Political thinking wherein I can't believe I might actually defend Palin

[theatokos]

So.... the GOP is basically in one giant clusterfuck to point fingers and assign blame for why they failed. I think pandering to the "base" of the party meant alienating too many other Americans, that Sarah Palin was a token nomination and an example of that pandering, and that in the effort to shore up the base McCain abandoned the aspects of his character and past that made him appeal to more than just Republicans. There's my off the cuff, politically clueless assessment of what went wrong. That, and Obama rules the school.

However, I find all the finger pointing at Palin distasteful. Don't get me wrong, I'm no fan. I think she was way, way in over her head. She wasn't prepared, not yet quite educated enough, and more than a little naive and inexperienced. But the way her own party is treating her is horrid. Shouldn't they have her back? If she's one of their contenders for 2012, shouldn't there be more party support for her?

The Republican party is dead in the water and needs to shed a hefty load of its Old Privileged White Patriarchy persona. The patriarchy hates women, even women, like Palin, who are invested in that patriarchy. I continue to be convinced that women have to have each others' backs, even the women we don't agree with, even women who might be betraying the very spirit of feminism.

Are there no Republican feminists? I think Palin believes she's one of them, even though she refuses to label herself (although she's happy to label herself a maverick!). Taking advantage of feminism's advances does not make a woman feminist.

I hope Palin will come around and see that she's been used and spit out by the very party she worked hard to buoy. I hope she'll choose to label herself feminist. Not that I think she needs to defect and join the Democrats. Hell, they're sexist too. The whole two party system is deeply flawed and run by Good Old Boys. I'd love to see what a true feminist Republican would look like as a presidential candidate. That would truly be a maverick move. I'm not sure the country would be ready in four years or that Palin is up to the task. But hope can spring eternal.

For the time being, my more immediate hope is that Palin can get back to the needs of Alaska and that Republican party will pull its head/s out of its collective ass and stop blaming the woman, the woman they choose and created.

Comments

[ewigweibliche.livejournal.com]

I don't have a checklist of issues that one must agree to to be feminist. I do have a difficult time with women legally being anti-choice. While the circumstances would have to be awfully dire for me to ever choose an abortion, and I would weep if one of my friends chose to do so, I still support the legal right to do so. I am disturbed at how divisive this issue is. Instead of focusing on the similarities - like supporting families, increasing access to women's health care, supporting birth control, etc, it becomes a wedge to drive people apart. In my experience I have met few pro-life people who are as vehement as the media makes them out to be. And I know many pro-choice people who would never have an abortion.

However, I DO think claiming the word/label is necessary to be a feminist. It's like claiming to be a Christian but saying "I'm not really a Christian and I like what Jesus did, but don't really think I need to *believe* in him to be a Christian..." It's a contradiction.

I do think that one can be feminist and Republican and I hope those women will make their voices heard.

And yeah, the DNC was in just the same predicament before. Hence my indictment of party politics in general.

I also believe that being feminist means one supports the advancement of all people and all genders. I do not wish for men to be shut down the way women have and continue to be. I don't want men using their bodies to sell products like women are. But I do recognize that the patriarchy is still strong and shows few signs of abating.