Please watch it is only 30 seconds.
Self-image issues play out in the presidential campaign, especially how Hillary Clinton is unfairly attacked by her opponents.
When Republicans send me jokes calling her fat, what message are they sending to the public? When I constantly hear Hillary jokes with the “B-word”, what message are they sending? When talk show hosts and bloggers talk about Hillary being too old and that “no one wants to see a woman president age in office?” what message are they sending? Would they say the same about Jeane Kirkpatrick, Margaret Thatcher or Benazir Bhutto?
I don’t think you can tear into a female public figure’s weight or age about without also accidentally hitting and wounding millions of other women as well. I don’t think Hillary at age 61 is ancient and she is not any different in weight than any other average woman. To mock Hillary’s weight is to mock most women in America.
Our image obsessed culture is ramping up the pressure every year. I remember taking my nine year old niece and her friend to the park. Her friend couldn’t wait to go back home and weigh herself to see if she gained 3 three pounds from breakfast. She said she could “feel it” already and wanted to get rid of it. Skinny nine year old girls shouldn’t be transfixed with fear on gaining an extra pound.
The anti-Hillary fixation is so strong that people fool themselves into thinking that whatever is said against her is fair game. That is strange coming from conservatives who talk about absolute values and strict constructionalism. I have a lot of taxpayer reasons why to dislike Hillary, but it shouldn’t be enough to change who I am.
Some people think that just because they see outrageous political incorrectness on Saturday Night Live or South Park that they are somehow deputized to do the same. No you are not.
I believe the words we speak carry real consequences. I have learned the hard way over the years. In addition to self-image I think the issue also relates to political mannerisms which are in a dire need of improvement in Oregon from both parties. Let’s start here.