I Read It So You Don't Have To: The Flipside to Feminism

[GolightlyGrrl]

Hello, my latest review of a book that should not be taken lightly, but thrown with great force to paraphrase the great Dorothy Parker, "The Flipside of Feminism: What Conservative Women Know and Men Cant' Say" by Phyllis Schlafly and Suzanne Venker has been posted at our blog.

http://blog.freejinger.org/i-read-it-so ... ne-venker/

Enjoy and let me know what you think.

Also, if you could tell me what other books I should review for this series I'd love to know. Hopefully, I'll be able to find some of them at my local library.

[meda]

Great review, I agree that the complete lack of awareness of class or racial privilege makes the book even more obnoxious. And I agree, the Gail Collins book is a nice antidote.

[CynicMom]

Do The Harbinger by Jonathan Cahn. Great review!

[jaynie]

I couldn't even finish your post without wanting to tear my hair out in frustration (at Schlafly and Venker, not you), so I'm very impressed you made it all the way through the book!

I just can't deal with the massive disconnect between the thing they're arguing agaisnt (Straw feminism?) and the reality. I mean how do you even begin to counter that? You can't have a debate with someone if you don't agree on the basic premises, which I suspect is to their advantage. They say "Feminism, which is X, is bad because..." and the feminists have to come back with "Feminism is nothing like X what you talkin' bout Feminism is Y" which doesn't address whether it's actually a good thing or not. So to the idiots who are already on their side, it looks like they've won. It's the same way creationists "win" debates. Not very intellectually honest, but then their audiences aren't generally comprised of intellectuals in the first place.

[GolightlyGrrl]

Thanks for the comments so far. I really appreciate them.

I'll admit that it took a lot of fortitude (and liquor) to get through this book. I can handle there are people who hold conservative viewpoints. What I can't handle is black and white thinking, which pretty much defines this book. For instance, Phyllis and Suzanne mention one female conservative pundit who agrees with a few progressive ideas. They quickly brand her with the F-word and dismiss this pundit with a condescending wave of the hand instead of appreciating her critical thinking skills.

And Schlafly and Venker's inability to recognize both their class and racial privilege really got to me. Feminists have often been accused of being an elitist bunch, but it's anti-feminists like these two who truly take the cake. And I think it's their lack of empathy towards others that makes them unable to acknowledge their privilege.

I also appreciate the book idea, CynicMom. It looks interesting. I have a few books already in mind for my reviews, but I'll definitely keep your suggestion in mind.

[louisa05]

Phyllis Schlafly is such a hypocrite. I remember listening to her on her radio show while driving one day as she explained to some poor young woman whose family was in dire financial straits that it is absolutely wrong for any woman ever and anywhere to work outside her home. I was swearing at my radio and yelling "you are telling her this while at your own job, you f*cking hypocrite!" Somehow education, work, and leaving the kids at home was okay for her since she is telling the rest of us how to live but it isn't okay for women who need to, I don't know, keep a roof over their heads and feed their families. STFU, Phyllis.

[MysteryHaggis]

Thanks so much for this. I've wanted to read it for agesbut didn't want to spend the cash on the eBook. Away to read now!

[Curious]

I'm just going to give this a little bump to make sure people get a chance to see it. Things move so fast here, I tend to miss stuff, so I'm sure others do as well.

Thanks for taking one for the team, Golightlygrrl :) I really like how you add the Palate Cleanser after your reviews, as well.

[keen23]

What about something by Dr Laura- like The Proper Care and Feeding of Husbands?

I'm the proud owner of The Total Woman by Marabel Morgan (the infamous "greet your husband at the door wearing nothing but saran wrap" book), that would be a fabulous book to review- it's sooo dated and backwards

There's this series called The Politically Incorrect Guides that seem to be a huge ball of bullshit

[debrand]

You want to tear your hair out? Read a book called What? Me Obey Him?

[GeoBQn]

Here's my list of suggestions:

The Surrendered Wife by Laura Doyle

You're Teaching My Child What? A Physician Exposes the Lies of Sex Ed and How They Harm Your Child by Miriam Grossman

Unplanned by Abby Johnson

The Princess and the Kiss by Jennie Bishop (plus the guide for parents!)

[GolightlyGrrl]

Thanks for the bump! And not the baby bump. Snerk. Though I may experience some deep, unbearable pain reading these books, I know it is imperative to take a few for my FJ-ers.

And thanks for the book suggestions. I wouldn't be surprised if plenty of these are at my local library. I'm going to start a new review shortly, which I hope to have up next week.

I'm also thinking of starting a new series: "I Watch It So You Don't Have To." I saw the DVD for "Fireproof" at the library and I was convicted.

[CallmeChaCha]

Thanks for taking one for the team! I don't know if I'd be able to sit through a book like that. I can't imagine two people (i know there's more) that are so adamant at ... well, I really dont know what to call it. Keeping women down? I wonder if either one of them has nannies or cleaning ladies. Where do they get their hair done? And their nails? Surely, whatever beauty parlor they frequent has female employees, even if they request to have a male employee do their hair/nails. Ay, these people!

[Arete]

Schlafly is something like 300 years old and has always been a power player in the Republican Party. She has been systematically been sidelined since one of her sons came out as gay about 10-15 years ago. Now in her old age she publishes columns and books about the big bad feminists who ruined everything. :roll:

[desertvixen]

What's scary is that she is still making the same arguments as she did in 1972. We're up to that period in my class this semester, and I enjoyed her writing SOOOO MUCH that I had to swing on over to see what Andy's been up to lately in Conservapedia-land.

[chaotic life]

I have a friend who considers Schafley her greatest hero and mentor. I had to hide her FB status because her garbage and hate was too nauseating anymore. She has the same intellectual disconnect as Schafely. She's an attorney who used to work for the DA's office, took several years off to be the at-home, homeschooling mom before she couldn't take it anymore, enrolled her kids in private Catholic school, opened her own law practice, ran for Count Attorney for her county (and soundly lost) and is now a political lobbyist who campaigns and advocates to strip women of their rights and freedoms while others actively raise her six children that she only sees half of any given week because she doesn't want her kids raised near the state capital where she "doesn't" work.

I got tired of wanting to screaming, "Why do you want to take away the protections and advantages YOU are benefitting from away from those poorer and less privileged than you?"

It seems she is doing an excellent job of emulating her mentor, given this review. Sigh, she was a terrific person until she jumped the shark into these logical fallacies and went rabid anti-women...just like her mentor.

[Salamander]

Great review!

Well, feminists demand Title IX, which opened up athletic opportunities for girls, because guys who play sports are usually conservative (yea, right).

I didn't understand this part. Are Schlafly and Venker implying that girls wanted to get into sports to "steal" all the good manly conservative guys, or do they mean that girls wanted to take the place of said good manly conservative athletes?

I'm also thinking of starting a new series: "I Watch It So You Don't Have To." I saw the DVD for "Fireproof" at the library and I was convicted.

This movie is unintentionally hilarious. Also boring. But exceedingly snarkworthy.

91VEAcViNPo

This about sums it up. My favorite character was Mr. Rudolph the neighbor, who appears the three times Kirk Cameron's character has a shitfit in the front yard, the last one being when he takes a baseball bat to his computer to "solve" his internet addiction problem. The movie's too prudish pious to specify what he's addicted to, so instead of being caught watching pr0n, his wife walks in on him looking at pictures of his dream boat. Cue the "whacking off to yachts" jokes.

I look forward to reading your review if you decide to do it.

[snuggles911]

I've heard this book promoted on several Men's Rights and Biblical Womanhood blogs. I'd like to read it just to understand their world view better, but I worry that it will get me really pi##ed off.

[Hane]

Ah, hell--Schlafly was a big conservative antifeminist mucky-muck back when I was in college in the '70s. She's STILL out there flapping her jaws?

Thanks ever so, GolightlyGrrl. I especially loved her contention that "feminists were raised by Baby Boomers and conservatives were raised by The Greatest Generation." Somebody'd better clue in all those 60+-year-old feminists at my church that they're doin it rong.

[louisa05]

I was raised by a feminist of the "Silent Generation"--the small cohort born during the Depression and World War II prior to the Baby Boom. What does that mean? Can I be a feminist or not? Is my mother?

I hope Phyllis will explain it to me.

[Maggie Mae]

I'd like someone to read all of Glenn Beck's books. Actually, I'd like to read them and discuss them but I don't want to give him any money. I mean, the last two he wrote he advertised them on his show as SO IMPORTANT and SO GOOD that they must be, right?

[GolightlyGrrl]

Great review!

I didn't understand this part. Are Schlafly and Venker implying that girls wanted to get into sports to "steal" all the good manly conservative guys, or do they mean that girls wanted to take the place of said good manly conservative athletes?

This movie is unintentionally hilarious. Also boring. But exceedingly snarkworthy.

91VEAcViNPo

This about sums it up. My favorite character was Mr. Rudolph the neighbor, who appears the three times Kirk Cameron's character has a shitfit in the front yard, the last one being when he takes a baseball bat to his computer to "solve" his internet addiction problem. The movie's too prudish pious to specify what he's addicted to, so instead of being caught watching pr0n, his wife walks in on him looking at pictures of his dream boat. Cue the "whacking off to yachts" jokes.

I look forward to reading your review if you decide to do it.

Hi Salamander, from my gathering I think Schlafly and Venker wanted Title IX so their sports could replace sports played by men (i.e. football) because the world of sports spawns conservative men. Apparently Schlafly and Venker can't imagine there are athletic men who are not conservative. Obviously there are more liberal sports-oriented guy just judging from the well of support for out NBA member Jason Collins. And sports writer Dave Zirin is a liberal who writes for "The Nation." Then again Schlafly and Venker probably think all girls who are into sports and benefit from Title IX are a bunch of hairy-legged lesbians so we shouldn't care about them because they're not real women. :roll:

And thanks for the scoop on "Fireproof." I'm sure it's totally snarkworthy. I'll try to watch it soon.

[GolightlyGrrl]

I'd like someone to read all of Glenn Beck's books. Actually, I'd like to read them and discuss them but I don't want to give him any money. I mean, the last two he wrote he advertised them on his show as SO IMPORTANT and SO GOOD that they must be, right?

All of Glenn Beck's books? All of them? Are you trying to kill someone? ;)

And anyone want to donate to this guy?

http://theimmoralminority.blogspot.com/ ... cause.html