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American Princess writes on BlogHer and on her own blog.
I’m not that familiar with it, but I spent a few moments there this
morning. I like what I found - even though I disagree with it. If I
were a conservative woman, particular in her generation (let’s just say
I could be her mom - I’m finding I could be the mom of a lot of women
who let me befriend them lately though!), I can imagine making very
similar arguments in favor of Sarah Palin. Hattip to Denise for linking.
In her posts about Palin, American Princess deploys the debate
points I’d make if I thought even for one minute that I could support
Sarah Palin as John McCain’s running mate. But Sarah Palin and I
differ on pretty much every single issue (i.e., I’m pro-choice, I
believe that creationism is a fabricated construct intended to get
religion into the public schools, I’m anti-gun, I’m against drilling in
ANWR, and I have ideas about what vice presidents do), so this is a
no-brainer for me: on the issues alone, I wouldn’t be voting for her,
even if I lived in her hometown of Wasilia or her home state of Alaska,
let alone as a VP candidate on the GOP ticket.
That said, the danger in accepting as acceptable all the arguments
that American Princess makes in favor of Palin as a totally awesome,
appropriate and best selection for the USA’s vice president, following
in the footsteps of people like Dick Cheney, Al Gore, Walter Mondale
and even George Bush the first, exists in what it means from here on
out:
Recognizing, allowing and granting women success when they push for
what women like myself have always believed was worth pushing for and
using as debate points with employers, when looking for work after
having children and claiming that being on the PTA and raising kids
more than prepares us for leadership in pretty much any sector:
That those experiences do matter.
However, my gut and other evidence suggests that while the Palin
Pick may be the face of feminism, it is a face that is completely
detached from the soul, which would make and champion this argument of
what, in a life experience, matters, and when.
In real life, not the life of John McCain trying to get elected,
when women argue the value of the PTA to potential employers, they get
“pffft.” I know. I had this happen to me late last fall. It was
absolutely demoralizing, insulting and wrong - to have my literally
decades of service and accomplishments - in paid and unpaid roles -
consider to be nothing - absolutely nothing, because I have not been
employed except as a freelancer, since 2000.
So, if I believed that having Sarah Palin on the GOP ticket would
mean that from here on out, we will be giving the political party
structures, and every other sector that needs leaders, hell every time
they pfffft at the PTA and city council experiences mothers (or fathers
for that matter) bring to the table, and we could say, “But look what
John McCain said was enough!?,” and the employers would crumble and
fall and say, “Ah, yes! Of course!” and women would start to succeed
over the pfffts, and women like American Princess would continue to
help fight this battle for all the parents who serve on PTAs and city
council and have to fight to have those experiences recognized as
valuable, then hey - I would love this pick too, even though, as I
said, I don’t side with Palin on the issues.
Thing is, of course, that the breaking of the ceiling for women with Palin-like experience is not what this choice is about.
This choice is about helping the man, about getting John McCain
elected and not about helping parents who juggle and debate and decide
to swap board meetings for PTA meetings. Remember that when Palin
references Hillary Clinton’s 18 million cracks, Clinton made those
cracks because she was going for the top, not because she was asked to
help a man get to where he wants to go.
No one but those trying to make sense of the Palin Pick have even
tried to argue this angle - that now America must accept what women
like myself have always known: serving on the PTA and raising a family
absolutely provides you with great leadership skills and experience.
Why isn’t anyone making that argument?
In part because, serving on the PTA and raising a family does not
qualify you for being vice president of the United States. In fact, the
Palin Pick actually has the potential for knocking women off the ladder
and not propelling them through the ceiling because every time a woman
now steps forth to say, “But look! I have what she has!” and still
doesn’t get the
