to think that all the people who have a problem with people using "girls" instead of "women"

[CartwrightMiss]

Should say "womanfriend" instead of "girlfriend"?

[gron]

Yeah, sorry, but all these powerfully strong, stoic, enduring, courageous and pain-tolerant female persons are 'girls'! And inferior ...

garlic. But it is like the duracell bunny.
Feed up men and they run and run and run etc.
Feed up women and they stop a loonng time before the men.

If people dont accept the basic principles, then I suppose it it not surprising that women think they can achieve equality.

But they are still going to have to sort out the fact that 86% are in full time work, compared to 56% of women.

But what is stopping woman playing, professionally a tennis match with men and winning?

The sponsors. They won't back women and men playing as equals. We do have mixed doubles, though, at competitive level.

What prevents a woman playing a football match with men, and being as good as them.

The FA has publicly said women are as good as men at football (soccer.)

The answer, we would look silly.

No. The answer is money. The sponsors are sexist.

Ilike - am not sure if you are being deliberately silly or if you genuinely think it's biology or whatever rather than the origins and development of the sport, investment in players and potential players etc that accounts for differences between women's and men's football in the UK? But you do know that the women's team are amateur?

No, they're not rare.

Farming tends to be a family occupation, and historically - when the work was much harder, btw - was very much so.

I doubt women have 'superior emotional intelligence', either.

Good lord, Ilike, you sound like a Victorian granddad! Even in those days, he's have been considered a bit of a fuddy-duddy.

You go back to your tapestry or whatever you were doing. Be a good girl and stay quiet, will you, while the rest of us get on with improving the world for your children?

This is fun, btw, but I'm pausing to go ring my mother and let her lament my failure to get a job then brighten at the happy thought that DH earns the money. Wish me luck, sisters.

women make much better endurance athletes than men

these things are not secrets, read about them?

Ilikethebreeze, now you really are being offensive and ignorant of any facts. Women do two thirds of the world's work for one tenth of the world's income and less than one percent of the wold's resources. They are the majority of farmers and just under half of the world's agricultural workers. Most farmers don't own tractors anyway; they can't afford them. Women do most of the heavy work - clearing fields, carrying water long distances, moving heavy loads. The food you and your male relatives sit down to eat was probably produced by women. The fact that you don't do heavy manual work isn't a reason to assume that globally men are doing it. And those figures are from the World Bank and FAO, not women's organisations.

Feed up women and they stop a loonng time before the men.

No isn't the opposite true. Ultrarunning is one sport where women do compete directly and successfully with men.

garlic, I would love to see women compete directly against men.
If it is a case of sponsors, then I hope they change their minds.
So what is stopping women beating men at a myriad of sports on sports fields up and down the country?
A lot of changes in life happen at grass roots level.

If women are better at endurance, why are their times slower in the marathons?

They may well be better at endurance, but surely they should be able to beat mens marathon times?

Freya, women around the world work in agriculture. But see my duracell bunny post.

I dont think some women on the whole want to accept the extra strength of men.
I do, and try to change things by talking nicely to them.
My DD works where men outnumber women substantially. So do I.
Far better to talk and bend their ear, than try to deny them their natural abilities.

I think I have said what I wanted to say now, so enjoy the rest of the day!

FreyaSnow can you provide some links to where you got those stats from please? I'd like to borrow them. TIA.

I rarely say this, but I think you need to educate yourself, not expect that other people do it. The work women do is studied in Geography lessons by children in a lot of detail and linked to other areas - demography, human rights etc. It is also widely covered on TV documentaries, the news, charity campaigns like comic relief and so on.

For an adult in the UK not to know at least some basic information about women's work, they must never watch tv or read a newspaper, never have looked it up online, have been home educated and have no interest in being involved with their own children's education.

I don't believe there are any posters like that on MN.

In all honesty, I would not have all those statistics at my fingertips.

I do not remember numbers very well. And I think I do educate myself, and I would google and look things up if need be, but I wouldn't immediately know those numbers.

Just saying.

Sorry, spots. CSW, if you go to FAO and google women, it will bring you up all their reports on women. Some of them have loads of stats in - on time use broken down by region and country, of men and women. They also have stuff on paid and unpaid work and income.

Sorry I can't link as am on iPad.

Thanks, will do that.

I like

What you need to look at with marathons is the progression of the men's and women's world records over the last 90 years or so its very interesting

1925 - Men - 2.29
1926 - Women - 3.40
Gap 1hr 11 mins (71 mins)

Current - Men - 2.03.38
Current - Women - 2.15.25
Gap just under 12 minutes

So from the 1920's to today men have improved their marathon time by 26 minutues and women by 85 minutes.

Who knows what the position will be in another 90 years especially if you bear in mind that women weren't allowed to run an Olympic marathon until 1984.

And now autocorrect gets me too! Sorry, CSW I xposted with you. My post about geography was to Ilikethebreeze.

I know various stats on agriculture because I had to look them up for something last week. I don't expect anyone to just know them, LRD. I wouldn't usually, but I would expect people to know women commonly do heavy work globally - constant images of it on tv, tabloids covered life of Mo Farrar's sister in Somalia etc.

All my fault for not using names. Apologies to everyone.

Also keep in mind that the elite male marathoners are all very petite men. You know, built like women.

^Feed up men and they run and run and run etc.
Feed up women and they stop a loonng time before the men.^

the world ultra marathon runner is a woman.

Sorry, freya, I misunderstood too. I agree with you about looking things up, just was thinking that I didn't get taught this stuff and it is a pity it's not more widely known.

I am fascinated by the stats on women's times in marathons, I've got to say. Amazing.

Right, I have got to a proper computer. There are some easy to read stats here on various web pages on this site, and I like the idea of a 'gender footprint' because people already often know about the ideas of ecological footprints etc:

www.globalfootprints.org/women

It doesn't have as much on agriculture as the FAO, but it says some basic stuff about women that is easier than wading through reports.