Letters to the Editor
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Seriously? Is sexism such an obvious explanation?
I'm sure there are some people who dislike Hillary Clinton out of some sexism, overt or buried.
However, it seems like the more obvious explanation is that a lot of people dislike Hillary Clinton because they're tired of the Clintons. Look at how quickly Bill Clinton's poll numbers dipped once he started opening his mouth and ripping away the haze of nostalgia we'd managed to build up around him. We have heard a lot more from Hillary Clinton, and her negatives are proportionally higher.
The Clintons are both very partisan, very political people. Most of my adult life has been filled with partisan nastiness, and all of it with Clintons and Bushes. Is it any wonder that some people are excited about the chance to follow a politician that represents something different?
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Sugarman
________"nice to know that you are human enough,madame, that i could use you in an example (of a couple of posts ago). We Will Win."_____
Sugar, I am a madam. You know what madams do. I protest you raising me to respectability. Madame I am NOT and I don't whine.
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It's The Dishonesty and Phoniness, Not The Sex
A lot of guys just can't stand Hillary, and it's the intensity of their irritation with her that disturbs me more than their devotion to Obama.
I suppose I can understand this. I've been trying to understand the intensity of my own irritation with Hillary for months now. To be perfectly honest, I think I've grumbled to myself (and others occasionally) how much I "hate that woman" about 50 times in the last few months. I realize such a reaction is over the top, especially for a Democrat such as myself. Nevertheless, I don't believe it's sexism.
I truly believe it's about her phoniness and dishonesty. She is so smart, capable, determined, etc...but I just don't see any greater truth reflected in her, any wisdom. Instead I see endless, shameless opportunism, ambition, hubris. So many lies and reversals -- the 35 years of experience, sniper attacks, Michigan and Florida. So many deeply unpleasant people working for her -- Penn, Wolfson, Bill (in his current capacity.) So many transparent ploys -- handing out "I'm not bitter" buttons is just the latest typical example. Her hunger for power is so naked, so graceless.
Forgive my subjective impressions (rather than the usual one-sided litany of bogus facts people like to marshal against politicians), but we're talking about feelings after all. If I saw one moment of wit or genuine self-deprecation from her, one moment not calculated for maximum political gain, my feelings about her might start to change. I'm not holding my breath.
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MicelleC
Read about the feminist Seal Press scandal
http://www.salon.com/mwt/broadsheet/2008/04/11/seal_press/index.html
Ever wonder why women of color never could relate to middle class white feminism?
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Right on the money...
Thank you so much for writing this article. It is undeniable to note the gender divide dimension in the Obama vs Hillary campaign. And it is not an imagined one - I have proof!
As a Canadian, speaking with other Canadians, what I've encountered North of the border is a blind support and awe of Obama by young and middle aged men, while Hillary, whose political stance has pretty much been identical, is continuously dismissed as a candidate.
We are talking, for one, about men who are not going to be actually voting in this election. Yet, since they are consuming same cultural products as our southern neighbours, have similar reactions to US campaign. Choosing a president is like picking a "buddy" for a beer. They prefer to drink with Obama.
What does this have to do with choosing the best candidate for the job? Nothing. Is choosing candidacy for presidential elections in US a beauty campaign? Is it some sort of Mr USA pageant? I guess it actually is.
If I were eligible to be a voter, I would vote for Hillary, simply based on the principle that it is time for competent women to be heard and seen. And the very similarity between the two candidates' platforms would allow me to make this decision.
Which brings us back to the beginning - if there isn't much of a difference, how else do you explain for this amount of negative aggression? It is unmasked sexism, and this time from younger generation.
I have seen your flip-floppers, and your too-rouged-for-tv elections. Perhaps it is time to stop looking with your eyes, and your heart, and maybe even do some thinking before you head into the polls.
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@ firefly82
Could we try some logic here?
And yes, some people are hiding their sexism behind a facade of rational objection. Some of the justified anger will be misinterpreted as crypto-sexism by more-paranoid feminists. Some justifiable anger will be expressed as totally unjustifiable misogyny.
You believe there is sexism hidden "behind a facade of rational objection."
If there is hidden sexism underneath some legitmate objections to Hillary, how are feminists to know which is which, and who is to call them paranoid? It seems to me that you are admitting Traister's premise here that women are sensing sexism behind some of the hostility to Clinton and the support of Obama.
So how is Traister wrong? She is simply writing an essay about the experiences of people that she has spoken to, young feminists who think that others (some males in particular) are sexist but that this sexism is hard to pinpoint. I think the letters here will help us pinpoint some of it, just as the letters in Joan's column in which she offered the sexist video helped pinpoint some sexist responses.
I actually don't see this as being anti-Obama or pro-Clinton but rather an opportunity to point out how prevalent sexism still is, even among progressive men.
This is surely not saying that all men supporting Obama are sexist. Nothing of the sort.
It might actually help if people understood that the article is more about different generational perceptions of feminism and sexism than anything else. The campaign is merely bringing these issues to the forefront because of the sex of one candidate.
Even if someone has legitmate objections to Hillary, if they express those objections in sexist terms, they are still be sexist and such sexism is not excused by those other reasons.