Arkansas Blog

I have been wondering why there are no female editors of this blog. Surely there is a female as well qualified as you or Warwick. Sounds like discrimination to me.

ARK. BLOG So glad you asked. Women contribute from time to time to the blog. The names you see are assigned to those who post individual items. But this is a subject I'm happy to discuss. The managing editor of the Times is a woman. The art director is a woman. The advertising director is a woman. The heads of three related AT publications are women. The larger publishing company of which AT is a member is headed by a woman and includes Ark. Business, which is edited by a woman. I have no defense to offer on our far worse record on minority hiring, but the fact that this little project happens to be an outgrowth of the passion of two political junkies who happen to be male is of little moment in the larger record of the place where we work. Check our masthead. I'm a son of a mother who worked -- and outranked my father during service in India in WW II -- and proud husband of a working woman. And proud father of a daughter who never believed she had to take a backseat to men and has a job in NY that proves it.

It doesn't sound a thing like discrimination, Freddie. I don't even see how you arrived at that conclusion--still less, how your comment is relevant to the posted article.

I suspect that any woman as well-qualified as Max or Warwick probably has a better job. Good for her, is all I have to say.

All the guys get their names linked in the left column - Warwick, Max, Ernest, Bob, John, Bob, Jim, Orval, etc.

The gals get no name recognition.

This country has gone to hell since 1920 and wimmen got the right to vote in federal elections!
(that's the signal for you, Zelda, to turn 'er loose!!!)

It doesn't bother me that none of the editors are female. We have lots of female posters, and it's the posters that keep the blog interesting after max and warwick set up the threads anyway, isnt it?

Zelda, how's your dog?

What stops the ArkTimes from hiring more women and minorities? If it was really that important to you I know you could make it happen.

Also, Max, your life experience is no justification for your discriminitory behavior.

Well qualified women get REAL jobs.

Max and Warrick work for this rag. It is not a legitimate news source and not a REAL job!

"Max and Warrick work for this rag. It is not a legitimate news source and not a REAL job!" Source: the Git

This polemic palaver is positively pointless in its persuasive power. The Git tries again to lower the standards of this debate to his kindergarden level.

Come on Git. Think harder and write better. Maybe your one remaining brain cell will produce something far more intelligible and reasoned.

Maybe those hours over the french fries tank at Mickey D's at your REAL job brought about this nebbish nirvana you're in.

Da Snake

This is not about Max or Warwick or the Times' hiring practices. Men have exploited their old boy network for centuries. The women are just getting started.

it is no wonder that women outperform men in college... at that age, everything, including one's studies, takes a backseat to "getting the girl." if the females had the pressure of paying for dates and attracting a mate, maybe their grade point averages would suffer too. it wasn't until i got married that i was able to focus on my career. oh the hours i spent trying to find a mate. it was worth it though.

You can thank organized religion for much of the oppression of women. How many demoninations still forbid women to lead churches?

Personally, as a manager I prefer to work for a woman and have women working for me. You need both the yin and the yang.

At the dawn of agriculture, the women tended the crops and tamed the livestock. Man is the last remaining animal to be domesticated, and the women are working hard at it.

...How come it is that there are more women in college with better records, but so few women in leadership positions and on boards of Arkansas companies?

Glad you asked...the good-ole-boy network/system is a powerful and enduring force. Most 'guys' are enlightened enough to, at least, give token nods to all that female equality stuff...up until it cuts into their piece of the pie. Then it's whoa 'something ain't right'...must be those 'uppity' women causing all the problems.

But you don't have to be brain to look around and realize that women have a long way to go toward equality. Heck, Arkansas still treats women/children as equals in receiving inheritance from their husband/father (if no will says otherwise). And that's just one example of the institutional inequalities that still exist.

Given how well women do with very little resources and mountains of obstacles, I can understand why so many Bubbas are afraid. They know they could never compete on an level playing field. Lucky for the world and women, most men are more secure in their abilities than the average Bubba and welcome true equality as an enhancement to their lives, not a threat.

My girl is okay, Tina, I've got her on an all natural, homemade diet...raw meat/vegetables/etc (she thinks she's gone to food heaven!). And, she's been given her first homeopathic pill...so we'll see. She seems to be a little uncomfortable, but relatively pain free. I'm trying hard to think of her needs, not mine; and she needs the same ole routine she's always had--not some crazy crying woman.

Posted by: not a chance | July 8, 2006 09:56 PM

You gotta be kidding me? You are blaming the sucess of women in college with the fact that the male gender has some primal need to find a mate and all other things, school, grades and ambition are just a distraction?
That is the most pathetic argument I've ever heard.
I'll bet some of those ambitious young men in college today might think that you just crawled out of the primal soup on your belly.

Anyone who calls themself Jake the Snake must be a dumbass...

I think it is pretty simple. College age women realize that if they want the best job offers they have to BE the best.
It's high time that girls no longer feel like they have to take a back seat.

Between the good 'ol boy network, and the lack of support for women when it comes to child rearing, it's a difficult thing for women to be able to compete with men at the higher levels.

Men generally have wives that either stay home to raise the children, or only work part time so they can take care of the chilren most of the time. Women do not usually have that luxury. So, they often have to choose one or the other or risk exhaustion levels that hamper their abilities.

Women that don't have children are more likely to be able to devote all that time to their careers. That is why many women that have careers opt to not have children at all, leading to the panic in some places because the birth rate falls below the replacement rate.

Between the good 'ol boy network, and the lack of support for women when it comes to child rearing, it's a difficult thing for women to be able to compete with men at the higher levels.

So true rablib. Even when a couple 'share' child duties, the woman is almost always the one who has to 'give' should a work/child conflict arise. There's nothing quite like telling your boss that a promise to your child means work's taking second place that day...no matter that the world's riding on some crucial project.

But all that aside there's still a heap of sexism out there that works against women...at all levels. Men tend to get the high end jobs at even the low paying jobs. They're usually the chefs/waiters in the nicer, better paying restaurants. cooks. They're usually the better-paid school administrators. The disparity even exists in the female realm of beauty salons. I'll bet that in most of LR's expensive/exclusive beauty salons it's men who reside at the top of the pay scale. And the list goes on...

"Anyone who calls themself Jake the Snake must be a dumbass..."

Source: Anonymous

Congratulations. You have managed to lower the level of arguments even more than the Git.

You have twice the brain power he has with half the obfuscation and obtuseness or to put it mathematically:

2 x 0 = (0 + 0)/2

Blogito Ergo Sum,

Monsieur Jacques L' Serpent

I agree that there are many factors at play here with women being more successful than men in college and in the professional realm. Another factor is probably that girls, in general, develop/mature faster than boys. This starts early in pre-adolescence and continues for many years (some would say forever!). And the age span of adolescence has expanded to 25, I believe, so no wonder college age boys struggle.

Also, it has been my experience that it's fine and dandy for girls to be "smart" or that kid who raises her hand, gets right answers, turns in assignments, and basically is successful in school. Not so for boys, again, beginning early in the academic experience. They're trained (mostly by peers, but sometimes by teachers too) that if you want to be cool, you can't be smart.

As a matter of fact, I recently heard Doug Reeves speak on this topic and provide research to boot. Here's a link to a powerpoint of his:

http://www.vcss.k12.ca.us/Portals/VcssoPortals/lss/Reeves%20Powerpoint%20presentation.pdf

I think this sets boys up for being "underachievers," even if they do go on to college. Kind of a lose-lose for them.

There are a lot of things going on here, but I do wish that everyone could just learn to the best of his/her ability, have a fine job, and be happy and healthy. Oh well, I'll just keep trying to my little, tiny part with my own two boys and the boys I work with at school.

Anyone who calls themself Jake the Snake must be a dumbass...

Posted by: Anonymous

Yo, Anonypuss...stop it! No, really, please stop it! You're originality just has me in stitches! I just had to re-boot because I spewed my coffee cake and my Tabb all over my keys! Whew...okay...all better now...

We're always trying to find ways to separate ourselves from each other, aren't we? Some think that's what Hell is all about. Keep up the good work, guys.

I have had several bosses and the best one I EVER had was a female. When she moved on I was very, very disappointed and told her so. She hired people who knew their jobs and left them alone to do their jobs.

I am a woman that posts almost daily on this blog under a masculine alias. Often if a known woman makes a comment here, her comments are over looked.

She couldn't POSSIBLY know what she's talking about in regards to the boys club that is Arkansas politics....

zelda,

Im glad she's doing okay. Maybe you should get some prozac for yourself. Just a thought....

I'd like to be able to keep up with your dog in an easier way than catching you on the blog -- would you email me if max was kind enough to send you my email address? not a problem if you dont feel comfortable doing that.

Zelda and Tina...just wondering.....are you two of those that complain all the time about the death of chivalry (I'm not talking about good manners between the sexes but the special attention afforded the "weaker sex" that females do not return to males).

I'd like to be able to keep up with your dog in an easier way than catching you on the blog -- would you email me if max was kind enough to send you my email address? not a problem if you dont feel comfortable doing that.

Yes...as a matter of fact I'll give ya my email right here on the blog. I'm not hiding; and I'm not afraid of crap coming through...'cause it already is in the form of nasty Viagra ads/etc. Tomorrow...click on zelda.

Cato...I'm not sure what opinion you're looking for...but I'll think on it awhile. Last time I checked, however, I've never complained or otherwise noted the death of chivalry.

cato,
Cato,
no, i have never complained about the death of chivalry because I havent noticed that it passed away. at least in my life its alive and well and I try to reciprocate. The menfolks in my life seem to appreciate it.

like Zelda, Im not really sure what you're talking about in terms of "special attention afforded the 'weaker sex,'" but I dont recall ever complaining about the lack of chivalry here or anywhere else.

ok, zelda, I promise not to forward you any viagra ads. I dont get those any more, just the ones that want to lengthen things that I dont have. But i would like to keep up with your dog's health.

I guess viagra spam doesnt meet the definition of chivalry or 'special privileges' for anybody. Not me anyway.

How come it is that there are more women in college with better records, but so few women in leadership positions and on boards of Arkansas companies?

Why, it's Gov. Huckabee's fault. Why must the Blog be so coy? Let's just get it out of our system: the Huckster keeps the womenfolk down.

ARK. BLOG He's not too bad on that score. The most powerful person in state government, after himself, is a woman, appointed by him. But he could do better on Game and Fish..

Women certainly can and do play real tackle football. There are women's leagues that provide a place for women to play football. The women's season is off-season for the men's teams, so women play in the heat of the spring and summer which means that more endurance and stamina is required than for their male counterparts. Women play with just as much enthusiasm and vigor as men, and their sport is up and coming. I guarantee this is not the last you've heard of women's tackle football. There is still a lot more to come!

http://www.womenplayfootball.com