Extra extra, read all about it.

So…NARAL just came out in support of Obama, who is *gasp* a man, for those of you who weren’t sure. I don’t know about all you vaginas (since it’s obviously what we think with) out there, but I had always thought that he had a stronger pro-choice position than Hillary. Although I’m currently perusing both their websites and can’t find anything concrete on either. I thought he, at least, was better than that. [See Obama on Family, Education, or Ethics; wait, maybe it's under Heathcare, or Poverty...nope? Too bad there's no search function. See Hillary as a Champion for Women and Supporting Parents and Caring for Children (I feel like a Dick & Jane book). No? Well, she doesn't have a search function either.]

John sent me an email to see what I’d heard in the Feminist Blogosphere (I’d not heard anything, actually, his email was the first), so I Googled it. According to him, “a lot of NARAL folks were pretty pissed off”, which I shall leave to him to substantiate (sorry, I’ve got fifteen tabs open in this window alone, my li’l iBook cana take much more ). So this is what I found in the feminist blogosphere:

The usually verbose Feministe had a very short post regarding it which I feel sums up my frustration with this:

This is going to ruffle some feathers.

Which just sets this up as a cat-fight. We feminists are so disorganized, so unsure of what is in our own best interests, such bitches, that we just can’t agree on anything! Excuse me while I contract a case of the vapours.

Pandagon was quite equanimous about it. She brings up the fact that he has a strong track record, has a better chance of winning, and is not McCain (which is a slightly odd argument, but okay), all of which make him a good choice for (a) people, (b) women, and (c) feminist organizations with political clout. Pandagon is disturbed by the comments on NARAL’s site (the cat-fight noted above) and reiterates that the point is having a feminist in the White House.

Feministing, my favorite (and only one left on my daily click) mentions that EMILY’s List disagrees with the choice but that NARAL’s stated goal is not to promote women in politics (as EMILY’s is) but, again, to promote feminism (and choice). She then leaves open what her particular leanings on the subject are but once again anticipates that there will be a cat-fight:

Thoughts, y’all? (Please, please keep it civil. Both Clinton and Obama supporters are participants in this blog community. Be kind.)

(her emphasis)

As of this posting, Bitch, PhD has not yet weighed in, nor has the Well-Timed Period, who may or may not (she’s more concerned with actual legislation & may not mention it until which ever we get as president passes some asinine legislation).

Which they will. Make no mistake, Hillary and Obama each know how the political game is played and these are the rules: don’t mention the A-word, dance around when asked point-blank about medication (lest we say the word “pill” too loudly), quietly vote for small pieces of legislation that slip through the cracks unnoticed by all but the most rabid of anti-choicers, and publicly state that you’re “pro-woman”, “pro-family”, or “pro-child” which can ambiguously go either way. If either gets to a position of power where they might have the opportunity to introduce a constitutional amendment to uphold the right to choose, I have no illusions that either of them would. Obama has managed to strike me as the less wishy-washy of the two when it comes to this subject (which every smart Democrat is wishy-washy about), but I have been unable to find anything to back that up. Just as, in some circles, an endorsement by George II could be the kiss of death, endorsement by a vocally pro-choice organization may well not be in the best interests of either candidate. I wish Obama well. I wish he was more liberal. I wish our political process allowed him to stand up and say what he believed, rather than what his speech-writers spin for him.

And at the end of the year, I’ll be voting Democratic. It was a hard decision for me, but I cannot afford to throw my vote away this year. This is, of course, contingent on us actually having and election come November. Which I am still not convinced of.

Finally, Feministing reminds us that what is important in this election season is voting. Thanks to those who went before us, even if my first introduction to them was from Mary Poppins.