2013 International Women's Day

With today being International Women's Day, I thought about this question: "If you could fix any one problem women face by clicking your fingers, what would it be?". Would you make women's pay equal to men's? Ensure that a girl's education is the same as a boy's? Stop women in high positions from receiving far more scrutiny and criticism than their male equivalents? Perhaps put an end to violence against women?

There are many problems to choose from, and all need to be addressed, but if I could solve any one of them instantly, it would be violence against women. Worldwide, millions of women are abused and/or killed by their husbands, boyfriends, fathers, brothers, uncles and men who have no family or romantic connection to them. There are women who live in permanent fear, worried that the man (or men) they have to live with or near will physically harm them or kill them if they as much as look at him the wrong way. There are girls who have grown up only knowing men to be fist-wielding bullies from the behaviour of their abusive fathers and brothers. It horrifies me to even think about what these girls and women go through, but any discomfort I receive by thinking about it pales in comparison to what the victims feel.

If the harm it causes women wasn't enough, violence against women also hurts men. The vast majority of men would never want to step on a woman's foot by accident, let alone beat or kill her, but thanks to the men who are violent against women, most if not all men are viewed negatively and suspiciously (not just by women, but also by other men) as a consequence. How does a woman know that a man won't go from being friendly and reasonable one moment to a thug the next? In nearly all cases, these fears weren't necessary, but the existence of woman-beating men causes these fears and does justify them on too many occasions. If violence against women ended, women would no longer have to worry when men interact with them and men wouldn't be regarded as a "potential threat until proven otherwise" (this blog post is related).

Obviously, violence and all the other issues women face cannot be solved by clicking one's fingers. Also, just because today is International Women's Day doesn't mean this should be the sole day of the year to think about women's issues while ignoring them for the other 364 days. If, regardless of what day of the year, we all do our part to help women, no matter how small, we can ensure that they will be truly equal and safe.

Tall women

I have read personal stories from tall women about some of their dating troubles. A common* complaint by these women is how the men they wish to date are either intimidated by them or somehow "feel less manly" in their presence. I find the behaviour of such men bizarre and, more accurately, sexist.

Whenever I have been in the presence of a woman equal to me* in height or taller, I have never felt any hostility or fear towards her for being a tall woman. I've met plenty of people — men and women — taller than I am. Have they ever made me nervous? Certainly...back when I was I child, but even then I considered a tall person's gender irrelevant.

I think that many men who are freaked out by tall women are misogynists. The only reason a man could feel uncomfortable around a tall woman is because he perceives her to be a threat to his self-given "authority" or ability to bully her into conceding an argument to him by using his size advantage as a weapon. Any man who believes this or thinks that a tall woman would reduce his masculinity cannot be considered a man: he is a coward.

Even if he isn't a misogynist, a man of average or above average height bothered by tall women should put everything into perspective: how does a short woman feel when she has to interact with a man who is at least a foot higher than her? If the man intended to cause her harm it is unlikely she would be unable to stop him, but when it comes to a man and a woman of equal height, in most cases the man would still be physically stronger than the woman. Therefore, a man has no reason to feel insecure or threatened by tall women.

For the ultimate question, would I go out with a woman near my height or taller? My answer: Yes — why not? I'm not intimidated by tall women, I don't have a need or desire to control women or engage in one-upmanship over them (same goes for men) and I would not have any problem with being the shorter person in a relationship. I've observed taller woman/shorter man relationships before and I am happy for the people involved in them.

Men should not be insecure about tall women — or about women in general, for that matter — and nor should they only be romantically interested in shorter women purely to maintain a physical advantage in a relationship. All women, regardless of their stature, are entitled to basic respect.

[1] Some tall women prefer to date even taller men, and thus, limit their dating pool as a result. However, this post exclusively addresses male sexism.

[2] I am six feet tall and have met women taller than this.

Abandoned rabbits

I read this article earlier about three rabbits that had been abandoned, with the most probable reason for their abandonment being their ears:

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2092618/No-loves-Three-earless-pet-rabbits-abandoned-basket-doorstep.html

I have always hated it when people abandon, neglect, or outright abuse animals; if the reason for Benny, Bluebell, and Polo being abandoned was solely because they were "imperfect" from the state of their ears, then the previous owners are truly despicable. It is not as though the rabbits chose to have one ear (or in Polo's situation, none at all), and they deserve to be treated kindly and given a good home regardless of what they look like.