SUBMITTED BY XORN SMITH: So I’m nervous enough trying to submit my first Boinkology link and now I’m doubly paranoid because it’s political in nature. Sort of. But after last night’s primaries, maybe that’s appropriate. Either way, here goes.
I have a confession: I feel bad for Hillary Clinton. I was never a huge fan, but I didn’t hate the woman. And, now, there are times I’m actually pulling for her simply because no one else is — except for 47% to 52% of most voting Democrats. Maybe it’s my contrarian nature, but there are times I want her to win just to piss off everyone who despises her — in part because much of the anger directed at her seems so random and often irrational.
I guess what I’m looking for is a coherent explanation as to why, precisely, she is so reviled. And, of course, for an answer to this question I naturally turn to…an old white guy. Stanley Fish of Florida International University penned a an insightful piece on the whole subject of Hillary hating a couple months back.
What I find fascinating and what Fish’s article so eloquently pinpoints is that Hillary is everything to everyone when it comes to hate. She is reviled as a feminist and by feminists. She is decried as the embodiment of all that is evil in Vietnam-era liberalism while at the same time “the Left” considers her to be too conservative.
I personally know Republicans who registered as Democrats just so they could vote against her in primaries, even though the person they were voting for (Obama) is shown in polls to have a better chance of beating John McCain in a general election. I know Obama supporters who say they will vote for McCain or abstain if Clinton is the party’s nominee. In short, Hillary makes people act crazy beyond all proportion.
So my question is this: is it straight up misogyny? Or is it about the peculiarities of Senator Clinton’s character (and that of her husband’s perhaps)? Or is it just a product of the intensely divisive political times we live in? What, if any, role do sex and sexism play in all of this?
-
What is Boinkology?
Insightful analysis of sex, relationships, dating - and everything in between.
Popular Posts:
What Women Want Out Of Porn (It’s Not This.)
“Sex And The City” Movie Celebrated With Vibrator
Hillary Clinton And Cheating’s Double Standard
What Do Table Skirts Have To Do With Sex?
Tips For What To Talk About On A First Date
Misogyny, Guilt, and the Strange Case of Hillary Clinton
Tip: Keep Your Sex Toys Away From Your Dog
First Recorded Seal-On-Penguin Sex
Gold Bond Is The Breath Mint For Your Balls
The Anti Gym Wants You To Have Sex With The Lights On
-
Most Discussed:
Misogyny, Guilt, and the Strange Case of Hillary Clinton What Women Want Out Of Porn (It's Not This.) Tips For What To Talk About On A First Date What Do Table Skirts Have To Do With Sex?
Hugh Hefner: America Is "Schizophrenic" About Sex Hillary Clinton And Cheating's Double Standard
Commenter Of The Week First Recorded Seal-On-Penguin Sex The Anti Gym Wants You To Have Sex With The Lights On Gold Bond Is The Breath Mint For Your Balls
RSS
Comments
My reasons:
1: Pandering and insincerity.
(Do I really need to source this? Read any news feed.)
2: She is not Obama, who I like a lot.
May 7th, 2008 at 6:29 pmI think Clinton is sincere. The “crying” (she was SO not crying - not that there’s anything wrong with that) incidence is evidence of that. Of course, a sweeping statement like sincerity is difficult to operationalize. She is sincere in her desire to be president, in her belief that she is the best candidate, and in her belief in the things she is saying.
In which case, she would not be pandering (I assume this is about the mad crazy stupid oil tax redux idea). She honestly seems to believe in it. That just makes it worse.
I think her campaign has been run more negatively than Obama’s. So much of her stuff is “Obama sucks” and whatnot.
Much of what I’ve read (I, too, am too lazy to link), indicates that the root of a lot of the Hilary Hate is rooted in sexism. Key, though, is that it is an implicit, deep-seated sexism that even the people who have fallen to it don’t realize their ideas and thoughts are rooted in sexist beliefs and attitudes. These very people would be sincere in their argument that they are not sexist. (As an aside, this tendency is the same reason most sociologists advocate against the professing of “colorblind” ideologies in regard to race).
Disclosure: I voted for Obama in the primaries.
May 7th, 2008 at 6:53 pmShe’s just a liar, there is nothing misogynistic about it at all in my opinion. It’s the same reason I don’t like Bill Clinton anymore too.
May 7th, 2008 at 7:35 pmI personally find her disingenuous. Perhaps it’s because she seems to try so hard that I associate her with people who try to hard to be nice to me…and those people are typically disingenuous–primarily, but not entirely.
That could relate to misogyny. She probably DOES have to try harder and she probably FEELS as though she has to. Her attempt to counter-act misogyny may then be to her detriment.
But it’s more than this, obviously. She’s limited by her gender, as is Obama. Obama has to be softer to avoid being “angry black man” and she has to be both harder and softer so that she can be “man enough” to be president, but not “a cold bitch.” And I think that’s just the surface.
As a side note, my most current problem with her is the fact that she has jumped on the bandwagon with this “anti-elitism” thing.
May 7th, 2008 at 10:53 pmHillary Clinton is Tracy Flick (see “Election” starring Reese Witherspoon).
May 8th, 2008 at 1:30 amHaha, I saw the Hillary Clinton is Tracy Flick video; it was awesome. However, I liked Tracy Flick, so that would make me more likely to vote for Clinton.
And I was already an Obama fan before the anti-elitism stuff from Clinton, but that really sealed it for me. Especially when she shot down economists by implying they knew nothing about the economy.
May 8th, 2008 at 6:07 amFor the first part of the campaign, I supported her explicitly because she is a woman, but in the end this is not enough. And with Obama, we have another “first” anyway. It came down to her views (his are not perfectly in line with mine either though) and the fact that she represents that small group of families that has run this country forever. Change is welcome.
May 8th, 2008 at 9:20 amNow this to pile on top of the whole “anti-elitism” sentiment:
http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2008/05/08/clinton-hard-working-americans-white-americans/
I guess desperate times call for, well…crap.
May 8th, 2008 at 6:59 pmI was raised by Irish women, I don’t have any use for meekness in males or females of the species. That Hillary is bold and blatant in her pursuit of the big brass ring was actually very appealing to me. She got in there, elbow to elbow with the men and fought it out.
But she lied. Alot. And got caught at it. Alot.
Coming on the heels of her husband lying alot and getting caught at it, that just switches people who might support her otherwise off.
The republifucks who rail against her like she’s the antichrist hate her because she’s liberal but they also hate her for being a strong woman. But fuck them and the holes they live in.
Hillary also has timing against here. I think of it this way. Hillary is Salieri and Obama is Mozart. Salieri was a great musician, in a world without a Mozart he’d be much better known. Mozart was a once in several generations sort of mind. More a force than a person.
Obama has that spark, that ineffible quality that has inspired millions of new voters to come out and support him. Without him, we’d have had candidate Clinton for nigh 5 months now.
May 8th, 2008 at 8:06 pmAnyone under the age of 38 has had only a Clinton or a Bush in the White house during their adult life.
I don’t like her because I don’t like political dynasties.
May 9th, 2008 at 7:50 amXORN SMITH: This was an excellent post. Please remember though that Boinkology is not a news site and you can choose to write about anything that has to do with sex, dating or relationships. And I am looking forward to reading your next post!
May 10th, 2008 at 11:31 amLeave a reply :