How amazingly lateral. Some misogynist psycho goes on a mass killing spree and Canadian men started the White Ribbon Campaign. Thank you for sharing that Pynchme.

I am hugely skeptical about it particularly when figures get fudged. I strongly suspect that it is more about power for a certain individuals who want to be seen to be doing something than an actual commitment to actually achieving anything.

I suspect that they want to propagate something not too dissimilar to the “all men would rape if they could get away with it myth”. In this case it is a rewriting of history to have us believe that all men in the past disrespected women and viewed them as possessions and domestic violence is just an expression of the frustration all men feel at not being able to discipline their possessions any more. I suspect that the people driving it hold themselves out as the solution but achieve very little while getting cushy government funding and high status in the process – which I suspect is their priority.

I agree that female – male violence should contemporaneously condemned and that this should happen more than one day a year. I suspect that part of the quote Foxy gave says it all:

"This annual spotlight on violence against women… is ineffectual at reducing violence
because it emphasizes gender as the primary explanation
while downplaying a significant body of evidence
indicating that other factors are most likely involved.
Violence is prevalent amongst young people, and it is
usually linked to social disadvantage, drug and alcohol
abuse, mental health issues, and inadequate conflict
managment and affect regulation skills..."

It was the gunman's father who had a history of abuse of his wife and child. It is true, however, that the mass murderer attributed his actions to his "fight against feminism".

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89cole_Polytechnique_massacre

Antiwomen: << Did Mum make you wear dresses and play with dolls? >>

No, old misogynist. However, she did cop regular beatings from my father until he deserted the family when I was in my teens. He never paid a cent of child support subsequently. I acknowledge that experience has influenced my view on domestic violence and pissweak men who beat women.

in a nation governed by a Constitution requiring all men govern and control all women the
lesson from White Ribbon Day is that women are most effectively controlled without violence.
might not hit back so often either.

Where would we be without whistler and runners input on every topic...

They're like a comfortable old pair of slippers.

Let's just repeat Foxy's quote again.

"This annual spotlight on violence against women… is ineffectual at reducing violence
because it emphasizes gender as the primary explanation
while downplaying a significant body of evidence
indicating that other factors are most likely involved.
Violence is prevalent amongst young people, and it is
usually linked to social disadvantage, drug and alcohol
abuse, mental health issues, and inadequate conflict
managment and affect regulation skills..."

CJ, I challenge you to punch any holes in it.

Also CJ, noted that for you 'it's personal', but cant you see cynical media manipulation and don't you despair as I do at the pathetic gimmickry of the 'raising awareness' industry as a whole? Their fudging of figures and misinformation for cheap headlines? Granted, anti is like a feminist with a new NRL scandal as I said, and I'd be disappointed if you didn't wind him up, but I'd be disappointed if you were really that blind.

And given the choice, would you prefer a gender neutral approach to domestic violence, educating men and women how to get on better?

CJ,

"It was the gunman's father who had a history of abuse of his wife and child. It is true, however, that the mass murderer attributed his actions to his "fight against feminism"."

Some people claim God got them to do similarly insane actions but as in this case it is just a lunatic's rationalisation. The difference with the God explanation is that no political cause could gain from treating it as the genuine cause of the actions.

Surely you consider his actions to be beyond the range of normalcy? If so then would you agree that his actions were driven by something beyond his explanation and not attributable to being "pissweak" or disliking feminism? A man who has the political view that he wants to fight feminism wouldn't normally do so by gunning down women surely?

Anti,

I haven't seen any correlation between white ribbon day and the increases in violence on men.
However, I acknowledge your wider point although I haven't seen stats to prove it.

Unfortunately your posts do seem to have show baggage in this area which appear to over state the case

Foxy
Spot on girl.
I go one step further in that I consistently reject our over-emphasised focus on 'sex' and consequently gender. IMO it seems to overwhelm almost everything else. We are more than our base 'instincts' which is what makes us humans. Just because we have these instinct doesn't me we should wallow in them.
To the degree we are almost two dimensional. Sure sex is fun but so are other things.

We spend more time on other pleasures aspects of life than having sex so, why the absolute myopic focus?

H.
Well said.
I think you'll find CJ would support Foxy's stand. Anti while both intelligent and makes good points sadly, his posts do tend to emanate anti female attitudes.(This isn't pejorative or judgmental NB I FOCUSED ON ATTITUDES NOT HIM)