The XX Factor: Slate women blog about politics, etc...

Hillary's Hairy Lament

I realize this isn't up there with Tuzla and utter delusion, but am I picking on Hillary to bring up this self-pitying joke she made, at a town hall meeting in Missoula, Mont., about her looks and her hair? From CNN's political blog, "And that is another difference, you know how long it takes me to get ready than my two opponents — I mean really just think about it," she joked. "I think I should get points for working as hard as I do plus the time it takes to get ready."

Is this really a smart way for a female candidate to go? I know other women will identify with her—even I do, and my hair is an inevitable mess. But isn't she awfully quick to move from difference to inequity and persecution, in order to make a cheap bid for sympathy? Though of course, that's hardly a cardinal political sin. So maybe the real question here is whether I'm being hard on her for no good reason, as opposed to not getting the joke or shrugging it off.