Today’s free offer: a female slave and cashback too

My short-lived addiction to browsing religious blogs has been cured. I hope.

On the other hand, I’m rather drawn to some of the atheist ones.

Visiting (briefly) the religious ones, I was very impressed with the way all the atheists seemed to be able to quote Deuteronomy, Leviticus, Joshua, Noah, or whatever all these books are called. Chapter and individual verse without a doubt.

Then, to my horror, yes more shock horror, as it seems to accompany anything to do with religion, I realised the reason a lot of these people write so strongly about religion, or rather atheism, is because they were in fact brainwashed educated in their early youth to believe in fairyland. Sad. Very sad.

So, this is an acknowledgement to those former religious people who have had the courage to chuck it, it can’t have been easy. Hence they have all worried about burning in hell.

Me, and most of my readers, don’t write about it because it doesn’t impact on our lives. I can’t imagine that sort of fear. And total control.

I can’t argue the interpretation of Genesis 1.20 or whatever. (My bibles are not with me so I can’t quote accurately but nor would I be interested in doing so).

To me, I can’t see the value of using something I don’t believe in, to argue a point with someone who won’t change their opinion or belief.

It’s a question of logic, not in a philosophical sense, perhaps common sense would be a better description.

So my feeble comments on any of these religious sites, is merely to say, this doesn’t hold water, or it is unreasonable or disrespectful to other people. Why is life not as simple as that?

Which brings me to what I really want to write about.

violetwisp wrote an interesting post about christian women submitting to their husbands and doing what they are told.

Because, you know, your husband knows best. Well, no he doesn’t, so that is silly in the extreme. (I should add violet’s post was not endorsing that crazy ideology).

Let me give you an example.

We have a Land Rover. Well, we have three of them actually, but I’m just talking about one for now.

The hand brake, which is actually a transmission brake, needs to be sorted. I sit on the pavement with the manual while he does the mechanics under the vehicle. When repairing Land Rovers the theory is to put it back the same way you took something out.

I was not happy with this. The manual differed from the way the transmission brake had been cobbled together.

‘No,’ I said, very clearly. ‘This is what you do. This is what the manual says (RTFM), this is what I am saying, so this is how you do it.’

This is what is called an equal relationship where we both use our skills, experience and knowledge appropriately. He did what I said.

The transmission brake worked much better after that.

Would an idiotic submissive woman have said: ‘Oh yes darling, that’s the right way to do it.’ ?? When the manual clearly said differently??

Or would she have been inside on domestic slave duty? Rather than sitting on the pavement reading the Series III manual?

What about domestic slaves?

Well, as we all know, women are objects to purchase and sell.

Purchase in the case of prostitution (as are men too, but I’m guessing without doing any statistical research here, that there are far more female prostitutes than male ones). And after all, sex trafficking is the new slavery is it not? Women, forever destined to be slaves of some type or other.

Selling, as in giving your daughter away in marriage. In fact, women are so worthless, that you not only have to give them away, you have to pay to give them away by providing a dowry.

They are an object to pass around from one man to another. Hence, they change their name on change of ownership. That’s why they wear rings, to denote that they are owned by someone.

Is this too difficult to understand?

Even today, we perpetuate the past. How many of you out there have a wife, or are a wife and have taken your husband’s name, and wear a wedding ring? Without even thinking of the symbolism.

A woman left on the shelf is a woman who is undesirable. Not worthy of a man so therefore not worthy in society. It still applies today.

But if you don’t believe me, let’s have a look at an excellent example of blatant misogyny:

Here is a great post from Vishal Baroo:

A real shocker is Shri Abu Azmi-ji who tells us that girls having sexual relationship outside marriage should be hanged and let us quote seignor Azmi, “Under Islam, rape is punishable… any woman if, whether married or unmarried, goes along with a man, with or without her consent, should be hanged. Both should be hanged. It shouldn’t be allowed even if a woman goes by consent.” 

Ooof. What does that say about the status of objects women?

Mmmm, kill a woman for having consensual sex. Er, why?

And for those of us who think the Christian right wing evangelicals don’t impact on our life? Wrong. Here’s a link from neuronotes that she sent me via comments, please read the link, but here are a few tasters:

The conservative preacher, a taciturn figure with a crown of white hair on his balding dome, and a stern, lined face, delivered a searing message. “Sexually twisted people will rape animals,” Green thundered. “Sexual abnormalities,” including homosexuality, he said, citing Leviticus, are “a deep cancerous tumor in the entire society.”

After years of isolation from the world, America’s Christian right began, roughly a decade ago, to engage internationally. It started with the United Nations, which Christian conservatives feared would establish progressive international norms on reproductive rights, gay rights, cloning, and other issues.

Very, very worrying.

My reproductive rights are of no issue. However I do wish for other women to have control over their own bodies. Rather than the religious right to control them and subject women to yet more control and treat them as no more than a consumable to buy off the shelf. Or to take as part of a property deal. Or however else macho society and the big three patriarchal religions choose to deal with women. We’re still just pawns in a very large game that we aren’t even playing.

Please people, do not say there is equality between men and women. There will never be equality while these attitudes persist and while people unwittingly support them.