I was reading this post, and sadly, remembered that it is now my duty to remind everyone that they don't need my approval. Despite my clever blog posts, my amazing taste in entertainment, and my sloth like energy levels, sadly, sadly, you don't have to obey my bloggish edicts. I cry crystal tears as I remember that even though I say that giving your 7 year old My Makeup instead of Mario, Zelda or Nintendogs, is totally cruel- fostering Pink Think as well as depriving her of the fun of games that are awesome, you sadly, don't have to obey me.

Even when I tell you that your 7 year old doesn't need lipstick! you don't have to cry, as instead of the grand poobah of feminism, instead I'm more of a random person off the street. DARN REALITY! YOU RUIN MY LIFE!

But seriously, this sort of reminds me of 'reverse racism'. Any sort of pushback against the system is seen as way worse than the actual issue. We can't really critique the system as we're busy going "Oh, I'm not SCARY! Tehehee!" and for some reason, not being a 'scary' feminist means going along with the prevailing appearance standards, which sort of weirds me out. Of all the ass kicking shit we're going to do, what scares folks the most? Not being decorative objects. Well, rock on, then!

Here's a long considered post about why Lifestyle Activism is stupid. I'm going to riff off of it, as I usually do. Personally, I think that declaring that the stuff we are already doing is 'activism' or 'feminism'[a HUGE pet peeve of mine, as you can tell.] is just spinning our wheels. We can pretty much retcon any thing we already do into being activism. I like playing video games and reading shoujo manga. I COULD say that me playing Persona 4 is lifestyle activism because there's storylines about gender roles, and anyway, GIRL GAMER!!!!! but come on, I'm not fooling ANYONE.

I think this sort of navel gazing is pretty comfortable for those in power. I mean, me going on about how freecycle is so much fun, brings together the community, and helps clean house is NOT going to break down the capitalist system that has people hoping someone will take pity on them and give them some food.

And yea, western style liberal feminism did start with consciousness raising, but I get the feeling it wasn't about how much they loved mopping the floor, and how great those new dresses at Marshall Fields are. If they were, I'm sure it would have been a whole lot less threatening to the status quo. Sadly, the backlash is so pronounced that feminism nowadays is reduced to the modern day equivalent of saying we love to mop the floor.

It's so hard being a woman who shaves her legs and likes men! I shave my legs and like men is the old black people were sabotaging me.

Should teenagers reunite with their highly dysfunctional families? I feel a tinge of something here, but I can't tell what it is.

You should donate to a strike fund for guest workers, because that would be the right thing to do.

From the internet, we learn that feminism has nothing to do with rights for women, but about tehehehehe, chooooices.

In feminist, some idiot says all women want to be sexually submissive and pop out babies. We have some minor post feminism here. *shockingly can enjoy sex without being beaten, cussed at, or wearing a costume*. Also, feminism shouldn't be about tip toeing around your sex life. If I only could get turned on by throwing cream pies at feminist marches, I hope everyone wouldn't try to coddle my spehsul sexuality, and tell me to GTFO.

The point of feminist theory should not in fact be to make people feel good about their sex life. That's what self esteem is for. For example, I read some manga, it is sexist. My identity as a manga reader is a bit more important than what I do in bed[not everyone puts sex on a pedistal- some of us have primary identities not as subs, not as doms, but as citizens, workers, friends]. But if someone notes that manga is often sexist, I'm not going to yell, omg! theory!!! because I note that theory is one of the things that keeps feminism together.

We can't base feminism on 'doing whatever we want', because consumerism has that in a lock. We can't base it on how special we are, because we've got the internet for that. Thanks to the internet, we can all hold forth on how we can't get off unless there is a turkey baster, a man dressed up as a clown, and a weasal in our bedrooms, OMG don't judge me! We don't really need a social and political movement for that.


*I also don't cut and cry about the eternal struggle between bead stringers and jewelry makers who do dangerous things with torches.

LULZ, poor poor stay at home moms!

Let's mock!

Don't judge me! Oh, poor me, people think I'm giving in to the patriarchy! I'm still a valid person although I wear high heels!

also, good ol'stella designs has the old feminists don't shave chestnut On this page, we get the good ol' I shave and wear makeup crap. Of course we get you can be a feminist and shave

*shakes head* I wish people would respect people's intelligence more. We have two small samples, but there are more if you all would like

*shannon is irritable and has no sense of humor*. I really don't like sparkleponies not because of their personal habits, but because this whole mode of discourse is a great way to make 99% of women invisible. By toeing the line that says that real women are girly, don't have lives outside makeup and fucking[many women do in fact have hobbies.] , and can't make decisions based on facts or logic, but whether people are meaaan or not, you're NOT tearing down the dominant discourse about women. And I'm sick of that discourse. It's so narrow. I'm sick of the idea that women *should* be shaved, plucked, kinky, madeup or else they are somehow deviants who are oppressing 'normal' women. I'm sick of the idea that we can't hack away at a system that's shortening our lives, wasting our money, and fucking up our feet because some lady might have her feelings hurt.
I'm not responsible for someone else's level of personal development. If someone's upset by what I say, she should deal with it. She should explain why the women on the top of the ladder of the patriarchy: pretty, does the sort of sex you're supposed to do[i.e. performance, not enjoyment], thin, does all the grooming crap, comfortable enough to cut and cry because no one liked her mini - should be yet again be put in front of the rest of us in importance.

Note: what should be a good short name for people who want the status quo as far as women's roles if sparklepony is too mean? An added blog post. [note: many black women don't shave, and some of us *gasp* have nonstraight hair, we are all deviants that must be destroyed for the good of femininity! But note: one common discourse is that black women are bad because they aren't feminine enough. Yet another way that the patriarchy is intersecting with racism. ]

I personally don't think people should be thrown off of planes, even if you could see her panties[although don't go commando, ladies. That's just nasty.]

Near the end of this podcast, an actress from the Wonder Years tells some crazy mess to everyone. We learn that it's 'in the genes' that girls want to dress up[and of course, no boys ever want to dress up and be glamorous] and how dressing up and makeup is a super fun part of being a girl![because every single girl ever loooves dressing up and makeup and everyone has tons of money to do that] And of course, why do we need math? To support our shopping habits! [men NEVER shop. ALL women shop]. What a bunch of BS.


Also, on etsy, we have a silly lady complaining because boys will be boys, after all. 7th post on the page there. I remember my teacher saying this "You can't say boys will be boys, because boys grow into men, and you don't want men doing THAT". If a boy is taught to be responsible for himself, no matter how bad some girl's fashion sense is, he's on the way to being a responsible adult.

Sparklepony feminists aren't after your men- they are after feminism. By making feminism not a political movement, but a way to get attention- waaah, somebody called me not a feminist! Oh, woe is me, nobody believes that showing my ass and cootchie to all and sundry is a feminist act! you pretty much make feminism ineffective.

This annoys me because I'm the sort of woman who would rather have respect than attention. And a much larger percentage of women than we are given credit for would rather have respect. Defending the status quo is oh not an achievement. Building new ways for people to be rather than just defending the old ones- that's hard work. But that's what needs to be done.

Etsy drama start. Etsy drama middle. Etsy drama possible end stage

Hey, a black person has a good post on racism!I grew out of being a good negro a long time ago. Oddly, I was reminded of when I was listening to the memphis city schools radio station, and they were like bring a recent proof of address to registration! Not a note from big mama saying yea, he stay here. Yay, race wank.

Soliders return home- can't pay the rent.

I don't like fluffy feminists. Black women get boyfriends with hair on their legs, without bikini waxes, without slathering a fuckton of makeup all over their face. I'm also not sure about the political commitment of the sort of person who would choose their political beliefs based on what the boooyz thought. For fuck's sake, what if they got a boyfriend that was for voting for Bush? If they are that shallow and vapid, I'd rather not have them in my movement at all. I mean, thinking is unfeminine! What would the booooyz think?

ETA: I think what annoys me about this is the idea that women are inherently irrational and stupid. I think the picture is a lot more complex than the 'what about the airheads' people portray. Seriously, I have seen some girls in my college days, who have worked for feminism, who do sincerely care about women's rights. Just because they are under 30 doesn't mean they can't believe in political causes for actual logical reasons. Not all of us have the value system that what is right is less important than what is popular or what boys like. Supposing a common value system among young women really annoys me. Especially since it's the most stereotypical shit ever. We don't just have idiotic radio stations playing crap about girls who are so whatever we have so called feminists who assume that women are uniformly interested in impressing guys and looking good, when a lot of us may have other priorities in life. It's sort of like the 50s when every woman was thought to have the same goal: wife and mother, regardless of any actual goals the woman might have.

Oooh!!1 I'm sooo excited! Ok, I clicked over from witchy's and then was sort of confused. A full quater of my brain power is on what sexual positions I am experienced enough to attempt as far as penatrative sex, and I spent at least half an hour talking lip glitter with a woman on the internet, so I was like huh. Then I realized it. This was pure comedy gold!!! This is the perfect post feminist screed! Woman choosing political position based on fashion? Check. I love men and sex!!! Check. OMG, you're so mean!!!! Check. No understanding of psychology? Check.

I really don't like post feminism in any of it's incarnations of which I see three. A)The sort of clueless coed type. They would be feminist, but it's not cute. What would the boys think? B)The sort of lady who is against the very worst of abuses- she understands why outlawing all abortions ever may not be a good idea or why requiring all women not to work may not exactly make any sense, but they don't understand systematic sexism. C)The it's all about me feminist. Her allegiance to feminism is based on who likes her that day, what's in fashion(if grunge is in- she's a feminist! But if tube tops are in- not!) and whether people like her hobbies. As I think one's politics should be guided by what is right rather than what is cute this season, this annoys me.

All three represented in post
feminist bingo:

John Scalzi posts on abortion. A poster named 'Kate' makes me realize how dumb the idea of woman=feminist is. If some dumbfuck wants to say that it's cool to force a woman to be preggers because she didn't use a condom, well, that's on them. I don't care if the woman was the dumbest woman in the world, she should still be allowed to have an abortion! That's called actual feminism- working for women's political rights.

Also here's some crazy mess: infanticide no longer legal my ass!

On the VT case, Nikki Giovanni put the shooter out of her class. Note that he harassed and photographed female students beforehand. Harassing women isn't just fun and games, folks. It can be a warning sign of greater violence to come.

Nexy is enjoying her new vagina! Because I'm in a grumpy mood, I'm going to be like 'congratulations on your new womanhood! However, be careful of the dangers of femininity. A few new panties won't kill ya, but don't get sucked into the whole 'your shoes have to match your purse which has to match your lipstick, you can't go outside without makeup or stockings, feminism isn't a political movement as us women can't worry our pretty little heads with actual issues' stuff."

More LULZ! Feminism as a political movement? Banish the thought! Also, I love those roving bands of feminists who spit in the faces of men and put dead baby pictures on billboards. Yea, that happens all the time! This sort of bullshit is why I'm for opt in feminism instead of opt out feminism. A group defined by ideology and commitment is much firmer and maybe even more effective than a group defined by they have labia.

Ren ev is mad. I wish I had thought to be in that forum just so I could see what was being said!

Also in post feminism, I choose political movements based on whether people shave or not. You see, I was going to be against racism, but then I realized that some anti racists have stringy broken off relaxed hair, so I guess I'm for racism now! Heck, my aunt is against racism and she doesn't shave! My mom? Against racism. Doesn't shave. OMG, SIGN ME UP FOR THE KLAN!!!