i get it. i'm a dude, and i get frustrated that many young women today speak with derision of "feminists," and buy into the Limbaugh caricature of feminists as loony kooks, especially when they're taking advantage of and taking for granted all the rights feminists struggled so hard for

it's great that these young women have these rights, but we're a long way from post-patriarchy, and we shouldn't take them granted

that said, it's also pretty insulting to tell young voters that the freedom achieved comes at the expense of not being able to exercise their own judgment, that their top criterion for selecting a candiate MUST be biological gender

or just to replace the Boy's Club with a Girl's Club?

ok, you say, that's an interesting abstract point, and no I obviously don't want to create a society oppressive to men; besides we're so far from a Girl's Club that it's moot.

could you say the same thing about black people?

i think it does matter.

maybe all this pairing up and and balkanizing into narrow interest groups doesn't help people's issues like health care for poor children, women, and men; stopping the war; etc.

This particular call for a broader perspective on the debate isn't at all intended to demean anyone's legitimate issues/concerns.

Good point. There has been a lot of historical tension. And surely there were racist feminists and also non-racist feminists who cared about civil liberties for black people too but were willing to concede to an imperfect step forward.

It's all very tricky, and understandable why lots of different groups felt and feel that their support is being taken advantage of, that they're alwasy being asked to "wait their turn."

But I think all of us progressive/human rights types have a lot to gain from working together.

I think classical Republicanism makes some good points, but is willfully ignorant of an awful lot.

Neo-Con economics is a total sham.

Free market solutions:

-doesn't a free market require trust-busting so money and power aren't consolidated in a few big monopolies?

(isn't consumer choice supposed to be an important part of free market competition?) Where is Teddy Roosevelt?

-why should human citizens be rugged individualists who get no social services for their tax money while corporations get massive amounts of welfare?

Deregulation:

All these rules about not pouring poison in the groundwater, not giving no-bid government contracts and bilking consumers with deceitfully structured, extortionary loans get in the way of profit.

Again, it's the taxpayer who pays to clean the water, suffers from drinking the water, and bails out the speculators who have hurt society as a whole by screwing up the economy (where's their personal responsibility?).

Suppose you went out of town. I threw a giant party at your house and charged admission. When I left with a fistful of dollars, your house was destroyed. When you complained, I told you to stop being a victim and accept personal responsibility for your actions. On my way out: can you loan me 100 more bucks? I'm pursuing a new biz opportunity.

If McCain doesn't understand econ, his lobbyist campaign folk certainly do, and will gladly write his platform for him.

Basically, their not-so-clever trick is the same as always: divide a complicated world into a set of either/ors and claim that anyone who doesn't whole-heartedly endorse their entire philosophy is a scary fascist who wants to steal your money and your freedom.

A lot of them honestly buy into this blatant illogic with religious fanaticism; it's creepy. Complete compartmentalization.

I'm a fan of hard work, healthy competition, realize the market can be a powerful thing, and I do value free enterprise, for the record.

also, the silly canard that government spending is always wasteful and private companies are efficient...

sometimes this is true. sometime they're only efficient at maximizing profit by passing costs to taxpayers and consumers, not at actually providing the service we taxpayers are paying them to provide. where's our recouse?

what ever happened to that $9 billion that went missing in Iraq somewhere in the neighborhood of those no-bid contracts?

and why did "efficient" private contractors provide U.S. soldiers with sewage in their drinking water?

http://abcnews.go.com/International/IraqCoverage/story?id=1533349

golly, what the yardstick? http://www.amazon.com/Reviving-Ophelia-Adolescent-Ballantine-Readers/dp/0345392825

http://www.amazon.com/Real-Boys-Rescuing-Myths-Boyhood/dp/0805061835/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1213041291&sr=1-1

the nervous laugh, the shit-eating grin, the look in his eyes that says, "Don't worry, my friends, I don't actually believe any of this garbage..."

...isn't he that Habitat for Humanity guy?

LOL, Celia!

Always on point...

you sure took a lot from that ;)

Walker's The Way Forward is With A Broken Heart is one of my favorite titles ever, and a fine book too (a genre melder).

Sometime just for fun, check out the lyrics (or listen) to Tupac's "Dear Mama."

This is a sad story. I doesn't have to be this way...

but in his defense, he was often busy trying to defend himself against ludicrous charges of plagiarism, pretty-boyism, links to Farrakan, being a Muslim, and, you know, kitchen sink type stuff

now would be a fine time to do so, and a fine time for Clinton to remind voters, even the "white, hard working voters" (like me), that Obama has never scorned them and always had their best interest at heart, even if he's more blues than folk

and your good works