tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post7112764428054235928..comments2024-03-09T03:20:20.004-05:00Comments on Tenured Radical: Is Sarah Palin Good For Women?Tenured Radicalhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05703980598547163290noreply@blogger.comBlogger19125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-32634936831754495112008-09-17T01:32:00.000-05:002008-09-17T01:32:00.000-05:00Palin has a swing and jumper in her office. Brings...Palin has a swing and jumper in her office. Brings her youngest daughter and her baby to work. <BR/><BR/><BR/>Imagine her in the westwing, what that will do as example for the workplace, how to make it more women friendly.<BR/><BR/><BR/>She juggles and comes across the problems all woman that want to work come across.<BR/><BR/><B><BR/>Palin will do for women in the workplace what Rosevelt did for disabled in the workplace<BR/></B><BR/><BR/>Hillary could not do it. No juggling for her with her adult daughter.<BR/><BR/>Let's not pass this opportunity to get women's voices heard.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16432317901888787271noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-48231684987565630212008-09-09T11:22:00.000-05:002008-09-09T11:22:00.000-05:00I haven't read the other comments yet but *thank* ...I haven't read the other comments yet but *thank* you for such a moderate, honest, critically aware post.Azulaohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00771800031142538095noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-4207064074446735932008-09-04T02:08:00.000-05:002008-09-04T02:08:00.000-05:00Yes to your last 3 paragraphs... thanks for clearl...Yes to your last 3 paragraphs... thanks for clearly putting the real issues in focus. I would add to "a prison system that is Hoovering up black men and warehousing them for generations can't be good for women;" a prison system that has an rapidly growing business of building new women's prisons can't be good for women.Bad Decision Makerhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14394225373078412615noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-28825074960120929382008-09-01T04:09:00.000-05:002008-09-01T04:09:00.000-05:00Thank you for your clarification. I see what you m...Thank you for your clarification. I see what you mean now. <BR/><BR/>For the record, I view Palin as a fierce defender of the public good and doing as much as she can to funnel resources to Alaskans, be it through the pipeline (creating jobs, although that is certainly not her one and only intention) or the energy rebates that are happening this month. Of course you have all probably heard of the permanent fund dividends which come out annually, which have put many an Alaskan student through college and will put my own children through college. I think she brings a fresh perspective and experience from this microcosm.<BR/><BR/>Alaska has an interesting lack of sexism, in my opinion...young girls are taught right alongside boys to do all the Alaskan stuff that Alaskans do. I think Sarah next to the caribou speaks to what I mean by that, as distasteful as it may be to others. Thanks for referencing that particular bias in your blog. This AK pride in having the "hottest governor" may sound incredibly crass to many "more liberated" people but it is hard to explain why that is a loving term of endearment that has practically nothing to do with lust and everything to do with Alaska. I also haven't experienced her in her gubernatorial role as being particularly focused on the "moral" issues associated with the Republican party and she has actively opposed bringing them to the table.<BR/><BR/>Alaskans have an awareness of the impact of Bush's foreign policy in a way that many other places don't, and definitely not in a way that I had in California. If a Republican is in office, I want someone alongside who honestly understands the impact that war, and especially this war, has and has had on the community back home, both during and after. There is no way you can live here and not "get" that---the stress and pain of the extended deployments, the way entire villages have been emptied of (mostly but not only) men in an environment where hunting and fishing are the primary means of sustenance, and all the other ways it is so prevalent and obvious. I still do a double take when I see a woman soldier here in uniform with her kids walking with her...it challenges me, and I consider myself an open-minded woman with not a lot of sexism in me I hope (in spite of my reveling in my position as homemaker to a big family :)Mindy Goorchenkohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05818946142482561957noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-12691065591965747322008-08-31T19:40:00.000-05:002008-08-31T19:40:00.000-05:00Dear mindyleigh,Welcome from Alaska! I'm not sugg...Dear mindyleigh,<BR/><BR/>Welcome from Alaska! I'm not suggesting Sarah is wealthy, and all evidence points to her *not* being in the pocket of Big Oil and Gas. My point is if she is a normal middle-class person, with a living family wage, health insurance (Down's children have significant health issues -- forget the other six members of the family!) and her own home that she can afford to heat and keep up the mortgage on -- those are exactly the resources every ordinary American needs and deserves. And in the last eight years, practically everything this government has done has undermined the possibility of that.<BR/><BR/>best,<BR/><BR/>TRTenured Radicalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05703980598547163290noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-44674546005362227332008-08-31T15:48:00.000-05:002008-08-31T15:48:00.000-05:00On the other hand, as we admire her capacity to ju...<I>On the other hand, as we admire her capacity to juggle family and (a very ambitious) career, and her willingness to raise a disabled child, let's take a look at the financial resources she has to do that and get those to other families too!</I><BR/><BR/>Anyone have any resources to share in this regard? I was not under the impression that she has a huge pot of finances at her disposal. Doesn't her husband work as a ground manager on the North Slope and also as a commercial fisherman? I have found laughable the argument that she is "literally in bed with the oil industry" because her husband works up there. That would be like me saying that I am in bed with the airline industry because my ramper husband works for Alaska Airlines. Wasilla is certainly not the bed of luxury here in Alaska...living on a lake in Alaska is not saying much, as there are something like 10,000,000 lakes here! I believe she has a rather humble two-storey home, quite in contrast to the McCain family. She walks to work when she stays in Juneau. Please clarify?? Are her children in private schools? I'm truly curious by what you meant by that. I'm pretty sure she hasn't published a book. :)Mindy Goorchenkohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05818946142482561957noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-70714193157159864752008-08-31T11:23:00.000-05:002008-08-31T11:23:00.000-05:00"If 18 million votes is not enough, what does it t..."If 18 million votes is not enough, what does it take in the Democratic party to get a woman on the ticket?"<BR/><BR/>Karen O'Connor, director of the Women and Politics Institute at American University, as quoted in the 8/31 New York TimesAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-3756019279341024772008-08-31T09:47:00.000-05:002008-08-31T09:47:00.000-05:00I just googled the following: Sarah Palin position...I just googled the following: Sarah Palin position unfunded mandates special education... and this blog was the first choice that came up. Does anyone know Sarah Palin's position on funding education, particularly special education? I think it's an interesting question, given the fact that she has a special needs child.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-53524021031551580872008-08-30T23:33:00.000-05:002008-08-30T23:33:00.000-05:00Jarrod, I think you can make the argument that t...Jarrod, <BR/> I think you can make the argument that tenured radical makes in the last paragraph - voting for McCain/Palin is *not* like voting for Hillary. It's voting against everything Hillary stood for. <BR/> The fact that the Republicans think most women are stupid enough to not look past anatomy to policy is enough for me to write them off.hypatiahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12652466638464405055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-69674816875898619412008-08-30T23:27:00.000-05:002008-08-30T23:27:00.000-05:00Hey TR, I just got back and read your last couple ...Hey TR, I just got back and read your last couple of posts, and while you're always good to read, these are really extraordinarily good. Thank you!Bardiachttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11846065504793800266noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-35512049865644242172008-08-30T20:51:00.000-05:002008-08-30T20:51:00.000-05:00She's not just evangelical, she's a dominionist. T...She's not just evangelical, she's a dominionist. That's a pretty big differenceAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-10202673971252517522008-08-30T19:40:00.000-05:002008-08-30T19:40:00.000-05:00You can always ask John Edwards what he thinks abo...You can always ask John Edwards what he thinks about <I>this</I> woman McCain chose.<BR/>The expert in judgment that he is.<BR/>News reports have it that he has now raised his speaking fee to $65,000 when he shows up to talk about "poverty".<BR/>Whew! We really dodged the bullet on that one.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-50557647777790738462008-08-30T17:38:00.000-05:002008-08-30T17:38:00.000-05:00Jarrod, may I point out that as far as experience ...Jarrod, may I point out that as far as experience is concerned, Governor Palin has more executive experience than Barack Obama and Joe Biden put together.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-9555802010442991682008-08-30T16:25:00.000-05:002008-08-30T16:25:00.000-05:00A couple of points.Drawing on points I've seen her...A couple of points.<BR/><BR/>Drawing on points I've seen here and in other places, I would suggest that putting Palin in the ticket does nothing (well, very little) for women. Assuming McSame wins (shudder), it is unlikely Palin will have much policy sway. McCain isn't a GWB rube, and Palin isn't Cheney-evil-controller, so women's issues are unlikely to occupy much attention. Moreover, does putting a woman on the ticket who is clearly unqualified for national office really further the idea that women are just as deserving as men? Or does it emphasize the 'trophy' aspect of the female narrative in society. She wasn't named because she can help govern, or because she is capable of taking over if McCain kicks off, she was named for purely utilitarian purposes. Choosing her over a woman who could plausibly make a claim to being a qualified vice *<B>President</B>* (Christine Todd Whitman, a Westerner, comes to mind) simply reinforces the objectification inherent in prevalent female gender discourses. You could argue, I suppose, that all VP picks serve this role, but I wouldn't buy it. Look at Biden. Like him or hate him, he brings solid foreign policy experience to an Obama Administration. You know in a crisis, Biden will be in there advising President Obama. I don't see Palin doing anything remotely similar.<BR/><BR/>On Clinton, I realize as a man I'm playing with fire here. My wife loved Clinton and has vowed to vote for McCain (before the Palin announcement) over Obama (as an aside, can someone please provide me a good argument that I can use to convince her otherwise?). I do think Clinton got a raw deal in the media. BUT, that isn't primarily why she lost. Her campaign was mismanaged. She ran out of money-despite the fact that she had a generous war chest (the point here is that she had plenty of money...I'm trying to head off arguments that because the media dumped on her people didn't give money...they did give, it just wasn't managed well). Her 'ground game' lagged far behind Obama's. I'd read about how Obama had a dozen staffers on the ground weeks/months before a primary while the Clinton campaign managed to get three in four days before hand. This wasn't always the case, or maybe even most of the time, but in a close race, it can't happen at all.<BR/><BR/>Finally (whew), I thought I would add to this comment "schools that think they are making children more capable through rote learning and testing will be bad for girls who are becoming women"<BR/><BR/>It is also bad for women on another front...think of poor choice of significant other they face!<BR/><BR/>Cheers.Jarrod Hayeshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15527345022223699608noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-41995167715313152452008-08-30T15:18:00.000-05:002008-08-30T15:18:00.000-05:00Tenured, this is anonymous again. Given that McCa...Tenured, this is anonymous again. Given that McCain has nominated Palin, don't you feel a little distressed by the fact that Obama did not even go through the motions to vet Hillary Clinton, even though she won about as many votes as he did and a ticket combining the two of them would have been well-nigh invincible? What did he do instead? He picked an old white guy. Isn't anybody going to ask Obama why he didn't pick Clinton? Yes, I am sure there was some bad blood, but he should have gotten over it, like mature folks do.<BR/><BR/>Sadly to say, I am not one of your students -- though I am sure it would be fun to be one!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-11341550349290949782008-08-30T14:49:00.000-05:002008-08-30T14:49:00.000-05:00Nice post.Hillary Clinton was cracking the glass c...Nice post.<BR/><BR/>Hillary Clinton was cracking the glass ceiling for the presidency. Isn’t that considerably different than the glass ceiling for the vice presidency? A vote for McCain-Pailn leaves the glass ceiling perfectly intact with no more cracks than those generated by the Clinton campaign.evdebshttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00751403525450869553noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-18463175483689864842008-08-30T13:55:00.000-05:002008-08-30T13:55:00.000-05:00"I don't think there is a category empty of ideolo..."I don't think there is a category empty of ideology and political content called "women" that a candidate can -- or cannot -- be good for."<BR/><BR/>Brilliantly put! So glad to have your commentary accompany this election.Unknownhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02851227113944112774noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-49997303875843525322008-08-30T12:45:00.000-05:002008-08-30T12:45:00.000-05:00If Palin is halfway decent on the stump and before...If Palin is halfway decent on the stump and before the cameras, and avoids terrible gaffes, she'll be a great thing for McCain. I agree with you that she's not good for women and families because of her policy positions, but as you note, there are a heck of a lot of women who either don't identify as liberal feminists and/or do identify as Republicans who will be excited by her. McCain's announcement yesterday was brilliant politics--he's dominating the news going into a holiday weekend and the week of his own convention, thus extending 4 days of free publicity into 7, and wiping out any talk about Obama's speech or the Dem convention.<BR/><BR/>The biggest mistake the Dems could make would be to make fun of Palin and mock her experience. They will lose the experience argument, given the thinness of Obama's resume, and moreover they risk depressing their own women's vote (or even increasing McCain's).Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-36212542.post-37283445412951817072008-08-30T11:38:00.000-05:002008-08-30T11:38:00.000-05:00An excellent post, and I admit that the last parag...An excellent post, and I admit that the last paragraph is why I blanche so quickly at the very idea of a republican woman. I posted on this at my site already, but I do think that McCain's choice of Palin (as opposed to so many other qualified women--my colleague who blogs as "oratorical animal" points to three--Kay Bailey Hutchinson, Elizabeth Dole, and Olympia Snowe--and I would add Condoleeza Rice, even though the thought makes my heart seize just a little bit) is potentially not so hot for women. Indeed, those glass ceiling cracks that Hillary Clinton helped make are there because she was uber qualified. Palin, by contrast, is not (or not yet).dhawheehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04587885481577365329noreply@blogger.com