My question is this:
What do you think of where the issue of womans rights sits today? Have we "balanced the scales"? Are we going to far in our quest to equlize the sexes?

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Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair,
gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your
inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet
spirit which is of great worth in God's sight

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Music is Math.

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Just consider the fact that the women have been having their roles changed, but what about the men?  They are still bound to the same roles that they have had forced upon them for centuries.

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Not necessarily true.  The roles of men are also gradually changing--it is more acceptable for them to carry out what once was considered 'feminine chores.'

- Men staying home to take care of the kids, the wife working, etc.

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Roses are red, violets are blue, I'm a schizophrenic...
...And so am I

For example some men feel the need to show their vulnerable side or abate their aggressive behaviour in order to appear more attractive to some women. Conversely, some women feel pressured to act in a more aggressive manner at work and in the corporate world. This makes for some interesting hybrids, and this would not be too much of a problem, if the individuals in question still remained happy and content with their new roles. Indeed some men and women have found this ability to cross over sexes more liberating. Unfortunately, if this activity is only one more way to force oneself to be what one is not, then there can definitely be some issues.  

To answer your question, I think we certainly sit today at the threshold of a state where women and men should feel free to be who they truly are regardless of the external pressures imposed upon them, be they in order to obtain more power and respect, or in order to be better loved and understood.  

We should ideally no longer think in term of fixed gender roles but psychological and emotional roles where one can be as forceful or vulnerable as one wishes to be.  

As for the question of "balancing of scales" I think it depends on one's cultural and geographical status, more than anything else, at this point in time. Obviously, a woman raised in a religious or cultural environment where she must yield her desires and her needs to that of a man through external constraints (and not through the impulses of her own heart), will not have the same opportunities to expand her horizons and live as fully as a woman who is encouraged from the outset to "be all she can be".

Edit: A proper intellectual post must always be edited for errors insofar as the abilities of the poster can permit.  

(Edited by Laurence at 12:04 am on Oct. 14, 2005)

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Nothing in all the world is more dangerous than sincere ignorance and conscientious stupidity.   - Martin Luther King, Jr.
Support your peers!

The man has to get the money to pay for dates to take the woman on.  The man has to get the money to buy the woman a nice house to live in, while she takes care of the children.  The man has to mow the yard and fix everything around the house...

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¡Vive la República de Tejas! ¡Libertad de los Estados Unidos de América! ¡Recuerden el Liberty y lo que los zionistas le hicieron!

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It just bothers me that everyone focuses on the female gender roles.  What about men who are constricted by their gender roles?

The man has to get the money to pay for dates to take the woman on.  The man has to get the money to buy the woman a nice house to live in, while she takes care of the children.  The man has to mow the yard and fix everything around the house...

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There is more historical basis for focus on the female gender.
It seems to me that the "gender roles" seem to be becoming less and less important/influencial. Yes, there still is that glass ceiling for females but it is getting better.

Also on those examples...
My last GF paid for 50% or over of the money for dates. My mom makes a hell of a lot more than my dad does. While my dad does do the "mowing" or equivalent chores he also does the ones that fall into the female chores.

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Thanks for helping me procrastinate.
I'm sure there is something I should be doing.

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Quote: from abspwnsyou at 1:01 am on Oct. 14, 2005

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Just consider the fact that the women have been having their roles changed, but what about the men?  They are still bound to the same roles that they have had forced upon them for centuries.

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Not necessarily true.  The roles of men are also gradually changing--it is more acceptable for them to carry out what once was considered 'feminine chores.'

- Men staying home to take care of the kids, the wife working, etc.

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But the changing role of men isn't a biproduct of men crusading for change or imposing change on themselves, but rather only a reaction to the changing roles of women.  We aren't changing our gender role, just adapting it to the suddenly rinovated female role.

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Machine Girl says, "Maybe I should have a crush on you."

My focus was on womens rights beacause oddly enough, I am a woman.

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To answer your question, I think we certainly sit today at the threshold of a state where women and men should feel free to be who they truly are regardless of the external pressures imposed upon them, be they in order to obtain more power and respect, or in order to be better loved and understood.

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Crossing over into that state, rather than staring wistfully from the door, is a hard thing to manage however.


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Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair,
gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your
inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet
spirit which is of great worth in God's sight

Other than that, from my experience the gender roles have evened out.


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I don't reply to messages. Usually.

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An area which sticks out like a purple thumb is how men can be promiscuous without social consequence, while women can't.  

Other than that, from my experience the gender roles have evened out.

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I think even that however is changing. Maybe not rapidly, but definately progressing.

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Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair,
gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your
inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet
spirit which is of great worth in God's sight

---

An area which sticks out like a purple thumb is how men can be promiscuous without social consequence, while women can't.  

Other than that, from my experience the gender roles have evened out.

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Yes poor women, more opressed now than ever before!

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Machine Girl says, "Maybe I should have a crush on you."

Just sad that most discussions end up talking about the female sluts, but the male ones are equally as disgusting.

Then again, what about the gender role that makes all males into sluts?  I can't think of how many girls I've talked to whose first reactions were let's have sex or something similar.

Just because I have a penis doesn't mean that I'm going to use it on you...

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¡Vive la República de Tejas! ¡Libertad de los Estados Unidos de América! ¡Recuerden el Liberty y lo que los zionistas le hicieron!