Is this acceptable in a school?

I love the way sexists never want to see a parallel between racism and sexism.

"Looking" - you mean reducing women solely to their physical appearance?

Re: HerBeatitude
"Let's imagine it's a scenario where everyone in the room is white, and they're allowed to laugh at black people being portrayed as stupid, or criminal. There isn't one black person in the room, so no one would be hurt, intimidated or belittled.

Still see nothing intrinsically wrong with what you did imperator?"

Before I answer this, are you suggesting that looking at attractive women on TV is the same as out right racism? Really?

I trust that I don't need to respond to 'parallels' that are...well..not parallels.

Why it is not harmless:

Because boys are being brought up in a porn culture where the objectification of women is if anything, worse than it was 30 years ago. Most boys think most rape allegations are false. Most boys see porn before they have any sexual relationship with a girl. They are already growing up with mysogynist messages about women being there for their use, they don't need those messages re-inforced by their educators.

Re:ImSoNotTelling
"Some of the students in your class may be gay. They may well have been uncomfortable with this particular type of "male bonding" in the classroom."

I am sure some of them are...but I fail to see why it would make them uncomfortable. There is, after all, nothing wrong with being gay, so they won't care one way or the other, will they?

RE: TheFallenMadonna
"Are you a PE teacher?"

Do you not see the irony in complaining about my implied prejudice by employing your own?

"No one was hurt, no one was intimidated or belittled. What was intrinsically wrong with what I did?"

Let's imagine it's a scenario where everyone in the room is white, and they're allowed to laugh at black people being portrayed as stupid, or criminal. There isn't one black person in the room, so no one would be hurt, intimidated or belittled.

Still see nothing intrinsically wrong with what you did imperator?

Re: sethstarkaddersmum

Yes, that is my case. Perhaps you would care to explain how it is not harmless?

Re:sethstarkaddersmum
I'm sorry, but your post is nonsense. You castigate me for my action, yet you insinuate that I am a "middle aged perv" because I, as all men do, appreciate attractive women. You seem to be incredibly naive about human nature, as well as being capable of your own seedy little prejudices. It is not "perverted" to look at members of the opposite sex and asses them for physical attractiveness. By definition, that is normal.

Your other argument seems to be based on the idea that what you consider desirable is what is desirable.

Well, I've got news for you, as you seem ignorant of this, but many women/girls actually want to be looked at by men/boys (delete as appropriate). Try as you might, you won't stop it from happening, as it is central to human sexuality. Indeed, the reverse is true too. Women/girls like to look at men/boys. Your problem is in assuming that those doing the looking take no other consideration into account when assessing the attractiveness of the people they are looking at. That is an insult, frankly. I can appreciate women purely for their looks, and when i get to know them I appreciate them for their character, and most men do the same. As do women for that matter.

I suggest you take some time to learn a little more about human nature.

Imperator wrote "No one was hurt, no one was intimidated or belittled. What was intrinsically wrong with what I did? If you can't make a case for that, you have no case...
I think some of you need to get a grip. It was harmless fun"

So that is "your case", is it?

You just don't get it... .

Actually, there are quite a few reasons for the prevailing feminist response to this event ("our case"). Perhaps you should read some of the 200+ other theads in the Feminism section - I believe they will give you many reasons and detailed arguments as to why quite a few feminists on this message board see this event differently from you.

I'm guessing anything a female says that you disagree with is "shrill bleating" imperator.

Nice to know that such sexist attitudes are bbeing role modelled to the next generation of men.

Some of the students in your class may be gay. They may well have been uncomfortable with this particular type of "male bonding" in the classroom.

I find it strange that this kind of "laddy" shite is being encouraged in that setting TBH.

Oh blimey at "shrill bleating".

Are you a PE teacher?

I rewound a short clip that was shown on BBC1 pre-watershed. I asked what was wrong with what some here have called "ogling", I see little by way of explanation in response, only shrill bleating. No one was hurt, no one was intimidated or belittled. What was intrinsically wrong with what I did? If you can't make a case for that, you have no case.

I think some of you need to get a grip. It was harmless fun, and no one has yet shown otherwise.

NobleG: the answer lies in courtesy. If people in the room had been offended, then I'd have not done it. That doesn't make what I did wrong, it just means I'm sensitive to feelings that could be hurt. Even if I think the hurt is unreasonable.

so first you say

"What is wrong with looking, and appreciating, attractive women? "

• dont be deliberately obtuse. you are a teacher, they are students. it was completely inappropriate for you to be 'appreciating attractive women'

then you say

"Its certainly not professional, but would there be an outcry if a female teacher, say, rewound the bit where Colin Firth has a wet shirt in Pride and Prejudice? A double standard here, methinks."

• yes. of course there would. it is as you say, unproffessional. the only double standard is in your mind

then, you top it off by saying

"Why is it a "bad" example?"

• for all the reasons already nicely laid out for you by previous posters.

HTH

@ 'appreciating attractive women'. That sounds like the sort of phrase a middle aged perv would use.
I would not be happy about my sons being in a school where that kind of thing happened at all. It also sounds like the kind of thing a teacher would do who was trying to curry favour with the boys by coming down to their level.

More rationally though, why is it a bad thing? Because while it is perfectly normal for teenage boys to look at girls and consider whether or not they fancy them, they already do it far too much and there is far too much emphasis on the way women look as compared to other aspects of their personalities. This promotes inequality between the sexes and does not make for successful relationships IMHO. Therefore encouraging them to do it in a lesson is completely inappropriate and wrong.

Why would you be "appreciating" attractive girls in a lesson? How odd.

Ah. OK - this thread is getting weird.

Oh don't be silly. You know perfectly well why an adult male encouraging teenage boys to "ogle" pretty girls is a bad example!

Why is it a "bad" example?

The teacher should have said no and explained why not. Teachers are supposed to be modelling the best possible example to the young people in their care.

Maybe he wanted to avoid offence. One can be polite, even if one thinks that any offence taken is unreasonable. Simply a matter of courtesy.

Its certainly not professional, but would there be an outcry if a female teacher, say, rewound the bit where Colin Firth has a wet shirt in Pride and Prejudice?

A double standard here, methinks.