In defense of the sanctimonious women's studies set || First feminist blog on the internet

Yowzas

Lauren

We’re told that change comes from within, and if we want to make a difference, we need to get along to get ahead. I haven’t seen this strategy work in my technology-related profession, conditions of which seem to have worsened since weblogging has started. I haven’t seen this work in my society, where women being concerned about sexism are dismissed as ‘humorless women’s studies types’ who can’t focus on ‘more important issues’. I haven’t seen this work in the Democratic Party, which spends most of its time scrambling for the tattered ribbon of ‘morality’. I definitely don’t see it in very many countries, where rape is still a favored weapon of war, and women are still considered property. Even in my own supposedly egalitarian country, women make up half the population but only about 15% of the leadership.

The game is rigged, so I’m picking up my marbles, and I’m going to find a different playing field, and different players. My most sincere thanks to the prominant Democratic, Republican, and Libertarian gentlemen bloggers for showing me the light.

The Greens are looking really nice right now.

52 thoughts on Yowzas

  1. I haven’t seen this work in the Democratic Party, which spends most of its time scrambling for the tattered ribbon of ‘morality’.

    Why doesn’t the Democratic Party redefine morality, instead of playing by the Republican rules? Women’s issues are moral issues. Race issues are moral issues. Class issues are moral issues. International issues are moral issues. Where are the Democrats pointing this out? Where are the people saying that it’s immoral to force a woman to have a child she cannot afford to take care of? That it’s immoral for more than 44 million people to have no access to regular health care? That it’s immoral that a black person still has many fewer chances for success than a white person? That it’s immoral for us to sit idly by while more than a billion people suffer from hunger, disease, and poverty? That it’s immoral to support totalitarians who slaughter people by the hundreds and thousands, deny their citizens the most basic rights, and hold on to their drunken power by any means necessary, all in the name of fighting terrorism? Where are you?

  2. Far be it from me to tell anyone what one’s issues should or or should not be, what one should care about, or how one should make oneself politically active.

    Me, I’ll stay with the Democrats. Given our political structure, they remain the best alternative to the Republican hold on our government. They have the (yes, flawed) infrastructure, and the people. And it’s not as if the Greens don’t have their own case of myopia as well.

    Let’s not give Kos the “power”, so to speak, to alienate us away from a flawed, yet important movement.

  3. So a hundred + years of feminist activism is dismissed because Kos & other men make snide comments? Too easy/lazy. Get some perspective. In a lot of ways, leftist/feminist ideals are lived by more people today than any other point in history (ok, maybe in 1999, but you can’t judge history until after the fact)

  4. That’s along the lines of what I’m thinking, liberal server.

    Let me say that I am not devaluing the frustration that a lot of people feel – men and women – when we attitudes like Kos’.

    But when I note, for example, that my governor and both my U.S. senators are women – Democratic women – I have to say that all is not lost. Could it be better? Of course…but let’s build on the gains that have been made.

  7. I think the lesson is not so much that the Greens look good (and that obviously goes triple if Ralph “feticide” Nader should be their candidate again) as that progressive politics is much broader than electoral politics…

  8. This isn’t even about Kos. However, this discussion has drudged up a lot of dissatisfaction with the Democratic party that I have been feeling since I cast my first vote (not too long ago, I must admit).

    I don’t know how I feel yet — still working through it — but have any of you looked at the Greens’ platform? Holy shit! It is everything the Dems have been missing.

  9. From my perspective, the Democrats are, basically, and with a few notable exceptions, the party of Rockefeller Republicans. Clinton’s “third way” was the kicker for me. Not that I don’t sometimes hold my proverbial nose, and vote for a Democrat, but I can’t honestly claim the Democratic Party stands for much of what I stand for.
    Too bad the Greens hooked up with Nader though.

  10. Let’s not give Kos the “power”, so to speak, to alienate us away from a flawed, yet important movement.

    While I completely understand your point, when do we say “enough is enough”? Sure, we can stay in the democratic party and fight to make changes from within. But as this whole pie fight debate shows, vocalizing your concern over an issue that the people on top don’t agree with can lead to immediate hostiltiy as well as a dismissal of your concern. Not everyone is a humorless, opinionated bitch like myself and facing reactions like the one Gillard, Cole, and Kos have dished out can be very disheartning. If you’re not in a position of power, often times the only thing you can do is leave. So you know what, I don’t blame Shelly for picking up her marables and saying, “peace out”. Because frankly, I’m thinking of doing the same.

  11. The Green Party (like the Liberal Party here in NY) is appealing, but the most it can have on a national level is the spoiler effect we saw with Nader. I voted for him in 2000 b/c I was completely disgusted with Gore, and the general democrat “republican lite” bs, which I think is a terrible strategy. I would love to have a true multi-party system like other, better democracies have, but running away from the democratic party b/c there’s some a-holes there just makes their voices stronger.

    Participating in the democratic party (and I would guess any american institution of it’s size) is going to require a lot of compromises from the far left (like me) but the living-off-the-grid exodus of liberals from the democratic party just removed our voice from that conversation. Nihilism is a selfish fantasy – why not just stop voting because “it doesn’t matter”? We have a responsibility to wade through all the bs with the democrats and make our voices heard so we can influence their direction.

  12. Actually, what I’ve noticed is that a lot of the arguments against the “feminist reaction to Kos” are the same arguments people have made against the green party. And the comment by Liberal Server above about how the greens will never have the power to make any difference is exactly the same as the “there are more important issues” crap.

    Yes, there ARE more important issues, which is why I decided a long time ago that I am not a democrat…because I am NOT willing to suppress my desires for a better world to support a lukewarm at best alternative to the far right.

    It’s the same freaking thing, Lauren, that I felt when I was listening to the anti-Naderites all during the election cycle. You are either with us (so shut up and play along) or you are against us (and we don’t have to pay any attention to your concerns). It’s a lose/lose either way.

  13. The Green Party (like the Liberal Party here in NY) is appealing, but the most it can have on a national level is the spoiler effect we saw with Nader.

    I’m starting to think no good can come out of politics on a national level. I’m not going to give up, because Roe v. Wade and ANWR are still important – as important as trifling side-issues that aren’t about building the netroots can be, anyhow – but it seems increasingly clear to me that we need to put way more energy into local and state issues. witness Red State Montana, where progressives won big in 2004 on local and state issues.

    I’ve been a registered Green since I dunno 1992 maybe. I have my problems with them. But they’ve been doing some great local organizing in a number of places. They latched on to Nader in 2000 as a tactical move – and one that was by no means uncontroversial within the party. Nader couldn’t even be bothered to join. The presidential stuff is only a very small portion of what the Greens have been doing. If two or three of Lauren’s readers became Green candidates for planning commissions and school boards, that’d do far more good in the world than if every single one of her million daily readers voted Democratic in 2008.

  14. I am of the opinion that we can do more good within the Democratic Party than outside of it. We do it by becoming involved in the party, not just voting, but running for posts, attending conventions, and getting our views into state and local platforms. I’m with Chris Clarke in that we have to focus first on local and state stuff. It’s something that I myself am trying to do: I’m going to be precinct chair for the local Democratic Party in Tarrant County, Texas.

    That said, it would be great if the Greens (or some similar outside party) actually gained prominence. I just don’t see it happening with our current political system.

  15. It’s a lose/lose either way.

    This is sad & true, but the two loses are not equal. Losing by compromising some of the intensity/strenght/ideal or our positions is SOOO much better than a republican white house. In 2000 we all said “oh, why bother – they’re exactly the same.” They seemed the same, but look how evil bush & co have been. This indulgence of cynicism has a price.

    I agree that local elections are most important – and I vote green (or NYS liberal) whenever I can – but Bush has demonstrated the consequences of giving up on federal elections…

  16. But we didn’t give up the federal elections. We dutifully went off to vote for Kerry because we didn’t want Bush…and then lost!

    Not only lost, but gave those Dems who won some kind of agenda that they had to ‘vote’ Christian, anti-gay marriage, and keep some poor woman in Florida alive.

    How long do we continue to front a party that stopped being the front for us, many, many years ago?

    As for Nader, did anyone notice that the Greens did NOT support him in 2004? Just because they didn’t want to impact adversely on the presidential election?

    They didn’t follow what was ‘politically expedient’ for the the party. They knew what was at stake.

    They walked the talk.

    No — no more compromise.

    (She comments here since no one is making these comments at my weblog…ahem…)

  17. I’ll vote Democrat, ultimately, because on the merits that’s more or less closer to where I stand. But I’d never complain about someone voting their conscience. And I’m kind of tired of listening to Democrat apologists, bordering on intellectual hackery, attempt to cow people into voting for the Democrats no matter what.

  18. But we didn’t give up the federal elections. We dutifully went off to vote for Kerry because we didn’t want Bush…and then lost!

    I know a lot of leftists who were so disgusted that they didn’t vote – they live on goat farms in the Birkshires, communes in Montana, and refuse to participate in politics b/c they don’t see thier values in any politicians. It’s our responsibility to push the democrats to the left so we can energize leftists to vote.

    Not only lost, but gave those Dems who won some kind of agenda that they had to ‘vote’ Christian, anti-gay marriage, and keep some poor woman in Florida alive.

    We’re at a crossroad where I honestly believe the democrats could shot their foot into obscurity by following the path you’re talking about. Without loud leftists, I don’t think there’s much to stop them.

    That’s enough ranting from me for one day. Sorry for be so loud… next turn, please.

  19. Jeeze, the Greens even put “feminism” as one of their ten key values. When was the last time the Dems ever did something like that?

  20. Kos, etc. thinks that this doesn’t matter because in the end we politically involved women will vote for the Democrats, and they’re right. What they fail to understand is that many women look at the Republicans who hate us, and the Democrats who ignore us and choose…..neither. They stay home and figure that it doesn’t matter anyway.

  21. Losing by compromising some of the intensity/strenght/ideal or our positions is SOOO much better than a republican white house. In 2000 we all said “oh, why bother – they’re exactly the same.” They seemed the same, but look how evil bush & co have been. This indulgence of cynicism has a price.

    I just wrote an about-1500-word post taking issue with that argument, in which you may be interested.

  22. Honestly, I sometimes think that all this political mess is the dying throes of an empire. And no, I’m not trying to be dramatic.

  23. Chris, I agree that local is where the differences in a party start. I’m old enough to remember when the evangelical right was a minority of the Republican party, a tiny constituency with pull only among a few extremist legislators. Movement conservatism began its march in 1964, and evangelical theocons began in the 1970s. The evangelicals, especially, started with school boards and other local offices.

    Whether it’s build the Green Party or move the Dems back to a place where we can respect them, it starts with your dogcatcher. So, if you think change through politics is possible, then find out who is running for the lowest level local elections going (County planning and zoning commission, town board of finance, and anything else part-time and under the radar that nobody cares about), and give either time or money.

  24. As a guy from the Midwest, I believed most of the progranda about America growing up here. With the events of the recent years, in trying to understand why, what, who, it’s pretty interesting what you can find about our real history.

    To see a website that does a pretty good job of debunking the myths, see http://www.solari.com.

    I know I take it personally, when I shouldn’t, but I’ve developed a lower opinion of “our fellow Americans” than ever before, seeing how they either support or are snowed by the Bush Regime.

  25. I’m already there.

    As I posted in one of the threads at Shakespeare’s Sister, gender issues (not to mention the environment) figure prominently in three of the Green Party’s Ten Key Values.

    Compare that with the 2004 Democratic Platform, where women aren’t mentioned until page 35, and only twice more on pages 41, and 42, and each time it’s part of a special “issue”. It’s more than obvious that women’s issues — and women themselves — are an afterthought, or a fluffy bit of dessert to offer after the real meal has been served up.

    As for all those arguments about how the political system currently serves Democrats and not Greens? So what? The system can be changed.

    A hundred years ago, women and people of color couldn’t vote, either.

  26. I believe the only way to change this is to remove the power of both Republicans and Democrats. The system was never designed for a party to hold the type of power either one in the majority has and several of the founding fathers, warned about what would happen if we allowed political parties to hold power.

    I realize this doesn’t make me popular with either side at times, but the reality is government isn’t about average everyday people anymore, it’s about money and power.

    Force real change by eliminating or severely reducing sources of campaign funds, stop lobbyist groups, give power back to the individual voter, those actions would accomplish restoring the base of power where it is supposed to be.

    Not to be long winded…but to quote Washington:

    “The alternate domination of one faction over another, sharpened by the spirit of revenge, natural to party dissension, which in different ages and countries has perpetrated the most horrid enormities, is itself a frightful despotism. But this leads at length to a more formal and permanent despotism. The disorders and miseries which result gradually incline the minds of men to seek security and repose in the absolute power of an individual; and sooner or later the chief of some prevailing faction, more able or more fortunate than his competitors, turns this disposition to the purposes of his own elevation, on the ruins of public liberty.”

    Part of our problem is we don’t learn from history…

  27. And, I have to add, though I’ve already posted about this:

    I resent the notion that my party affiliation is considered something to challenge. I’m not a proto-Democrat, or a fugitive from the party who needs to be redeemed.

    I’m my own person, and the Democrats have no more authority to claim my Green vote than the Republicans do.

    If I vote for a Democrat, that’s a _gift_.

    If you choose to be a Democrat because it works for you, fine. I can still work with you, and I’ll respect your choice. So why are so many of you reluctant to return the favor?

  28. This whole fiasco has just made me feel that electoral politics just aren’t supremely important. The Democrats let me down, but I’m not looking for a replacement because the idea of being a drift without a party ID has a certain cachet that I’m basically alright with.

  29. Perhaps the issue is that the system is fixed. Therefore support for the Green Party actually helps your least favored position. Therefore, it is irrational to continue to vote when it works against your interest.

    If you are playing poker and insist on playing deuces wild, that’s fine, but you aren’t walking away with any chips until you can convince everyone else that deuces are wild. As long as you realize you aren’t walking away with the chips, go on playing.

  30. Stronger support for one of the third parties is realisitcally the easiest way to break the hold the Republicans and Democrats have on Congress. No more majority lessens their abilities to play games on either side.

    The belief that it is a wasted vote is encouraged by those two parties because neither one of them wants any serious competition.

  31. My move to the Green Party was largely feminist-inspired, but my initial refusal to join was also feminist-inspired. I wanted nothing to do with Ralph Nader, who was busy saying that Roe v. Wade was in no danger, and telling women to stop using the term “patriarchy.” I also wasn’t fond of his not wanting to get involved in “gonadal politics,” his term for the gay rights movement. So in 2000, I was a Democrat, albeit a reluctant one.

    But I made a promise to myself that if the Democratic Party put two white males on the next ticket, I was out of there. And they did. And I was.

  34. “The belief that it is a wasted vote is encouraged by those two parties because neither one of them wants any serious competition”

    Lisa, you’re not wrong. As far as I’m concerned, right now the democratic party is going to have to earn my vote. The republican party will never get it but the democratic party has simply wasted it. Yes, there is the whole “greater good” idea, but like others have said, I’m tried of sacrificing my vote and then watching the democratic party treat my interests pretty much the same way the republican party does. As if their not important. Call me old-fashioned but I like to clearly identify my enemies rather than waiting for them to stab me in the back.

  35. Thanks Sydney….when I watched the attention given to the Bush/Kerry presidential debates yet not one single television station covered the third party debates live (CSPAN did later) but was forced to listen to them via stream on the internet, and they got very little coverage at all this really hit home for me. Then if you start to research how the laws have been changed to make it harder for a third party to compete it is very disgusting. Both parties having control of the rules are trying to make sure any chance of a third party pulling a “Perot” is diminished. The sad thing is? We let them do it. However, we can change it. If enough of us have the guts to vote third party? The numbers alone will send the message. We also need to continue to support third parties on a local/state level. We have the power….we just need to take it back….

    Sorry pet rant for me….

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  37. Like a lot of others here, I don’t begrudge anyone voting his or her conscience. If you feel the Greens work best for you, then go for it…as another commenter put it (I’m paraphrasing), no one owes any particular party her or his vote. Hell, I even voted for a Green in 2000.

    Honestly, the Green platform is actually closer to how I feel about most things politically. That’s why I’d have nothing against working with Green folks. I do think that the national scene is beyond the reach of the Greens now, but local races are certainly not out of bounds if the Greens played their cards right.

    So, again, I’m not trying to tell anyone what to do. I know it’s easy for me to stay more or less with the Democrats because I have the luxury of not putting up with as much crap as other typical Democratic constituencies do. I do have a degree of skepticism about the Green Party, as an institution for a few reasons, which I’d be happy to go into if anyone cares to hear.

  38. What Amanda said:

    What they fail to understand is that many women look at the Republicans who hate us, and the Democrats who ignore us and choose…..neither. They stay home and figure that it doesn’t matter anyway.

    When people feel disenfranchised, they behave as though they are. If I’m explicitly and repeatedly told that my issues don’t matter and I’ve very little reassurance that the people I vote for are invested in those issues, I’ve very little reason to vote.

    Now, I vote anyway, and as I’ve gotten older (I’m staring at forty), I tend to vote for the “better” candidate believing that “perfection is the enemy of the good,” or that no one’s perfect and I should choose the person or the political position that at least prevents truly evil policy from being implemented, but as someone who experienced the second-wave feminism of the seventies, it sure is depressing to realize how anathema “women’s issues” are to mainstream politics.

  39. Nobody ever achieved radical social change by opting for the lesser of the evils offered by the status quo… It’s only ever been achieved by people standing up and saying “stuff your status quo where the sun don’t shine”. At first, only the lunatic fringe will do so, but over time you can build a movement. A hundred years ago, the idea of the Labour Party winning a British general election was considered absolutely ridiculous. Nowadays, the same is said of the Greens.

    But the absoultely essential step is to vote for someone who actually supports your core beliefs, even though you know they’re going to lose (this time around).

  40. “do have a degree of skepticism about the Green Party, as an institution for a few reasons, which I’d be happy to go into if anyone cares to hear.”

    Linneaus, I would be interested in hearing your reasons. I admit, i’m not completely up to speed on the green party, but from what I do know they seem to more in line with my political beliefs. I would like to know what doubts you harbor towards their platform if you don’t mind sharing.

  41. Maybe there needs to be a movement to let the Dems know that they’re loosing us. Everyone who feels this way needs to write the DNC/DLC/whoever and let them know that if they continue to be the lesser of two evils, we will NOT hold our noses and vote for them. It seems to me like they need a major wake up call to even know that they are majorly displeasing about half of their base…they just don’t seem to be getting it.

    Plus, everyone saying that a vote for Greens is basically a vote for Pubs is actually wrong in most cases. I don’t live in a swing state (yeah they tried to make MN a swing state in ’04 but they failed rather spectacularly), my state is going blue pretty much no matter what I vote, so why not vote my conscience? Others live in states that would go red anyway, but it’s the same for them.

  42. Dunc, that’s a great point. I suppose the question becomes, then, how does one upset the status quo? Going to the Greens is one option; trying to change the Democrats is another. I respect both, and my choice of the latter option is always subject to change.

    Sydney, here are some of the qualms I’ve had about the Greens. Let me preface this by saying that this is only based on my own experiences in the particular community where I live. What I say may not apply to other local Green Party chapters.

    The platform itself really isn’t the issue with me, as I like nearly everything it says.

    First off, my local Green Party appeared to need to do serious, serious work in expanding beyond its typical membership around here, which consists almost entirely of upper-middle to middle-class white liberals. When I went to Green gatherings, that’s basically what I saw. It’s as if they’d staked out their safe ground and kept to it.

    (The exception to this, to some degree, was in 2000 during the U.S. House race in my district. The Green candidate turned out to be a pretty vigorous campaigner and did well against a very entrenched Democratic incumbent).

    Second, related to the first point, the local GP didn’t seem to have much of a ground game. They stuck to campaigning in areas that seemed safe – like colleges – where not surprisingly, they’d run into voters like themselves. Now the candidates the GP tends to run are a different story, but there’s serious need here to develop a constituency. Perception often matters as much as reality in politics, and the GP is pretty much invisible. I never see any contacts it makes with other community organizations; this could be my own fault for not looking hard enough, but I also think the party itself could do more to heighten its visibility, especially during local elections when it has the best chance of winning.

    In terms of national politics, there’s an historical pattern that militates against third parties. Third parties tend to be marginal in the United States and remain so unless the party system at the time endures a crisis. The case of the Republicans is illustrative; they were essentially a coalition of disaffected Whigs and former Free-Soilers and didn’t break through on the national scene until the Whigs disintegrated, leaving political space for the Republicans to step into. Dunc’ s comparison with the British Labour Party is worth considering; yes the Labour Party was able to win eventually, but this was in part due to the somewhat greater openness for a third party in the British system and in part due to a crisis within the Liberal Party.

    Now, certainly these things can be changed…but I do think that political viability is worth some consideration. Of course, it shouldn’t be the only consideration; I often argue against the election of Democrats who compromise too much so that they remain “electable”.

    After all that, I’m certainly open to changing my mind.

  43. Thank you Linneaus. I appreciate your explanation of concerns. I do think you make some valid points and I will have to do some more research and think more about how I personally stand. But if nothing else, I’m glad the debate on kos has occurred. I think that it has allowed a serious issue- the marginalization of issues important to so-called “special interests groups- to be openly addressed rather than quietly grumbled about.

  44. You’re very welcome, Sydney. And who knows? You may find the situation where you live to be very different than it was in my case.

  45. A strong green party may be the only thing that saves the Democratic party.

    At the moment, the pinnacle of sophisticated thinking in the leadership of the Democratic party is that progressives can be “triangulated” in true Clinton style. “We’ll give them Dean, we’ll take their money, but we’ll also make sure to placate the big corporate/lobby money by having Biden, Pelosi, and Reid “distance” themselves from his remarks.

    Frankly that strategy is just plain insulting to the intelligence of every American who can read. Once again, they don’t want to have the difficult discussions – instead they create a paperthin blanket thinking they can cover up their corruption. “Just say what they want to hear” does not work anymore.

    The progressives in the Democratic party won’t have any real influence in the party until Dems start feeling real heat (as in losing elections) from the Greens. Progressives will NEVER be able to match the money from the lobbyists. All we have is our votes and they won’t take us seriously until corrupt and conservative Democrats start losing elections. Yep, they will probably lose those elections to Republicans. But maybe then they will start to value and even court the progressive vote.

    It’s the only way the Dems can recover their soul.

  46. My own experiences with the campus, local, and state Greens also left me with some apprehension.

    Yes, the Green Party has a 10-point platform. For the most part, that platform is the same, nationally and internationally. However, like any other platform, how it plays out in reality can often be much different than the ideal. Prior to the 2000 election, there was a long discussion on my state’s listserve about how feminism shouldn’t be part of the platform. The point was driven home by an MRA who made it clear that he blamed feminism for the judge in his divorce case granting custody to his kids to his ex-wife, even though she was “abusive and a bad mother” (his words).

    After seeing how many agreed with him (and getting slammed by 50-100 emails a day) I couldn’t take it any longer and got off the listserve, so I have no idea how it played out, but it definitely opened my eyes to the reality of progressive politics.

    My other problem with the Greens is that they pride themselves on being non-hierarchical. This is, in theory, a good position, but again, in reality, means that there are as many opinions on various positions as there are people, and very little communication and support between the numerous chapters. In some places, the Greens are people who are concerned with the environment and don’t really care about anything else; in other places, they’re against classism, but not in a socialist way. This is obviously a similar problem with Democrats as well, it just seems that it’s exacerbated with the Greens. Maybe it has something to do with the fact that most people in the party (around here anyway) come into it with pretty strong beliefs and are usually active in those areas.

    I also agree with Linnaeus about the upper-class thing; I live in a college town, so the local party is full of professors, and very few (if any) minorities or working-class people.

    In general, the Greens seem to be lacking a cohesive message. And, while they seem to be doing well in California, have been losing steam in other places. Hell, our campus group has completely fallen apart. Five years ago we had over 200 members.

  47. Jennifer, I think you’ve described a great opportunity. We always have to keep in mind what it was like for the first suffragettes, or the first union organizers. If there’s not much Green party organizing going on, it’s a blank slate, ready for action!

    People really are searching for alternatives. They just can’t stomach politics as usual.

    My philosophy is “Organize Green, vote strategically.”

    Sometimes I’ll vote for a Dem, sometimes a Green, sometimes an Independent. But by organizing Green, there can be central place and message and community.

  48. Whichever party one chooses, at some point we are all going to have to get better at advocating effectively for women’s issues. It’s hard. It hurts when people don’t understand us and say rude and harsh things. But we have to learn to push back, firmly but with compassion, and without getting upset about it.

    To quote Donald Rumsfeld (which I almost never do) It’s going to be a long slog.

  49. To add to Amanda and SimoneDB points:

    What also ends up happening is that women are less likely to volunteer (or donate), and as someone pointed out at on another blog (I can’t remember who) a lot of the footsoldiers for the Democratic party are women. How many more would they have if they reached out to women? How many are they going to lose if they keep up the attitude that birth control is a “special right”?

    And, again, as someone else already pointed out elsewhere, anyone who thinks that women can’t win elections for the Dems has completely forgotten the fallout from the Clarence Thomas hearings. When women are motivated to vote in their self-interests they can make a big difference, and this usually works to the Dems advantage.

  50. Women at the grassroots of the Democratic party deserve a great deal of credit and respect. We are awesome! There would be no Bill Clinton, Hilary Clinton, Barbara Boxer, Diane Feinstein, Barak Obama without us.

    But do we get the respect we deserve? Paul Begala (extremely well paid democratic consultant) was on CNN’s “Inside Politics” show the other day talking about how Dean was sent out to stir up the grassroots of the party and raise a lot of money from them. Meanwhile Pelosi, Reid, and Biden would calm down the DLC/Corporate/Big Money wing of the party. And yes, the grassroots will get mad when the party runs to the right, but “WHERE ARE THEY GONNA GO?” THEY’VE GOT NOWHERE ELSE TO GO!”

    I’m so tired of that argument – it actually makes me sick to my stomach. It’s basically very un-American. I resent not having options. I resent being told I can give lots of money (and I have), but I have no right to have my views taken seriously within the party. I resent the hell out of that. And I personally cannot take it anymore.

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  52. ohh, I am so late with this post..but.. that is because I was sent to Gitfem for having hairy legs–blondy reddish hair at that. And you know what that means—it’s light, it’s hard to see, it’s hard to tell if you are one of “them” women studies perps( dare we say terrorists?)…a possible light haired “terrofeministgent.”

    Alas, here I sit, thinking…umm.. thought, that I would be rescued soon, by a wannabe in disguise, liberal soldier in donkey print khakis, pen cocked and strapped to his thigh, ready to fight the invincible repugs to the democratic death for me and my rights as an American Human……

    but, alas, my rescuer doth not showeth, and I languish in my prison still, waiting for freedom, waiting for my voice to be heard….

    and then, the voice, unseen, that whispereth through the cells..

    You, unfair maiden, I will never come for.

    There are Important WARS that I need to Battle for, there are IMPORTANT, FREEDOM DEFYING, ugly REPUGLICANS I MUST PIRECE MY PEN(is) LANCE THROUGH.

    I will not, fair and hairy maiden, be able to fight any battles for you. But, my sweet and unfaltering dove, know that as you languish in the horrid Gitfem, that, even as you grow yet older and hairyer, in my strong mind’s eye, you will always be that fair and wilting flower I once knew (and forever secretely despised).

    Never demanding, always acquiesing, always waiting for the day when, I am released from the fierce battles of MEN, so that you can render me your womanly comfort(MAKE SURE THAT YOU SHAVE FIRST!!!).

    Signed, YOUR HERO,
    KOS

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