Nordstrom

As I’m reading Nordstrom’s article Visible Wars and Invisible Girls, I feel very thankful to feel safe.  It is so disturbing to think of the black-marketing of women and children, or that in war, as many children are tortured as adults and more children die in war than soldiers.  As depressing as this is, I more upset by the fact that we are taught to ‘not-see’ the issues involved in violence and war.  It is very difficult for me to imagine what it is like for someone who is constantly living in fear with his or her home as a battlefield.  Even now amidst the war on terrorism, if you do not have someone you know fighting there, you forget that it is going on.  Besides for forgetting that we are fighting a war, we are also unaware of the other effects of the war on the women and children in the Middle East.  This article brought to my attention the real numbers that we should be seeing:  the number of women and children raped, tortured, and killed. 

            The stories that Nordstrom shares are about three girls in Mozambique are quite startling, but they are something that more people need to be aware of.  These girls were stripped of their innocence and in the third girl’s case her life.  I was always under the impression that women and children were the ones to be protected, but this completely goes against that notion.  I like to think that the people who are fighting for our country are doing so protect our freedoms, and us and I would hope that they do so with honor.  After reading this article, I begin to question the integrity of soldiers.  I guess that it is a war tactic in many cases, but I still find it hard to believe that people can be so heartless. 

            Another frightening statistic was the one produced from the US Advisory Board on Child Abuse and Neglect.  Abuse and neglect in the home are the leading causes of death in children, resulting in 2,000 deaths and 140,000 injuries per year.  Incidents like the one mentioned where the parent uses a raw lamp wire and socket to stop a child from wetting the bed reaffirm the fact that some people should not reproduce, as far as I am concerned.  Some people are just awful.  I feel that after reading this article, I lost some respect for society.

The Playground Gets Even Tougher

This article is very disheartening.  When did little girls become so mean?  Where do they learn these things?  It’s like these girls are brainwashed by the middle school girls.  What seven-year-old need a cell phone?  Who can they possibly be texting?!  This behavior comes down to the media, peers, and parenting.  The media displays the mean girls as the cool girls, and then the little girls think that being mean is okay.  So they are mean to the other girls in their class, and they criticize the girls who don’t wear the cool clothes or act the way these girls behave on television act.  So the media exposes the girls to this behavior; then the girls treat their peers a certain way.  These acts force the other girls to victimize other girls or be the victim.  The most shocking part of this ugly cycle is when you hear that the mother is supporting this behavior as in the article.  It’s very disheartening to think of their innocence being stripped away.  These kids have to grow up faster and in a harsh environment. 

While men have always been depicted as the aggressive ones, I think this article sheds light on the other aggressors.  I think girls are just as aggressive as men, just in a different way.  Men might be more physically aggressive, but women are certainly more emotionally aggressive.  I remember when I was in the 6^th grade the girls started becoming very cliquey, and it was unacceptable to be friends with the girls of another group.  I didn’t like that at all.  I specifically remember one time while we were on the playground, and because I was friendly with both groups the one group grabbed my one arm and the other group pulled my other arm.  I was being torn in two different directions, physically and emotionally.  I remember breaking free from their grip and walking away so frustrated with what had become of my groups of friends.  It makes me sad to know that this is happening at an even younger age.

Manning up

Shouldn’t we expect more of our politicians?  I have no desire to vote for someone whose strategy is to demean the opposite sex.  We use terms like whore and slut so loosely.  I imagine that at one point or another every girl in this class has been called one of these derogatory names whether or not it was meant to be malicious.  I also imagine that every boy in this class has been called a faggot or told to man up.  We talk about gender equality, but then we use these words that are gender offensive.  I hate that we associate manliness with toughness.  Yes, most men might be stronger than most women. However, women are very tough in other ways.  They are strong leaders.  They are doctors.  They are the supermoms that do it all.  Isn’t that enough to make them tough too?  I also agree that men are discriminated based on gender. If a guy wants to be involved in theater, he is assumed to be gay.  Believe it or not, it’s okay to cross these gender lines for something you enjoy.  Lynn Swan was tough as can be on the football field, and he contributes his coordination to ballet.  I can’t believe that anyone would dare call him a faggot.  I just don’t understand what the big deal is.  If we ignore the comments, maybe we can overcome this gender inequality.  It should be acceptable for everyone to do be who he or she wants to be.  Ignore the people that continue to judge because we shouldn’t let other people’s opinions dictate who we are and what we do.  In sports the best people should play and in the work field the most qualified should get the job.  So let’s stop using gender demeaning words to give ourselves a one-up.  

Men's Lib

It’s funny how little society expects from fathers.  The fact that Michael Chabon was complemented on his parenting skills because he took his son to the store is outlandish.  Mothers are expected to be carting their children around.  The father figure has a very poor reputation.  I think that it’s great that Sweden, Germany, and California is permitting paternity leave.  It is about time that the father takes a more active role in the raising of the children.  I am surprised that parenting roles are not more balanced seeing as the number of women in the workforce has increased in the last few decades.  The other interesting fact in this article is that 10 of the 12 jobs that are expected to grow are stereotypically women’s jobs.  Thus, men are going to have to fill these roles if they want to remain in the workforce.  Since the unemployment rate is so terrible, people are exhausted from searching for new jobs.  Men’s unemployment rate is 20.5%, which is 3% higher than women’s unemployment rate.  This fact is worth noting.  Why are men being lazy? In several of the articles we’ve been reading it seems that when men hit an obstacle such as school or work they give up.  The final sentence of this article is couldn’t say it better, “After all, what’s more masculine:  being a strong, silent, unemployed absentee father, or actually fulfilling your half of the bargain as a breadwinner and a dad?”  When you put it that way, what’s wrong with men??!!! I’d be embarrassed to that kind of a man or woman.  Society needs to change with the way the workforce is shaping.   Be proud that you are providing for your family whether you are a construction worker, nurse, or teacher.  I’d rather my dad have any of the stereotypical female jobs than be a bum.  Roles are changing, and these new roles need to be embraced.  Our society will benefit more from it.

The war against boys

As much as I am an advocate of gender equality, I loved Sommers’ The War Against Boys because the research shows that girls are outshining boys in the classroom and in extracurricular activities.  They are the ones stepping up to the leadership roles in the national honor societies and student government.  Girls are more committed to their schoolwork exhibited by their preparation for class.  More women are even going to college.  Judging by the number of girls I know who are active in clubs and succeed in school, I am not surprised by this research.  This strive for success could be attributed to the fact that boys have reached their plateau, while girls still have something to prove.  Some boys have become complacent in their search for success.  Perhaps they see themselves as being the standard by which everyone else lives, and they do not even realize that women are closing the gap.  I do find it interesting that there seems to be a greater gap between the intelligence levels of males or as James Q. Wilson put it, “There are more male geniuses and more male idiots.”  Could it be that competition and the drive for success can cause men to go to either one extreme or the other?  When something interferes with success, two different characters emerge.  One says I will overcome this and be stronger because of it, and the other says forget it.  I’ll do something else.  I think this type of reaction to an obstacle defines both men and women but maybe this is a source for the huge gap in the intelligence level of males.  Some will give up, make jokes about it, and blow it off as it was no big deal.  These men seem to be the ones who don’t care.  If they can’t be the best, they will make fun of those who strive to be the best, when in reality this is a reaction to the jealousy that they are experiencing.

On another note, I was looking up gender differences online and I found the most appalling site I have ever seen:  http://www.menarebetterthanwomen.com/.  This site should be considered illegal.  This pathetic excuse of a man, Dick Masterson, degrades women like I could never have imagined.  He refers to women as cows in his blogs and in reference to women owning houses he said, “A woman owning property is like giving a monkey a dog on a leash. It doesn’t mean the monkey has a pet. It means some idiot tied a dog to a monkey.”  Well if that doesn’t fire you up ladies than I don’t know what will.  Excuse me while I go throw up in disgust after reading his blogs.  

Manhood is Everything (I wish there was a dislike button)

In reference to the American Railway Union’s successful strike of the Great Northern Railroad, Eugene Debs credited the workers because they “stood up as one man and asserted their manhood.”  Manhood appears to be the bar that we are supposed to strive for.  When we set these types of standards we are structuring society into this mold that is built on a particular type of success.  When in reality, success comes in many forms and cannot be measured by a standard.  Phrases like “grandest possible manhood” and the “stamina of manhood” are ridiculous.  If we are going to get technical we should be saying “the grandest possible womanhood” or “stamina of womanhood” because women are the ones who do it all (not that I’m biased of course).  

The most difficult thing for me to grasp in this class is how many male standards I have overlooked over the years.  I have been completely ignorant of the language I use and the things that I see/ hear and accept because they seem so normal.  I was listening to a mixed CD in the car that I made when I was about 13.  The song was by Good Charlotte and the lyrics were “Girls don’t like boys. Girls like cars and money.”  13 year-old me thought nothing of this.  But now, WOAH! Let’s just encourage little girls to grow up to be gold-diggers.  Who needs an education when you can just marry rich?  This really drives me insane!  Women need to have an education so that they can empower and provide themselves.  Having an education and being able to financially support oneself puts us on a more equal playing field.  We have more leverage in a sense to use. 

Hilkey’s article bothers me because he associates the power of will with success and characterizes that as a masculine quality.  He says that because of male’s libido and desire for conquest in battle, men have more power of will leading to success.  Once again, AHH!  This makes me cringe.  Yes, boys are competitive but so are girls!  Girls can do anything boys can!!! We have just as much will as men to awesome in every aspect of our lives.  I want to be superwoman.  I want to do everything I possibly can and do it well.  Both men and women are successful so drop the male standards of success.