Letter: Female anatomy also includes brains

I am angry. And it has taken me several days to figure out why. Finally, I realized that my irritation stems from both political parties and the media deciding that reproductive rights are the only issue of concern to women.

The fact that three male Republican candidates recently made uneducated remarks about women’s biological processes has sent the Democrats, Republicans and media running for their pollsters to see how women will react. It’s not just Republican candidates. I am quite certain you could find three male Democratic politicians right here in Louisiana who hold the same beliefs — and probably some women. The news coverage and stump speech focus on this matter is completely out of proportion.

I am strongly pro-choice, but I do not want anyone assuming I am a single-issue voter because I happen to be a woman. Yes, reproductive rights are an essential part of being female. However, I’m sure our military women stationed in Afghanistan consider potential loss of life and limb to be an essential matter, as well. Therefore, defense and foreign policy become serious issues to them, their families and all citizens.

Then there is the economy. Now there’s a pretty important item for women. Can I feed my children? Can I save enough to retire with some comfort and safety? Will our currency retain its value? Will China own us? What about equal pay for equal work? Apparently economics is not linked to a specific gender either.

It seems to me the political parties, publications and TV anchors have reverted to treating women as children, to be told what their thoughts and opinions should be. Women are not a bloc. Nor are they monolithic or one-dimensional. So stop chattering continually about our reproductive organs. Believe it or not, we can think for ourselves, thank you.

Diana Armstrong

retired business owner

Baton Rouge

Comments

1) Comment by ScotB - 03/11/2012

I might point out that the Republican Party was the first political party to support women's right to vote. When the 19th amendment was ratified, 26 of the 36 state legislatures that approved it were under Republican control. Lots of people don't know it, but the Republican Party was also the one that supported abolishing slavery (Lincoln) and civil rights for blacks. These are the facts. The Republican Party has been the party of limited government, strong military, and freedom of the American people & freedom of people of the world.

2) Comment by Tea_Slayer - 01/11/2012

DMJ, I was flipping through the channel late one night after sandy hit. All of the news channels were focused on the aftermath of the storm...Guess what Fox "news" was discussing? Benghazi. And this was over a three hour period. Not one mention of Sandy except for the scroll at the bottom of the screen. They (Fox and Whatnow) are just a mouthpiece for the RW and they ARE desperate to manufacture a controversy. Heck, Newt prefaced every one of his statements with “this is just a rumor but…blah blah blah Benghazi”. Yes, mistakes were made; Americans lost their lives; but its not some huge cover-up. And Whatnow accuses other of “drumming up these controversies”. Sheesh

3) Comment by HerbF - 01/11/2012

This letter simply states the obvious. There's nothing new, either factual or perspective. Reproductive issues are very important. Check. Women have all the same issues men do. check.

4) Comment by [e-mail] - 01/11/2012

Tea_Slayer's comments show an empathy for Republican sensitivity that was hitherto out of sight; it's good to see that perhaps there is hope anon.

5) Comment by Tea_Slayer - 01/11/2012

Romney’s next lie, that Chrysler is shipping production of Jeeps to China. “"I saw a story today that one of the great manufacturers in this state Jeep — now owned by the Italians — is thinking of moving all production to China," Romney said. Romney had been working off an article from Bloomberg News about Fiat’s discussions to start making Jeeps again in China. The old Chrysler had assembly plants in China, but they had been idle since 2009. Romney’s words drew an immediate and firm denial from Chrysler headquarters. "Jeep has no intention of shifting production of its Jeep models out of North America to China," the statement said. "A careful and unbiased reading of the Bloomberg take would have saved unnecessary fantasies and extravagant comments." --- http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2012/oct/30/mitt-romney/mitt-romney-obama-chrysler-sold-italians-china-ame/

6) Comment by Tea_Slayer - 01/11/2012

blind party allegiance is being shown proof of a lie then stating " And Romney didn't lie about those things." The controversy IS the fact that Romney lies. I won the argument but you are too blind to see that. I supported it with FACTS. I bet you didn’t even click on the links, so I will post a quote from one article. “What actually happened was that in 2002 -- prior to the election, not even knowing yet whether it would be a Republican or Democratic administration -- a bipartisan group of women in Massachusetts formed MassGAP to address the problem of few women in senior leadership positions in state government. There were more than 40 organizations involved with the Massachusetts Women's Political Caucus (also bipartisan) as the lead sponsor. They did the research and put together the binder full of women qualified for all the different cabinet positions, agency heads, and authorities and commissions. They presented this binder to Governor Romney when he was elected” --- http://blog.thephoenix.com/BLOGS/talkingpolitics/archive/2012/10/16/mind-the-binder.aspx

7) Comment by Whatnow - 31/10/2012

@Tea_Slayer, you didn't ask who brought up the controversy, you asked who was drumming up these controversies to detract from the real issues. Drumming up: To make known to or force upon (a person) by constant repetition (The Free Dictionary) Big difference. "If you don’t have a record to run on, then you paint your opponent as someone people should run from. You make a big election about small things,”Obama said in his 2008 address. Same thing goes for you, when you can't win an argument, you resort to name calling. And Romney didn't lie about those things. Obama did. And you're right about responding to you again. I shouldn't have. Thank you for reminding me. It's beneath my dignity as a Christian to argue. But, I am an sinful human. I will pray tonight and be absolved and try not to do it again, except on abortion. Someone has to fight for all those murdered babies. They can't do it for themselves, since they have no choice but to die.

8) Comment by Whatchange - 31/10/2012

boy the fear mongering is alive and well in here.

9) Comment by The_Host - 31/10/2012

Both parties will do it. But at this point I only hear one party actually saying what needs to be done and that is to cut spending. Then I don't think they are even really serious about it like I would cut it if they handed me the knife. I would gut this pig. You will never hear a liberal say CUT something unless it is the Military. Which I think could also be cut and brought home to allow everyone in Socialist Europe to pay for their own military AND their freebies. Lets see how broke they are then! Here we are paying to defend ourselves and the world while trying to give away freebies more and more because that is what the trend had been in Europe. While they haven't had to fund a military and STILL can not afford to pay or make work a freebie driven system financially. The math just doesn't work and the people don't work. I know you think I am some super Conservative but I am not. When it comes to money I am when it comes to freedom I am not. Just that simple. Hands off my wallet, morals out of my house and have a nice day. That is truly freedom is it not?

10) Comment by potkcalb - 31/10/2012

After reading some of these comments I would only question a woman's intelligence if she voted Republican in the election. Be afraid women, be very, very afraid.

11) Comment by DMJ - 31/10/2012

First, the federal government can't directly fund abortion. See: Hyde Amendment. Secondly, taxpayer subsidized contraception is way, way cheaper than taxpayer funded prenatal care, childbirth, post-natal care, pre-school, public school, medicaid, SNAP (a.k.a. food stamps), college...or incarceration, etc, etc, etc,.. Think about it. And lastly, contrary to what those on the losing side of this argument would have you believe, this IS a very big issue. If Romney is elected and gets to replace Ruth Ginsberg on the Supreme Court (and possibly one or two more justices), Roe v. Wade will be overturned, thus giving state governments direct control over a women's reproductive rights. Like I said....if I was a woman...this would be a dealbreaker for me. Everyone's pro-life when it's someone else's life but are pro-choice when it comes to their own.

12) Comment by Tea_Slayer - 31/10/2012

Who brought up Big Bird? Romney. http://tinyurl.com/8e5vnum Who’s lying about outsourcing? Romney http://tinyurl.com/9qwcawk Who’s making abortion a platform issue? Republicans. http://tinyurl.com/buanrqa Who lied about the binders? Romney. http://tinyurl.com/ar8h6nz

13) Comment by Tea_Slayer - 31/10/2012

How are the taxpayers funding it, you old coot? Did Hannity tell you that? Or was it Michelle Bachmann, the beard… Your latest rant just proves YET AGIAN that you are incapable of rational thought and that you are just a parrot for the RW. And how about the lie you told that you would quit responding to my posts? Who is obsessed with whom? Gonna go get absolved for that one on Sunday AGAIN?

14) Comment by Whatnow - 31/10/2012

Women can make their own decisions about their own bodies as long as they don't ask taxpayers to fund those decisions or mistakes. And Tea_Slayer, how about "binders", lies about "murder", tax evasion, outsourcing, Big Bird,etc. You know, all those real issues that effected this country for the last four years. You want to make decisions about your own body, but you want the taxpayers to fund it? That is putting the government in charge of your "body parts." How is that a personal decision if the taxpayers are involved? Just what party started off from the beginning to turn this into a major issue? I agree with Diane that this issue is completely out of proportion. The majority of women don't think with their "body parts". They care more about the economy, Benghazi, defense and foreign policy, and what our government is doing behind the scenes and the way they are handling their job.

15) Comment by Tea_Slayer - 31/10/2012

The_host, which party is ' drumming up phony controversy to distract from all the real issues?"

16) Comment by Tea_Slayer - 31/10/2012

Diana, the only reason our reproductive organs are part of the political discussion is because the grey haired men of one party think they "know better" than we women do when it comes to those organs and want to take away our right to make our own decisions about our bodies

17) Comment by The_Host - 31/10/2012

You can not convince me Nancy Pelosi has a brain. Then again you can't convince me she is even a woman for that matter. This is all part of the liberal divide and conquer mentatlity. I mean the biggest thing facing our nation as a whole at this time is free birth control and abortion right? Lets stay as far away from the real problems by drumming up phony controversy to distract from all the real issues no one ever addresses.

18) Comment by phil - 31/10/2012

I actually understand the writer's position on this. Every person has different views on each separate subject. To even treat liberals, conservatives, Democrats, Republicans etc as a bloc is probably a big mistake. We all tend to make up our own minds on each separate subject based on facts ( at least I hope so).

19) Comment by Being_Stupid - 31/10/2012

We understand that women have brains, we just don't understand what they are thinking about.

20) Comment by DMJ - 31/10/2012

If I was a woman and (at least, in terms of national politics) one major party was committed to the idea that I couldn't think or decide for myself, that my reproductive rights were better managed by the government than by myself....I would call that a dealbreaker. But hey...that's just me. Oh, and thanks to President Obama for signing the Lilly Ledbetter Fair Pay Act.

21) Comment by [e-mail] - 31/10/2012

I think I have something to offer here that will help to clear the fog surrounding this issue, i.e. yes, women do have brains. This is demonstrated remarkably well by the fact that intelligence in women can be directly correlated to show that the higher the heels and shorter the skirts the more intelligent the woman. This fact can not be disputed except superficially by mean spirited types regardless of political persuasion.

22) Comment by 8point6 - 31/10/2012

Great letter, Ms. Armstrong.

23) Comment by palefire - 31/10/2012

I be you would complain if they didn't mention women at all. I really don't see a problem here. I hear more talk about equal pay than talk about reproductive rights from politicians. I never hear him them get gender specific when they talk about the economy so I really don't understand how you feel left out as a woman.