Can men discuss feminism critically?

by Paralipomenon 74 Replies latest jw friends

  • BrentR
    BrentR

    I to have seen alot of women in thier 20's and early thirties that have a very healthy and grounded concept of feminism. My theory is they have seen what radical feminism is has done first hand to thier mothers aunts and older friends and do not want to repeat it. My wife falls somwhere between Gloria Alred and "June" from Leave it to beaver.

  • minimus
    minimus

    Para, are you sure you know what you're doing? Tread very carefully here, my man.

  • hamsterbait
    hamsterbait

    What I find hilarious in the feminist literature are the constant words

    "men feel this" or "men feel threatened by that" or " men (insert whatever)"

    How can these WOMEN possibly really know what a man thinks or feels?

    I would guess a large amount of this bilge is churned out at colleges by man-hating lesbians:

    "all men are rapists" (forget the fact that laws to protect women are made by fathers/husbands/brothers/sons to protect the females they really love and care about.)

    As far as I am aware, a baby is more likely to be killed by its mother than its father. Does this mean "all women kill babies?"

    I think most people find those of the opposite sex to be rather lovable, or they wouldn't pair up so often and have sex way more often than most long established lesbian couples.

    The pendulum has swung too far the other way - now feminists are telling men what to think and feel.

    Camille Paglia is a feminist, who has the courage to disagree with other feminists. She has been systematically ostracized and marginalized. Prolly because she doesn't like sitting in debates with ill educated semi -literate man hating women who just want to look at pictures of each others vulvas and agree to agree with each other.

    HB

  • SixofNine
    SixofNine

    Go look in the "race" thread and transfer the results to this subject.

  • Paralipomenon
    Paralipomenon

    I've always been a proponent of equality, even when unpopular.

    Personally I think that the feminist movement has been largely successful, but rather than look at a job well done and scaling back, some of these organizations are turning against other women, no longer pushing for equality and freedom, but pressuring for mass conformity.

    A woman should get a career.
    A woman should be pro-choice.
    A woman should avoid marriage.

    The list goes on. Before I get hammered for generalizations, no, I don't think all feminists or feminism organizations feel this way, but the most vocal and politically active seem to be pushing one angle or another. In the end, women are receiving pressure to conform to a feminist ideal, rather than having the freedom to pick their own destiny.

    Is this the equality they started out fighting for?

    In the aspect of a career, men have a massive advantage over women.

    Is it in desire? No. Drive? No. Intelligence? No.

    Men can't get pregnant. A man can focus on career and enjoy a family life with very little planning.

    So women are focusing on education, career and many successful women when looking to start a family are discovering that option is now blocked to them. So they have success, but some are losing happiness in the process. A largely successful woman that was part of an earlier feminist movement offers the advice to plan your family life like you would your career. Focus on what will make you happy when you are 45 and plan accordingly.

    Career doesn't have to negate a happy family, but it is a risk, one that isn't getting as much press as other initiatives.

  • Sad emo
    Sad emo

    I agree with ness. We seem at the moment to have both women and men who have somehow got their identities as women and men confused or even lost.

    So go ahead guys - be critical where criticism is due don't let the extreme end of feminism 'turn' you all into wimmin!

  • Paralipomenon
    Paralipomenon
    Go look in the "race" thread and transfer the results to this subject.

    OJ is a feminist?

  • SixofNine
    SixofNine

    Quote:

    some of these organizations are turning against other women, no longer pushing for equality and freedom, but pressuring for mass conformity.

    . ..but the most vocal and politically active seem to be pushing one angle or another. In the end, women are receiving pressure to conform to a feminist ideal, rather than having the freedom to pick their own destiny.

    Somehow I've missed this. Could you give some specific examples? Do I need to watch more daytime TV?

  • Paralipomenon
    Paralipomenon
    Do I need to watch more daytime TV?

    Not really, most of the potshots take place in the political or literary circles.

    I'll put a few together for you, though it might be tomorrow (at work right now)

  • SixofNine
    SixofNine

    Cool. I'll look forward to seeing that. I'm pretty plugged into American politics, and I just don't run across it there (not that I've been looking), but I'm not at all plugged in to the literary scene.

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