explaination.
2005-05-20, 1:03 p.m.

Here is a note left me regarding my previous entries Ok - I'm adding my closed minded two cents here. As far as the TV shows and commercials go, I'm not sure why it's an issue. I realize not all men are like this, but I can say from past experience (and I've got lots of them), I was always the one cleaning or cooking, and my ex husband was the one sitting on the couch drinking a beer and watching sports. Cliche I know, but it wasn't until I met Jaime, that I actually saw a man clean and cook - go figure. Another thing...you need to realize that 50 or so years ago, this was how life was. The women took care of the family and the men worked. They weren't home, and many of them had no clue what life was like for the woman. In all actuality, some people still live this way. It happens all over the world...women are viewed more as slaves...traded and bought, and married to people they don't know. For those that try to escape this world, they are killed by their own freaking families.....Honor Killings my ass. Think about...you watch the news, you stay more current with events then I do, but how many times do you see where everyone is looking for some lost woman only to find out she's been killed by her husband. You don't hear that role reversed very often (if ever) do you? So if the TV networks want to make fun of life a little, I say go for it....at least women get the upper hand in the make believe world of sitcoms....so yeah, let it go.


I think you kind of missed the point of what I was trying to say. I probably didn't illustrate it very well- I agree with you 100%. Women have been treated unfairly for a long, long time. Things are FINALLY starting to change in this country. More men are helping with the house and with the kids, just as more women are entering the work force and �bringing home the bacon�. I just see it as a sign that we still have a long, long way to go. Men don�t particularly care about being caricatured on TV, while I think you would agree with me that most women would still find it offensive to always being shown as �barefoot and pregnant�. I think that sensitivity to the issue is BECAUSE women still don�t have a firm footing in today�s society. It is still very much a man�s world, and as a result, men aren�t bothered by the stereotypes against them- at the end of the day, they still feel like the world is their oyster. Women have fought very hard over the years (with very slow progress) to get to where they are today, and to use misogynistic jokes on TV I think is seen as a serious affront to the struggles women are still enduring. Just imagine if a show came out today where there was a black actor who played an �indentured servant� for a white family. That would be just as offensive to blacks as a �stepford wife� type character would be for a woman. My point was that noticing that there are still all of these sensitivities out there really illustrate how far we have to go yet. When people are treated equally and with respect, and feel like they are given an equal piece of the pie, a few jokes thrown in their direction isn�t going to matter. Also, look at it this way: Those sitcoms aren't doing women any favors, either. They're basically saying to men, "Its ok if you're a complete boob! Your wife will clean up after you and still love you, even if you did do something completely insensitive and moronic." And to women they say, "No matter how stupid your husband is, love him anyway. He's just like an overgrown child and its your responsibilty to mother him." And as far as the commercials go, yes- you�re right. Women still do most of the housework these days, but I don�t see that as any excuse to perpetuate the stereotype. I know that companies have to advertise toward their market, which in the case of Endust is predominantly women. But look at the big picture- children see these commercials, too. What do they take away from them? They see women at home happily doing housework dancing around with a Swiffer duster, and they see men at the bar with their buddies drinking beer and watching the game. They see this on TV and they think it�s the way things are- the way they are supposed to be. How is that helping? Is this the case a lot of the time in the real world? Yes, unfortunately it is. But I also think advertising companies should shoulder a little responsibility and level the playing field instead of keeping it tilted in favor of men- just like women have been trying to do since long before you and I were born.

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