Say Anything Blog

Politico has a story, of a Lady Congresscritter, who prefers to be called “Congressman” over “Congresswoman”.
And why, do you ask, should that make any difference to anybody? It’s all about choice isn’t it? If she choose to go by “Congressman”, then more power to her!

“I am not one of those [people] who are sensitive about titles,” stressed Blackburn, a conservative Republican who champions low taxes and supports national security measures such as the Patriot Act.

“Not so fast!” say the Feminists!

But for some, name dropping — specifically the “woman” part — is a touchy subject. There’s a reason for that, say leading female academics, women’s policy analysts and other members: Names do matter.
“When they refer to themselves as congresswoman, this sounds different because it is different,” said Latifa Lyles, of the National Organization for Women, a feminist advocacy group. “I think that is significant,” added Lyles, who supports use of the term “congresswoman.”

“We don’t have to pretend we’re not women in order to be leaders in this country,” she said.

Barbara Kellerman, a professor of women’s and government studies at Harvard University, said women — like many minority groups — are repeatedly at odds with issues of nomenclature.

“Whenever we blend with the male appellation, we are diminishing the significance of the accomplishment,” said Kellerman.

Did you get that? “Whenever we blend with the male appellation, we are diminishing the significance of the accomplishment.” unless, of course, you’re from Hollywood!
There, the exact opposite is taking place. Many actresses (take note of that word, it’s disappearing, prefer to be called “actors”, which, the last time I looked was the male appellation! So why would it be a bad thing for Congresswomen to take the “male appellation”, while actresses apparently are trying to do the opposite?
Ah! There you go expecting logic from the liberals. They’re in a ”Logic Free Zone” I fear. But, on the plus side, there are no handguns there!

Cross posted at Proof Positive