Comments on: Palin Right and Wrong

By: Joshua

Joshua — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 15:03:09 +0000

Noelle, I’m very sympathetic to the view that Palin’s status as a mother ought not to figure into our criticisms of her candidacy. However, I found Arash Kamangeer’s point particularly powerful. Speaking of the Iran-Iraq war, he compared Palin to the ’show mothers’ in Iran who would say something like: “I have given one child to this ’sacred’ war, and I am ready to give the next one.”
http://www.antiwar.com/orig/kamangeer.php?articleid=13417

Though Cheney has somewhat changed the status of the Vice-Presidency, it remains a largely symbolic office, a service rather than leadership position. Palin’s status as a ‘traditional’ woman and mother is key to her appeal among a large block of voters. While it’s absolutely important to avoid misogynistic attacks on her gender, it seems to me that there’s nothing wrong with showcasing the ways in which her candidacy is designed to paint a largely antifeminist portrait using brush-strokes developed within emancipatory feminism. It’s like using the rebel slave’s tools to fix the master’s house.

By: Rick Livingston

Rick Livingston — Mon, 08 Sep 2008 01:15:42 +0000

“totally wrongheaded … that’s the one that says she’s the mother of five, including a child with special needs, so she shouldn’t be running for office.”

Granted that this is a touchy line of argument, I do think it deserves to be heard out rather than dismissed.

The argument–at least as I’ve heard it–is not against “running for office” or against being governor. Palin isn’t just running for any office, but for Vice President of the United States, on a ticket with a 72 year old man with a history of melanoma. It’s far from inconceivable that she would need to step into the presidency at a moment’s notice.

For argument’s sake, let’s say that campaigning isn’t a 24/7 job: still, she has no experience with running a national campaign, and getting up to speed on a whole host of issues is time-consuming. A five-month old with special needs, AND a pregnant seventeen year-old: I think it’s fair to ask whether it’s the best moment to seek the Vice Presidency, and what it says about Palin’s judgment that she’s willing to do so. I may be old-fashioned, but I wouldn’t choose to expose my daughter to the prurient derision of the media worldwide–Bristol is already a punchline, and she’ll never be able to escape it now.

Of course, the judgment question holds double for McCain.

By: Noelle McAfee

Noelle McAfee — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 03:45:23 +0000

Beth sent me the link to this opinion piece in the Seattle Times on “the mommy wars”: http://tinyurl.com/57ywpo

By: beth myler

beth myler — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 03:28:20 +0000

I didn’t see Sally Quinn but I must admit to judging Palin for seeking an all-consuming office when her family clearly is in need of a lot of attention–from both parents. I probably wouldn’t judge her quite so harshly if she were a man–perhaps because I am biased and think that women are more helpful when their children are struggling?
I don’t think it is pure sexism though. I had similar feelings about Edwards seeking office with two small kids and a sick wife. Even though I really liked his ideas I felt like “dude, the country doesn’t need you THAT badly–go home!”
I applaud your call to stick to the issues. When right-leaning people try to engage me in discussions these days I stubbornly refuse to discuss personalities and will only discuss issues. That shuts them up.

By: Noelle McAfee

Noelle McAfee — Sat, 06 Sep 2008 01:30:37 +0000

Thanks, Joseph. I’ll check out the NYT piece in a few minutes. I just came across Craig Newmark on the same subject. http://www.cnewmark.com/2008/09/palin-attacks-g.html

By: Joseph Orosco

Joseph Orosco — Fri, 05 Sep 2008 23:42:29 +0000

There is some talk around the internet that the attack on community organizing is actually code language. The NYT today had a piece that said that for many Americans “community organizing” is obscure but leftist sounding. Some bloggers have suggested that the equation is something like this:

community=ghetto
organizer=activist/rabble rouser