Though I sometimes wish Dean would go out and hire a strong DC insider to manage his campaign and keep him from inserting foot in mouth, my estimation of him as a candidate was enhanced when I read about his relationship with his wife, Dr. Steinberg Dean, and the fact that she doesn’t have much to do with the campaign.
Finally, for once, an example of a political spouse who really does demonstrate that there could possibly be equality of the sexes in this country some day.
However, the mainstream media and all the little anal conservatives are just appalled at the fact that this woman is not giving up her career in order to stand by her man. But I’ll let View from the Loft speak my mind, he did it so well:
Go ahead and Google Judith Steinberg Dean–you’ll see many, many more examples of the we-like-independent-women-but-itsn’t-it-odd- that-Judy-is-never-seen-with-Dean-on-the-campaign-trail train of thought. Actually, “we”–that is, commentators, reporters, and throwbacks–don’t like independent women. They make “us” nervous. They have the unmitigated gall to believe that their own careers are important, not amusements to be tossed aside when hubby calls. “We” want to see a woman stand by her man, and if she doesn’t, well, “we” can’t be held responsible for the consequences. This is what underlies the rationalizations that “we,” as one columnist said, want to see the candidate “in context. And you can’t see a man in context without his wife.”
And here I thought electing a candidate had to do with his beliefs, policy proposals, position on crucial issues, qualifications for the job, and other trivia, when all the while it’s about whether he and his wife have a good (read: man-dominant, woman-subservient) marriage. Silly me.
(Thanks to Joel for the heads up)
(My, I’m making up for lost time not writing to the weblog, aren’t I? I miss my walks, though.)