In a widely reported, controversial acceptance speech at the recent Emmy Awards show, actress Sally Field attacked the U.S. involvement in Iraq, saying, "If mothers ruled the world, there wouldn't be any ‘G-D’ wars in the first place," adding, "This (her Emmy Award) belongs to all the mothers of the world - may they be seen and valued.”
Once again, an entertainment industry icon holds forth with an emotional political outburst that has little or no meaning – not if you examine it more closely, that is. Just how long should the public continue to tolerate high profile entertainers mouth off with unsolicited, often meaningless personal political opinions whenever they can get their hands on a microphone?
In this instance, Sally Field made an impassioned plea that not only has no substance but is also factually incorrect. I have always been a fan of hers, and although I’m disappointed I’m not surprised to find out how uninformed she is. However, just for the record, let’s examine her statement, “If mothers ruled the world, there wouldn’t be any ‘G-D’ wars in the first place.”
The careers of three famous leaders who were also mothers directly contradict Ms. Field’s assertion: Golda Meir, Indira Ghandi and Margaret Thatcher. A columnist who writes under the pen name, “The Stiletto,” recently made the following observations about these great women leaders, who also happened to be mothers (PoliticalMavens.com, August 9, 2007):
Golda Meir, a founder of the state of Israel and its Prime Minister from 1969 to 1974, was the mother of two children, Sarah and Menacham. The original ‘Iron Lady.’ Meir was at the helm during the 1973 Yom Kippur War between Israel and a coalition of Arab countries led by Egypt and Syria determined to take back the Sinai and Golan Heights, which had been captured by Israel in the 1967 Six-Day War. Israel prevailed, and the war paved the way to the Camp David Accords, which led to normalized relations between Egypt and Israel.
Prime Minister of India for three consecutive terms (1966 to 1977) and for a fourth term from 1980 until she was assassinated in 1984, Indira Gandhi was the mother of two sons, Sanjay and Rajiv. In the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971, Gandhi backed East Pakistan against West Pakistan, which led to the creation of Bangladesh. Three years later, India developed a nuclear arsenal to counter the threat from Communist China. During Gandhi’s watch, India became the dominant power in the region.
…Margaret Thatcher, who served as British Prime Minister from 1979 to 1990 and is mother to twins, Mark and Carol. In 1982 when Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands, Thatcher dispatched the navy and recaptured the British territory for a decisive victory.
Furthermore, these three women leaders are not an anomaly. The history of mankind, dating back to Biblical times, is replete with stories of mothers who rose to positions of power that enabled them to at least “run” their corners of the world. There are too many such stories to recount here, but two other women leaders come to mind: Benazir Bhutto of Pakistan and Sirimavo Ratwatte Dias Bandaranaike of Sri Lanka.
From 1984 to 1994, Benazir Bhutto (b. 1953) was Co-Chairperson of Pakistan People's Party from 1994. She was also Leader of the Party in 1994. Ms. Bhutto was under house arrest from 1977-84 and in exile from 1984-86. She also held positions as minister of Defence, Atomic Energy, Finance, Economy, Information and Establishment. She has lived in exile in London and the United Arab Emirates since 1998. Her three children were born in 1988, 1989 and 1993. During her tenure in office, Pakistan developed nuclear weapons, in spite of strenuous objections by the United States.
Ms. Dias Bandaranaike (1916-2000) was Chairperson of Sri Lanka’s Freedom Party from 1960 to 1993 and again from 1993 to 2000. She was President from 1965 to 1970 and again from 1988 to 1994 and also held positions as Leader of The Opposition and Chairperson of the Association of Non-Aligned Nations. As Prime Minister, she held posts as the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Defence and Finance, and before her appointment as Prime Minister in 1994, she was Senior Minister without Portfolio, Second in her daughter, Chandrika's Cabinet. She is the mother of three children and led her nation during a period when considerable fighting with “separatists” occurred.
Sally Field’s belief that if mothers ran the world there would not be any wars is overly simplistic – because it ignores the reality of geo-politics on the ground. Wars are usually not started simply because of the temperament of leaders, but for a variety of reasons, such as gaining control of resources or territory, advancing a particular political ideology (Communism, etc.) or for religious reasons, as in the Crusades or the current War on Terror, which was initiated by Islamic fundamentalists.
From another perspective, Ms. Field’s declaration, “If mothers ruled the world there wouldn’t be any ‘G-D’ wars in the first place,” makes me wonder about the growing number of Muslim women who strap bombs on their bodies and blow themselves up along with innocent women and children in the name of their religion. Or, even more horrific to contemplate, Muslim mothers who blow up their own children for their cause. That certainly doesn’t make them good candidates to “run the world” in my book. I wonder, does Sally Field have an explanation for this?
So, once again, we find the glitterati of the entertainment industry trumpeting meaningless platitudes about “world peace” or “stop the war” and making bogus claims to support their declarations, such as America deliberately targets civilians.
Another example of the anti-war mentality was demonstrated by the activists who traveled to Iraq prior to the start of the war, with the declared intention of putting themselves at personal risk as human shields to prevent the bombing of targets in Baghdad, only to find that they did not receive the cooperation they expected from Saddam’s regime, which merely used them for propaganda purposes. (Iraq Human Shields ‘No Deterrent,’ FoxNews.com, March 2, 2003; Human Shield Action to Iraq, p10k.net/humanshieldactiontoiraq.html)
More empty talk and silly posturing, perhaps well- intentioned, but foolish. My reaction to all this is: Get Real!
(c) 2007 Harris R. Sherline, All Rights Reserved
