Parts Of The X Back On The Map

By Amy Yensi--

Jeff Saltzman once said: "If you have ever wondered if you're in Hell, then you are experiencing a rather normal spiritual quandary that you share with many. If however, you know without a shadow of a doubt that you are in Hell, then you must be on the Cross Bronx Expressway." Every time I read the quote it takes me back to my early years growing up in the Bronx. Specifically, it reminds me of a spring afternoon when I was in kindergarten. I was playing in the school yard and noticed small plastic tubes with caps in just about every color of the rainbow; not far from the crack bottles was a syringe with the needle still attached. I was about to pick it up, when my teacher tapped me on the shoulder. She grabbed my arm and moved me away from where it was. I now wonder how many other children were lured by the pretty colors.

The quote brings back another childhood memory as well. It reminds me of a time I sat on the stoop in front of the apartment building where I lived. It was a summer afternoon. A group of people began to run frantically inside. I had no clue what was going on and just sat there. A few seconds later, I saw a young man chasing another down the street--then I heard gunshots. After some minutes passed by, people began to come out of the building. I was still sitting at the stoop when my older brother ran to hug me and tell me he didn't see me sitting there when he ran for safety.

Two decades later I walk by that neighborhood and it looks the same--rundown. Not so far away, there is the Mott Haven section of the Bronx. This area was also infested with poverty, drugs, and crime, but it has come such a long way. Abandoned warehouses have been turned in to loft apartments and townhouses have been remodeled into co-op and condos. The area still maintains its Bronx flavor; the sounds of Salsa and a bodega are not that difficult to find here. However, this section's urban renewal is still in its infancy.

Gentrification might be positive if it doesn't ostracize the original inhabitants. If DUMBO is any indication, however, this conditional may be paradoxical to the highest degree.

Poli-Reality

By Amy Yensi--

Political experts and historians have been romanticizing and touting Barack Obama's presidency, although it hasn't even started yet. I have officially lost count of the comparisons to Lincoln, Roosevelt, and Kennedy he has received. The arguments may have some validity, but these aforementioned presidents earned their reputations. Can we at least wait for him to do something as president before we begin to compare his policy to that of past presidents? How can we compare something in the past to something that might happen in the future?

There is a potential reason why such educated people are making such uneducated guesses: they're bored because the election is over. This attempt to fill airtime started even before November 4th. There were stories upon stories about Sarah Palin's shopping spree, Michelle Obama's black and white dress she wore on 'The View,' and who can forget Hillary Clinton's sisterhood of the traveling pantsuits? There were times the election coverage seemed like an episode of 'What Not to Wear': Election Edition.

Perhaps one day the political movers and shakers might actually do some reality T.V. If there is ever a 'Celebrity Death Match' starring Keith Olbermann v.s. Bill O'Reilly it would probably send the Nielsen ratings through the roof.

What's Hiding In That Cabinet?

By Amy Yensi--

Just when you thought political junkies would start suffering from post-election withdrawal, talking heads and cable news shows have been supplying the daily fix vis-à-vis constant speculations on President-Elect Obama's cabinet appointments.

The suspense behind who will replace Condoleezza Rice as Secretary of State, specifically, has caused the most commotion. The contender that is mentioned the most is not surprisingly, Hillary Clinton. Its not that it was obvious that Obama would offer Clinton, what some consider the top prize, its that whenever the Clintons are involved, the word drama is usually used in the context.

Critics and supporters alike, have been chewing up the potential decision, and it hasn't even been made yet. Some feel, that others are more deserving of the post because of early support for Obama, like John Kerry, for example. Feminists and Obama-cheerleaders (who pre-approve all he does) support the idea, positioning it as a brilliant move--to form a team of rivals and try to find consensus on what's best for the country.

While some speculate on who, if not Clinton, will get the Secretary of State position, others argue, that what is even more important, is who will replace Treasury Secretarty Henry Paulson along with other economic leaders appointed by the current administration. While the Secretary of Defense was once thought to be a more pressing choice (especially during times of war), the focus on the Treasury pick isn't surprising, as the only other news story other than Obama's transition to power, is ofcourse the dire economic condition we find ourselves in.

Ironically, some say Paulson posseses more power than the current President of the United States. While Paulson oversees the economic lifeline known as colloquial known as the bailout, News anchors did not hesitate to speculate on the video footage of world leaders seemingly refusing to shake Bush's hand at a G20 photo-op--taking the term lame-duck to all new heights or lows.

All this scrutiny should have been part of the public discourse long before this campaign. Perhaps, many shortcomings could have been avoided if leaders knew the American magnifying glass as asphixed on them. Although this public interest may be great for an incoming administration, it can also pose challenges. The expectations are being set really high for Obama's presidency, hopefully he rises to the challenge. The public must be mindful, however, of the seriousness of the problems we face, and the difficult it will be to implement campaign promises during times of economic turmoil.

The incoming administration must be truthful and we must be realistic about the work that needs to be done, or else both sides will be disappointed.

W who?

By Amy Yensi--

Suffice it to say that many Americans are angry about all the shortcomings of the last eight years. Putting that anger and disappointment aside, however, its still possible to feel sorry for our current leader--which is probably a worse feeling towards a world leader than anger.

Bush was once the most powerful Republican in the country, now he is more like a figurehead and a punching bag, ironically its not just the Democrats throwing the punches. Not only did John McCain exclude Bush from campaigning on his behalf, but towards the end of the campaign, McCain began speaking out against him just as much as President-Elect Obama.

Its dubious that Bush wanted to have a presidency plagued with errors, but after the Obama victory, its like many Americans are wishing for the hands of the clock to speed up his leave from the White House. We have officially become an Obamanation. Aside from the interest in substantive issues, like Obama's cabinet appointments. There is a high demand for information on more trivial issues like what dog Sasha and Malia will get, to what school they will attend, and even increasing interest in what Michelle Obama is going to wear next. Its like America is focusing on the new first family to get their minds off of the frustration they have felt with the current inhabitants of the White House.

David Letterman summed it up the other night, when he asked the audience members of his show, "Does anyone mind if he [Obama] starts starts a little early?" From the looks of the news coverage, its like he already did.

And Now For The Main Event

By Amy Yensi--

Its just before 9 P.M. and the big "flip" that all the pundits were saying was necessary to win the presidency for either candidate has not happened yet. So far the red states and blue states have gone for the candidate of the party they usually support, as have the so called leaning states.

Although nothing dramatic has happened to the electoral map, today has still been an emotionally charged today. In the subways, the streets, the stores, and everywhere in between, people are talking about the election. What's even more impressive is the degree of knowledge that people have. I have never heard so many people talking about swing states and how important independent voters will be to tonight's outcome, amongst other things. Yes the world is paying attention, but what's even more amazing is to the degree that America is paying attention.

The Wait On Our Shoulders

By Amy Yensi--

The entire country will hold its breath until all the polls are closed and the last vote is counted. We will all then sit at the edge of our seats and stare motionless at the pundits, the poll numbers, and the high-tech Electoral College maps, and wait.
We have been waiting for what seems like forever, to finally know who will be the new captain of this unsteady ship. Now more than ever, Americans are aware of how policies and leadership in government affect them.

No matter who wins, about half of us will be disappointed on Wednesday; the winner will only savor his triumph for a little while though. The pessimism of the last few months is beginning to feel like a heavy weight on all of our shoulders. We need someone to steer us in the direction that alleviates that weight or at least makes us feel that he is trying to do all he can to reach that destination—or at least to calmer waters.

This fear and anxiety about the economy has proven how intangible things like policies, can have repercussions that are undeniably real. The winner will have to address any variations between perception and reality that have been established in the eyes of Americans during this hard-fought campaign—failure to do so can lead to a potential backlash. If John McCain wins, he will have to prove that he too can inspire and mobilize people to hope. I Barack Obama wins, he will have to prove that he can do more than inspire, he must prove that he can lead just as well if not better than those with much more experience.
Some of us will go to bed late to here the final tally; others will wait to find out first thing Wednesday morning. We will all uniformly exhale. Only to hold our breaths again waiting for better days to come.

Earthy Sexy Money

By Amy Yensi-

As the most closely watched election nears the finish line, certain words are highlighted in my mind as its key issues: energy independence, women's rights, and the financial crisis. In addition, there was a lot of chatter about the youth, and how their role in this election is crucial. It makes me wonder how things could have panned out if the youth were better educated on these issues. How would the candidates frame their pleas for the presidency, in the variation or even absence of current problems plaguing the electorate?

With the failure of the highly subsidized ethanol initiatives and ever-increasing fuel prices, it didn't take long for John McCain and Barack Obama to talk up the need for energy independence. They both agreed that the current strategy of relying heavily on other nations, who often "do not like us very much," as McCain often said, needed to be changed. McCain asserted the necessity to "drill baby drill" much to the dismay of Obama who preferred energy conservation and the creation a "green jobs industry" that would lead to energy innovation and job creation. Both of the proposals are way too complex to be fully explained in the time allotted for a soundbite. However, if Americans were educated in school about conservation, the effect of oil usage on the environment, and the correlation between oil supply and a nation's power, then perhaps, all the gas pump anxiety that tormented travellers this summer could have been avoided. Most of us, however, are not taught these things in school and therefore rely on our research, or on the candidates themselves.

Furthermore, just when one thinks the country's stance on abortion has been dealt with, the debate finds a way to wedge into our poltics yet again. This time though, the discussions on a women's right to choose became more frequent with the addition of Sarah Palin on the Republican ticket. Feminists were presented with a dilemma--should they be happy that the GOP had picked a woman to be its vice presidental candidate for the first time in history or should they be infuriated because she was against the rights that many of them so ardently advocated? To make things more complicated, Palin is not only the mother to a special needs child but she is also the mother of an unwed pregnant teenager. The debate as to whether woman should have a right to choose or if sex education should be taught in schools--both of which Palin opposes--was being manifested in the personal life of a candidate unlike anything we have ever seen. Let's not forget the way the blogsphere lit up with articles about rape victims having to pay for their own rape kits in Alaska, the state Palin is the governor for. There were points to be made and countered by both the left and the right. Although we are far from reaching an agreement on this issue, one can't help but wonder how many unwanted pregnancies could be avoided if young people really knew what they were getting into when engaging in unprotected sex.

Now, the previously mentioned issues seem minimal, when compared to the stranglehold that the economy has had on the discourse of this election. From home foreclosures, to inflation, to the stock market crashes, loss of retirement savings, lending freezes, and bank failures, the talking heads have had their hands full--and so have the candidates. John McCain went as far as "suspending" his campaign because something needed to be done to fix the economy. Barack Obama, according to the poles, appears to be favored on getting the economy on the right track. Neither has all the answers, as I doubt anyone does. However, if people are taught from early on the value of a dollar, a job, and a home perhaps our financial situation wouldn't be in such dire conditions. Of course, to say that it all lies in the hands of Americans themselves is overly simplistic. The fact remains that some policies put in place and lack there of, played a key role in this financial mess, but if people understood the way the different elements of the economy are interconnected, and how they can safeguard and stimulate their financial futures, a lot of the money related hysteria could have been avoided.

When this election cycle first started, I was convinced that the war in Iraq would be the issue, boy was I off the mark. What I did know, is that young people would play a major role with their participation in this presidential race. Hopefully, now that they are interested they will begin to learn why every vote counts and why every policy has the potential to affect their own lives.

To Cry Wolf

By Amy Yensi-

The cries of Conservative pundits of sexism in the treatment of the Republican Vice presidential nominee Sarah Palin has perpetuated an increase in the number of women on cable news shows. While there is no "official study" to pinpoint this gender shift. It is visible that the job of analyzing the political race horse used to be primarily deligated to men. However, the push back by the McCain campaign of most critiquing of Palin as sexist, has caused many of these talking-point programs to invite more women in the political arena to to participate in the commentary. This strategy negates the cries of discrimination based on gender. CNN Anchor Campbell Brown even made an appeal to the McCain campaign to "free Sarah Palin." One can't help but wonder if Brown was solely speaking for herself or if she was used as a spokesperson because it was safer for a woman to make such a statement.

Although the feminist in me enjoys that more and more women are the go-to political experts, there is a negative to the constant cries sexism. Prior to this campaign, one rarely heard charges that news networks and politicians were acting sexist, now its become commonplace. Do I think that some of these charges are justified? Absolutely. However, not all of them are. Many of these accusations, are seemly aimed at changing the conversation when the political discourse is not beneficial for the campaign making the allegations. Furthermore, every time the sexist card is wrongfully used, it devalues the legitimate cries of sexism that may come about in the future. Pretty soon, when someone is accused of sexism, skepticism may overshadow the validity of the argument.

Here's to hoping the political "powers that be" find another scapegoat, so that women who are subjected to the humiliation that is sexism can speak out and not be ignored because "we hear it all the time."

Seven Years Later

By Amy Yensi-

I was sitting in computer class trying not to dose off. The sound of hysteria in the hallway jerked me out of my daydream . The teacher opened the door to see what the commotion was about. Dozens of high school students were running to the exits; some were crying. I heard a girl say "my mother works there, no no no." I asked a friend what everyone was talking about and she explained to me that there was a fire at the Twin Towers. I didn't have an immediate reaction, I had no clue of the level of death and destruction that would soon come to mar the day.

I found my best friend in the corridor, she was wandering in the hallways as I had been, trying to make sense out of something that we still do not have all the answers for. We saw a friend who was there to pick up one of his cousins. He was eighteen, so my friend and I latched on to him in order to get home, finally. I never in my seventeen years had wanted to get home so fast. My friend convinced me that we should stick together, so we ran to her house instead.

We turned on the television, and there they were-- the Towers engulfed in flames. The sky was black. At first, I thought it was a movie, a sick commercial maybe, but not reality. My friend began changing the channels and they all had the same image. We sat there in silence, fearful that we had not seen the worse.

I felt so ashamed. I had never taken the time to visit the World Trade Center. I had passed by them, nonchalantly, but I had never entered the buildings, and I regretted that. It was the first time I realized what a landmark was. For years, I scoffed at the tourists who marvel at the big buildings, now I wished I had done the same.

I never knew I would cry for people I never met, but I did. I felt like I had lost someone in the Towers, even though I had not. I was angry. "Who do these people think they are?" I thought to myself. I wanted answers, and at times I even wanted revenge.

All my life I identified myself as Dominican, Dominican-American, Latina, Hispanic, "from the Bronx." September 11th was the first time I felt American. Amidst all the images of ash, flames, and misery, I saw people rushing down to help the rescue workers, donate blood, or wave the flag.
Seven years ago I learned the value of that flag.

Missing Credits

By Amy Yensi-

With all this debate about whether to teach abstinence only or full fledged sex education in schools, it makes me wonder why we are not discussing the one thing all Americans need to be educated on--finances. Most of us do not know all there is to know about the real estate market, the credit industry, or even saving and investing for that matter. If we learned early on how to manage our money then we would ultimately make better finance decisions. Finance education has a greater value than sex education, but I doubt you will hear a debate on this issue.

Annoy the Media, Vote for Palin...and McCain too

By Amy Yensi-

What a difference a few hours make in political time. After the McCain-Palin campaign began complaining that the stories about Sarah Palin were more of a witch-hunt than objective journalism, the 'north-eastern elite' media have been walking on eggshells. They have been bending over backwards to showcase positive accounts of Palin and give equal time to analysts with conservative inclinations. To the political junkie, this radical conversion can be quite confusing. However, it is totally understandable why the media has "backed off."

First, the argument that attacks on one's family and personal life are tasteless and irrelevant to one's political ambitions and goals is valid. The media apparently agrees, and have been biting their tongues for the last 48 hours since the Republicans began their backlash strategy. If you want to corner the media, giving them a label such as "liberal" is a sure way to make them more cautious in the stories they run.

John McCain and Sarah Palin's argument can be countered, however, by simply stating that they are speaking out of both ends of their mouths. How can you expect the media to not pry into your personal life, when you yourself tout your personal experiences because they make you more "human?" For example, America didn't need to know that she likes moose burgers, her husband is a snow racing champion, and her nickname on the basketball court was Barracuda. The reason we know is because she told us. Its not fair to use the media to share personal details that make you seem relatable, but then denounce the same media when they talk about the negatives, that also make you relatable. If you want to be seen as human, then the bad stories are just as valid as the 'cutesy' ones.

It can be argued that the media is probably backing off not just because the Republicans are crying foul, but also because they have been left to do the questioning all by themselves. Its probably true, like Obama said, kids should be off limits, but what about everything else?

Barack Obama doesn't need to engage in the "National Enquirer" style speculation, but there are certain details that do raise questions about Palin's character. If the media is the only one questioning, then it does seem like they are the ones with an agenda. If Obama wants to keep and expand his lead in the polls, he needs to make it his agenda. The fact that Palin got rave reviews was partly because the bar was set so low, but also because the public does respond to negative attacks.

Democrats have assumed the public will not buy into partisan attacks in the past and it didn't work so well, remember John Kerry.

Pit Bull in a Skirt

By Amy Yensi-

The beauty of low expectations is that when the bar is set so low, as long as you don’t make any gaffes, you succeed. On Wednesday night, Sarah Palin fought back against the naysayers and ‘elite media’ by serving more red meat than a butcher. Her speech was setup by the previous appearances of Senator John McCain’s formal rivals for the Republican Party’s presidential nomination—Mitt Romney, Mike Huckabee, and Rudolph Giuliani. Giuliani proclaimed that Senator Barack Obama had accomplished ‘zero’ and ‘nada’ amid profuse applause by the delegates. Palin succeeded in establishing herself as an attack dog, she went as far as saying that the only difference between a hockey mom, something she has labeled herself as, and a Pit Bull is lipstick. Palin drew the line in the sand, surely in an attempt to provoke the Obama campaign to cross it.

Obama though, is known for his cool demeanor, and will probably not take the bait. Tit for tat would surely lead to more cries of foul and sexism, reminiscent of the Democratic Primaries. Obama should focus on the one thing that Palin and the other Republicans mostly did not, the economy. At the end of the day all the stingers made some cheer and others jeer, in the words of James Carville: “It’s the economy stupid.”

So far, the Republicans have had a convention that for the most part, could have taken place during any of the past presidential elections. The problem with repeating tried and true arguments is that the public expects them. By purely focusing on the basis of the party and talking points, the Republicans are failing to address the current difficulties Americans are facing and can therefore add credibility to Obama’s argument that they are out of touch. Senator Joe Biden, who is known for his foreign affairs credentials, should hammer away at Palin’s lack of world travel and experience. In order to keep their lead, the Democrats must take back control of the public debate, such to focus on the issues that matter to voters.

Although Palin diminished Obama’s experience, he must be wary of simply mudslinging, he and Biden must talk about the solutions they have for America and corner Palin and McCain to offer their vision for the future. Palin achieved her goal for the audience she wanted to reach, the Republican base. However, all Americans were watching and now everyone can see that the gloves came off. She has opened the door for the Democrats to bring the fight right back to her. She rallied the ‘base’ while simultaneously losing some of the vulnerability that was shielding her from personal attacks from the Democrats, notably Obama who denounced the attacks on her family. Nevertheless, Palin proved to American she could dish it out and on October 2nd she will have to prove if she can also take it.

Palin in Comparison

By Amy Yensi-

Republican supporters began touting John McCain’s choice of Sarah Palin as his running mate almost immediately following the shocking announcement of the ticket last Friday. McCain saw a surge in his campaign contributions; blogs were inundated by shows of support by GOPers, and conservative talking heads acclaimed her reputation as a ‘reformer’ who stood up to the corruption and earmark spending of members within her own party—including the now infamous “Bridge to Nowhere.”

Democrats however, were not so excited with McCain’s choice, and accused him of clearly pandering to women—Hillary Clinton supporters, especially. Many of these women immediately began denouncing the choice on web forums, citing that they were insulted by the choice. To many of the women who supported Clinton, it was as if the McCain campaign was saying that they would support any woman because they previously supported Hillary.

The McCain campaign seemingly overlooked one key factor, that Clinton supporters may have been supporting a woman, but it was mostly because it was THAT woman. To Clinton supporters, even without much knowledge of who Sarah Palin is, Palin would never be able to fill their candidate’s shoes.

Nonetheless, Republicans were hopeful that McCain’s pick would shake up the electoral race; McCain aimed to divert attention from Obama’s widely watched and praised acceptance speech.
72 hours after picking Palin, McCain sure enough snatched the spotlight from Obama, but not for the reasons he had hoped.

The fact that Palin is opposed to everything Clinton stands for is the least of McCain’s problems. For the last three days, Americans have been bombarded with scandal after scandal surrounding the VP hopeful. We were just introduced to her, and we’ve already learned that her opposition to the “Bridge to Nowhere” is not as clear-cut as she presented it; we've learned that she is under investigation for abuse of power in what has become known as “Troopergate,” it is also being said that she was a member of the Alaska Independence Party, which wants secession (withdrawal from the United States) for Alaska.

All of these issues may be troublesome to McCain and Palin, however the bombshell that is being discussed more than any of these is that Palin’s daughter, Bristol Palin is 17 years old, unwed, and pregnant. The GOP critics, not surprisingly, wasted no time in mocking the so called “family values” party as hypocritical, and used Palin’s daughter as a chief example for why her mother’s opposition to sex education and birth control is problematic. To them, in the real world, kids may or may not abstain from sex, so educating them on the pitfalls of unprotected sex is desperately needed. Palin’s daughter has momentarily at least, become the poster child for the double-edged sword that is the abstinence only argument.

Following the announcement, many Republicans have been trying their best to spin this “negative into a positive” by stating that the Palin’s family decision to keep both Trig (Sarah Palin’s child with Down Syndrome) and Bristol’s unborn child is proof that they are anti-abortion to the core. It is also proof that for all the talk that Hillary Clinton is “divisive” and has many “skeletons in her closet,” the Palins, for such novices on the national stage, are giving the Clintons a run for their money.

Hurricane Obama

By Amy Yensi-

John McCain is postponing 'most' Republican National Convention activities until further notice because of the likelihood that Hurricane Gustav will touch down on the Gulf Coast.

In addition, President Bush and Vice President Cheney, who were slated to appear on Monday, the first night of the Convention, will probably be unable to attend because they will be turning their attention to the affected areas.

The reasoning behind the decision is logical, conventions are cheerful events, and it would be a slap in the face to the misplaced and suffering for their leaders to be gleefully pushing their political agenda while they are facing such difficult times.

It must be noted, however, that even before the mandatory evacuations began or even before they became mandatory, McCain was already proposing to give his acceptance speech from New Orleans. One can easily gather that the Republicans are using Gustav as redemption for Katrina; as their way of showing that they really did learn from what is widely seen as the worse governmental response to a natural disaster in United States history.

Although the image of McCain giving his acceptance speech while enduring the disastrous conditions expected to reach the Gulf Coast would truly feed in to his 'Maverick' image, there is another theory that has not been proposed for his convention postponement.

Firstly, if anyone ever needed an indication that the Republican brand is in trouble, the Republican National Convention schedule is a pure indication of exactly that. McCain scheduled a sitting president and vice president to speak on the first night, talk about getting it over with. Even the commercials sounded odd, "Live from the Republican National Convention, President Bush and Vice President Cheney." Two of the most unpopular men in America being touted in an effort to get viewership, how ironic.

Add to the mix, a widely acclaimed Democratic acceptance speech, which was compared to a symphony by David Gergen because it was such a "political masterpiece" and you potentially have the real Hurricane McCain and co. are truly concerned about, Hurricane Obama.

I highly doubt that the 38 million people that watched Obama's acceptance speech would tune in to watch Bush and Cheney, and I suspect McCain and his camp know that too.

The onslaught of questions swirling around McCain's odd selection for a running mate, the seemingly successful coming together of the Hillary and Obama campaigns, the widely lauded speeches from both Clintons and especially Obama, contain more pressure for the McCain campaign than can be produced by any storm.

So for the critics that will scoff at the McCain, Bush, and Cheney decision to curtail their participation in the Republican National Convention as a ploy to assuage further criticism to the disaster that was Hurricane Katrina, please do not waste precious cynicism on this easy assessment. Gustav is the only way that McCain has to avoid the probable belittlement of his event when compared to the Obamapalooza of last week.

After the storm the rebuilding will begin.

If The Shoe Were On The Other Husband

By Amy Yensi-

Everywhere you turn you see the images. On every channel there is a parade of children getting loaded on to a yellow school bus, dressed as if they walked right off of the set of Little House on the Prairie. During the primetime call-in shows, you get full accounts from a girl who escaped her polygamist compound into American civilization, in addition to an expert psychologist's take on the emotional damage such a lifestyle causes on its female and underage participants.

What is appalling about this lifestyle is not so much that it exists, we've heard about polygamy in America prior to the story's break. The astonishing part is that it goes against the key components of what an All-American family should look like--one man, one woman, and their 2.3 children occupying their one household. Nonetheless, the focus of this post is not to debate back and forth as to whether it is wrong or right. Its been done. I leave it up to everyone to formulate his or her own opposition or approval of this lifestyle.

Let us make it a given that all the benefits of polygamy override any of its negatives. While we are at it, lets cross out any illegal and immoral implications that can also mar the lifestyle's reputation. What we are left with, is a way of life in which people voluntarily create a strong sense community, promote faith and spirituality, make childrearing a central focus of the family, and help fight the depletion of our most precious natural resource, men. For those of us who are open-minded enough to accept that maybe the abuses that occurred during the recent polygamist raid in Texas are very uncommon and as probable as child abuse occurring in a typical American home, there is still an issue that needs to be addressed, sexism. If polygamy is a positive and spiritual setup, how come we don’t see any compounds in which several men are married to one woman?

Every point in the column indicating that maybe it isn’t that bad, is completely delegitimized by the fact that the same religious sects that practice polygamy, frown upon polyandry-one woman being married to two or more husbands simultaneously. The reason I defined polyandry is not because I doubt that those reading this are knowledgeable individuals. I defined it because it is so uncommon, that prior to me doing research for this post, I had never heard of it myself.

Even those who give polygamy the benefit of the doubt, are soon faced with troubling questions after learning the disporportion between polygamy and polyandry. It begs the question: Is it just a façade to cloak and promote the traditional male-female gender roles?—that men have an anamalistic sexual drive that needs to be quenched by a variety of women, while women should be happy to have a man in the house who ‘wears the pants.’

I wonder which one of the wives gets to wash those pants?…