Carey Roberts
Wailing women of NOW descend on the Emerald City of O
By Carey Roberts
The scene is reminiscent of the Wizard of Oz scene when hordes of winged monkeys are poised on the castle parapet, ready to snatch up Dorothy and her three affable sidekicks. But this time it's not a harmless fairytale, it's a cabal of feminists determined to turn our society into a socialist paradise.
These women dismiss any criticism with a "to the victors go the spoils" shrug. But the fact is, men played a major role in handing Barack Obama his White House victory.
During the Democratic primaries, Barack beat Hillary in large part due to support from the male electorate: www.renewamerica.com/columns/roberts/080624 . And on November 4 the guys delivered again, with more men pulling the lever in favor of Mr. Obama than for John McCain.
And even with a weak economy ballooning his sails and a Republican opponent staging a lackluster campaign, the charismatic Democrat managed to garner only 53% of the popular vote.
Soon after the election the National Organization for Women issued its Action Agenda for 2009 and Beyond: www.now.org/issues/agenda2009.html .
This mind-boggling 10-page manifesto calls on Obama to mandate 50% female cabinet appointees, install NOW lackeys throughout the federal bureaucracy, enforce Title IX, impose "comparative worth" on the workplace, and more.
In the abortion arena, the NOW-nags call on Obama to repeal all federal limits to abortion on demand, force doctors to perform abortions against their will, allow teenage girls to get contraception without a doctor's prescription, and of course install activist judges to advance their culture-of-death jihad.
A socialist society requires a revamp of the traditional family, as well. So the NOW wants to stop marriage programs, oppose any constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, and appropriate $10 billion a year for daycare programs. And don't forget to fully fund the Violence Against Women Act — VAWA might come in handy if you ever need to send dad packing on bogus abuse charges.
Last but not least, the feminists are demanding that we enact the International Violence Against Women Act, ratify the UN Treaty on Women (CEDAW), and spend $1 billion to subsidize global "family planning."
How's that for an in-your-face agenda?
Forgiveness does not come easily to the Maidens of Mendacity. Columnist Katha Pollitt recently combed through the laundry list of long-remembered slights. Once Obama informed his daughters he wasn't going to buy them a "girly-dog" — yikes! There was the Barbara Walters interview when Barack had the audacity to interrupt Michelle. And here's the crusher: "No one has forgotten that Barack called a reporter 'sweetie' months ago," Pollitt wailed.
Yes, they were delighted when Hillary ("Research shows the presence of women raises the standards of ethical behavior") was selected as Secretary of State. But when news got out that only one-quarter of Obama's cabinet picks were female (including the eminently qualified Hilda Solis at Labor), the fems lapsed into a purple-faced funk.
Amy Siskind, founder of the New Agenda was disconsolate, admitting, "We had high hopes for president-elect Obama going into this, and it's been very discouraging." And NOW president Kim Gandy put on her best pouty-face: "we still are such a small minority in the top boardrooms of the country starting with the Cabinet."
But the pain of so few female cabinet members was mollified by the hope of establishing a Cabinet-level advisor on women's issues, maybe even a presidential commission.
But when word leaked out that Obama's Council on Women and Girls had no full-time staff, the girls pulled out the long knives. Calling the group a Clinton-era "retread," Martha Burk charged, "I think it falls fall short of what's needed." (Burk, you recall, was the woman who cried wolf because the Augusta National Golf Club did not admit females.)
And what will be the number one priority of the fledgling Council? According to California First Lady Maria Shriver, the group needs to launch a major inquiry into the stresses facing American women.
News flash! American women are feeling stressed these days, and we need a White House panel to look into that!
Fanciful childhood memories might tempt us to compare the Lefty Ladies to the Wicked Witch of the West. But that allegory is too facile. No, a better comparison is the Wizard himself, the aging blowhard behind the green velvet curtain, bellowing his assorted demands to the unwary and confused.
So next time you talk to a feminist, do a Toto imitation. Tug back the drapes and see who's running the show. You'll discover a con-artist who adeptly twists the facts and strong-arms her opponents into submission.
So hold on tight to those ruby slippers. It's time to break out the brain for Scarecrow, the heart for Tin Man, and most of all, a big dollop of courage for Cowardly Lion.
© Carey Roberts
March 27, 2009
The scene is reminiscent of the Wizard of Oz scene when hordes of winged monkeys are poised on the castle parapet, ready to snatch up Dorothy and her three affable sidekicks. But this time it's not a harmless fairytale, it's a cabal of feminists determined to turn our society into a socialist paradise.
These women dismiss any criticism with a "to the victors go the spoils" shrug. But the fact is, men played a major role in handing Barack Obama his White House victory.
During the Democratic primaries, Barack beat Hillary in large part due to support from the male electorate: www.renewamerica.com/columns/roberts/080624 . And on November 4 the guys delivered again, with more men pulling the lever in favor of Mr. Obama than for John McCain.
And even with a weak economy ballooning his sails and a Republican opponent staging a lackluster campaign, the charismatic Democrat managed to garner only 53% of the popular vote.
Soon after the election the National Organization for Women issued its Action Agenda for 2009 and Beyond: www.now.org/issues/agenda2009.html .
This mind-boggling 10-page manifesto calls on Obama to mandate 50% female cabinet appointees, install NOW lackeys throughout the federal bureaucracy, enforce Title IX, impose "comparative worth" on the workplace, and more.
In the abortion arena, the NOW-nags call on Obama to repeal all federal limits to abortion on demand, force doctors to perform abortions against their will, allow teenage girls to get contraception without a doctor's prescription, and of course install activist judges to advance their culture-of-death jihad.
A socialist society requires a revamp of the traditional family, as well. So the NOW wants to stop marriage programs, oppose any constitutional amendment to ban same-sex marriage, and appropriate $10 billion a year for daycare programs. And don't forget to fully fund the Violence Against Women Act — VAWA might come in handy if you ever need to send dad packing on bogus abuse charges.
Last but not least, the feminists are demanding that we enact the International Violence Against Women Act, ratify the UN Treaty on Women (CEDAW), and spend $1 billion to subsidize global "family planning."
How's that for an in-your-face agenda?
Forgiveness does not come easily to the Maidens of Mendacity. Columnist Katha Pollitt recently combed through the laundry list of long-remembered slights. Once Obama informed his daughters he wasn't going to buy them a "girly-dog" — yikes! There was the Barbara Walters interview when Barack had the audacity to interrupt Michelle. And here's the crusher: "No one has forgotten that Barack called a reporter 'sweetie' months ago," Pollitt wailed.
Yes, they were delighted when Hillary ("Research shows the presence of women raises the standards of ethical behavior") was selected as Secretary of State. But when news got out that only one-quarter of Obama's cabinet picks were female (including the eminently qualified Hilda Solis at Labor), the fems lapsed into a purple-faced funk.
Amy Siskind, founder of the New Agenda was disconsolate, admitting, "We had high hopes for president-elect Obama going into this, and it's been very discouraging." And NOW president Kim Gandy put on her best pouty-face: "we still are such a small minority in the top boardrooms of the country starting with the Cabinet."
But the pain of so few female cabinet members was mollified by the hope of establishing a Cabinet-level advisor on women's issues, maybe even a presidential commission.
But when word leaked out that Obama's Council on Women and Girls had no full-time staff, the girls pulled out the long knives. Calling the group a Clinton-era "retread," Martha Burk charged, "I think it falls fall short of what's needed." (Burk, you recall, was the woman who cried wolf because the Augusta National Golf Club did not admit females.)
And what will be the number one priority of the fledgling Council? According to California First Lady Maria Shriver, the group needs to launch a major inquiry into the stresses facing American women.
News flash! American women are feeling stressed these days, and we need a White House panel to look into that!
Fanciful childhood memories might tempt us to compare the Lefty Ladies to the Wicked Witch of the West. But that allegory is too facile. No, a better comparison is the Wizard himself, the aging blowhard behind the green velvet curtain, bellowing his assorted demands to the unwary and confused.
So next time you talk to a feminist, do a Toto imitation. Tug back the drapes and see who's running the show. You'll discover a con-artist who adeptly twists the facts and strong-arms her opponents into submission.
So hold on tight to those ruby slippers. It's time to break out the brain for Scarecrow, the heart for Tin Man, and most of all, a big dollop of courage for Cowardly Lion.
© Carey Roberts
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