feminism

Conservatives against Women’s Right to Vote

Transcript discussed by Think Progress:

John Derbyshire, a British-American conservative author and columnist for the National Review, has written a new book titled We Are Doomed: Reclaiming Conservative Pessimism. The book contains a section called “The Case Against Female Suffrage.” Yesterday on his radio show, Alan Colmes asked Derbyshire to articulate his argument.

“What is the case against female suffrage?” Colmes asked. “The conservative case against it is that women lean hard to the left,” Derbyshire responded nonsensically. “They want someone to nurture, they want someone to help raise their kids, and if men aren’t inclined to do it — and in the present days, they’re not much — then they’d like the state to do it for them.”

Colmes then pressed Derbyshire on whether women should have the right to vote. “Ah…” Derbyshire sighed, attempting to dodge the question initially. “I’m not putting forward a political program here,” he said. But then Derbyshire slowly began to open up:

DERBYSHIRE: Among the hopes that I do not realistically nurse is the hope that female suffrage will be repealed. But I’ll say this – if it were to be, I wouldn’t lose a minute’s sleep.

COLMES: We’d be a better country if women didn’t vote?

DERBYSHIRE: Probably. Don’t you think so?

COLMES: No, I do not think so whatsoever.

DERBYSHIRE: Come on Alan. Come clean here [laughing].

COLMES: We would be a better country? John Derbyshire making the statement, we would be a better country if women did not vote.

DERBYSHIRE: Yeah, probably.

Derbyshire reasoned that we “got along like that for 130 years.” Colmes countered by asking if he also wants to bring back slavery. No, Derbyshire responded, “I’m in favor of freedom personally.” Colmes noted that freedom didn’t extend to women’s right to vote, however. Derbyshire said, “Well, they didn’t and we got along ok.”

You need more proof that the right wing is delusional?

Continue ReadingConservatives against Women’s Right to Vote

About Roman Polanski

I’m sure you’ve had an opportunity to read all the media circus surrounding the arrest of movie director Roman Polanski. Over on Shakesville, Melissa McEwan notes and discusses several of the high-profile people defending him, including Harvey Weinstein, Debra Winger and Whoopi Goldberg. And on another blog post, she lists others.

I’m deeply disappointed by celebrities coming to his defense.

I know for certain 5 people who were molested as children or as teens – I probably know more than that, but those are the folks with whom I’ve actually held conversations about their experiences. Of those 5, all of them have been deeply affected by what happened to them, all of them have difficulty with romantic relationships, all of them have contemplated or attempted suicide. Some of them struggle with other demons – alcoholism and dissociative identity disorder among them.

If i could magically make their lives whole again by pushing a button and deleting every Roman Polanski movie ever made – picture me right now pushing that button, over and over again.

Continue ReadingAbout Roman Polanski

links for 2009-09-30

  • Shakesville: Her Reasons Are Not Yours
    "The simple answer for that is because justice doesn't operate on the principle of what's best for the victim; it operates on the principle of what's best for the community. (That's why prosecutors represent "the people.") Particularly in a case of sexual assault of a minor, there is additional pressure to prosecute, even if the victim(s) don't support the prosecution, because interviews of convicted/admitted child rapists in prisons suggest that the rapist who only rapes once and never again has about as much supporting evidence for his existence as does the unicorn. (To wit: Roman Polanski's ensuing relationship with then-15-year-old Nastassja Kinski.) Some of those who understand this principle nonetheless argue that Polanski is now an "old man," as if old men don't rape. Unfortunately, they can and they do." – yeah, whe she said.
    (tags: women violence crime polanski)
  • Roman Polanski Updates: Asks Swiss Court To Free Him, Plus Jail Cell Details
    I don't care how long ago the crime was, or how "great" an artist he is. He should be in jail. Serve your time.
    (tags: crime polanski abuse)
Continue Readinglinks for 2009-09-30

Sexual Assault Prevention Tips Guaranteed to Work!

Written by Shane Austen and posted here; Shane had this to say about the list:

Kat reposted a nice piece about true rape prevention, which reminded me of this little list I whipped up a few months ago. As I just did a college RA training yesterday, re-reading this made me laugh. I mean seriously, the “tips” they give potential victims are so condescending. It’s fun to turn the tables.

Sexual Assault Prevention Tips Guaranteed to Work!

1. Don’t put drugs in people’s drinks in order to control their behavior.

2. When you see someone walking by themselves, leave them alone!

3. If you pull over to help someone with car problems, remember not to assault them!

4. NEVER open an unlocked door or window uninvited.

5. If you are in an elevator and someone else gets in, DON’T ASSAULT THEM!

6. Remember, people go to laundry to do their laundry, do not attempt to molest someone who is alone in a laundry room.

7. USE THE BUDDY SYSTEM! If you are not able to stop yourself from assaulting people, ask a friend to stay with you while you are in public.

8. Always be honest with people! Don’t pretend to be a caring friend in order to gain the trust of someone you want to assault. Consider telling them you plan to assault them. If you don’t communicate your intentions, the other person may take that as a sign that you do not plan to rape them.

9. Don’t forget: you can’t have sex with someone unless they are awake!

10. Carry a whistle! If you are worried you might assault someone “on accident” you can hand it to the person you are with, so they can blow it if you do.

And, ALWAYS REMEMBER: if you didn’t ask permission and then respect the answer the first time, you are commiting a crime– no matter how “into it” others appear to be.

Continue ReadingSexual Assault Prevention Tips Guaranteed to Work!

Only rapists can prevent rape

A lovely list written by unknown, and passed along by Kat O’Leary, who posted it on this page of her site. (if you step back through the links, it has been reposted many times by other cool people.)

A lot has been said about how to prevent rape. Women should learn self-defense. Women should lock themselves in their houses after dark. Women shouldn’t have long hair and women shouldn’t wear short skirts. Women shouldn’t leave drinks unattended. Fuck, they shouldn’t dare to get drunk at all.

Instead of that bullshit, how about:

If a woman is drunk, don’t rape her.

If a woman is walking alone at night, don’t rape her.

If a women is drugged and unconscious, don’t rape her.

If a woman is wearing a short skirt, don’t rape her.

If a woman is jogging in a park at 5 am, don’t rape her.

If a woman looks like your ex-girlfriend you’re still hung up on, don’t rape her.

If a woman is asleep in her bed, don’t rape her.

If a woman is asleep in your bed, don’t rape her.

If a woman is doing her laundry, don’t rape her.

If a woman is in a coma, don’t rape her.

If a woman changes her mind in the middle of or about a particular activity, don’t rape her.

If a woman has repeatedly refused a certain activity, don’t rape her.

If a woman is not yet a woman, but a child, don’t rape her.

If your girlfriend or wife is not in the mood, don’t rape her.

If your step-daughter is watching TV, don’t rape her.

If you break into a house and find a woman there, don’t rape her.

If your friend thinks it’s okay to rape someone, tell him it’s not, and that he’s not your friend.

If your “friend” tells you he raped someone, report him to the police.

If your frat-brother or another guy at the party tells you there’s an unconscious woman upstairs and it’s your turn, don’t rape her, call the police and tell the guy he’s a rapist.

Tell your sons, god-sons, nephews, grandsons, sons of friends it’s not okay to rape someone.

Don’t tell your women friends how to be safe and avoid rape.

Don’t imply that she could have avoided it if she’d only done/not done x.

Don’t imply that it’s in any way her fault.

Don’t let silence imply agreement when someone tells you he “got some” with the drunk girl.

Note:
This goes for any gendered rape, male on female or female on male or female on female or FTM on MTF or non gendered to dual gendered and so on and so forth.

Continue ReadingOnly rapists can prevent rape

Financial Times Columnist fails at life

This lovely article on The Financial Times: Lunch with the FT: Gloria Steinem, says By Chrystia Freeland:

For most of this decade, the conventional wisdom has had it that feminism in America is dead – or, at least, irrelevant. The New York Times talked to female students at Yale and found them to be mostly interested in becoming housewives. Sex and the City told us that even the ones who became career girls were more interested in men and Manolos than in their actual careers.

What? That’s what you got out of Sex and the City? FAIL. Please try again.

And more that makes me sigh with irritation:

While I’m a feminist and Steinem is one of my heroes, I didn’t share her enthusiasm for Clinton’s candidacy, partly because getting to the White House by having been married to a president seemed rather more an affirmation of traditional women’s roles than a shattering of the glass ceiling.

So, all the political work she’s done her entire life, and the work she’s done in the Senate mean nothing, compared to “been married to a president”? Jesus – FAIL again. WTF? Read something about Clinton before you say stupid shit, please.

I’m afraid to keep reading the whole thing. I did scroll down to the bottom to note that “Chrystia Freeland is managing editor of the FT’s US edition.”
Holy Maude. That’s really bad.

Continue ReadingFinancial Times Columnist fails at life

Resonance

This particular paragraph of Hilary Rosen’s post on continuing to support Clinton hit home for me, and more than explains why I still am supporting Hillary. The emphasis added is mine…

But Hillary’s campaign is still going for every woman who has spoken up in a meeting and was greeted with silence only to have a man say the same thing and be praised. It endures for the mothers who are taking care of their children and their parents and their home and has no time to take care of herself. It endures for women who are so scared to see her fail because of what it may say about their chances in life. And yes folks, it resonates for all the women who have seen the younger guy come along and get the promotion even though she has worked in the company loyally for years.

I can more than identify.

Continue ReadingResonance

links for 2008-01-16

Continue Readinglinks for 2008-01-16