I saw former President Bill Clinton on his recent trip to Oregon. It was great. I was 10-20 feet from the stage. After he spoke of all the things Hillary will do to change our country he went around shaking hands and such. So of course I pushed my way to the front and I got to shake his hand. It was the highlight of the weekend. Not very often does the opportunity present itself to see and meet a former president.
Recent news coverage I find very disappointing. With all the reports on the election, I would hope that voters are not continuously reduced to their appearance and stereotyped by some idea of how their exterior form would control or dictate their vote.
It was mentioned on the CBS evening news that two-thirds of young voters think that race and gender have been brought up too much in this election. And it has, as it seems the media continuously places the American voter into different categories based on their race, sex and age. Then assumptions are made based on these previous categories about how they will vote. News flash people!! Voters vote on issues/policies not necessarily appearances (although someone somewhere might do that).
Even in the CBS evening news, it was implied that people will vote their appearance and not their political beliefs. Specifically through the mention of how more women in the state of Pennsylvania would influence the outcome. Yes! They will influence the result just like everyone who votes influences the outcome. Please STOP implying that voter appearance dictates who they vote for. I am sick of the stereotypes.
Just because I am a woman or a member of a minority does not mean I will vote for the candidate that looks like me. Just because I am young does not mean I will vote for Obama. Quit looking at my appearance in association to my vote. I am a person and as such will vote how I see fit based on the issues I find important.
Margaret Cho was so amazing. I didn't stop laughing the entire time. It was totally worth it even if we were sitting at the top ... far far away.. :) And yes I still have the song stuck in my head .... Thanks! Actually I didn't know Margaret Cho could sing that well. My only complaint is that the tour is called "Beautiful" but the "cool" shirts you could buy only went to large and it is the fitted shirt that is really smaller than the size it says. But I love the designs and bright colors. I wish I could have one of each ...
So in my opinion Hillary won! I thought she had the best answers and overall was just better at answering. I thought Barack was on the defense most of the time and had trouble explaining things. Also I have thought for most of this entire primary that Hillary actually has a plan and Barack just talks of Change and Hope and doesn't necessarily say how he will accomplish that. Obviously both have made mistakes in things they have said and done in the past but what matters is the future and the lessons learned from the past. Also I like the plans Hillary has for the country with Health care, equal pay, environmental issues, getting rid of "no child left behind" (that has left behind more children than it has helped), and issues surrounding women.
Anyway, could you believe what Barack was wearing? I mean a suit with a white shirt and blue tie. What was he thinking? Doesn't he ever change up his appearance? Why is the suit the right thing to wear? What sort of symbolism does the suit portray? Why do we associate a suit with power? ohh that's right patriarchy = males in power and what do they wear... a suit and tie. Mind you it can't be anything outrageous very pain dark suit white shirt and red or blue tie. Women have more leeway in their dress that the suits can be different colors and they don't wear the tie however it is pretty straight forward that for them to get respect they must wear the same suit that symbolizes power to fit in with the men of the field they are in. This is not any different than a women in a predominately male field dressing and acting the part while they are in that setting. Women must be very confident and sure of themselves. However that woman's confidence does not transcend situations. Women must continuously change how they act in different situations.
Okay so really, I point this out as I thought it was only fair with all the comments always being made about what female politicians are wearing without focusing on what is really important, the issues. When do you ever see anything written about the male politicians? Were there big discussions on Bush's dress when he was being elected? Even now do people talk of what Barack or McCain wear. (Umm not that I have seen.) I find it ridiculous that women are reduced to female stereotypes and must conform to masculinity within the realm of power. Does Barack not "gush" when he speaks. Would the media ever think of using such a term for him .... Women are still expected to be sexy and attractive and yet professional and not draw attention. WTF? All these expectations and we haven't even moved past clothing. I thought politics was about laws and legislation and what exactly does some one's clothing have to do with that. However women should be able to be sexy and wear feminine things and still be seen as a powerful politician. But it should not the first thing the media mentions in an article. And really it should not be mentioned at all unless it goes all directions. If you want to talk about all candidates clothing feel free but don't single out the women because we conform to the stereotype of an appearance that represents power while trying not to deviate from our gendered box.
"As a culture, we still aren't comfortable noticing and acknowledging femininity in the halls of power." Robin Givhan
"I've talked about Rice's appearance at Wiesbaden Army Airfield wearing a long black coat and knee-high black boots. The ensemble had a sexiness to it that we hadn't seen before in any of our leaders of that rank. I think we are still uncomfortable with women of authority who refuse to hide their sexuality behind a boxy suit and sensible heels." - Robin Givhan from the site http://www.imow.org/wpp/stories/viewStory?storyId=933
Last night I had the opportunity to hear John Prendergast speak here at OSU. He spoke about Darfur and Beyond: What we can do to Confront the Human Rights Crisis in Africa. In the beginning he captured our attention with a real story of a mother escaping the genocide of her village only making it out with two of her four children. It is because of these stories that we must do something.
Prendergast mentioned the history of countries and the "growing pains" of new countries. He mentioned how Africa is depicted, in the media, as a hopeless place that is in lots of conflict, from movies like Blood Diamond and others, even when those countries are not in conflict anymore and have been peaceful for some time. He compared the wars of Europe with the wars of Africa. He mentioned how presidents try to make a better legend for themselves in the last months of their term and will focus on things they think the American people want.
But ultimately what he said was that we have the power to create this change we want to see. The fact that we filled up the auditorium on a Friday night to hear him talk shows the interest we have in helping to solve these issues. Writing letters to representatives and senators, calling the white house and letting our government know what we think is important will help guarantee that they do something about it. Also writing to the media and telling them we want to hear more about these issues will help. He said this is the first time there has been a large movement to end a genocide while it is still going on. He mentioned the connection of China's oil in the Sudan and the pressure we can apply to China with the Olympic Games coming up.
Overall it was a good talk ... He did talk for a long time tho ... But it was very informative
Okay so who has seen Carl's Jr.'s latest attempt to sell their six dollar burger using, you guessed it, sex. Now they have used this commercial before but I have seen it several times in the last week on tv. And I am sick of it. Can advertisers really not think of something better than a young white blonde woman riding a mechanical bull with "slow ride, take it easy" playing in the background with close ups of her hips and the obvious sex action that it is implying. REALLY!! This commercial does not make me want to eat at Carl's Jr. in fact it does the opposite and I doubt I will eat there again!
Now I can't say this surprises me looking at all the other commercials Carl's Jr. has come up with, there is the Paris Hilton car wash, the "flat buns," the buffalo wings with waitress and girlfriend, and the milk shake commercial. But these commercials are using women as sexual objects and it is just disgusting. Every time the commercial comes on I start yelling at my television and so I had to blog about it ...
