ARETE writes:

Thank you so much for your recommendation of Henry James’s novel The Bostonians (also discussed here, here, here and here.) I just finished it and I am reeling. I partly read it and partly listened to it through Librivox while I did my housework. I highly recommend Librivox to all my friends and you might pass that on to your readers and other “thinking housewives” whose hands are busy at their work.

It was these lines, referring to the wealthy suffragist Olive, that struck me the most from the first book, end of chapter 20:

[T]he very essence of the feminine lot was a monstrous artificial imposition, crying aloud for redress. She was willing to admit that women, too, could be bad; that there were many about the world who were false, immoral, vile. But their errors were as nothing to their sufferings; they had expiated, in advance, an eternity, if need be, of misconduct. …. Men must take their turn, men must pay!

For a long time now, I have thought that feminism has at its heart a rejection of the idea of virtue (and well that makes sense as virtue comes from the Latin for man.) For instance, humility is not something that a woman is supposed to have anymore — only men are supposed to be humble. Nor are women (according to feminism) supposed to be modest or kind or patient, but men are. In short, women have already been “virtuous enough” and they might sin heartily, egregiously, as they have already” expiated in advance an eternity of misconduct.” And to look around us I suppose we have entered into that brave new world now: into the “eternity of misconduct.” Now, thanks to feminism, women can behave badly without shame. (more…)

  AT Camera Lucida, Kidist Paulos Asrat has a long post on how to improve the visual environment. She advocates starting with one's own appearance: Avoid sneakers, sweatshirts and many other parts of the drab uniform of modern life. She writes: [T]he interesting thing about aesthetics is that it doesn’t require “equality” to function in any and all levels of life. The young shop girl can look beautiful (or at least aesthetically pleasing) and can borrow her ideas form the wealthy socialite to form her own pleasant look. Also, when beauty is around, even in limited quantities, everyone benefits. A beautiful statue in park is for everyone to appreciate. A beautiful lady glimpsed at in her car (in a store, a restaurant, etc.) makes people happy, including the lowly shop girl. Beauty does make the world a better place, I’m convinced.

DEAR Laura Wood,

I’m a little bit ashamed of myself because I often thought to write and say thank you for your website, your time, and your work. The young French man beat me to it. His letter greatly moved me.

My heart goes out to traditional women. I know that traditional women are under a lot of pressure to turn “liberated.” They are actually treated worse than the “horrible” white man is today, which is saying a lot. (more…)

IN AN interview about the introduction of women into combat positions in the Marines, Gen. James F. Amos told The New Tork Times this week that he plans to ask all Marines to fill out an anonymous online survey about the roles of women in the Corps. “I’m not one bit afraid of the results of this,” he said. “I’m very bullish on women.” Ahh, okay. But the survey isn’t about what he thinks, it’s about what other people think. I wonder how many men would be inclined to honesty, even in an anonymous format, when their commander has clearly expressed his views.

I would like to ask the commandant a question. Does he wish his mother had been trained in machine gun assault tactics? Does he think the world will be a better place if little girls see armed women in fatigues?

Here’s one more. Would he like to be married to a soldier? Or would he just as soon other men deal with that.

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THE Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ruled that a “transgendered” person who claims to be discriminated against by an employer can seek compensation for sex discrimination under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act. Jesse McKinley of The New York Times reports:

In a decision hailed by advocates for transgender people, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission has ruled that a California woman who was denied a job at the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives after revealing that she was transitioning from her former life as a man can seek legal redress under sex-discrimination regulations.

This is profoundly hypocritical. It makes no sense. The “transgendered” person says sexual identity is real and means everything. And then he seeks government help in maintaining that sexual identity means nothing. The Times continues:

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GLENN STANTON debunks the widely cited claim that Christians divorce more often than those with no religious affiliation. In fact, the opposite is true. Unfortunately, the numbers he mentions for divorce among those who “regularly attend church” are still high.

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GUILAIN writes:

I am writing from France which is my homeland so my English might be not very good. Reading your blog for nearly two months (with a dictionary) has helped me to improve it though.

I’m a young man who is 23 years old. I’ve been reading various blogs from the French blogosphere for two or three years now. I’ve first read a blog from the Anglosphere in early 2012. Since then I’ve spent quite much time exploring it. (more…)

THAT’S the bottom line of Ann Romney’s speech in Connecticut yesterday, in which she addressed criticism by Democratic strategist Hilary Rosen, who complained that she had not worked for a living. As Politico reports: (more…)

IN THE previous entry about President Obama’s habit of putting his feet up on tables and desks, the reader Carolyn writes:

I have always been a careless, absent-minded, casual dresser. Long ago, my father tried periodically to explain to me the importance of dressing up, upon occasion, but I never quite “got it.” (more…)

TWO YEARS ago, Israelis comentators were  reportedly strongly critical of Obama for propping his feet up on his desk while talking to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu by phone. The pose was considered extremely disrespectful. (more…)

  SEBASTIEN writes: The post on the "unambitious women" who have nothing better to do than weave crosses out of wheat caught my eye. The work they have done is quite beautiful and there is every chance that their work will travel the centuries and be appreciated by admirers who by chance enter the church to shelter from the rain. This was the case when we took shelter in St Antoine's Church, Nozeroy in the Jura region of France. In this church, you will find 17th century wheat embroidery in near perfect condition. The attached photo is one that I took in 2010. There are few more photos here.

WRITING at Town Hall, Star Parker says that Hilary Rosen presents a serious image problem for Obama, not because of what she said about Ann Romney but because of who she is: a lesbian, radical left activist. Parker contends this kind of prominence for a lesbian is too much for mainstream America. It would be great if that were so, but this strikes me as wishful thinking. After all, a former GOP vice president, Dick Cheney, had a daughter who lived publicly as a lesbian and it did not seem to hurt him politically.

Parker writes:

Rosen, who works closely with the White House, is a high dollar lesbian “inside-the-beltway” Washington power broker. She and her now estranged partner, the former director the Human Rights Campaign – an organization championing rights of lesbians, gays, bisexuals, and transgenders – adopted two black children in 1999.

Her current lesbian partner is president of the American Federation of Teachers – the nation’s second largest teachers’ union. (more…)

AT Galliawatch, Tiberge writes on the election results in France:

Marine Le Pen did very well. Much better than I thought at noon today. She probably actually garnered more than 20% but it is not likely we will ever know the true figures. At any rate, she is officially a politician to contend with and will be regarded as a major player in the French political landscape.

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THE WOMEN of St. Fidelis Church in Victoria, Kansas are clearly not leaning into their careers, as Sheryl Sandberg would say. In fact, they are so unambitious, they have time to do things like make this cross out of wheat. (View a much sharper image here.)

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