The Nation: Condoleezza Rice Is Wrong Kind of Female to Break Gender Barrier at Augusta National

The Nation magazine used to think that getting the Augusta National Golf Club (that atavistic private institution in Georgia that hosts the prestigious Masters tournament each year) to open its membership to women was at least a moderately big deal. In 2002, Eric Alterman in those pages ridiculed what he called were the club's "Cro-Magnon men-only admissions policies," the controversies over which were "aptly described by the Toronto Star's Antonia Zerbisias as 'a dust-up over how a rich white man's club won't let rich white women join, and how CBS still plans to showcase the course when it hosts the Masters, a tournament starring Tiger Woods who, as a black man, should know better than to play at a place which discriminates.'"

In 2004 column asking "Where Are the Jocks for Justice?", indefatigable L.A. lefties Peter Dreier and Kelly Candaele bemoaned that Tiger Woods "remained on the sidelines during the 2002 controversy." A 2007 piece by Zach Marks hailed Augusta-petitioner Martha Burk as one of several prominent "Women Leaders."

So how did the progressive mag react to the news that Augusta finally broke open its gender barrier by admitting former secretary of the state Condoleezza Rice, along with 8058-year-old "South Carolina financier and philanthropist" Darla Moore? By having sportswriter Dave Zirin declare that the occasion is "Nothing to Celebrate." Excerpt:

Rice and Moore are not twenty-first-century Jackie Robinsons, and their acceptance into this bastion of exclusion has nothing to do with women's liberation and is utterly disconnected from the reality of daily life for millions of American women.

Condi Rice as a symbol of female power? Only if by power, we mean the power to put thousands of Iraqi women in graves all in the name of a war based on lies that she actively promoted. […]

In a sane world, Rice would be awaiting trial at the Hague. Instead, she gets to play golf at a club that, incidentally, didn't allow African-Americans until 1990.

As for Darla Moore, she is a banking billionaire who lives on a South Carolina plantation that's been in her family for seven generations. She is a longtime friend of the Bush family as well as of [former Augusta president] Hootie Johnson. […]

I'm sure it's tempting to look at today as an advance for women in sports. But it's very difficult think that today's national celebration of a multi-billionaire and a war criminal has anything to do with women's liberation.

So glass ceilings only truly get broken by ladies who have the right kind of politics. Duly noted, white man!

In related news, Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello last week attempted to revoke the Rage-fandom privilege of Republican vice presidential pick Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.) on grounds that Ryan couldn't possibly understand such important lyrical messages as calling on "the people to seize the means of production."

Comments

[Drake]

So can I get that membership at Curves now?

[Bee Tagger]

Have you pitched this as a movie idea for the Wayans Brothers? I can't imagine they'd pass on it.

[wareagle]

depends. Are you the "right kind" of new member? And by right, I mean left.

[Caleb Turberville]

"Seizing the means of production" is so 1840s. I'm not surprised Paul Ryan just ignored it.

[Drake]

Maybe we could seize Morello's mansion through eminent domain and turn it into a homeless shelter.

[Caleb Turberville]

This giant mansion?

http://pjmedia.com/tatler/2012.....a-mansion/

[Drake]

Sure, they could wash the bums in the pool.

[Whiterun Guard]

That giant mansion, he didn't build that.

[VG Zaytsev]

A real free press would ask cocksucking poseurs like Morello that question.

[Suki]

How are his record sales now that Rush stopped playing them for bumper music?

[Bee Tagger]

Tom Morello last week attempted to revoke the Rage-fandom privilege of Republican vice presidential pick Rep. Paul Ryan

Either RATM are the hypocrites people claimed they were for being on a major record label, etc or they struck a faustian deal to use suburban kids' money to advance their subversive missions. Either way, they are culturally relevant because of people like Paul Ryan.

But, I know, it's an election year.

[Jeff]

The former.

[Joe R.]

NOFX makes RATM look politically sophisticated, though.

[CampingInYourPark]

When is RATM going to hire a female band member? Discrimination...how does it work?

[wareagle]

who says the answer can't be both?

[Bee Tagger]

Good point.

[CampingInYourPark]

"So glass ceilings only truly get broken by ladies who have the right kind of politics."

And your point is that glass ceilings only truly get broken by by ladies YOU agree with politically? Who applied for membership to Augusta National that would have been politically acceptable to David Zirin and Matt Welch? Nancy Pelosi and Sheila Jackson Lee?

[Bobarian]

I think you missed the point, sunshine.

Go back and have some coffee and reread the article.

[CampingInYourPark]

"Duly noted, white man!"

Okay, the statement is supposed to be directed at Zirin. Since I don't know what color he is I'll take your word for it.

[Drake]

Pretty safe guess here.

[Jeff]

Reading comprehension. How the fuck does it work?

[Warty]

I hope this is not a joke.

[Mike M.]

Who applied for membership to Augusta National that would have been politically acceptable to David Zirin and Matt Welch? Nancy Pelosi and Sheila Jackson Lee?

Nobody applies for membership to Augusta. Well, I suppose technically anyone can ask them to be admitted, but the request will just be ignored.

[CampingInYourPark]

"Nobody applies for membership to Augusta."

What do they do, pick random names out of a hat?

[Whiterun Guard]

Yes, that's exactly what they do.

[Mike M.]

Augusta National is one of the most exclusive private clubs on the planet, and membership is done strictly by invitation only. The process by which they decide who to invite is most definitely not random, and begging the board for a membership won't get a person anywhere.

Oh, there is one other way a person can become a member: by winning the Masters.

[wareagle]

they invite people to join. That's how exclusive clubs remain exclusive.

[Lyle]

In a sane world Condoleeza Rice would be on trial at the Hague? More like in an insane world. The Left is crazy.

[Brian from Texas]

Could of been worse. They could have made Ann Coulter a member. She doesn't even register as a chick to most people. She might as well be a dude!

[Caleb Turberville]

Bill Maher actually has some feelings for Ann Coulter.

[Reformed Republican]

Could of been worse. They could have made
I do not usually post for grammar issues, but I like how you got it wrong the first time, then right immediately after.

[Libertarian]

I had a collection of F. Scott Fitzgerald short stories. Even that writer, even with an editor, and even though it was certainly a reprint......... I ran across the "of" error in one of the stories.

[Stormy Dragon]

Have you seen Ann Coulter's adams apple? I'm just saying...

[radar]

Dave Zirin is a particularly tiresome creature whose apparent mission in life is to try to ensure that every single aspect of American life is political in nature - a "sportswriter" whose only subject is always leftist politics. I remember a while back, during the World Cup, this tool opining that Americans hate soccer because of (of course) racism. Cause, you know, nothing is more lily-white than the NFL and the NBA.

[Bee Tagger]

Racism doesn't seem to stop some European fans of soccer.

[RickC]

I hate soccer cause it's boring shit. Seriously. Couple of years ago I decided to watch a World Cup match to see what all the hoopla was about. After watching for over an hour, where the ball never got more than twenty or thirty meters from the center line much less near a goal, I came to the realization that if this is the international sport then the world is crazy. Just saying.

[Suki]

Condi Rice as a symbol of female power? Only if by power, we mean the power to put thousands of Iraqi women in graves

They get to vote now, until that Arab Spring comes to town.

[wareagle]

you know; if only she had had the foresight to drone the hell out of Pakistani villages. Because the left seems to have no issue with putting those women, and a few kids, in their graves.

[invisible furry hand]

So who is she caddying for?

[Whiterun Guard]

Juge Smails.

[MJGreen]

Speculation: If it was Hillary Clinton or, somehow, Madeleine Albright, they would be declared heroes several times over.

[sarcasmic]

Duh!

[mad libertarian guy]

Because neither Albright nor Billary are responsible for the deaths of innocent people.

IIRC, it was Billary who pushed the issue with bombing Libya.

[sarcasmic]

Who a person is is more important than what a person does.

[Harvard]

Uh, you're desparately poor aren't you?

[Fatty Bolger]

Of course! Because it's not enough to be the first black woman. You must be black and blue.

[SugarFree]

Augusta lets women in. Yay. A couple of rich women get to play golf with a bunch of old white guys. Truly, it is a mighty victory feminism.

[MP]

But the symbolism!

[SugarFree]

I know, I know... this is like better than getting the vote, right?

[Killazontherun]

I'd have to look it up but my best high school buddy's dad may have been the first, what's a good racist word for Italian, not dago, that's all of us Latins except the frogs, still nursing my third cup of coffee, not making the right synapses just yet.

And those digs at rich people from a libertarian, inexcusable. I prefer the company of rich people to feminist, except the self hating kind who fund lefty causes. That's all I'm going to say on the matter.

[nicole]

My dad just calls my mom's side of the family North African.

[robc]

They already got to play golf.

Women golf there all the time.

They didnt get to attend the 4 members only parties each year.

[SugarFree]

[gasp] It was even more outrageous than I thought? Four parties? [gasp]

[Whiterun Guard]

Augusta sucks. If they were really serious about it, some of their long term members would have had sex change operations so they could say "Now we have female members, so shove off," like they do in the good clubs in Scotland.

[Caleb Turberville]

On the subject of Tom Morello, if he's worth $60 million, has he been paying the full 35% rate he's "supposed" to?

[SugarFree]

Rice and Moore are not twenty-first-century Jackie Robinsons, and their acceptance into this bastion of exclusion has nothing to do with women's liberation and is utterly disconnected from the reality of daily life for millions of American women.

The "daily life for millions of American women" include golf in a prestigious club?

White People Problems are nice to have.

[Zeb]

Yeah, who did they expect would be admitted into the super exclusive rich people club? Some ordinary person working at WalMart? It probably costs $100k a year to maintain a membership.

[Proprietist]

How dare they not invite a randomly chosen, worldly bag lady off the streets into their golf club. How dare they.

[RBS]

I knew the Left would have this reaction as soon as I heard who was admitted. The funny thing is the Left in SC loves Darla Moore, or at least they rallied around her when Nikki Haley removed her from the Board of USC.

[Baal]

Augusta, GA is my hometown. I have to admit I was happy to see they'd finally admitted women. It wasn't just embarrassing for the club, it was embarrassing for the local community. If you know anything at about the area, you'll know that's *really* hard to do.

[Mike M.]

I agree that this was a good move for the club to make, but it's a little annoying to me that if a private organization is limited to women only or African-Americans only, that's just fine and nobody cares.

It's only white men that can't be permitted to have an exclusive club of their own, because we're all supposed to just shut up and accept the established leftist narrative that white men are evil monsters.

[Concerned Citizen]

Exactly. Now, when can I join the Congressional Black Caucus? The National Organization for Women? Can my daughter dip into the United Negro College Fund?

[Kaptious Kristen]

You can join the National Organization for Women. If that's your bag, I mean.

You can't, however, join Curves.

[sailshonan]

When I look at that photo, why do I just see Token from South Park holding a bass guitar?

[Jeff]

Because they all look alike.

[Enjoy Every Sandwich]

For the Left, it's not enough that women are admitted; the institution itself must be changed to conform to "progressive" dogma. The point is not to gain admission to the institution: the point is to destroy the institution and remake it in the "progressive" image.

[Mike M.]

Change each instance of "institution" to "country", and it applies exactly the same.

[Enjoy Every Sandwich]

I figure it's all one thing. Undermine the cultural institutions to ultimately undermine the country.

[Fatty Bolger]

You mean the outrage over not admitting women was feigned, and hid their true motives? Get out! Next you'll be telling me that the whole "war on women" thing is just a pretext!

[Killazontherun]

this

[DrZaius]

Who controls the British Crown, who keeps the metric system down?

[Mr. Soul]

the same people who rob crayfish of their sight and rig the Oscars!

[Enjoy Every Sandwich]

The thing with Steve Gutenberg kinda fizzled though.

[wef]

How does one parody The Nation?

By the way, what would life be without the occasional perverse loyalty to some cultural atavism?

[Mr. FIFY]

I'm going down to the local Curves and demand my right to buy a membership. Gender discrimination is gender discrimination.

[Apple]

In related news, Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello last week attempted to revoke the Rage-fandom privilege of Republican vice presidential pick Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wisc.)

I always find it a little too precious when an artist complains that the right kind of people aren't appreciating their art for the right reasons. You know why the Audioslave records sold better than the Nightwatchman records, you disingenuous fuck. And you know most of the 16 million people who bought your RATM records were groving on the riffs and didn't care about the lyrics. And you know you'll go back to playing hard rock soon because you picked up a guitar for the exact same reason everyone else did. You wanted a huge crowd of people screaming your name, and when they do, you don't give a fuck what their politics are.

[CE]

Okay, letting women in is great and all, but they're STILL excluding the financially disprivileged and the underachieving. I won't hold my breath til they admit someone who doesn't have any connections and isn't a gazillionaire and hasn't accomplished much of significance.

[Libertarian Book Club]

75 comments, and not one joke about Rice having a bunch of clubs but no balls? People, please!

[binni]

Pseudo liberals have been well and truly played. You pretend you want equality, but it's really just a front for your hatred of anything and everyone conservative. Thanks to Condi and her former boss 25 million people were delivered from the hands of a monster and now have the freedom to determine their own future. Way to go, Ms Rice!

[dunce]

Groucho Marx had the club problem all figured out, Anyone that would take him ,he did not want to belong to. I do not play golf but Augusta gives me great pleasure just because it causes liberals distress.

[Tejicano]

I like Condi because she is everything a lefty would want in a public figure - gender, ethnicity, not just highly educated but sophisticated, a concert pianist to boot AND most probably gay as well - except she has the wrong political affiliation. The scorn which the left heaps on her is all anybody should ever need as proof that they are not serious about their stated agenda, only about how their people can get access to power.

[Jimborewski]

CORRECTION - Darla Moore is 58 years old, not 80. Darla Moore is also a prominent Democrat, and was kicked off the Advisory Board of the University of South Carolina in March and replaced with a donor to Republican governor (and Clemson graduate) Nikki Haley. The College of Business at USC is named in her honor.