Feminism chat thread

[ElephantsAndMiasmas]

Hello

Been saying for ages that it'd be nice to have an area for just saying hi, letting off some steam and sharing the little things that don't warrant a whole thread.

So, I'll start...

My brother made me :o:o:o last night when we were talking about some crap sexist song. And he said (in all honesty) - well this is just one of the millions of ways the patriarchy keeps itself going.

Also got the updated email from the Feminism in London conference this morning - can't wait.

Anyone else?

Morning - just popping in to say this gave me a giggle. Cos, it's just a joke right? Could never happen here. Happy sigh.

I don't know if someone has mentioned this before.

I was in Morrison's today and the lad's mags were covered up. They were in boxes that cover most of the front of the magazine and only show the title along the top. They were also on the top shelf so young children could not see them.

I've noticed that Milly, it's so good to see.
Might give the lads pause for thought too.

That's good news, Milly

There's a thread about this. Me and AF wrote to Morrisons to tell them it was great. Next on my to-do list is to write to Tescos and asda asking them to sort it aaahhhht.

I came across a euphemism for rape, in a book recently. The rape Boudica's daughters was described as Roman soldiers "were rude to her daughters". I think that phrasing takes some beating. Admittedly, it was a book written in 1905 for children, but still.

I was reading "The Road Home" by Rose Tremain recently, and there's a scene where the main character rapes his ex-girlfriend. The character even admits to himself that it was 'more or less rape' or something, even though she apparently gets turned on (physically) part way through. I haven't heard anyone mention this part of the book, or its impact on their perception of the character. I looked it up on MN and the consensus was that he was a pretty nice guy.

Er...did I read a different book? Yes, he was a good friend and a nice dad (ish) and a rapist. Not worthy of comment?

EAM

I will look for the thread. I have written to the Co-Op (my usual supermarket) asking why they don't do this.

Hello! I can't come to anything cos I'm all the way Over Here. Waaaah! There's lots of feminist stuff here in the city but I'm too deep in the baby thing, and the being bloody knackered thing, and the work thing, to really go for it. I'm reading books and blogs on feminist parenting, to make me feel less aloooone.

It's dead good that you're getting into groups, though. DEAD GOOD.
RIOTS NOT DIETS! YEAH!

ahem. And, in my little babyfog, there are some utter gems. Like this highlight Overheard from the Changing Table:
"It's a boy! A son! Another brave warrior in the fight against patriarchy!"

DH watches too much scrubs.

Aw blackcurrants I love you and your DH :o

There was a great thread on here recently about feminist baby names for boys. There were some great ones, and I hope you've called your brave warrior against the patriarchy (BWAP) something nice like Emmelinus Wilberforce Dittany Blackcurrants.

Riots not diets? LOVE IT.

Elephants I hear the funniest stuff, walking past the changing table. It was international Talk Like A Pirate day a couple of weeks ago, and listening to him trying to get the baby to 'yarrgh!' was extremely amusing.

Maybe funnier if you're sleep-deprived, but still...

And RIOTS NOT DIETS is a fab '70s slogan that I want to scrawl on every Weight Watchers and Jenny Craig poster I see. I think I'm going to have to start carrying a marker pen, in fact.

Great idea.

I'd have thought babies were perfectly suited to YAARRGH-ing. :o

I looooove RIOTS NOT DIETS! I'm just reading Fat is a Feminist Issue atm. Grrr!

Aha! One must harness the feminist anger to produce good pirate-talk.
---> Aaargh!

wasting oh I love F.I.F.I - it was very very important to my sanity in my teenage years, specially since my mum's a weight watchers addict who was always tactfully suggesting that maybe I didn't need to eat that cake/dessert/any other thing that gave me pleasure as it's "not good for us, darling." This was not said to my (thinner) sister. Oh no.

And yes, Elephants, he was rather good at it. Slightly more 'oooaaah!' than 'Yarrgh' - but impressive nonetheless. DS is proto-genius. Or, at least, proto-pirate.

[delusional-new-mum preen]

Is it my imagination, or is it getting busier round here? Loads of threads going :)

There is so much happening on Feminism these days that I can't keep up with it all.

Have been ill over the last few days (bad throat) and doing a lot of reading in bed - Delusions of Gender, most of Beauty and Misogyny, the beginning of Pornland.
It's all getting a bit heavy now and I need to find a book about fluffy kittens. Non-sexist fluffy kittens, obv (may be a problem.)

Male kittens. Doing ballet.

Or have a look at this for suggestions.

Sorry you've been poorly. Throats can hurt soooo much. Can recommend manuka honey, propolis elixir (in the 'ippy shit department), or those big bags of throat sweets in yellow or black bags that they do in superdrug/asda. Cheap, excellent and you get loads.

Don't bother with soothers they are crapola.

And jelly and ice-cream obviously helps.

oh but not ballet because that came up a lot in the chapter on high heels and foot fetishism in Beauty and Misogyny!

it will have to be male kittens doing some other kind of dance, or just something funny, thank you.

the doc recommended this amazing throat spray thing that you squirt on the back of your throat - it's fab! I didn't even know they existed! It was so good I forgave him for decreeing it was viral and not giving me antibiotics.

Morris dancing?

male and female kittens doing Morris dancing, yes (there are still sexist all-male Morris groups, of course).

Probably not very feminism section appropriate but I do love the Gay Bar kittens

ooh, I'd forgotten all about Joel Veitch! Brilliant!

Hi Ladies,
Can I join
I like this chat thread! And I love riots not diets.
Would be interested on other little sayings so I can remember them and say them when I get annoyed. Any ideas?
I run an after school history club in a pretty crappy area for "deprived" 5-12yr olds. It is paid for by local council but I use historical info/periods to compare with today and how thins should be eg- toleration etc. We were discussing the way an 11year olds school was split into "houses" and what the historical names were. Churchill was mentioned so we discussed who he was and then we got to the house called "pankhurst" which I thought was brilliant. None of them had a clue who she was and seemed very unimpressed whe I told them what a uge and important change had come about because of suffragettes. I'm going to run a whole lesson on it now to prove my point!

Hi AMIW! Do join in. Can't stop as am rushing to finish some work but make yourself comfy. Your project sounds great.