Larry Summers Was Right

I know that 2005 seems like a century ago but in that scant amount of time what caused Larry Summers to be ridiculed proved prescient. In January 2005, William Saletan posted to the Slate blog the following:
“Larry Summers, the president of Harvard, suggested the other day that innate differences between the sexes might help explain why relatively few women become professional scientists or engineers. For this, he has been denounced—metaphorically, of course—as a Neanderthal. Alumni are withholding donations. Professors are demanding apologies. Some want him fired.”

We all know the rest of the story. He did get dismissed from the “fair and open-minded” Harvard University. But that ended up as a great career move. Now Summers is part of the One’s economic dream team. But the economy is not what this post is about.

As someone who defines herself as a conservative feminist, I am proud to say, ”Viva la difference!”
I like the fact that there are real men in the world who fight wars, play sports, swill beer and admire women. Those same men supported Sarah Palin because they saw in her a woman who wasn’t afraid of being a woman. They also liked the fact that she exercised her choices to learn how to hunt and fish, but still remained true to who she is, a mom, a wife, and a leader. It was only the metrosexual men in academia; you know the same ones who supported BHO and gay marriage. These guys wax their chests, legs and arms. They wear designer cologne and would never be caught dead in Cabela’s. They know how to order appletinis and foie gras, but could never figure out how to field dress a moose. So where am I going with this? Read on.

One of the keys to the selection of BHO for the American Idol president was the unmarried woman vote. As I have pondered this, I wondered what would cause this voting block to vote against a man’s man and a feminist. Then I heard of Summers’ appointment, it all flooded back to me. There are differences in the sexes. Unmarried women want someone to take care of them to free them, if you will, from the drudgery of work and provide for their every need. Well with the dating pool full of metros that won’t pay for anything and are more interested in getting the name of your manicurist than your contact info, it must have been the fantasy of a metrosexual who promised to take care of them. Not only did he sip lattes but he would pay their rent! He would also pay off their student loans; provide child care, gasoline, and a monthly clothing allowance. Now these women got to project their idea of the perfect man onto a candidate who was an empty screen waiting to be made into whatever you wanted him to be.

With the economy crashing in around them and no “bailout” for individuals on the horizon, I trust that the one-day stand and the day-after-the-night-before regrets will force women to act wiser in how they cast their votes in the future.