Hey Dick, if women were themselves, how many men would sleep with them? Not many. But the real question is, if ANYONE, male or female, was themselves, how many members of the opposite sex, or their own sex, would sleep with them? The human race would die out because we'd all just stay at home having sex with the only person any of us really love, which is ourselves.

Brighstar, don't patronize me. You needn't be sweeter to me. Didn't I just write a long letter claiming we should all be ourselves, unless we're trying to sleep with someone (see above)? Do you think so little of me that you think I could turn around and be such a hypocrite? Spar with me as honestly and harshly as you want and I'll hit you back with the same.

I don't think you understand women very well. Indeed, I wonder what kind of women you've been hanging out with. You're clearly smart though, and a thinking person, so I respect you for that.

I drink a toast to your health and look forward to future squabbling with you.

If you’re a man, you’ll never know what it’s like to be a woman, just as I’ll never know what it’s like to be a man.

Doesn't stop feminists from constantly acting as if they DO know what it means to be a man. According to feminists, every man is a CEO, President, Demigod and Superhero all rolled into one. Women NEVER account for the fact that the vast majority of men are relatively powerless, CERTAINLY LESS POWERFUL than the women in their lives, on average. Feminism cutely seems to negate women's power and forget about it, which leads one to naturally wonder what exactly IS feminism's agenda if it is NOT about honesty.

Us gals have been experiencing such things for a lot longer than men have. We’ve got thousands of years of history to resent as opposed to men, for whom this is a recent phenomenon.

Really? What makes you so certain that this is true?

Feminists who hate men as a whole, simply for being men, aren’t feminists. They're hateful, angry people who want to blame someone else for their own shortcomings. They’ve found an ideology that includes them and can be twisted to exclude half the population. They should be criticized as rigorously as men who are blindly misogynistic. I agree with your characterization of these people as “cretins.”

Agreed. I am one who criticizes them. With GLEE.

Humanism is my aim. Both sexes should be treated fairly. I don’t presume to speak about what men are experiencing, since I’m not a man. I can’t say what hurts and what men are being pressured into as a group. All I can do is be a supportive girlfriend and friend to my boyfriend and male friends. I would be interested in knowing your take on what massive wrongs men are experiencing though.

I am basically humanist, we are not so different. I want women to be strong and successful, unlike many men who ingratiate themselves with women just to prove themselves hateful dismissive snakes.

Does it surprise you to know that I’m a big fan of Camille Paglia ? Does it surprise you to know that I am young, pretty, and pro-sex? You knew absolutely nothing about me when you responded to my polite and measured letter with your impolite and unmeasured diatribe. Now you do know a few things about me and it doesn’t seem we’re so different. Still think I represent all that is wrong with women?

I cannot hate a fan of CP. I never hated you anyway. I only put your comments to a harsh light-- too harsh for you, I apologize, I made an example of you. But don't take it personally. We'd probably get along swimmingly in real life. I like a feisty brainy girl who has guts enough to stand up for herself.

Why were you so presumptuous and defensive? There was nothing in my letter that should have led you to make the statements you made. I respect your points of view, but I don’t respect your personal attacks or inability to see what I was saying. You made discussion impossible and missed the point.

Perhaps. We can spar again in the future, dear. I'll be sweeter to you.

Bright star,we recently got into a dispute over a different column. Your response to my assertion that people ought to be judged as themselves prompted you to declare that I exemplify everything that is wrong with women today.

Not you [necessarily], but your attitude. Not your fault necessarily either, you were programed to think a certain way. But nonetheless it is the role of men to push back at injustices, even if they are cloaked in a semblance of social acceptability (which, coincidentally, is left to women to define in the first place).

I felt the need to respond because you were unfair. ...I’m going to refrain from personal speculations about you, although your letters are a minefield of remarks that imply you have axes to grind,

Who doesn't? Feminists are famously good at this. Equal opps, baby.

so I will address your speculations about me. Some things you seem to assume about me: 1) I am female 2) I hate men 3) I am bisexual 4) I do not want men to be themselves 5) I was a Hillary supporter.

The fifth is the easiest to deal with—Hillary was not my first choice. I agree that Hillary had many offensive positions. You do not seem to have a very nuanced perspective on the candidates.

They are all dishonest in the worst way. Bought and paid for ACTORS. Hillary is worse, being mean spirited and vengeful too.

I look at their positions as positions on complex issues that have many advantages and disadvantages.

Mostly disadvantages. I do not believe in overwhelmingly LARGE government-- it can only lead to VERY BAD THINGS. Nobody in line for the presidency represents ANYTHING OTHER THAN overwhelming deadly force pitted against the whole of humanity, and humanity is too drugged up to notice.

I think the response to the rest of your assumption can be condensed. You’re right. I am a woman. As for the rest of it—I love men. Most of my friends are men, and I love to hear them talk honestly. In general, I enjoy the company of men more than the company of most women. All of my lovers have been men. Most of what I read, watch, and listen to is created by men. The average woman is equally annoying to me as the average male. I like extraordinary people who are freaky and bizarre, like me. People who don’t stand behind tired out issues and sloganeer about things they don’t understand. Averageness annoys me, as does taking things at face value. That’s not a gender issue, but a human one. If I like you, I like you, regardless of whether you're male or female.

you say these things, but reality is quite different. You love what men DO for you. you love what men represent to you. You might even love men. That does not prevent you from being an empty vessel filled with rancor against men that society has deemed acceptable and thus you do not see it that way, instead seeing all your interactions with men as benevolent. Many women claim to like to hear men's opinions. Spend a few weeks on this site to see how utterly untrue this is. Women like to hear men spout what women WANT to hear men spout. Women are so used to men gaming them in order to get into the women's pants, that most women do not begin to realize how and what men REALLY think until the women are too old to be of interest sexually to men.

I don’t see how my argument about people being themselves and being judged as themselves made you think I wasn’t including men. Men should be themselves too. If they hate Hillary, they should go ahead and hate her. I’d just liked to be assured it’s not because she’s got a vagina and breasts. I feel like a lot of anti-Hillary rhetoric was focused on those factors, not her support of the war, or support of the gas tax holiday, or whatever the positions you found offensive were.

Men are not allowed to bee themselves. There is not even an allowance for men to try to discover what it is that means a man can be himself. Most men give away their autonomy, letting women around them tell them what they are supposedly thinking, feeling, or what they should be doing to be considered WORTHY men. It is all unconscious and subliminal, but nonetheless powerful in defining what is acceptable for men to do.

One off my jobs is to parse out and bring into the light some of these threads of power that women are so skillful at manipulating and WORSE that women have been granted rights over in tthe first place (for some bizarre reason).

Men are NOT themselves. They live among women that demand the men PRODUCE, ACHIEVE, CREATE, ACCOMPLISH or else they are mooching losers. I do not see women being treated so harshly by men.