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Women in the spotlight. (Moderated by Deepika, EleanorSews)
Posted on: 4/2/10 10:02 AM ET
Before I start, this is SO not about politics!
I just read a quick article by AP about the Sarah Palin show on TV last night. I didn't watch it. But in the third line or so, it says:
Seriously, why does it matter what she wore? Do they put that stuff in when they talk about men appearing on shows. And just to hit both sides, they do the same thing to Michelle Obama. They focus so much on what she wears. Why not focus on her accomplishments as an attorney.
This really bothers me. I'm experiencing some "glass ceiling" and "boys club" issues at work right now and this just hit home for me.
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I just read a quick article by AP about the Sarah Palin show on TV last night. I didn't watch it. But in the third line or so, it says:
Quote:
"Heroism, courage, generosity and a warrior spirit - these are things that unite all Americans," said Palin, clad in a bright red blazer, at the top of the hour.
"Heroism, courage, generosity and a warrior spirit - these are things that unite all Americans," said Palin, clad in a bright red blazer, at the top of the hour.
Seriously, why does it matter what she wore? Do they put that stuff in when they talk about men appearing on shows. And just to hit both sides, they do the same thing to Michelle Obama. They focus so much on what she wears. Why not focus on her accomplishments as an attorney.
This really bothers me. I'm experiencing some "glass ceiling" and "boys club" issues at work right now and this just hit home for me.
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http://kimsewsilly.blogspot.com/
Posted on: 4/2/10 10:11 AM ET
I think it's appropriate in the case of Michelle Obama, since she is merely the spouse of a politician but not one herself. It's less appropriate for someone who is a politician, although you could really argue that Sarah Palin isn't a politician anymore--just a public figure.
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Erin in Dallas
http://amateursewist.blogspot.com/
http://amateursewist.blogspot.com/
Posted on: 4/2/10 10:41 AM ET
Like I said, this isn't about politics. It just so happened that this particular tidbit was written about Sarah Palin. I threw in the Michelle Obama part because she is another person who I feel gets so much attention on her wardrobe. I do think both women have great style.
I'm just bothered by the fact that in today's day and age it still matters so much more what a woman wore or looks like than a man. If that had been an article written about a man, do you think they would have mentioned his tie or sportcoat?
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I'm just bothered by the fact that in today's day and age it still matters so much more what a woman wore or looks like than a man. If that had been an article written about a man, do you think they would have mentioned his tie or sportcoat?
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http://kimsewsilly.blogspot.com/
Posted on: 4/2/10 10:46 AM ET
No, a man's clothing would probably not be mentioned unless it was inappropriate in some way. Women have far more leeway in their clothing choices and we tend to dress more elaborately than men do.
You could argue that that's the reason why so much attention is paid to how women in all walks of life are dressed.
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You could argue that that's the reason why so much attention is paid to how women in all walks of life are dressed.
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Erin in Dallas
http://amateursewist.blogspot.com/
http://amateursewist.blogspot.com/
Posted on: 4/2/10 12:08 PM ET
Yes, unless it is a fashion column, it makes not sense to report what women are wearing. It also bothers me when I read things like "Ms. President of name-your-country, grandmother of 6" type of stuff. We should be done with that sort of thing in the 21st century.
In Canada we have a tradition of finance ministers wearing new shoes to present a budget. I had no idea where that came from until just now when I googled it. Here's an explanation of it.
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In Canada we have a tradition of finance ministers wearing new shoes to present a budget. I had no idea where that came from until just now when I googled it. Here's an explanation of it.
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http://bgballroom.wordpress.com to follow the progress on my next ballgown.
Posted on: 4/2/10 12:12 PM ET
My husband made an interesting comment on a post I'd written about Palin's warddrobe scandal (not what you think). This is what he said, hope it's not too long
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Quote:
Look, nobody is more cynical than me about politics, but even I understand the amount of money spent on this stuff. We live in a world where every campaign photo op is going to be shown nearly continuously for 72 hours and then archived away into a rather impressive database. It’s a-whole-nother level of scrutiny that these people are under, one that very few of us will ever know. So spending $6k-7k for this, or $150k for that is not surprising and you would do it, too. Which is why it was not the point of Kathleen’s entry (she has mentioned this idea of pantyhose being a business deduction to me before).
Let me put it this way (because I just sat through a presentation on it this week): when the Lewinsky news broke, one network found that clip of Monica in the beret talking to Bill on the White House lawn somewhere in their archives. They leased that out to the other networks and made millions on it. Every other network then realized the value of the intellectual property they were sitting on and went to the trouble to digitize all of their old film and analog coverage, complete with metadata tags (keywords) derived from observation of the images plus automated analysis of the voiceover, etc. The result was seen last year when Jim McKay died and within a few minutes they were pulling up his first broadcast and that clip from the ‘72 Olympics when he said “They’re all gone.” Even the NBA has spent millions digitizing and tagging their games, so whenever someone makes a three-point shot in the 3rd Quarter of Game 3 of the Western playoffs, they can pull up footage of Magic Johnson doing the same thing in 1984 (or whatever) before the 4th Q even starts.
So you’re dealing with two problems: ubiquity and forever. Now, imagine that you are going to jump into that limelight. Still wanna be caught wearing something cheap, ill-fitting, the wrong color? No, you want to wear something that doesn’t distract from the carefully orchestrated message. Male politicians in that regard can always resort to very, very conservative suits; women have the much more difficult job of having to shoot the gap between feminine and “serious”, and they must do it without appearing to be trying to do it. You don’t have to approve of the person to understand the pressure and scrutiny they are under, D or R.
Look, nobody is more cynical than me about politics, but even I understand the amount of money spent on this stuff. We live in a world where every campaign photo op is going to be shown nearly continuously for 72 hours and then archived away into a rather impressive database. It’s a-whole-nother level of scrutiny that these people are under, one that very few of us will ever know. So spending $6k-7k for this, or $150k for that is not surprising and you would do it, too. Which is why it was not the point of Kathleen’s entry (she has mentioned this idea of pantyhose being a business deduction to me before).
Let me put it this way (because I just sat through a presentation on it this week): when the Lewinsky news broke, one network found that clip of Monica in the beret talking to Bill on the White House lawn somewhere in their archives. They leased that out to the other networks and made millions on it. Every other network then realized the value of the intellectual property they were sitting on and went to the trouble to digitize all of their old film and analog coverage, complete with metadata tags (keywords) derived from observation of the images plus automated analysis of the voiceover, etc. The result was seen last year when Jim McKay died and within a few minutes they were pulling up his first broadcast and that clip from the ‘72 Olympics when he said “They’re all gone.” Even the NBA has spent millions digitizing and tagging their games, so whenever someone makes a three-point shot in the 3rd Quarter of Game 3 of the Western playoffs, they can pull up footage of Magic Johnson doing the same thing in 1984 (or whatever) before the 4th Q even starts.
So you’re dealing with two problems: ubiquity and forever. Now, imagine that you are going to jump into that limelight. Still wanna be caught wearing something cheap, ill-fitting, the wrong color? No, you want to wear something that doesn’t distract from the carefully orchestrated message. Male politicians in that regard can always resort to very, very conservative suits; women have the much more difficult job of having to shoot the gap between feminine and “serious”, and they must do it without appearing to be trying to do it. You don’t have to approve of the person to understand the pressure and scrutiny they are under, D or R.
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http://fashion-incubator.com
Lessons from the sustainable sewing factory floor
Lessons from the sustainable sewing factory floor
Posted on: 4/2/10 12:29 PM ET
In reply to racehorse
Quote:
I think it's appropriate in the case of Michelle Obama, since she is merely the spouse of a politician but not one herself.
I think it's appropriate in the case of Michelle Obama, since she is merely the spouse of a politician but not one herself.
I don't think we really apply that "rule" fairly, though. Did anyone ever comment on what Margaret Thatcher's husband was wearing when he went out? I think in some ways, despite all the progress women have made in the last 30-40 years, society still has the very old-fashioned notion that all women -- no matter how high-ranking or important -- are still "objects." Even well-known, attractive men in show business (George Clooney, etc.) are rarely described in terms of their clothes. What gives?
(No comment on your "merely," since this is not about politics...)
-- Edited on 4/2/10 12:29 PM --
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my shield and my very great reward ~ Gen. 15:1
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. ~ Albert Einstein
People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be, not what you nag them to be. ~ Scudder N. Parker
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. ~ Albert Einstein
People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be, not what you nag them to be. ~ Scudder N. Parker
Posted on: 4/2/10 12:46 PM ET
Yes, please let's not make this about politics 
The thing to me with Michelle Obama, and the same went for Hillary Clinton, was that all their prior accomplishments and successes in their own right, not that associated with their husbands, went out the door when they became "the wife." People put so much more emphasis on what they wore, followed protocols, etc., than who THEY were as people. Both of them are highly educated, intelligent women, who seem to have been dropped down to the status of object in a sense.
I would have loved to hear more about their accomplishments than their choice of jacket or dress. Poor Hillary too...man they beat her up for her fashion choices
I agree with Kathleen's husband that women are under so much more scrutiny regarding what to wear and how it will be perceived which is a shame.
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The thing to me with Michelle Obama, and the same went for Hillary Clinton, was that all their prior accomplishments and successes in their own right, not that associated with their husbands, went out the door when they became "the wife." People put so much more emphasis on what they wore, followed protocols, etc., than who THEY were as people. Both of them are highly educated, intelligent women, who seem to have been dropped down to the status of object in a sense.
I would have loved to hear more about their accomplishments than their choice of jacket or dress. Poor Hillary too...man they beat her up for her fashion choices

I agree with Kathleen's husband that women are under so much more scrutiny regarding what to wear and how it will be perceived which is a shame.
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http://kimsewsilly.blogspot.com/
Posted on: 4/2/10 1:23 PM ET
I think that until we (women as a group, and, yes, women more than men) stop caring about fashion and what other women are wearing above what they have or have not done, the articles and clips are going to continue to comment and/or tell us. IOW, supply and demand.
If we cared as much about what men wore, you can be darn sure that would be constantly mentioned/covered too.
As to Michelle O - she's the First Lady and it's a fairly long-standing tradition that First Ladies are fashion statements/icons. It kind of goes with the territory.
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If we cared as much about what men wore, you can be darn sure that would be constantly mentioned/covered too.
As to Michelle O - she's the First Lady and it's a fairly long-standing tradition that First Ladies are fashion statements/icons. It kind of goes with the territory.
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"I base my fashion sense on what doesn't itch." — Gilda Radner
http://stitchesandseams.blogspot.com
"I base my fashion sense on what doesn't itch." — Gilda Radner
http://stitchesandseams.blogspot.com
Posted on: 4/2/10 1:49 PM ET
In reply to Debbie Cook
Quote:
I think that until we (women as a group, and, yes, women more than men) stop caring about fashion and what other women are wearing above what they have or have not done, the articles and clips are going to continue to comment and/or tell us. IOW, supply and demand.
I think that until we (women as a group, and, yes, women more than men) stop caring about fashion and what other women are wearing above what they have or have not done, the articles and clips are going to continue to comment and/or tell us. IOW, supply and demand.
Good point. Now how do we stop doing this -- realistically -- since most of us obviously notice these things whether we want to or not?
(hard wiring? upbringing? I'm not sure why we do this.)-- Edited on 4/2/10 1:50 PM --
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my shield and my very great reward ~ Gen. 15:1
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. ~ Albert Einstein
People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be, not what you nag them to be. ~ Scudder N. Parker
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
If you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid. ~ Albert Einstein
People have a way of becoming what you encourage them to be, not what you nag them to be. ~ Scudder N. Parker
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