From the moment talks of her being a presidential candidate started, I cringed. Not because of Hilary herself, but she is a terribly polarizing figure in the states. Talk to any Republican, event those unhappy with GW or McCain, she is not liked. There are too many bad jokes still circulating from her husband's days in office, like it or not. I want the Democratic party to have a chance in November, and in my opinion, she is not the way to do that.
And I'll admit, we've in some ways just blindly jumped on the "Hope Train" wanting some kind of change and currently seeing Obama as one of the only choices with promise of that. We weren't this way from the beginning. I was actually a bit excited by Chris Dodd's candidacy for a bit. He is the first Returned Peace Corps Volunteer to run for president and has an impressive foreign policy record.
That brings up an important point that experience living abroad is a huge factor for us in this household. I think foreign policy is the #1 issue in this campaign not only because of the war, China, Tibet, Darfur or any other trendy issue, but because we are increasingly interconnected to the rest of the world and our domestic issues often complicated by international sub issues, or distracted by trying to keep those that continue to dislike us at bay.
Can someone who spent a few years as a kid in Indonesia make all the difference? Probably not single handedly, but I have more faith in him than someone who didn't. As do others on the world stage as we see international media here being incredibly embracing of Obama and the ideas he carries with him.
But our love is not blind. I think his health care plan is weak. Like it or not, as well, he still has to play the DC game. He is promise, but not the messiah.
In addition, we find Hilary's campaign tactics unsettling, to say the least. I also really feel strongly about 20 years of power being in the hands of but 2 families. And I'm not sure how I feel about her stance on Israel. I've even had moments where I think she's rigged the election. The international stage makes it seem like she can't be nearly as popular as the votes are reflecting.
And I'll shamefully admit it, we've had moments at particular dirty points in the campaign where we've said we'd vote for John McCain, antique, conservative and against many of our ideals and all, simply to not see her in office. I've accused her supporters of being a bunch of thoughtless bandwagon women supporting her simply because she is a woman.
But this morning, early this morning as Marshall decided to pull an all nighter for some reason, I read this great article on salon.com that put me in my place a bit. As a woman, I have to admit, there is this little piece of me that feels a bit guilty for turning on a female candidate, but at the same time, I will not vote for a woman just because she is a woman. Regardless, there is something a bit unsettling about how a female with ambition is still seen with such contempt. I admit, I get caught up in it as well, using words I shouldn't use when she acts in a way I disapprove of and that I should be ashamed of using in front of my still innocent 10 month old son.
I hope you take a look at the piece and think about what a female candidate really means and if she is really being given a fair shake, like her or not. Perhaps this is a common discussion in the states, but its new to me here, and one of the first ones out of many thats actually made me pause and reflect on my stance and what I'll do in any instance.
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