SCREEN TEST - New York Times
| SCREEN TEST - New York Times The new James Bond would be Jane Bond. |
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Campbell Brown Rips McCain Camp's "Sexist" Treatment Of Palin
| Campbell Brown Rips McCain Camp's "Sexist" Treatment Of Palin Finally, an intelligent Palin strategy. |
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The Power of Palin
| My Huff Post post this morning: The Power of Palin Sarah Palin became mayor of her town, governor of her state, and has now secured the Vice Presidential nomination for the Republican Party of her country. She accomplished this using the basic doctrine of feminism: female empowerment. Many feminists are now trying to distance themselves from the result of their own work by launching scathing critiques of Sarah Palin, conservative women, and anyone else with the audacity to point out the connection between Palin’s rise and the last forty years of feminist ideology. This is upsetting for some to realize, but the fact is, this hacking away at unwanted results is nothing new. Fifteen years ago I wrote To Be Real and have since written and lectured on the necessity of inter-generational power sharing within feminist institutions, the full integration of men into organizations working for gender parity, and the necessity of finding commonality with women who don’t hold progressive views. In response, I’ve been attacked, undermined, and politically abused by some of the very women I sought to serve. I’m not the only one. Many have fallen out of the graces of the feminist establishment because of their critique of it. But in Sarah Palin, this habitual distancing of women who don’t serve the progressive feminist agenda has reached its apex. To date, feminist think-tanks, powerful feminist icons, and the leadership of major, national women's organizations have done the dirty business of policing feminism. A couple of years ago, for example, I was asked to deliver the keynote address at the National Women's Studies Association. At the address, I told a room full of a thousand representatives of Women’s Studies programs across the country that we, as a community, were going to have to be more open, more tolerant, and more inclusive of women and men who do not share a progressive agenda. I specifically discussed the need to reaffirm our commitment to biological family, a trope successfully manipulated by conservatives, including Palin, but dismissed by the left. A shouting match ensued, during which many of the leadership present reeled at what they perceived to be the inappropriateness of my comments. The organization then followed up with a nationwide mailing of their newsletter, which included an article suggesting that I must have been on drugs to raise these issues. They were so unconcerned about undermining my credibility among women's studies programs, I had to threaten a lawsuit to get them to write a simple retraction. The message was, "Don't book Rebecca Walker for any paid speaking engagements in women's studies programs nationwide." The audacity of this vindictive silencing and other examples of political exclusion, has created the very vulnerabilities now being exploited by Palin Power. Sarah Palin looking like a progressive, thinking like a conservative, and hiding from public scrutiny, is nothing more than conservatives exploiting the breach created by feminist leadership. This shrewd politic, crafted by right-wing think-tanks, individuals, and organizations is a turn-about of a page taken directly from the feminist playbook. Sarah Palin is being presented as the new and improved, moosehunting Gloria Steinem. No matter who wins the election, feminism is going to come out of it with a bloody nose, and women will be at odds with each other at a level we have never seen in the history of our country. One thing is for sure though, if McCain wins, the proponents of Palin Power will feel confident that they exploited feminist vulnerabilities using feminist tactics, and won. The writing of the inevitability of Palin Power has been on the wall for many years. The feminist leadership's attempts to silence the messengers have left entire generations of women vulnerable. At some point I hope that those who credit themselves with the advancement of female empowerment will take responsibility now as they have in the past for what is going on in the national discourse about women in this election. I believe the outcome of all of this will be the true catharsis, not the one labeled “for progressive women only.” |
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Campaign for Love & Forgiveness - Letting Go
| Campaign for Love & Forgiveness - Letting Go A beautiful ritual. Go on, let go. xo |
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As Wall Street Collapses, Will Washington Get a Clue? | | AlterNet
| As Wall Street Collapses, Will Washington Get a Clue? | | AlterNet Informative article. Important to read a variety of voices, and not panic. xo |
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The Twelve-Step Mother: Five Questions for Cindy McCain
I do not buy the Cindy McCain story. When I look at Cindy McCain, I see a battered wife, of sorts. And when I look at John McCain, I see an old-school kind of husband who thinks his wife and a lot of other "skirts" are idiots. The kind who would pick Palin because he has so little respect for women, he thinks they'll vote for a woman who wants to send their sons and daughters to war, take away their reproductive freedom, ensure they are paid less than they deserve, and destroy the natural environment in which they live. In light of the fact that Cindy McCain has been married for twenty years to a man she only sees on weekends, and because HER HUSBAND DIDN'T NOTICE that she was addicted to painkillers and taking ten Vicodin a day, I'm going to ask my questions with restraint. Because wealth does not protect you from everything, and Cindy McCain, like the rest of us, is a human being. In recovery. From something. If I ran into Cindy McCain at, say, the Yale Club in New York, I'd ask her a few questions. 1. I am worried about Bridget. You seem to use her as a prop in your stump speech; she's the dark, unwanted, orphan you and John made your own. Have you talked to her about what it's like to be black in your family? Do you have honest and forthright discussions about the issues of transracial adoption? Do you take as much responsibility for the challenges that come with being your adopted Bangladeshi daughter as you take credit for the boon? 2. Vanity Fair estimates that one of the ensembles you wore at the Republican National Convention cost over $300,000 or, the price of one and a half homes for most Americans. I love Prada too, but do you ever think, like most women who buy extremely expensive apparel, you are compensating for low self-esteem? Did you make sure that your $200,000 diamond earrings weren't made from blood diamonds? If he were President, would you encourage your husband to tax the top one percent of earners appropriately so the rest of us can buy our own earrings? 3. How are you feeling about Sarah Palin? If the GOP 4. I am truly disturbed by the situation with your half-sister. You inherited one hundred million dollars from your father and she inherited ten thousand? Are you going to give her some of your money? At least enough to have a nice home and put her kids through college? She's not a starving orphan in an impoverished third world country, but she is your sister. If you're unwilling to share your wealth with her, how can the rest of us believe you and your husband will advocate for us? Honestly, between Reagonomics and the Bush tax "reforms," it's possible she pays more taxes than you. 5. And finally, what do you think of divorce? Do you have friends who would support your getting one if you wanted? And did you know Arizona is one of only three states in America that offers a legally recognized "Covenant Marriage" that makes obtaining a divorce extremely difficult for both parties. Would you advise your daughter Meghan to exercise that option, or would you rather she benefit from relatively new divorce laws that allow her to exit a marriage if she desires? And what if she were to become pregnant, like Sarah Palin's teenage daughter? I know you're officially against abortion, but would you want Meghan to have a baby at this point in her life, now that she's gone to Columbia and started her blog and is positioned for well, all kinds of important things? And what if she were pregnant as a result of rape? Would you welcome that baby into your home? I've got these questions, but I'm open, too. Cindy, if you want to work together to make sure our children never have to die in an unnecessary, one hundred year war, call me. Because I want grandchildren, just like you.
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BACKPACK
| Hey beauties, I am IN LOVE with this new program, BACKPACK. I usually don't go over the top and start proselytizing and encouraging people to sign up for techie-stuff, BUT, this program has changed my life. REALLY. It's so great, I have to classify it as art. xo |
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One Big Happy Family
 And here's the new baby. Coming in February of 09. What do you think? xo |
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house tour: lili diallo: Galleries: dominomag.com
| house tour: lili diallo: Galleries: dominomag.com Hey beauties--can't forget the ART in Art and Politics. One of my favorite stylists created one of my favorite interiors. You like? xo |
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Jonathan Martin's Blog: Hillary backers come to defense of Palin - Politico.com
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Tweeting for Obama: Yes. You. Can. Again.
So everyone says I should blog more. I'm humbled to hear my blogs contain multitudes, but now I'm on Twitter and I realize that right now, fifty-five days before Election Day, it's all about brevity. It's about the microblog. The fragment. The word. And the words yesterday were: Yes. We. Did. Barack Obama is the Democratic nominee for the President of the United States. Yes. We. Did. But now, we have to do it again. So get on Twitter, follow Obama, and start retweeting his tweets, and tweeting your own personal and condensed version of his tweets. Because the words of today are: Yes. We. Can. Again. Remember what McCain told supporters when protesters broke out during his speech? "Don't pay attention to the static"? That Palin mess? STATIC. "What if Obama loses"? STATIC. The "poll of all polls"? STATIC. Pondering whether John McCain has a point. A plan. A mind. STATIC. STATIC. STATIC. This is not the time to forget about the two hundred thousand people in Berlin, Ted Kennedy taking his place at the podium, or sobbing after the Invesco speech. This is not the time to forget about how much we love Michelle and the girls, or how much Joe Biden's family loves him. Loyalty is not shaken by a stick or a smile. True intelligence refuses to be undermined by cheap theatrics. Yes. We. Can. This is the time to remember. It's been a long fight, but real players know it's all about the endgame, the final moments, the sprint home. Yes. We. Can. Believe it. Tweet it. Yes. You. Can. Again. I'll meet you there.
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Women Against Sarah Palin
| Women Against Sarah Palin I've already sent them a note about Stanton and Sambo. Great work anyway! xo |
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Alaskans Speak (In A Frightened Whisper): Palin Is “Racist, Sexist, Vindictive, And Mean.” | The LA Progressive
| Alaskans Speak (In A Frightened Whisper): Palin Is “Racist, Sexist, Vindictive, And Mean.” | The LA Progressive This was in my Twitter thread this morning... xo |
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Half Full: Science for Raising Happy Kids Blog Archive Perfectionism is a Disease
| Half Full: Science for Raising Happy Kids Blog Archive Perfectionism is a Disease For all you "recovering perfectionist" moms out there. Let's try to live and learn, shall we? This site is a great resource. xo |
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American Prayer - Dave Stewart (Barack Obama Music Video)
Hey beauties--check this one...lovely. xo |
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Editorial - That Plastic Baby Bottle - Editorial - NYTimes.com
| Editorial - That Plastic Baby Bottle - Editorial - NYTimes.com When in doubt, throw it out. xo |
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The Anti-Abortion Mommy: Five Questions for Sarah Palin
 Okay, I think we all agree that even though she's probably a very nice human being, the Sarah Palin VP pick is deeply problematic.
From the looks of how she's being positioned in the GOP, she's the foil for a host of horrifying scenarios they've got planned, from the continued erosion of first amendment rights to the exponential growth of the prison-industrial complex.
Anyway.
If I ran into her at a hunting-themed bar at the Anchorage airport, I'd walk right up and ask some questions--because she's so accessible, you know? 1. I really, truly respect your privacy, but I read on the net that your fifth baby may be your daughter's. Even if that is just a vicious lefty-commie smear, your seventeen year-old is really pregnant, right? Listen, I love babies, and I get you're anti-abortion and pro-abstinence, but don't you think you should be pro-birth control, too? And teen moms who aren't your daughter? 2. What on earth does the bear on your office sofa symbolize? Bear market? Bear Stearns? Father Bear, Black Bear, Childbearing, Bearing down? Your victory against environmentalists who want to protect polar bears from extinction? I know I'm not alone when I wonder what you feel when you rest your back against all that dark fur. Dominance, protection, hunger, compassion? It would tell us a lot about who you are and what you would do with the living organism we call earth. 3. Your mother-in-law says you don't bring anything to the table other than your gender and political affiliation. What did you do to her last Thanksgiving? Is she responsible for the Eskimo-Yupiik part of your husband and if so, is she upset he married a woman who wants to drill on native lands? Or is your husband's mom pro-sovereignty, and still coming to terms with the whole Alaskan statehoood thing? 4. The way you congratulated and undermined Hillary at the same time was clever. That part about 18 million cracks in the glass ceiling, and the American people being ready to break all the way through. But Hillary has faced down some of the most dangerous forces on the planet, and won eighteen million votes, too. What experience do you have surviving physical, psychological, cultural or any other kind of warfare? What's your position on Darfur? Tibet? North Korea? I think you and Sarkozy might get on, but what about Putin? Are you ready to go over the fine points with Vladimir? Are you up for challenging Hu Jintao on the age of the gymnasts on the Chinese Olympic team, or on the oil pipeline China is running from Somalia? And finally: 5. Have you sat down and had a long talk with your husband about this whole thing? I'm not saying it's an issue, but we're talking five kids, in Washington, DC. We're talking state dinners, applications to Sidwell Friends, and a landmine of completely uncharted masculinity issues. Can your marriage hold up? Just how secure is your husband? And maybe more important, would your husband's role in your life encourage you to support a broader Family Leave Act? Like the one in Sweden, where parents are entitled to eighteen months paid Parental Leave? But seriously. I hope you're making the right choice. Because should you manage to pull off a miracle and end up VP, it's going to get very hot in your kitchen. And if you don't, you're going to have to live knowing your nomination may have unified and cemented the victory of the democratic party in 2008 and beyond. Either way, I wish you and your family the best. Like it or not, we really are all in this together. |
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