It's 2014 now, and this topic is still on the table, nearly everyone still refusing to study it objectively SANS personal ego and conditioning. So why is that? What's up with the obsessive and blatant lack of objectivity? Well,
same as it ever was, and the whole reason scientific method exists in the first place:
Humans can't be fully objective. Humans insert their own "story" into whatever their looking at. And that means they'll DEFEND whatever their own story happens to be, instead of DETACHING themselves from their story in order to study objectively, without bias.Some do it more and some do it less, bless their hearts.
Humans will even do this while studying other animals in "scientific settings". They will anthromorphize the animals they're studying according the the animal's sex. They'll try to attribute their OWN feelings and conditioned perceptions about "masculinity" or "femininity" on random animals species that they're studying, often onto insects or crustaceans, even invertebrates. Amazing is the human brain's capacity to FAIL in objectivity, no matter how "scientific" the "study" or "experiment" is supposed to be.
Feminizing and masculinizing is even seen in math, physics, and engineering,
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(Professor Manly, physicist~ was named New York Professor of the Year.
His name and this pic were a convenient coincidence but I don't know him
personally, or whether or not he practices the commonly found ridiculous
male-bias that is pervasive in math and science related academics and work fields,
and that of course gets adamantly denied.
Just like Rock and Roll.
He might not, I hope he doesn't.)
and when the subject is an INANIMATE OBJECT.
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This is from "Tomboy Tools". A company who is trying to bridge the silly gap that people have in their heads by marketing "female tools", (i.e. painted pink) which I applaud, since it seems to be the only way to get people to venture out of their obsession with tools, repair, and building being "male". I don't know how it would go over in my contracting/remodeling business, but I bet a lot of my tools would stay where I put them more often.
And maybe the little insecure jackasses who keep sniffing at my shoes would stop calling me a "dyke".
But then again, who cares... I kind of like kicking them when they sniff at my shoes or call me elementary school names, it's cathartic. |
In light of all this, it's not much of a surprise that if humans fail regularly in removing their anthromorphic, gender-obsessed filters when viewing even inanimate objects, that they might not be able to do that when viewing or studying actual HUMAN BEINGS.
Effectively studying the differences between boys and girls, men and women is nearly impossible for most humans, because of the conditioning they (we) were exposed to right from birth. In other words, we are TOLD what we should believe and think about "males" and "females", including ourselves and our parents, from the day we're BORN.
We aren't just learning what we "see", we're TOLD what we see, and why.
(Which is not the same as learning what we actually SEE, or learning about what's actually THERE.)
We're literally TOLD, SHOWN, and DISCIPLINED into how WE ARE "supposed to be": What we're "supposed to be good at" or NOT good at, what the OTHER sex is "supposed to be good at" or NOT good at, what each person is "SUPPOSED TO LIKE", how STRONG they're "SUPPOSED TO BE" or NOT, all according to someone ELSE'S ideas and fictional stories about "male" and "female", NOT according to reality.
If it was according to reality or nature, no one would NEED TO TELL ANYONE "how girls are supposed to be", or "how boys are supposed to be". They would just BE however they ARE. We don't try to TEACH caterpillars how to be caterpillars, or cats to be cats, they just ARE. We watch them and FIND OUT what they do, we don't TELL THEM how caterpillars or cats are "supposed to be".
Without understanding and comprehending THAT, there's no way to even BEGIN to study in any kind of "objective" manner.
There are some obvious things that we can observe about
male humans in general:
In humans, the ovum (egg) from the mother has two X chromosomes. The sperm from the father will donate EITHER an X or a Y chromosome. If the sperm donates an X, the father's sperm determined that the baby is a girl. If the sperm donates a Y chromosome, the father's sperm determined that the baby is a boy.
(In birds, it's the opposite; the mother bird carries two different sex chromosomes, and the father bird carries two of the same. In turtles, it's the egg temperature that determines the sex of the baby.)
SOME male humans seem to be born with compulsion problems and apparent A.D.D.
Many of them do NOT have compulsion problems, A.D.D., or a tendency toward aggression.
Many male babies don't care about whether a toy is "supposed to be" male or female, they like what they like, regardless of what the adults try to
MAKE them like.
Many males who DO have a compulsion problem and/or a tendency toward aggression and obnoxious behavior habitually poke at, mess with, and bully
other males in their group, trying to get them to react.
The reactions of the non-bullying males can range from:
physically removing themselves from the individuals or the group,
to becoming anxious or depressed,
to developing lowered self-esteem and confidence,
to becoming aggressive themselves to dominate the bullies BACK, but often losing their original real "self" in the process (and often developing confusion or depression because of it, not knowing why they're not the same person they used to be)
OR adapting the bully's behaviors, and skewing their own preferences and perceptions to match the bullies'; in essence copying the bully and morphing themselves to fit in, thereby avoiding the bullying to some degree.
SOME males seem to be born with higher muscle strength, pound for pound, than other males, but it's more likely due to their skeletal structure that carries the amount of muscle, and also the amount that they literally work their muscles out in playing and squirming, which automatically builds it. Other factors would of course be nutrition and blood/oxygen delivery to their muscles.
SOME males upper body strength seems to be stronger than nearly ALL female humans, pound for pound; that's SOME, NOT ALL males. "ALL" males are not stronger than "ALL" females.
MOST males are NOT stronger in lower body strength than females in general, and are often faster due to longer leg bones and narrower hips, which is skeletal, not muscular.
SOME males are stronger than most other MALES, regardless of their HEIGHT, pound for pound.
Many males are told and taught to stand up for themselves against bullying.
Most females are told and taught NOT TO stand up for themselves against bullying, including against the same bullies that are bullying the males in the group.
Males are generally given REWARDS for standing up against bullies, more often than not, either from peers or from adults, or both.
Females are generally given CONSEQUENCES for standing up against bullies, even those same bullies, both from peers and adults.
All of THIS (reward vs. consequences for standing up against bullies) is DESIGNED BY ADULTS, and is obviously the opposite of "fair", and definitely the opposite of "logical".
Males are NOT, generally, "raised" with the same guidance, integrity, or moral instruction as females are, even in the same family, by the same parents.
Everything from subtle approval, encouragement, praise, happy attention and even PHYSICAL CARE from adults is CHANGED by adults according to the sex of the infant, and especially according to the biases and prejudices adults harbor.
Adults will do things like REDIRECT a child to play with only
certain toys, and HUMILIATE or SHAME them for playing or even
looking at other toys, and then say that a toy was the CHILD'S CHOICE.
"He chose that blue truck because he's all boy!" "She loves that pink princess pony because she's girly!" When the fact is, neither of them had a REAL choice, they were DIRECTED by the adults to choose the one that PLEASED THE ADULTS.
By the time a child is two or three, he or she has seen the adults around them make MILLIONS of facial expressions, vocal noises, and body movements that show either APPROVAL or
DISAPPROVAL, associated with whatever the child is doing. So when little Johnny goes for the blue truck, no one stops him, he sees no disapproval, no one is moving to take it away or pick him up, and he sees pleased expressions on the faces of the adults.
When he goes to reach for the doll in the pink dress, he sees VERY CLEARLY that the adults are not giving signals and signs of approval or pleasure, and he sees that one of them is moving toward him in a big-person-scary kind of way;
either to pick him up or to move the doll away.
Little Johnny has learned one thing:
The adults LIKE IT when he plays with the truck, and he will get rewards of approval and a comfortable atmosphere, but they DON'T LIKE IT when he goes to play with the doll, and he will get consequences of disapproval, uncomfortable feelings, and an uncomfortable atmosphere.
Little Johnny is NOT choosing
the truck over the doll, he is choosing
the approval of the adults and the pleasant atmosphere they create when they're pleased, over their
disapproval and the unpleasantness they create when they're not pleased.
Sure, some little boys would naturally want to play with the truck and not the doll, and
so would some little girls. But ALL boys would not naturally choose the truck over the doll, nor would all girls naturally choose the doll over the truck, and it means very little about their "character" or their "sexual preference".
Additionally, it's a natural tendency for human babies and children, both males and females, to be interested in dolls because they have
faces and look like
people. To discourage this is frankly kind of
creepy on the part of an adult... what exactly are they trying to accomplish with it?
Why would they want to train a child to
reject a toy that resembles a human being, especially a baby?!
Adults do this "training" on children from the day a child is born, and seem completely, utterly oblivious to it, but.... they
are at least somewhat aware of what they're doing. MOST adults kind of
like it when their little boys act out and behave inappropriately, and don't mind it when their boys behave discourteously, disruptively, and like entitled, uncontrolled animals, for one main reason:
The adults think that other people
see them through their sons.
If their son is acting like a "STRONG AGGRESSIVE MALE", then they think other people will associate that onto
THEM as the son's parents, or as the boy's teachers, coach, or other family members and associates. It's not about the son, the boy, the man, or his well-being, it's about
THEM.
So adults have a completely different REASON for allowing and encouraging so many boys to misbehave and act like entitled, self-centered, discourteous thug brats than the REASON they raise girls so differently.
BUT THEN AGAIN, NOT REALLY...
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| http://www.neatorama.com/2013/01/20/Winnie-the-Welder/ |
The reason they
BROW BEAT GIRLS for all kinds of normal human behaviors, and also brow beat girls for most of the behaviors that the
y encourage and
allow boys to do is all about THEM as well, not about the girls themselves, and definitely NOT about the girls'
WELL BEING.
"What will people think of ME or US if she doesn't sit still and quietly, keep her hair and clothing perfect, doesn't stay inside and serve food and drinks and clean up like a maid instead of going outside and playing with the boys? If her voice and speech and manners aren't sweet and sweeter, even though everyone giggles when the boys display terrible manners? If she tries to "help" by doing things that BOYS are "supposed to do" like fixing things or moving heavy furniture...
What will people think of US, and will we have to actually HELP HER like we would a boy~
if she wants to be a firefighter, an automechanic, an engineer, a carpenter, a stunt person, physicist, rock musician or an astronaut instead of being a wife of someone ELSE who is a firefighter, automechanic, engineer, carpenter, stunt person, or rock musician?
WHO CARES WHAT SHE WANTS TO DO AND WHAT MAKES HER HAPPY AND WHAT SHE'S GOOD AT!!! WE WANT HER TO BE A NURSE OR A TEACHER OR A YOGA INSTRUCTOR, EVEN A CLEANING BUSINESS WOULD BE BETTER THAN THAT OTHER STUFF!
FOR US, THAT IS!!!
I know one thing... I'm sure not going to ENCOURAGE HER or HELP HER in any way!
And I'm sure the teachers at her school will be in complete agreement with us!
How embarrassing, a GIRL who thinks she can do what BOYS can do... I NEVER!
We're
not just going to shame her for not having ANY job, we're going to shame her for not having the RIGHT JOB! THAT WE APPROVE OF!
Otherwise we'll all treat her like an outcast, come on, it'll be fun!
It's not any different from the way boys are trained to be a certain way, and shamed for just being who they really are, without the MANLY MAN SUPERIORITY-act, which is the dance partner of the GIRLY GIRL SUBSERVIENT, SUBMISSIVE, DEFERRING, AND INCAPABLE OF MOST SKILLS BUT FEIGNING CONFIDENCE IN MY FEMININITY-act.
Most people know they're playing a part, in their hearts and in the back of their minds.
But the fear of humiliation if they broke character is too strong, they won't chance it.
Boys and MEN in general are encouraged to DO but girls and WOMEN are discouraged FROM certain
same behaviors, such as displaying physical strength and ability, displaying confidence, intelligence, knowledge, skill, or pride, pursuing random interests instead of only
CERTAIN interests that are
pre-determined for them by others "according to their gender" (according to the fictional fantasy world of others, that is)... Or behaviors that boys are allowed and encouraged
unfortunately to do all the time like showing aggression, condescending to others, behaving arrogantly, lewdly, rudely, coldly, snottily, and inappropriately, trying to dominate others with bullying, threats, or verbal abuse and humiliation, showing a LACK of consideration, empathy, common civility and manners toward other people. Of course girls should be guided not to do those things, but there is absolutely ZERO legitimate reason for adults NOT to guide and discipline boys and girls in exactly the same way. None, zero, nada. People will argue all day long about it, but the bottom line is, the ridiculous gigantical fantastical differences in the way people raise and treat boys and girls is simply a crock of shite.
WHY do people seem to think it's a FUNNY THING, or even a NORMAL THING, to set boys up for confusion, social problems, relationship problems, civil problems, legal problems, health problems and career problems down the road by refusing to guide him, and encouraging him to behave like a "rogue"?!?
If he CHOOSES to behave that way
on his own later, then that's his choice, but if no one taught him any different, then he doesn't HAVE A CHOICE, because he doesn't KNOW any better. If we want your sons to have success in life in general, WHY wouldn't we TEACH HIM what he actually needs to know and understand? Like social grace and relationship interaction skill, managing and recognizing his own emotions and the emotions of others? Respect for himself (which REQUIRES respect for others and
knowing what that really means, including toward the opposite sex, other ages, and other ancestries)? Civility, manners, straightforwardness, self-protection, awareness of others for good and for ill, genuine integrity, serenity, fairness, and consideration for others, all of which one NEEDS in all areas of life, including BUSINESS, and in order to keep their own life on a relatively even keel, so that they can achieve their goals, have less crises, have much less drama, and take life in much greater STRIDE, instead of being consumed and buried by pitfall after pitfall.
Critical thinking, self-awareness, healthy boundaries, respect for the boundaries of others, genuineness!
As far as biological differences between males and females, they are quite obviously due to
reproductive processes so we can have
more baby humans. But that's the ONLY thing that can be called into fact that's NOT screwed around with by human social training, brainwashing, crazy superstitions, made-up rationalizations, stereotypes, cultural biases, bigotry, fantastical stories, and PURE FICTION.
Not even the differences in physical strength that everyone seems to believe these days is true.
"Though hormones may influence strength development potential among
women, they most likely do not account for significant male-female
differences in absolute strength."
"Based on a strength-to-lean-body-mass ratio, women are about equal in
strength to men, and when strength is calculated per cross-sectional
area of muscle, no significant gender difference exists. For example, a
15 cm2 cross-sectional area of an arm flexor has about 19 kg of force
for both women and men."
(From:
William P. Ebben, MS, MSSW, CSCS; Randall L. Jensen, PhD)
The difference in skeletal size, height and width actually make the difference in "body strength" generally between INDIVIDUAL HUMANS. Males tend to have wider and taller skeletal frames, so literally a larger amount of muscle can grow on the frame and stretch across the frame. It's like how one male is physically smaller and therefore "weaker" than another male; if their skeleton supports less muscle, then they have less muscle than the guy who's skeleton supports more muscle.
If my arm bones have more muscle on them than your arm bones, then my arms are stronger than yours. If your wrist bones are bigger and thicker than mine, they have more surface for more muscle, so your wrists are probably stronger than mine, even if my arms are stronger than yours. (I can lift twice my own weight, but my 82 year old Mom opens jars that I can't open.)
Your muscle is not simply stronger than my muscle, and my muscle is not simply stronger than yours, unless one of us has specific issues with our muscle growth and function (like poor circulation that blocks oxygen delivery, for example).
We're the same species.
One of us is not a CHIMPANZEE or THE HULK, and the other a frail little waify invertebrate creature. If your skeleton is bigger than that guy in the corner, then there are parts of your skeleton that will probably have more muscle on it than his. If the woman in the other corner's skeleton is bigger than that guy's, then she'll probably have more muscle on parts of her skeleton than he does. But he could have more muscle on another part than either one of you, so he'd be stronger than either one of you THERE.
And whichever one of the three of you has been STIMULATING YOUR MUSCLE GROWTH, either with working out in some way or physical labor, then THAT PERSON would probably be the strongest generally if you were all the same height and weight, and your skeletons were of similar gauge.
Thicker bones means more muscle on the bone, generally, so even if all three of you did the same work and were exactly the same size except for your skeletons, then whoever had the thickest skeleton would probably be the strongest, just because their bones have more muscle on them.
It's a lot less complicated, a lot less about "masculinity" and "femininity" than most people are DYING TO BELIEVE so they can keep their stories intact.
"Male physiology, more than hormones, explains men's 'superior absolute
strength'. When other measures of strength are used, such as strength
relative to cross-sectional area of muscle, the strength of men and
women is
nearly equal."
~William P. Ebben, MS, MSSW, CSCS; Randall L. Jensen, PhD
That means it's not really "superior absolute strength", it's relative to the skeleton of the individual person AND the amount of working-out each muscle gets.
PLUS, each person does not have uniform muscle strength, my wrists are probably weaker than yours, but I could twist you into a pretzel with my legs without even trying very hard, and then carry you to the hospital on my back.
AND so it goes with INDIVIDUAL MALES, as well.
Boys are NOT CLONES of one another, they're PEOPLE, individual human beings, each as unique as their fingerprints.
When adults group boys together and try to make "herds" out of them, of course they're going to try to homogenize themselves into being "more alike", just to survive and be accepted and comfortable in the group. And when a couple of the boys in that group are bullies, then the rest of the boys move around IN REACTION to those bullies, and change themselves in order to deal with those bullies. Or, they leave the group altogether, but can end up feeling like a "weirdo" because they're not in the group. And many adults who lack maturity will go right along with treating this boy like a "weirdo" because he left the group rather than be the target of continuous haranguing.
A boy is a human being, first and foremost. After "Human Being", THEN he's a human being who happens to be male, who happens to be short, tall, or average height, who happens to be from an ancestry. But first and foremost, he's a HUMAN BEING.
Just like his sisters, his parents, his cousins, his neighbors, his teachers, his elected or appointed government office holders, all of his classmates, the clergy people in his religion, the people in the civic organizations, all the people who work and run businesses big and small, and all of the people, female and male, on TV and on the radio.
PERSON, WONDERFUL, MIRACULOUS, LOVELY SOUL, MALE, UNIQUE,
HUMAN BEING
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