Since Sarah Palin was named as Sen. John McCain's vice presidential running mate, the talk around the water cooler has been about more than if she is qualified.
The questions being heard a lot are: "Will Joe Biden take it easy on her in the debates? If he goes after her will it look as if he is bullying a woman?"
I hear this from women also, by the way.
This is the 21st century, right? Aren't we supposed to be past treating women differently? Aren't we trying to achieve equal footing? Isn't that what Palin's nomination was supposed to help? Isn't that what Hillary Clinton's run did? Isn't that what Geraldine Ferraro did when she ran as the Democratic Party vice presidential nominee with Walter Mondale in 1984?
Then, whey are we worried about Biden looking like some guy pushing around a dame?
Palin is a big girl. She has been in politics for a few years. She seems to be dishing it out pretty well. So, I say Biden ought to go after her just as if she were a man, or better yet, an equal politician. Pull no punches. I'll bet she's faced it before. No one, man or woman, gets anywhere in politics without getting their nose bloodied.
And if anyone is offended by that and criticizes Biden, well, tough. We can't have it both ways. We can't call for equal treatment and pay for women and then claim they deserve special kid-glove political treatment because they are women.
The voting public deserves to see how any politician reacts under pressure. How they handle criticism and pointed questions about themselves. The job is for the vice presidency of the United States, a heartbeat away from the Oval Office and in Palin's case it might be literally a heartbeat.
And if the Republican Party doesn't bring her out to meet the press, liberal and conservative, then shame on the GOP.
It's 2008. No more hiding behind the skirts. No more men worrying about being categorized as a bully. This is not domestic violence. It's politics. It should be tough on everyone, equally.
