Strollerderby : mojo mom

Strollerderby Playdate: More Than Soccer Moms...Mommies Who Vote

Jessica Ashley (Sassafrass) — Tue, 02 Oct 2007 11:02:00 GMT

I am so into this presidential election, I'm beginning to stare at myself as if I am the geeky kid with too much mentally stored information raising their hand at every question in US History class. Not only did I watch a debate, I watched the AARP debate. And I am nowhere near retirement, convertibles or a nice little two-bedroom trailer in Sarasota. Spooky. But in a good way. Ever since I was a seedling, I've dreamed of voting for a woman or a person of color for President. Now add to that some other dynamo candidates and candidate spouses and big issues like healthcare, the war and reproductive justice and this mama is in heaven. HEAVEN! Thankfully, I'm not up there shooting off activist emails to senators and talking Social Security benefits alone. There are lots and lots of parents out there just as geeked out as I am. Here are just a few (and if I missed your candidate of choice, cry me a river...then add a link to your own political rant in the comments since this isn't CNN, people):

MomsRising blog is a great place to stop for great political reporting and commentary, including contributions by...

PunditMom, with her smart-as-a-whip legal-eagle and reporter know-how and analysis, and...

MojoMom, feminist author and commenter on politics, pop culture and everything else that impact mamas and mamas impact.

MOMocrats is a newly-launched site for parents who support John Edwards. One of the clever contributors is one of SD's faves, CityMama.

The Personal Is Political is for all of you who want to dig in a big deeper on Hillary, Barack, the potential First Ladies (or Gent) and other topics of the day.

The Soccer Mom Vote is covering all kinds of election issues, all with a family bent.

Who's Afraid of the Mommy Wars?

Rachael Brownell (Redsy) — Mon, 13 Aug 2007 15:49:00 GMT

Had enough of the mommy wars? Despite the fact that many of us claim to be all done with the slings and arrows, there is no way around the fact that motherhood is incendiary. Newsweek's article "Enough with the Mommy Wars" is case in point.

Mojo Mom takes author Kathleen Deveny to task for neglecting the deeper issues and sticking to the shallow end of mom-theory typified by mommy lit lite. Expecting Executive demands an apology and encourages Newsweek to turn to better sources for the real story on motherhood, including BlogHer. Last week, Kelly wondered if we've become narcissist mommies.

But really, what is the big deal? Ms. Deveny commits heresy by claiming she's bored to death of the mommy wars and the snobbiness on message boards ( the Internet makes mommy mean) as well as the tiresome taxonomy of motherhood represented by mom lit (rocker mamas, MILFs, momzillas, slummy mummies...). I say go ahead and be bored and oversimplify as much as you like. Write about how dull it all is in Times, Newsweek and the New York Times. You're missing the point.

That the Mommy Wars exist primarily online and in print doesn't mean they aren't real. They provide a safer (and less confrontational) outlet for people to yell about childrearing. Just take a look over at the comments generated on Babble by the hospital formula ban and one easily sees what all the fuss is about.

These debates serve a real useful purpose. They help us parent better. They help us articulate and define our positions. They help us understand different approaches and viewpoints more effectively. And yes, they are also silly and catty and petty. But the Mommy Wars are also empowering and enlightening. And that is why I hope they continue for a long long time.