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From: lute@abnjh.UUCP (J. Collymore)
Newsgroups: net.singles
Subject: Re: Has this happened to *you* lately?
Message-ID: <874@abnjh.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 1-Oct-84 17:00:43 EDT
Article-I.D.: abnjh.874
Posted: Mon Oct  1 17:00:43 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 5-Oct-84 06:02:33 EDT
References: <1274@pucc-h>
Organization: ATTIS, NJ
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In response to Laurie Sefton's original article I can only say this:  What
you are experiencing is the inevitable backlash of the 1970's feminist
movement.

No, it is not fun to be on the receiving end of that type of behavior, but it
is to be expected.  Outside of the issues of equal pay for equal work, the
1970's feminist movement also cut deep into many of our long-held beliefs
about social-emotional responses (and responsibilities) to the opposite sex.
It asked/told/dictated that we see the other sex's side of life, take from
and learn from those insights.  This is all well and good, but the unspoken
dream was that we would only look at ONLY the good in each other's gender and
be blind to the bad.  This type of dream is nice, but is not the reality of
human nature!

When you ask someone to take an idea, and bring it to fruition, you must
realize that this idea is like a coin; a single item with two distinct sides!
This is what has happened in the aftermath of the 70's; you are experiencing
only one facet of it (an unpleasent one, unfortunately).  If you have said
to men:  "Take from our experiences as women, feel free to express yourselves
in ways you thought only we women could; and we women will do the same in
turn."  Then you must be willing to accept that some of the behavior that men
see/have seen in women have not all been positive/productive examples.

Just as you have seen an increasing number of men who seem to be uncaring,
cruel teases, so we men have seen an increasing number of rude and boorish
women pop-up in everyday life.

This could be, as I said, just an example of the 70's backlash or aftermath.
It could also be that these people were always out there.  Personally, I
think what really may be at the crux of Laurie's article is that it's
embarassing to see the opposite sex mimicking the least likable qualities
of one's own sex.  Well, that's life.

"Oh, would the power, that God give us, to see ourselves as others see us!"
			-- Robert Burns, 18th century Scottish poet



					Jim Collymore