I found this: “19 Questions For Men That Highlight Everyday Sexism” (http://www.buzzfeed.com/jennaguillaume/is-it-that-time-of-the-month-man#.ekLEB0aln)
I found this rather sad and very sexist.
There are many injustices in this world. It would be nice if people could concentrate on the ones that do exist without trying to invent new ones.
I’d like to think that the title refers to the everyday sexism men have to face from women who are increasingly being conditioned to find misogyny in just about everything men do. But I don’t think it does. So here are my responses to what appear to be some very silly and biased questions.
I have never read Ms Ford’s writing, but given that she’s started this whole “poor me” thing, it’s possible there is just a modicum of truth in the charge levied against her. Either that or Russell Brand and Boris Johnson must be women too… “Despite the disparities in their backgrounds, both are inveterate attention-seekers” (Vanessa Thorpe, “Russell Brand: messiah or very naughty boy?”, The Observer, 16 June 2013, http://www.theguardian.com/theobserver/2013/jun/16/observer-profile-russell-brand).
1. Umm… yes. I’ve often heard that sentiment voiced about irascible men.
2. I imagine that it’s a fairly common question to ask single fathers – if they choose to reveal that status to any future employer. I can only assume that Ms Caro makes a point of talking about her children in interviews, thus prompting this line of enquiry. No one in an interview situation has ever gratuitously asked me whether or not I have kids and/or a partner. Presumably they’ve had the sense to realize I’m intelligent enough not to apply for jobs I won’t be able to cope with.
3. I doubt that it is only women who weigh in on this subject. A few years ago, before she became the nation’s favourite person to hate, Katie Hopkins sparked a debate by voicing her unpopular opinions on maternity leave (Charlie Duff, “Katie Hopkins: Only three weeks maternity leave is necessary”, Businesszone, 3 June 2011, http://www.businesszone.co.uk/topic/staff/katie-hopkins-only-three-weeks-maternity-leave-necessary/34971). Whilst the majority of people tend to disagree with Ms Hopkins, I suspect there are quite a few, of both sexes, who – albeit secretly – agree with much of what she says.
4. No, because I’m not sure that’s a widely used term; but men do get called misogynists even when their opinions aren’t particularly strong.
5. Isn’t that what just about every piece written by feminist extremists tends to posit? “So-and-so thinks he’s funny but really he’s just a sexist pig”?
6. Again, yes. If a man has a job that requires him to be away from home a lot, or to face danger on a regular basis, I feel fairly sure people would ask how his wife (or husband) felt about it. If his job were “ordinary”, then no, it’s not the sort of thing a man would expect to hear – but then, neither would a woman unless she kept banging on about “my husband thinks this” and “my husband says that.”
7. Because no one ever raises an eyebrow about male midwives or primary school teachers?
8. I don’t know if men get asked this, but I’ve certainly heard men say that they decided to wait until they were professionally secure before embarking on fatherhood.
9. Okaaayyy… I have never understood why so-called feminists need to hide behind a non-existent partner to deter unwanted admirers. This is hypocrisy in the extreme: “Women are equal to men in all regards and we should be respected as such… except when we need to invent one to protect us.” Yeah, right. Why not just say “Sorry, I’m not interested” and have done? But to answer the question, yes, I’m sure there are some who have also played the imaginary partner card – bound to be.
10. Maybe not on the length, but certainly on the cut, colour, and style of their attire.
11. Unless it’s Amal Clooney (who, rather than uttering the cutting riposte the media seem to think, simply came out with an honest one), I bet 99% of female celebrities want what they’re wearing to be noticed and commented on when they go to these red carpet events. If they didn’t, they’d either wear M&S or not bother going to the event at all. Indeed, from the little I’ve seen about these things, it’s all about who can make the “best-dressed” lists in the gossip columns the next day. But this is a particularly female-dominated competition; and one that they themselves perpetuate.
(Staff reporter, “Amal Clooney reveals her court outfit: ‘I’m wearing Ede & Ravenscroft'”, The Telegraph, 29 January 2015, http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/armenia/11376009/Amal-Clooney-reveals-her-court-outfit-Im-wearing-Ede-and-Ravenscroft.html)
12. Men think that women talk non-stop; women think that when they speak, men don’t listen. Maybe it’s a vicious circle. Women talk more in the hope of getting the men to pay attention; men stop listening because women keep saying the same thing over and over again. Dunno. I’ve never had this problem. I speak. People listen. But apparently I’m scary.
13. And again… okaaayyy…? Women’s bodies get compared to these things? When? How? Why? What does it even mean? Anyway, apparently Gordon Brown looks like “a sad face drawn on a scrotum” and that has to be worse than the things Ms Trudgen mentions! (https://www.facebook.com/pages/Gordon-brown-looks-like-a-sad-face-drawn-on-a-scrotum/118285291532022)
14. “Playable”? In RPG, I assume… no? Does she think all men identify with the violence-obsessed shoot-first-grunt-questions-later male characters, then? If she can’t relate, maybe she should find another hobby.
15. I don’t really watch many panel shows, so I’m not sure if this happens or not. Of the ones I have seen:
Mock the Week — more male participants than women, but not exclusively so; genuinely funny; no sex-based dismissal.
QI — ditto, just not as good.
Question Time — about a 50/50 split; ditto (just without the consistent humour).
Loose Women — predominantly female, but so excruciatingly bad as to be unwatchable. Given that it seems to be a bunch of middle-aged women talking about sex, you can hardly blame men for thinking it must be a “woman’s show” (although there are probably some males who enjoy it).
And while it might not exactly have a “panel”, Top Gear, with its tedious trio of presenters and their wholly deliberate “laddishness”, must surely qualify as a “men’s show”, and one that should be dismissed with all due haste (and yes, I do know that it nets vast amounts of revenue for the BBC and that there are some women who love it).
16. OK, that is probably something women do more than men… maybe. But it hardly fits in with what is essentially a post on how unfairly some women believe they are treated by men.
17. I think that if a woman is truly independent, no one is likely to comment on it; it will indeed be a given. If she’s either very young (and perhaps “young” is the key word in this post) or merely gives the impression that she’s trying or pretending to be independent, then yes, she’ll hear things like that. But so would a man.
18. Oh, is that why women use their initials? So no one realizes that J. K. Rowling or P. D. James or A. S. Byatt are really women and they sell more books? Cos that really works, doesn’t it? If that’s the case, were A. A. Milne and J. R. Tolkein and W. H. Auden hoping that no one would work out that they were actually men? Gosh!
19. I guess Ms Roe has never heard the term “boy racer”?
Mutterings of a Midnight Muser 