Democratic Texas Women

Women
I think women in general have a larger burden to bear, what with having to share the world with the disgusting brutes with whom they have to co-mingle in order to actually bear children.

Texas Women
Women in Texas have a double burden. Many of them actually live under the same roofs as men who look at George W. Bush, and think "God, I wish someday I could be like him."

Texas Democratic Women
If that's not enough to make you lose your hamburger helper, let me see if I can give you yet more motivation. There are those in this world who are triple-burdened: They are women, they are married to Texas men, and despite their husband's best intentions, they are Democrats.

There are lots of people here who don't consider Bush a curiosity, but actually a role model! No, I'm not kidding. So a lot of Texas men try to act like they see George act. And who gets to see it play out in the kitchens and the living rooms and (Lord forbid) the bedrooms? Texas women. And if those Texas women have the misfortune to have half or more of a brain, they're Democrats. Thing is, in the gracious tradition of southern women, they have a high tolerance for suffering in silence. And indeed, many do precisely that.

And the moldy cherry on top of this un-palatable milkshake is the fact that Democrats are by far the minority in these parts, and Republicans don't hold back in their effort to make Democrats feel like it's they who are the odd ones. I could talk your ear off on that one, but not at this sitting.

Today I spent an hour and a half with about 35 Texas Democratic women. A rowdy, spirited bunch they were. I actually went there to speak in front of them. It was my first speech in...oh, let me see...this is August of '05...forever! I've never been invited anywhere to speak, but they foolishly asked me and my wife to come.

They welcomed us as we presented some great options on how to get the news that they may not be finding elsewhere. Alternative news. Democratic perspective. Liberal stuff. It was a lot of fun. Many of them were feisty old gals who probably were quite the handful in their prime, and in fact might well still be. There was even one who bore a decent resemblance to Hillary Clinton.

I think it's worth noting that if you think life is difficult, you should reflect on these gals whose very lives are an uphill battle: being women, being liberals, and living in the homeland of the great buffoon, Mr. Bush. But as you reflect on these truisms, don't forget: this bizarre stew of culture and bravado and way-too-much-heat has also produced some real female firebrands. Molly Ivins comes quickly to mind. So as you lament their unfortunate condition, it's proof that sometimes the best art comes from those most pained...