we started, isn't it?

Republicans, all I can say is suck it up. These are legitimate issues.  

The best quote I read on the topic says it all:

"What's galling is this: When the subject is a pregnancy to an unwed, minority teenage mother growing up in some (presumably Democratic) urban area, that pregnancy becomes fodder for lectures from conservatives about bad parenting, the perils of welfare spending and so on. But when the subject is a pregnancy to an unwed, white teenager from some small town in a Republican State, that pregnancy is... a celebration of the wonders of God's magnificence -- and choosing life!"  -Thomas Schaller from Salon.com

Well-said Thomas. Well-said.

Not Just ANY Vagina -- Sarah Palin, Teen Pregnancy and Politics

I realized tonight as I was venting to my husband that I have a lot to say on this topic. I really need to get myself a blog... LOL

Seriously, though...

FIRST - The Politics: we ALL know that if the situation was reversed, if Barack Obama had a teenage daughter that turned out to be pregnant, the republicans would be screaming from the hilltops. I'm not saying that I expect Barack to get out on the stump calling Sarah's parenting into question, but I expect SOMEONE, one of the talking-heads, to do exactly that. If it was revealed that Chelsea was pregnant, or the fictional teenage daughter of Barack, or any prominent figure on the democratic side, the GOP attack dogs would be in full swing.

SECOND - The Parenting: As a working mother myself with a teenage daughter, I think it's despicable for Sarah Palin to thrust her daughter's life into the limelight by accepting this nomination. No matter how you hope that people don't judge and criticize, reality is that once you're in the public eye like a prominent politician or celebrity there is no escaping it. If she wants everyone to respect her daughter's privacy than she herself should have led by example and done that FIRST by not deciding to run for the second-most powerful position in the country.

Sarah Palin HAD A CHOICE to put her family first and put her political career on hold so she could be a better parent to her teenage daughter, who obviously needs all the love and guidance possible right now. Choosing to take the VP nomination and not only be away from home for extended periods of time, but wrapped up in very important government work, the work of the people who elect her, is flat-out irresponsible. And YES, I'd say the same thing if we were talking about a man; a father.

Speaking of being a parent, she has a new baby at home... one with special needs. I'm appalled that she would choose to 1) Go back to work 3 days after giving birth (as has been said) and 2) make the choice to go out on the campaign trail and saddle her husband and children with the lone task of caring for the baby. Even more appalling to think she might drag this baby out on the trail with her. And yes, again, I'd say that if she were a new Dad instead of a new Mom.

THIRD - This is a woman who believes in abstinence-only education. This is a woman who is pro-life without exception
If you are going to stand up and promote abstinence-only education for ALL OF OUR CHILDREN, then you better, first and foremost, be able to prove it works! How can you make such an argument when closest to home, in your own family with your own daughter, it has failed?
If you are going to stand up against abortion and promote laws that are pro-life without exception, you better be prepared to provide all the government services your administration seems so opposed to. More welfare, health-insurance for all, and the government making decision about our personal lives and medical care. I am SOOOO angry when I hear a well-off woman with more advantages than the average American, try to take a stand against the CHOICE for an abortion when it's a much easier choice for she-herself to choose otherwise. I am SOOOOO angry when I hear a well-off mother with more advantages than the average American, try to take a stand against the CHOICE for an abortion when her daughter has a much easier choice to make because of the money and support around her. There are a hell-of-a-lot of woman around this country who find themselves pregnant with NO support, NO resources, NO insurance and NO money and face a much harder choice.

Oh, and you want me to give her a medal because she CHOSE to have a baby with Downes-Syndrome (Also known as Trisomy 21)? I'm glad she was able to make that choice... I'm glad she has the love in her heart for a baby with special needs. I'm glad she had the resources around her to care for that baby, and the insurance funds or personal finances to provide the care it will need. Not everyone has those things.

There are also those, LIKE MYSELF, who are faced with much more tragic possibilities. When I was in my second trimester for a brief time the doctors thought it might be possible that my daughter would be born with Trisomy 13 or 15. MUCH more tragic. 80% of children born with Trisomy 13 will die within a few days of birth, or be born dead, and those that survive often have multiple abnormalities. Complete Trisomy 15 is a lethal abnormality. Have you thought about what it might be like to be told your baby will be lethally deformed at birth, or dead? And consider this... what would that be like if you didn't have family support, insurance, resources or money? Luckily, for me, I had good insurance for further testing that revealed all would be okay.

What's the best way to reduce the number of abortions? Good Education and Birth Control. Something that obviously, her own daughter, lacked. 

MOST women who have abortions don't take it lightly, and this is NOT an easy issue. We should ALL want to reduce the number of abortions, but going down the path or no birth-control, abstinence-only education combined with making abortions illegal is FAR scarier for the impact it will have on our society, our women AND our children! I'm certainly NOT striving for a life where my daughter ends up pregnant before graduating highschool, are you?

FOURTH - Experience: While I haven't hashed out all my ideas on this one yet, I know that I trust a Senator of a State with a population of 12 million vs. a Governor of a State with a population of twelve guys, one woman and two Moose - correct that, one; she shot the other one. Okay, seriously, Alaska only has a population of 700 thousand. That's a whole lot less than 12 million. It also seems to be that in her time of power she's managed to get herself investigated, get pregnant and not keep close enough tabs on her teenage daughter. I'm not sure that's the experience we need.

It's also a REAL possibility, a legitimate concern, that John McCain could become unable to lead. Let's face it, he's old... and I'm not just saying that to be funny. There are certain plans I make because my inlaws are now in their 70's and certain things I know they are and are not capable of. Do we want a president who is at the age we question whether he can adequately conquer email and driving? I digress... ultimately, it's quite possible Sarah would have to take the reigns at some point... does SHE have the experience necessary to lead this country? It's ironic that the republicans wanted to say Barack didn't have enough when they've gone out and found someone with even LESS.

LAST but not least - Not just ANY Vagina: I am so offended that the republicans seem to think I might just change my mind and vote for their team because they've drafted their own vagina into the ranks. I didn't approve of Hillary just because we shared some anatomy or because I though she had fashion sense. Hillary is a smart woman, a senator (for a largely populated state), and stands for things I can get behind. She epitomizes a strong woman with the capability to lead this country. Sarah? Well see above. Lest we forget she's an anti-birth control, pro-life, big-gun toting, wolf- and moose-killing vagina.