In the second half of your message you mention a number of points about feminism and their ´racism´ against other groups. Let me address them.

Would it be too much to ask for TCF to point out that the Saudi governemnt and religious police oppress EVERYONE in Saudi Aribia. Women are not the sole victims of oppression in Saudi Arabia.

No, it would not. I think she should have pointed it out. But then again, it´s not illegitimate for her to want to write about women´s situation there -- she´s not necessarily claiming all other groups are privileged, she´s simply interested in women. If someone writes an article about problems the situation of children in Muslim countries, is this article necessarily claiming that the situation of non-children is perfect? Though I agree that she could have added a few sentences stating your point, I think you´re jumping to conclusions about Ms Clark-Flory's post here.

how many more white feminists need to opine about other groups as though theirs is the last word? Where is the outrage in the white feminist community for their own provincial bigotry, a bigotry that crops up again and again?

I'd say there has been criticism of what you call 'bigotry' in feminism, even from other feminists -- have you read Camille Paglia's Sexual personae, Vamps and tramps, and even her last article on the history of feminism (which you can find at http://www.bu.edu/arion/Paglia%2016-1.html in case you're interested). I've heard similar comments in lectures given by other feminists.

You see, just like Ms Clark-Flory overgeneralized about 'Arabs', you're overgeneralizing about feminists. Just as Wahhabists Saudi Arabs are different from, say, Bosniak and Albanian Muslims, Sufi (I actually quite admire the Sufi and their gnostic beliefs), and Ahmadiyya, there are also very different schools of thought in feminism: gender feminism, sex-positive feminism, 'equality' feminism... Not everybody is Catharine McKinnon.

You're reacting against the Wahhabist feminists, not against the Sufi and Ahmadiyya ones. And you're confusing them with each other. Just like Ms Clark-Flory.

As for 'opining'... As I said in my third post to MMM, everybody has a right to an opinion and to express it. The flip side is, of course, that if this person wants to engage in real dialogue, s/he must be ready to defend his/her opinion with arguments. And s/he must be ready to hear criticisms and react intelligently to them. So feminists, Ms Clark-Flory, you and I are all entitled to say what we think. Please let more feminists opine. And more Arabs. And more Israelis. And more Wahhabists. And more Americans. And... Hopefully, there will be intelligent people among those with whom a polite conversation will be possible. And we may in the end all end up learning something.

If BS [=Broadsheet] is so freethinking as you imply, why does it endorse such bigoted, close-minded sites? TCF's holier-than-thou blurb and her ignorant generalizations about the Arab world and men in general in this and many other articles exemplify the chauvinism found in much of American feminism. The sooner that chauvinism is tamped out, the better.

I agree with what I think is the spirit of what you're trying to say: that intolerance is bad for dialogue and does not foster understanding, and that it should be fought against. That is why I'm not a feminist: as I've said, some feminist schools of thought defend ideas I can't agree with, and the label 'feminist' has become tarnished in many circles. And it is duly criticized. Again I mention Camille Paglia, whose opinions on feminism (despite being a feminist herself) are almost as angry as yours. And also Christina Hoff-Sommers, whose book Who stole feminism? shows that some feminists are clearly aware of the problems and chauvinism in the thinking of more radical feminists and duly criticize them.

But again: you're also exaggerating here. 'Bigoted'? Do you think Ms Clark-Flory, or Broadsheet, would favor prejudice, say, against gays, Muslims, blacks, or even Christians? When has any of the editors here claimed these things are intrinsically bad? Couldn't it be that you are reading too much into their writings -- adding a context that you've seen somewhere else but which doesn't really apply here?

Yes, I think Broadsheet is, all in all, quite freethinking, although it clearly is feminism-oriented. I've seen lots of different opinions expressed here, including for example yours, and I don't see them being censored. The worst thing that happens is that you may not get a red star -- and frankly, that's hardly a punishment. And it's not a sure thing -- I've seen what you could describe as anti-feminist opinions also getting red stars. I've been myself critical of some Broadsheet posts -- especially those about how the media is 'objectifying women', which I think is all a misunderstanding, and those who claim the difference between men and women in specific areas is always due to discrimination, which I think is at best logically hazardous -- and nobody has tried to burn me at the stake or discredit me as a 'stupid anti-feminist male' or whatever. No, all in all, I've received respect here, even from those who didn't agree with me. Now, what is your experience? Have you been persecuted here because of your ideas?

OK, I'll stop here. Feel free to react and/or comment on anything I wrote.