Nursing student has a problem with women

Via Jen at Blag Hag:

This winner, the now-infamous Ben Cochran, decided to submit a steaming pile of excrement as an op-ed column for his school paper.  He was at his campus student health center with a cold, and was horrified to see that some of the patients ahead of him were (gasp!) getting prescribed birth control pills.

As if that version wasn't bad enough, an employee of the newspaper decided to leak the rough draft to the public.  Some particularly putrid bits from the uncensored version of his diatribe:

Classic Manchild.

If you have a lung problem, you see a pulmonologist. If you have a heart problem, you see a cardiologist. If you have a cunt problem, you see a gynecologist.

...

First of all, not even porn stars need that much birth control. Second of all, do you mean to seriously tell me that I’ve been sitting here in misery for the last half an hour just so that this gaggle of preemie sluts could get a free pass on harlotry?

...

Go read your Redbook in the lobby of a specialist while you get a mani as you wait to get your hatchet wound inspected.

And finally,

Please take your gaping holes elsewhere for medical services, and leave the real health issues to those that actually belong on a college campus.

This wouldn't be remarkable if it was some run-of-the-mill, insecure-about-his-penis-size douchecopter who's mad at the women he fails to seduce; however, this particular douchecopter is a nursing student who ought to have some basic knowledge about how the female reproductive system works.

In the name of free speech and letting fools remove all doubts as to their foolishness, the school paper let him publish a follow up column.  Worded as a faux-apology, he continued what can only be self-aware trolling of the people he offended the first time around.

I would hope that people as willfully ignorant as he is get weeded out of East Carolina University's nursing program long before they're allowed near a live patient.

Why I’m a Male Feminist (And Why Our Movement Needs More of Us)

(Cross-posted on Skeptic Freethought)

"Feminist" is a polarizing word.  You'll generally see it used in one of two ways: as self-identification by people who consider themselves feminists, and as a pejorative by people who do not.

It's a word with an ugly connotation in many people's minds, not unlike the word "atheist"; people hear the "-ist" suffix and infer an ideology that seeks feminine supremacy rather than gender equality, just as many see atheism as a rebellious denial of God rather than an affirmative acceptance of a godless universe.

To be sure, there are differing opinions among those who consider themselves feminists regarding what it means to be a feminist. There are disagreements about its implications regarding sexuality, marriage, reproductive rights, and parenting. There are disputes about what reforms are needed in modernized Western societies compared to developing nations.  There are debates about who gets to call themselves feminists, particularly about whether this label can apply to men.

Can men be feminists?

I call myself a feminist because I agree with the movement's most basic tenet: women are people. I feel that throughout human history and in the status quo today, women have been and are either (a) regarded as lesser beings than men, or (b) propped up on a pedestal from which they are not permitted to descend, and often paradoxically both at the same time. I see this as wrong and would like to do my part to correct it.

Hoping that I don't sound like this.

As such, supporting fair treatment across gender lines means proactively questioning and reforming the way we (both men and women) think about women. For this reason I will use the word "feminist" and not try to make up some new, gender-neutral term for supporting gender equality.

I know that there are hardcore feminists out there who object to men calling themselves feminists. I understand their reasons for feeling that way (for example, men presumptuously thinking they can speak on behalf of feminism, men dominating discussions on feminism, and then there's this guy).

I still feel that I should use the label, as it helps to make feminism less taboo, less scary to people who claim they oppose feminism without understanding what it means. An increase in the number of visible male feminists (or "pro-feminists" or "allies" if you prefer) will increase dialogue among men about their treatment of women, and increase the number of men who stop to think "Y'know, maybe I am being sexist without realizing it. I should reexamine my attitudes about gender roles."

Being visible among skeptics, or Wearing it proudly

At the SSA conference last month, I chose to wear my bright green "THIS IS WHAT A FEMINIST LOOKS LIKE" t-shirt, bought years ago from a fundraiser for a battered women's shelter.

I don't always wear t-shirts with slogans on them,
but when I do I support equal treatment of women.

I'll admit that I knew I wasn't going out on a limb with this: I knew that there were many feminists among the population of young atheists and agnostics. It got positive reactions from feminist atheist bloggers Jen McCreight and Greta Christina, and it turned out there were even a few other male feminists there as well.

In proclaiming myself as a feminist, just as happened when I proclaimed myself an atheist, I am bound to make both friends (not all of whom I'd like to call "friend") and enemies (some of whom I have no quarrel with) based solely on the label.

Case in point: one of the neo-Marxist activists present at the conference seemed to assume I'd be sympathetic to her group's ideology based on my self-identification as a feminist. I was not.

I'm not aware of any animosity toward me regarding the shirt (I've experienced such from male acquaintances in the past), but I have to wonder if it frightened anyone away. I would certainly hope not.

The bottom line

I will echo the sentiments of atheists who have found the AAFHSS community to have a detectable sexism problem, if based solely on what I've read in the blogosphere (I personally heard no such comments at the SSA conference).  I do suspect, however, that many groups and social movements have the same problem, if not a more deeply embedded one; the difference is that there are feminists in the secular movement who recognize sexism when it rears its ugly head and call people out on it.

I also will ask that any men who feel threatened by feminism take a serious second look at their attitudes toward women. Are you afraid of becoming a second class citizen, or are you afraid of losing special privileges you’ve become accustomed to? Are you afraid that values associated with your gender will someday no longer be the default?

I won’t tell other skeptics and freethinkers that they should get behind a particular ideology, but I will ask them to consider what they do believe about sex and gender and examine the evidence on which they base their views (even feminists should do this – any idea worth believing is worth scrutinizing). You may find that you hold biases you weren’t aware of.

Recap Post: pop stars for science, Straw Poll, the faaabulous Ann Coulter, femShep beauty pageant, and godless Christians!

While I'm brainstorming, kicking around, and shooting down ideas for future posts, here's a weekend fluff digest post to tide you loyal readers over. Some highlights of the past week or so:

---

"Science is rock and roll." Black Eyed Peas frontman Will.i.am is doing something that lifts my hopes for this country (my opinion of his music aside). He's teaming up with other popular musicians in a video campaign to promote scientific curiosity and encourage improvements to science education, leading up to a one-hour TV special to air on Sunday evening. I'm willing to let slide the obvious fallacy induced by celebrity endorsement because science needs positive publicity in America.

(via Culture of Science by Sheril Kirshenbaum) #science

---

The Heathen Republican didn't quite have the budget of Michele Bachmann's campaign, but still made an effort to garner votes at the Straw Poll, complete with deep-fried hors d'oeuvres. Unfortunately he didn't have quite the turnout that other candidates enjoyed; I wonder why? "For ethical reasons, I instructed my campaign not to pay for any of the attendee’s tickets, so we only had a few people show up. I didn’t realize conservative votes could be purchased for as little as $30."

#atheism, #politics

---

Ann Coulter is a gay icon, at least as far as right-wing gay lobbyist group GOProud is concerned. It shouldn't be surprising that she's the best they could dig up: "The organization, though branding itself as a gay rights group, generally views gay marriage as a states' rights affair—a stance famous for working out awesomely for interracial couples in Alabama before the mid-'60s."

(via Mother Jones) #politics, #lgbt

---

Canadian game developer Bioware held an online poll to decide the appearance of the female version of Commander Shepard to be used in ads for Mass Effect 3. Flamewars and fanboy rage ensued over matters of hair, eye, and skin color.

Finally a feminist gamer chimed in and asked why it was even happening. "BioWare took one of the small handful of non-sexualized female heroes in gaming and put her on stage for the world to judge on appearances alone, aka a f**king beauty pageant. . . No male hero has ever been or ever would be dragged into the limelight and forced to defend himself like this."

(via my brother Josh, and Penny Arcade) #gaming, #feminism

---

It appears that a few reverends in the Netherlands are rethinking the God Question but still keeping the faith nonetheless. "'God is not a being at all... it's a word for experience, or human experience,'" proclaims one reverend.  According to the BBC article, "[his] book Believing in a Non-Existent God led to calls from more traditionalist Christians for him to be removed. However, a special church meeting decided his views were too widely shared among church thinkers for him to be singled out."

I think that this story raises an intriguing question: are people like this being intellectually dishonest by identifying with a faith while not believing its theology, or are they facilitating the evolution of Christianity into a philosophy that will survive in the increasingly secular future?

(via fellow humanist Derrick S.) #Christianity #atheism

---

That's all for now.  A post about the WTC "cross", a potential political rant, and a potential blogging-related announcement coming soonish.