don's report archive

by Donald B. Ardell, Ph. D.

Wellness in the Headlines
(Don's Report to the World)

A wellness enthusiast can be a Democrat, Republican or Independent. Anyone committed to a wellness philosophy and lifestyle can be conservative or liberal, male or female, gay or straight and otherwise on any part of the many continua -- pro this or anti that. However, as with personal behavioral choices, it is likely that the politics of a wellness-oriented American are such that he or she will favor candidates who accept personal responsibility rather than blame others or pretend or even believe they are victims, want to unite rather than divide by playing to a select audience and have a sense of proportion. Wellness enthusiasts are not likely to find megalomaniacs attractive. All of which brings me to Hillary Clinton.

Sometimes, attempts at gracious humility succeed only at revealing errant pomposity. I thought Ephron nailed it when she asked (in the Huffington Post on 8/27) where Hillary ever got the idea that it was necessary to point out in her speech to the Democratic National Convention that affection for her is not more important than the issues in this election, that "what's at stake is far more crucial than loyalty" to her and that her "historic thrilling campaign" is not "more important than the real campaign to defeat the Republicans." Nora wrote: "Where any of her followers could have gotten (such) ideas doesn't seem to have crossed her mind."

Clinton is awash in self-absorption. Surrounded by admirers who must constantly pump her black hole of an ego with varied ways of affirming that she is the greatest human to ever walk the earth and the last chance for the planet, Hillary seems clueless that her entire persona often appears to pit men against women. Today most men are allies with women in efforts to promote equality for women in this country and around the world, especially in Islamic cultures where a glass ceiling might be the least of a woman's concerns. Read "Infidel" by Ali Hirsi if you doubt that twenty percent pay disparities, however unfortunate and inexcusable, are not even "on the radar" as issues reformers must be concerned about.

When Hillary goes on about "18 million cracks in the glass ceiling," does she really think that men are impressed or energized to perceive this as a challenge on the level of the war in Iraq, the energy crisis, the failing economy, job losses, home foreclosures, a new Cold War and dozens of other matters of a non-gender nature?

And those outfits! How many guys want to look at politicians in gaudy pantsuits? Not a substantive issue, I admit, but please -- a little sensitivity to male tastes. A gray or blue or even black pantsuit, OK. But, gaudy orange? No.

Hillary would be well advised to stop playing to the sisterhood of annoying feminist extremists who, like Joe Lieberman, desire to do serious damage to the chances of ending eight long and ruinous years of Republican villainy. Quoting Ephron again: "The fish stinks from the head down. The Clintons' narcissism perfumed every bit of Hillary's campaign, and it leaked down to her contributors and followers. Were you in it for me?' was her funniest line of the night."

In "it" for me? Was she really asking if the millions of voters who supported her primary run cared about the political process only or primarily because Hillary was their champion? What a vile idea. How come she was not hooted off the stage - by former supporters and die-hards insulted in such egregious, insensible terms?

Of course, you could conclude it was the saddest line of the night, demonstrating beyond any doubt that this woman was a sorry choice of male and female Democrats alike to be the standard bearer for women seeking the nation's highest office. But then I'm reminded that she was not elected for this role -- she seized the moment, an initiative made possible by the celebrity status she gained from decades of spousal service to another egomaniac (though a successful and effective politician) before striking out on her own.

Hillary compared herself with other great women in history, but she did not mention a woman named Jane Roe or the legal ruling to which this woman's name is forever associated (oddly, to her dismay, since Norma McCorvey, the plaintiff formerly known as Jane Roe, has switched teams). Hillary talked about a glass ceiling but not protecting the choice to have a child or not. As Epron noted, she never reminded her Ellen Jamesian-like "Hillary or die" supporters that picking the next Supreme Court justice is by itself one major reason to support Obama. Any Clinton supporter "who doesn't understand that this issue alone is the reason to vote for Obama has no business pretending to be a Democrat."

It's time for women to find a new heroine and for Hillary to reassess how she comes across, particularly to men.

Always look on the bright side of life.

(Note: This essay will be filed in the archives in the MENTAL DOMAIN under the skill area of relationships. Additional articles related to this theme may be found there.)

(Ed. Note: Views expressed in this and other columns are those of the author and not necessarily those of the SeekWellness Editorial Board.)

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