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What is it with religion and women?

Posted by Robyn Dunphy on November 9, 2012 in General

When I was young one golden social rule was never discuss religion, politics or sex.  I’ll leave sex alone for today.

EDIT: Nothing is this article is mean to detract from the many wonderful men worldwide who not only accept women as their equals but who fight for women’s rights.  I am looking at the historical reasons why particular demographics persist in trying to subjugate women, specifically in the western world.  Yes, I agree, the Middle East has quite a way to go yet.

If the USA election raised one question in my mind (actually, it raised several but one an article is sufficient) it was the weird relationship religions have with women.  As regular readers know, I am an atheist and to be perfectly honest some of the things I have discovered recently have really shocked me.   How can women accept being treated like second-class citizens by religion?  Maybe I am just particularly uneducated in this respect but so many events of late have highlighted the question I had to look at it.  This isn’t about whether a God, or several Gods, exist or not – this is about women and their role in society which in many ways is driven by their role in the prevailing religion of any given culture.

The lesson from the USA election may well be religions better get over themselves and start treating women like equal members of the human species.  I read somewhere yesterday there must be Republicans wishing they’d never given women the vote and I’m quite sure there are!  Just like many in the south think slaves should never have been freed.

No Vote for Women

Anti-suffrage poster 1915

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What the hell is happening to the “civilised” western world?

Posted by Robyn Dunphy on November 6, 2012 in General

I brought my family here from what is arguably a third world country.  Now I am left trying to explain to them why the western world seems to be crumbling before our very eyes.  I’d like to take a couple of prime news issues from the last couple of days to illustrate.

Let us first look at that great bastion (so they tell us) of democracy, the United States of America.  In case you haven’t noticed, the good ol’ U S of A is having a presedential election.  There is slight problem: seems there are concerted efforts in certain states to prevent people  from voting.  People are queuing for up to 9 hours to be able to vote.  This is sounding awfully like the elections problems in some third world countries, like Nigeria where the voting papers didn’t turn up on time.

Jezebel.com provides a great detailed article describing the skullduggery.

Husted, in short, is a shit. He has moved to restrict voting hours in counties that typically lean Democratic while voting to extend hours in Ohio counties that tend to lean Republican. When the New York Times pointed out that this was roundly fucked up, Husted signed an order limiting early voting in all Ohio locations, a move that Democratic officials say will disenfranchise urban voters.

That is just ONE example!

CNN.com  follows up with America’s voting system is a disgrace.

Americans worry more about voter fraud than do voters in other countries, because they are the only country without a reliable system of national identification.

In no other country, including federal systems such as Germany, Canada and Australia, does the citizen’s opportunity to vote depend on the affluence and competence of his or her local government.

Hey, Australia rates a mention as having a good system – and we damn well do!  Our choices of candidates to vote for seem a little limited, however!

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O for Overseas

Posted by Robyn Dunphy on November 3, 2012 in A to Z of Australia

For those who may be geography challenged, it takes a LONG time to get anywhere from Australia, other than to New Zealand!  Yet most Australians travel, unlike some other countries.  Look at the map – we are a long way from most other countries!

The World

World Map from geology.com

In the 12 months to June 2010, 6.8 million overseas trips were made by Australians, up from 2.1 million two decades earlier. In per capita terms, this was the equivalent to 31 trips overseas for every 100 Australian residents in 2009-10, up from 12 trips per 100 residents in 1989-90.

http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/Lookup/4102.0Main+Features20Sep+2010

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Nicolle Flint loses her points by being political

Posted by Robyn Dunphy on November 2, 2012 in General

Yesterday I noticed a bit of bother on Twitter over an opinion article by Nicolle Flint in The Age titled Handbag Hit Squad hypocrisy damages merit-based success.  Intrigued, I read the article.  In my view, Nicolle had some valid points however she destroyed her argument by wrapping it up in a political rally cry for Tony Abbott.

Her first shot is at the “Handbag Hit Squad”, calling their campaign against Tony Abbott “hypocritical and unsubstantiated by fact“.  Clearly Nicolle hasn’t checked Tony Abbott’s history.  She could start with the facts Julia Gillard presented in her now world famous speech.  I don’t buy the fact Tony employs a female chief of staff and does charitable work for women in need as evidence of him not being sexist.  A chief of staff is essentially what used to be called “Office Manager” in the old days and was traditionally seen as a good, safe job for a woman.  Doing charitable work for women means what?  Tony is a sexist, not a misogynist!  He would see this as “protecting the little women”, good old patriarchal stuff!

As for hypocritical: I disagree.  There was considerable debate among women at the time as to whether Slipper’s texts were sexIST or just sexUAL.  The majority seemed to run with the latter.  Slipper might be a lot of things, but taken in context were his texts sexist? I would argue no.  So no hypocrisy, just protecting the principle of due process.  Did Julia Gillard take advantage of an opportune political moment?  No doubt and good on her for doing so!

Where I DO agree with Nicolle is on the issue of women not promoting themselves.  This ties in with the article I wrote recently about women not negotiating their salaries and subsequently earning a lower salary than male counterparts.  Nicolle would be far better educating young women on ways to promote themselves rather than wrapping her argument up in a political rally cry for the man who could conceivably win the title of “Most Sexist Australian in Public Life”, although I think Max Tomlinson gives even Tony a run for his money!

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We are the world

Posted by Robyn Dunphy on October 14, 2012 in General

I’ve just stolen a song title, I know.  Yet it is true.  We ARE the world.

Earlier in the week, Mr O was very upset at something that had happened “back home”.  During the same week, I noticed a shocking news story about pack rapes in France.  Then there was the 14 year-old shot in Pakistan.  The disaster that is Syria continues, seemingly unabated.

We are the world.

There are certain things we should raise our voices about. Things we should say loudly, clearly.  We are the world.  It is not just about solving poverty, it is about caring for our fellow man, about raising global awareness of atrocities and calling for change.  We should be SHAMING the countries into action.  Yes, I know,  “shame” is a hot word in Australia lately: let’s use it constructively for a change.

While both Syria and the case of Malala Yousufzai are receiving wide-spread media coverage, the other issues mentioned above less so.

In a case that has shocked France and cast a light on a culture of youth sexual violence, two women now in their 20s said that as teenagers they had endured months of almost daily rapes by scores of men in Fontenay-sous-Bois, outside Paris. The case is seen as the tip of the iceberg of the wider problem of gang rapes by youths on poor housing estates.

After a four-week trial, four of the accused were found guilty of taking part in gang rapes, but 10 were acquitted. Those found guilty were handed sentences that ranged from a suspended sentence of three years to one year in prison. Only one man returned to prison after the verdict because of time already served on remand.

http://www.optuszoo.com.au/news/world/the-age/french-gang-rape-trial-a-shipwreck-for-victims/809329

There really has been little outrage, or little that I have noticed.  Even so, there are many more articles (see related, below) on this than the Nigerian case I am leading up to.  France, of course, is considered a first world country. We don’t like to stick our noses into the business of other first world countries, do we?  This is FRANCE for goodness sake, a civilised nation.  Or is it?  In some respects, this ties into my previous article on sexism.  When women aren’t considered equal, it is OK to rape them.  There is coverage, just little condemnation. We should be making damn sure France is aware this isn’t acceptable! Where is the international pressure?

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Sexism, misogyny, gender equality: what does it all mean?

Posted by Robyn Dunphy on October 14, 2012 in General

The media, both social and mainstream, has been arguing over the topic of gender equality for a while. Since Prime Minister Julia Gillard raked Leader of the Opposition Tony Abbott over the coals for sexism and misogyny last week, the debate had become incessant.  The video is at the end of this article for those who may not yet have seen it, although I can’t imagine who hasn’t by this stage!

Let’s look at this rationally.   I am a woman and I grew up when front line battles were still being fought.  Front line battles ARE still being fought, don’t think otherwise.

It is my personal view that society tends to confuse sameness and equality.  Society also confuses misogyny and sexism.

The first aspect to establish is what exactly are we talking about? What is misogyny? What is sexism? What is equality?

Misogyny: according to my Chambers dictionary there is one very simple definition, a woman-hater.

Sexism: a slightly longer definition here. Discrimination against, stereotyping of, patronising or otherwise offensive behaviour towards anyone (orig. women) on the grounds of sex.

Equality: for the purposes of discussing gender equality, the applicable definition is probably “of the same value” , equitable.

Hate: Extreme dislike, dislike intensely, hatred. Hatred: Malignity, enmity.

On the basis of the above definitions, is misogyny the right word to be using in relation to those men who would prefer to see women subjugated or subservient?  I don’t think so.  Clearly, most of these men have mothers they love, wives, daughters and sisters.  These men do not hate women.  Most of them sleep with one every night.  They hug their daughters.  They ring their mothers on Mothers’ Day.

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Why don’t women negotiate their salaries? Not #destroyingthejoint properly!

Posted by Robyn Dunphy on October 8, 2012 in General, Mrs O, Our New Life

Many Australian women will recognise the Twitter hash tags #destroyingthejoint and #destroythejoint.  These arose after a certain Sydney radio announcer decided to let loose a vitriolic barrage against women in senior positions, claiming they were “destroying the joint”.  While I am sure Alan Jones probably would fit in well with the men found in articles I have previously written:

many Australian women (including, of course, yours truly) took exception to his tone.  It must be said that many men also took exception! A DestroyTheJoint Facebook page and a website have been established  by one particularly defiant female. A Twitter account is doing nicely!

Destroy The Joint

Destroy the Joint

The hash tags are in everyday use – if you are a Tweeple, search for yourself and see!

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The use of language in society

Posted by Robyn Dunphy on October 1, 2012 in General

Several issues have arisen lately in Australia that have convinced me more than ever standards of communication are dropping.  I have previously described my dissatisfaction with Australia’s politicians: they use personal attacks that have no place in society against their opponents.

We then had four specific incidents in a month here.

  • The protest in Sydney and elsewhere against a film made somewhere slagging a man held in the highest esteem by millions
  • Cory Bernardis saying rather nasty things in parlimentary debate – I say nothing further about this as I don’t want to appear in certain search types
  • Victoria Police and others pleading with people to be careful what they said on social media so not to prejudice the case against the accused after the murder of Jill Meagher
  • The uproar over Alan Jones’ slagging the Prime Minister of Australia: read Chrys Stevenson’s “Why I’m Defending the Prime Minister against Alan Jones” for further discussion

All four are very different situations, yet all have a common thread: what are we teaching our children about the use of language?

This morning I recalled an old saying, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can never hurt me“.  I also recalled another, “The pen is mightier than the sword“.  They seem a little contradictory, don’t they?  I know they are not meant to be used together, but think about it.  The former is defensive: “whatever you say will be like water off a duck’s back” if you like.  The latter is implying words can cut deeper than a sword.  While I know the latter is meant as a call for peace not war, it is also telling when juxtaposed against the former.

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SBS: Go Back Where You Came From

Posted by Robyn Dunphy on August 30, 2012 in General

Tonight I snapped a selection of Tweets during the screening of Go Back Where You Came From, the second series on SBS. A trailer follows. Both speak for themselves. WATCH IT!

Go Back Where You Came From

Tweets

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N for NBN – National Broadband Network

Posted by Robyn Dunphy on August 16, 2012 in A to Z of Australia

Americans visiting Australia often complain, somewhat imperiously, about the speed of internet connections here.  Whenever I’ve been to the USA, I’ve found the internet connections over there slow, so I’m not at all sure who is slower!  I never actually measured.

Sydney sunset from the Balmain wharf. Sydney A...

Sydney sunset from the Balmain wharf. Sydney Australia (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Intercontinental competitiveness aside, Australia’s government is rolling out the National Broadband Network, affectionately known as the NBN.

The National Broadband Network is a next-generation broadband network designed for Australia’s future needs. The network comprises of three technologies – optic fibre, fixed wireless and next-generation satellite – and will provide more reliable, high-speed broadband access to all Australians.

http://www.nbn.gov.au/about-the-nbn/what-is-the-nbn/ (Jan 2015: Link now obsolete)

There has been a lot of political fire over the NBN.  The opposition don’t want it, the government do.  What do the people actually want?  Voice your opinion in the comments!

Why would the ordinary citizen like the NBN?

Allen Consulting estimates that if the number of Australian households connected to the internet increased by 10 percentage points, this would provide gains to households of $2.4 billion a year in current prices in terms of the change in the value of consumption that they are expected to obtain. These gains are achieved through time-saving activities such as telecommuting, remote work and study opportunities, information gathering, price/product discovery and access to health services.

http://www.nbn.gov.au/nbn-benefits/for-households/ (Jan 2015: Link now obsolete)

That is such a convoluted statement I’m not at all sure what it means to me in real, every day, terms.  Anyone care to translate?  Hazard a guess?

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