Gender Thread
Bernie and I spent the past few months looking into schools for our daughter Isa. Most of these schools were for "highly gifted" students and any one of them would have been thrilled to have her. Because they are overrun with boys.
Last time I checked, college students were something like fifty-seven percent female. Law school is even more predominantly women.
What happens to the boys between elementary school and college?
In the early 1980s, when Carol Gilligan's writing became popular and everyone started championing girls' education, I took an unpopular position. I said the changes had already taken root; they just hadn't manifested yet. The best remedy was to do nothing and wait.
Nobody listened to me, because I was just saying it to my friends in Mike's apartment.
Recent articles about advances in girls' education are careful to note these steps forward are not at the expense of boys. How do they know?
In black families especially, many men wind up in prison or the military. John McCain isn't ruling out a draft. Boys already have to register and girls don't.
It's true that some single fathers don't live up to their responsibilities. It's also true that others aren't considered "marriage material."
Single men with money, relative to women with money, are becoming an increasingly rare commodity. On the Million Dollar Matchmaker, these men are considered to be such catches that the women go to their houses to pick them up on dates.
I believe women picking men up on dates will become a trend. What do you believe?
Last time I checked, college students were something like fifty-seven percent female. Law school is even more predominantly women.
What happens to the boys between elementary school and college?
In the early 1980s, when Carol Gilligan's writing became popular and everyone started championing girls' education, I took an unpopular position. I said the changes had already taken root; they just hadn't manifested yet. The best remedy was to do nothing and wait.
Nobody listened to me, because I was just saying it to my friends in Mike's apartment.
Recent articles about advances in girls' education are careful to note these steps forward are not at the expense of boys. How do they know?
In black families especially, many men wind up in prison or the military. John McCain isn't ruling out a draft. Boys already have to register and girls don't.
It's true that some single fathers don't live up to their responsibilities. It's also true that others aren't considered "marriage material."
Single men with money, relative to women with money, are becoming an increasingly rare commodity. On the Million Dollar Matchmaker, these men are considered to be such catches that the women go to their houses to pick them up on dates.
I believe women picking men up on dates will become a trend. What do you believe?
posted by John Levenstein at
7:02 PM
7 Comments:
McCain on the draft:
http://www.armytimes.com/news/2008/06/military_mccain_draft_062508w/
thanks, frank. here's an excerpt:
McCain said he would consider a return to the draft only if it could be made fairer than the Vietnam-era version in which many people avoided any risk of being called up by using deferments. He said he “might consider” conscription if it were designed in a way “where everyone would serve.”
he's concerned about vietnam because people (men) used deferments, not because people (women) were exempt. when he talks about finding a way "everyone" could serve, i'm pretty sure he means "every man." talk about how he would only consider this in the case of world war three doesn't do much for me since he's a hawk, in my mind.
If Ritalin was prescribed equally to girls maybe they would sink back down to the level of boys.
great point, anonymous. what do i have to do to start an argument around here? perhaps a provocative update...
The good news for a guy getting picked up on a date - you are probably getting laid.
the men on the millionaire matchmaker show off their houses like pretty dresses. also, they're wearing pretty dresses.
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