Too often do politicians create double standards. It seems as though certain people or groups of people are held to completely different standards than others are. Republicans are being judged more harshly because of Bush's *ahem* shortcomings, Middle Easterners are checked "randomly" much more than Americans, and government figures expect different rights than the promise to give the rest of us!
Example: Palin's daughter. As this political cartoon from http://politicalhumor.about.com shows, Palin is attempting to create a universal rule regarding pregnancy while keeping her own daughter's pregnancy "private". Outlawing abortions takes the privacy out of the entire country's reproductive lives. Besides the fact that many people are pro-abortion, it is outrageous that Palin expects to be able to keep her own life private while making the rest of the country public.
Bush's allegiance with the religious right has created a harsher view on their suggestions. As Patrick Hynes and Jeremy Lott point out in their article, Left, Right, and Religion: a Double Standard, the Left Wing religious activists get away with much more than the Right Wing activists do. He cites the example of Jim Wallis, a Reverend who wrote a book suggesting a God's-Will based solution to mending the economy. His proposal was read and taken seriously by many across the country, as opposed to religious Right-Wing activity which tends to be blatently labeled as against the country's best intrest or a confliction of State and Church. Regardless of actual policies, it isn't right that one group gets to be taken seriously while another is ignored. Thats not a very representative democracy, if you ask me.
Finally, there are the double standards of citizens. Middle-Easterners have been searched much more often in airports since 9/11. While it is true that the attackers were from the Middle East, people should be randomly searched at RANDOM, not based on their ethnicity. The government should not claim to be randomizing these searches if they aren't really doing it! They could call it something like a "Probability-Based Search", but that would definately cause dissent because they would be admiting to prejudice. I really don't know how else the government could get away with it, but I don't think they're doing a very good job with it right now.
Overall, I think that double-standards either need to be eliminated or admitted. If someone is going to be judged differently, they should be told the difference and given a good reason. I know that America is supposedly the land of equal opportunity, but it isn't. Not for citizens, not for political groups, not for anyone. There are always unfair advantages, but they can be lessened if they are acknowledged. I think that if an individual knows the challenges they face they will better be able to meet and overcome them. HERE are some comedians who knows about their challenges, and face them with humor. I think that, while it may not be "right", a Middle-Easterner who knew he would be searched because of how he looked could change his appearance to blend in better.
Un-admitted double standards are wrong. 'nuff said.
*Off topic - if anyone can show me how to embed video instead of linking it I will greatly appreciate it
