The Right Wing Nanny State

The fact is that much of the political/cultural angst we hear these days is rooted in projection: "a defense mechanism where a person subconsciously denies his or her own negative attributes by ascribing them to objects or persons in the outside world instead."

This morning I have a perfect example of that. We often hear right wingers whining about the "Nanny state." Lately this has been targeted at Michelle Obama's "Let's Move" initiative that educates children about healthy eating and exercise.

As liberals, we often scratch our heads and wonder how they come up with this shit. When you find yourself asking that question, its probably a good idea to assume that it springs from their own impulses...in this case, to control what they view as negative behavior in the form of a Nanny State.

That's why one conservative woman felt the need to "educate" adults about what to wear/not wear to the CPAC conference. Take a look:


One you're done laughing your ass off, think about this for a moment. While Michelle Obama is trying to educate children about diet and exercise, what we're talking about here is adults who are attending a political conference. In most arenas a simple "business or casual business attire" would have sufficed. But these folks think attendees need to be educated about the particulars of what to wear/not wear. Talk about a Nanny State!

Of course what underlies all of this is an attempt to control the one thing the white male patriarchy fears most...women's sexuality. Notice in the "What not to wear" section, other than athletic shoes and t-shirts (which are pretty unisex), all of the "no-no's" apply to women. We'll have none of that leg and/or cleavage showing!

That anyone thought this was necessary speaks to the fact that wingers infantalize adults - mostly women - as children in need of supervision. And you wonder why they don't want us to have choices about what to do with our bodies?