Sexism still lives. And McCain's pick of Sarah Palin proves it. If there's any Hillary Clinton supporters out there who think that McCain's choice is an outreach against the perceived sexism of the Democratic primaries...
Think again.
Sarah Palin is the most cynical, transparent, and insulting pick imaginable. McCain is sending a clear message to disgruntled and dissatisfied Hillary supporters and I'll tell you what it is after the jump.
This hearkens to my own anger and frustration during the primaries when the punditry was assuming all white women of a certain age group would "naturally" gravitate towards Hillary.
What angered me then was the cavalier - and yes, sexist - assumption that women of a certain generation will thoughtlessly, mindlessly vote for a candidate simply because she uses the same bathroom as we do. Gender before country. I chose to be an Obama supporter based on what I knew about his work in my state senate, and had he not put his hat in the ring, I'd probably have been a Hillary supporter, but not without some serious and fair consideration of all the viable candidates.
I'm not convinced that McCain - or even Obama - picking a white male candidate over a female is more insulting than picking a female VP candidate because of a deep-rooted belief that women are somehow the Most Low Information Voters in America.
And that's what McCain has done.
If you want to talk about sexism in politics, there's where you start. This is an insult and a slap in the face to female voters of every political stripe. McSame has picked a woman because he thinks most female Hillary supporters - who, excluding PUMAs, are intelligent, thoughtful reasonable women - will fall into the Any Female Will Do trap. Thus, he assumes, they will vote for him and his cynical choice of anti-feminist sidekick - that undecided Democratic and independent women don't really care about the issues or about improving their lives and their nation.
John McCain really does think you're stupid. "Now be a good girl and get back in the kitchen where you belong."
For as old as he is, McCain - like much of the GOP - ignores history. Women fought the same sexist attitudes when they won the right to vote, and in nearly 100 years, not much seems to have changed. The ramifications of Women's Suffrage is still felt today - we value our vote and it matters who we cast that hard-won, precious vote for.
Obama was right last night. McCain really doesn't get it, and he continues to prove it.