My biggest problem with all the media coverage around these and similar events is that they completely ignore the needs and feelings of the wives. When I turned on the news after the recent Spitzer prostitution scandal, all these pundits (many of them female) were asking “How can she stand by him after that?” During the Clinton scandal, the same was said of Hillary.
Do these people ever stop to consider that maybe they’re obligated to stand by their fallen men?? That maybe they don’t want to stand up there in front of the world and let their stoic expressions say “I forgive him.”
Image source: http://www.nationalpost.com
Look at Spitzer's wife in the photo. Do you see forgiveness in her eyes? I sure as hell don't.
Hillary stood by in much the same way, only after 10 years did she finally reveal her pain.
Regardless of what the women actually want to do, what they're made to do creates a much bigger problem.
Please correct me if I’m wrong, but doesn’t this send out a terrible message to the female audience? To see these women, so privileged and powerful, standing next to their cheater husbands and not shedding a tear or a hostile expression; nothing but a look of solemn disconnect.
I don’t think that women should be subjugated. Making women believe that they need to stand by their men, regardless of whether those men are good to them, is pure subjugation.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Spitzer and Clinton: What about the wives?
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4 comments:
the recent New York Magazine coverage of the Spitzer mess reveals that before his initial press conference, she was crying uncontrolably, and that's why the press conference was delayed. They were waiting for her to get it together.
It was a very "real" moment, and when I read that I so wanted to punch Spitzer in his thin-lipped face!!!
Seriously! It's right there in the open, but the guy doesn't care about her at all. He just wants to use her as a tool in order to gain back some public approval.
I can't help but feel that a good portion of her pain is due to this further inconsideration, even after the news broke.
This may sound kinda naive, but isnt it their choice to stay with the guy? sure there probably is pressure from different angles, but at the end of the day it is a personal life choice they're making, no one can stop her from walking out the door if she really wanted to.
Pink mist - not naive at all! They certainly have a choice. The whole point I'm trying to make, is that these particular women (Clinton and Spitzer) did not want to stand by their men, but were kind of forced to.
With Spitzer's wife, I saw all the news clips. She was totally not there mentally, just holding back tears and staring off into nothingness.
Clinton had that same face during that scandal, and 10 years later she finally was able to admit how she really felt at the time.
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