You have always come across as a straight-shooter Belly, no need to worry on that score.

>>PERICLES I very much differ with you here, like or despise me<<

But I'm afraid that I can't agree that there is a feminist conspiracy under way along the lines of your description...

>>Headlong race for feminism victory over men...<<

You - and Antiseptic, and R0bert - may have been unlucky in your relationship choices, or even simply in the company you keep, but that doesn't mean that you can tar the entire gender with the same brush. To do so is actually a form of surrender - people can tell when others are afraid of them, and take advantage accordingly. That's not just a female thing, it is a basic, animal trait.

I still maintain that if you treat people with respect, you will be treated respectfully in return. And if your lady gets emotional and takes a swipe at you when she finds out that you have been chatting up another bit on the side (Antiseptic's original example), then you suck it up and take it like a man - if that expression has any meaning left on this thread.

It still astounds me that such a trivial incident has morphed into an ongoing, seemingly endless, fear-laden treatise on the cruelty of women towards men.

But I'll give you one thing. Love most definitely is blind, if your example is anything to go by:

>>Women increasingly are leading the relation ships, a story told by one of Pauline Hanson's past husbands tells in part of that. Thinking he was in a two way loving relation ship he came home and found her written plans to leave him, and just how much of his money she expected to take.<<

Not just blind in this case, but deaf and in a vegetative state as well, I'd suggest.

You forget quickly, don't you Antiseptic.

>>What exactly does your brother have to do with the topic again?<<

I'll remind you.

"...you sound so much like my whiny elder brother, it's uncanny."

http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?discussion=4912#131931

Makes sense now?

Pericles:"Makes sense now?"

It always did; the resentment is palpable. I'm sorry I remind you of your elder brother, although I must say he sounds like an entirely reasonable sort of chap in seeking some equivalence in the punishment meted out to the pair of you, whilst your mother sounds like a tyrant of a rather nasty sort. Is that where you learnt to enjoy being hit by women? I'm glad that's working out well for you.

As for the rest of your rather feeble rant, this is about the fact that this woman felt free to beat this man in public and that nobody intervened. These were not feeble slaps. to quote Mr Waterstreet:"Each blow to the face came from a hand launched from behind her hipline with a thud."

Now that might give you warm memories of Mum beating your older brother, but to others of us it's a rather nasty assault carried out in public. Why should she not moderate her response? Why should she feel free to act like the juvenile Pericles and expect no due consequence to flow from her action?

That's pretty pathetic, Antiseptic.

>>Is that where you learnt to enjoy being hit by women?<<

Even for you.

And this is just even sillier:

>>...that might give you warm memories of Mum beating your older brother<<

She never laid a hand on either of us - tell me, is there a form of transference happening here? Are there other, deeper reasons for your fear of women than just wives?

>>...this is about the fact that this woman felt free to beat this man in public and that nobody intervened.<<

I couldn't agree more.

She slapped him. He accepted that he was in the wrong, and took it in his stride. You even made the valid point yourself that Waterstreet "has a notable gift for the trivialities". It was a trivial incident, that you have managed to turn into a crusade against women in general.

Feel free to pile on the insults, by the way, if it makes you feel better about yourself. Given the history that is slowly emerging, you could probably use the therapy.

"You - and Antiseptic, and R0bert - may have been unlucky in your relationship choices, or even simply in the company you keep, but that doesn't mean that you can tar the entire gender with the same brush."

I most definitely don't tar the entire gender with the same brush. I don't think Antiseptic or Belly do that either (at worst we may use wording that can be misconstrued by those wanting to shut down genuine debate).

A proportion of women use violence against partners to control them or because of poor control of their responses as do a proportion of men. More women are seriously injured than men but the majority of domestic violence does not involve major physical injury to either party.

Most women of my experience have not been violent, same for most of the men I know. Now that I'm more aware of the issues around DV I've been more careful of the company I keep.

Violence that's not a defence against violence initiated by another is wrong regardless of the gender or size of the aggressor. The attempts by some to minimise the violence of individuals based on gender stereotypes perpetuates violence.

A more honest approach to violence by women will give their partners more options to get the violence stopped or leave without destroying their own lives. Minimisation of female violence severely limits the options available to their partners in those situations and may increase the likely hood of an eventual physical response if the violence is ongoing.

It's no more acceptable for a woman to assault a man because of something she believes he may have done or said (or which he may have actually done or said than it is for a man to use violence against a female partner for similar reasons).

R0bert

I earnestly hope that 30 years in the future I will not see, the explorer of this thread will live in a different world.
Ours has become a little remote from the one of past century's.
Mostly for the better, men and women of my age would remember the drunken abuse, Friday or Saturday nights a night mare for wife and kids.
We are better without that.
In my case, we kids said it then we say it now, Mum started the fights, she lit the fuse, needling drunken Dad till he smashed any thing on hand.
He never ever hit mum, or any one, except a neighbor interfering.
About the time of the sexual revolution,the pill, Women forced change, even that was not before time.
Right now? for about 20 years past and to day SOME WOMEN LEAD control, bash, use, miss use their men.
And here we see it said to be a lie?
No one said ALL MOST MANY, but to say it is untrue.
If I had my life over I would be very careful, not to wed.
Not to take on face value, no one, would say ever SOME MEN BASH AND USE WOMEN.
Betray the wife, but 30 years from now I hope we have turned around the need to control men totally SOME women have.
And that the requested by many women just gay enough men have not taken over.
Or that one of those country's that do not let female children grow up are not in charge.
IF denial of mens rights is the out come of feminism then lets get that fixed.