Post
by mrphil » Sun Oct 21, 2018 4:01 am
I take your point, Daisy.
But in no way would I, nor did I, mean to imply that a math error was because she's a woman. That would be foolish, and personal experience indicates otherwise. If someone, anyone, gave an answer that fell outside what I considered a normal range based on statistical averages that potentially represented an anomaly, there would be no eye rolling, but I would want to check/make sure that arriving at the answer wasn't based on a miscalculation. It happens all the time, and to everyone. It would clarify things for my edification, and it would inevitably help the person to improve and become a better and safer navigator. I believe that's the job of any good teacher. The teachers and professors that were hardest and held me to task were the ones that made the biggest impact, and the ones I'll always be thankful to and never forget.
I also have to clarify my use of the word "badass". That was her word used to describe her guide friend, not mine. She was in the process of establishing her credentials in order to make her case as an experienced, competent speaker. It was just one possibility that bears consideration (as it would be with a man, too), along with that she is able to maintain a 4 mph pace all day long, and that her math calculations were either right or wrong (again, the same as any man). Had she not drifted from her subject (her thesis statement) and into an only semi-veiled form of generalized man bashing, I would have been much more receptive to what she had to say, and I think her credentials and credibility would've served her better in getting her point across. If her intention was to whip up a mob of Elle readers into a state of indignation, I think she might have been successful...let's just hope that there are at least a few outdoor clothing makers among them. If she was trying to reach out to men at all, be they in the clothing business or otherwise, I found her too willing to engage in her own form of stereotyping that's really no different than what she's decrying, and equally insidious. I found it insulting, and I came away not caring about her, her clothing issues, or even what she had to say about any of it. Man, woman, whatever, nothing more than the first-world trials and tribulations of a whiner.