So well put Joan.

I’m not so sure that Sarah Palin herself has said that she was a victim of sexism. I hadn’t read anything to that affect? But her supporters certainly did. And I will admittedly say that while not for a second was I ever a Palin supporter… I was shocked and surprised at the immediate questioning of her ability to be a candidate and a parent at the same time (early on) when we just never question men’s capacity to do both. I also thought it was a bizarre type of sexism that her beauty was so maligned and used against her by her foes and for her by her friends. That’s another thing that just doens’t happen with men. I heard her looks commented on constantly. Even the SNL script where Alec Baldwin tells her she’s hot in person. I thought “wow… how demeaning”. And I didn’t think that she openly courted that type of behavior. Yet her looks were immediately a way to diminsh her. NOT that she needed a lot of help being diminished. I agree totally with Joan that she didn’t lose based on sexism by any means. but i do believe that she was treated very sexist by both sides of the equation. Her appointment alone was sexism on the part of McCain and his handlers. To appoint a woman becasue she’s a woman… and I believe her looks played into that for them. they were stupid enough to think it would be a benefit to their campaign.

oh ya… and lastly… I don’t think her winking was an attempt to be sexy but rather an attempt to be “homey”. if she weren’t a pretty woman it would have been viewed differently. I tried a couple of times to think of how it would have been viewed if McCain did it…. or Mitt Romney. on McCain it would have looked creepy and on Romney it would have looked like a used car salesman trying to sell you something. which is frankly how I thought it looked when Palin did it.

I agree, Joan. I don’t think that reaction to her was sexist, just concern over her qualifications (or lack thereof) for the job. I do feel that some of McCain’s folks blaming her for the loss just isn’t fair, however. I am certainly no fan of Sarah Palin, and would never vote for her, but McCain’s staff were the ones that selected her, and they need to only look to themselves when they try to figure out what happened.

What do we say about a good-looking man? “Movie star quality,” or words to that affect. It doesn’t go unnoticed. Mitt Romney was one who was thus described. And when a good-looking man uses that gift to schmooze women, we note that too (I maintain that really attractive people grow up in another reality from those of us who are plain or common, which is not their fault, of course, but it skews their perceptions and reactions). The truth is that Sarah Palin had neither the intellect, experience or sophistication for the role she was asked to fill. And I agree emphatically that it was terribly sexist of John McCain to ask her to do it. In the end, Sarah Palin is hardly a player in this scenario. The fault is all McCain’s. If I, as an employer or HR director, hire a person based on superficial reasons (perhaps I am influenced by their attractiveness or personality) without checking their abilities, I am responsible when they fail more surely than they are. And I have done them a great injustice by exposing their weaknesses in a setting for which they might not have known they were unqualified (though one could argue that they must know!) therefore bringing shame and negativity into their lives. I’ve seen it done hundreds of time in the corporate world and so has everyone else. Do we then blame the victim, as it were? I do not mean to absolve her of all responsibility. She really did have insufferable moments. But I believe she was trying to do what she had been asked to do with nothing by way of background to give her a foundation from which to operate or to understand her inabilities. She is in no way even a mainstream American woman, for pete’s sake! Did she get a bit carried away with the unfamiliar and exciting world into which she was thrust? I think that is quite clear. But understandable as well. This is a small-town girl from the backwaters of the world thrust on an international stage with no preparation and, quite frankly, no ability for the task, I don’t care what a “quick study” she is. We’ve all quick studied. How long do we remember it? How much did it change us or our world view in a permanent way? I’d like to feel sorry for her but I find I feel sorrier for Alaska, truth be told. And for her family. As women we tried to like her, understand her and support her. She just did not have the gravitas. And my prediction is that she never will, nor will she understand how and why she failed. How could she? Can you really imagine her in a serious situation with the likes of Angela Merkel, Margaret Thatcher, Hilary Clinton, Indira Gandhi, Condoleeza Rice, Madeline Albright, Golda Meir - just to name a few high profile, very intelligent and successful women? (And how about Carly Fiorina who was disappeared because she stated the truth about the executive experience of both John McCain and Sarah Palin?) Because these women are true ladies as well as being women of high accomplishment, I am sure they would indulge her naivete and mindless conversation, but nothing of substance could be addressed, though she would doubtless interject her poorly informed opinion at every opportunity. Perhaps this gives a perspective that might be considered by men who would presume to push a woman, any woman, into the spotlight in an attempt to give lip service to “feminism.” Not all women are equal and neither are all men. Let us each live according to our abilities and not overreach. Especially when it involves the lives and futures of others. Finally, let us recognize that all roles are important to a functioning society, and some fill those roles better than others. Do we need really great senators? Yes!! Thank you, Hilary. Do we need all the women whose names we’ll never learn to do the important leadership tasks they bring to the table? Yes!! We bring our female perspectives, sensibilities and intelligence to tasks of every sort and in these acts, small and large, do we shift the balance and best serve the larger interests of our communities, governments and countries. And though we would love to see a woman in the highest executive position our country can offer, we do not thrust anyone who is unprepared and incompetent, through no fault of their own, into that position when there are so many other significant roles to fill, if more low profile. Now that is true feminism and equality in my book!