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Friday, December 07, 2007

Why Some Men are Threatened by Hillary

As a conservative woman, I dislike some of Hillary Clinton's policies. I was also disappointed when she chose to "put up and shut up" when it came to her husband's peccadillos. I saw this as a sign of weakness, and I dislike weakness. She is also pro-abortion (I am not) and tends to favor more social programs than I do.

These are my reservations about Hillary Clinton, and I am always happy to discuss them with anyone.

However, there are many men who are self-styled 'conservatives' who are hardly conservative in their approach to Hillary. Such men speak about and refer to Hillary as they never would about her male counterparts. Instead of behaving as intelligent gentlemen, they are instantly reduced to white trash when Hillary's name is mentioned.

Why is this?

I've seen the t-shirts that say "Hillary, get in the kitchen and make me a sandwich." I haven't seen any that tell Barack Obama "Barack, go back to Africa" or ask Mitt Romney "Mitt: Where are your other wives?" And even if such t-shirts existed, those sayings wouldn't be attacking the candidates from a sexual perspective, as Hillary is being attacked.

On the internet, the name Hillary Clinton is often associated with such sexist put-downs as bitch, c***, whore, etc. However, you'd be hard-pressed to hear any of the male candidates called a prick, a dick, or even an asshole. Their beliefs are attacked, their sex is not.

I've heard Glenn Beck (who I otherwise respect for the most part) do an imitation of Hillary in a shrill fishwife voice. I've heard Rush snidely refer to her repeatedly as Mrs. Clinton, as if she has no claim to the throne based on her own merits.

Of course Rush makes other less oblique references to her, as well. Today, as I was radio-surfing, I heard him state that the only reason Hillary (and all women of her generation) went to college was to find a husband! And yet, I remember reading that Hillary was a brilliant scholar. I also remember that she graduated: Why graduate if your only goal is to catch a man? And what of the women who went to college after they married? Was their goal to find two husbands?

As the snot-nosed bully on the playground would say, "You're just a girl!"

What about Elizabeth Dole and Margaret Thatcher? What about Ann Coulter, darling of the right? Are they only girls, too?

This conservative male attitude is serving as a real eye-opener to many of us conservative females. If the worst that can be said of Hillary is a sexist put-down, obviously being female is a greater sin than being liberal. And this places many conservative males only slightly higher than the Muslim fundamentalists who believe in subjugating women through severe restrictions, female genital mutilation, and societal pressures.

How many women can remain quiet, knowing what their sons, husbands, and fathers are saying about Hillary? Do they not realize that such disdain is also levelled at them? For surely a man who believes that being a woman is a greater sin than liberalism will also see the women in his family as being a little less-than-human.

My mother is only a little older than Hillary. She and many other women of her generation didn't go to college to find a husband. They went to learn, better themselves, and come out as richer human beings. Having questing minds, these women worked their way into the workplace, sometimes doing the job better than their male predecessors. Many stayed at home, where the work was even harder.

These women enriched our lives due to the concepts they learned and the experiences they had in college and in the business world. It may shock some men to hear that many of these women became successful not simply because of the men they slept with, but due to their own merits instead. In fact, my mother just became a published author whose book can be found on Amazon and in bookstores.

Oh, but that's right: She's just a girl.

So why are some men so bent on attacking Hillary's sex? I had thought such barbarism went out in the 1970s. However, apparently such disdain runs deep in the psyche of less-intelligent males.

Do you remember the schoolyard bully that I mentioned earlier? Of course you do: Every school had at least one. Well, what do you remember of that bully? You probably remember he was pretty stupid and no one really liked him.

As we grow older, we realize bullies picked on others because they felt so terribly inadequate. In order to feel better about themselves, bullies need to view all others as lesser-beings.

Obviously the men attacking Hillary in this way feel threatened. And they're not threatened by her ideas, or they'd be attacking the ideas instead. No, they're merely threatened by her sex: "The Little Woman has arisen and she's uppity! Doesn't she know her place? Her place is beneath and behind us, or we will find ourselves last in line!"

The bully's solution is to attempt to denigrate Hillary in any way he can. And if Hillary can be treated this way, what will happen to the rest of us women who dare to state our sometimes unpopular views? Are we destined to be bullied, too?

As Margaret Thatcher once said "If you want anything said, ask a man. If you want something done, ask a woman."

Oh, but that's right: She was just a girl.

23 comments:

Anonymous said...

I wouldn't vote for her. I don't stand for what she stands for. I think the one thing that sticks in my mind was when Clinton was president he assigned Hillary to fix Social Security. Nothing ever happened. We're still in the same boat.

Through the whole Clinton administration, I realized that Hillary was, at least partially, running the show.

If the right woman were to run I might vote for her, but I don't know if most of America will vote for her.

~Jef

Saur♥Kraut said...

Jef, I probably won't vote for Hillary either. But it's because I dislike her politics, not her gender.

However, at one time I thought she was weak. Now I have to wonder: If she's such a poor candidate, why do conservative pundits have to stoop to bashing her in such a way? COULD she have more to offer than we thought? Perhaps her policies are more threatening to the establishment and more promising to the little guy than we'd thought. And perhaps we need to take another look at her.

As for what Hillary could do when Bill was in office, we DO have to remember she was only First Lady, which has usually been a fluff job. And she also met with a GREAT deal of resistance.

Why so you say you 'might' vote for the right woman if she runs for office? Is sex a factor for you, too?

daveawayfromhome said...

I'm not particularly enamored of Hilary, though it's got nothing to do with her sex (or Bill's). I think her politics are a bit weasely for my taste, and I think she's a typical Washington politician, giving lip service to the voters, and actual service to her corporate masters. For that I can pick some other candidate who wont draw round two of the Clintons vs. the Rabid Right. If there's anything that Dubya should have taught us, it's that it's time for the dynastic rule of America to come to an end.

daveawayfromhome said...

Oh, incidentally, I do refer to some of the other candidates as "pricks", "dicks" and "assholes". Does that mean I can also refer to Hil as a "bitch"?

Have you seen Susan Faludi's book "The Terror Dream"? I'm not saying I buy into it totally, but in it she says that part of the trend of social backsliding after 9-11 has to do with our reliance on our myths, such as the myth of the strong cowboy protectin' the womenfolk. This explains (one way or another) the vehemence of the anti-female reactions to Clinton.
It'd be interesting to hear Joseph Cambell's reaction to her thesis, if he werent dead, that is.

M@ said...

i once covered hillary and sat at the same table as her on capitol hill when she was first lady and a newly-elected senator. thought she seemed very pleasant. many men i know in military p.r. say she's the foulest-mouthed person (man or woman) they've ever seen as a politician. she gets a bad rap that way.

The Lazy Iguana said...

I have referred to most people running for President, and people who are currently the President with the word "asshole".

Hillary really pisses off the right. This is the one reason I like her and the one reason I would vote for her.

Why do you still listen to right wing radio? You know the hosts do not think you actually understand the things they are saying. You are after all just a woman. Only the men folk should be voting and worrying about running the world.

Interestingly enough, those who seem to think that only men should hang out and talk politics while the women are somewhere else are also the same men who claim that being gay is the WORST thing you can be. Go figure.

The attacks on Hillary's gender are so common on the right because they never really wanted women's rights in the first place. All they do is demean the women's rights movement, referring to outspoken chicks as "girls" and "nags" and so on. It is a quick and easy to marginalize the message without debating anything.

Anyhow - I would vote for Hillary if she wins the primaries. But I do not think I am going to vote for her in the primaries. I will vote for one of the guys who will probably not win. Most likely Kucinich - not because I think he will win but just to shake up the establishment and let the winner know that just because I may vote for them in the big show it is NOT because I like them.

If Ron Paul wins the Republican side, it may screw up my battle plan :)

High Power Rocketry said...

Hmm I think the comments about her are pretty much typical of the reactions of most conservatives to most liberals. Racist, sexist, homophobic, macho, the list goes on. This time, it happens to be conservative pigs making fun of a woman, usually it is the same pigs making fun of men so I guess that is more acceptable on some level.

When people make fun of someone in this way, it is because they cant argue with logic or discuss things as humans. Republicans have time and again won on issues like "who is a wimp" or "that guy looks kinda gay".

BarbaraFromCalifornia said...

I know you are open to discussion, Saur.

From the other perspective, what if this had been a man seeing another woman, for example GW and Condi? Do you this Laura Bush would have just kept her mouth shut during her husband's presidency and let it be?

Often a double standard applies here, and in politics, all things should be equal.

Anonymous said...

Saur,

Would I have sex with Hillary? I'm not sure to be honest with you. I imagine if it were to happen I would have to be drinking. I think I would though just so I could say I did.

Excellent post.

Paul Nichols said...

Lazy: Name the "...people who are currently the President." People?

Saur: Amazing as it may seem (even to me) I got some of my integrity from a children's radio story time show when I was just a little tyke. "If you can't say something nice, don't say something at all," she said. Amazing as it may seem, I practice that. I can't stand it when people say things that demean others. Even if I don't like the demeaned person anyway.

I will not vote for H. Clinton because I believe she is not the proper leader for this country. She and I are poles apart in our political beliefs and agendas. Ronald Reagan, Jack Kemp, Barry Goldwater and Condoleeza Rice aren't running, so I'm still undecided. I'll let you know.

daveawayfromhome said...

To be fair, Hilary herself rarely misses an opportunity to wave the "female" flag and play the "first woman president" card in an attempt to draw and hold the female vote.

That said, Bill O and company are still asshats.

Paul Nichols said...

Hi again. I want to throw a second punch. This thought came to me last night while we saw some TV.

That is: TV commercials routinely portray men (especially husbands) as doodle-heads, childish, imbecilic, goof-balls, clueless, nerds, doofuses, inept, sex-crazed robots, uneducated, mama's boys, stupid (I hate that word)...my list can go on a lot further, but I think you get the idea. Radio commercials are even worse!

I'm also saying it isn't just in politics. And it isn't just against women. Gloria Steinem and her ilk are not at all shy about poking nasty fun at all kinds of men, just because they're men.

Jenn said...

Great post Saur.

I do not think any woman will become President soon solely due to the number of 'good ole boys' in the US (not blanketing all men in general) that still believe a woman should be barefoot and in the kitchen. R2K has a point but it's not a party issue, both sides get extreme and rather nasty.

She is attacked for her sex, but I would think that par for the course, seeing she is attempting to become the first female President.

I would would agree with Paul though, media ridicules the middle-aged, white, family man more than any other sex or demographic.

Can you imagine how other countries will respect a female as President?

Lazy cracks me up...don't listen to right wing radio, listen to liberal radio, because those extremists are so much better. Extremists make my ears bleed whether right, left, or chicken wing. :)

The Lazy Iguana said...

Paul - name the people who are currently President now? I do not know who that is. Could be Cheney, Bush, or maybe even Rove (I do not believe he is really "gone", he is just laying low). Nobody really knows who is pulling the strings, but based on the things Bush says (I'm the commander guy, I'm the decider, fool me once shame on me...fool me twice....and.....we can't be fooled again, is our children learning, etc) I sure hope it is NOT Bush that is really calling the shots. The man does not exactly inspire me with confidence when he speaks.

The people running for office now, and the Republicans that have anything to do with Bush - allowed spending to skyrocket and allowed Government to expand. The budget and the government grew larger under Bush than it did under that no good Bill Clinton.

Condi is just one of them. Why would she make a good president? She is not even a good Secretary Of State. Name one diplomatic success the State Department has had under her. Even Donald Trump - probably not a liberal - called her ineffective because she can not close a deal. He said that is Condi was on his dippy TV show he would have fired her by now.

Of course, Donald Trump is an asshole too. Just another person not happy with just being rich, he wants to be famous too. God forbid Trump walk into a room where someone does not know who he is and how important he is. A lot of people are like that. If I had that kind of cash I would rather remain anonymous so I could go places and do things without people trying to get my autograph or whatever.

Emma - left wing talk radio is almost as bad as right wing talk radio. Almost. I used to listen to Randi Rhodes when she was local in the Miami market. She had a decent show. She is on Air America now and I do not listen. But at least she is not a pompous blow hard who wants to lock up all drug offenders but thinks rehab is just fine for wealthy white Republican men. political talk shows get boring quick. You can hear everything they have to say if you listen to one or two shows. More than that and you just want to hear stuff that pisses you off OR stuff you agree with.

Either way it is a waste of time.

Ed said...

Excellent post Saur. Hillary certainly evokes a response as does the New York mayor guy. I'm kind of morbidly curious as to what would happen if both of them get the nomination.

Jenn said...

Lazy,
I'm with you, I'll stick to my rock, classical and classic jazz. Well, unless I need to get some sleep. Hey, is now the time when I tell you I bench press 200 lbs and accuse your mama of smoking her own crap? :)

M@ said...

Alright, Mitt, how many wives do you have? Any Barrack: go back to Illinois!

Anonymous said...

I try not to be too political, but if Hillary (whose name is very similar to my last name) is for abortion, that knocks out a lot of voters.

That might lessen her chances, I guess time will tell.

Cas

Anonymous said...

I guess what I'm saying is that if there was a female candidate that believed in what I believed in and said they would actually do X,Y and Z and then did X, Y and Z then I would vote for them. However, there is no female candidate that matches that criteria.

It's not so much a question of gender as it is a question of ethics, beliefs and integrity with me.

~Jef

PS - they're all crooks

Anonymous said...

I am not a crook!!!!!

Whistle Britches said...

emma is scaring the bejeebers out of me..
Saur! where is you?

Anonymous said...

Merry Kwanzaa to all and to all a good night.

Meow (aka Connie) said...

Hey Saur, hope you are keeping well.
Sorry I haven't been by for awhile, but life has kept me busy.
Just dropping by to say HI, and to wish you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a safe and Happy New Year.
Hoping to have more time to blog next year.
Take care, Meow