Apples and... Round Red Fruits That Grow On Trees?

[botias]

Remember I was talking about how Joss Whedon is no stranger to eroticizing torture, for all that he gets his panties in a bunch if the torturee is a woman. Because he's a feminist and thinks women should be equal to men in all things. :|

Here's someone who looked at Whedon's record more closely: Torture in the 'Verse (from the su_herald)

And the FLDS thing got me thinking too. Within the last couple of years I've read at least two National Geographic Articles describing the marriage practices of African tribespeople that pretty much are equivalent to the practices of the FLDS. Pre-pubescent girls are available sexually to the young warriors-in-training until the girls start to menstruate. Then they are married off by their fathers to older men they don't know. The articles were presented without condemnation of any kind. It's just a different culture, right? Imagine the outcry if they had done an article on a FLDS "tribe". So, why the difference in perception? Is it a race thang?

Comments

[botias.livejournal.com]

Happily I think the internet is changing this for the better. :) Though I wish I could say more women actually wanted to shout their torture porn from the billboards.

And the other thing you seem to be saying is that feminism somehow is sexist because it accepts that women need protection.

So modern feminism has embraced this, that women cannot be expected to protect themselves from men? That they absolutely must rely on nice men to protect them from mean ones? That women are equal, except kinda not? I just... don't know if it works that way, though people have always wanted to have their cake and eat it too.

[bendy1.livejournal.com]

I don't think it is. A small amount of the planet is online, and we are overwhelmingly rich, white and out-of-synch.

It's great that women are writing porn. But men are making films, and selling us shampoo. And Joss Whedon has more pull on the subject of feminism than Dua Khalil Aswad ever could have dreamed.

That they absolutely must rely on nice men to protect them from mean ones?

Nah. That we must have a say in the law, in the media, in everything, so as to protect *ourselves*.

[botias.livejournal.com]

A small amount of the planet is online, and we are overwhelmingly rich, white and out-of-synch.

Well, yes, but isn't concern about the portrayal of women in mass media also somewhat confined to that rarefied zone?

[bendy1.livejournal.com]

No, the mass media is pretty much everywhere you look. I include adverts in that and even very very poor countries have some media widely available.

Restricting it even to the UK so as to make it not about global issues, 42% have some sort of internet access at home while over 50% have accessed the internet 'at some point' (figures are old but we reached a plateau of access some time ago)

100% of us have access to advertising and slightly less to television.

The internet has not turned out to be the revolutionary social tool it has become for some of us and was expected to become for all of us eventually.

TV on the other hand is still a massive influence despite all other technology that should have overtaken it by now.

[botias.livejournal.com]

I guess what I am saying is that if I were a female refugee in the Sudan, who probably runs one of the most severe risks of violence anywhere, I would probably not be thinking that CSI was part of the cause of my woes.

[bendy1.livejournal.com]

No that's true.

But on a global scale, the US and Europe's society does affect the Sudan. We improve our rights, we improve human rights, we improve womens rights, we improve the nice Sudanese lady's rights.

<-- it doesn't work like that in reality yet, white feminists are very bad at being anti-racist.

[botias.livejournal.com]

One can only hope. I can think of some problems with the picture aside from apathy. First we have to have power. If the US and Europe have backed away from the Sudan, I understand that other countries are not as squeamish and are beginning to be equally resource hungry.

[bendy1.livejournal.com]

*mphglurble*

International resources I will leave for another day :D If this hasn't frightened you off ever LJing on the subject again :D

[botias.livejournal.com]

*snerk* It's been edumacational and I've enjoyed very much. :D Now back to our regularly scheduled programming of rhapsodizing about spectacularly violent fantasy men.

[bendy1.livejournal.com]

and hopefully cartoon porn. *runs away to find my lexy being all hurt*

[botias.livejournal.com]

*puts finishing touches on cartoon porn sword fight*

[botias.livejournal.com]

You know what I mean? It's a luxury to worry about this sort of thing, that maybe my culture isn't quite as nice as it could be. To think of TV as a potential tool to defend myself instead of needing an army.

[bendy1.livejournal.com]

Yes it is a privilege. You're absolutely right. But the people will not rise up, they will not overcome. Only rich people can afford to think about philosophy.

That's why it's our duty to do so. So many women *do not have the option*.

But because of our relative position in the world, we can't afford to relax and say.. yeah okay. Not perfect but it'll do.

[botias.livejournal.com]

Nah. That we must have a say in the law, in the media, in everything, so as to protect *ourselves*.

I can sign on for that.

[bendy1.livejournal.com]

Yay :D

We don't ask big manly men for protection. Joss can kiss my bum.

[bendy1.livejournal.com]

HEY LOOK I can use my Joss icon!

\o/

[botias.livejournal.com]

Hee!!