I Heart Cindy Sheehan

Arthur Silber from The Light of Reason blog brings up an obvious point that's been hiding in plain sight about the smear attempts on Cindy Sheehan. I'll post some of the main points, but I recommend giving it a full read:

There has been a great deal of talk from those opposed to Cindy Sheehan’s actions about how she’s being “exploited,” how she’s being “used,” how various groups and people with suspicious (and allegedly “anti-American”) motives are manipulating her to their own ends. I discussed that (to some extent) along with other issues earlier today. Among other things, and I truly ought to have remarked upon this before, such criticisms are remarkably condescending and insulting. Can’t Cindy Sheehan speak for herself? She obviously can, very eloquently in fact—and she has been doing so repeatedly in recent weeks. Doesn’t Mrs. Sheehan have a mind of her own? She obviously does, and an inspiring and independent one. I have the very strong sense from all that I have read and heard about her that, if Mrs. Sheehan thought she was being “exploited” or “manipulated,” she would put a stop to it in very short order. I was going to say that she would probably kick someone’s ass, hard. In fact, I don’t believe she would do that at all—nor do I think she would need to. I mentioned this post before, but I urge you to read it again. Cindy Sheehan has a powerful and persuasive personality. I don’t think others would take advantage of her very easily. But there’s a further issue lying underneath this one. What if we weren’t talking about Mrs. Sheehan? What if we were talking about Mr. Sheehan? Would we be hearing these identical complaints? I don’t think so. Oh, some of the more dedicated warbots would make the same charges, but those charges would be far more infrequent. We just don’t talk about men this way, don’t you know. Nobody pushes men around. Nobody tells a real man what to do. Nobody tells a man what to think and what to believe. But, those poor, pitiful women. They just can’t fend for themselves! They can’t make it on their own! Those poor, helpless ladies. [...] So to all the men who take this attitude (and some women have internalized it, as well): try to set aside your smug, superior, condescending and insulting treatment of Cindy Sheehan as some poor, deluded, second-class citizen. She’s every bit your equal—and probably your superior in many important ways. And, if you want to view it this way, she’s probably a better man that many men are: I doubt that most of the warbloggers could survive the kind of trashing and vilification that Mrs. Sheehan continues to take. But Cindy Sheehan takes it, and it doesn’t even slow her down. Treat her with the respect she’s earned, and with the great seriousness to which she’s entitled. Don’t attack her character, her independence, or her sanity. If you disagree, disagree with her ideas. And as I said in my first entry on this subject, in all other respects, leave her alone.