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Is equality something men and women really want?
Results so far:
| Yes | 57% | 606 votes | Total: 1059 votes | |
| No | 43% | 453 votes |
Yes
by Michael T. Heath
Created on: June 05, 2010
Able To Discern
The status of gender relations in our world today has never been better - for women. Untold atrocities are still being perpetrated upon females worldwide including genital mutilation, sexual assaults and murder. The reason I say things have never been better is that at least we're aware of much more than we used to be and in many developed countries women have achieved legal parity with their male counterparts. Here in the United States, for instance, we can expect to see another female Supreme Court justice this time around and the likelihood of a female head of state in our lifetime. Countries as diverse as Germany and Israel have sported women leaders. There is little doubt in educated circles that women have all the qualifications - and toughness of character - to be placed in such vaunted seats of power.
But I digress. The essential question was whether men and women want equality. If we merely go by passage of legislation ensuring just such treatment under law, we would have to conclude that men, at least, are willing to accede to women their rightful place alongside policy makers, bank presidents and judges of the male persuasion. The thoughts of women themselves I will have to divine from my childhood growing up with six sisters, two marriages plus two daughters. None of these women ever deferred to me or any man on any matter of importance (Ok, we can open jars you can't. Big deal). My mother treated her eight children equally, so we all learned to treat both men and women fair and square when we grew into adults. Having differences is not the same as inferiority: I acknowledge that certain people - male or female - have skills which others don't. My sisters kill me at tennis, and I can build a chair from scratch. Barak Obama can run a nation and Hillary Clinton can ... well, I believe she could do the same, actually. Just because I don't happen to love Sarah Palin doesn't diminish the fact that she was governor of the largest state in the union. Sure, most of it is tundra and black flies and she didn't complete her term in office, but she did prove her equality with the manly men of Alaska when she whacked them wolves from an airplane. Wow!
But I digress. The evidence is all around that women and men can perform much the same duties, many of which were exclusively gender-defined roles in the gloomy past. We aren't ignorant of the facts anymore. They've been put before us, lived among us and tapped us on the forehead all through our lives. It's not truth's fault if we simply choose to ignore the facts. We need to accept and move forward. And of course wipe out all unfair treatment of women and girls and babies that is still perpetrated on them worldwide under the mantle of religion, of prejudice, or plain meanness. That has got to stop immediately.
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No
by Candy Jules
Created on: August 30, 2007 Last Updated: August 06, 2008
Women want to be recognized, as individuals. Not to walk behind a man, or be passed over on the job because of gender. It's not fair. I really don't think that women want to be equal with men. They just want respect, and recognition for being something besides a house wife, or the under dog on the job.
Women's lib caused a lot of problems with the sexes for a time. A lot of women wanted to prove that they could do everything a man could do, and some felt like they could do it better. The fact of the matter is this; There are some things that women can do better, and there are some things that man can do better. Everybody wants a challenge.
Women have always been brought up to believe than man was put on earth to rule and reign. I felt this way for a lot of years, and to be honest, I resented it. The way the men in my life treated me, there was no way they were going to have rule over me. I got over that, and I'll tell you why.
I listened to a Billy Graham crusade one night, and I wish I had taped it. He was talking about God creating Eve from the rib of Adam, so that she would be a part of him. They were joined as one, like in your marriage vows, to be partners. They were to love one another as one. Woman was to stand by man's side, not to follow. She was to submit to him and he was to love her back in the same way. They were to be man and woman, not boss and slave.
They say that the man is the head of the house, I thought that when two people got married, they became as one. I always thought it should be a partnership, rather than man pulling woman around by the hair. Man was always the bread winner because woman had to care for the household and give birth to the children. Then she cared for them. They each had their duties as man and woman. It was understood.
Woman eventually had to go to work to help out with the finances and that's when the trouble started. I do feel that a woman has the right to draw the same wage if she is doing the same job as a man. Women should work in their appropriate jobs, instead of trying to compete with man to prove something. Man on the other hand, shouldn't put woman down because she's female. The weaker sex.
Since it has become a both sexes world of employment, both sexes should just do their jobs to the best of their abilities, and get on with life. Equality isn't anywhere near as important as survival. It's a tough world we live in and we have to work together to make it work.
Men and women should respect each other, not make everything a competition. That's what creates the gender wars any way. Fighting a war overseas is bad enough, we don't have to be at war with each other. Trying to prove something is never the answer. It will always be a futile battle because no one wants to loose. And there's no way to win.
I understand, that in some countries, the dog's have more respect than women. To me that is sad, even if the women accept it that way. A lot of cultures see women as property to the man. Something that they own. That's been their way of life all of their life, so it's appropriate for man to rule woman.
God said that women were under submission to their husbands, but we're not their subjects. we're not slaves to their every whim, we should all do for each other out of love, and because we want to, not because we have to. Let's face facts, we women can't do without them, anymore than they can do without us.
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