Should Men be allowed in a Women's Forum?

[CycleChic06]

I'm so confused...where has this thread gone too? Pap smears and yogurt should never be mentioned in the same thread...eww.

[mimitabby]

I think we talked it out, reached consensus and now we're having the post meeting chitchat.

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Yeah, we're having coffee and pie afterwards.

[margo49]

.

At several points in time, men on these mailing lists began to dominate

, but we should keep the charter of this forum in mind: womens cycling and related issues. If this forum becomes male-dominated, we will have to deal with it, but in the meantime, one or two polite and helpful men aren't going to kill us.

</soapbox>

Yeah, but look how much space time and energy this "one" is taking up already.

[jobob]

I think we talked it out, reached consensus and now we're having the post meeting chitchat.

Yeah, we're having coffee and pie afterwards.

hee hee, you two are a hoot

[East Hill]

One issue faced here was transgendered/transexual people, and it was decided that gender identity (how a person identifies themselves) took precendence over biological identity (a person's physical sex). To me that's the only reasonable course of action, but it was debated -- some people see someone who is physically male but identified female as male, and no argument will change their mind.

As long as we've settled the other issue, I will offer some levity.

A number of years ago, I worked at the Seattle Processing and Distribution Plant. For the locals to me, that's the end of the Interurban Trail on the north end, by Boeing.

One year we had a casual employee named Lei. Lei was a transgendered person, and she was physically a male, but preferred to be known as, and acted, female.

My supervisor at the time, a testosterone filled guy who wore pointy toed cowboy boots with little silver tips, could not handle this. Whilst everyone else in our pay location considered Lei 'her', my supervisor would not and apparently could not accept the idea of a transgendered person.

Me: Mark, did you want Lei to go to 040?
Supervisor Mark: No, send him to the barcode sorter.
Me: Will we be able to get her back at 1:00?
SM: Lei is not a girl. Lei is a guy.
Me: Well, Lei would rather be referred to as 'her'.
SM: I don't care. He's a guy.

Nowadays this would be considered gross discrimination, and my supervisor could have gotten sued for this, but it was the first time we had had the situation come up. We all just thought it was funny that the supervisor could not handle someone not wanting to be a man. After all, aren't men superior?

I was always so envious of Lei's hair. She had the most amazing long, thick hair. I coveted that hair. Sigh...

East Hill

[Pax]

Yeah, but look how much space time and energy this "one" is taking up already.

My thoughts as well. Now we have another thread about how thankful he is...perhaps it's just attention seeking behavior?

[Trek420]

My thoughts as well. Now we have another thread about how thankful he is...perhaps it's just attention seeking behavior?

Well we are an attentive, supportive bunch that's why we're here, or maybe it's the food.

Well I should shut up, log off and train or walk the dog but ooh, pie Cold apple pie for breakfast, yum...hey...this pie has no filling big hole carved outa the bottom just top crust and WTF

::: puts ice cream on top :::: there!

[Hub]

I think well -mannered fellows like Mr. Silver & Pscyclepath should be allowed.
I'm sure that we can all act witchy enough to run off any ill mannered oafs.
Pscyclepath is my brother that has posted a few times. He said the forum
is a refreshing change of pace from all the pissing contests at the male dominated forums.- Heck - here it is 'all about the bike! .

[Hub]

His last name is too sissy. Plus it makes me think of poo.

Oh and I forgot... you all must eat cookies!

V.

SUrely someone here has some extra cookies- WAIT the emergency cookies are under the printer!!

Yeah

[Bad JuJu]

Just checked my identical twins hands...index and ring finger are the same length on both hands. DH points out his are not. My index finger is longer on both hands. What the heck does that mean?

I just checked with my fraternal twin and both of our right hands are similar proportionally. That is, his hands are larger than mine, but on both our right hands, the ring finger is significantly longer than the index: on his a half-inch and on mine not quite a centimeter. Neither of us has anything you could call athletic ability--aside from my cycling that is--but he has great manual dexterity and plays a variety of stringed instruments well: guitar, cello, violin, banjo (such a Renaissance man!)

[Pedal Wench]

Well we are an attentive, supportive bunch that's why we're here, or maybe it's the food.

Well I should shut up, log off and train or walk the dog but ooh, pie Cold apple pie for breakfast, yum...hey...this pie has no filling big hole carved outa the bottom just top crust and WTF

::: puts ice cream on top :::: there!

Oh, silly girl, the ice cream goes INSIDE, to replace the missing filling. We just had to wait for the pie to cool down. The WHIPPED CREAM goes on top.

[HillSlugger]

I've tried to avoid this thread and keep my mouth shut but just got sucked in anyway. I feel that discrimination is wrong.

I need to ask: if you want to keep this a forum for women only, what criteria would you use to validate "Woman"?

Behavior: passive, non-aggressive, subservient, nurturing...does anyone actually believe any of these "traditional" descriptors to actually be valid and apply to ALL women and ONLY women?

Physical metrics: Estrogen level, breasts, female genitals, female internal organs. Let's throw out the postmenopausal women because their estrogen is too low, those who've had mastectomies, those who've had hysterectomies.

Are we going to need to pass a physical for entry?

This is a women's forum by virtue of the fact that it concerns itself with women's biking issues and is populated by (mostly) women.

[ridethewind]

Ahem. Jaan Kirsipuu.

Igor Gonzalez de Galdeano

[caligurl]

I also participate on the women's board on bikeforums.net. They debate quarterly (it seems) on whether or not to allow men in. It's a private forum - women are invited in, once it's been established on the public forums that they are, indeed a woman, although it would probably be easy for someone to fake entry. Our forum here is often mentioned, in that this one is open to anyone who wants to drop in. Trying to police it would require more work than Susan O., or Jeff, would probably want to take on. I have a feeling that most men gradually lose interest in our issues. This IS a public forum, and we have to deal with that fact.

there is a HUGE difference, though..... THIS forum is WAY better moderatoed than the forums at BF are.... since this is a women's forum.... for the most part the boys stay away.... whereas at BF you have all the boys who are already there spouting off their garbage... posting pics of 1/2 naked women.... beind sexiest and dirty..... it would be a nightmare to control... they can't control the co-ed forums from the smut and trash!

yes this forum is public.... but it's also well moderated and advertised as a women's forum.... so most men can't be bothered to show up... if they cause trouble they are booted....

heck.... look at the trouble in the closed BF forum when we had a male moderator for a short time! YIKES!!!!! it's just a different "crowd" there than here....