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QotD? is a dictorship led by me and supported by Quiggly Orin and his army of helmeted ducks, so rarely do I bring up politics. But last night a female accepted the nomination for vice-president of a major political party. A woman with 5 children! (Anne, she wins at having a crazier life). Never before have I heard so much discussion about how hard it is to be a mother, regardless of the argument "she'll never be able to have a balanced work life" or "Heck, this woman can do anything." Justin and I watched her speech last night where she presented herself well and gave a great speech.
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Today's Question of the Day? is:
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Do you have any observations, comments or questions about the possibility of a female VP in America who might become president, considering the longevity of the presidential candidate?
.I'm not out to start a QotD? riot, so be sure to be polite.
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Love,
The Asker
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P.S. I hope "Drill, Baby, Drill," a chant from last night, is never heard again as it is a crass way to express your desire for oil independence
P.S. When eating hot oatmeal, pay special attention to your hand-eye coordination so you don't miss and some of it goes down your shirt.
13 comments:
It would not be ground-breaking global news to have a woman in a high place of government. Just from what I saw last night, I think Sarah Palin could have the presense and appearance necessary to satisfy the superficial requierments of America - more so than Mrs. Clinton. I now expect this to be a very interesting political season.
The day that a woman becomes a candidate, either as President or Vice Pres, on her own merits rather than as a thinly-veiled attempt to both 1) get in with Big Bidness and 2) reach the "woman voters" will be a great day indeed.
In our country, gender should have no bearing on someone's ability or inability to do a job. Look at the current administration -- obviously being a man didn't save him from stupidity (probably made it worse). I understand some arguments that were made against Hilary's possible candidacy, mainly that a lot of the countries that we deal with currently have no respect for the female gender, but really, the president doesn't go out and do the Big Talks with these leaders -- that's what your Secretary of State is for, and right now it's a woman.
I have a personal reason to not like Gov Palin (several, actually), but I'm against her nomination because of that, not because of her gender.
Where to begin?
As a mother of three, I find both Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin inspirational. They are powerful, strong motivated women, regardless of whether I agree with them on issues or not. I personally found it difficult to strike an acceptable balance between being the mother I want to be and fulfilling career goals that I had long ago as a young and ambitious smarty pants. I chose to dedicate my time and attention to being a mother and have taken jobs that do not require much committment. They both chose to commit to both a family and a career.
So, honestly, the issue of being a woman, or a mother, or black, a Catholic,or a Mormon, should not be of consequence. And yet it is, somehow.
And, yes, choosing Palin seems like it was a manipulation. But it is the game of politics.
But really, I think the GOP missed a big, defining moment that would have truly inspired us all last night. They forgot to have Palin fire off a few rounds into the arena while holding her youngest child!! YEE HAW!!!
Kristen, Palin just might be crazier than me, but I bet she eases that by not doing her own cooking, cleaning and laundry.
Like Heather said, there's nothing about the job the right woman can't do just as well as the right man. The next administration will have to tackle terrorism, economics and energy right off the bat. Nothing there requires XY chromosomes.
Humans are sorta hard-wired to judge men on their power and women on their beauty, so that'll be a pitfall to watch out for. But judging a candidate based on the [physical attribute] of their [body part] is adolescent. Although, cancer and age are pretty important factors to consider. Have we had a president expire naturally in office?
It'd be nice if this somehow promoted women's rights on a world stage (read: Middle East), but those boys clubs have been around a lot longer than anything in the Western hemisphere, so I won't hold my breath.
I for one thought her 'narrative', as the pundits call it, was absolutely beautiful.
I'm please that we are getting some well thought out answers.
Anne, as stated in her speech last night, Gov. Palin got rid of the 'governer chef.' Maybe her husband does the cooking.
Justin, William Henry Harrison was the first President to die in office (1841, less than a year in office)
Zachary Taylor also died in office, heat related? (1849-1850)
Warren G. Harding, heart attack (1921-1923)
FDR, cerebral hemmorrhage (1933-45)
All this information came from the whitehouse website http://www.whitehouse.gov/history/presidents/chronological.html
I didn't realize how many presidents had been assasinated.
Ah, yes, the things that happen after 7:30 in the evening!
I did not watch Palin speak, as I was reading books to Jessica and then almost immediately sleeping soundly. The only information I have is from the news on TV from 4:30 to 5:00 this morning. That would be the time that I would fire my chef and the laundry chick. The laundry chick that I employ does a terrible job and I always have to iron a shirt for someone in the morning! I could be using that time to make big, improtant decisions.
As to cancer and age, McCain only has to live four years (maybe eight) and my grandfather lived four years WITH lung cancer from the ages of 85 to 89. He went skiing and parasailing and toured Europe in that time. McCain can certainly be as storng as my grandfather!
If FDR could fight the Depression and WWII from a wheelchair, well....
I don't have any opposition to a woman being in a position of power/authority. I have a problem with whether the one in question is qualified or not. I have strong doubts about Palin. (Personally, I would rather have seen someone like Dr. Rice nominated for the position, but no one asked me.)
I agree with Heather, a woman should be selected because of her merits, and the pool of qualified women with great potential is certainly not lacking.
John McCain really shook things up with his choice. Palin made a powerful speech last night - she's a fabulous speaker. She did seem more mean-spirited than I’d hoped, especially as McCain has always worked against the Us vs Them mentality. She had a lot of good lines, no question (the line about a community organizer having no responsibilities, writing books but no major legislation, etc). Why would she laugh off the duties of a senator when McCain is one? (not to mention Washington elite)
Palin is not qualified to run a country, and that has nothing to do with her gender, her middle-class lifestyle, her motherhood, or any of the various stories about her private life. As Justin said, the major issues that need immediate attention from the new administration are very serious and very complex. Surely if it were as simple as deciding between virtue and vice, Palin might be qualified.
Well, I can't stand the sound of her voice, so I can't listen to anything she has to say, good or bad! BUT, for someone who is so "family" oriented - having a Down's baby a few months ago, dealing with a pregnant teen....how is she going to be a parent when she's VP? How is shegoing to be a parent to five young kids as governor, for that matter? Especially a newborn! And a new grandbaby? I know lots of people just pay others to basically raise their kids, but she has several young kids and is toting family values but is not going to really be able to be a big part of her own family because of her job duties. I"m all for women having jobs, etc. But it sounds like she wanted to have a large family, and to me, if you have 5 kids, you should want to spend time with them. If they were teens, or even 10 years old, that would be a little different. But she has a 4 month old.
Anne, internet tells me that FDR did die during office.
Moo, Internet also confirms the ages of the Palin children:
19, 18, 13, 7, ~5.5 months
That comment was meant to say that, despite his health conditions, FDR tackled the problems of a war and a very bad economy. I did not mean to imply that he survived through all his elected years of office.
I have absolutely no problem with a president or VP who is a woman. I think it would be a great step forward for the US, which seems very behind the times compared to other countries in that white men have always been our leaders.
However, I have no intention to place my vote just because of someone's girly parts, and hope that the particular woman in question does not become VP. I think that would be a complete travesty (especially since the chance of her becoming president while serving as VP are pretty darn high- higher still if McCain is re-elected... um cart before the horse there...)
If Palin was chosen to get some of Hilary's supporters to vote for McCain, since many dislike Obama, I think that is seriously insulting to Hilary's supporters. Palin is a polar opposite- just because she's a woman doesn't mean they have anything in common. I think that someone's position on issues is not going to completely turn around because there is another candidate with breasts.
Politics, it's all politics. I agree with the comments about women...about
being capable, having creditials, etc. etc.
I did enjoy reading everyone's comments.
I do think McCain wanted to shake things up with his choice of a young woman. Personally neither candidate, Obama nor McCain appeal to me as a choice for President. Both chose a V-P that 'rounded' out the ticket.
The next two months will be very interesting, very interesting indeed!
I would have loved to be a 'fly on the wall' in Hillary and Bill's room when the announcement was made that McCain had chosen a woman as his VP choice.
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