to hide the feminism topic?

[CerealOffender]

the thread titles are all so serious and worthy and make me feel frivolous and unsisterly.

Crazycatlady - I see what you mean about the threads today - I think it is cyclical - llots of peoples minds on one particular rape thread.

The thing I find depressing though is that despite the fact:

1 in 4 women living in the UK will experience violence at the hands of a current or former partner and that

the convcition rate for rape is only 6.5%

these matters are not just not being widely discussed within the mainstream media, they are also not being widely discussed on MN apart from in the Feminist (and relationships) sections.

why is it depressing? everyone uses mn in different ways. i come on to have a laugh or get general advice. but i fully understand other people will get other things from it.

tabouleh - i find stats like that simply impossible to believe. i do not trust the way these stats are gathered and reported on.

Sugarmouse: I wasnt refering to lapdancers I was refering to whores. You'll find the majority find it a far juicer more pleasant word that "prostitute" or the horrible PC phrase "sexworker". Whore/harlot/hussy whatever. You can call yourself what you want. Whoring involves fanjos not dances

CerealOffender - obviously it's good to have a healthy skeptacism for stats!

I can't "prove" them to you - but I believe them.

Partially it is reading MN relationships board - have you read much there?

Prior to that I have not heard first hand accounts of these issues.

It is partly the powerful testimony of women sharing here on MN, reaching for support which has enlightened me.

Now I have a DS I can also see much more how women become trapped in these DV situations and it is not as simple as walking away would be pre-DCs.

If anyone feels uneasy about so much focus on inequaltiy in this country then you could have a look at half The Sky book which is about global inequality.

I want to campaign for and support charities helping women all over the world.

However, reading the book and looking at the conditions in which many many women live in around the world - I come back to - how are things so different now for me in the UK?

The answer to me is that my circumstances are the result of the continued fight for equality for women - so this spurs me on wrt to UK issues also.

I've just had a look at it and found it to be really fucking boring.

"I think the section is unfairly maligned and in the process of doing that some pretty offensive caricatures and comments are made but it's hard to challenge them because they are directed at a group rather than individuals"

I agree LeninGrad. It gets me down a bit sometimes.

What's interesting tho is that it isn't the busiest section by a long way. There are only 488 threads on there when I last checked. yet it attracts a lot of attention!

"There are only 488 threads on there when I last checked. yet it attracts a lot of attention!" - yes lots of lurkers!

Sugarmouse-

"The sex industry isn't purely limited to prostitution Either way, as much as I dislike the term "sex-worker" I find the word "whore" to be really derogatory and pejorative."

ok but as i've said I wasn't talking about the sex industry as a whole. I was talking about those who sell penatrative sexual services. However, that is irrelvant; whether someone considers the term whore derogatory would depend really upon whether they were comfortable selling a sexual service in the first place-no? It is after all just a word, it is the intention behind your use of a word that matters.

I have no issue with you chosing to be offended by the word. I will however continue to refer to myself and my collegues and whooooores and I will contine to use the word whore in my posting. If that's ok with you? x

• as not and

SGM, that thread really made me frustrated! because I hadn't seen the video before you posted the link to it in your OP and I thought it was fascinating for all sorts of complex reasons and I really wanted to talk about it in a 'shades of grey' way but that couldn't happen.

But thank you very much for making me aware of the video/song anyway because it gave me the germ of an idea for some discussion and writing with my Yr 11 English set (not least to see if they recognise the subtle layers/irony/insight of Eminem's lyrics ) so it is much appreciated. I love getting new ideas for teaching.

to op
god no it drives me NUTS
so pleased with itself

Uhhm, how can a topic be pleased with itself?

i dunnno
just everyone suddently saying " oh i ama fminist" as if its an idea they had yesterday
and lots of " what books can i read"
it was a bit like a 6th form common room with lots of brooding goths in dms chiding anyone who wears heels or talks jeans

anyway
as osmeone who the lauded st. c of moran described as a feminist ( to much hilarity iirc ) i am off to er.. talk jeans

queue - if queen caitlin anointed you a feminist, you most certainly are [bows and walks backwards out of thread]