Gender

[Bridge]

The small, as you say, 'unnoticeable' instances are exactly what helps to keep a current system in place. I'm not saying you have to shout from the rooftops are attend protests, but just question these 'unnoticeable' things and seek to change them.

I live in a small island nation of approximately 330 thousand people by the name of Iceland. We have absolutely no sway when it comes to international issues like women's rights. Don't you think it is a little unfair to expect me to take responsibility for what people who I will never even see or meet do in their own countries? There simply is not enough time for me to worry about every single thing that happens on this earth.

Not to mention, we are rated top 9th on the Gender Inequality Index. The type of sexism you are describing simply does not exist here. We have a long and rich tradition of mutual respect between the genders starting with the vikings, although admittedly women were not allowed to vote until 1915 (which is way earlier than most countries). We are also one of the first countries to elect a female head of state (who was in office for 16 years). Sure, we have domestic violence, we have rapes of all kind, we have misogynists, but it is an acceptable amount.

Now, instead of celebrating these enormous victories within my own society I can instead choose to focus on the micro-sexism that will exist no matter what (which is perpetrated by both sexes roughly equally - my guess would be that it is biological in some way) and cry myself to sleep because the situation in other countries is not as good as it is here. My question is, why should I resign myself to such a fate? Of being in constant sorrow and bitterness, spending every waking minute thinking about inequality on a global scale and trying desperately to make an already good situation even better? I choose apathy because it keeps me sane. I don't even choose apathy - I am apathetic because I am content with my contribution to the cause and there is not much contributing that needs to be done. There is an alleged minor discrepancy between the pay grade of the sexes that I don't know much about and supposedly women are treated unfairly on the labor market but almost every girl I know has a steady part-time job alongside school.

I don't even know why Bridge is conceding so much to you in this debate, you're saying things which are so patently false and drenched in hyperbole as to defy reason

I do not think they are necessarily patently false, but they certainly are, as you said, drenched in hyperbole. I concede because I cannot possibly know how others experience the issue and it would be hypocritical of me to make any absolute statements to that effect. Maybe Abraxas is delusional, and maybe she is not. It would be rude of me to make any claims when my experiences with this are modest at best. I can only say what my opinion is and how I perceive the issue, and unless I have contradictory evidence, which you do, the argument would quickly turn ugly if I didn't let down.

To say that there is no inequality is equally extreme, with all due respect.