Is anyone else as excited about this as I am?

I think McCain made a BRILLIANT choice in choosing Gov. Sarah Palin as his running mate. Not only is she a major conservative (to woo in those who feel McCain is too moderate), and a woman (to woo in the women voters), but she gives a whole new feel and energy to the Republican ticket. She just spiced up what I thought was going to be a pretty boring election, but now I think Obama and Biden are going to get a real run for their money. I still don't know who I am going to vote for-- I'm not really thrilled with either Obama or McCain, but I am excited that there is a woman in the race after all.

I think the most interesting thing about Palin's nomination is that illustrates the dynamic shift of feminism in the US. It was so interesting to me that the women who supported Hillary Clinton were older women, while younger women didn't like her at all. I heard young women (in real life and on the news) say that they didn't support Hillary because she was "not the type of woman they wanted in the White House", because they didn't trust her, or because they saw her as a "sell out". The truth of the matter is that Hillary Clinton represents the old face of feminism, one in which women are expected to "play" just like the men, and are told they have to sacrifice family and marriage for a career, and where women and men are pitted against each other instead of encouraged to work for common goals.

I think Palin is everything Hillary Clinton isn't; she is happily married, a mother of five (including a child with down syndrome), she's not entrenched in Washington politics, she's got a record as a political Maverick, she's got a son in the military, she is SUPER pro-family and pro-life, and is young and beautiful (no offense Hillary). Basically-- she's got it all. I think she is going to succeed better than Hillary did because she is a better representation of the "type of woman" American women want to see in the White House.She represents the new face of feminism, one in which women are boldly stating that they CAN have it all. They can be mothers, wives, and brilliant forces for change and good in their communities and nations. It is a feminism that celebrates the things that make women different from men, rather than tries to turn women into men. Besides I think it will be easier for Americans (in general) to swallow the idea of a woman as second in command, rather than as commander-in-chief.

I really don't know a whole lot about her policies yet, except that she is for drilling in ANWAR, which I don't really know how I feel about. But I like it that she has a reputation for crossing party lines (like McCain), and that she has strong stances on family and against abortion. I am concerned that she doesn't have much of an emphasis on health care or social issues, and hope that she won't neglect focusing on the more traditional "women's issues" if she is elected. All in all, I am WAY excited to see a woman as a VP candidate and am VERY interested to see how this election turns out. Be prepared to see LOTS of mud-slinging-- women tend to get it worse ;)