"Girl Most Interrupted..."

It's nearly midnight, and I'm lying in bed next to my sweetie – who has drifted off into the dreamy world of X Games and piloting his own airplane while, simultaneously, maintaining his schedule on his Blackberry. I’m flat on my back with eyes wide open, mind reeling, antsy fingers, and feet that seemed to have contracted restless leg syndrome. As I'm listening to his quiet, steady breathing and registering the up and down movements of his chest cavity, I'm wondering how can he sleep?

Why isn't he as bothered, as I am, about the Sarah Palin speech that we just watched on television? How can he slumber so soundly? I almost wanted to shake him out of his sleep so we could discuss the matter. But then it dawned on me; he's not a woman!

And as a woman, I am appalled, utterly disappointed, and saddened at the entire spectacle of the Republican selection process for Vice President of the United States. As a woman, I am most offended by the fact that the GOP felt that they could place a woman, any woman, into the V.P. position, and this act would somehow satisfy my desire to see a female reign in a prominent, highly visible post. I am expected to be so enamored by their choice and appreciative of their gesture that I would actually vote accordingly.

I am equally dismayed and annoyed by her performance at the RNC. Oh, I’m certain that Sarah Palin has a few significant accomplishments under her belt. And, I’m confident that she believes that she can be a great national leader. But, to allow herself to be used like a pawn in a GOP chess game is distressing.

The GOP women who support her nomination cry sexism each time Palin’s opponents and critics question her experience and abilities. But I think the ultimate sexism, and thus, the overwhelming insult is the fact that the Republican Party used her for their own political gain. How can this “party reformer” accept this exploitation of her gender?

Yes, I am a woman, a Texan, a Democrat, and an Obama supporter – all of which I am very proud of. But my discontent has less to do with political affiliation and more to do with this hypocritical charade that Sarah Palin has elected to take part of. To watch her be reduced to a mere McCain cheerleader was almost unbearable, to say the least.

This seemingly intelligent and driven woman did nothing more than spew the GOP anthem – of good versus evil, us against them, McCain is the all time MVP (or rather, MVfP, Maverick Vying for Presidency). At one point, I was totally expecting her to pull out her pom-poms from behind the podium and do a cheer. Where was that independent-thinker that the Republicans boasted about? Where did she stand on the issues? What are her plans as Vice President? Unless I blinked, I don’t recall capturing any of those items.

But, yet, I kept watching and listening intently. And through all of her one-liners and Obama-bashing, I finally gathered that she was just another out-of-touch politician whose main focus was winning. What a great example of “Country First”!

I have to say, once again, that I am extremely troubled, tonight – not just because McCain selected Sarah Palin as his running mate, not because the GOP seems to be brainwashed and disillusioned to the state of this country, and not because Palin’s seventeen-year-old daughter is pregnant. I carry a certain amount of sadness because I see and hear all of this insincere, divisive rhetoric that reinforces the notion that I don’t belong and my issues don’t matter outside of my small realm. There are individuals who are truly complacent with keeping this country divided. Palin’s selection as a running mate and her well orchestrated speech was geared to winning votes – no more, no less.

The GOP talk about change, but they have only introduced more separation. And their new carving knife is gender – men versus women, women versus men, women versus women. This whole smoke and mirrors tactic is, once again, a diversion from the real issues. By the way, whatever happened to immigration reform? But, I’ve digressed.

My only hope is that enough people see through the nonsense and understand that the decisions we make impact more than who’s on the ticket on Nov. 4^th. We need to be considerate of one another; sensitive to differences in background, opinions, and ideas; cognizant of our actions and words; and open to making our society, community, environment, relationships, and ourselves a little better. Every little bit helps.

Comments

[scooterC]

Here Here - Loves it. Definitely have to agree with you

[Rocky]

I couldn't have said it better myself. Kudos

[SAM T]

Keep up the good work, very insightful and I love your secret self....

[Rob D]

Excellent Blog, Sweetie!!!! Keep it up.