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Thursday, September 11, 2008

Sarah Palin and the Clarence Thomas Factor: Mary E. Hunt

My friend and colleague Mary E. Hunt, feminist theologian and ethicist, has written a piece on Sarah Palin. Have a look!

Here's the final paragraph if you are in a rush. The emphasis on the first sentences is mine.
Feminism is not simply about getting women into positions of power. It is about changing the fundamental power equation so that everyone thrives. I am hard pressed to understand from early glimpses of Governor Palin's public policy how her candidacy does that. Cutting the state budget for housing for pregnant teens, hunting animals from helicopters and opposing protections for endangered species, suggesting that God wills wars like the one in Iraq, and signing on to the McCain economic policies that favor the wealthy with tax cuts inspire no confidence in me. It is not just that I long for Hillary Clinton's passion for health care. It is that I will not be duped into confusing one woman with another, conflating feminist rhetoric with oppressive choices. I hope other voters will not be either.
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6 comments:

  1. Diane M. RothSeptember 11, 2008 at 4:12 PM

    I have heard that she didn't really cut funding for pregnant teens. I hope someone looks into this. We do not need more misinformation so that they can cry "witchhunt."

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  2. Jane RSeptember 11, 2008 at 7:48 PM

    Right you are. I think Mary got her information from the Washington Post piece that showed the photocopy of the state budget with the cuts in the line item. Maybe someone who reads this will have the time to double-check this fact. Mary is generally pretty solid on the facts and she does live in the Washington, DC area so I suspect she got her info from the Post on this one.

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  3. it's margaretSeptember 11, 2008 at 9:06 PM

    thank you for this jane. i now know two women who are voting republican for the first time in their lives --out of spite... just voting against obama. terribly distressing.

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  4. FranSeptember 11, 2008 at 9:37 PM

    This is great- thank you, I always love her work.

    Sorry I missed you today, crazy day.

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  5. AnonymousSeptember 12, 2008 at 1:36 PM

    Thanks Jane, I'm heading over to read it now. Wish I had added it to the Friday wrap up stuff. It would be a worthwhile addition.

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  6. KenSeptember 12, 2008 at 7:29 PM

    For what it's worth I don't want to vote for Obama, either. But I'll swallow my gorge and vote for him in the vain hope I can block McCain. The tear I used in 2004 has been bottled like a holy relic for reuse this time too.

    Obama IS going to lose. You didn't read it here first but you read it here. And unless something drastic occurs (one rumor: Biden will "resign" and Obama will get Hillary on the ticket) it will be because Gov. Palin pushed McCain over the top.

    Political discourse is getting worse and worse. Not just the right-wing talk radio guys. Even "our own," the progressive bloggers. Some guy looks at Sarah Palin and says she's a VPILF, a variation of a MILF. If you don't know what MILF means I'm not printing it here. Type it into Google:-).

    ReplyDelete

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