Monday, October 6, 2008

Mudslinging and Mommyhood VP style

The dreaded moment has finally arrived. With the election less than a month away, the race is really starting to turn ugly and I really HATE it. I hate that I can't log on to the internet without seeing link after link attacking Sarah Palin. I hate that Sen. Obama is painting himself to be the prospective leader of a utopic society. I hate that Sen. McCain is starting to resort to character attacks and accusations of lying. I hate that Tina Fey looks exactly like Sarah Palin and her skits as the VP nominee are getting millions of hits on YouTube every day. I'm all for good comedy, but I'm just frustrated! How are voters supposed to make informed decisions with all this crap out there? Everything is biased. Everything is skewed. Nothing is reliable. Where is the undecided voter supposed to turn? To SNL? To the Internet? To the debates (where neither side seems to want to answer the questions posed to them)? It's an absolute mess. This is why I absolute HATE election time. I will be so glad when it is over, regardless of who wins. Of course, then comes the period of moaning and complaining about who won. Ah, America. I love that we have the freedom to vote, but I just wish that it wasn't such an ordeal.

One interesting thing that has come out of this race, is the new perspective on working mothers that is popping up in Mommy & Me classes across the country. Does Sarah Palin represent a new role model for working moms or is she the antithesis of what we consider to be "good" parenting? Regardless of the answers to those questions, I think what's most important is that her nomination has opening up the avenue of conversation for women who might not otherwise feel comfortable discussing their opinions, views, and struggles of motherhood. Let's face it. It's not an easy gig, as I quickly found out last November. Personally, I give Sarah Palin all the credit in the world for being able to look as good in those super-chic skirt suits she's wearing only 5 months post partum when I'm still carrying around 25 (ok 30!) pounds of Isaiah weight 11 months later! That's an admirable feat in and of itself, never mind all the actual work she's done since little Trig was born. (Although, I can't say I'm a big fan of her naming skills. Seriously...will the next one be named Calculus?) I think this article from the Today show does a good job of exploring this phenomenon. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27011575/ When it comes down to it, regardless of party affiliation or opinions of Palin's politics, it can't be denied that a new form of female role model is emerging from this presidential race. I'd be willing to bet that no matter what happens in November, we'll be seeing a lot more of Sarah Palin and of other mothers like her.

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