Y’all, I would rather vote for a piece of moldy toast than Fred Thompson. I know that’s blasphemy here in Middle Tennessee, but it’s true. I don’t have any good reason not to vote for him. I just don’t care for him and I’m not Republican.
But sweet and tender Jesus, if his campaign isn’t mulled over in women’s studies courses for the next five years, I don’t know what will be.
You want to catch a glimpse of the Right’s fucked up attitudes towards women, look no further than how they’re treating Thompson’s wife just because she’s good looking.
Joe Scarborough called her a whore–”You think she thinks she works the pole?”
Libby Spencer all but calls Thompson a pedophile and rags on the couple because Mrs. Thompson looks too much like a husband-stealing trophy wife.
Jim Henley things we need “socio-asexuality” in a First Lady and that Thompson’s wife clearly ain’t got that.
And Andrew Sullivan even gives this nonsense the time of day. He gets it right, that this is about punishing Jeri Thompson for being hot.
But good god, who’d have ever thought it would be so blatent?
Filed under: I Love the Patriarchy!, Politics and Other Nonsense, The Conservative Soap Opera
I’m just so done with all of it. Didn’t Mike Wallace ask Romney if he banged his wife pre-marriage? Is this something I care about? I have anguished for years that Clinton didn’t just tell reporters to go fuck themsleves, it was none of their business. I feel the same way now. I’m sorry to say this to you, B, but fucking Dan Abramson should be fired in the morning, and perhaps the NY Post could pick him up. He’d be at home. To hell with MSNBC. To hell with CNN. To hell with Fox. In fact, to hell with the Huffington Post. They feel compelled to waste bandwidth on Paris Hilton too. This thing with Thompson’s wife wasn’t a slap in her face, it was a slap in all of ours.
I’m going to bed now…
This, to me, relates to your “The Pretty, Pretty Princess and Her Plain, but Smart Sidekick” because generally, nobody takes a pretty (read: hot) woman seriously. Note the remark about needing a “socio-asexuality” in a First Lady. That chaps my ass! Oh, so she’s attractive, so she must be a whore. By the way, I just want to say that it isn’t necessarily at “Right” thing, either…it’s our society. Period.
So if a man in politics is hot, he’s “charismatic” and “magnetic”, but if a woman is hot she’s working the pole? Fuckers. Unforgiveable, taking the spotlight off The Mister like that.
Socio-asexuality? Okay. So, they would like someone more like, oh, say Eleanor Roosevelt, huh?
Is it about punishing Jeri Thompson for being hot, or about punishing Fred Thompson for not having a wife who looks puritanical, like apple pie and PTA? For marrying a “whore” rather than a motherly, stay-at-home type? Probably a little of both.
(in either case it’s an obnoxious view of women)
“works the pole” & the other comments — I don’t know about you, but it sounds like a lot of jealousy to me…
Mack, I just can’t concede your point. I know you might be right, but I just can’t bring myself to say it. And Joe precedes Dan’s tenure of running the network… Okay, no there’s no good excuse.
Ginger, I hadn’t thought of that, but yes. It does feed into that dynamic, exactly.
Oh, sure, Elizabeth. I just wish their jealousy didn’t turn into some kind of contest about who can degrade the Thompsons the most.
Let’s take a trip in history:
When B. Clinton was in office, Hillary Clinton was called some godawful names on her appearance as was their daughter, Chelsea.
When Ronnie Reagan was president, Nancy was treated like the ice princess who only cared about money.
When G.H.W. Bush was president, the media talked about Babs pearls and that she looked her age. (shocker)
Less than three months ago, the media focused on Elizabeth Edwards effectiveness in campaigning with hubby John with her cancer diagnosis.
I can’t help but think this is a trend to minimize womens’ roles in the election process. FT has a hot wife, more power to him. The media is the villain on this because they love to distract when it comes to actual campaigns/office holders. It’s not a partisan thing either.
Across the board, and irritates the cow piss out of me.
The more things change, the more they stay the same. These are virtually identical to the comments made about the wife of another Presidential contender.
You think what you’re reading is vile? (And yes, it is, it is.) The Federalist press accused this presidential contender’s wife of sleeping with the current president, being oversexed, pimping her sister off to her husband, and allowing herself and her sister to be used sexually to seal foreign deals.
James Madison got elected anyway, and his politically savvy wife was one of the best things that happened to this country.
I wouldn’t be surprised if history repeats itself there.
There’s worse company to be in than that of Dolley Madison – who was also pretty spectacular.
Good one, LBD!
Another presidential Tennessean also faced such vicious comments about his wife’s sexual history that he killed a guy in a duel over the publication of such comments. His Cabinet also split up over the Eaton Affair, when he came to the defense of Peggy Eaton’s sexual honor against the cuts of Washington society wives and the scandal rags.
We’ll just have to see how much Jackson is in Thompson, I guess…
I find all this talk about appearances and who did what when (whether it is Obama’s drug use, the Clinton’s marital problems, how much Edward’s spends on his haircut, Jimmy Carter’s “lust in his heart”, etc etc etc)completely distracting from the REAL issues. Very few of these things are going to weigh in when I cast my ballot.
How about the focus being that there are babies dying in the greatest nation on the planet b/c of inadequate health care coverage – or the fact that there are people freezing to death on our streets because of mental illness that keeps them from being able to hold a job in order to earn a wage to allow them to have a home, OR that veterans who have proudly served this country are neglected.
I could give a shit who does what in their personal life. Just solve some of the weighty problems that are hampering many people’s ability to lead a productive life and pursue the happiness that is spelled out in The Declaration of Independence.
I like Fred Thompson – don’t know if I would vote for him – it’s a bit early to decide who I’m going to support – BUT I, like you, B, hope it won’t turn into a pissing contest about who can degrade WHOM the most, no matter where the jabs come from.
But it does seem to me that the mud slinging is starting earlier and earlier every election season. Pathetic.
A lazy lobbyist with a trophy wife 25 years his junior- I’m GLAD he’s in the race and hope he becomes the front runner.
If I were Carville, I’d be test-marketing some implied pedophilia ads. (Criticize me all you want, but you know they’d do the same thing).
[...] Aunt B. says this pretty sums up the Right’s attitudes about women. I don’t know about that but it sure reveals their stupidity. I saw a comment thread where folks were arguing about whether Scarborough meant “poll” as in election or pole as in dancer. Ever heard of a double entendre? He meant both ya igits. That was the point. [...]
Yeah, but Newscoma, you can try to minimize women’s roles, but they’re so sneaky! Some of them talk to their husbands and influence policy, like Rosalynn Carter, and some of them don’t talk to their husbands and influence policy, like Eleanor Roosevelt. Not to mention what LBD already mentioned about Dolley Madison, who talked to just everybody. You can’t win.
Who is Libby Henley?
Gosh, I haven’t even seen her yet. No link? :-)
Some say Fred looks like Elmer Fudd. Well I LIKE Elmer Fudd, if you don’t then you might just be Daffy. I agree about the $400 haircut and what Paris Hilton was wearing when released from jail. Who cares??? Be careful here, we have a choice between a southern conservative and a socialist. Now that is about as much contrast as you can get. I hope we get it RIGHT. (nice pun, huh?)
I hope Jeri is nothing like her brother Chris Kehn who is a good Resort General Manager but his well deserved reputation as a womaninazer is right on!
Jeri please help your brother fin a nice woman!
A bitter one night stand
Jeri is not my sister :) and thank you for your comment that I am a good general manager.
Chris Kehn