Why Virginia Thomas called Anita Hill after 19 years is anyone’s guess. She’ll never get the apology she wants. What’s clear from this week’s revelations is that opinions on the matter have changed little over time, and this revelation is merely a distraction that reminds us how far apart we really are.
As a teenager living in a one-party state dominated by narrow-minded leaders, I grew up leaning Republican. As such I didn’t believe Anita Hill during the hearings because whatever the Democrats said had to be wrong. My views have changed significantly since. As a right-leaning independent I have seen firsthand how Republicans can lie and Democrats can be beyond reproach. But 19 years later I still don’t believe Anita Hill.
I once had a boss who made snide comments about my faith. When I would come to work on Ash Wednesday, he would laugh and say I had dirt on my face. At first I thought he was kidding or just plain stupid. No, he said while he was born Catholic, he now just knew better. His comments were more annoying than anything else. But rest assured I haven’t seen or spoken to him since I moved on, and I darn sure would never have followed him to another place of employment. This harassment was mild compared to what Hill claimed Thomas did. Yet, somehow she followed him?
But other than reading Thomas’s autobiography when it was released a few years ago, I hadn’t given Anita Hill or the hearings much thought. Like many Americans, I have faced unemployment and seen the value of our home plummet. Education costs are rising and health insurance costs--despite what the Democrats told us--seem to be escalating. On Tuesday, when word came out that Thomas’s wife had left a message on Hill’s office phone number, I couldn’t help hearing all the commentary because it was everywhere. Thankfully, it appears to have been a one-day story.
This week we have learned that Christine O’Donnell wants to legislate but doesn’t know about the separation of church and state; that NPR fired Juan Williams for saying something that, were they honest, most Americans would acknowledge feeling; that gays can/can’t, serve in the military; and that Nancy Pelosi is delusional to think she will be speaker come January.
[See where Pelosi gets her campaign money.]
Each of these stories created outrage and anger. And they all had the bloviating masses on television up in arms. But none of these stories, including the latest in the Thomas-Hill saga, does anything to improve the economy or create jobs. And these last two items are what matter most to the average American, whether they live in Connecticut, Maryland, Missouri, or California. It may never be known why Virginia Thomas called Anita Hill, and honestly in the grand scheme of things, does it really matter?
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Reader Comments Read all comments (11)
Bill Hedges of MO 10:45AM October 25, 2010
nader paul kucinich gravel mckinney 4:03AM October 25, 2010
Mike of GA 6:47PM October 23, 2010