Afghan women live as slaves (minor gag alert)

The Deseret News ^ | 10/12/2001 | Ellen Goodman

[ignatz_q]

Defining roles, not defining oppression. Oppression is clearly defined. Please read what I wrote.

I did read what you had written. My point was that if the defining of roles leads members of the population to be unjustly burdened without course of redress, then such defining of roles is essentially oppressive. I'm not going to split hairs over a single example, but claiming that oppression is not oppression because you don't like the way the left uses the term isn't really an argument.

I'm using a classic definition of oppression, and I stand by my statement that I cannot find an example of a fundamentalist religion that does not, to one degree or another, exert some oppression over some of its women members. If you have an example, I would be pleased to hear about it and debate with you its merits.

[ignatz_q]

See, just as our friend kd5cts argued against the knee-jerk use of the word oppression on the part of the left, I have to take some exception to the use of the word victimology here. I think our fellow conservatives often write off any grievance on the part of a group like women as victimology, without really looking at the facts in a particular instance.

In the case of fundamentalist religions oppressing women, I'll certainly agree that not everyone who says they are being oppressed are. But in the case of someone who has been unjustly burdened because of their sex, and who because of their sex has no redress through the community, I think "victimology" is misapplied.

Of course, we're talking generalities here. I imagine we might find more common ground over specific instances.

Incidentally, Utah Girl, I want to say thanks. It's getting rarer and rarer on this board to find someone willing to discuss things instead of just using the forum as an excuse to scream.

[Utah Girl]

I think we are talking too generally here. But it has been good talking to you too.

[tuesday afternoon]

I'm one of those "outside looking in" people, so bear with me. There seems to be a fundamental (so-to-speak) flaw in this argument. In the United States, no one is forced to be part of a religious group (with cultic exception). What I observe are people who wish to makeover a religion in their own image.

I attended service at an Orthodox temple and found the male/female separation quite natural.