I find it ironic that we now have the woman we thought would be the democratic nominee working to defeat the woman who is the republican vice presidential candidate.We should be happy to have a woman representing us as vice-president, right? I for one am not happy about Sara Palin. I felt so strongly that I helped organize a rally to support the national and state democratic candidates, and to celebrate our right to vote.

The women who put this rally together believe that the democratic thicket is the women’s ticket. We feel it best represents the feminist view. The agenda put forth by the McCain-Palin ticket is anti-woman. We urge women to look at the issues from a feminists view before casting their vote.

The right to choose is not a pro-abortion stand. It is a right for women to have control over their own body and their destiny. The next president will have to choose Supreme Court judges to fill impending vacancies. The republican candidates have said they will look for conservative judges with the purpose of overturning Rowe v. Wade. Sara Palin does not even believe in terminating a pregnancy in cases of rape and incest.

The economy affects everyone. In many cases it is the woman in the family that is in charge of the family finances. When there is talk of cutting budgets, it’s the single poor women who are usually in need of the most help and yet are hurt most by social program cuts. Politicians can not just take a hatchet to the budget. They must look at the effect those cuts will have on the people they serve.

As a mother, I want the next president to value the lives of our soldiers as much as their own mothers do. I do not want the enlisted of this country to be seen as little plastic soldiers to be replaced as they are lost. I fear the ultra conservative Christian right wing that believes this war is a mission from God.

The purpose of the rally was to bring a feminist view to the issues and celebrate the woman’s right to vote. Gaye Symington spoke about growing the economy through a “renewable and diverse energy industry.”

Granny D (a life long activist) was the guest of honor and spoke about not getting too upset over the doom and gloom reports on the economy. She told those gathered that the depression was hard, but people pulled together and got through it.

She said that at 98 years old she had seen a lot and that we always come out the other end.

Granny D was 10 years old when women got the right to vote. The suffragettes were imprisoned and beaten so that we could have a voice in the policies of our country. The only way to make the voice heard is to vote.

One sign at the rally summed it up saying “It’s a man world unless woman vote.