I picked this up over at RAW story. Apparently the Washington Post recently discovered that the junior Senator from New York has breasts. Not only that, she wore an outfit with a lower neckline and had that thing that people with breasts usually have - cleavage. Oh my God. Glad to see that we are focusing on the important stuff. What is interesting is the Washington Post’s defense of this drivel.

The Post ombudsman defended Givhan’s article.

“Does this have anything to do with whether Clinton should be president?” the ombudsman asked. “Not a thing. But do we want to read the column about her cleavage? Yes indeed.

Gee, I’m looking forward to more intense investigatory journalism where they uncover the fact that Obama is black or Richardson is Hispanic. Did you know that John Edwards last name begins with “E”. Can’t wait.

Who cares?

Look - the larger picture here is how we, if you pardon the pun, look at women. Do we really need to focus on types of Pant suits, or necklines? Remember the fuss over Nancy Pelosi when she became speaker? The discussion was what she was wearing. Why can’t we know about how these people - our elected officials - will develop and implement policy that affects their constituents.

Remember Carrie Andrew’s wonderful guest essay about diversity in the Monroe County Legislature? We wrote about it but the Democrat and Chronicle links are long gone. But if you have a library card you can access an on-line database of the D&C and read the March 6, 2007 essay. It was about diversity and what diversity brings to the table. Carrie wrote.

However, what really does make a difference and what distinguishes each elected representative is the life experience he or she brings to the table. For example, I have never experienced being pulled over while driving because of my skin color. Or having someone laugh at me because I spoke English with an accent.

However, I have experienced sitting in a business meeting knowing full well that the person I’m working with is more interested in sneaking glances down my blouse than listening to what I was saying. And I may have to decide to give up years of service at work, promotion possibilities and an increased pension if I choose to take time off to raise a child.

These life experiences contribute greatly to how we analyze policies, look at programs, prioritize spending and make many other decisions that are the core of governing. Without having a diverse elected body, issues that matter to many people can be ignored, even unintentionally, or not prioritized.

People’s experiences matter - not their necklines or cleavage.