Palin's Glasses Are a Fashion Spectacle

Don't be so quick to judge Palin

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin's critics say she was unqualified to be vice president, but don't be too quick to label her the worst pick ever, writes Matthew Cooper. In the Atlantic , he runs down others since WWII who need to be part of the conversation:

• Spiro Agnew: Nixon's VP had to resign on bribery charges and had scant experience before being picked. "In terms of corruption and temperament, has there been anyone worse in memory?"
• Richard Nixon: His paranoid personality would have made him a disaster as president in the '50s had Eisenhower died in office. Nixon dealing with Stalin, Khrushchev, and Castro? Yikes.

And New Mexico's Susana Martinez may be too similar

(NEWSER) - The Republican Party may be suffering from an enthusiasm gap this election cycle, but don't expect a game-changing VP this time around, writes Richard Stevenson at the New York Times . Someone like New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez might look ideal, for instance—female, Hispanic, Tea Party-friendly, handgun fan, bipartisan support. But she probably bears too many "surface similarities" to Sarah Palin, and this year's vetting process is going to be "as thorough and intrusive as the vetting of Ms. Palin was rushed and incomplete." More»

He's at large, mom who aided him busted: cops

(NEWSER) - An Afghan militiaman strangled his wife for giving birth to a third daughter instead of a son, according to law enforcement authorities. The 28-year-old victim was killed in her home in the northern province of Kunduz by her husband and his mother just three months after the woman had the baby, reports the Guardian . The victim's mother-in-law has been arrested, but the husband has fled. It's uncertain who will care for the couple's daughters. Two months ago, attackers in the same province poured acid over parents and three children after the parents refused to hand over their young daughter in marriage. The rejected suitor has been arrested. More»

Young women are angry and organizing themselves: Jessica Valenti

(NEWSER) - There's no stopping SlutWalks now, and they're starting to look like the "future of feminism," writes Jessica Valenti in the Washington Post . What began as a single protest in Toronto over a police officer's safety tip—to avoid rape, don't dress like a "slut"—has morphed into "the most successful feminist action of the past 20 years," writes Valenti. These marchers are women fed up at sexist stereotypes who are organizing themselves, and they're not doing so under the umbrella of an established women's group. More»

Conservatives shouldn't be shunned from the cause

(NEWSER) - Sarah Palin is taking heat from the left for daring to adopt the label of feminist, writes Cathy Young. Palin clearly isn't a great spokesperson for the cause—she's big on slogans but not so much on substantive ideas—but Young thinks feminists are making a mistake by automatically rejecting conservatives from the cause. Given the country's center-right leanings, it alienates a huge number of women right off the bat. More»