Michaelia, don’t be a bullyboy
A GREAT irony of Michaelia Cash’s firebombing of the reputations of young women is that the former Minister for Women employed the kind of old-school bullyboy tactics most male leaders have long abandoned.
There is the entitlement – I have the right to do whatever it takes to subordinate women if my self-interest deems it necessary.
There is also the authoritarian hectoring – implying “rumours” about the sexual integrity of young women reflected their low moral status compared with their accuser’s, and that lesser status meant they had fewer rights and were fair game.
Then there is the hubris – I am above sincere apologies.
If even your fellow ex-Minister for Women, Tony Abbott, someone who has tripped up too many times to count on his own pronouncements about women, can see this “cheap smear” for what it is, you should know sorry is not the hardest word.
Surely Cash should get that as her reckless disregard for the impact on real, less powerful, women has made so many headlines recently.
The Senator is entitled to employ the same, vein-bulging, rage as her male peers, every right to be just as aggressive, angry and tough. Good for her; she’s battled her way to seniority on merit, in that she’s a role model.
But to dip into a bullyboy bag of tricks so out of date in the real, corporate world, that were it not so toxic it would just be professionally embarrassing, is worse than a misstep. It calls her judgment into question.
It is a mystery that anyone contemporary in a position of power could fail to recognise that torching the “rumoured” morality of young women who have done nothing wrong, and have no right of reply, re- flects much worst on the one dishing the smear.
Cash didn’t look or sound in control, she didn’t strike a devastating blow against her political opponents, she appeared desperate. The optics are of someone firing a last-ditch weapon that blew up in her face – and is now hiding behind a whiteboard so we can’t see the scorch marks.
Some good can come out of this: the fact voices across the community have damned such a dirty tactic (and Abbott has also said Cash “should” apologise) illustrates we expect young women to be treated with more respect than to be used as collateral damage in a political spat.
Despite the lame qualifications offered by some of the Senator’s colleagues to deflect fallout, it feels like a line has been drawn now someone showed us where it was by blundering across it.
It’s important to note that throwing young men under the bus as sexually immoral, or at best amoral, would be viewed as just as outrageous, especially given the damage men’s careers are suffering due to complaints of impropriety in the current climate.
Senator Cash, just say a true sorry to your victims now, it’s really not that hard.