This 'where's the outrage?' comment hurled at feminists every time some sexist outrage taking place in the middle east comes to light drives me crazy. Feminist groups, by and large, are the ONLY people in the western world who pay consistent attention to this sort of thing. I mean Jesus Christ I am an armchair feminist if anything, meaning my 'activism' is limited mostly to mouse-clicks, but I knew what the Taliban were doing to women in Afghanistan years before 9/11. How did I know this? By keeping up to date on feminist blogs, websites and, yes, even print publications. I did not, however, read it in any major newspaper or hear about it on any of the major television networks--not until Afghanistan became a major front o the 'war on terror' and the plight of Afghan women a convenient justification for dropping bombs. All of a sudden the rest of the western world gave a shit about Afghan women and just as suddenly came the accusations hurled at western feminists: "Hey! You guys are always whining about women's rights, so why haven't we heard you whining about this? We've heard *nothing* from you this whole time--not a peep! Obviously you couldn't care less about women's rights and this whole feminism thing is a excuse for self-interest and generally being a pain in the ass."

Of course, feminists (and *only* feminists, it's fair to say) have been whining about violations of women's rights at home and abroad for ages. What everyone forgets at times like these is that feminist voices are almost never heard nor heeded in the mainstream culture. These accusations, in particular, come from the kind of people who would run to take a decontamination shower after coming into contact with a copy of Ms. Magazine. They have no idea one way or another what 'feminists' are saying at any given time, yet they rail against feminist complacence with total self-assurance.

Sorry, broadsheet, for enabling troll-driven thread-drift. Yay for affordable, accessible birth control!

Awright. I'll take the bait.

The Broadsheet WTF had to do with why Rhianna's anger problems should be mentioned at all in a story about the woman in question getting the living shit beaten out of her. Who gives a shit if she has anger issues? Who gives a shit if she has a heroin addiction? Who gives a shit if she's an international superspy/assassin? That's not the story. The story is she had the shit beaten out of her and filed charges against her lover for doing the beating. Maybe she does have anger issues. Maybe she did hit him first. Hell, maybe she should even be charged for it. But the fact remains: Rhianna had the living shit beaten out of her, and she says her boyfriend did that in a separate suit. The story Broadsheet was addressing was the whacked out media spin in some instances--the immediate "What did she do to deserve it?" There may be two sides to every story but there's only one party in this story who ended up with her face rearranged. What we're concerned with here is a little thing called blaming the victim. Thanks for providing yet another fine example.

What you're saying is kinda the point of the article isn't it? There was this trend, this trend was kind of dumb, lots of people participated in it, but now it's waning. No one's accusing anyone else of putting a gun to anyone's head. But surely you understand something as basic as cultural pressure? Say you come of age in the 70s. Sideburns are popular on men. Awesome. You love sideburns. Sideburns are totally you. Yours are full and lustrous. You are admired by men, desired by women. Then it's the 80s. Hairstyles remain ridiculous, but sideburns are no longer de rigeur. Still, it's your look and you'll be damned if you're giving up on them. A couple of guys at the office crack wise at your expense. You learn that a few people refer to you as "sideburn guy". Whatever. You're happy with who you are.

It's the 90s. Every single person in the office now refers to you as 'sideburn guy'. Anonymous caricatures of you are occasionally circulated. You're still a healthy, fit and virile man, yet somehow the women don't seem as entranced as they once were. Occasionally your friends and family will remark on your sideburns with a distinct air of impatience. At last your best friend, over drinks, interrupts your complaint about your lacklustre love life with the edict: Dude, lose the sideburns.

What do you do? Maybe you keep your sideburns. But not everyone is blessed with your confidence and unshakable sense of self, you know?