Sexism's Role
Speak of the devil. Christopher Hitchens wrote a piece for Slate today that tackles accusations of sexism against Hillary Clinton's campaign. I have to say, I think there's a better -- or at least fuller -- case to be made than the one Hitchens does, and I think his strong feeling about the Clintons isn't useful when arguing something that should be able to convince a neutral jury. But here's the last line, which I mostly nod along with:
Her whole self-pitying campaign, I mean to say, has retarded and infantilized the political process and has used the increasingly empty term sexism to mask the defeat of one of the nastiest and most bigoted candidacies in modern history.
posted by JMW at 7:06 PM
3 Comments:
if sexism hadn't played a part in the primary, obama wouldn't be the nominee right now. pure and simple. or, to put it another way, if there weren't so much white guilt, hillary would be the nominee today. sad, it is, that democrats chose to clear their consicences at such a crucial time.
Even though David Duke...oops, sorry...I mean, "Anonymous" didn't intend to sound racist, the comment is racist. It is just a rehashed version of the Geraldine Ferraro comment that was deservedly rejected.
Another way of phrasing the Ferraro argument is as follows: Barack Obama only achieved his status in the presidential race because he's black.
This sentiment dismisses the Obama campaign as just an equal opportunity / affirmative action stunt. "Anonymous" apparently believes that Obama's Ivy League schooling, his experience as an elected Senator, and his time of service on the South Side of Chicago pale in comparison with the "leg-up" he's been given as a black man in America. It completely and unfairly dismisses his accomplishments and intellect.
If John McCain were to say that Hillary Clinton was only competitive in the presidential race because she is a female, there'd be no dispute over whether the comment is sexist. Doesn't the same logic apply when the equivalent is said about a black person?
i think sexism played a much larger part than reverse-racism, but both were definitely at play. ask any psychologist. castration anxiety on a national scale! i don't think it's klansmanesque to say that most white people shoulder the onus of the racism of the previous generations, and this primary proved that they're willing to do whatever they can to make amends, even if it comes at the cost of all reason and logic. as a chicagoan from the south side, can you please give me some examples of what obama's done during his "experience as an elected senator"? i'm curious to know what he's done, besides, of course, conspire with rezko.
the part about the whole thing that gets me the most is that you'd think that we would have learned our lesson championing mediocrity in the form of dubya. no experience? ah, that's okay. you're a regular guy. here are the keys to the white house. go get 'em! and if we happen to lose a couple of tall buildings to hijacked planes, well, it's okay, you're just a regular guy. gawd, i wonder what al qaeda would take out with barry at the wheel of the uss america. good thing john mccain will win and keep us from having to find out.
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