Wednesday, August 30, 2006

A response from Forbes... Snakes on a plane... and life in general.

Well, after posting the rant about that unpalatable "Don't marry career women" article here I sent a letter to the editor. I got a response from Forbes today:

"I want to acknowledge your communication with us on the article “Don’t Marry Career Women.” Sensitive issues demand sensitive treatment. The piece that appeared on Forbes.com this past week was intended to be part academic and part humorous. Instead, it profoundly offended hard-working career women everywhere. We deeply regret having done so.
Steve Forbes
President and Editor-in-Chief"

While I am pleased with an apology instead of some sermon on the importance of presenting all sides in a debate, I was left with only one thing to say... well DUH!! Did any of the Forbes editors READ the article before it was published to determine if it was sensitively handling a sensitive issue? If they did read it, how on earth did they figure it wouldn't profoundly offend hard-working career women everywhere? Where did they see value in the article at all? It was hardly a humorous and academic posting, it was a rant blaming a rise in divorce on working women. It is hard to accept an apology from these people when a simple read of the article would indicate it's risk of offending hard-working career women everywhere. I am unwilling to adopt a cavalier boys will be boys attitude here. Any magazine which thinks this article is a humorous and academic look at the workplace and relationships in 2006 is a magazine that profoundly deserves a boycott by hard-working women everywhere, regardless of their career status. This article would have fit well into the culture of the 1950's, which simply illustrates how behind the times Forbes really is.

Okay, rant over. Last night we went on saw Snakes on a Plane. While taking the bar, we had intended to go see it as a mid exam stress releiver but were prevented from doing so when we learned it wasn't out yet. So Lee and I saw it last night. It was pretty funny, although there were many gratuitous and unnecessary scenes in it. I determined after leaving that movies such as Snakes on a Plane are created for the simple purpose of allowing new actors interesting roles to place on their resumes. For example: Man whose penis was bit by snake, Woman whose tongue was bit by snake, Man whose head was swallowed by snake, Woman whose breast was bit by snake. Interestingly, Snakes did provide a new and varied manner of filming I like to call Snake-O-Vision, a rather distorted green lit view of the soon to be bitten passengers that provided many giggles for Lee and I. All in all, it was a pretty fun movie, not very scary, but then I like snakes.

We are getting ready for Monkey's school, which starts the 6th of September, we got her a laptop lunch box and a new backpack that we are decorating so it will be "the fanciest backpack anyone ever saw." (Her requirement for a backpack). We found hers at Macy's on sale, which was unexpected to say the least. Monkey is signed up to take the bus to school, but right now wants me to drive her. She is a little scared of busing to school. So we will see if and when she wants to take the bus.
We had our first well baby visit yesterday. Monkey, Lee and I all went. We are about 8 weeks along, and doing just fine. We got a lovely sonogram photo of the baby, which rather resembles a blob in a dark cave. However, we all decided it was a cute blob. We actually saw a better image on the sonogram than what got printed. We also saw the baby's heartbeat, which was pretty cool. Monkey was very excited to see the baby, and I loved holding hands with my first baby while peeking at my second. It was a fairly magical moment.

Well, I am getting a message from said second baby, informing me to type less and eat more. We miss you all!

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yay! Sonograms! I LOVE sonograms!

I'm also very excited about Marlena going to school and her fab new backpack and lunchbox. I expect to see photos and a scan of the cute blob, too!

Caitlin wants to know if M got the same color lunchbox?

I'm demanding, aren't I?

Ciao!

Paula Ebert said...

I went to the Forbes web site and apparently they bit off more than they could chew with that column - there's a parallel rebuttal on the same page! But what was truly alarming were the posts from men agreeing with the column - one fellow said he was going to get a foreign bride - as if he were importing a slave. Have at it - American women rarely want to marry a man looking for a slave, no wonder you can't find a wife.

Scylla said...

Ugh really?? I wish I couldn't believe someone would want to have a slave like wife, but I know better.

Marlena's lunchbox is pink. We didn't get the case for it, as we intend to slip it in her backpack.

(you are not demanding)

Anonymous said...

The neat thing about the bag is that it is insulated, keeps the food colder longer.

Scylla said...

cool! We looked at getting it, but right now it was outside our budget. I will have to resort to frozen juice boxes. Having seen the "juice" they offer at school I more than happy to slip in something that at least resembled fruit at one point in time.

The Observer said...

I've been trying to write my thoughts down on this for a couple days now. I think I've figured out how to say it:

Boys will be boys, but that doesn't mean they need to be pigs.

Anonymous said...

Personally, I'm sick of the expression "boys will be boys". It is used to cover horrible behavior by MEN. Not boys. The article wasn't written by an uneducated 8 year old that hates his mom - it was written by a man.

Let's just call a spade a spade and be done with it. The man that wrote that article is a misogynist and that's all there is to it. It would suck to be his wife.

Scylla said...

Too true. However, I do like the "don't need to be pigs" language there. However, no one ever says girls will be girls when women do something a little unacceptable so.... Down with the penis excuse!!

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