Rosa points out, in FairerScience Weblog that women in science shouldn't marry economists. I would like to add that living in this crappy excuse for a culture could make any woman unhappy. Michael Noer's article in Forbes has apparently been all over the blogosphere. I haven't been feeling well, so this is the first I have heard of it. As usual, looking at the "data" Noer presents, I'm struck with an alternate theory. Noer claims that "career women" will be unhappy no matter what choice they make, and so make their spouse unhappy. Give up your career to stay home with the kids-not satisfying. Continue working, while trying to keep up with the kids and the housework-not satisfying. I wonder why that is? If you make more money than your husband, but still end up doing the majority of the housework and childcare you will most likely feel unappreciated. If you make less money than your husband but still end up doing a second shift of housework and childcare you will probably still feel "less than." So what, exactly is Mr. Noer suggesting that an intelligent woman do? First of all, avoid getting a college education and instead concentrate on catching yourself a successful, career oriented husband while working a cash register at Walmart. Considering the fact that wages aren't keeping up with cost of living increases, this hardly seems realistic. Men and women are working longer for less money all over this country just to support their families. I'm not sure if women who don't have a university education or a job making more than $30,000 a year are just happy because their husbands happen to be making enough money to support their family, or if they are just happy because they haven't noticed the injustice in the world around them, but I know that smart women have plenty to be unhappy about.
Sunday, September 10, 2006
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2 comments:
"I've told myself a thousand times that I would be happy if I were as stupid as my neighbors, but I would want no part of such a happiness."
--Voltaire (paraphrased) in "Story of a Good Brahmin."
Women aren't happy because they aren't receiving the consideration they deserve. Lackluster love life, inequailty in relationships..always the caregiver, the organizer, the "primary" parent. Worried about meeting this cultures expectations on being "sexy". Also women work against each other. Women have not arrived when it comes to supporting each other. We criticize other women on how they look, raise their children, what they feed their families. Women do not support each other.
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