Nobody Puts Baby in a Binder

By Jeralyn, Section Elections 2012
Posted on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 04:59:17 PM EST
Tags: Mitt Romney (all tags)

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Even Jennifer Gray is retweeting photos of "Nobody Puts Baby in a Binder."

On Amazon, more than 8,700 people have liked this review of the Avery View binder:

As a woman, I'm not adept at making decisions that concern me. So when I need the right choice, I turn to the presidential candidate that KNOWS. One with prideful experience in this department. I don't want to be filed away in an inferior & confusing electronic doohickey that I couldn't possibly understand. Or heaven forbid, have a man ask for & listen to my ideas! I'd much rather rely on this top of the line, 1980s style, Avery Durable binder. It's the choice America can trust. My education, my ideas, my opinions, my choices, please PLEASE keep them safely stored away here and far away from the men that might fear them (I mean, want to use them to hire me somedaynever). I'd write more about this most useful product, but it's time I hurry home to make dinner.

Romney's remarks have also found their way to binder reviews on Staples. [More...]

The Tumbler page on Binders full of women is growing.

And, of course, what started it all.

< Thursday Open Thread | Thursday Night Open Thread: The Ties That Bind >

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Nobody Puts Baby in a Binder | 36 comments (36 topical)

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This has got to be one of the funniest things (5.00 / 2) (#3)
by Angel on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 05:24:54 PM EST

ever to come from a Presidential Debate. And I'm lovin' every minute of the laughs!

That's not even the best one (5.00 / 3) (#5)
by sj on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 05:53:00 PM EST

The review of the binders you quoted? That's not even the best one.

Here is a link by most "helpful" and here is one by most recent. Grab a beer and something to knosh on and then sit back and enjoy. Every now and then there will be a review by an obvious Romney supporter. And I have to say, they all (the ones I've seen) seem seriously humor-challenged. They just don't have the gift for a clever statement. Bless their hearts.

Oh, and Anne? It's up to 76 pages with 760 comments compared to this mornings 402 comments.

My favorite so far... (5.00 / 1) (#8)
by Angel on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 06:19:10 PM EST

As a wife and mother, I LOVE this binder. It keeps me in my place, allows me to get dinner ready on time, AND only costs 72% of the more masculine version. Some people might think it's sexist, but sheesh, I'm not binding my feet, just my brain. Extra bonus, if you sit on it just right, it can act as an effective method of birth control! Full disclosure: I submitted this under my husband's account, with his full permission. He is the head of our household, and the owner of the binder.


I love this one: (5.00 / 1) (#15)
by Anne on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 07:26:58 PM EST

Wow, this binder has really changed my life. Before I was always trying to fit into the corporate world. I wanted things like equal pay, safety from sexual harassment and the right to have health care coverage for birth control. But after purchasing this binder I feel totally put in my place. Now I know from the safety of my binder that men are much more capable of making these kinds of decisions for me. I obviously do not deserve equal pay because I am always asking for special accommodations, like leaving early to make dinner for my children- which is in no way, under any circumstances, a man's responsibility. Women are the one's who always cook dinner, every night. Asking to leave early for this purpose is a fair reason to pay us less for the same exact work. Also, sexual harassment I learned is actually just a man's way of showing his affection for me and reminding me of my weakness and inability to care for myself. Finally, birth control is in no way a right. Women are the vessels in which men plant their seed, from the safety of my binder I can be available for procreation at all times. I am so grateful for my binder. The world is such a simpler place from in here. It also has the added bonus of helping me control my emotions and preventing me from making irrational decisions like voting. 5 stars, Amazon!

I'm still surprised Amazon hasn't taken it down, but maybe they're happy to have all the traffic.


Maybe Bezos doesn't like Willard. (none / 0) (#17)
by Angel on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 07:50:50 PM EST

He has not openly endorsed anyone to my knowledge, but he and his wife did give a couple of million to the gay marriage campaign, and they have given some small donations to Dem candidates in the past.

Avery is real winner in this thing.


: Over the years, he's given more (none / 0) (#30)
by shoephone on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 10:58:18 PM EST

money to Democrats than to Republicans, but is considered to be a Libertarian. Basically, he supports whoever he thinks will be better for his bottom line.

I'm fond of the review that (none / 0) (#9)
by Towanda on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 06:45:30 PM EST

said that she was a teacher, so she couldn't afford a binder and had to be in a manila folder.

But I found that one last night, when there were only half a dozen pages of reviews. Now, I do not have enough time in my life to read the rest of them -- as that would take time from my regular perusal of Amazon fora on free ebooks. (There are some great folks on the Amazon fora who have become friends offline, as well.)


I was just wondering why the reviewer (none / 0) (#16)
by Jeralyn on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 07:50:49 PM EST

picked that particular binder and whether anyone else has used it. The good ones are expensive at $11 a pop but they are so much more functional than manilla folders. For real, and not to be funny, I buy about 50 of these binders a year, usually this one. They have to have a D-ring so they don't get alignment problems, and they need to have that little doohickey on the bottom that opens and closes the rings so you don't have to pull the rings apart.

And of course they need the viewable cover and side panel so I can put in bright color sheets with the client's name and what's in it (pleadings, discovery, research, trial notebook, etc) and immediately spot the right one when I need it, both in the office and in court. (The only color I don't use is orange because it matches the jail jumpsuits and I don't want my clients to feel bad in court like they are being branded. And I don't use pastels like lavender, or hot pink for the guys because that would embarrass them in court.)

There's actually quite a lot of thought that goes into picking binders, so I hope the reviewer picked a good one and didn't just pick randomly. I may have to order one to find out.


: Oh, I have spent hours in office supplies (none / 0) (#25)
by Towanda on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 09:28:13 PM EST

stores and online, so I understand. I abandoned big binders a while ago, though, as my schedule doesn't call me for me to cart everything every day. So I opted for separate, lighter binders.
But they must be colorful, yes, lest I pack the wrong one. My schedule tends to be one thing on Monday and Wednesday and another on Tuesday and Thursday, so I have color-coded my days. And then, of course, I tend to be influenced by my binder of the day in the outfits that I wear with them. (No danger for me of picking an orange binder, either, but for different reasons.)
I do miss the option of the see-through cover, though. I had a lot of fun with those. Hmmm, I feel the need to head to one of my favorite websites of other office-supply store groupies to appease my yen for a new pen.
Perhaps a Bic for Her, so suitably svelte for "a woman's hand"? Enjoy the reviews by the snarky Amazonians there, too!

These are amazing (none / 0) (#29)
by lilburro on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 09:55:27 PM EST

the comments on the reviews are hilarious, too.


For your continued entertainment... (5.00 / 2) (#13)
by Dr Molly on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 07:15:42 PM EST

One Big Binder Full of Bad B!tches

Suffice to say that by virtue of ... (5.00 / 3) (#21)
by Donald from Hawaii on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 08:39:48 PM EST

... that imperious performance on Tuesday night, Mitt Romney has proven himself to be the grown-up version of that prep school jerk and bully at Cranbrook, who tormented a legally blind teacher and physically assaulted a classmate because he thought the boy was gay.

As funny and stupid as it was, Romney's "binders full of women" comment serves to highlight his obtuseness and arcane attitudes when it comes to relating to the issues facing women in the 21st century. Would he ever have thought to say "binders full of men"?

It's probably appropriate to note here that during Romney's entire tenure as Bain Capital's chair and CEO, there were no women brought on board as partners.

In fact, when Romney ran to unseat Ted Kennedy in the U.S. Senate in 1994, all 95 vice-presidents at Bain were white men. Not a woman, not an African American, not an Hispanic American was to be found. Likewise, Bain's managing hierarchy, i.e., its senior administrators and board of directors, was exclusively white and exclusively male.

Now, Romney claims that this was because none of the elite business schools from which Bain recruited were graduating qualified women and minority candidates. However, the records show that approximately 30% of 1994 graduates at Harvard Business School were women, and 25% were minorities.

Any candidate for public office who can mislead and misdirect so casually, as Romney does so effortlessly, is clearly bad news.

: Just checking before I spread this (none / 0) (#24)
by womanwarrior on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 09:25:04 PM EST

I figure that it is completely true, but don't want to act on my prejudices. Donald, where did you get this information?

I suppose it isn't fitting we enjoy this (none / 0) (#1)
by oculus on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 05:24:04 PM EST

so much, but, . . .

Worry not (5.00 / 1) (#6)
by sj on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 05:55:17 PM EST

Of course it's fitting! You don't want to be as stiff and humorless as the opposition, do you? And anyway, if God didn't want us to laugh, he wouldn't have given us a sense of humor. And a way to share it.


I am waiting for kdog to let us know (none / 0) (#7)
by oculus on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 06:07:56 PM EST

whether Romney's rambles constitute a diss to females.


: <chortle> (none / 0) (#10)
by Towanda on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 06:46:08 PM EST

My but.....is that I want to be laughing (5.00 / 1) (#11)
by ruffian on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 06:48:22 PM EST

on Nov. 7. I hope the hilarity, and I do think it is hilarious, is really a sign that women are back to seeing how horrible this guy is for them, as they were before the first debate.


I'd like to be laughing as well, but considering (5.00 / 1) (#34)
by Farmboy on Fri Oct 19, 2012 at 08:59:52 AM EST

that Romney has opened up a seven point lead over Obama since the second debate, evidently the voting public doesn't find binders amusing.


as I understand it the poll results (none / 0) (#35)
by ruffian on Fri Oct 19, 2012 at 09:27:55 AM EST

reported as of yesterday did not include post-debate poll taking. Most of them did not anyway - you may find one that did.


: After looking around more today, I guess (5.00 / 1) (#36)
by Farmboy on Fri Oct 19, 2012 at 10:09:39 AM EST

that I should just cross my fingers and trust Nate Silver.

Site Violator (none / 0) (#23)
by CoralGables on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 08:49:44 PM EST

on multiple threads.


Any TLers in Boston or Springfield or somewhere (none / 0) (#2)
by Peter G on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 05:24:23 PM EST

near a library that would have a copy of the Massachusetts state government "Blue Book" (official data and statistics) for 2004 or 2005? I really want to know how much various cabinet secretaries and heads of agencies were paid that year, broken down by gender.

It's in a binder somewhere on shelf 47 at the (5.00 / 3) (#4)
by Angel on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 05:25:39 PM EST

main library in Boston.


Paging CST... (5.00 / 1) (#14)
by Anne on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 07:16:38 PM EST

I can't help but think someone is looking into this even as we type; I cannot in my wildest imagination come up with a scenario where the giant of business who couldn't come up with any women candidates on his own lifted his privileged pinkie finger to insist that those he hired were paid the same as their male counterparts.


: Are you referring to the guy (5.00 / 1) (#20)
by Peter G on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 08:08:30 PM EST

who could not bring himself to say, upon being asked directly about it by a female college student, "I support equal pay for equal work"?

Blending the themes (none / 0) (#12)
by ruffian on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 06:58:00 PM EST

The Boss, doing The Ties That Bind

: thanks for the idea (none / 0) (#18)
by Jeralyn on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 07:54:49 PM EST

I think I'll make the song the evening open thread.

is that (none / 0) (#19)
by Ga6thDem on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 08:08:24 PM EST

Paula Deen in one of those pictures. I mean every time I hear the word binders now i start to laugh.

It's a take on this meme (none / 0) (#27)
by lilburro on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 09:49:03 PM EST

Paula Deen Riding Things which comes from some event in Florida I believe where she decided to ride around on Robert Irvine's back. It's funny...I love this one.


: thanks, I recognized (none / 0) (#32)
by Jeralyn on Fri Oct 19, 2012 at 12:43:25 AM EST

Paula Deen but had no idea why she was in the photo.

Are binder companies capitalizing on (none / 0) (#26)
by oculus on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 09:31:36 PM EST

Mitt's reference? Apparently not.

The Daily Beast

what about cheese companies? (none / 0) (#28)
by DFLer on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 09:51:39 PM EST

They should step into the gap.


Huh? (none / 0) (#31)
by oculus on Thu Oct 18, 2012 at 11:32:54 PM EST

: C'mom oc. (5.00 / 1) (#33)
by MileHi Hawkeye on Fri Oct 19, 2012 at 08:02:29 AM EST

Think about it--cheese, binding. Get it?

I'm sure Arizona is (none / 0) (#37)
by indy in sc on Fri Oct 19, 2012 at 11:58:44 AM EST

a lovely place to visit, but seriously, they are not even trying to be subtle anymore (if they ever where) about oppressing the local hispanic community.