I remember as a teenager I was arguing with my mom for more freedom. Her answer was always something along the lines of "I worry about you. You just wait `til you're a mom. You'll see things differently." And as I found out when I became a mom - she was right.
Moms do see things differently. Tainting every action, every reaction, every decision, and every viewpoint is this incredible sense of responsibility, not for ourselves, but for our children. Everything is for our children. While that might seem to make us almost subservient, the opposite is actually true. We are a very powerful group.
IMO, the political power of mothers in this country has not yet been fully realized. According to the US Department of State, "women have more often supported Democratic candidates". In the 2000 election 61% of eligible women voters voted in the election versus 58% of the men who were eligible to vote. It was the first election where the number of women voters surpassed the men.
In the 2004 presidential election, Bush focused his campaign on the "security moms". He tried to harness our power by using a mother's fear for her children. Even though he was elected, he didn't succeed in getting the women's vote. 51% of women voters voted for Kerry.
I'd like to make this a (hopefully) regular diary to discuss current issues from a mother's point of view. I think that taking the time to look at our current political issues from a mother's point of view is very important. As a political group, we have to figure out a way to utilize our power. It could mean the difference in 2006 and 2008.