I moved this thread to Chit Chat since it has veered sharply away from questions pertaining to writing, the the representation of men in entertainment.
I disagree. In the U.S., and I expect in many other places, there is still a pay gap. The pay gap affects women of all demographics, but women of color and older women are hit even harder by it. As a rule, women tend to be more highly represented in part-time, or uncertain job positions, less represented in the upper tiers of the work force, and statistically make less, on average, than their male counterparts.
Women still tend to be underrepresented in the board room and in government, despite making up just over half of the population. This is particularly true in the tech industry, and women still have a ways to go to be represented properly in math, science, engineering, and the like. If you look at how girls are treated in their early education, from elementary school through high school, you can see that much of disparity is due to institutionalized differences in how boys and girls are taught, and how teachers interact with them.
Domestic/sexual violence still disproportionately affects women, as do societal stereotypes or views on the victims of sexual violence. This takes on an increased level of severity in some countries, that is true, but that doesn't mean it doesn't exist in the U.S. as well. It does.
Women are still vastly more likely than men to fall below the poverty line after a divorce.
Women face an intrusive level of government regulation into their health and reproductive lives, even in the U.S., to an extent unknown by men.
Women, even in the U.S. still take on the bulk of domestic and child-rearing activities, even in two-income households where both partners are working outside of the home.
And so on.
The "everything is already equal" argument isn't really borne out by the facts, and the "women have even more rights" argument is absurd on its face.
Is this kind of thread even allowed on MS in spite of the political moratorium? Honestly, the various discussions of diversity (gender, race, or whatever) in writing were more interesting than this. At least they were on-topic.
Yes, in a de jure manner, total gender equality is basically achieved. However, in a de facto manner, it isn't.
Bortasz:
I am familiar with all of the pay gap arguments. Saying it is a myth just makes you look uneducated. The gap exists.
OK this is not at all where I intended this to go.....( stopped reading after the second page) Guess I should have waited till later when I had more time to write out few questions pertinent for a stimulating discussion in relation to writing.
However, I have a difficult time fathoming that a guy like me would be objectively more "privileged" than, say, a black lesbian who had all her stuff together and didn't have my self-loathing tendencies.
On a completely unrelated note relative to my last post, doesn't anyone else think toy stores are a bit sexist? Toys for girls always get 1-2 aisles that are colored pink, whereas toys for boys always take up the rest of the store and have multiple color schemes. It's like girls have only a tiny section of the store to browse from while their male counterparts get to explore much vaster terrain.
Oh, and they should make more action figures for girls. Less Barbie and more Lara Croft.
O yes I forget.
Thanks to remind me about Video Games and Women from there.