The New York Times asks whether Obama’s White House is too male-dominated. It took the Times weeks to acknowledge the Acorn and Vann Jones stories, but a little delusional grousing about all-male (as opposed to?) basketball games immediately catapults the feminist complaint to front-page status. As delightful as it is to see the furies of identity politics howling after a liberal Democratic administration, one that has always encouraged identity solipsism, it is equally scary to contemplate the possibility that the Obama administration may be even more responsive to feminist hen-pecking than spineless Republicans. To be sure, Obama’s rejection of the basketball criticism was refreshingly vigorous:
Mr. Obama, in an interview with NBC on Wednesday, called the beef over basketball “bunk.” . . . “I don’t think it sends any kind of message or signal whatsoever.”
But he could have also rebuffed the charge of male-dominated policy-making on the substantive ground that his political initiatives –expansion of government social service and education unions under the guise of economic stimulus, explosion of welfare state initiatives, suspicion of private sector autonomy—is as feminized an agenda as any Womanist Studies gynocrat could hope for.
“expansion of government social service and education unions under the guise of economic stimulus, explosion of welfare state initiatives, suspicion of private sector autonomy—is as feminized an agenda”
This may be true, but it’s the agenda of a lot of groups, not just feminists. It’s pandering across a wide range. Equal-opportunity pandering, if you will.
you wrote: all-male (as opposed to?) basketball games
As someone who has played pickup games with anonymous girls, I would just like to confirm that it is very problematic. If you block one of their shots they will give you a death stare, and don’t even think about posting up or playing physical defense. They also get mad if you pass them the ball too little or too much, or let them score.
Just like almost any other competitive or cooperative endeavor undertaken by a group, it’s futile. Especially if feminist types are involved.