Prominent atheist Prof Dawkins and the former Archbishop of Canterbury will discuss whether “religion has no place in the 21st Century” on Thursday.… Read the rest
The right to complain does not turn women into pathetic victims
Jan 27th, 2013 8:11 am | By Ophelia BensonMore from Nussbaum on Christina Hoff Sommers and on “equity” v “gender” feminism more generally. It’s a very packed, dense essay.
From the end, this time. The penultimate paragraph.
… Read the restIn short, the feminist views attacked by recent critics are not the monopoly of a sect of radical extremists. They are commonplace in mainstream liberal, and even some libertarian, thought. These theoretical ideas have a very close relationship to the critique of existing preferences that led to the critique of rape law and to the demand for laws and policies dealing with sexual harassment in the workplace. These changes certainly seem to have enhanced demcracy rather than to have undermined it – for surely it is not better for democracy that
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What they did about it
Jan 26th, 2013 4:48 pm | By Ophelia BensonThe BBC’s Andrew North tells us more about the Delhi rape victim.
… Read the restLike the student’s family, at least two of the accused are from impoverished villages in Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous state, and source for many of the thousands of migrants who come to Delhi every year hoping for a better life
- the same journey her father made nearly 30 years ago.And the other men are from similar migrant backgrounds. Where they differ, though, was in what they did about it.
“We gave our all to our daughter,” her mother told us, still devastated with grief. She says she can barely leave her bed, complaining of frequent headaches and chest pains.
And their support was working:
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Uncovering Shakespeare
Jan 26th, 2013 4:07 pm | By Ophelia BensonThere’s a BBC Four series from last summer, Uncovering Shakespeare; I saw the first two episodes last night, Macbeth first and The Comedies/Shakespeare’s Women second, which is the opposite of the order of broadcast.
I thought the Macbeth wasn’t very good. It was way too heavy on “interesting” but totally irrelevant visuals – lots of New York streets packed with cars, for instance; wut? – and way too light on the words. Not enough discussion of the words, not enough saying of them, not enough clips of actors saying them, pretty much no discussion at all of the way the words do the work. On the other hand there were some clips, and the discussion wasn’t actually boring, so … Read the rest
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Equity v gender
Jan 26th, 2013 1:15 pm | By Ophelia BensonChapter 5 of Martha Nussbaum’s Sex and Social Justice is titled “American Women” and it’s basically about the idea that there is sane normal sensible feminism and then there is crazy extremist radical feminism, with the first being sensibly in favor of equality before the law, which we now have, so that’s that, and the second being about crazy wild stuff like distorted preferences and asymmetrical power. Nussbaum addresses Christina Hoff Sommers as the clearest source of this notion (and as a fellow philosopher), but she says the idea is widespread.
Nussbaum points out that the feminists Sommers sees as “radical” are the very people who brought about the changes that Sommers applauds.
… Read the restIt is not only women in the
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Universal human rights in Nigeria
Jan 26th, 2013 | Filed by Ophelia BensonThe international community and human rights activists are urging Nigeria to reconsider the bill prohibiting same-sex marriage.… Read the rest
Universal human rights in Nigeria
Jan 26th, 2013 11:54 am | By Ophelia BensonA letter to the influential Nigerian newspaper The Guardian defends same-sex marriage and cites Leo Igwe.
The letter points out that religious groups are very opposed to same-sex marriage, while human rights activists support it.
… Read the restSuch opponents include Christian denominations as well as Muslim groups all of which have voiced their rejection of the pressure on Nigeria by some sections of the international community. Among them is the Primate of the Church of Nigeria (Anglican Communion), the Most Rev. Nicholas Okoh who has repeatedly opposed the move, saying same-sex marriage is not biblical and therefore unacceptable.
However, Nigerian Humanist human rights activist, Leo Igwe, who is a supporter of the UK gay Humanist Charity the Pink Triangle Trust, said: “The
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Wafa Sultan at Women in Secularism 2012
Jan 25th, 2013 3:50 pm | By Ophelia BensonYou also get to see Wafa Sultan’s talk…which was one of the most shattering things I ever saw/heard. Be prepared for that. Have a stack of paper towels handy.
But do not miss it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nOK-F79aRBo&feature=share&list=PLFo5kdUdZWj6fGZ3Mu6yvxMzfU6Sz_b-B… Read the rest
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Interruptions, for example
Jan 25th, 2013 12:15 pm | By Ophelia BensonYou are so lucky! You get to see Bernice Sandler’s talk at Women in Secularism 2012, at last.
It’s about the subtle, unnoticed ways women and men are treated differently.
What??? Really? Is that true? There are subtle, unnoticed ways women and men are treated differently?
Who could ever possibly have guessed…
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kyT3uW9Ib9E&feature=share&list=PLFo5kdUdZWj6fGZ3Mu6yvxMzfU6Sz_b-B… Read the rest
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Bernice Sandler’s talk at Women in Secularism 2012
Jan 25th, 2013 | Filed by Ophelia BensonThe subtle unnoticed ways women and men are treated differently.… Read the rest
Antibiotic-resistant diseases pose ‘apocalyptic’ threat
Jan 25th, 2013 | Filed by Ophelia BensonBritain’s most senior medical adviser has warned MPs that the rise in drug-resistant diseases could trigger a national emergency comparable to a catastrophic terrorist attack.… Read the rest
He bruised his knuckles when he punched her
Jan 25th, 2013 11:38 am | By Ophelia BensonIt was all Mary Beard’s fault, as it turns out. No really; it was. The guy who ran that website says so. If he doesn’t know, who does?!
The co-owner and moderator of the website that published abusive comments about Mary Beard has accused the Cambridge academic of using the row to deflect from her own comments about immigration on Question Time.
He said that friends and colleagues of Beard, professor of classics at Cambridge University, had been “trolling” his site, Don’t Start Me Off!, which he closed down this week, by bombarding it with Latin poetry.
Oh my god that is so mean! Latin poetry, when all they wanted to do was hang around peacefully posting comments about … Read the rest
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Observances
Jan 25th, 2013 10:10 am | By Ophelia BensonWhere is this Big Book of God’s Rules where God spells out all these new rules that some people know all about but I’ve never heard of? Like the rule that a girl who works at Burger King has to wear a long skirt instead of trousers? I seriously have no idea where that rule is but apparently it’s such an important and real and binding rule that Burger King has to hire her because of it and it has to let her wear a long skirt instead of trousers on the job. Also if it slips up and fires her instead it has to give her 25 thousand dollars.
… Read the restBurger King has agreed to pay $25,000 to a
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Religious exemption from Burger King uniform
Jan 25th, 2013 | Filed by Ophelia BensonBecause God said Ashanti McShan has to wear a long skirt instead of trousers to work at Burger King.… Read the rest
Website owner accuses Mary Beard
Jan 25th, 2013 | Filed by Ophelia BensonAll that trash talk was her fault for being so wrong and she used the trash talk to deflect attention from her wrongitude.… Read the rest
Women’s hour
Jan 24th, 2013 4:59 pm | By Ophelia BensonMaureen Brian alerted me to Mary Beard’s appearance (there should be a hearing-word version of “appearance” for radio and podcasts – can’t be audience, that’s taken, and I can’t think of what else it could be) on Women’s Hour to talk about verbal abuse online.
She reports that the guys who run the repellent website that zoomed in on her actually took it down. Gee. I wish that happened more often. “Oh – this is vicious and horrible?” Pause for thought. “Why I guess you’re right, it is. That’s the end of that then. Thank you for letting us know.”
She and the presenter Jenni Murray talk about whether misogynist verbal abuse discourages women from speaking up (and writing) in … Read the rest
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A good little girl doesn’t
Jan 24th, 2013 1:21 pm | By Ophelia BensonLaura Bates objects to casual sexism among politicians in the UK.
… Read the restMurdo Fraser, Member of the Scottish Parliament for Mid-Scotland and Fife, discovered last week that the wife of former Liberal leader Lord Steel had declared herself pro-independence. He tweeted: “Why is Lady Steel (apparently) pro-independence? Is he not master in his own house?” Presumably Fraser was joking, but Twitter users were less than impressed, with one remarking: “That line is like something straight out of the 1950s.”
Fraser’s words closely echo those of Austin Mitchell, Labour MP for Great Grimsby, who a few months ago launched a misogynistic online tirade against former Conservative MP Louise Mensch, tweeting: “Shut up Menschkin. A good wife doesn’t disagree with
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“She whined”
Jan 24th, 2013 11:39 am | By Ophelia BensonI hope you enjoyed your break from the misogyny wars yesterday – I held off on commenting on the Ms piece in order to make it a real break – because the wars aren’t over yet.
I’m staggered by something I just read by Rod Liddle at the Spectator. I’ve been staggered by things Rod Liddle said before – way back in January 2010, for instance, and reposted here in October 2011.
… Read the restAnd here I was fuming (or should I say bitching?) about sexist epithets and men who type thousands of words insisting that ‘stupid bitch’ is not sexist. Kind of puts it all in perspective. Except actually I think it’s (broadly speaking) all part of the same
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Mary Beard on Women’s Hour
Jan 24th, 2013 | Filed by Ophelia BensonWomen are always told to shut up about the abuse or they’ll only make it worse. Sorry, mate; not on.… Read the rest
On the relationship between philosophy, science and morality
Jan 23rd, 2013 5:44 pm | By Ophelia BensonMassimo goes a few rounds with the ol’ science can whup philosophy story.
Oh my, I thought I was done for a while chastising skeptics like Sam Harris on the relationship between philosophy, science and morality, and I just found out that my friend Michael Shermer has incurred a similar (though not quite as egregious as Harris’) bit of questionable thinking. As I explained in my review of Harris’ book for Skeptic, one learns
precisely nothing about morality by reading The Moral Landscape. Indeed, one’s time on that topic is much better spent by leafing through Michael Sandel’s On Justice, for example.
I too reviewed Harris’s book, and I too thought it was way too dismissive of … Read the rest
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