I’m not terribly proud of the fact that I don’t typically give a great deal of thought to women, but I just don’t.
It’s not because I don’t care about them, it’s simply that women, as a whole, are rarely at the top of my mind since I register 13 on the Kinsey scale (10 is considered totally gay) so it follows that people with dicks occupy the majority of the real estate in my mind.
But in the time in which we now find ourselves it seems women are at the forefront of my thoughts a good deal, mostly because I yearn for more female representation among our national political leadership. I feel recent history makes it clear that, with the exception of a few fringe lunatics like Marjorie Taylor Greene, women who hold office in our Capitol do a far better job of actually doing their jobs than their male counterparts do.
But of course, I’m talking about women with liberal or Democratic-leaning mindsets and objectives. When it comes to Republicans, women seem to rise to the very top of the loony bin. But among the Dems (the very impressive and effective U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost notwithstanding) the women are the true superstars of the party.
Regardless of their varying ages and vastly different levels of experience, when D-women speak on any subject they inevitably prove themselves to be well-informed, totally prepared, and incredibly passionate about the stances they take. There is never a case where a D-woman does not seem to be totally in tune with the times and they always come off as having grasped developing concerns, fast-changing issues, and emerging technologies. And when it comes to posing questions to anyone — regardless of what title they may hold — giving testimony before committee the D-women seem to be unflappable.
Time and again they prove themselves to be amazing litigators who refuse to be intimidated by the many nasty, evasive, and disrespectful MAGA operatives who come before them.
Most impressive is how malleable D-women in Congress seem to be. They are able to switch tactics and go off script in response to unanticipated answers intended to throw them off. They can and do stray from their planned remarks, responses, or questions, and always make perfect sense when doing so. They can and do think on their feet, and without the aid of aids, can make a salient point on the fly, proving their considered understanding of any issue before them.
The case has long been made, and I think it bares repeating, that women as a species, who have a long history of managing households and successfully navigating the treacherous waters of holding together a family, are far more adept at multitasking than are men. I know, I know… I’m dealing in sweeping generalizations here and I know that all women are not home makers and/or moms by design.
Growing up in our home where my Dad was the primary breadwinner, he took absolutely no role in actually rearing his children other than dispensing discipline. He could barely recall our names let alone have any inkling of who our teachers were or with what personal issues we each might be struggling.
But my mom, who also held a job outside the house, was in complete charge of running our home which included constant care and feeding of six children and other relatives in need who often stayed with us. She did the shopping, house cleaning, laundry — which in those days included a mountain of ironing — and chauffeured her kids to various lessons and sporting activities. She sewed costumes and mended clothing.
She kept up with doctor’s appointments for the entire brood, met with our teachers, fixed our boo boos, attended PTA meetings, and dealt with the multiple, vastly different personalities of all in her charge with skill, diplomacy and empathy. She also handled the household accounts! When I think back on it all I am utterly amazed at how much my mom was responsible for and how well she met those responsibilities without complaint, all while dealing with and keeping happy, a hard-working but very difficult husband who distanced himself from most family issues.
And so, the real question is, why is it that we as a society are so resistant to voting for a woman to be our president?
The fact that the majority of the people in this country felt it was better to award the presidency to an inarticulate, uneducated, unqualified, golf crazy (and golf cheating), incoherent, convicted felon, over the incredibly knowledgeable, accomplished, well-informed, and always lucid Kamala Harris proves, I think, to have less to do with policy differences and everything to do with the inexplicable fact that Americans as a whole just refuse to believe a woman is up to the job. That is nonsense of the highest degree and that has certainly proven to be most regrettable.
I may not think of women very often, but nowadays I can’t stop thinking that we need more women in positions of national leadership. Indeed, it is long past time we sent a woman to the White House!
If we are ever given the chance to vote for president again – and believe me when I say that is not guaranteed – I certainly hope we do not dismiss a candidate out of hand simply because she doesn’t have a dick.
Michael Wanzie is an Orlando-based playwright, actor and ordained minister. He is most recognized for his direction of productions in the Central Florida area.
