Thank you for sharing that wisdom redtoothbrush. It is easy to see everyone as machiavellian sometimes, but as you say, sometimes their position is not logic based, and nor do they necessarly want to do the work or have their eyes opened.
Ignorance is bliss as they say.
I saw somethng on telly the other day that used the fable of the North Wind and the Sun and it got me thinking in the fable they both want a man to remove his coat and the North WInd blew coder and colder and theman clutched his coat ever harder, the sun however beamed down warm rays and the man quickly and happily removed his coat.
I think the TRAs etc use and benefit from the sun approach as they are able (through some duplicitousness) rainbows and unicorns and glitter, to frame their agenda as being inclusive and non-hateful and liberal etc, to give people a way to feel warm and good and kind, and maybe even to believe that the world is safe. Maybe we need that when actually there is still so much wrong and sometimes few answers.
After that, we feminists look like the cold wind, forcing peple to open their eyes and see badness and risk everywhere, and being angry arguing women. Boo for feminists. In my case, I even object to pink princess dresses for girls. How mean and dull.
I haven't heard it yet, but from the comments, I think this is where Dr Julia Long was able to be particularly effective in her radio interview as many PP mentioned that she came across as almost lighthearted and funny, and yet very focussed on women and not argue-y, and of course this was helped by not having a biased interview setting her as the baddie from the start and making her feel she had to fight to be heard.
We need to find more ways to be like the warm Sun.