NEWS: School's Back In Session!

CULTURE: School's Back In Session!

I am completely and totally in love with whoever it was that decided to start the Feminism 101 Blog. There's like an introductory explanation and everything. And it's polite:

See, that's what the world needed. My own personal answer would probably have been either "to get rid of you" or "because you're an asshole." Or maybe the concise double whammy of "to get rid of you, asshole." Which we all know is Not Nice (though of course completely justified and excusable). God bless Tigtog and Tekanji, the 101 bloggers, for their patience and tact.

Would y'all mind terribly if I just whipped out this link alla time?

I'll let you all click through to read the Very Surprising answer. And please, please go read the Feminist FAQ, which offers definitive answers to such popular questions as:

• Isn’t feminism just “victim” politics?
• Why do some people talk of “feminisms”?
• Why do you feminists hate men?
• I’ve got nothing against equal rights for women, but we’ve got that, so isn’t feminism nowadays just going too far ? (aka Why do we still need feminism?)

and my (and every other newswire blogger's since the dawn of newswire blogging) own personal favorite,

,
aka, "What a stupid subject to write about. Why are they paying you?!?"

This kind of thing is what the Internet was invented for.

Bitch_PhD loves the smell of a stack of brand-new syllabi, all fresh from the copy machine.

I don't want to land on your shit list of "oppressors" or anything, but you could learn something from these people....just saying, that's all.....oh, and thanks for posting, I think?

You neglected one of the reasons why feminists refer questions to blogs rather than answering them. Namely, they don't know the answer, but they are sure a good one must exist somewhere.

You know, the way Republicans refer you to the Federalist Papers and Marxists refer you to Das Kapital.

Why is "I believe in innocent until proven guilty" on that card? That's just silly.

I became a gay rights activist when my uncle was beaten in the 90s. Even though he was hospitalized - he still doesn't assume the worst of straight people. He judges them on their individual merit; and for that, I think he's a hero.

What I won't tolerate, understand, or sympathize with is the unfair treatment of a gender, race, or other classification just because you are oppressed (and yes, I do believe women are still oppressed).

Hold only those individuals or groups who are actually doing the injustice accountable. That is where your hostility should be aimed.

Generally, I agree. I exclude religions from "other classification"; religion is a choice.

Morgan, let's take the male vs female issue out of the equation to minimize bias.

Scenario: A black person has been turned down for a job at a small company and finds out it goes to a lesser qualified white person. They know that their race has been treated like shit since they were wrongfully imported into this country. Now, they interface with you - a person whom they've had no previous experience with but they treat you as if you are already racist because you are white.

Are they justified in being angry? Fuck yes. Are they justified in taking it out on you when you've done nothing to hurt or insult them? Fuck no.

The same applies to any oppressed group.

Very much so. I hope the people who included that aren't on a jury anytime soon.

That may be, but last I checked it was also brought up in a lot of traffic violation cases. It's the very basis of our legal system.

Should we assume that every woman who accuses a man of rape is pointing to the correct man? I honestly don't get the argument there. I'm not trying to start a fight or anything, but that kind of thinking is dangerous.

This is aweosme!! Why would you have an interesting, thought provoking, possibly opinion changing conversation with somebody inerested in your worldview when you can (much more easily) point them to a website chock full of canned responses!

ps: feel free to check out Sarcasm 101 if you have concerns about this post.

I've read bits of that blog before. As far as I know, tigtog isn't located that far away from me.

I find it the usual mix of useful insight and bland de-controversifying oh-no-you're-not-getting-it patronisation that is exactly what you'd expect from such a site.

But, blah blah, I would think that, wouldn't I, etc. etc.

Morgan, first of all, I don't want you to be defensive with what I'm about to type. I know that women's rights and respect towards women are nowhere where they need to be and sadly, I don't believe it will happen anytime soon.

When educating people on things they are ignorant to, it takes a bit of patience on your part too. If you are kind of put off by people when explaining things, then it's possible if not probable that they will assume you're a jerk just by the way you respond.

Now, if people get this sort of response in general by feminists but still get no answers or information - stereotypes and stigmas develop. "Feminists are bitches" or "They're nothing but man haters," etc.

Again, I know it's a lot of work and takes a great deal of patience and restraint but it will most likely pay off better than giving a short answer or becoming exasperated with the monotony when asked about your views.

Once the guards are down, then you can exchange ideas. How much easier would it be if you got through to just 4 new people? They could in turn educate more people....but it's the way they communicate that message and their tone that will make or break the effort.

Encyclopedia Dramatica also has an excellent primer on feminism

People really ask shit like that? Wow.

Of course, I had like 5 people in high school ask if my family were Nazis when they found out my grandmother was from Germany, so I guess really fucking stupid questions happen all the time.

yeah, unfortunately there are a lot of idiots out there

I think there is a somewhat important distinction to make here. If someone approaches me about politics(because I don't really ever get approached about feminism) and asks me a question like 'Why are all republicans war mongering profiteering slimebags' or 'Why are all democrats liberal tree hugging jews?' I generally tell them to fuck off because they are willfully missing the point, they don't deserve an explaination if they're coming to the table like that. They aren't looking for one. Its the same thing to me when someone asks if you hate men, are a femanazi or if you believe all straight sex is rape.

If someone, in good faith and real genuine curiosity asks me about a subject, be it feminism or cat food(or anything im knowledgeable/passionate about), I would not throw a web adress at them and tell them to be on their way.

This is perhaps where the rift between Morgan's opinion and TheGringo's opinion lies. Because I hope TheGringo doesn't entertain everyones ridiculous loaded questions, as I hope Morgan doesn't tell off honest inquirers whom she has a chance to win to her side. It is for me all about picking which people are most worth my time to repeat myself to.

It's not, but I believe it should be. I firmly believe that adherents to an evangelical movement/school of thought should always make it their highest priority to be patient and understanding with the unenlightened in furtherance of the common goal of converting them to our ideals.

angry, combative idiots like bitch_phd have done so much damage to the movement's image that people look at me like I'm fucking nuts when I tell them I believe the core values of feminism to be true and worth working towards. then I have to spend time responding to idiotic questions like "but don't feminists hate men?" when I could be spending time educating them on a more useful topic.

yes, it's frustrating, exasperating, and maddening to have to answer the same idiotic, insulting questions over and over but unfortunately it's the only way to get through to most people

I guess I just feel that if you are really super passionate about something, it makes you want to share it. Even the most mundane of questions become interesting opportunities for conversation when passion is involved.

This is doubly true when its a view you want to share, or you feel that everybody should share.

Or so it seems to me. I guess if I wanted to express my views to somebody, I wouldn't be all like "I'd love to talk to you about subject x, but your questions are boring. Please go check out www.subject x.com, and when you feel like you have a good understanding, come back and ask me questions, because I want this to be interesting to me, not you".