“War on Women” Untenable

  It’s a “War on Women” is the contemporary battle cry used whenever any viewpoints or programs offered run contrary to the thinking of a particular segment of our population.  It has been used so often and misused so egregiously that it is losing its desired effect.      

“War on Women” is dragged out and bandied about to elicit an emotional response.  Those who disagree with what certain radical female elements support are typically painted as bigoted.  In some cases, they may be bigoted.  However, what is lost in this tired old cliché is the fact that most are not bigoted.  This has the effect of hiding the central facts and arguments – of shutting down any and all discussion surrounding the actual nature and truth of the disagreements.  In some cases, those making the accusation are unable to formulate a rational argument in support of their positions.  So, they just paint opposition as bigots and no such arguments are necessary.  There is no need to present any evidence as to the opposition’s flawed thinking.  Afterall, nothing a bigot says should be given any weight – any credibility.  This is extremely disingenuous. 

Women have always been paid less than men in the workplace.  It is also true that American businesses have always strived to do whatever they can to lower and keep labor costs down.  

This mentality gave rise to labor unions.  It has also been the major impetus for closing American based factories and reopening them is countries where slave labor wages can be paid. 

Women where gladly embraced in the work force in a number of positions primarily because they could be hired for far less than their male counterparts.  This also allowed companies to pay less to their male employees.  This in turn created a viable environment that wasn’t previously present to lower wages.  With male wages lowered and as never-ending America inflation continued, a two-income family became necessary. 

Rates of pay for women in the workplace have nothing to do with a “war on women.”  It is precisely what has been transpiring in the American workplace for decades.  This is what must be addressed if we truly desire to correct the problem and not some silly notion of bigotry.  

The effort to close planned parenthood clinics, the supreme Court “Hobby Lobby” ruling, limiting abortions to within the first six weeks of gustation and a whole host of other state restrictions on abortion practices is not a “War on Women.”   It is a war on abortion.  

There are Americans who see the practice as immoral.  They want abortion abuses stopped.  In some cases, they want all abortions eliminated. They are focused on what they believe is the saving of human life.  None of this has any scurrilous connection to hating women.  Finding common ground for reasonable compromises to this contentious issue must be the goal.  Adopting a “War on Women” mentality only makes that exceedingly more difficult to accomplish. 

Finally, discrimination is discrimination.  There is no hiding it, and there should be no tolerance or acceptance of it on any level.  Yet we ignore it with regards this issue.

Women have, through their long struggle to gain equality, managed to build a discriminatory environment.  There are now various strongholds that only women occupy.  There are professional positions and in variety of industries that would never consider a male for employment – ONLY A WOMAN.  To be sure, these women are, for the most part, eminently qualified to hold their positions.  That is not the concern.  The concern is that whenever a woman leaves a position another woman will inevitability fill that vacancy.  That certainly is not common when a man leaves a position.  What is common is that if the man is replaced by a woman, a man will never again occupy that position. The outrage here is that there is clearly a discriminatory practice that is now acceptable in hiring.  No outrage is expressed. 

There are so many professional women organizations the list could stretch from New York to Los Angles.  “Women In Engineering,” “Women In Broadcasting,” “Alliance For Women in the Media,” “Association for Women in Science” and easily a hundred others.  All of these titles clearly communicate that NO MALES are welcome.  They are female bastions only.  Again, we as a people, have been reluctant to call this behavior exactly what it is – Discrimination. 

To further exasperate the problem, women attack anything resembling a male bastion.  They demand that any such organization be disbanded and/or severely altered.  The “Augusta National Golf Club” in Georgia serves as the best example and therefore the many others references are hardly necessary.  

There can be little doubt that anyone who might challenge this thinking and behavior would be charged with initiating a “War on Women.”  This intimidation allows for the despicable silence necessary to nurture these injustices. 

It is time to move for an end to the double standard we have adopted toward discrimination and bigotry.  It will be almost impossible to progress on many important issues is we fail to allow for far more reasonable and rational discussions to ensue.  Such an approach would obviously demand the suspending of any and all references to a “War on Women” along with any other forms of bias and bigotry.