Sadly I think DIVER DAN is right. Sometimes we blokes' especially me, tend to become a little aggressive in order to drive our point home, and I must confess I do enjoy reading some of the adroit material emanating from ladies of POIROT'S calibre, many of whom tend to embrace the discussion with consummate subtlety and panache.

And our FOXY? Well politically, FOXY and I are probably diametrically opposed when it comes to our view of politics and many other things too I would suggest. That said, I've always been a strong fan of that lady, as she tends to, in her own ingenious way, subliminally I suppose, encourage me to moderate my tone, and my hitherto aggressive and combative approach to discussions herein. And for that, I'll always be indebted to her.

OLO is the only general interest chat room I frequent. My other sites are either scientific, or special interest in automotive or sailing.

When I first found OLO I was amazed at the overwhelming level of lefties on it. Lexi was more centre of the opinions expressed than is Foxy today. By far the majority of contributors were well left of centre, but many of those have disappeared.

Personally I think the site is pretty middle of the road today, & love the fact that no one gets cut, unless they become insulting.

I also have a different perspective to Foxy, but that does not prevent me enjoying her contributions, valuing them highly, & enjoying her on line company.

One great advantage of a chat room over a dinner party, you don't have to read contributions of those you know will be unpleasant, where as at a dinner party it is hard to sneak your ear plugs in unobtrusively.

diver dan,

The women in my acquaintance have been embarrassed for years by the access and choices available to them and most free of charge. Now, digital technology offers a broad and rapidly developing expanse, unlimited.

Think of the competition for the attention of women and young women especially are not behind in taking up those options. They have moved on too and are citizens of the world - I will leave it at that.

Cossomby is the fairer sex? That explains a lot.

Although I've vowed to leave Foxy alone, I couldn't resist having a look at what she had to say. No surprises. Foxy “... doubt (s)very much if females like Poirot and others, left because they were intimidated by some bloke.” Well, Foxy, Poirot did say that she couldn't cope with we dreadful Rightists. I don't remember if she brought gender into it, and she never seemed particularly feminine to me. Come to think of it, I don't believe that anyone has mentioned being “intimidated by some bloke”.

Foxy, perhaps doesn't remember telling us that her doctor suggested that she give OLO away, which she did for quite a period. Something to do with stress, I think.

Given that I had no idea cossomby and Poirot were females ( I always imagined Poirot as a bit of a rube (male) with a big mouth) I don't much care what other posters are, but if females are not going to reveal that they are female, they can't expect any allowances for their different takes on some subjects.

O sung wu,

Don't go all girly-man on us. You have nothing to apologise for.

Foxy.

I've always assumed you to be transgender, but you are actually a female. Maybe the misconception points to the dangers of forming conclusions based on scanty evidence.

Ttbn…

Cheryl's posts re your comment, were what prompted me to raise this question.
I don't think OLO is a format for love’n and affection, but obviously, she is hyper-sensitive to the issue under discussion. But personally, I've found Cheryl’s comments to be mostly interesting in the past. I was a bit saddened to watch her fall apart like that!

However, sometimes it's difficult to pick from a name, a gender, and an appropriate reaction to a comment. Maybe if female posters were to identify as such occasionally, life would be easier.

Treating women respectfully is a conservative trait, and the art needs to be practiced often, is my personal belief.

LeoJ

I'm not sure I agree entirely with your conclusion.
One of my daughters works in a corporate executive position. I need to compete with her husband and kids for visiting rights, time is so constricted in her life. That is not freedom.