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Show Views&Opinion Monday, Nov. 5, 2007 Page 19 Damsel: Clinton no pushover as she stands as Democratic frontrunner [Icontinued from page 18 paign was careful not to say so directly, at least not on the record, but the not-so-subtle implication was that a gang of mean, mean men was beating up on the only woman in the race. "She is one strong woman. She came through it well. But Hillary's going to need your help," the Clinton campaign told supporters in a fundraising e-mail. The Hill newspaper, listening in on a conference call with Clinton fundraisers, quoted chief strategist Mark Penn being even more explicit about the "backlash" he was detecting among female voters: "Those female voters are saying, 'Sen. Clinton needs our support now more than ever if we're going to see this six-on-one to try to brine her down.'" Please. The Philadelphia debate was not exactly a mob moment to trigger the Violence Against Women Act; if anything, this has been an overly (pardon the phrase) gentlemanly campaign to date. Those other guys were beating up on Clinton, if you can call that beating up, because she is the strong frontrunner, not because she is a weak woman. And a candidate as strong as Clinton doesn't need to play the woman-as-victim card, not even in "the all-boys club of presidential politics," as Clinton called it in a speech this week at her all-women alma mater, Wellesley College. I have a pretty good nose for sexism, and what I detected in the air from Philadelphia was not sexism but the desperation of candidates confronting a front-runner who happens to be a woman. Indeed, one of the things I've loved about Clinton's campaign recently is that it's seemed almost post-feminist: The senator's been so comfortable in being simultaneously the leading candidate for the nomination and a woman that she can summon her inner Rodgers and Hammerstein and enjoy being a girl. "I have been reminded by some of my friends that when you get to be my age, having so many men pay attention to you is kind of flattering," Clinton said in Iowa the other day. "If you want a winner who knows how to take them on, I'm your girl," she said at an earlier Democratic debate. Clinton can get away with calling herself a "girl" because no one doubts that she's a woman. She transcends the girl-as-belittltngputdown move. Now this six-on-one stuff. Clinton stumbled in the debate, uncharacteristicallybutnowhere near fatally. In response, Penn & Co. are playing a good game of rope-a-dope. DemocraticpollsterCeoffrey Carin made that point at a briefing this week by Emily's List, the pro-woman Democratic group that has endorsed Clinton. "As the other candidates, the male candidates, frankly, attack her, it's not a free shot in terms of how this base of voters may react to that," he said. "It's not true that all of these women will take it as a neutral act, these kinds of attacks." Added pollster Diane Feldman, "I think the attacks from other candidates are both a risk (for the men) and an opportunity for Senator Clinton, because the image of her standing up to the attacks and mov- ing forward unfazed when there are ... up to seven men attacking her ... at once may well reinforce the 58 percent of women who feel that her being president may cause a change in attitudes toward women." Count me with those 58 percent. A female president can't help but change attitudes toward women — I believe for the better. But using gender this way is a setback. Hillary Clinton is woman enough to take these attacks like a man. By Ruth Marcus is a member of The Washington Post's it's editorial editorial page staff. Vote: Outcome important [•continued from page 18 Main. I understand that many - if not most - of us plan on leaving this beautiful little valley one day. We have dreams of wealth and Hollywood and making babies that will inevitably remove us from this fine town, if at least for a season. But hey, let's make the most of this place while we're here. Let's get out and vote on Nov. 6 and hold "the man" accountable. Let's stun the skeptics and start making a difference. Jackson Olsen is a sports writer for The Utah Statesman. Questions and comments can be sent to him at jackson, olsen@aggiemail.usu.edu Cheat: What is the definition? [•continued from page 18 chemical age and drugs that do not automatically make you stronger and faster, but they allow you to train harder with less fatigue so you can become stronger and faster. Hey, what's wrong with that? It's not like you are taking a magic pill. You still are actually working out. Most elite athletes are gym rats anyway. There is some evidence that the new generation of drugs actually make you "better." That is, see better, react faster. As a bonus, you don't even have to stick a needle in you butt. Sports that have become a pharmacopoeia nightmare are easy to attack, but what should be legal? Only food that everybody can buy at a grocery store? Only equipment available at retail sporting goods stores? In the real old "Chariots of Fire" days, even having a private, paid coach was cheating. The answers are not easy. i uui Since 1914 ijour family or business noW\ Qreat prices anb service. Stop bij or call for a banquet menu. Come check out our great lunch and dinner prices and our daily specials! $1.00 OFF 19 'North Main loqan, *WT Limit one coupon per dish Dennis Hinkamp works for USU Extension Communications and would like to wish you a Grande, family-sized, mocha latte weekend. Comments and questions can be sent to him at dennish@ext.usu.edu. ' • ^Oont let Christmas sneak up on you. \uli(l\oi.:).J)(IJ-\or. 11.200/ ;ui 435152.3155 v vvvb 2007 J Blood Drive 10:00 am - 3:00 pm @ Sunburst Lounge Aggie Ice Cream 11:30 am until it's gone @ Sunburst Lounge Bingo with senior citizens 11:30 am -12:30 pm @ TSC Ballroom VAL R. CHRISTENSEN J Blood Drive 10:00 am - 3:00 pm @ Sunburst Lounge Migrant Head Start Children's Fair V CENTER 10:00 am -11:00 am @ TSC Ballroom Guitars Unplugged $4 non-students, $3 w/ ID, $1 off with a can of food 7:00 pm, TSC Ballroom |