By : I finally bit the bullet and logged on to Everyday Sexism. It is a website set up to allow women to post their stories of the horrific misogyny and sexism which supposedly pervades our societies. The site is being lauded all over the other online feminist echo-chambers as “brave” “revealing” and “visionary”. Mostly it’s just one after another poster whining about some guy saying something she didn’t like or complaining because a man looked at her boobs. I was thinking about instances from my own life which I could post on the site that would compare with some of the entries I read:I was sitting on the grass reading on the campus of the college where I work last summer. A young guy walked over to me. He noticed the book I was reading was Russian and asked me where I was from. I told him.
“Russian girls are the most beautiful in the world.” he said.
“Ha ha.” I replied. “And I suppose you say that when you meet a Spanish or Polish girl?”
“Well obviously not,” he laughed, “but I’m lying when I talk to them.”
“You speak English well” he continued. “Are you part Irish?”
“No, I’m 100% Russian.”
“So you don’t have any Irish in you at all?”
“No” I smiled, knowing the punch-line already.
“Would you like some?” the guy said.
It was a silly conversation that we both knew was going nowhere. Nobody was threatened or offended or violated or any of the things feminists want us to be. It was harmless banter. I didn’t take any offence because – well – because I’m a grownup.
So this is a story of sexism and apparent “misogyny” that I could post on Everyday Sexism. The problem is that I don’t believe that this man was some sinister sexist woman-hater. He was just joking. That’s right feminists – a joke is an alien concept to you I know, but it usually involves someone making fun of someone else but without any intention to harm. The funniest jokes are usually the ones that feminists would call “inappropriate” or “offensive” which is why a day at a feminist seminar is never going to be a barrel of laughs.
Some of the posts on Everyday Sexism are indeed disturbing tales of rape and sexual abuse. Many of them are obviously fictional but I’m sure some of them are true. The overwhelming majority of the posts, however, are simply shrill petulant whines by pathetic insecure people who consider themselves victims because someone once said something they didn’t like. One woman claimed to have been left feeling “devastated” because she had overheard a racy joke–and no, I’m honestly not making that up! I am leaving a few examples below which are typical of the entries on Everyday Feminism along with my own thoughts on each one.
Here are some whines of wisdom from a male user called Tim who obviously considers himself to be a thoroughly enlightened individual:
Some of the men at my place of work met up earlier for drinks before the Christmas party. Topic of discussion when I joined them was ‘Who are your top 3?’. Meaning the 3 women in the office you’d like to do.Oh my! The sheer horror of it. We can feel the righteous, right-on anger boiling from his post. We can only hope that poor Tim got the counseling he needed after that ordeal. I get the impression that Tim is only in his early twenties, so listen up Tim. Here is some free advice from an older woman: Your colleagues were indulging in some harmless banter. In England they call it schoolboy humour. It is sometimes childish but it is completely harmless and natural. Only a chronically insecure prude could possibly find it offensive. Furthermore, you seem to completely underestimate women. You obviously have no idea what kinds of conversations groups of women have about men. I can assure you that they tend to be ten times more “vulgar” and “sexist” than the example you are bleating about here.
Listen carefully Tim. Nothing is less attractive to a woman than a fawning, sycophantic gelding. Do yourself a favour and grow a pair, and stop being such a prissy little baby.
A user called Claire, though, has suffered even more abuse than poor Tim. Claire describes how a male colleague at the next desk asked her to hand him a pen. The pen she handed him was a very large one. When she gave him the pen, he uttered this shocking abomination – “so you like them big, do you?” I am speechless! Poor Claire will probably never be the same again.
Now User ACM makes her bid for victim-of-the-month. “Every time I see a man reading page three” she snivels, “it makes me feel exposed, vulnerable and victimized.” Really? “Exposed,” “vulnerable” and “victimized?” and all because some guy is looking at a picture of a topless woman? I thought the phrase was, “I am woman hear me roar,” not “I’m a woman hear me blubber pathetically about something completely inconsequential.”
User Poppy goes for the sympathy vote: “I’ve only been kissed twice.” she says, “and both times it was unexpected and I did not initiate it.” Poor Poppy has only been kissed twice. On the face of it there doesn’t seem to be any mystery as to why that is. One question for Poppy, though: Would it have been OK if you had initiated it, or would that have meant that you were being oppressive or something?
BrokeGirl chimes in with her harrowing tale of the awful misogyny she experienced in a deli. The guy behind the counter offered her two burritos instead of the one she had ordered. She never expected her refusal to illicit such a terrifyingly misogynist response. The disgusting pig joked, “I understand. Gotta keep that figure.”
My heart goes out to this noble victim. BrokeGirl, wherever you are, we salute your bravery in the face of such unspeakable horror!
User “anon” has this shocking tale to tell. Reader discretion is advised:
A male examiner walks past and starts talking to guys I was with about how they think it went and what careers they want in the future. Never made eye contact with me, spoke to me or acknowledged my existence.Hmmmm. Just a thought here: Maybe he didn’t want to look at you for fear of you accusing him of objectifying you or something. Maybe he was afraid to talk to you because he was sure whatever he said would be taken as sexist. Maybe he was wisely giving you a wide berth for his own good. You see, anon, men don’t generally like engaging with whiny, oversensitive simpletons who expect them to walk on eggshells.
Next, Susie tells us how she went to work wearing no bra with her boobs sticking through her dress. Susie thinks bras are oppressive, you see. Her male boss predictably “oppressed” her by making a very reasonable request to cover herself in the workplace. Susie blubbers plaintively about how she felt “disrespected”
Well, no, Susie. Your boss has the right to expect his employees to dress appropriately for work. The fact that you put him in the uncomfortable position of having to ask you to cover yourself is just selfish. You were the one being disrespectful.
Susie comes back to tell us how, on the Paris Metro, two men–yes that’s right, two–took out their penises and stood masturbating while staring at her on a crowded carriage.
Sorry Susie, but nobody who has ever been on the Paris Metro is going to believe that for a minute. Anyone who tried that on the Metro would be lynched by the other passengers. You need help, Susie, because your demons are very much in your own head.
User “F” tells us that “Many Men still think its acceptable to touch a woman’s boobs or bum in clubs.”
“Many” men? How many is that? Is it twenty or two hundred or two million? Sorry, “F”, but they don’t. I don’t know what kind of clubs you go to. Maybe you’re wandering into strip clubs by mistake? I have been on this planet for thirty-three years and I have been groped by a stranger on the bum an entire total of once. This seems to confirm to me that most men do not consider it acceptable to touch a woman without her consent. Oh, and no, I wasn’t traumatized for life. But thanks for asking!
Ariana wades in with this particularly petulant whinge:
My boyfriend likes to call me his girl when we’re alone. It’s a term of endearment and, according to him, should be interpreted as a sweet gesture. Am I the only person who doesn’t like belonging to anyone other than myself?No Ariana, but you are probably the only person who is so “offended” by what is obviously a term of endearment. You might also be the only person who is unaware that you have the right to break up with your boyfriend if he bothers you that much.
OK, this is getting really boring. It just goes on and on. There is page after page of this drivel – literally thousands of entries, all from these woefully insecure people who probably should never be allowed outside without supervision. If this is representative of the quality of the character of people who Western universities are churning out, then the Western world is in deep, deep trouble.
Of course, this website is designed to do what most feminist sites are designed to do: paint women as perpetual victims who constantly need to be protected, and cast men as disgusting, woman-hating brutes who think with their penises.
If there is any site that I have encountered that is truly insulting to women, then it is The Everyday Sexism Project. I would like to say to any men reading this that most women can actually take a joke. Most of us are actually grown up enough not to have a breakdown whenever we hear someone say something we find distasteful. Most of us have nothing in common with the pathetic, whiny, dribbling half-wits on The Everyday Sexism Project.
As I often say: Feminism is not about strong women demanding equality. Feminism is about weak, insecure women who can’t handle equality. And The Everyday Sexism Project is just one more example of that.
Editor’s note: This item first appeared on Men’s Human Rights Ireland, which you should visit and support!
Source
_____________
Radford vs. Stollznow: Tempest in the Skeptic Community
By : On Wednesday of last week, Ben Radford, a well-respected and well-published member of what is broadly known as “the skeptic community,” published a website dedicated to answering accusations of gross sexual harassment made by Karen Stollznow, another prominent member of that community. Radford announced that he is suing Stollznow for fraud, libel, defamation and tortious interference with contractual relations. Radford had earlier this year published a moderate column examining false allegations but had otherwise remained strictly silent on public allegations made against him by multiple members of the skeptical community.
Wednesday’s release by Radford follows months of controversy after Scientific American published a piece by Stollznow last August in which she claimed she was the target of sexual harassment for years. The column, since removed from Scientific American, can be read at the Internet Archive: I’m Sick of Talking About Sexual Harassment by Karen Stollznow. (AVfM has archived its own copy for journalistic purposes if it should disappear from other sources.)While Stollznow did not name Ben Radford directly, the indictment became more than implicit when in the course of a few days a number of “Atheism+” and “FreeThought” bloggers, tweeters, Youtubers and Facebook posters named him as the perpetrator. Included in the choir of finger pointers, speculators, and insinuators were Ian Murphy, P.Z. Meyers, Rebecca Watson, Jason Thiebault, Amanda Marcotte, David “Orac” Gorski, Ophelia Benson, and Stephanie Zvan. Enterprising members of the Skeptic community have strongly objected to this behavior for some time, though objections mostly fell on deaf ears while Radford remained silent.
Radford, in the meantime, was publicly ostracized by co-workers and close friends. His ties with the Center for Inquiry and many other professional relationships were severely strained as rampant internet commentary, based on loose speculation and poor understanding of research on false allegations, continued, with the common presumption among most of the speculators apparently being that men accused of rape and sexual harassment should probably be presumed guilty until proven innocent.
During the entire last quarter of 2013, Radford, through his lawyers, repeatedly requested that Stollznow publicly retract her statements claiming they were false and defamatory. Stollznow repeatedly ignored these requests until in March of this year when Stollznow’s husband, Mathew Baxter, contacted Radfrod offering to settle a lawsuit filed against Stollznow on February 17th by Radford by issuing a retraction. After weeks of collaboration between Baxter and Radford in crafting a retraction Baxter reassured Radford in an email that it was OK to publish said retraction on his Facebook page, which he did.
After publication Stollznow denied agreeing to a retraction and ten days ago on March 27th, started a defense fund under the byline “Give a Voice to Sexual Harassment Victims” which has already raised nearly $60,000, even though there is strong reason to believe that this campaign, which is defamatory of another person, is arguably a violation of Indiegogo’s terms of use since it is widely known whom Stollznow has accused. This leads to another interesting question: are sites like Indiegogo now the go-to funding source for anyone who wants to make an allegation against someone else in court, without even providing proof of the wrongdoing to donors?
In any case, since its publication on Scientific American, Stollznow’s article claiming to have been sexually abused was removed. Also, an article quoting Stollznow’s allegations by Amanda Marcotte published on Slate.com was also removed, with Slate giving the explanation that it “did not meet our standards for verification and fairness.”
This drama accompanies a rash of accusations directed at prominent members of the atheist community regarding sexual misconduct, harassment and misogyny. Nearly all accusations and smear campaigns have been initiated by members of the Atheism+ and FreeThoughtBlogs communities or their supporters.
Last summer, PZ Myers posted an article claiming an acquaintance of his had told him Michael Shermer raped her. Shermer’s lawyers issued a cease and desist order to Myers, who has yet to remove the post. Also, in a highly publicized incident, Amanda Marcotte called for the removal of Center for Inquiry’s CEO, Ron Lindsay following his giving a speech critical of feminist ideology at the 2013 Women in Secularism conference in Washington D.C.
Smear campaigns against anyone countering the feminist ideology of Atheism+ have become so common that a Wiki page titled “Witch of the Week” has been set up enumerating many of the targets. However, Radford’s case stands apart because he has meticulously documented all correspondence with Stollznow and others regarding his relationship with her. Emails from Stollznow indicate that it was she who initiated a long-lasting sexual relationship and that she wished it to continue even after she married. In a well-written timeline, Radford indicates the accusations started only after he complained to a colleague that she was not pulling her weight in the production of the Monster Talk podcast which he, Blake Smith, and Stollznow hosted.
A RocketHub fundraiser dubbed “Ben Radford Legal Fund“, aiming to defray Radford’s legal expenses, has only collected a meager $2,590 at the time of this article being published. Despite this, many in the atheist community are supportive of Radford.
AVFM has been approached by several critics of Freethought Blogs and Atheism+ to cover this story since the publishing of his response to these allegations and, because we believe false allegations, especially against men, to be a poorly researched area but one where there’s reason to believe they are not uncommon, even if the “Free Thinkers” accept that as axiomatically true. Even if they were rare, however, the notion that men should be presumed guilty until proven innocent is anathema to the values of a liberal democratic society.
Whether members of the atheist or skeptic community or the men’s advocacy community or not, accused men deserve the presumption of innocence. Furthermore, to our eyes, the case against Stollznow is incredibly damning. We hope the fundraiser for Radford succeeds, and we still wonder why Indiegogo is allowing a defamatory fundraiser against Radford for what is very possibly a false accuser on its pages.
“It very much appears that Ben Radford has been the subject of a false accuser, and rather than express any skepticism of the allegations at all, the ideological bullies within the FreeThoughBlogs and Atheism+ communities have done little but behave cruelly toward what may be an innocent man, and otherwise followed their unquestioned faith in the Holy Teachings of Feminism and the Doctrine That False Allegations Are Rare-even when copious research suggests they may not be” says A Voice for Men Operations Manager Dean Esmay. “Radford has done what we advise all men to do: document everything, no matter how hard that work would be, because in when it comes to society today, men are Guilty Until Proven Innocent.”
Esmay said he encourages people to donate to Radfords legal fund, saying that he considers the case a way to counter the efforts of ideological feminists to co-opt the Atheist/Skeptic Movement.
“His case should be the watershed moment that finally leads the skeptical and freethinking community to question ideological feminist dogma and start to see women as being as human (and therefore as likely to lie and manipulate and backstab) as men are.”
Radford has stated in his post that he will not comment further about the case until it is resolved.
Sources:
http://benrlegal.info/
http://www.scrible.com/contentview/page/24IG1900IK14P2M300C3G0BQ4KA426A3:40191410/index.html?utm_source=tb_permalink&utm_medium=permalink&utm_campaign=tb_buttons&_sti=671497
http://www.freezepage.com/1393885774OBBYKLYGDC
http://thetimchannel.files.wordpress.com/2013/08/159838891-shermer-cease-and-desist-letter-to-pzm.pdf
http://www.skeptic.com/podcasts/monstertalk/
http://phawrongula.wikia.com/wiki/Witch_of_the_Week
https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/give-a-voice-to-harassment-victims
http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/2013/08/08/what-do-you-do-when-someone-pulls-the-pin-and-hands-you-a-grenade/
http://www.rockethub.com/projects/41435-ben-radford-legal-fund
http://www.rawstory.com/rs/2013/05/20/an-open-letter-to-the-center-for-inquiry/
Source
_____
No comments:
Post a Comment