All the pundits this morning declare that Carly Fiorina won the GOP Debate last night. I submit that she was anointed the winner because she happens to be a woman, not because of any competence on her part. In reality, while she had one laudable moment when she rightly called out Donald Trump for his sexist remarks against her, she and Donald Trump are on the same side as far as protecting the present system of white privilege.
There was a scene in Charles Dickens' "Oliver Twist," where Mr. Bumble, the abusive beadle now promoted to Master of the Workhouse, lectured his new wife on the role of men and women. He declared that the prerogative of a man was to command and the prerogative of a woman was to obey. We see that mentality today; forced pregnancy is the symbol of this male dominance. It asserts that men have a right to force women to carry their children to full term regardless of the physical or financial chaos it creates. And Carly Fiorina, along with Donald Trump and the rest of the GOP candidates, expressed full support of this symbol of white male privilege.
So, while she happens to be a woman, she is no champion of womens rights and nothing she will do will serve that purpose. Just like George H.W. Bush appointed Clarence Thomas because he was Black and not because of any merit on his part, Carly Fiorina was anointed as a front runner this morning because she is a woman to "prove" that the GOP is not sexist. The fact that she supports forced pregnancy shows that she is just as much of a supporter of white privilege as Ben Carson is when he opposes police accountability.
This attempt to control peoples' bodies is nothing new. Columbus and his henchmen did the exact same thing when they arrived at the New World. Howard Zinn, in "A Peoples' History of the US," noted that Columbus' henchmen would force the Arawak natives to carry them around in hammocks; they would even force them to let them ride their backs like donkeys or mules. The methods of controlling bodies have changed, but the concept has not.
We get people all the time who object to their taxpayer dollars being sent to Planned Parenthood. But the problem with that is that it's not a defense of freedom at all. All they are arguing for is the right to control other peoples' bodies, just like Kim Davis was arguing for the right to flout the law. It's too bad that police state apologists don't come up with an alternative plan for women who currently access Planned Parenthood's services, many times for non-abortion related reasons. I guess it's easier to complain than it is to come up with actual solutions.
Ms. Fiorina tries to position herself as the most competent candidate. But all she would be competent at is maintaining and perpetuating the current system of white privilege. When it comes to actual track record, she ran HP into the ground and made off with millions in CEO pay, just like many other CEO's. Now, she is seeking to do so on a much larger platform. If she can't keep the books balanced at HP, why would she be any better at balancing the books at the federal level?
The kid named Ahmed, who was arrested for bringing a clock to school, outraged everyone, including conservative stalwarts like Forbes and many top businesses. Yet Carly Fiorina, in the debate last night, called for perpetuating the school to prison pipeline that snags up kids like Ahmed every day. In so doing, she is doing what's best for the private prison industry, the drug testing industry, and the addiction recovery industry, not the common good. This system creates millions of single mothers, explodes the welfare system exponentially, and creates a cycle that will repeat itself over and over again with corresponding profits for these industries.
Recently, Ann Coulter said that the world would be a better place if all the Jews were to convert to Christians. While Carly Fiorina may not be in the same league as Ann Coulter, her politics is the same as Ann Coulter's. The only thing she does differently is present a slightly more sanitized version of Ann Coulter's stirring defense of white privilege.
Zinn points out how meaningless that sort of rhetoric can be. In the 1630's, the Puritans burned down a Pequot village, killing hundreds and stabbing and flaying those who had made it out alive. Following the battle, as Zinn recounts, they got down on their knees and thanked God for giving them such a glorious victory. And Jesus wept.