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Here's another historical first in this jaw-dropping U.S. presidential campaign: Both sides have now used sexism as a rallying cry.

In one epic electoral season, sexism is being used as a vicious takedown tool but it's also being outed and debated in a way that it never has before: Men – senior politicians, political advisers, pundits – are being forced to take it seriously because hey, they've got a dog in this race, er no, that's not quite the way I want to phrase it.

First it was the Democrats bemoaning the treatment Hillary Clinton received, now it's the Republicans counterclaiming that what happened to their vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin this week was out and out sexism.

There was former New York mayor Rudy Giuliani roaring from the convention podium: “How dare they question whether Palin will have enough time to spend with her children while vice-president? When do they ever ask a man that question?”

This seems a little rich coming from a thrice-married man pilloried for a personal life so disastrous that his grown children don't speak to him, but he's certainly got a point.

When Ms. Palin's Democratic counterpart Joe Biden first was elected as a senator, he lost both his wife and young daughter in a car accident, leaving him with two young boys to raise, but no one questioned his decision to go ahead with his political career.

To his credit, Mr. Biden said yesterday the treatment of his opponent was “over the top” and “sexist.”

What happened to Ms. Palin this week does seem extreme.

Topping the list is the bizarre claim that her 41/2-month-old baby born with Down syndrome was not even her own child.

The amount of gossip that was put out there the minute the little-known first-term Alaska Governor was announced as John McCain's choice for running mate, including snide remarks about her mothering, was grossly unfair.

But the debate about sexism it has engendered may turn out to be a good thing not just for female politicians but for all of us.

Suddenly there were men and women commenting seriously all over the media about the pull of ambition and why female politicians should reach for the stars. One man named Bob commenting in The New York Times seemed so impressed with the domestic challenges that Ms. Palin had to meet that he figured she was a “good bet” to end the country's economic woes.

Still, feminist observers are justifiably wary of where this is going: “She is being trashed just the way Hillary Clinton was in the opening days of the Democratic race. We are watching another feeding frenzy on a woman who dares to aspire to high political office,” said Rosemary Speirs of Equal Voice, an organization devoted to getting more women elected.

They are concerned of course that after Ms. Clinton, and now Ms. Palin, no woman will want to put herself out there in the major leagues to take the hits.

But Ms. Palin, during her fearless and feisty speech at the Republican convention, not only sent a clear signal that she was nobody's victim but also made a joke about herself that even a few months ago, during Ms. Clinton's travails, might have been deemed sexist: “What's the difference between a hockey mom and a pit bull?” Ms. Palin asked her adoring audience. “Lipstick,” she said, pointing to her mouth. The crowd roared. In other words, bring it on.

Each party has now put forth a woman, one for the top spot, one for the vice-presidency. And while you can debate whether even Ms. Palin's selection itself was tokenism or sexism, the result is that the public should be getting comfortable with the idea of women at the very top of the political heap, going for that brass ring – aggressively, intelligently and even obnoxiously. (Ms. Palin was very cutting in her criticism of Democratic presidential nominee Barack Obama and he will – and should – fire back.)

I hope the media continues to probe Ms. Palin's political background and character to determine her suitability for office. Did she really, for instance, try to fire a public librarian for refusing to censor books?

As for the probing of candidates' personal lives, things will probably get worse before they get better. Now that the gloves are off and it's all on the table, the mudslinging is bound to heat up even more.

But still, all this sexism – and all this talk about what it is and what it isn't – will be worth it if it gets us where we want to go. That will be the day when you ask, what is the most important thing about a female politician? And the answer will be, her policies, stupid.