The New York Times's token conservative op-ed columnist, Ross Douthat, ruminated today on the relative unhappiness of the liberated American woman.  His point of inquiry is as follows:  "Since American women today are wealthier, healthier, better educated, more likely to be employed outside the home, and earn more money than ever before, why do they report higher levels of unhappiness than they did 30 years ago?"  Assuming that the statistics Douthat is reporting are true, it is an interesting question, and one for which Douthat provides several potential answers.  He speculated about the decline of 2 parent families, the impact of the "second shift", the challenges of motherhood in modern society.  He doesn't find any of the these to be satisfactory answers and neither do I.  I think, in fact, that Douthat is looking for a complex answer rather than confronting the obvious, simple explanation.  Perhaps the answer lies in the promise of America itself - that respect is to be earned through accomplishment. 

America is the world's great meritocracy.  Respect and power are earned through hard work and determination - the American iconic ideal of the self made man..  We have no such iconic ideal of the self made woman.  Even Ophrah is judged by her weight and appearance as much as by her drive and extraordinary business success.  When we witness accomplished women disrespected in the public sphere, it is made clear that meritocracy is exclusively male.  It should not be surprising that we who are excluded would find that sad.

Politics and governemnt provide a plethora of recent examples to illustrate this point.  Hillary Clinton is a bitch - a female icon that does indeed exist in our culture.  She has ridden her husband's coat tails to a position of power that she did not earn.  Therefore, she can be derided for her appearance, her lack of fashion sense, her laughter and her tears. Sarah Palin is a babe - another iconic female type.  Unfortunately she is stupid.  Clearly she rode her physical beauty to a postion of power that she did not earn.  Therefore, she can be derided for her gaffs, her family problems and her love of masculine outdoor pursuits.  Sonia Sotomayor is an affirmative action baby - yes another iconic type.  Her success was not earned; it was given to her based solely on her minority heritage.  Therefore, she can be derided as hard to work with, and lacking intellectual firepower.  Nancy Pelosi, arguably the most powerful woman in the world, is a ball buster - yet another iconic type.  She did not earn her postion of power. She  usurped it from a more deserving man.  Therefore, she can be compared by her political opponents to a fictional man eater called "Pussy Galore" with no fear of recrimination. 

If these extraordinarily accomplished women get no respect, how can any woman earn respect in her own world?  How can any woman be seen as the iconic self made man?  If the simple desire for wide spread respect cannot be met, if success and power cannot be seen as earned, then perhaps that is what is making American women sad.  And that should sadden us all.