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on Mary Cheney
Jun. 20th, 2006 12:04 pmNPR archives are my ear candy of choice during work; music tends to make me zone out but talk radio keeps me awake. There's no reception in my building, but thank goodness for the internet and a pair of headphones. I just listened to Terry Gross's recent interview with Mary Cheney...
You have to feel for Mary Cheney, both because of what she is and who she has made herself to be. She is clearly a strong woman, who has made hard decisions and has decided to live with them no matter the consequences. She performs a careful balancing act between disapproving of the Republican position on gay marriage, and approving of the party as a whole. She does point out that, even though Bush publicly disapproves of relationships like her own partnership, he maintains that all people should be treated with respect, regardless of their sexual orientation. (How his actions and rhetoric equate to "respect" is not explored.) Clearly she's done some deep thinking, trying to reconcile her lifestyle with the stance of the party to which she is loyal, for the sake of her own beliefs and of the father that she loves.
But you can't help feeling that there's some sort of deep disconnect between what she does and says, and what she really feels. She does point out that she chose to keep silent when the anti-gay-marriage propaganda machine swung into action, justifying her silence by saying that it's not a staffer's job to debate policy. Of course, disagreement with a tiny part of the Republican platform is not reason enough to part ways with the party. But one has to wonder how much it costs her, to keep such an important part of herself in check.
I enjoy my job, even though I am not precisely at peace with the moral and philosophical consequences of doing what I do. I probably do not feel the deep dedication for my job that Mary Cheney felt while working for her father's campaign. Nevertheless, if my company were to begin actively campaigning against my race, my gender, my lifestyle choice, or any other trait which defines me... then, obviously, I would refuse to work for them, no matter how much I loved my work. I would speak out against their persecution of me. I would stand up for who I am.
The fact that Mary Cheney chose not to do that, in favor of her position as campaign staffer, seems unspeakably sad.
You have to feel for Mary Cheney, both because of what she is and who she has made herself to be. She is clearly a strong woman, who has made hard decisions and has decided to live with them no matter the consequences. She performs a careful balancing act between disapproving of the Republican position on gay marriage, and approving of the party as a whole. She does point out that, even though Bush publicly disapproves of relationships like her own partnership, he maintains that all people should be treated with respect, regardless of their sexual orientation. (How his actions and rhetoric equate to "respect" is not explored.) Clearly she's done some deep thinking, trying to reconcile her lifestyle with the stance of the party to which she is loyal, for the sake of her own beliefs and of the father that she loves.
But you can't help feeling that there's some sort of deep disconnect between what she does and says, and what she really feels. She does point out that she chose to keep silent when the anti-gay-marriage propaganda machine swung into action, justifying her silence by saying that it's not a staffer's job to debate policy. Of course, disagreement with a tiny part of the Republican platform is not reason enough to part ways with the party. But one has to wonder how much it costs her, to keep such an important part of herself in check.
I enjoy my job, even though I am not precisely at peace with the moral and philosophical consequences of doing what I do. I probably do not feel the deep dedication for my job that Mary Cheney felt while working for her father's campaign. Nevertheless, if my company were to begin actively campaigning against my race, my gender, my lifestyle choice, or any other trait which defines me... then, obviously, I would refuse to work for them, no matter how much I loved my work. I would speak out against their persecution of me. I would stand up for who I am.
The fact that Mary Cheney chose not to do that, in favor of her position as campaign staffer, seems unspeakably sad.
