Son, Don’t Marry a Feminist

BY SUZANNE VENKER

If I had a dollar for every email or comment I've received from you about what has happened between the sexes over the past 40 years and how it has affected your life, I could retire.

Okay, that's a bit of a stretch. But it is not a stretch to say that since I began writing about America's gender war, the number of men I've heard from has far exceeded the number of women. You have a lot to say on the subject, and very few outlets to do so. When you do try to share your thoughts on sex and gender, you’re branded a misogynist.

As a woman, I want you to know I hear you. I get it. And it’s wrong.

Because of your stories that now crowd my computer, I feel I have great insight as to what's going on inside the mind of the modern man. I also have a 14-year-old son who I worry will face the same struggles you have. Out of deference to you and the stories you’ve shared, and because I too have been on the receiving end of feminist vitriol, I wanted you to know what I plan to tell my son.  I’m going to say: Don't marry a feminist.

Don’t marry a feminist, son, because she has an ax to grind, and someday you’ll become her target.

Don't marry a feminist because she’s unable to give for the sake of giving. Feminists always tally up a score.

Don't marry a feminist because family will not come first. Her career will.

Don't marry a feminist because equality, not marriage, is her ultimate goal. And for marriage to work, the focus and commitment has to be marriage.

Don't marry a feminist because if you get divorced, which you likely will since competitive relationships don’t last, she'll blame you -- and then use your kids as a weapon.

Don’t marry a feminist because you’ll never be happy. Feminists are perpetually angry and dissatisfied and have no sense of humor. Here’s a great 30-second video to explain what I mean.

The bottom line, son, is that a feminist will not love you the way a real woman will. What’s a real woman?

A real woman is a nice, soft, feminine creature who respects everyone, including men. She has character and a strong moral fiber. For her, marriage and family come first. Work is important, too; but it’s not the be-all-end-all.

A real woman will want and appreciate a real man like you. A real man is a kind, strong, masculine creature who respects everyone, including women. He has character and a strong moral fiber, like your father. For him, marriage and family come first. Work is just a means to an end.

I know you’ll have to wade through a lot of feminists to find a real woman today, but you will find her.

Don’t settle.

SOURCE





There's nothing 'sexist' about a handful of women-only Wonder Woman screenings

The woman below tries to square the circle by denying that a women-only event is sexist

A popular Austin, Texas-based movie theatre chain known for its strict no talking and no texting policy has caused quite a stir with its latest event announcement: The Alamo Drafthouse will host at least a handful of women-only screenings of the upcoming superhero movie Wonder Woman.

I wish I could say I was surprised that the announcement was like a siren call for sexists, but, well, I've used the internet. We've seen these sorts of things play out before.

Not long after the first screening was announced, social media was abuzz. Many cried sexism. Some suggested suing Alamo Drafthouse for discrimination. Others asked for men-only screenings of upcoming movies like Thor: Ragnarok, which stars a male lead. Many are calling it a violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1964.

Some people took the approach of arguing that they were men who wanted to see Wonder Woman with their wives, daughters, sisters or other women. One man asked, "So if I arrive with my wife and our four sons, will you turn 5 of us away because of our gender?" (The answer, of course, is yes. That's kind of the point.)

It's a bad argument to make because these few women-only screenings of the movie are not the only screenings in existence. Not by a longshot. They're not even the only screenings at the Drafthouse. If you're a man who wants to see Wonder Woman there, nobody is stopping you. Just don't go to that particular screening at that particular time.

Of course, another thing happened shortly after the screening was announced: It sold out. The Drafthouse is adding more showings, and the event is expanding beyond Austin into Dallas, and New York too. Proceeds from the Dallas screenings will go to the Genesis Women's Shelter.

It's not like screening gimmicks are unusual. This weekend the Alamo Drafthouse has a showing of Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Men Tell No Tales for which attendees are required to be dressed as a pirate. They have family-focused screenings of movies with all-you-can-eat cereal. They host singalongs. They've hosted screenings exclusively for veterans and active military. A women-only screening of Wonder Woman makes perfect sense for them.

Admittedly, "No boys allowed" feels like a dated policy on paper. When we're trying to break down unnecessary gender barriers, I understand the sentiment that a women-only movie screening just puts another barrier up. Why, indeed, should we separate ourselves when the goal is to come together and be more inclusive?

Some critics of the event have pointed out that "white people only" screening could cause serious issues and would probably be a bad idea. But the issues aren't one-to-one.

The problem is that men complaining about this event haven't had to live a life as a female comic book fan.

You don't have to look very hard to find stories of women in geek culture being harassed or bullied for no reason other than their gender. Sometimes that comes in the form of sexual harassment. Other times it's the need to answer to constant accusations of being a "fake geek girl" who just wants attention and doesn't actually care about the material.

This is a problem I've never had to deal with as a male walking the floor of a comic book convention, yet I've watched it happen to women who are more knowledgeable about comics than I am.

On May 24, a woman tweeted a picture of herself in a Wonder Woman outfit asking if she should go to the movie dressed up as the heroine, "even if I do end up getting teased." The tweet went viral and spawned many tweets of encouragement from people who were total strangers to her. But her anxiety is a real issue, and is it really so bad if Alamo Drafthouse wants to offer just a handful of movie screenings at which she might feel more comfortable?

Even in the social media comments about these screenings, these sexist ideas are far too common.

"I really do not see why you'd have a 'Woman's Only' for Wonder Woman," said Ray Wallman on Facebook. "50 Shades of Grey. Yes. Magic Mike. Yes. A Twilight movie marathon. ABSOLUTELY!"

"I don't know any women who read comic books. They know nothing about wonder woman. You ignored a huge fan following," @jay-babyboi said on Twitter, again implying that the Drafthouse would only be showing the movie to women.

Of course, those were the tame comments. The ones we can print here.

For their part, the Drafthouse social media employees are handling the controversy especially well. One of the more humorous responses they've given to complaints on their Facebook page says, "We've never done showings where you had to be a man to get in, but we did show the 'Entourage' movie a few years ago."

In an ideal world, sure, there would be no need for a women-only screening of Wonder Woman, because we all live in perfect harmony and sexism wouldn't exist. But this is not the hill to die on, fellow men.

If you want to see Wonder Woman, you have plenty of chances to do exactly that, wherever you may live. If you want to act like a sexist, please do it somewhere else. Far away from here.

SOURCE






Let them run wild! New research reveals getting children outdoors and away from their tablets is the best way to ensure good health into adulthood

Whether it’s a camping holiday in the countryside or a weekend bike ride, the experts are in agreement: the healthiest thing you can do as a family this summer is to simply step outdoors – and get moving.

To maintain a basic level of health, children aged five to 18 should get at least one hour of physical activity every day, according to the NHS. However, new figures show that only 22 per cent of children in England achieve this. In children under five, less than one in ten meet the guidelines for their age.

Children are paying a huge cost for sedentary lifestyles encouraged by the huge time they spend on social media, in front of computer screens, televisions and devices, putting them at increased risk of conditions in later life such as type 2 diabetes and heart disease.

Effects can be emotional too: numerous studies have found that British children are some of the unhappiest in the world. A recent international study put the UK 38th out of 48 countries for overall happiness of 15-year-olds.

The good news is that meeting the daily exercise and screen-time requirements can make a huge difference.

Last week, a US study found that children who follow government advice on physical activity, screen time and sleep have an 89 per cent lower risk of being obese. Here, our experts reveal why it’s time to get your children and grandchildren to put down their iPhones, tablets and game controllers and get busy outside…

Build emotional resilience

Sue Palmer is a former primary school headteacher and author of the groundbreaking book Toxic Childhood. She also campaigns for the introduction of a kindergarten stage for three- to seven-year-olds. She says:

Children are trapped between cool – iPads and other devices – and school from the age of four or five.

Playing outdoors, doing things for yourself, like building dens or making perfume from petals, is incredibly important in developing emotional resilience. If a task doesn’t work the first time, the child tries it again a different way until they succeed. Studies have shown that the satisfaction a child gets from achieving self-made play goals outdoors has enormous repercussions for mental health.

Playing outside with other children increases adaptability and social skills. It teaches them how to collaborate to get things done. That’s why I’m campaigning for a Nordic-style kindergarten system until the age of seven which allows children to play in an unstructured way for those crucial early years.

Camping with children is a great way to do this. Or just go to the local park after school.

Leading neuroscientist Baroness Susan Greenfield is a broadcaster and writer of numerous books including Mind Change, which looks at the effects of technology use on young minds. She says:

Studies have shown that physical activity can boost cognitive skills. We know that exercise enhances neurogenesis – the growth of brain cells. A raft of different studies has shown that executive function – the mental skills that get things done – is enhanced really significantly with exercise.

Recent data suggests that physically active children have more active brains. Researchers found that after 20 minutes of activity, children scored better in reading, spelling and maths, while just one active lesson at school resulted in a 21 per cent reduction in the time teachers spent managing behaviour.

Technology engages only two senses – hearing and vision. Being outside stimulates all five. By interacting with nature you learn that, unlike in a computer game, actions have consequences.

For instance, if you’re climbing a tree you modify your behaviour to achieve that goal.

Psychologist and acclaimed parenting guru Steve Biddulph has written bestselling books including Raising Boys, Raising Girls and his latest, 10 Things Girls Need Most. He says:

I work with many parents around the world, and I sometimes ask: ‘What is your best memory of your teenage years?’ And so often, they say it was being on holiday somewhere wild and natural, a wild beach or mountains, with their dad and mum. Our eyes, ears, hands, limbs, feet and our brains need the complex and richly sensory world that only nature can provide. Rough ground makes our feet and limbs grow stronger, our brains more agile.

The message isn’t just it’s healthy to get outdoors. It’s that in the complexity and richness of the natural environment, a child’s senses begin to work at a significantly more refined and detailed level. Added together, these experiences might immunise your children – even just a little – against the stupidities of social media, from being cruel to friends, or from needing to take drugs to feel good.

More HERE






Ex-Navy SEAL Tells Katy Perry: 'Hold One of Your Concerts in Syria and See How It Goes'

Former Navy Seal Carl Higbie dared pop singer Katy Perry to hold a concert in Syria, if she believes Americans can just “hug it out” with Muslim terrorists.

Appearing on Fox News, Higbie responded to Perry’s public claim that “open borders” and “love” will protect Americans from terrorism. Celebrities who excuse terrorists intentionally misunderstand the situation he said:

“We don’t have people who respect the culture of the United States of America. You have people like Katy Perry, for instance. I mean, this woman has said ‘oh we need to give them hugs, hug it out. Go to hell Katy Perry. “Hold one of your concerts in Syria and see how it goes.”

“These people fundamentally don’t understand what’s going on here.

“They don’t understand any of this - and they don’t want to understand, too. And that’s why I’m so strong against these celebrities who speak out, saying ‘Oh, we can fight this through love, it’s not really violent, they don’t really mean it.’”
This type of political correctness endangers the lives of American citizens, Higbie warned:

“We’re putting the political correctness of the Islamic culture over the lives of our citizens - and we need to stop that immediately”

SOURCE

*************************

Political correctness is most pervasive in universities and colleges but I rarely report the  incidents concerned here as I have a separate blog for educational matters.

American "liberals" often deny being Leftists and say that they are very different from the Communist rulers of  other countries.  The only real difference, however, is how much power they have.  In America, their power is limited by democracy.  To see what they WOULD be like with more power, look at where they ARE already  very powerful: in America's educational system -- particularly in the universities and colleges.  They show there the same respect for free-speech and political diversity that Stalin did:  None.  So look to the colleges to see  what the whole country would be like if "liberals" had their way.  It would be a dictatorship.

For more postings from me, see TONGUE-TIED, GREENIE WATCH,   EDUCATION WATCH INTERNATIONAL, AUSTRALIAN POLITICS and  DISSECTING LEFTISM.   My Home Pages are here or   here or   here.  Email me (John Ray) here. 

***************************