Re: [RE][scifinoir2] OT: Talk Show Host Criticizes McCain's Weight Along with Her Views
Amen, brother! - Original Message - From: Martin Baxter truthseeker...@lycos.com To: scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Sent: Tuesday, March 17, 2009 8:09:26 AM GMT -05:00 US/Canada Eastern Subject: [RE][scifinoir2] OT: Talk Show Host Criticizes McCain's Weight Along with Her Views So pathetic that it surpasses the bans. If I were a religious person, I'd be on my knees, praying for Ingraham. Funny thing? She probably *is* a regular church-goer. -[ Received Mail Content ]-- Subject : [scifinoir2] OT: Talk Show Host Criticizes McCain's Weight Along with Her Views Date : Tue, 17 Mar 2009 02:27:47 + (UTC) From : Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@comcast.net To : scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Wow, it just keeps coming. So this lady disagrees with McCain, and instead of a rebuttal, decides to attack her weight? But then, what do you expect from the folks who brought the he's a Muslim attacks against Obama, or who elevated the likes of Joe the Plumber to torture us on the telly every day? I really believe one of the biggest problems nowadays is the out-of-proportion weight given to anyone with a mic or TV show who can bluster unceasingly about anything that ticks them off. I've often railed about how even the supposedly professional outfits like CNN are now populated with so-called pundits who seem more intent on expressing an opinion and getting exposure than actually analyzing and intelligently debating the issues. So much nowadays is grandstanding, yelling, insulting, defaming. Broken record here, i know, but again, this is why I watch the Jim Lehrer News Hour, listen to Bill Moyers' Report, and watch Charlie Rose. At least there's no name calling and fist pounding on their shows. This would be funny if it weren't so pathetic and disturbing. I'd like to dismiss this as just the rantings of a lady I *never* listen to, but it's people like her who unfortunately are feeding and feeding off the minds of so many angry Americans nowadays... http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/16/a-conservative-pundits-plus-size-remark/ Criticizing a woman’s weight is one of the “last frontiers of socially-acceptable prejudice,” says Meghan McCain, the daughter of Senator John McCain. Ms. McCain, who calls herself a progressive Republican, was responding to remarks by conservative radio host Laura Ingraham. It all started when Ms. McCain, 24, criticized Republican pundit Ann Coulter for her extreme views in an online column and an interview with talk show host Rachel Maddow . That enraged Ms. Ingraham, who responded on her radio show by mimicking Ms. McCain, using a caustic “Valley girl” voice. (The blog ThinkProgress has the audio .) Among her remarks: O.K., I was really hoping that I was going to get that role in “The Real World,” but then I realized that, well, they don’t like plus-sized models. Ms. McCain, who would be considered normal weight by most standards, responded in The Daily Beast with a highly personal column called “The Politics of Weight .” I have been teased about my weight and body figure since I was in middle school, and I decided a very long time ago to embrace what God gave me and live my life positively…. I am a size 8 and fluctuated up to a size 10 during the campaign. It’s ridiculous even to have this conversation because I am not overweight in the least and have a natural body weight. But even if I were overweight, it would be ridiculous. I expected substantive criticism from conservative pundits for my views…. My intent was to generate discussion about the current problems facing the Republican Party. Unfortunately, even though Ingraham is more than 20 years older than I and has been a political pundit for longer, almost, than I have been alive, she responded in a form that was embarrassing to herself and to any woman listening to her radio program who was not a size 0. In today’s society this is, unfortunately, predictable. Everyone from Jessica Simpson to Tyra Banks, Oprah and Hillary Clinton has fallen victim to this type of image-oriented bullying. Recent pictures of Pierce Brosnan’s wife, Keely Shaye Smith, on the beach in her bikini raised criticism about her weight and choice of bathing suit — as if the woman should be wearing a giant muumuu to swim in the ocean. After Kelly Clarkson’s recent appearance on “American Idol,” the first commentary I read on the Internet was about her weight gain instead of her singing. My weight was consistently criticized throughout the campaign. Once someone even suggested I go to a plastic surgeon for liposuction. Afterward, I blogged about loving my body and suggested critics focus their insecurities about women’s bodies elsewhere. On the other side, my mother was constantly slammed for being too skinny, so the weight obsession of the media and our culture goes both
[RE][scifinoir2] OT: Talk Show Host Criticizes McCain's Weight Along with Her Views
So pathetic that it surpasses the bans. If I were a religious person, I'd be on my knees, praying for Ingraham. Funny thing? She probably *is* a regular church-goer. -[ Received Mail Content ]-- Subject : [scifinoir2] OT: Talk Show Host Criticizes McCain's Weight Along with Her Views Date : Tue, 17 Mar 2009 02:27:47 + (UTC) From : Keith Johnson keithbjohn...@comcast.net To : scifinoir2@yahoogroups.com Wow, it just keeps coming. So this lady disagrees with McCain, and instead of a rebuttal, decides to attack her weight? But then, what do you expect from the folks who brought the he's a Muslim attacks against Obama, or who elevated the likes of Joe the Plumber to torture us on the telly every day? I really believe one of the biggest problems nowadays is the out-of-proportion weight given to anyone with a mic or TV show who can bluster unceasingly about anything that ticks them off. I've often railed about how even the supposedly professional outfits like CNN are now populated with so-called pundits who seem more intent on expressing an opinion and getting exposure than actually analyzing and intelligently debating the issues. So much nowadays is grandstanding, yelling, insulting, defaming. Broken record here, i know, but again, this is why I watch the Jim Lehrer News Hour, listen to Bill Moyers' Report, and watch Charlie Rose. At least there's no name calling and fist pounding on their shows. This would be funny if it weren't so pathetic and disturbing. I'd like to dismiss this as just the rantings of a lady I *never* listen to, but it's people like her who unfortunately are feeding and feeding off the minds of so many angry Americans nowadays... http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/03/16/a-conservative-pundits-plus-size-remark/ Criticizing a woman’s weight is one of the “last frontiers of socially-acceptable prejudice,” says Meghan McCain, the daughter of Senator John McCain. Ms. McCain, who calls herself a progressive Republican, was responding to remarks by conservative radio host Laura Ingraham. It all started when Ms. McCain, 24, criticized Republican pundit Ann Coulter for her extreme views in an online column and an interview with talk show host Rachel Maddow . That enraged Ms. Ingraham, who responded on her radio show by mimicking Ms. McCain, using a caustic “Valley girl” voice. (The blog ThinkProgress has the audio .) Among her remarks: O.K., I was really hoping that I was going to get that role in “The Real World,” but then I realized that, well, they don’t like plus-sized models. Ms. McCain, who would be considered normal weight by most standards, responded in The Daily Beast with a highly personal column called “The Politics of Weight .” I have been teased about my weight and body figure since I was in middle school, and I decided a very long time ago to embrace what God gave me and live my life positively…. I am a size 8 and fluctuated up to a size 10 during the campaign. It’s ridiculous even to have this conversation because I am not overweight in the least and have a natural body weight. But even if I were overweight, it would be ridiculous. I expected substantive criticism from conservative pundits for my views…. My intent was to generate discussion about the current problems facing the Republican Party. Unfortunately, even though Ingraham is more than 20 years older than I and has been a political pundit for longer, almost, than I have been alive, she responded in a form that was embarrassing to herself and to any woman listening to her radio program who was not a size 0. In today’s society this is, unfortunately, predictable. Everyone from Jessica Simpson to Tyra Banks, Oprah and Hillary Clinton has fallen victim to this type of image-oriented bullying. Recent pictures of Pierce Brosnan’s wife, Keely Shaye Smith, on the beach in her bikini raised criticism about her weight and choice of bathing suit — as if the woman should be wearing a giant muumuu to swim in the ocean. After Kelly Clarkson’s recent appearance on “American Idol,” the first commentary I read on the Internet was about her weight gain instead of her singing. My weight was consistently criticized throughout the campaign. Once someone even suggested I go to a plastic surgeon for liposuction. Afterward, I blogged about loving my body and suggested critics focus their insecurities about women’s bodies elsewhere. On the other side, my mother was constantly slammed for being too skinny, so the weight obsession of the media and our culture goes both ways. It also goes to both parties. Hillary Clinton has consistently received criticism for her pantsuits and figure. Whatever someone’s party, these criticisms are quite obviously both wrong and distracting from the larger issues at play. The question remains: Why, after all this time and all the
