Scorching notes at LAF - Part III

Ladies Against Feminism pretends to have a semblance of democracy by publishing the negative feedback they have received under one category called scorching rhetoric. If you read through these notes you will find that most of the arguments presented are quite valid. LAF of course doesn't believe in publishing the critic's name or location in case the letter turned out to be from Rev Billy Graham himself or some other well-known Christian! How embarrassing!

Even Christians seem to find it hard to reconcile themselves with the vituperic nonsense these women pour out.

Some of the Christian criticis of LAF say:

I am a young Christian woman, and I do NOT agree with everything you have posted on your site. What is so wrong with wanting something different from being a mother? I personally do not want children. Perhaps that will change one day, but not in the foreseeable future. I enjoy spending time with young men, albeit in platonic relationships, and don't mind their occasional loud behavior. I enjoy sports. I have taken lessons in one sport, and watch another on a regular basis. There are a number of others that I would love to try my hand at. The comments you have posted on your website that pretty well says that women should be kept in the kitchen, barefoot and pregnant, are disgusting to me. How dare you suggest that I can't get a job outside of my home? While we're at it, how dare you suggest a lot of the things you suggest... I am a strong, confident, intelligent young woman, and I will not stand for you bashing people like me. While I respect your decision to stay at home to be a mother, that is not for me. Is it so hard for you to accept that a woman can go out, have a job and have good, clean fun and still be a good Christian lady? Or are you just THAT narrow-minded? A little advice from a true lady: I think YOU ladies need a reality check, and soon. ~ Jean

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As women having equal rights, you are certainly allowed to have your opinion and broadcast that opinion however you choose. I also noticed you made a point of mentioning how the Bible encourages women to teach wisdom and kindness. That is fine. However, I hope you are aware that although the Bible may encourage this, women were denied the right to even so much as do that for centuries. If it weren't for the fight for equality by people such as Susan B. Anthony or Alice Paul, you would not have the freedom and luxury of being able to "teach wisdom." I am not for hardcore feminism but there's nothing wrong with women being able to accomplish the same goals as men and live their lives however they see fit. Not every woman wants to stand barefoot and pregnant in the kitchen, cooking dinner for her master (husband?) while chasing around 7 other brats (children?). As a married young woman, I choose to raise my children equally with my husband. I am allowed to pursue an education and he supports me so that I may prepare myself for any career I choose. He works full time yet we share in household chores and the raising of our children. If I feel like cooking him and the kids dinner, I do. If I don't then he will cook or the kids may just have some cereal. That's how life should be if someone wants it to be that way! ~ Ang

Scorching notes at LAF - Part II

Ladies Against Feminism pretends to have a semblance of democracy by publishing the negative feedback they have received under one category called scorching rhetoric. If you read through these notes you will find that most of the arguments presented are quite valid.LAF of course doesn't believe in publishing the critic's name or location in case the letter turned out to be from Rev Billy Graham himself or some other well-known Christian! How embarrassing!

This person's comments made a lot of sense:

While at first I thought the website a "gag" site...after reading through it, I was actually in shock... While I know there are ladies out there who are not on the feminism bandwagon, this was just one the the strangest things I've ever seen. 

You should thank the "feminists" who went before you, for without them, you'd not even have the voice to put up this website. Feminisim is not just for a few, it's for all of us. 

Do you ladies vote at all??? 

Makes me wonder, for without them you'd still be under the heavy hand of the hubby. 

I'm glad, no EXUBERANT for the trials & tribulations of the women who worked hard, spoke up & made a difference for not only me, but my fellow women. 

While I agree with some of what you have on your site, I think some is a bit BACKWARD. Granted, this is just an opinion....but I for one wouldn't want to go back to the Victorian era where women were hardly seen, if not never heard. 

Quiet women never make history, and well behaved gals dont make the history books. You should take a class in Women's Studies... might learn that for without the fallen females of yesteryear, you'd not have the luxuries you like so much now. Or maybe you want to be submissive, demure and quiet, that is your choice. Thank the GODS I dont have to live like that.

~A Misbehaved & LOUD chick who can't WAIT to make the history books. ~ Irish

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Your site is degrading to women everywhere. I know that you can't force your opinions on others just for having a website, but your site really does make me sick to my stomach. 

Now, I'm not writing this comment to rant about your site without giving it a good read first. After reading several articles on your site, I have come to the conclusion that your site, is, at the very least, anti-feminist. 

How can you feel good about yourself while slaving over a hot oven all day, cleaning up what is most likely the mess that your adoring husband has left behind for you, not being caught dead in a pair of pants, and now... you won't get a job because you shouldn't compete with men in thier "god-given roles"? 

Are men (and the Bible) controling your life? 

Have you ever thought for yourself? (and when I say "think for yourself" I don't mean "what kind of dinner should I cook for my husband?" or "what color dress will match with my apron?" Those don't count) 

Is it so hard for men to get on thier knees and scrub the floors? 

for them to cook dinner for you? 

for them to clean up after themselves? 

I mean, since they are "so strong" are they too strong to do thier own laundry? 

Think about it. 

I'm not asking you to change, I can't make you change, and I could care less if you do change, it's your own choice, but I can say how I feel about this website and about everyone and anyone who supports it, and that is to accept that feminism is here to stay, like it or not, and that you are a part of it everyday, and don't respond to me with that "we have myths about feminism in our FAQs" because I have read all of them; you have definitely proven how uneducated you are, but then again, if it weren't for people like you, feminism would not exist and I would not have anything to stand up for or protest, so enjoy being a stay-at-home slave.

Love, Bambi

Submission as a revolutionary calling?

I Blame the Patriarchy tells us what is wrong with women thinking submission is the pathway to heaven.

She says:

"It’s called, as reported by AlterNet, The Patriarchy Movement. Like all patriarchy movements, it mixes godbaggery and misogyny, and apparently blames feminism for the “wimpy theology” that has turned modern god-fearin’ women into basket cases “whose hearts are broken over the gender confusion and the spiritual and emotional and relational carnage of our day.” Fans of submission in the weaker sex are calling for a return to “biblical womanhood,” which I guess means spending the day washing their husbands flowing robes on rocks. AlterNet warns us not to laugh too hard at the so-called True Women, because their numbers (6000 Christian submissives convened in Chicago last year to discuss how great things were for women in the 1950s) are too big to ignore, but Jesus in a jetpack!"

Read the full post at I Blame the Patriarchy blog.

Matt Chancey, epitome of Manliness? Ugh!

Feministing.com has an interesting, thought-provoking article on Matt Chancey being crowned the epitome of manliness by Old Spice-sponsored contest.

Feministing.com says:

Matthew Chancey won $2,000 and some Old Spice products. Is that a big deal? Not really. But the fact that this person was approved as a finalist by Old Spice and voted winner by nearly 10,000 people as an icon of manliness to follow, is what is disturbing here. If this isn't a sign we need to seriously reevaluate notions of masculinity in this country, I don't know what is. 

Chancey was chosen with nine other finalists that the contest claims "epitomize the manliness that used to exist before the arrival of metrosexual pretty boys." But apparently this "manliness that used to exist" regresses all the way back to when women didn't have the vote. A member of the Christian Reconstructionist movement, a homophobic, anti-choice, anti-contraception group. 

Do read the full article at the blog - Feministing.com

Ladies Against Feminism?

Feme Fatal: A Feminist Blog has a great article on Ladies Against Feminism.

The article reads:

The dictionary defines Feminism as 1) Belief in the social, political, and economic equality of the sexes & 2) The movement organized around this belief.

When I saw the banner for this site I was, quite rightly appalled and not really surprised when I found out it was a site full of Christian women. However when I read the section marked ‘start here‘, or at least as much as I could without falling asleep (there was quite a lot of it), I began to wonder… Why the hell do they call themselves ‘Ladies Against Feminism’? By some of the stuff Chancey put you would not say they were against feminism, more like the opposite.

LAF says: Godly husbands do not treat their wives like children, browbeat them, or abuse them in any way. We’ve heard about websites whose authors claim it is a good thing to keep women in line by treating them as lesser beings. Scripture is clear: as you do to others, you are asking it to be done to you. Real men treat women like queens and co-heirs–not as chattel or children. LAF has nothing to do with anyone who promotes belittling or abusing women in any way. End of story.

So you’re against feminism yet you believe this? They are basically saying they are against domestic violence, good for them, so are all the feminists of the world.

Women in the work force are not the objects of our debate on this site. We are not here to sit in judgment over individual circumstances. All women are welcome here. We know that not everyone working a job outside the home is a feminist. And those who do embrace feminism are still individuals and not a vast faceless entity."

Read the full article at Feme Fatale: A Feminist blog