Spring Break
A Step Backwards for Women, and for All Americans
Ashley Mitchell '11
Issue date: 11/3/08 Section: Opinion
In June, after one of the longest, most bitter primary seasons in history, Senator Hillary Clinton ended her bid for the Democratic nomination for President. Although her campaign was ultimately unsuccessful, record numbers of voters came out in support of her candidacy, and she will forever be remembered in the annals of history as the first serious female contender for our nation's highest office. In her concession speech, Clinton stated, "Although we weren't able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it's got about 18 million cracks in it. And the light is shining through like never before, filling us all with the hope and the sure knowledge that the path will be a little easier next time." Next time came even sooner than expected. Less than three months after Clinton's concession speech, Republican John McCain announced his pick for VP, Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska, the first female vice presidential candidate of a major party since Geraldine Ferraro ran with Walter Mondale in 1984. Unlike the 1984 election, however, the current presidential contest is very close, and Sarah Palin might become the first female Vice President. While many women may not agree with the positions of the McCain/Palin ticket, the fact that the first female Vice President may be inaugurated in January should be cause for celebration, and her ascension to the White House would usher in a new era of politics in America, one where a woman's success in public life would be as commonplace as a man's. However, women-and all Americans-should be wary of both Governor Palin and her meteoric rise to the national stage. In every possible way, from her background to her policy positions to her role in the Republican Party's right wing, Sarah Palin has shown she is not the woman America wants to blaze a trail to the White House.
Since McCain chose Sarah Palin as his running mate, the media has covered her and her family as though they were detailing the latest episode of Gossip Girl. From Governor Palin's days competing in beauty pageants to the pregnancy and engagement of her seventeen-year-old daughter, no stone has been left unturned in the media's search for juicy tidbits about the Palins. Sarah Palin's hairstyle and attractiveness have even garnered attention, much of it inappropriate. Upon hearing that Palin was the Republican VP nominee, Rush Limbaugh remarked that she is "a woman I'd like to see age in office." He said the exact opposite about Senator Clinton. The sexist treatment of Palin is unfortunate, and it has exposed the hypocrisy of liberals and women's organizations that decried the sexist treatment of Hillary Clinton during her campaign. Sexism should never be tolerated, regardless of the political affiliation of the candidate. However, the initial frivolous and dismissive reporting of Sarah Palin cannot be attributed entirely to sexism. Many in the media have not taken Sarah Palin seriously because she has not proven she should be taken seriously as a national leader.
Since McCain chose Sarah Palin as his running mate, the media has covered her and her family as though they were detailing the latest episode of Gossip Girl. From Governor Palin's days competing in beauty pageants to the pregnancy and engagement of her seventeen-year-old daughter, no stone has been left unturned in the media's search for juicy tidbits about the Palins. Sarah Palin's hairstyle and attractiveness have even garnered attention, much of it inappropriate. Upon hearing that Palin was the Republican VP nominee, Rush Limbaugh remarked that she is "a woman I'd like to see age in office." He said the exact opposite about Senator Clinton. The sexist treatment of Palin is unfortunate, and it has exposed the hypocrisy of liberals and women's organizations that decried the sexist treatment of Hillary Clinton during her campaign. Sexism should never be tolerated, regardless of the political affiliation of the candidate. However, the initial frivolous and dismissive reporting of Sarah Palin cannot be attributed entirely to sexism. Many in the media have not taken Sarah Palin seriously because she has not proven she should be taken seriously as a national leader.
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Natural Cures
posted 11/05/08 @ 5:46 AM EST
Even though Clinton lost, she won in 2 big states that did not count in the election. Michigan and Florida did not count in that close election where both candidates got 18 million votes. (Continued…)
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