While there we were happy to snap the photos of several Parisian couples who wanted to preserve the moment. It was nice to share the experience with locals.
At a time when there are lots of scary things happening in the world, escaping into love and loveliness was a wonderful reminder that all human beings need beauty and relationships. It was a pleasure to observe both in such measure. I feel cleansed of ‘sphere induced cynicism and rancor. There is so much love in the world for those who will risk it.
It’s a frightening experience to listen to Stephen Colbert and agree with him, never mind the satire. He had Gloria Steinem on last night.
Colbert: “Are you happy that women have won?”
Steinem: “The idea was never victory and defeat. The whole idea was, you should pardon the expression, equality — that we’re actual human beings and that was it. I know it sounds radical, but that was it.”
I beg your pardon, Ms. Steinem, but that was not it. That may have been your original intention, but feminism has become many other things, with many other objectives.
Women are actual human beings with needs very different from men. You didn’t really ever take that into account. You never really acknowledged that what little boys are made of is testosterone, vasopressin, dopamine and estrogen, in that order. Meanwhile, your circuits flood your body with estrogen, progesterone, testosterone and oxytocin.
We’ve got a generation of young men hopped up on dopamine, avoiding behaviors that trigger oxytocin like the plague. And a generation of young women on an oxytocin bender, running headlong into dopamine-producing scenarios in hopes of getting their next fix.
At the risk of defending Gloria, I don’t get the sense she would argue with your clever adrenal characterization of the gender “wars.” Her statement strikes me as one made in ass-covering hindsight and seems like an attempt at disowning the state of the current gender dystopia. Perhaps (probably) I give her too much credit…although she still pays allegiance to the tired glass ceiling issue.