My Last Word On Feminism

My family is asking me to shut up about feminism; so I will. But I will not do so before stating my parting thoughts on the subject.

In dealing with things such as incest and domestic violence, the correct argument is not toward gender equality. Many people do not believe in such a thing. Instead it is about abuse of power, which is a concept to which just about anyone can relate. The concept of abuse of power has been formative to the world as we know it. Seeing abuses of power by European monarchies, the founders of America implemented a government of checks and balances accountable to the people. This concept, unlike most of what has come from feminism, has been highly successful; and it is a concept to which just about everyone – liberal, conservative or else – can relate.

Two other conservative concepts that can be useful in this are those of family values and character. Family values means treating one's family right. And character means controlling what you are doing with your mouth, your fists and your other body parts. Once again, most conservatives will not relate to the concept of gender equality or non-violence. They will however relate to these concepts.

Now much of what came from feminism has in fact been correct. Much of the rest has not been, and it is largely the opinions of women – and not stupid or weak ones either – that shaped my views on the subject. I have been told by any number of successful, intelligent women that feminism has gone too far. I have been told by a successful woman from Russia that American feminists are “abnormal” and “want a penis.” I have been told by a feminist graduate student that in “traditional” societies women actually had more power than they do now, as they were in control of reproduction and sex and that women now are under control of “male-dominated business culture.” And then of course there is Ayn Rand, who was in no way stupid or weak, stating that the matriarch is an unnatural creature.

These views do not come from me, and they do not come from “the patriarchy.” They come from strong, intelligent women. Now many women in feminism think that they are strong and intelligent; but they could not possibly be stronger or more intelligent than Russian women. One way to correct in-bred errors is through introducing things from abroad that refute these errors. And the more Russian women go into places such as America, the more they stand to correct this wrongful point of view.

Now I most certainly do not want to see a hidebound patriarchy. But neither do I want to see a mean-spirited matriarchy. And this is what we see from many people involved in this movement. When Julia Mancuso, a champion skier, wore a tiara, she was attacked by other women in the race. Yet she won the race and they didn't. Here was a woman who beat tomboys at their own game while remaining a woman. Many women stand to learn from women like her.

The feminists have put women in a race in which they can only be second, while denying them the place in which they are first. So what do we see but a movement in the opposite direction. Many young women have had it with bullying by matriarchial older women; so they have gone to patriarchial young people like Eminem. I do not foresee these men being better to women than the matriarchs. However I do not see them being worse to them than feminists have been to women who are kind and beautiful.

In female-run establishments, the culture has mostly been terrible. The better qualities in women – such as intelligence, beauty and willingness to work hard – get attacked rather than rewarded. A woman stands more to gain from being with a patriarchial man than from being in such an establishment. And yes, we are seeing a flux in the opposite direction. Many women have had it with this state of affairs and are willingly choosing to be with dominating men.

If women really want economic and social equality, they will need to understand the meaning of the concept. The life of men is not exactly peaches and cream. They will need to endure market competition. They will need to deal with all sorts of assholes. In some cases they will need to go to war.

Some of these women claim that they are leaders of women. Who on earth voted for them to do so? How dare they claim leadership of 50% of humanity? This is a vast and illegitimate power grab. And they are using this power in the way that is just as totalitarian and oppressive as anything that was done by the self-proclaimed leaders of the proletariat. Any opinion that is not a part of their party line comes under vicious attack. This is the case regardless of whether it comes from women or from men.

The Southern women have a much better idea. They do not challenge their men's leadership. So their men love them and take care of them. They let the men think that they are running the show, while in fact they are running the show themselves. And it appears that these women are much happier with life than most women in feminist cultures.

Now I most certainly do not want my daughter to wind up a punching bag for some jerk. But neither do I want to see her abused by feminists for being kind and pretty. She is good at both boy stuff and girl stuff, and she has been a fashion princess since she was 3. I did not teach her to do that. When I was a child, I was not into any such things. These were her own propensities, and one that I neither attempted to encourage or to discourage.

The ones who attack things such as romantic love do not know what they are talking about. Romanticism is in fact a natural successor to rationalism of any kind. The mind has contempt for such things as nature and feeling until it has studied them enough to see in them a logic more profound than anything that it itself has been able to invent. At which point contempt gives way to respect and even awe. And the lack of such respect is a mark of either inadequate knowledge or inadequate cognition.

What is the natural successor to romanticism? It appears to be a belief in God. With the existence of spiritual forces, the concept of God becomes more credible. Now Christian religion does in fact give men the authority; but it also commands them to use it rightfully. A man who comes at his wife with fists because she left a speck of dust on the floor is not using authority rightfully. A man who becomes a batterer after his wife refuses to abort their child is not using authority rightfully. A man who puts his fingers up the vagina of a one-year-old child is not using authority rightfully. These things should not be confronted as part of a gender war. They should be confronted because they are abuses of power.

So this is where I leave this issue. The legitimate parts of feminist movement should use arguments that are not what only they believe, but what other people believe as well. Confront abuses of power, and appeal to values such as family values and character to fight abuses. But do not dare claim that you speak for 50% of humanity and that nobody else does. And see what you do with the influx of Russian women. They will show you what strength and intelligence actually means.