Most of us come from a similar background, intellectually speaking. We’ve read many of the same books and publications. We know the history of the movement. We’re familiar with feminist theory. We understand the context and language. We use the same linguistic shorthand. For example, we understand what Happy Feminist means by the phrase “women are expected to police men’s behavior.”

Given how ill-informed many of his comments are, and how many of them seem to spring from simple misunderstanding (see his comments on Happy Feminist’s use of the phrase “women are expected to police men’s behavior”), Mr. Ames does not seem to share this background. Yet for some reason, he’s decided to jump into the discussion and share his opinions. He reminds of men who ask me, “Why don’t feminists ever address [some issue on which feminists have written extensively]?”

I thought your “Notes For First-Time Visitors Who Believe They Might Enlighten The Group With Opposing Viewpoints” put it pretty well.

By jumping into a discussion for which he’s not sufficiently prepared and telling us what to do, he’s being gallingly presumptuous and arrogant. It’s no wonder people are annoyed with him.

So Mr. Ames, addressing your concerns about Feminism’s “tone:”
1) The question of whether to be sugar-sweet or a total ball-stomper, when and to what extent is as old as Feminism itself, and exists in other activist movements. It’s been amply discussed. Your comments are simplistic and passe. You haven’t introduced us to any concepts we haven’t heard before, but you have alienated us with your “tone.”

2) The current trend of imagery and tone that you find “churlish,” (ie frequent use of words like bitch or cunt, and obscene imagery), has been explained by the people using it. One example that comes immediately to mind is Bitch Magazine’s explanation of their name;
http://www.bitchmagazine.com/bword.shtml
There is also an element of, dare I say, tongue firmly planted in cheek. But then I must be wrong on that. Everybody knows that feminists don’t have a sense of humor, so you should take everything they say literally.

One of the leading hands on team, a young woman, asked for a cleaning rag. Someone handed her a shop towel and she wiped away what appeared to be blood from the butt of her rifle.

OMFG, I’d make this man’s head explode.

And hey, y’all, if that Americablog t-shirt-slogan-making dealio works, let me know, eh?