#call me socialist scum if you want I don't care I want this country to change now

[moonahstone]

I can't express how fucking angry this makes me cause lets be honest here "hundreds of new transport projects in the north and the Midlands and across the country" that's gonna mean £2 can go to get new snacks in the vending machine in the North, the midlands will be treated to a new set of uniform for staff and then London will get anything else to keep London connected to London. I don't want to sound like a narrow minded ass but I am. I fucking hate this country, I fucking hate London and I fucking hate that it is the only place in this entire country that gets any sort of funding for anything. Someone had the audacity to complain the other day to me about how the bus systems where I am living now are so 'outdated' and how it's stupid that the busses here only have one door and that the tap in and off machines are finicky and other bull shit like that. It's space age comparatively to what I've grown up with, electronic bus stops tap in tap out systems, massive busses many of which have a smaller carbon footprint, it's not even like I lived in a small area I lived in fucking Manchester one of the biggest cities in the country. If Manchester isn't well connected then just think about what the rest of the North is like. It's always so typical of this government to promise so many great things that will improve quality of life for so many people and then decide it's too much work once the prospect of leaving the south gets introduced. It just makes me so angry, especially when people complain that London isn't connected enough. It's connected. Shut up. For a minute Manchester was allowed to be excited because we got one thing that might vaguely improve life so we weren't allowed to be equal to "almighty London" but hey maybe we'd get some sort of equal treatment to the rest of the south but nah of course not! We are filthy dirty Northerners who don't deserve it! How silly of us for having hope tut tut! I know there are worse things in the world and worse country's to live in but Jesus Christ this government is filled with pricks and supremacists who are looking out for their home towns where all their rich friends live and not the people who actually need help and connection. It's just fucking typical.

#tw: swearing #tw: negativity #fucking tories #I hate this country #call me socialist scum if you want I don't care I want this country to change now

[female-eren]

You can be cautious about dating men and eventually find “a good one” but you’ll always have to deal with misogyny in your relationship and not only that I don’t what makes you think that the man you’ll find is truly gonna so special and aware that HE won’t be misogynistic or have sexist beliefs even deep down. I agree that dating men doesn’t necessarily make you “less of a feminist” cause like you pointed out, a het-partnered woman could be giving to more causes to help women than whatever self proclaimed “feminist” on this website but it’s just not smart to be with men at all (and sorry to say this, I find it weird that women on radblr read about feminism and are aware about how awful men truly are but still date around as of most of the men they’re dating are not watching porn regularly)and listen I’m osa too but only a very small handful of us will get “one of the good ones”, it’s sad but it’s true. Most women have to settle down and see what degree of misogyny they’re willing do put up with the rest of their lives.

I mean I don't fully subscribe to all of radical feminism. I just have an interest in these ideas, including separatism, but I'm far from living some sort of radblr ideal. I don't really think I encourage ideas about "one of the good ones", I just don't see it as this sin if women do engage with men. If they do, I want them to have the tools to take care of themselves as well as possible, and if something does happen, I especially want there to exist help/resources for them.

And... I don't believe in ideological purity. Sure, you need to do something feminist to call yourself a feminist, but like. An example. I'm vaguely socialist and kind of anti-capitalist, but I don't do very much concretely- I'm interested in those ideas, I read a few texts, I vote for the candidates I think have the best policies. I don't think that is bad. I don't think the socialist democratic party in my country should kick me out for not being die-hard enough. A lot of people, including women, view capitalism as the primary existential threat, just as radfems view men. I find both ideas interesting, and I also find that there is a lot of merit to them, like you say with men in general being physically dangerous/porn users/holding misogynistic opinions etc. I just don't appreciate the idea that because I or another woman, after learning about pontential danger, necessarily lack critical thinking. One point about this brand of feminism that I've come to appreciate less and less is the complete rejection of agency. I know we criticize choice feminism, that we want to analyze what drives these choices, and I think that's hugely important and a real concern. However. When it comes to human relationships, any ideology needs to leave a sliver of breathing room for personal business. How can it not be critical thinking, especially feminist critical thinking, that drives an OSA woman to have hard boundaries, self respect, caution, independence and support networks when/if she does enter a relationship?

By all means though, keep expressing separatist ideas, women need them. I want those ideas to exist and to be widely spread. I want the SCUM Manifesto, that's why I bought it and read it in one evening. I want feminist jurisprudence so I'm reading MacKinnon's Toward a Feminist Theory of State, and I want to inform myself on critical perspectives on heterosexual sex so I'm reading Andrea Dworkin's Intercourse. I want to both know, spread, and hopefully do something about male violence, so I read the studies and statistics and articles. I'm here because I find those ideas and facts valuable, and so do most serious women here, I really believe that.

To be honest, I think a lot of this discourse is fuelled by the basic reaction of why won't you think and behave like me. When you see the facts that made you develop a certain idea or life practice spelled out clearly for someone else, and she doesn't come to your exact conclusion, that can feel almost like betrayal. "You agree with me on so many things, how could you not do as I do here?" I have understanding for that. But if you believe women are capable of critical thinking and agency, you need to afford them a bit of grace. Challenge them (respectfully), sure, but ultimately focus more on the ways they are similar and do contribute than in the ways they differ.