Great post Celia. I wrote about this in a post called Life in the Shadows of #MeToo.
In its mainstream Feminist telling, the story of sexual oppression gets refracted through a prism of political correctness. It only really gets the attention it deserves if it can be partnered up with certain other agendas – the obsession with celebrity is one example; ‘white patriarchy’ is another. And thus the sexual exploitation faced by some Western women on their way up the ladder of fame is a bigger story than an Indian woman sentenced by village elders to be gang-raped as punishment for the supposed transgressions of her brother and now hiding in terror of her neighbours. Even more shamefully, Western governments and media alike have averted their gaze from the importation of such cultural misogyny and oppression as an unwonted by-product of mass immigration. In the UK, for example, it took many years for the widespread, often violent, sexual exploitation of underage white girls in towns like Rotherham and Telford by gangs of mainly Pakistani men to be recognised either in the mainstream media or in public policy. And the reason for this cowardly media and institutional silence? Fear of appearing ‘racist’. And there are reasons to believe that this monstrous myopia continues to this day. There is a similar wilful myopia about 'honour killings' occurring on European soil and second generation immigrant girls being shipped back ‘home’ for forced marriages or genital mutilation. These latter horrors have inspired the commissioning of no ’brave’ tv dramas.
As Tucker Carlson recently scolded Australians, leaders who would do such things to their countries hate their people. What sort of fools would be ruled by people who revile and hate them. The British establishment ridiculed Americans as yokels and "Yankee Doodles." For their troubles, they lost their richest and most productive colony. It is long past time to rid ourselves of our self-proclaimed "elite" lunatics. The fate of the Ceausescus awaits them.
This is monstrous indeed! The left has truly mastered using fear as a tool. That said, it's high time all of us embrace ourselves as proud racists (snark intended) and start calling them out and standing up to these false accusations. The Western world is in free fall, and it's time to say "enough."
Indeed. We have too long allowed ourselves to be silenced by the implication that we are "bad people" if we don't agree with the Left. That is not true, no matter how loudly they scream it.
Totally agree regarding sexual assault being ignored if it can't be paired with other agendas. Thinking of Christine Blasey Ford vs. Tara Reade. If you listen to the MSM only democrat women can be raped, and they are always raped by white republicans in positions of power.
The fact that Leftists--including Leftist women--are uninterested in the victims of rape if the facts of the rape don't further their political narrative is sickening. It shows that Leftists--particularly feminists--are actually anti-woman. Power is everything to them, and if women must be thrown under the bus in order for them to gain that power, so be it.
My thought this morning, Ms. Celia M. Paddock, is that you are one of the brightest, trenchant public voices writing today on this subject. You must have a wider public forum. The "luxury feminism" you describe can rightly be called nothing other than a low form of public lunacy. Countenancing rape? Racism? Self-abnegation? What sort of fools do such things? Worse, because it is swallowed whole by mostly credulous young Western women who are in thrall to the arrant idiocy of leftist politics and cant. In tying Abigail Adams to a more feminine - but far more attractive and equally more muscular - form of feminism and our Fourth of July celebration, you provide a path forward for our confused young women (and men) of today. Truly, you are a gem.
This is a subject near and dear to my heart, because I am old enough to have seen feminism change from the "We Can Do It!" philosophy of women being capable of filling male roles when necessary to this decidedly anti-female ideology.
I feel lucky to have grown up in a culture that values women AS women, that exalts motherhood to the loftiest of social roles, that sees the value for society's future of women being educated, regardless of whether they intend on a career, because an educated woman is better all her roles, including motherhood.
When I took a class on Feminist Theory in graduate school, our teacher boasted that no student ever left her class without a hatred of "the Patriarchy." Well, I was that student. Largely because I have a very different understanding of the whole idea of patriarchy than feminists do. While there is no question that men have abused their power--especially their power over women--in the past, that does not mean that men inherently are not capable of using power wisely and fairly. And indeed, they need some sort of power to stand up to the inherent power of women (something feminists deny we have).
I didn't include John Adams reply to Abigail because it wasn't pertinent to the point I was trying to make, but it's important to my point now:
"We know better than to repeal our Masculine systems. Altho they are in full Force, you know they are little more than Theory. We dare not exert our Power in its full Latitude. We are obliged to go fair, and softly, and in Practice you know We are the subjects. We have only the Name of Masters, and rather than give up this, which would compleatly subject Us to the Despotism of the Peticoat, I hope General Washington, and all our brave Heroes would fight."
Celia you have nailed the essence of what I have always so appreciated about traditional Cherokee culture. Women did not have to compete for power in male arenas because they were so incredibly socially empowered in their own roles as homeowner/homemakers. child bearer/raisers and farmers. To be a Clan Mother was a highly respected position. As you say, patriarchy isn't the problem, a lack of deep appreciation for the gifts of both men and women is the real problem. Many native tribes tolerated the crossing of gender roles, but very few individuals actually crossed those gender roles, because they were so fully empowered in the role they were most biologically suited for. There were a few exceptions in native tribes that were aggressively patriarchal and oppressed women, but it was rare. Probably because the skills of women were desperately needed both for day to day survival as well as in their role of child bearing as so many women and children died in childbirth. Both women and children were thus extremely valued just for the fact of being female and young.
Rainbow, I love the insight you bring to native culture. I wish we had more of it than the nonsensical self-flagellation by leftists that passes for learning
It' really quite destructive. All the obligatory paeans to "stolen land" and nonsensical claims make people like me turn off to the real wisdom and culture that you bring to light with your comments. Like Celia, a smart publication - perhaps the Free Press - would provide you a wider forum.
Crossing gender roles is not a problem when it is limited to a very few people who simply don't fit into the normal scheme of things. That's a reality of human society--there will always be outliers. They are only dangerously intolerable if they become sociopathic.
What the modern trans movement wants--the intentional breaking of all barriers that protect women from mentally and socially and even sociopathicly unstable men--is not sustainable in any society that hopes to be functional.
I have always admired the Cherokee system of recognizing women's power.
I agree and it is so frustrating when I hear all these young native folks spouting off on how native tribes recognized all this gender crossing as though it was traditionally a common occurrence, which of course it was not. But if I push back politely with some real facts about how relatively uncommon gender crossing actually was in ancestral native tribes, well then of course I am labelled transphobic, etc. I really don't think all this mass push to college educate the native young was a good idea. For a few generations it was an advantage, now it's just turned toxic.
I have two daughters and two sons. Both girls (they are the older siblings) have successful careers and are wise and loving wives and mothers. All were sent to college and those who wanted graduate degrees and post graduate training were given that, as well. I don't think there was ever a question about not giving the girls the equal of what we provided for the boys. When they call me the "patriarch," do you think they're using it disparagingly? I don't.
As an aside, I've always thought "The Patriarchy" was kind of a misnomer, since we are increasingly a culture of absent fathers. And if the fathers were more present, I think there would be less raping of young women by atrocious men of any race, because the fathers would break their heads.
You make an excellent point. It is often the *absence* of a father figure that allows young men to fall prey to the lawless ideology of the gang. Without a father to teach a boy how he ought to behave--particularly how he ought to treat women, based on his father's tender care of his mother--men are left to sink to the level of barbarism. Without being taught the ethics of civilization, humans act very much like animals--seeking food and sex and power unrestrained by anything but the limits of nature and the laws of physics. Indeed, *worse* than animals, because we have the intelligence to invent far greater acts of cruelty than any animal can imagine.
I agree 100% Bruce!! and Celia, I shared this wonderful piece w/ my very conservative brother and very progressive sister. I'm thinking it might be a take on a challenging topic we can all get behind!
“First-hand” accounts are a necessary component of historical records. Abigail’s 2,000 letters to John Adams were used by David McCullough in his account of the formation of our nation.
Like all these social justice movements, feminists have largely achieved or exceeded their original goals in the U.S. For example, at present, 59% of college students are female, and women earn slightly more than men for comparable work in major urban areas. Formal programs to encourage women to enter traditionally male fields are everywhere. See Grace Hopper Conference.
As a result, these activists need to invent new oppressions to combat and new causes to champion, no matter how absurd. Otherwise, they might not be seen as victims and they might need to think about why men are falling behind. Having a husband or a son might be a natural catalyst for rethinking their positions, but seems unlikely for these harridans.
It will be interesting to see if women will wield their power more wisely than men as their education empowers them to take over leadership positions across society. Based on my experience, they won't - the spectrum of wisdom and foolishness will not be changed.
A big part of the problem is that the women who rise to leadership positions usually got there by behaving like men. There is no reason to suppose that women behaving like men will provide better leadership than men behaving like men.
In fact, women have an evolutionary advantage in communication and social interaction, due to generations of having to hold families and other social groups together on a basic survival level. When women use those skills to promote male-like behavior, they do far, far more damage to society than any male leader is capable of doing.
Some who have sons will wake up to how much this is hurting their male children, but others....Well I hate to say this, but some of the most fanatically insane will both literally and figuratively, simply turn their sons into girls now.
Wow! Another excellent topic and powerful essay, Celia! Thank you.
It has been very disturbing to watch feminists remain silent on issues of trans and migrant rape, but your essay provides answers as to why. We are at a turning point, and I think you are spot on in your conclusions that a pendulum swing back to feminism's original purpose. You are absolutely correct in thinking feminism needs to get back to fighting for the "rights and the tools that would enable them to fulfill their female roles with dignity, honor, and respect from society." The current form of feminism benefits men and trans men--erasing or diminishing women to serve their own interests. The early feminists are turning over in their graves.
I think I will start using "fake women" in situation where I have no desire to be polite. Because that is, indeed, what most of these new "trans" people are.
Thank you Celia, and yes 100% we should be horrified at where we have arrived. Modern "feminists" do, I believe, hate women. Why do I think this? For all the reasons you list - at every turn they try to make women...not women. Unless, of course they are men, who are to them of course superior versions of women. It's no wonder they ally with the Islamists - they both see women as disposable.
You’re singing my song, Celia! The idea of “empowering” women AS women is a subject near and dear to my heart. And I use quotes because feminine power looks different from masculine power, and it’s another blind spot of the feminist movement that masculine power is what they have pursued.
Another fallout of this pursuit is the “us vs. them” undercurrent of modern feminism. The likes of Abigail Adam’s would be appalled by this trend away from the idea of men and women needing each other, especially as the foundation and health of families.
Thank you for covering this. I agree with Bruce: you are a treasure!
Feminine power is very real--encapsulated in the truism "the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world"--but it *is* very different from masculine power. Feminism went off track when it started demanded that women pursue masculine power, rather than that society acknowledge the value of feminine power.
EXACTLY!! I’m always saying we need to bring back the “the hand that rocks the cradle….”
mentality!!
I often think, too, of the scene from “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” where Toula bemoans her father’s “the man is the head house,” M.O. and her mother responds, “The man is the head, but the woman is the neck, and she can turn the head any.way.she.wants!”
Male and female roles within a family and within society is a many-faceted topic and we could probably have conversations about it for days!
Toula's mom understood exactly how it works. Greek men are famously (infamously?) patriarchal, but that hasn't stopped their women from figuring out how to get exactly what they want.
Thank you to Celia. I am perplexed,eyed and horrified with this crazy luxury feminism .it bears not even a remote resemblance to the feminism of Abigail Adam’s or the feminism I fought for and still believe in. First and foremost meritocracy, but that talented smart women must be considered for any and all positions in schools and professions. Equal pay for equal work, which often tiered into equal pay for working twice as hard to “ prove “ ourselves. I don’t remember resenting that , in many ways it made us better and tougher.
What is going on now is the opposite of feminism and we need to not be fearful in decrying this terrible turn.
It’s rapidly destroying the family unit which is devastating our Country as exemplified by the fact that Kamala Harris is where she is. Harris is the personification of this luxury feminism
Meritocracy should always be first and foremost in any society. Meritocracy lifts *every* historically "oppressed" group, because it focuses purely on ability, not the color of one's skin or the place one was born or the sexual equipment between one's legs.
The continued complaints of modern feminists about "equal pay" ignore the fact that the law now requires merit pay. The "gap" they decry is not about equal pay for equal work, but about the statistical reality that women make different choices about work than men do, so that they do not, in aggregate, have the same *lifetime* wages than men do.
Any system that would attempt to alter that must either smash the idea of meritocracy, paying women *more* simply because they are women, or else remove individual freedom from women, demanding that women make MALE work choices, not their own work choices.
All this paid time off for both men and women after the birth of a child kinda drives me crazy. If you can leave your job for three months while other people do it for you, then you're probably not needed at all. When the moms do come back to work, it is not uncommon for them to be pumping 3 times a day for 30-45 minutes at a time. Again, someone else is doing your job while you're pumping. I think I got two weeks off after birthing a baby and my husband had 0. We made it work! And our kids are grown and turned out just fine. Thanks for letting me rant.
I had already made plans to go back to college the next fall when I found out I was pregnant with our youngest daughter. That was *not* planned!
Our marriage was in a rough spot at the time, so I was determined to go back to college anyway. My husband worked 2nd shift, so I fed her (she was two months old when the semester started), turned her over to her dad for the morning while I went to classes, and came home and nursed her while I did the reading for my classes.
Her dad was her primary caretaker when I was grad school, and as a result, they have a closer relationship than our sons have with their dad.
And my husband and worked through our problems and stayed together. (Did another round of that a couple of years ago!) We are stronger for all we've been through--37+ years now.
According my daughter, I am "cishet, non-gender-conforming."
Oh, pumpkin (my mom's term of endearment), I have been "non-gender-conforming" (i.e., a tomboy) since I was a child. But I have never once in my life wanted to be anything but female. I'm comfortable with power tools (I can do carpentry, electrical work, and plumbing), but even more comfortable with household management tasks (particularly cooking, which I learned in large part from my dad, who was a much more avid cook than my mom). I had four children, lost one in infancy, and breastfed the rest well beyond the 6 weeks or 6 months that feminists think should be the limit.
A friend of my mother's drove an enormous Cadillac -- I remember it as pink -- and was always decked out in jewels, heavy makeup, bouffant, etc. You'd have assumed she didn't know the difference between a slotted and a Phillips, but you'd have been dead wrong. Her husband was a cardiac surgeon (with hands that must never be strained or soiled!), so all home repairs fell to her. She pursued them with relish and exactitude, laying out the sprinkler system, reshingling the roof, painting and patching and rewiring ... and raised three children in the bargain, one of them her adopted half-sister. Like you, an embodiment of civilization.
Tomboy here as well! I send the hubby off on an errand so I can fix what he broke haha. And as a young girl, I was so undeveloped and kept my hair so short (and was always in softball clothes), that some people mistook me for a boy. I don't remember it crushing my spirit at all. I liked sports and collecting football cards and playing with trucks. But I never wanted to be a boy!
"They just wanted the rights and the tools that would enable them to fulfill their female roles with dignity, honor, and respect from society. "
It always starts out that way, doesn't it? But as with racial, sexual aberration, handicap, and an ever-growing host of other contexts, It.. Is. Never. Enough. Not even close.
When gratitude is lacking, nothing is ever enough. And so many of these movements--including feminism--are fundamentally incapable of gratitude. Oh, they may scream about how we ought to be grateful to feminism that we have the right to vote (I am, indeed, grateful to the early feminists), but they themselves are not actually grateful. They can only complain about early feminists not going far enough.
I suggest that what you're calling lack of gratitude is more accurately characterized as greed fueled by ignorance. The generations following the initial did not experience, and/or cannot imagine, and/or know nothing of the initial conditions. But they inherited this Movement -- and government programs are not the only examples of immortal zombie eaters of the good.
Oh no…this wasn’t about conservativism. You don’t sound too conservative at all to me! It was about you blushing from all the well earned compliments. 😉
The word 'conservative' has become a bad word much like the word 'liberal'.
"Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics and civil liberties under the rule of law, with special emphasis on individual autonomy, limited government, economic freedom, political freedom and freedom of speech."
Interesting how these values have become more associated with the right/conservatives/Rs these days.
Much like every article about dating makes me thankful to be married, essays about feminism make me thankful to be married to a traditional woman, a classic nurturing wife and mother whose greatest pride is caring for her family. As for me, my greatest pride is providing for my family. “Homemaker” sounds simple, but making a happy home and raising well-adjusted, happy children is the most important job in the world.
Considering that the home is where we spend most of our time, where we are meant to feel safest and most secure, and the environment in which our children learn their earliest lessons, the devaluing of Home-Making is a direct attack on our society as a whole, due to the damage that is done to our population's overall well-being.
It is! When my engineer daughter was overheard by an acquaintance saying that her life goal was to be a stay at home mom, the acquaintance was horrified and told her it would be a "waste of her talent." Needless to say, they are no longer friends. :) It starts to feel like liberal women hate everybody, but most of all, they hate conservative women. (Because they are happy haha)
One must truly admire Abigail for all she did for this country and those she supported.
All Men would become tyrants if they could. It is not accurate. Of course, there are the minority, but it is prevalent nevertheless. Better said, mankind has many who would become tyrants if they could. Perhaps that is what she was saying.
Queens have been tyrants, and mothers and wives have become tyrants.
Today's feminist movement is built on the power to punish any male at any place, any time, without fear of a rebuttal. No due process is required or even allowed. Colleges that held tribunals where any female could make whatever charge she desired and, without due process, had the male thrown out of the institution. Cry rape the day after the male is gone from school or one's career.
Fortunately, most of mankind tries to be fair and just with each other.
However, the feminist movement does make it an alternate path to tyranny. Today, we have some wonderful examples of incompetent women who are terrible in important positions because they are women, not because they are capable.
This may help bring things back in balance. One can hope.
"We know better than to repeal our Masculine systems. Altho they are in full Force, you know they are little more than Theory. We dare not exert our Power in its full Latitude. We are obliged to go fair, and softly, and in Practice you know We are the subjects. We have only the Name of Masters, and rather than give up this, which would compleatly subject Us to the Despotism of the Peticoat, I hope General Washington, and all our brave Heroes would fight."
A neat, and persuasive, juxtaposition of Abigail Adams and Ayaan Hirsi Ali on the subject of feminism. They are separated by roughly 250 years of history, but have plenty in common.
I've occupied the roles of son, grandson, husband, and the father of daughters - all involving close contact with females. As such, I know, or think I know, a lot about women. I adore my opposite sex, while being aware of our respective strengths and limitations - speaking generally, of course.
One thing I know is that modern feminist organizations such as NOW and NARAL have always been more about promoting a left-wing agenda than empowering all women. These people support allowing individuals with penises into women’s prisons; the evisceration of Title IV by allowing trans athletes to compete against biological women in sports; all-gender bathrooms and locker rooms; and penalties against more conservative women who protest such things. Their core agenda is woke leftism, not better conditions and opportunities for all women and girls. That’s one thing I know about what women are dealing with today.
As a man, I probably shouldn't intrude into this topic. BUT, I do have a relevant story to tell. In the '80s, I was sent to a class to help understand how to supervise women. The instructor was full of the "you can't look at women as women ..." stuff, to which I responded that my glands aren't on hold. If I see an attractive woman, my body will respond. What I can do, and must do is treat everyone fairly and with respect. I eventually was thrown out of the class for voicing the heresy that supervising women was the same as supervising men: everybody wants to be treated as an individual, and have their individual concerns treated individually with respect. The irony is that I had more women working for me (about half of my group) than anyone else in my organization.
Such heresy! I hope the women who worked for you appreciated that you treated them as individuals, not as a phenomenon that required special accommodation.
Great post Celia. I wrote about this in a post called Life in the Shadows of #MeToo.
In its mainstream Feminist telling, the story of sexual oppression gets refracted through a prism of political correctness. It only really gets the attention it deserves if it can be partnered up with certain other agendas – the obsession with celebrity is one example; ‘white patriarchy’ is another. And thus the sexual exploitation faced by some Western women on their way up the ladder of fame is a bigger story than an Indian woman sentenced by village elders to be gang-raped as punishment for the supposed transgressions of her brother and now hiding in terror of her neighbours. Even more shamefully, Western governments and media alike have averted their gaze from the importation of such cultural misogyny and oppression as an unwonted by-product of mass immigration. In the UK, for example, it took many years for the widespread, often violent, sexual exploitation of underage white girls in towns like Rotherham and Telford by gangs of mainly Pakistani men to be recognised either in the mainstream media or in public policy. And the reason for this cowardly media and institutional silence? Fear of appearing ‘racist’. And there are reasons to believe that this monstrous myopia continues to this day. There is a similar wilful myopia about 'honour killings' occurring on European soil and second generation immigrant girls being shipped back ‘home’ for forced marriages or genital mutilation. These latter horrors have inspired the commissioning of no ’brave’ tv dramas.
The whole essay is here: https://grahamcunningham.substack.com/p/life-in-the-shadows-of-metoo
As Tucker Carlson recently scolded Australians, leaders who would do such things to their countries hate their people. What sort of fools would be ruled by people who revile and hate them. The British establishment ridiculed Americans as yokels and "Yankee Doodles." For their troubles, they lost their richest and most productive colony. It is long past time to rid ourselves of our self-proclaimed "elite" lunatics. The fate of the Ceausescus awaits them.
That was an excellent speech.
Liked the historical allusion!
This is monstrous indeed! The left has truly mastered using fear as a tool. That said, it's high time all of us embrace ourselves as proud racists (snark intended) and start calling them out and standing up to these false accusations. The Western world is in free fall, and it's time to say "enough."
Indeed. We have too long allowed ourselves to be silenced by the implication that we are "bad people" if we don't agree with the Left. That is not true, no matter how loudly they scream it.
Totally agree regarding sexual assault being ignored if it can't be paired with other agendas. Thinking of Christine Blasey Ford vs. Tara Reade. If you listen to the MSM only democrat women can be raped, and they are always raped by white republicans in positions of power.
The fact that Leftists--including Leftist women--are uninterested in the victims of rape if the facts of the rape don't further their political narrative is sickening. It shows that Leftists--particularly feminists--are actually anti-woman. Power is everything to them, and if women must be thrown under the bus in order for them to gain that power, so be it.
Thoughts?
My thought this morning, Ms. Celia M. Paddock, is that you are one of the brightest, trenchant public voices writing today on this subject. You must have a wider public forum. The "luxury feminism" you describe can rightly be called nothing other than a low form of public lunacy. Countenancing rape? Racism? Self-abnegation? What sort of fools do such things? Worse, because it is swallowed whole by mostly credulous young Western women who are in thrall to the arrant idiocy of leftist politics and cant. In tying Abigail Adams to a more feminine - but far more attractive and equally more muscular - form of feminism and our Fourth of July celebration, you provide a path forward for our confused young women (and men) of today. Truly, you are a gem.
Yes, Bruce! Celia should be writing for TFP and more!
Concur!!!
Thank you! *blushes*
This is a subject near and dear to my heart, because I am old enough to have seen feminism change from the "We Can Do It!" philosophy of women being capable of filling male roles when necessary to this decidedly anti-female ideology.
I feel lucky to have grown up in a culture that values women AS women, that exalts motherhood to the loftiest of social roles, that sees the value for society's future of women being educated, regardless of whether they intend on a career, because an educated woman is better all her roles, including motherhood.
When I took a class on Feminist Theory in graduate school, our teacher boasted that no student ever left her class without a hatred of "the Patriarchy." Well, I was that student. Largely because I have a very different understanding of the whole idea of patriarchy than feminists do. While there is no question that men have abused their power--especially their power over women--in the past, that does not mean that men inherently are not capable of using power wisely and fairly. And indeed, they need some sort of power to stand up to the inherent power of women (something feminists deny we have).
I didn't include John Adams reply to Abigail because it wasn't pertinent to the point I was trying to make, but it's important to my point now:
"We know better than to repeal our Masculine systems. Altho they are in full Force, you know they are little more than Theory. We dare not exert our Power in its full Latitude. We are obliged to go fair, and softly, and in Practice you know We are the subjects. We have only the Name of Masters, and rather than give up this, which would compleatly subject Us to the Despotism of the Peticoat, I hope General Washington, and all our brave Heroes would fight."
Celia you have nailed the essence of what I have always so appreciated about traditional Cherokee culture. Women did not have to compete for power in male arenas because they were so incredibly socially empowered in their own roles as homeowner/homemakers. child bearer/raisers and farmers. To be a Clan Mother was a highly respected position. As you say, patriarchy isn't the problem, a lack of deep appreciation for the gifts of both men and women is the real problem. Many native tribes tolerated the crossing of gender roles, but very few individuals actually crossed those gender roles, because they were so fully empowered in the role they were most biologically suited for. There were a few exceptions in native tribes that were aggressively patriarchal and oppressed women, but it was rare. Probably because the skills of women were desperately needed both for day to day survival as well as in their role of child bearing as so many women and children died in childbirth. Both women and children were thus extremely valued just for the fact of being female and young.
Rainbow, I love the insight you bring to native culture. I wish we had more of it than the nonsensical self-flagellation by leftists that passes for learning
Thanks Bruce. Your appreciation means a lot as I so often have to fight even my own tribe these days on all this crazy woke shit.
It' really quite destructive. All the obligatory paeans to "stolen land" and nonsensical claims make people like me turn off to the real wisdom and culture that you bring to light with your comments. Like Celia, a smart publication - perhaps the Free Press - would provide you a wider forum.
Oh I am quite sure TFP would just love me to write for them! Ha Ha Ha.
Crossing gender roles is not a problem when it is limited to a very few people who simply don't fit into the normal scheme of things. That's a reality of human society--there will always be outliers. They are only dangerously intolerable if they become sociopathic.
What the modern trans movement wants--the intentional breaking of all barriers that protect women from mentally and socially and even sociopathicly unstable men--is not sustainable in any society that hopes to be functional.
I have always admired the Cherokee system of recognizing women's power.
I agree and it is so frustrating when I hear all these young native folks spouting off on how native tribes recognized all this gender crossing as though it was traditionally a common occurrence, which of course it was not. But if I push back politely with some real facts about how relatively uncommon gender crossing actually was in ancestral native tribes, well then of course I am labelled transphobic, etc. I really don't think all this mass push to college educate the native young was a good idea. For a few generations it was an advantage, now it's just turned toxic.
Thank you for sharing this perspective.
It’s very interesting and informative to read.
I have two daughters and two sons. Both girls (they are the older siblings) have successful careers and are wise and loving wives and mothers. All were sent to college and those who wanted graduate degrees and post graduate training were given that, as well. I don't think there was ever a question about not giving the girls the equal of what we provided for the boys. When they call me the "patriarch," do you think they're using it disparagingly? I don't.
As an aside, I've always thought "The Patriarchy" was kind of a misnomer, since we are increasingly a culture of absent fathers. And if the fathers were more present, I think there would be less raping of young women by atrocious men of any race, because the fathers would break their heads.
You make an excellent point. It is often the *absence* of a father figure that allows young men to fall prey to the lawless ideology of the gang. Without a father to teach a boy how he ought to behave--particularly how he ought to treat women, based on his father's tender care of his mother--men are left to sink to the level of barbarism. Without being taught the ethics of civilization, humans act very much like animals--seeking food and sex and power unrestrained by anything but the limits of nature and the laws of physics. Indeed, *worse* than animals, because we have the intelligence to invent far greater acts of cruelty than any animal can imagine.
I agree 100% Bruce!! and Celia, I shared this wonderful piece w/ my very conservative brother and very progressive sister. I'm thinking it might be a take on a challenging topic we can all get behind!
“First-hand” accounts are a necessary component of historical records. Abigail’s 2,000 letters to John Adams were used by David McCullough in his account of the formation of our nation.
Like all these social justice movements, feminists have largely achieved or exceeded their original goals in the U.S. For example, at present, 59% of college students are female, and women earn slightly more than men for comparable work in major urban areas. Formal programs to encourage women to enter traditionally male fields are everywhere. See Grace Hopper Conference.
As a result, these activists need to invent new oppressions to combat and new causes to champion, no matter how absurd. Otherwise, they might not be seen as victims and they might need to think about why men are falling behind. Having a husband or a son might be a natural catalyst for rethinking their positions, but seems unlikely for these harridans.
The "March of Dimes Syndrome"
Ding, ding, ding! That is it, precisely.
Harridans you are too kind.
It will be interesting to see if women will wield their power more wisely than men as their education empowers them to take over leadership positions across society. Based on my experience, they won't - the spectrum of wisdom and foolishness will not be changed.
A big part of the problem is that the women who rise to leadership positions usually got there by behaving like men. There is no reason to suppose that women behaving like men will provide better leadership than men behaving like men.
In fact, women have an evolutionary advantage in communication and social interaction, due to generations of having to hold families and other social groups together on a basic survival level. When women use those skills to promote male-like behavior, they do far, far more damage to society than any male leader is capable of doing.
Some who have sons will wake up to how much this is hurting their male children, but others....Well I hate to say this, but some of the most fanatically insane will both literally and figuratively, simply turn their sons into girls now.
called "create a crisis" to "stay in business". which is the goal of any activist who sucks from the public tit ( sorry for the reference. LOL)
Wow! Another excellent topic and powerful essay, Celia! Thank you.
It has been very disturbing to watch feminists remain silent on issues of trans and migrant rape, but your essay provides answers as to why. We are at a turning point, and I think you are spot on in your conclusions that a pendulum swing back to feminism's original purpose. You are absolutely correct in thinking feminism needs to get back to fighting for the "rights and the tools that would enable them to fulfill their female roles with dignity, honor, and respect from society." The current form of feminism benefits men and trans men--erasing or diminishing women to serve their own interests. The early feminists are turning over in their graves.
The term trans men is confusing to many. Do we mean the females who claim they are males or the opposite?
Someone suggested we substitute the word FAKE for trans
Fake men are biological females
Fake women are biological males( and are the ones who are invading women’s sports and spaces.,
The terms male female or man and woman suffice.
They absolutely should
I think I will start using "fake women" in situation where I have no desire to be polite. Because that is, indeed, what most of these new "trans" people are.
Thank you Celia, and yes 100% we should be horrified at where we have arrived. Modern "feminists" do, I believe, hate women. Why do I think this? For all the reasons you list - at every turn they try to make women...not women. Unless, of course they are men, who are to them of course superior versions of women. It's no wonder they ally with the Islamists - they both see women as disposable.
You’re singing my song, Celia! The idea of “empowering” women AS women is a subject near and dear to my heart. And I use quotes because feminine power looks different from masculine power, and it’s another blind spot of the feminist movement that masculine power is what they have pursued.
Another fallout of this pursuit is the “us vs. them” undercurrent of modern feminism. The likes of Abigail Adam’s would be appalled by this trend away from the idea of men and women needing each other, especially as the foundation and health of families.
Thank you for covering this. I agree with Bruce: you are a treasure!
So true. It seems that if you want to be a feminist these days you have to hate men. It is so backwards.
Thank you! *blushes*
Feminine power is very real--encapsulated in the truism "the hand that rocks the cradle rules the world"--but it *is* very different from masculine power. Feminism went off track when it started demanded that women pursue masculine power, rather than that society acknowledge the value of feminine power.
EXACTLY!! I’m always saying we need to bring back the “the hand that rocks the cradle….”
mentality!!
I often think, too, of the scene from “My Big Fat Greek Wedding” where Toula bemoans her father’s “the man is the head house,” M.O. and her mother responds, “The man is the head, but the woman is the neck, and she can turn the head any.way.she.wants!”
Male and female roles within a family and within society is a many-faceted topic and we could probably have conversations about it for days!
Toula's mom understood exactly how it works. Greek men are famously (infamously?) patriarchal, but that hasn't stopped their women from figuring out how to get exactly what they want.
Thank you to Celia. I am perplexed,eyed and horrified with this crazy luxury feminism .it bears not even a remote resemblance to the feminism of Abigail Adam’s or the feminism I fought for and still believe in. First and foremost meritocracy, but that talented smart women must be considered for any and all positions in schools and professions. Equal pay for equal work, which often tiered into equal pay for working twice as hard to “ prove “ ourselves. I don’t remember resenting that , in many ways it made us better and tougher.
What is going on now is the opposite of feminism and we need to not be fearful in decrying this terrible turn.
It’s rapidly destroying the family unit which is devastating our Country as exemplified by the fact that Kamala Harris is where she is. Harris is the personification of this luxury feminism
Lots to think about.
Meritocracy should always be first and foremost in any society. Meritocracy lifts *every* historically "oppressed" group, because it focuses purely on ability, not the color of one's skin or the place one was born or the sexual equipment between one's legs.
The continued complaints of modern feminists about "equal pay" ignore the fact that the law now requires merit pay. The "gap" they decry is not about equal pay for equal work, but about the statistical reality that women make different choices about work than men do, so that they do not, in aggregate, have the same *lifetime* wages than men do.
Any system that would attempt to alter that must either smash the idea of meritocracy, paying women *more* simply because they are women, or else remove individual freedom from women, demanding that women make MALE work choices, not their own work choices.
100%!
All this paid time off for both men and women after the birth of a child kinda drives me crazy. If you can leave your job for three months while other people do it for you, then you're probably not needed at all. When the moms do come back to work, it is not uncommon for them to be pumping 3 times a day for 30-45 minutes at a time. Again, someone else is doing your job while you're pumping. I think I got two weeks off after birthing a baby and my husband had 0. We made it work! And our kids are grown and turned out just fine. Thanks for letting me rant.
I had already made plans to go back to college the next fall when I found out I was pregnant with our youngest daughter. That was *not* planned!
Our marriage was in a rough spot at the time, so I was determined to go back to college anyway. My husband worked 2nd shift, so I fed her (she was two months old when the semester started), turned her over to her dad for the morning while I went to classes, and came home and nursed her while I did the reading for my classes.
Her dad was her primary caretaker when I was grad school, and as a result, they have a closer relationship than our sons have with their dad.
And my husband and worked through our problems and stayed together. (Did another round of that a couple of years ago!) We are stronger for all we've been through--37+ years now.
"white cisheteropatriarchy"
What a wonderful term. Laughter is the best medicine.
When I first read the ridiculous word 'cishet', I thought that it was a typo, or perhaps a borrowing from Hungarian.
According my daughter, I am "cishet, non-gender-conforming."
Oh, pumpkin (my mom's term of endearment), I have been "non-gender-conforming" (i.e., a tomboy) since I was a child. But I have never once in my life wanted to be anything but female. I'm comfortable with power tools (I can do carpentry, electrical work, and plumbing), but even more comfortable with household management tasks (particularly cooking, which I learned in large part from my dad, who was a much more avid cook than my mom). I had four children, lost one in infancy, and breastfed the rest well beyond the 6 weeks or 6 months that feminists think should be the limit.
Celia you are simply the BEST! Love your comments.
Bravissima!
A friend of my mother's drove an enormous Cadillac -- I remember it as pink -- and was always decked out in jewels, heavy makeup, bouffant, etc. You'd have assumed she didn't know the difference between a slotted and a Phillips, but you'd have been dead wrong. Her husband was a cardiac surgeon (with hands that must never be strained or soiled!), so all home repairs fell to her. She pursued them with relish and exactitude, laying out the sprinkler system, reshingling the roof, painting and patching and rewiring ... and raised three children in the bargain, one of them her adopted half-sister. Like you, an embodiment of civilization.
Tomboy here as well! I send the hubby off on an errand so I can fix what he broke haha. And as a young girl, I was so undeveloped and kept my hair so short (and was always in softball clothes), that some people mistook me for a boy. I don't remember it crushing my spirit at all. I liked sports and collecting football cards and playing with trucks. But I never wanted to be a boy!
"They just wanted the rights and the tools that would enable them to fulfill their female roles with dignity, honor, and respect from society. "
It always starts out that way, doesn't it? But as with racial, sexual aberration, handicap, and an ever-growing host of other contexts, It.. Is. Never. Enough. Not even close.
Gotta run.
When gratitude is lacking, nothing is ever enough. And so many of these movements--including feminism--are fundamentally incapable of gratitude. Oh, they may scream about how we ought to be grateful to feminism that we have the right to vote (I am, indeed, grateful to the early feminists), but they themselves are not actually grateful. They can only complain about early feminists not going far enough.
"When gratitude is lacking, nothing is ever enough"!!
I suggest that what you're calling lack of gratitude is more accurately characterized as greed fueled by ignorance. The generations following the initial did not experience, and/or cannot imagine, and/or know nothing of the initial conditions. But they inherited this Movement -- and government programs are not the only examples of immortal zombie eaters of the good.
Celia you are one of substacks hidden Gems.
Thank you. *blushes*
You may have to change this to “Jotting in Crimson” 😊
I apologize if I sound too conservative at times. It's hard not to when you're up against the Left's insanity.
Yeah, I get that was joke! But I do worry.
Oh no…this wasn’t about conservativism. You don’t sound too conservative at all to me! It was about you blushing from all the well earned compliments. 😉
Why apologize for sounding too conservative?
Because I don't consider myself a conservative, even though I may look like one compared to Leftists. I see myself as a Classical Liberal.
The word 'conservative' has become a bad word much like the word 'liberal'.
"Classical liberalism is a political tradition and a branch of liberalism that advocates free market and laissez-faire economics and civil liberties under the rule of law, with special emphasis on individual autonomy, limited government, economic freedom, political freedom and freedom of speech."
Interesting how these values have become more associated with the right/conservatives/Rs these days.
With the consistent quality of her writing she won’t be hidden much longer! She’s already in the “must read” category across a wide range of topics.
Brilliantly written. I am afraid I can't even come up with a comment that rises to the level of this insightful post. I hope Aayan will read it.
Much like every article about dating makes me thankful to be married, essays about feminism make me thankful to be married to a traditional woman, a classic nurturing wife and mother whose greatest pride is caring for her family. As for me, my greatest pride is providing for my family. “Homemaker” sounds simple, but making a happy home and raising well-adjusted, happy children is the most important job in the world.
You *are* lucky.
Considering that the home is where we spend most of our time, where we are meant to feel safest and most secure, and the environment in which our children learn their earliest lessons, the devaluing of Home-Making is a direct attack on our society as a whole, due to the damage that is done to our population's overall well-being.
Feminism did this. Leftism did this.
It is! When my engineer daughter was overheard by an acquaintance saying that her life goal was to be a stay at home mom, the acquaintance was horrified and told her it would be a "waste of her talent." Needless to say, they are no longer friends. :) It starts to feel like liberal women hate everybody, but most of all, they hate conservative women. (Because they are happy haha)
One must truly admire Abigail for all she did for this country and those she supported.
All Men would become tyrants if they could. It is not accurate. Of course, there are the minority, but it is prevalent nevertheless. Better said, mankind has many who would become tyrants if they could. Perhaps that is what she was saying.
Queens have been tyrants, and mothers and wives have become tyrants.
Today's feminist movement is built on the power to punish any male at any place, any time, without fear of a rebuttal. No due process is required or even allowed. Colleges that held tribunals where any female could make whatever charge she desired and, without due process, had the male thrown out of the institution. Cry rape the day after the male is gone from school or one's career.
Fortunately, most of mankind tries to be fair and just with each other.
However, the feminist movement does make it an alternate path to tyranny. Today, we have some wonderful examples of incompetent women who are terrible in important positions because they are women, not because they are capable.
This may help bring things back in balance. One can hope.
Here is John Adams' response:
"We know better than to repeal our Masculine systems. Altho they are in full Force, you know they are little more than Theory. We dare not exert our Power in its full Latitude. We are obliged to go fair, and softly, and in Practice you know We are the subjects. We have only the Name of Masters, and rather than give up this, which would compleatly subject Us to the Despotism of the Peticoat, I hope General Washington, and all our brave Heroes would fight."
A neat, and persuasive, juxtaposition of Abigail Adams and Ayaan Hirsi Ali on the subject of feminism. They are separated by roughly 250 years of history, but have plenty in common.
I've occupied the roles of son, grandson, husband, and the father of daughters - all involving close contact with females. As such, I know, or think I know, a lot about women. I adore my opposite sex, while being aware of our respective strengths and limitations - speaking generally, of course.
One thing I know is that modern feminist organizations such as NOW and NARAL have always been more about promoting a left-wing agenda than empowering all women. These people support allowing individuals with penises into women’s prisons; the evisceration of Title IV by allowing trans athletes to compete against biological women in sports; all-gender bathrooms and locker rooms; and penalties against more conservative women who protest such things. Their core agenda is woke leftism, not better conditions and opportunities for all women and girls. That’s one thing I know about what women are dealing with today.
As a man, I probably shouldn't intrude into this topic. BUT, I do have a relevant story to tell. In the '80s, I was sent to a class to help understand how to supervise women. The instructor was full of the "you can't look at women as women ..." stuff, to which I responded that my glands aren't on hold. If I see an attractive woman, my body will respond. What I can do, and must do is treat everyone fairly and with respect. I eventually was thrown out of the class for voicing the heresy that supervising women was the same as supervising men: everybody wants to be treated as an individual, and have their individual concerns treated individually with respect. The irony is that I had more women working for me (about half of my group) than anyone else in my organization.
Such heresy! I hope the women who worked for you appreciated that you treated them as individuals, not as a phenomenon that required special accommodation.