Above is a political cartoon from the conservative newspaper in Andalusia(http://pepecontreras.blogspot.com/2008_04_06_archive.html). It shows Carmen Chacon on the "Day of the little Flag" greeting the military. What are your opinions on our first female minister of defense and do you think that the criticism seen in the cartoon has some validity? Should a pregnant women with no experience in the military be placed in such an important position?
4 comments:
JORDAN ROCKETT:
I get the feeling that Carme Chacon has a lot in common with 2008 Vice-Presidential candidate Sarah Palin. They are both young, independent women who, in my opinion, are a little too light on the experience side for my liking.
Putting myself in Chacon's situation, I know that if I were seven months pregnant, first of all, I would NOT have accepted such a demanding position in which millions of people would be affected by my decisions when I would surely lack the time and energy to fully commit myself to both a new child and a new job. What was she thinking!? What was Zapatero thinking? Do they want her to do the best work she is capable of, because that seems nearly impossible as either the new child or the job will have to sacrifice a certain amount of dedication for the sake of the other.
Both of these things require a huge amount of dedication, so, inevitably, something has to give. Sara Palin only took three days off when she had her baby, Trig, in April of 2008m which raises the question will Chacon get back on the horse this quickly, or will we see her priorities shift? - ROCKETT 19/10
I agree with Jordan’s point that Carmen Chacon’s pregnancy creates a conflict of interest, but I think that it is only a small part of the larger criticism. The title of the cartoon, “El dia de la banderita” suggests that Chacon’s appointment as Head of the Ministry of Defense was not earned. When translated, banderita means flag sold for charity. When forming a cabinet, Zapatero included the likes of Chacon in an effort to model a more egalitarian government. People are disgruntled because it appears she wasn’t chosen on her merits. She may not be the most qualified, but her appointment makes a strong statement to the international community that Spain has become a progressive liberal democracy. To me, Zapatero’s choice indicates that gender equality is a bigger priority to his administration than the military.
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