The Feminist Pub - come on in, chat, ask a quick question, ramble ... whatever you like!

[LRDtheFeministDragon]

Hello and welcome! Pull up a chair!

This thread started when we all decided to imagine what the perfect local for feminists would be like. So far, it has taps with plenty of good real ale, and some decent non-alcoholic alternatives too. There are comfy chairs and there's a feminist film night, as well as lots of nice feminist-friendly books on the shelves and space to curl up and read. The open-mic nights are attracting feminist singers and comedians, and we're just sorting out the feminist creche.

Old thread is here: www.mumsnet.com/Talk/womens_rights/1875250-The-Feminist-Pub-is-Open-Chat-Rant-or-pull-up-a-chair-here. But don't feel you need to read or catch up - just jump in.

I'm having a nice cup of earl grey but there is wine mulling as requested.

What can I get anyone?

Annie you just have to get ranty. There can be no revolution without fury.

There's a bingo thread?

Did anyone see that there's a thread in Dadsnet asking what mansplaining is? They mostly seem to get it, but not entirely. But I have refrained from posting, because that would probably be womansplaining.

I have seen a LOT of mansplaning in the comments on feminist FB groups lately.

"Why are you women worrying about this thing that isn't important to me? You should worry about instead. It's more important to me."

Annie I've tried to call up things like that these days to people's face. I rather enjoy the look on their faces. I think I might take that up as a hobby.

These boards do help a lot in articulating all this rage I have, so thank you all very much.

Bingo

I don't look at dads net. I'm afraid to see what men talk about.

Dadsnet is fairly tame. Don't go on Reddit if you don't want to know what men of about 15-30 talk about. (And trust me, you probably don't.)

I'd say B3ta is the closest male-dominated equivalent to mumsnet, especially the question of the week board. Even that has its fair share of offensive humour, but it has a good proportion of heartwarming stories and intelligently told genuinely funny ones as well. I used to go there a lot before I found mumsnet.

There are some good bits on Reddit, but it takes some hunting. I did try a few of the feminist subreddits, but they were usually overrun with trolls.

/r/girlgamers is good though. Gets the occasional hassle, but not to the same extent other places do.

There is a radical feminist sub reddit.

Has anyone seen the poetry going around from the Boston poetry slam? (Or somewhere) it is pretty amazing stuff

TheRealAmanda, I completely recognise that guy with his hands on his hips in the door.

Also - not in the gym - the guy waiting for something (the train, the bus, a coffee order, anything) who instead of just standing in the space, paces and fiddles about in it, to take up as much room as possible. So anyone else waiting for the same thing is made uncomfortable, and anyone who just wants to walk past has to wait for a convenient moment in the pacing, that is convenient for the pacer whose convenient pacing DOESN'T EVEN MATTER BECAUSE IT IS NOT ACHIEVING ANYTHING. Sometimes the pacer will bump into someone or tread on their toe, and then look aggrieved as if everyone should have stood aside for his pacing.

Just realised I wrote breast stroke instead of breaststroke last night

There's a website somewhere with photos of men sitting on public transport taking up way more space than they should, isn't there?

OMG public transport!
Legs akimbo. All the way.

article here
newsfeed.time.com/2013/09/17/tumblr-of-the-week-men-taking-up-too-much-space-on-the-train/

pictures here
mentakingup2muchspaceonthetrain.tumblr.com/

I purposely take up too much space on public transport too now. Last week I was on a bus and a man with his son came to sit next to me on the back row, the man tried to open his legs and looked quite confused when I kept my legs where they were rather than moving a bit to give him more space. I was there first and there were plenty of other seats so I stayed exactly where I was.

on the picture site there's a comments from a guy saying how impossible it is for men to sit with their knees together, but there are other pictures of men with legs crossed/knees together so he is clearly talking bollocks.

His comment made me so mad - he also said, why don't you pick on women as well! Grrr.

I enjoyed playing, is that London? by guessing from the seats you could see, and yes, I was right! I can still spot the circle line even past the legs akimbo.

Oh god, I hate that 'men can't sit with their legs together' excuse too. I have seen balls. Unless the ones I have seen are utterly unrepresentative, they are not the size of melons, necessitating sitting with one's legs wide apart.

It is a quite literal "I am more important because of my genitals".

I used to do that 'not budging up' thing too. Confused the hell out of men. I didn't spread out of my seat, but I did refuse to squish up to let them have some of mine IYSWIM. Not on public transport much these days.

DH is currently sitting with his legs crossed. Perhaps his balls have fallen off?

My pet hate is the Very Important Man who cannot wait his turn/follow due process because he has Somehere Important to be and Something Important to do. So why don't I prioritise him as is his due? All these grannies and children and Other Unimportant People need to understand that his problems are Important Problems and need to be dealt with Important Urgency.

Long day in the office....

Children can take themselves to bed, can't they??

Nope.
Extensive review of scientific research shows not evidence of crush injury to scrotal content by sitting with legs not-spread.

There you go. Evidence. Science.
There IS no excuse.

It's just like how woman with corkage cannot cross their arms.

Nope. Works fine

corcage Brill autocorrect

That attitude prevails when moaning about traffic.
The school run (obviously dominated by mothers and children) is a fussy, unnecessary disorganised irritation, clogging up the roads.
Rush hour, ah well, that'll be all the terribly important 9-5 workers (mainly men???) returning from vital money earning activities.

To go all the way back to the firefighter comment. My wonderful nursery had a firefighter visit to talk to the kids about their work. All the little boys were so excited to have 'Fireman Sam' visit and what they were going to say to 'him'. Apparently their little faces were a picture when a female firefighter walked in. They didn't learn their lesson though and the same thing happened when a police officer came.

Little kids are so sexist though, poor DD1 came home really upset because one of her friends didn't believe I was a scientist because only men are scientists. Sigh. Guess that means I need to sign up as a STEM ambassador at work.

Dangling about early years sexism.
My DS has "learned" from somewhere that only girls like pink and, it seems, that girls only like pink.
Luckily he chooses Zog as a bedtime story most night's so there is some hope