Witch Hunt

I've been following the Edwards' blogging "controversy" very closely. It deals with all things Kristen: politics, blogging, Edwards, feminism and choice.... and, um, I get a tab obsessive about things...

For those of you living under a rock:

Amanda Marcotte and Melissa McEwan were hired as official John Edwards for President bloggers. Both came from other prominent leftist blogs and both are opinionated, strong, intelligent women--women who happened to speak out against (among other things) the religious right and anti-choicers (or as I like to call them--anti-trusters)

...I haven't blogged about it because I refused to give the "controversy" any more press. The most outspoken critics of the women came from the right (gasp) and weren't going to vote for Edwards anyway...and they would rather engage in ad hominem attacks and smear campaigns than actually answer the arguments the women put forth (another gasp). ANYWAY...my point is the critics weren't dictating Edwards campaign choices so I didn't really get crazy about it. So what if they didn't like the women? So what if they were trying to imply that Edwards was anti-religious right?

We have this lovely thing here in the US of freaking A called FREEDOM OF SPEECH that allows the women to say those things AND be healthy members of a thriving democracy (although women don't get to enjoy that right nearly as much as our outspoken male citizens--a la Dixie Chicks vs. Toby Keith, Huffington vs. Rush) . Plusssss...the things they had written weren't all that bad. But that! is beside the point.

Edwards (of course) did the right thing and stood by the women (although I wish he had been a little more outspoken) and the netroots rallied behind them.

But Marcotte resigned today. Unable to continue reading e-mails like THIS:

after reading your vile screed against Catholics and the Holy Spirit, I just had to see what you looked like. (I envisioned you eyebrow-less, with no visible pupils, and a blank, dead stare.) I see I was correct about the blank, dead stare, but other than that you're not too bad. I then thought maybe you were mad at God (and by proxy Catholics) for making you ugly, but now I'm figuring you're just mad at him for making you a woman.

Problem with women like you, you just need a good _____ from a real man! Living in Texas myself, I know you haven't found that real Texan yet. But once your liberal pro feminist ass gets a real good _____, you might see the light. Until then, enjoy your battery operated toys

And somewhere....Jesus beams with pride. I'm kidding about that last part...