The War on Women

It is really hard to know whether to dissect all the misdirection, half-truths and outright lies the President recently told in a truly terrifying Halloween speech, or try to focus on one main topic, the lies about "equality" for women in the workplace. This speech, given at Rhode Island College is laden with the typical rhetoric utilized by politicians of all stripes, but this one provoked personal outrage among many women across the country.

The claims made by Obama in this speech essentially define the "War on Women" as manufactured by Democrats to be rolled out and dusted off every time it's an election year. It is a great campaign tool, especially when the President and others use it to appeal to emotional women who fail to study the actuality of the claims and vote with their heart, leaving their brains firmly locked up in a safe place somewhere. They claim women don't get paid fairly, they claim discrimination in the workforce, they claim every woman is too stupid to function without the help of the Federal Government and they claim to defend a woman's "right to choose".

First, should women be paid the same as men for doing the same job? Absolutely. But the Democrats in particular, love to twist the statistics on this one. If you total up all the jobs and all the wages paid and take the average, yes, women get paid less. However, what they fail miserably to do is present the truth. The truth can be found when apples to apples comparisons are done. What their abuse of statistics fails to note is that many women are part-time workers by choice, who work part-time to supplement their family income. Many of them don't want to work full-time, don't want to advance in their company and don't even want to work. What's that you say? They want to be home with their kids? Heresy! Too many women are forced into the workplace at present to take low-paying jobs to make up for the hits to their family's personal income because of this lousy Obama economy. Where a full-time job used to provide for the needs of a family, many of those jobs have been cut back to under 30 hours because employers cannot afford Obamacare for their employees. Obama loves to brag about the job creation in his tenure, but never bothers to point out that 75% of those jobs are part-time jobs. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/08/21/part-time-job-creation_n_3788365.html) Those jobs are low-paying jobs that do not provide a "living wage" nor do they qualify for benefits. That's not actual job creation Mr. President.

Second, if and when actual discrimination takes place in the workplace, there are already laws on the books to both prevent and punish said cases. Running around claiming rampant discrimination against working women is both fallacious and counter-productive. Not long ago, a group of female employees sued Walmart for wage discrimination. It failed miserably because there was no truth to it. It was nothing more than an effort to financially shake down the largest retailer in the world. But this is the liberal mind-set on full display. Instead of pandering to special interest groups with their imaginary grievances, it would be nice if the President would demonstrate leadership on some of the actual problems we face as a nation.

Third, nearly every point made in this horrific speech pretended to decry the difficult lives that many women live; many times invoking their suffering children as further evidence of the horrible discrimination in this country. Perhaps this is asking a lot, but shouldn't we examine the actual causes of said suffering? How many of those women have chosen to have children out of wedlock? How many have chosen divorce? How many have been sold the bill of goods that you can "have it all", even when it leaves most women stretched too thin, feeling exhausted and guilty? It is indisputable fact that women who are married are more successful financially. Furthermore, children raised in two-parent homes are less prone to addiction, being drop-outs, committing crimes and having their own children out of wedlock. The liberals have decried for years a woman's "dependency" on their husbands while at the same time peddling never-ending government dependency. Which is worse? Is it really so awful for two adults to choose to share their lives together, share the responsibility of establishing a home, share the responsibility of bringing children into the world and take full responsibility for raising and providing for them? We make decisions every day and those decisions have consequences. Of course, there are women who actually suffer through no fault of their own--they deserve our help and our support. However, far too many women have been irresponsible sexually, become a mother too young, been unable to get an education to gain the skills to earn a "living wage" and saddled themselves with the great difficulties that come from being a single mother. If we really want to solve those problems then prevention is key. You may choose to see it as a moral issue or not, but the simple fact is that children born in those circumstances will very likely struggle far more than those born into a two-parent home where the parents are married. The costs to our society from that issue alone likely far outstrips all of the substance abuse, crime, gun violence and lack of education combined. Why? Because they are all direct outcroppings of children born out of wedlock.

Finally, the Democrats staunchly stake claim to defending a woman's "right to choose", while belittling and dismissing those women who disagree with their position. Obama stated: "And sometimes, someone, usually mom, leaves the workplace to stay home with the kids, which then leaves her earning a lower wage for the rest of her life as a result. And that's not a choice we want Americans to make." First of all, who is "we". You and Michelle? The Democrat Party? The Feminists? What makes it your business? I am a proud stay-at-home mother. If and when I decide to return to the workforce, I will earn what I am worth. I am smart and I know how to work and I guarantee you that if I had to start over at minimum wage, I would not stay there for long. Secondly, I resent beyond words the implication that if I am not earning a paycheck that the work, yes work, I do is not valuable, that I am not contributing to the economy. Is there any place of business where the work they do is more important than raising the next generation? Is there anyone on this planet who loves my children more than I or who will take better care of them? Ladies, do not be deceived and do not be beaten down by the voices who tell you that the work you do at home is less important than that done in the workplace. Nothing matters more. There is no shame in supporting your husband in his work. There is no shame in putting your talents, your brains and your precious time into your children. If the only legacy I leave to this world is productive, contributing, wise and good children, that will be more than I could have ever asked for. Thirdly, the Liberals create a constantly moving target, which is further evidence that this a purely political issue for them. They have no desire to actually address the root causes of "women's issues". For example, Hillary Clinton, that picture of femininity, recently said at a rally against Jodi Ernst (candidate for Senate in Iowa), "I would also add, it's not enough to be a woman. You have to be committed to expand rights and opportunities for all women." I'm not sure who put Democrats in charge of deciding who qualifies as a woman and what qualifies as a woman's issue. I'll pass, thanks.

The President's "solution" to all this is to get more kids into government provided (aka: you will fund it with your hard-earned tax dollars) pre-school. Or shall we call it what it is? Government child care subsidized by your neighbors. Since we as women are incapable of knowing what to feed our children without Michelle's aid, or raise them without the government's aid, by all means, let's get them in the public school system earlier. Our schools have been so successful anyway, we may as well get the children out of their parent's incompetent grasp as soon as possible. Could it be that is yet another effort to control us? Could it be that the President knows that our education system has been overrun by progressive liberal ideology and the sooner they start cramming it down our children's throats the better off their political chances will be?

No Mr. President, no more. We are strong, capable and smart women. We do not need your government programs. We do not need you to pretend to defend us. We do not need your pretended efforts to protect our "freedom to choose". If I choose to go back to work and am discriminated against, I will handle it. I can choose whether or not to have a child and under what circumstances. I choose to raise my own children, to teach them to be responsible and accountable citizens who refuse to depend on government programs. My mother was wise enough to teach me that life is not fair. If your mothers didn't teach you that, they did you a great disservice. The Founding Fathers only ever intended that our government protect our rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Achieving happiness or success or stability or "fairness" is up to you. It is high time for women in this country to stand up for themselves and stop being used as political pawns in the DC power game. We are emotional creatures which can be both endearing and annoying. Politics is not a subject to be governed by emotion, it is to be governed by our brains. Some of us need to start using them.