Preacher Pat Robertson on l'affaire Petraeus.
“She is an extremely good-looking woman. She is a marathon runner, she’d run Iron Man triathlons, and so she’s out running with him, and she’s writing a biography. And I think the term is propinquity. And there was a lot of propinquity going on.”Blame the woman. Poor manly, military men; they're defenseless against the wiles of a good-looking "lady". And I love the way the good-looking "lady" co-anchor agrees with Robertson that there was a lot of propinquity going on.
....
“He's off in a foreign land and he’s lonely and here’s a good-looking lady throwing herself at him. He’s a man.”
What's wrong with these people? What about the sanctity of marriage between a man and a woman? Do you laugh or cry? A lot of what's wrong with these people is that they buy into patriarchy.
H/T to ThinkProgress.
UPDATE: Thanks to Prairie Soul in the comments comes a link to a reality-based opinion piece in the New York Times by Frank Bruni.
Such adamant women, such pregnable men. We’ve been stuck on this since Eve, Adam and the Garden of Eden. And it’s true: Eve shouldn’t have been so pushy with the apple.
But Adam could have had a V8.
You might enjoy this piece from the NYT: The Siren and the Spook
ReplyDeleteThanks, Prairie Soul. I added an update with a link to the NYT opinion piece.
DeleteI had to go look 'propinquity' up.... there is, of course, industrial propinquity too --but I think Robertson had something else in mind.
ReplyDelete--and, yes, Prairie Soul, as the NYT article implies... it's ALWAYS been the fault of Eve. Everything. So, of course the like of Robertson would blame it on the one who looked most like Eve....
--sigh--
Sigh... As I often say, the "ladies" have come a long way, baby, but we still have a long way to go.
DeletePropinquity? Is that what the kids are calling it these days?
ReplyDeleteI doubt it. That's what Robertson calls it, which makes even me laugh, and I'm the same generation.
DeleteWell, you know, men have NEEDS, and over on the health advice pages you can read that optimal health can best be maintained by addressing those NEEDS at least twice a week, not easy to do in a war zone where the "propinquity" of a regular Joe to "one of those" might lead to "un-natural" propinquitizing, which is why all those horny generals worry about women and gays in the armed services ... needs, propinquity, just gotta have it by any means possible to stay in tip top shape ... the sound you hear is your career crashing into itty bitty bits ... but hey, those generals on the ground Fox News wants us to listen to so closely on really really important stuff, seems they only have time for email, not pre-emptive zippering ... guess what guys? I am soooooo not listening until you get a grip, on yourselves ... just yourselves.
ReplyDeleteOn the one hand, the double standard for men and women is very troubling, but on the other hand, our puritanical attitudes in this country are worrysome, too. One half of marriages end in divorce, many due in part to infidelity. I'm firmly on the side of fidelity, but the fact is that in many cases, it ain't happening. Do we wish to throw everyone known to be unfaithful out of office?
DeleteThe stories of the generals grow more complicated by the day, and if there were security breaches, then consequences must follow. From where I sit, the men appear to have been engaged in risky and reckless behavior. Rules for the military are different from those of civilians.
Maybe it's time to re-engage with the WWII practice of putting saltpeter in the bottled water to prevent unseemly urges ... but was that ever true or effective? Am guessing probably not. Maybe just not including Viagra in the military health program would help ... oh, well, engaging brain before operating body parts may be good advice, but not necessarily "operationally effective" ... guys, please, practice a little personal dignity, p l e a s e! And no, I don't want people thrown out of office over this stuff unless real job related damage is done - am of the "what consenting adults do together is nobody else's business" coalition - just put the private back in private behavior, permanently.
DeleteI fear hubris from the many accolades may have so clouded Petraeus' judgment that he was certain he could get away with the affair unscathed. Any public figure who makes that assumption is not using good sense.
DeleteFrom this and other news items we can deduce that the General is just a boy and we all know how the "boys" are, especially far from home! While Paula is a hot blooded harlot, slinking around with flowers pinned in her hair and scented with 'Tabu' and wearing satin next-to-nothings. And she will go down in history a the siren who damaged a great man's career.
ReplyDeletewhile the great General will make nice with Holly and remain a hero. Paula will remain tarnished, and heaven help her poor husband who, by now, probably wishes he could go to the south pole for the next 20 years or so.
Some things haven't changed enough yet and probably never will. God was certainly up up mischief when he set that system up:>)
nij
Nij, I'm afraid you're correct about long-term consequences - double standards apply.
DeleteEven his sycophant sidekick Terry looked like she was ready to BARF (you get the Discomfort Distress Bag after me, Terry!)
ReplyDeleteNow you mention it, Terry does look embarassed in the video, but I suppose her job description does not include disagreeing with the boss.
DeleteYou might be interested in this opinion piece, if you haven't seen it already:
ReplyDeletehttp://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-partisan/post/dont-forget-about-holly-petraeus/2012/11/14/f0823c26-2eae-11e2-89d4-040c9330702a_blog.html
Re the Frank Bunni excerpt:
DeleteHAHAHAHAHA. Brilliant. Priceless.
But whoa - I thought it was the terrible, lustmongering GAYZ who were going to ruin the military! Ah but it's a different story when the shoe is on the other foot, isn't it? Then all the righteous, God-fearing straight-boy preachers and politicians are mighty damn quick to make excuses, you see.
So there's another double standard at work besides the one you already mentioned.
Gays are not fit to serve; women are not fit to serve; and now we learn that even four-star straight generals are not fit to serve. As the field narrows, we'll have to be a lot more careful about launching wars, which is OK by me.
DeleteYes klady, we might spare a thought and a prayer for Holly Petraeus.
DeleteFor yet another institution revered by many has been proven to be a mirage.
Marriage as a sacred institution has long been a mirage. Some couples make it long term, and some don't. That said, I place myself firmly on the side of commitment and fidelity.
Aren't these the folks who are so big on "Just Say No" and "Abstinence" as the answer to all the woes? The General could have just said no, and abstained...
ReplyDeleteOne can limbo alone, but it takes two to tango.
Tobias, thank you. I wanted to say something about the limbo, but I didn't know quite how to put it.
DeletePerhaps the General admired her triceps.
ReplyDeleteSounds to me as if Robertson many have admired her triceps, too.
DeleteClearly no mortal man has the strength to withstand Iron Man Woman.
ReplyDeleteWhy is no one talking about Petraeus' muscles? He's not that good-looking, but he held positions of power, and some women go for that.
Deletewell, that's true, some women do go for power, and I suppose being a military man he's reasonably athletic too. There's no evidence re people throwing themselves at each other that she did all the throwing, though, is there (as Robertson believes)?
DeleteBroadwell is Petraeus' biographer, but the result would be better called a hagiography...or so I've heard. I haven't read it. Other than that, I don't know what is Robertson's evidence. It's not uncommon for the woman to be blamed for an affair, no matter who did what.
DeleteYes, exactly, particularly if she is good-looking.
Delete