Julii ( 10 years ago )
Well, I've made it clear that I'm personally not 100% on the side of this bglgoer, but I do think they have some valid points to make. And I also feel that the hatred Watson gets is over-the-top, but at the same time, I don't think she's above reproach. And again, I'll point to how Skepchick was falling over itself with praise for the last TAM, but in the last 11 months has done an about-face and has declared that TAM is bad for women and is not a safe space. I'm sorry, but that stinks to high heaven; something is just not right.I think there's wrong being done on BOTH sides of this squabble, and at this point it doesn't matter who's wrong is worse. The problem is we have people on both sides digging in their heels and refusing to budge. There's screwed-up human beings in the mix here (and I don't mean that as a slam to anyone, to my mind being human is to be screwed-up by definition) and lots of emotions at play, including a lot of wounded ego and injured pride on both sides. And yes, prejudice. I do believe there's some sexism going on, but also I think sometimes (not always) folks can see prejudice where possibly none was intended or no ill-will felt. I've seen that with feminists, with pagans/wiccans, with gays, etc. I've dealt with folks who are sexist and racist; I have an acquaintance who is rather sexist, quite racist, but without a trace of homophobia. I've dealt with women who intensely hate men and assume men only want to get laid. Look at Dianic Wiccan Z. Budapest, who raised ire at a pagan gathering for declaring her women-only circles were openly only to those who were  born women,  e.g. no transsexuals allowed. I knew a self-styled feminist who felt that men were menaces to society and should be eliminated, and another who just shrugs and says  We're all messed up in this world,  and invites me over for dinner and bad movies.Despite the rambling, my point is, I've seen it all before. Are sexual assaults being covered up at TAM or other skeptic events? I don't know, I'd like to see both sides of the issue. Are people being sexist? Or overly touchy? A large part of it is in our perceptions.So what if the next TAM is only 18% women? There's still women going and presenting, women who DO feel it's safe space. And I'm waiting to hear anything they have to say about it. It could very well be this is all a temporary aberration and next year it'll be back up again. Who knows? Maybe this will all blow over. Maybe DJ Grothe will resign in disgrace and go to a farm to raise turnips. Maybe Rebecca Watson will be revealed as a liar and end up working at McDonald's. (Not that I think either of them are evil and deserve that, but it's always a possibility.) There's little way of knowing what the future holds.And even if this  new blood  you spoke of once rises up and starts its own string of events, it's not going to be sunshine, lollipops, and rainbows. I say it's almost guaranteed that this vaunted  new blood  will suffer it's own internal conflicts and accusations of prejudice (either the same or different ones I'm waiting for shrieks about speciesism if it's held in a hotel that serves meat), because history repeats itself.Because new blood or not, they're still human, and fall prey to human nature, in all its glorious ugliness.

Jenilyn ( 10 years ago )
or how they have responded to us, we tend to inevst a lot of value into the opinions of others.    But, in the end, it is our own responsbility to affirm ourselves regardless of what others may think or do.  One of the great gifts I hear many nudist say they receive as a nudist is a sense of self acceptance.   Nature doesn't make junk.  Living life does gives wear and tear.  Never, never ask me to believe that a woman missing a breast because of life saving surgery is somehow now broken.  Yes, nature does experiment and sometimes we could be shocked into a new awareness by all the ways that nature does experiment.  Most of us never see or imagine all of what that may be.   Yet, as a community we pride ourselves on our ability to transcend and to accept and therefore affirm.  In the giving, we receive and that process gives us a sense of self that speaks very highly of who we are.   No shame, no guilt   a community that should proudly state that we are where our ancesters were and where our collected future should be going back towards.

FrancisNeil ( 10 years ago )
Namaste,To me, body acceptance is a two fold issue. First, it means to me that it is not my place to judge otehrs' bodies, precisely because those are *their* bodies. If I had no eyes with which to see, or hands with which to feel, would I judge their bodies? Probably not. Their health, their size, their genetic makeup, what they eat or don't eat- these are none of my business. I believe that people ought to have dominion over their own bodies. I also acknowledge that some people live in  food deserts,' and so have varying degrees of access to healthcare, food choices, etc. Shaming people into looking a certain way is harmful. Second, body acceptance- of my own body- means that I must accept my body today as it is, regardless of its imperfections, however real or perceived. It means that I will not abuse my body to force it to conform to some ideal. I will not equate size or shape with health. It means that I prioritize emotional and psychological health, and recognize that while physical health is important, and affect psychology, it is not to be based on looks. Blood-work, bones scans, and such are between my doctor and me, and I should follow physician recommendations, based on my medical needs.This is the only body I have, it belongs only to me. Your body is your own. Judgement based on looks is unnecessary.xo

hi ( 14 years ago )
fantastic