 |
|
February 10, 2012
Lisa M. Krieger: Man with defibrillator demands access to his own heart's information
David G. Savage: Why activists may not be in a hurry to have High Court rule on alternative marriage
February 9, 2012
Laura McMullen: 10 Least Expensive Public Schools for Out-of-State Students
Kimberly Palmer: How to actually enjoy -- relaxing, financially -- your vacation
February 8, 2012
Warren Richey: Why momentous Prop. 8 ruling might not satisfy gay-rights groups
Menachem Wecker: Though Controversial, LL.M.'s Can Lead to Specialized Legal Jobs
The Kosher Gourmet byDana Velden: Going to the bother of making soup? You know it better be good. This CREAM OF TOMATO SOUP certainly is! And it's a cinch to make, too (Includes techinques and serving secrets)
February 7, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney, Jr.: Caught off-guard? President's Super Bowl interview with Matt Lauer gives those who need a reason not to vote for him, a darn good one
Suzanne Bohan: Leaping lizards! Tiny reptiles advancing robot design
February 6, 2012
Jonathan Tobin: Iran Threatens Israel With Destruction, But the New York Times Doesn't Hear It
Jeffrey Fleishman: In newly democratic Egypt, tens of democracy activists jailed, to stand trial; their groups are 'threatening the stability of the homeland'
Julie Deardorff : Researchers say antioxidants may not be that effective and could do more harm than good
Mark Clayton: How did Anonymous hackers eavesdrop on FBI and Scotland Yard?
February 3, 2012
Edmund Sanders : Israeli official says Iran is creating missile that could reach East Coast of US
Victoria Kim: Immigrant-smuggling ring used black drivers to avoid racial profiling
February 2, 2012
Jim Carney: Wrong number call may have saved her life
Reza Kahlili : Ex-CIA spy in Iran's Revolutionary Guard: What Obama doesn't grasp about striking deals with Tehran
Tina Susman: For woodchuck rescuer, every day is Groundhog Day
February 1, 2012
Brian Bennett: US officials see increasing threat of domestic attack from Iran
Emily Brandon: How to Take Advantage of New 401(k) Fee Disclosures
January 31, 2012
January 30, 2012
Paul Richter and Ramin Mostaghim: Misreading Teheran's limits -- deadly and economically devastating as they may be -- is a risk administration, Europe seem willing to take
Suzanne Bohan: Warning: Nap-deprived tots missing more than sleep, study finds
Meg Handley: Banks Revamping Rewards Programs to Woo Customers
January 27, 2012
Caroline B. Glick: Obama: Of course I intend to prevent a nuclear holocaust . . . in a few months
Yochonon Donn: In liberal New York City, fervently-Orthodox Jews may soon be getting a district to call their own
Jeannine Stein: An inflated ego and thinking you're 'all that' doesn't just make others sick of you, it can make you ill
Katy Hopkins: New budget rules may affect how much money you get for college
January 26, 2012
Ed Koch: To the New York Times, calling for the murder of Jews by those capable of having their incitement taken seriously isn't news
Jeannine Stein: Mental illness struck one in five U.S. adults in 2010: Report
January 25, 2012
Richard Simon: House passes two bills endorsing the use of religious symbols at military memorials
Fred Weir: Putin: Multiethnic Russia cannot survive as a US-style 'melting pot'; must find its own way
Susan Johnston: 5 Sneaky Coupon Strategies Consumers Should Watch Out For
January 24, 2012
Carol Clark: The price of your soul: How your brain decides whether to 'sell out'
Caroline B. Glick: America lost most in 'Arab Spring'. Sadly, many voters still don't grasp the extent
Warren Richey: Drug criminal scores win in GPS ruling from conservative-leaning high court
Erika Bolstad: Black conservatives gather to talk about gaining strength
January 23, 2012
Melissa Dribben: Jewish voters to play a key role in Florida's Republican primary
Jordan Rau: In quest to grow, Catholic hospital system will announce this morning its break from church
Ali Safi: U.S. envoy gives Taliban terms for peace talks
January 19, 2012
January 18, 2012
January 17, 2012
Frank J. Gaffney Jr.: No-kidding red lines: U.S. response to an Iranian nuke may be bluster, but Israel's won't be
David G. Savage: They sued their principals after slandering them online --- now the cases are headed to the Supreme Court
David Francis: Where to Invest in 2012: With stocks expected to rebound, opportunity abounds for investors
January 13, 2012
Ben Lynfield: Israeli lawmakers move to annex Jewish Judea, one museum at a time
Alexia Elejalde-Ruiz: Thriving through touch: Gentle massage helps older people with low mobility improve in mind and body
January 12, 2012
Warren Richey: Landmark Supreme Court ruling a 'resounding win' for religious groups
Warren Richey: Supreme Court says no to new rule on eyewitness testimony
John Fauber : Statins found to raise diabetes risk in postmenopausal women
Katy Hopkins : Consider This Before You Pay for an Online Degree
The Kosher Gourmet by Joseph Erdos: This mushroom and barley soup has an intense -- almost nutty -- flavor that mixes robust with Middle East. It has creaminess without cream
January 11, 2012
Shari Roan: Millions of atrial fibrillation sufferers at risk for devastating, but preventable, stroke
Tom Hussain: Pakistan -- recipient of more than $21 billion in civilian and military aid -- speeds pursuit of Iranian pipeline, defying US
David G. Savage: High court signals it won't be loosening TV's 'indecency' rules
Stephen Ceasar: Oklahoma's Islamic law amendment can't go into effect, court rules
January 10, 2012
Reza Kahlili: From an ex-CIA spy: US must exploit new split in Iran's Revolutionary Guard
Karen Kaplan: Study: Nicotine replacement products ineffective when used in real-life situations
January 9, 2012
Michael Doyle: Put through legal hell over dream home, couple fought back hard --- all the way to Supreme Court
|
| |
Jewish World Review
Feb. 9, 2006
/ 11 Shevat, 5766
A ‘radical’ who wasn't completely wrong
By
Suzanne Fields
Reconsidering Betty Friedan
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Like it or not, we live in a world riven by polarities:
black/white, red/blue, left/right. Our emotional responses to
subjects that
demand reasonable debate but show us to be blinded by rigid points
of view
can even be measured by the latest technology of brain imaging. We
cheat
both the record and ourselves when we overlook the hard truths
embedded in
the ideas of people we dislike (or think we should dislike).
There was considerable gnashing of teeth among some
conservatives
the other day on the occasion of the death of Betty Friedan. When
certain of
her critics paused to consider her legacy, they focused only on what
they
didn't like about the revolution she midwifed.
There was, to be sure, lots not to like. Betty Friedan was
one
tough mother. She overstated her case about the boredom of the 1950s
American housewife, and she indulged in vicious and damaging
hyperbole,
describing the suburban housewife as living in a "comfortable
concentration
camp." But she transformed certain female realities that would
benefit
generations that came later, whether pleasing to liberal or angering
to
conservative.
Before she wrote "The Feminine Mystique" in 1963, many
women who
aspired to work in certain trades or pursue careers in the
professions were
consigned to the closets of their suburban homes, both literally and
figuratively. She blazed a way out into a world of expanded
opportunities
that young women today expect as their natural due. It's important
not to
confuse Betty Friedan, the mother of modern feminism, with all that
came
after her. When she saw the damage wrought by radical feminists, she
challenged the movement she founded, confronting the lesbian
conspirators
who would ignore the emotional wants and needs of women who yearned
to be
full-time mothers, or who wanted to mix family with work. She was
denounced
by some of the sisters as "bourgeois."
In her 1981 book, "The Second Stage," she examined some of
the
not-so-good changes her revolution had wrought. She told of the
"executive
assistant" she met in the office of a Los Angeles television
producer. The
woman, in her late 20s, beautiful, accomplished and "dressed for
success,"
liked her work and saw it as a rung on the ladder to greater
opportunity. "I
know I'm lucky to have this job," she told Betty, "but you people
who fought
for these things had your families. You already had your men and
your
children. What are we supposed to do?"
Like most revolutions, feminism pushed the culture a few
inches
too far, ignoring the iron law of unintended consequences. Women who
put
their careers above all often found themselves listening to the
remorseless
ticking of their biological clocks without a man to love or child to
nurture. Feminists had ignored Mother Nature, and Nature is the
toughest
mother of all.
The number of childless women in their early 40s doubled
over two
decades. One study found that 42 percent of successful women in
corporate
America were childless after 40. The numbers grew in other
professions as
well, as women became workaholics like the men they had railed
against. By
the 1970s, Betty Friedan's famous "feminine mystique" had hardened
into
conventions that deprived women of the warmth and caring that had
marked
their sex as la difference .
Betty Friedan made the mistake of imagining that all women
were
alike. She underestimated the passion of the conservative women led
by
Phyllis Schlafly, who almost single-handedly defeated the Equal
Rights
Amendment. In one debate, Ms. Friedan screamed at Mrs. Schlafly:
"I'd like
to burn you at the stake." Phyllis, who never loses her
cucumber-like cool,
replied: "I'm glad you said that, because it just shows the
intemperate
nature of proponents of ERA."
Betty Friedan and Phyllis Schlafly clarified the issues
for women,
issues that still teeter on the seesaw of public opinion. Betty had
the
media with her, but Phyllis had a grass-roots movement of her
creation
that's still alive and well. John Kerry won the majority of single
women in
2004, but George W. won the overwhelming majority of married women,
who
figured he would be more likely to keep the home fires ablaze.
Betty Friedan was contemptuous of the radical feminists
who set
women against men, women again women, feminists against family. She
warned
young women of the peril of distorting the priorities of women and
starting
a war nobody could win. She was right about that, too.
Every weekday JewishWorldReview.com publishes what many in Washington and the media consider "must-reading". Sign up for the daily JWR update. It's free. Just click here.
Comment on JWR contributor Suzanne Fields' column by clicking here.
Suzanne Fields Archives
© 2006, Suzanne Fields, Creators Syndicate
|
