Much has been said in recent weeks about women–in particular women who have the unutterable gall to go in to politics. Christine O’Donnell has been the butt of many a joke as well as a little known young woman named Krystal Ball who is running for Congress in the 1st District.
Christine O’Donnell should just stop talking about the witch thing. Who cares? No one really thinks she was a witch. She was a kid. Kids experiment with stuff. How do you ever learn if you aren’t confronted with a few things where you have to decide if this is something you should be doing or not.
O’Donnell’s problem is she hasn’t renounced any of her ideas she espoused as a young person. She doesn’t seem to have refined any of them. Her remarks on masturbation will follow her to the ends of the earth. She needs to kill them off. She needs to say the point of going to the Senate is not to be self serving or something…anything. She needs to take contol and not let those remarks from 12 years ago define her and what she is all about.
Leno was rude. Letterman was crude about Sarah Palin’s daugher, Willow. Real crude.
Krystal Ball’s relative anonymity has gotten a shot in the arm, although probably not the kind she wanted. Someone got hold of some pictures of her and her first husband and friends at a Christmas party, in some frat party type poses. Naturally the pictures went viral and local bloggers had a hayday, especially those of the opposing party. Krystal Ball was not deterred.
The bloggers who posted Ball’s party pictures apparently were never young themselves. They never acted out and they never had a good time. They are as disrespectful as Leno and Letterman. The women they disrespect are someone’s wife, mother, daughter, sister.
Like their politics, hate their politics but cut the dehumanizing crap out. Stick to the issues. Right now it just appears that there is a lot of one handed typing going on. It sounds like Bob Marshall’s Luv Canal Frat boys in a locker room.
And when you are old enough to be someone’s grandmother, you get to say these things without missing a beat. Grow up, boys.
Krystal Ball’s campaign link. Contributions can be made at this site:
http://www.krystalballforcongress.com/
It does sound like her opponenet has some class.
Shame on the adult men who behaved like school boys over silliness.
Krystal Ball is correct. Sen. Scott Brown posed nude and no one even blinked. If they did it was not to criticize him.
Lest anyone get quagmired in Krystal’s name, Ball, remember the ‘father of our country.’
George Washington’s mother was named Mary Ball Washington. In fact, there is a dorm at the University of Mary Washington named Mary Ball Hall.
pictures:
http://museum.umwhisp.org/index.php?id=202
Modern:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/blondeonblonde/4880187058/
compliments of Elizabeth Wenner
Just the facts….
I liked Jon Stewart’s comment on O’Donnell’s “I’m not a witch … I’m you” ad: “No, you’re not me … I’ve never had to go on television and deny I was a witch.”
If I can scrounge enough $1 bills together, I’ll make a donation 🙂
Thanks for making my case for me. 🙄
Slow: Funny but too soon!! 🙂
The pics wouldn’t sway me as a voter (I’m not in that district). I’m actually not a fan of pic bombing like that and in our social networking lives that’s just bound to happen more often.
I do think it takes a strong woman to be young(er) and run for office.
@Moon-howler
No prob!
http://www.politico.com/news/stories/1010/43315.html
I don’t mind people yelling at town halls or even some level of ambush reporting.. But, calling a female a whore to seek political advantage? Ugh.
Calling any woman a whore for political advantage is totally unacceptable.
I found her letter of apology to her friends and ex husband who she describes as a wonderful man to be another aspect of this situation that I hadn’t even thought about. their privacy was certainly invaded.
They were all acting silly. Who cares. They were in private and amongst friends. (except for the rotten bastard or bastardess who picture dumped). Who cares. Why should she even have to explain herself. I wouldn’t want anyone running for office that hadn’t ever let their hair down a time or two or many.
Not sure where the first district touches PWC but it does.
I mind the town hall yelling a great deal, Marin, mainly because it shuts out other people.
Actually Krystal Ball might just get the notoriety she needs to do better in this race than ever thought possible. Smart people will turn this into a win.
I wonder who her “friend” was that gave the pictures out. Or was this, by chance, another lesson in not posting certain things are Facebook or other social media?
There is a huge difference between having fun at a private party and betraying the public trust or cheating on someone. Betraying the public trust and cheating on someone are both indicative of poor character but not some harmless activities.
No, these weren’t facebook pictures. They were ‘unearthed.’
The man in the picture is her husband. She was 22 years old. Who is she cheating and what public trust is she betraying?
For those of us who came of age when pictures were pictures….there is a whole set of rules that I understand. I suppose I have print media mentality.
But for those younger folks who grew up and matured in a digital age, I don’t know what the answer is. There literally is NO privacy.
To a person like me, with print media mentality, all of this seems horrifying. There is something wrong when a college student kills himself because his sexual encounter is streamed all over the internet. There is something wrong when a young woman goes to a costume party or a raunchy jolly Christmas get together with husband and friends and pictures of them acting silly show up more than half a decade later.
6 years is nothing to me. but to Ms. Ball, 6 years is a fifth of her life. And none of them were doing anything wrong. Its just young people acting silly with toys that have been made every day household words, thanks to politics, and yes, blogs.
@Moon-howler
She isn’t and that was my point. Her appearing in these pictures is way overblown.
Is this where I ask if there was a pun ….stop Moon! don’t say another word.
I don’t see where it matters. I do and I don’t. Releasing the pictures was mean. Posting the pictures was unnecessary, uncouth, and predictable.
Certainly we all have a few sessions in our youth that we would rather the world didn’t see.
This entire situation speaks more about our society and those who would use something like this for political power and gain than it does the kids that were just fooling around and acting silly with friends.
Agreed. I don’t blame her for being angry. Realistically speaking, in this toxic environment, I guess it doesn’t surprise me. Knowing this toxic environment, I think I would be even more angry with whoever sent them to the people that released them. Obviously not a friend. I doubt that the people who originally posted them googled “Krystal Ball, racy pictures” to find them on their own.
By the way, no pun intended although I see it now. Pretty good, huh. I must be a natural.
I had thought about commenting about Pinocchio though.
Never mind.
Bwaaahahahaha no wooden jokes, Rez.
I agree…whoever sent them was obviously not a friend. I would have no idea how to live in a world that lacks privacy and thrives on such hatefulness.
And good for her for running for office. She grew up in King George and apparently is still in that area. I believe her district has a tiny portion of PWC near Catlet and near Quantico and Dumfries. That is a huge district. It takes in the entire Northern Neck plus all the other necks, whatever you call those. It hops the river, goes over to Williamsburg, butts right up against Hampton. How can such a huge district …exist?
http://www.govtrack.us/congress/findyourreps.xpd?state=VA&district=1
All that and I am still in Frank Wolf’s district. How does this keep happening to me. It is like I am stuck in the belly of the 10th. No way out.
I was amazed and disappointed to see some of these pictures aired on CNBC at noon today. But – who knows – maybe notoriety will give her votes.
Her so called friend should be frozen out by all of her present friends, if s/he still has any.
Fox News was its usual classless self. Megyn did not point out that she was with friends at a private part with her husband. She also said that Krystal Ball tried to make excuses. No she did not.
Then she made fun of her name and her family for naming her that. How totally not appropriate. What about people who name their daughter Megyn GYN.
Typical.
The ‘nose’ was blurred. Maybe MeGYN needs to read up on family names in and around Fredericksburg, especially that of George Washington’s mother’s family.
Totally agreed, Punchak.
Megyn isn’t funny, Krystal Ball, oh yeah, that’s funny. It wasn’t the last name she was making fun of. It’s given that last name, to chose that first name. That’s funny. GYN?? I get it, but wow you are stretching big time.
That’s a tough last name. You have to pick carefully. Don’t want any boys named Harry or Richard, no Seymours.
And here you have classical liberal thinking, usually found in grades 1 through 4. “I’ll stop being your friend, and all my friends will stop being your friend, too!”
I don’t think I am stretching it at all to not like some moron making fun of someone’s name. Seriously, if she had just said, we are serious folks and left it at that…one thing. This went a bit further. It mimicked and ridiculed. Typical Faux News.
Why should any legitimate news station do that?
As for freezing out the friends…if I had a friend who did anything like that….I would have to go out in a blaze of glory….If I were her age I would be tempted to settle it in the parking lot. I know a local politician who used to like to settle things that way.
I expect she knows who picture dumped and I expect that person will pay and pay and pay. That is really a hideous thing to do to someone.
There are just things I will not do, even when I have had the opportunity. Remember Larry Flynt’s offer?
A friend of my husband’s was named Joe Hoare. Signing in at a hotel once, the receptionist tried to make “Hoare” sound as something that didn’t sound like “whore”. Well, old Joe would have nothing of that. “That’s HOARE (whore). Do you get it?”
Somehow George Washington’s mother survived having that name.
Good for old Joe. I had a similar experience with someone named Wienar.
She had guts, didn’t she?
what I find interesting is the difference in the narrative for Scott Brown vs a Krystal Ball. Scott Brown is deemed as a hottie and Krystal is painted as a slut with no common sense. Unfreakinbelievable is all I have to say. SEXIST Bullsh&%t if ever there was. Just like in silly high school, the guys who sleep around are studs and the girls are sluts. WHEN will we ever grow up?
I HAVE to share this one. I went to school with a girl whose dad’s name was Harry Beaver. Guess what he did for a living…………………………………….OBGYN I kid you not!
Just got back from the SJHS home coming game. They did well against Heritage.
MH, you’re bringing back memories of attending Mary Wash:) Ball Hall was THE most gorgeous dorm on the entire campus when I was there, and one of the few all-girl dorms that remained at the time. I was in Virginia Hall my freshman year and since “the Vault” was only for freshman females, I had to find another dorm for the next year. Unfortunately Ball Hall had no vacancies, and a huge waiting list, so I ended up at Jefferson for my remaining three years. I read in the alumni magazine that UMC bought the shopping center across Rt. 1 where Rose’s used to be and put in more dorms there and built a pedestrian overpass over Rt. 1. I’ll have to take a trip down there some time to see it. The main campus is so small (what? 5 blocks long, and one block wide?) that they were building like crazy my last year and built a dorm behind Jefferson, and two huge dorms down by Goolrick. I really loved going there, but was totally bummed when they replaced Trinkle with a more modern, well-lit library. Who didn’t love the spooky stacks and out of the way rooms of Trinkle Hall?
@Slowpoke Rodriguez
You had better believe it. She was actually an old bitch. She was known to berate him before the House of Burgesses if she felt he wasn’t giving her enough money.
@Elena
Tell me you are kidding.
@DB
E. Lee Trinkle was haunted I think. My knees are still in very bad shape from falling down stairs in that place.
I was in Willard, then Russell for 3 years. Willard had like original primeval cockroaches. Some were several inches long. Ball Hall was beautiful back in the dark ages also.
I just looked at all the buildings. I would get lost there now. My favorite academic building was always Monroe.
My mother went there 2 years also when Nina Bushnell was there. She stood up and told the girls how to sip their soup. You were to move your spoon away from you. How hoighty toighty.
http://www.umw.edu/centennial/history/buildings/default.php
buildings
for DB
I hated Chandler. Most of my classes were there also.
The fine arts center was my second favorite but it was a long hike to get there from Russell.
The Mary Washington talk almost disarmed me. What it should have done is reminded me of a time, in my case, many years ago when things were not quite as open as they are now. Now I am questioning if that much as really changed.
Are women really free to run for office? Or will the little boys still try to control them by ridicule and sexual embarrassment? Too bad I wasn’t running around Charlottesville with a camera, taking picture of some of the leaders today who are right down there in the State House. (or in Congress) Perhaps a few shots of them barfing in someone’s hedge or groping their date at a frat party might have been in order. Yet, still, I doubt if the penalties would have been all that stiff. Wink Wink nudge nudge boys will be boys.
Until American women stand up and defend women like Krystal Ball who was with her very own husband and friends, then nothing will change and they can enjoy really not being full class citizens.
Emma, your opinion por favor!
@Elena
Yep, he was a OBGYN in DC for many years.
As a title examiner I’ve come across some very strange names in my time. The gentleman’s name was Harden Long. Then to add insult to injury he was a Jr. I was only about 20 when I did that title, and I’ve never forgotten that name.
DB,
I was at the game too. There were a lot of people their compared to other. Of course it was homecoming. I’ve been to both home games and the Raiders have won. I enjoyed seeing some old schoolmates last night and the weather was PERFECT. Next week is Senior Night.
It makes you wonder why name change isn’t more popular.
There more reaction I hear to Krystal Ball’s unfortunate party some 6 years ago, the more I have decided that this crap will continue until ‘slut’ and ‘whore’ take on the same social connotation that the N word does.
Another alternative would be some word that means male slut without putting the word male in front of it.