"Condoleezza Rice's Commanding Clothes"

[Penndems]

By Robin Givhan
Washington Post Staff Writer
Friday, February 25, 2005; Page C01

Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice arrived at the Wiesbaden Army Airfield on Wednesday dressed all in black. She was wearing a black skirt that hit just above the knee, and it was topped with a black coat that fell to mid-calf. The coat, with its seven gold buttons running down the front and its band collar, called to mind a Marine's dress uniform or the "save humanity" ensemble worn by Keanu Reeves in "The Matrix."

As Rice walked out to greet the troops, the coat blew open in a rather swashbuckling way to reveal the top of a pair of knee-high boots. The boots had a high, slender heel that is not particularly practical. But it is a popular silhouette because it tends to elongate and flatter the leg. In short, the boots are sexy.

Rice boldly eschewed the typical fare chosen by powerful American women on the world stage. She was not wearing a bland suit with a loose-fitting skirt and short boxy jacket with a pair of sensible pumps. She did not cloak her power in photogenic hues, a feminine brooch and a non-threatening aesthetic. Rice looked as though she was prepared to talk tough, knock heads and do a freeze-frame "Matrix" jump kick if necessary. Who wouldn't give her ensemble a double take -- all the while hoping not to rub her the wrong way?

Rice's coat and boots speak of sex and power -- such a volatile combination, and one that in political circles rarely leads to anything but scandal. When looking at the image of Rice in Wiesbaden, the mind searches for ways to put it all into context. It turns to fiction, to caricature. To shadowy daydreams. Dominatrix! It is as though sex and power can only co-exist in a fantasy. When a woman combines them in the real world, stubborn stereotypes have her power devolving into a form that is purely sexual.

More here:
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A51640-2005Feb24.html
**********************************************************************
Photo:
http://media.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/images/I51904-2005Feb24

[bleedingheart]

1. Bread and Circuses....don't worry about her behavior or her policy

just look at those sexy boots.....

an article both demeaning to women and the american public all in one....

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

2. As long as comments like this keep popping up

that discuss what clothes a woman is wearing, women will never be on equal footing with men.

I'm tired of this crap. You don't see this type of discussion about men (Cheney with parka at funeral aside).

[KittyWampus]

3. Clark Wore A Sweater While Campaigning IN NH In The Winter

Gore wore earth tones

Kerry wore a hazmat suit

see a trend there?

[Spinzonner]

4. President Bush wore a stylish transponder on his back ...

[kwassa]

5. Robyn Givhan is an acquired taste, but once acquired .....

She is the chief fashion writer for the Washington Post. She is almost crazy is some of her ideas, but very insightful in others. Like her or hate her, she is often controversial and always entertaining. I often laugh out loud reading her columns, as I did this one. I never take anything she says terribly seriously, knowing that she is really out to stir things up deliberately, and after all, it is only fashion.

Condi as dominatrix! There's an image.

Givhan also really trashed Cheney for wearing that parka at Auschwitz

[MemphisTiger]

6. Very Matrix

Not too shabby...OMG, what did I just say?

[neweurope]

7. Once more (it' been discussed numerous times):

It's NOT because she is a woman. And it's NOT unimportant what Rice wears. It's about a Secretary of State's conduct while on a mission in foreign countries. NO, she CANNOT wear what she wants while she is representing your country. There is an international agreement what to wear at those occasions. Looking like a S&M whore or a dime novel Nazi is not part of that agreement. In private she can wear whatever she wants (and I really don't dislike that outfit at all). But not while on duty.

-------------------

Remember Fallujah

Bush to the Hague!

[underpants]

8. "excruciating pain with a size seven poop chute."

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x2703060

[TOhioLiberal]

9. The local talking head...

...RW mouthpiece, was b*tching about this article this AM. He said it was an example of...you guessed it: liberal media bias. All his ditto monkeys were agreeing with him. I couldn't get through...<heavy sigh>

[seemunkee]

10. Ilsa - She wolf of the SS

That was my immediate reaction to the photo the Post ran yesterday. I thought it was showed a somewhat fascist fashion sensibility that seemes out of place for an appearance in Germany.

[BurtWorm]

11. Condi, She-Wolf of the SS Privatizers

I had the same reaction.

[underpants]

12. They remind me of W's hilarious wrap around cowboy look

from last month.