George Will on Gender Politics

[chanel]

The bad news for professional feminists is that the good news is multiplying: Last year more women than men received doctoral degrees. It is ludicrous to argue that women should be regarded as victims in patriarchal, phallocentric America and must be wards of government.

Women live five years longer than men. Their unemployment rate is significantly lower. For years they have received more high-school diplomas, B.A. and M.A. degrees, and now Ph.D.s. Yet the Obama administration wants the government to increase its protection of the (it evidently assumes) weaker sex. This, even though “contrary to what feminist lobbyists would have Congress believe, girls and women are doing well.” So says Diana Furchtgott-Roth.

The gender-grievance industry—the financial-reform legislation mandates 29 new offices to favor women—has a new project. National Journal reports that the administration is “promising to litigate, regulate, and legislate the nation’s universities until women obtain half of all academic degrees in science and technology and hold half the faculty positions in those areas.”

Although women receive more B.A.s, M.A.s, and Ph.D.s than men in biology and biomedical sciences, not enough women want what the administration wants them to want. There are fewer women choosing to enter many science and engineering programs than the administration wishes, and it assumes that the reason is discrimination against women. To which Furchtgott-Roth replies: Anti-women discrimination even at women’s colleges?

At Bryn Mawr, 4 percent of 2010 graduates majored in chemistry, 2 percent in computer science. At Smith, half of 1 percent were physics majors; 1.4 percent majored in computer science. In 2009 at Barnard, one third of 1 percent majored in physics and astronomy

George F. Will: New Project for the Gender Police - Newsweek

Uh oh. Too few women scientists. Calling rdean.

Affirmative action for the "weaker sex"?

 

[Ravi]

How refreshing, he stopped bashing Muslims long enough to bash women.

 

[chanel]

Bashing women?

Wow Ravi - you've really run out of bogus PC bullshit to sling at people. Take your tin foil hat off for a moment and reflect on the term "the weaker sex". Anyone who agrees with that term is the real sexist.

 

[VaYank5150]

Bashing women?

Wow Ravi - you've really run out of bogus PC bullshit to sling at people. Take your tin foil hat off for a moment and reflect on the term "the weaker sex". Anyone who agrees with that term is the real sexist.

How much can you bench?

 

[Si modo]

How the hell anyone views what George Will says as 'bashing women' is beyond me.

 

[rightwinger]

Little has changed in the years since the Womens Liberation movement in regards to women participating in Engineering and Science. While more women forego becoming nurses to become doctors, there is still limited enrollment in engineering or hard science.

There is no reason women can't perform in these areas. It seems to be more cultural than anything else as asian and indian women seem to thrive in engineering

 

[Si modo]

Little has changed in the years since the Womens Liberation movement in regards to women participating in Engineering and Science. While more women forego becoming nurses to become doctors, there is still limited enrollment in engineering or hard science.

There is no reason women can't perform in these areas. It seems to be more cultural than anything else as asian and indian women seem to thrive in engineering

Too true.

TBH, less and less American males are going onto graduate school in chemistry and physics. Grad schools in these areas are well-populated with foreigners, though.

Personally and as you touched on, American culture is the issue. Students would rather make money in industry or go onto a more money-making endeavor than spend more time in school to get an advanced degree in chemistry or physics. It pays well enough, but does not pay nearly as well as other options available to these folks.

 

[martybegan]

Little has changed in the years since the Womens Liberation movement in regards to women participating in Engineering and Science. While more women forego becoming nurses to become doctors, there is still limited enrollment in engineering or hard science.

There is no reason women can't perform in these areas. It seems to be more cultural than anything else as asian and indian women seem to thrive in engineering

Its also a factor that when it comes to narrowly defined professions (hard science, engeineering, etc) it simply takes time for interest in these fields to develop in women. The nurse-doctor thing is a good example. Women had a foot in the field of medicine going back 150 years, it was just the end of outdated social norms that was needed for them to make the jump. In the example of engineering women were not really involved in any aspect of the field. Male Engineers had drawings made by male draftsmen, and worked for male led govermental agencies/corporations.

I have noticed that certain engineering disiplines attract more woman applicants, specifically Chemical and Environmental Engineering.

 

[chanel]

But can 29 "new offices" accomplish that? It would seem that the universities themselves would know best on how to recruit and retain female students and professors - not necessarily the government.

 

[Si modo]

The irony is that Larry Summers seems to think women just naturally can't do hard science.

Summers' remarks on women draw fire
By Marcella Bombardieri
Globe Staff / January 17, 2005

CAMBRIDGE -- The president of Harvard University, Lawrence H. Summers, sparked an uproar at an academic conference Friday when he said that innate differences between men and women might be one reason fewer women succeed in science and math careers. ....​

Summers' remarks on women draw fire - The Boston Globe

 

[NYcarbineer]

What gender is George Will, exactly?

 

[Si modo]

What gender is George Will, exactly?

Why does gender matter so much to you in this matter?

Hmmmm.

 

[chanel]

There are still significant differences in the math scores of the SAT's, however girls are outperforming boys in the classroom. Whatever the reason, the fact remains that most women would like to be promoted to full professor based on their skills; not their anatomy. Mandating a 50/50 faculty is not only totally impractical; it is wrong.

 

[Si modo]

There are still significant differences in the math scores of the SAT's, however girls are outperforming boys in the classroom. Whatever the reason, the fact remains that most women would like to be promoted to full professor based on their skills; not their anatomy. Mandating a 50/50 faculty is not only totally impractical; it is wrong.

Yup. With the feds becoming more involved in higher ed, it's just a matter of time until it is beyond fucked up.

 

[chanel]

Imagine being #1 in your class; working your ass off for your PhD, and then your colleagues accuse you of getting ahead based on your mammaries. Yup. Fucked up.

 

[Si modo]

Imagine being #1 in your class; working your ass off for your PhD, and then your colleagues accuse you of getting ahead based on your mammaries. Yup. Fucked up.

That would piss me off. This pisses me off already.

 

[rightwinger]

Imagine being #1 in your class; working your ass off for your PhD, and then your colleagues accuse you of getting ahead based on your mammaries. Yup. Fucked up.

There is always office politics and petty jealousies. If you are getting ahead and they are not, they will always come up with some reason other than you worked harder and performed better

 

[chanel]

Absolutely rightwinger. But a policy that mandates an increase like that (50/50 faculty) , would suggest that the unqualified candidate may also get promoted. Thus the qualified person would be suspect. Petty jealousies might not be so petty anymore.

 

[NYcarbineer]

What gender is George Will, exactly?

Why does gender matter so much to you in this matter?

Hmmmm.

Gender is the thread topic, Gomer.