When women call for a right to equality
they are relinquishing their right to be different. Women and Men are
biologically different, they have different needs and no law will ever make
women equal to men as it will always remain the case that women have babies,
women are mothers and women will regardless of career path fulfill that role in
some capacity if they bear children.
By endeavoring to be 'equal' to men, women
are increasing their workload two fold. Working mums don't go to work and
return home to read the newspaper and watch the news while their dinner is
served to them upon a silver platter. Which is largely still the case for
married men.
Working mums come home, make the dinner,
clean the dishes, put on the washing, do the ironing, clean the house, prepare
tomorrows lunch, help the children with homework, talk to husband about his day IF they have time and are lucky if they get to sit down before bed time. Intimacy with their partner may suffer significantly as a result of tiredness, stress and no more hours left in the day!
This in itself can lead to all manner of problems not least one of infidelity as the husband feels he doesn't get enough attention. The children may also feel neglected and that can manifest in bad behavior, isolating themselves from mum and spending more and more time outside the home.
The
dual role of mum and career woman is stressful and diminishes the value of each task. Some women are
perfectionists and struggle to juggle both roles, being super at them both.
Others can afford to hire help or can rely on family/husband support. But for
the vast majority of working mums, the load is borne entirely by them. In some cases there is no option (due to finances) for mums but to go to work and juggle the two. So where is the support for mums, to keep them at home and out of poverty?
Depression and breakdowns are on the
increase as is the obsession for equality. But the equality is an illusion. Men have rarely had to fill both these roles, though some now do they are still in a minority. A good thing too as juggling both roles is not a positive advancement.
Why do women, want men to treat them as
equals when women already perform twice the tasks men do, and work longer hours
including the work they do at home?
Working women are in danger of losing their
rights to be full time mums, which in time affects the children, which in time
affects society.
One radical view is that while feminism was
great for women who wanted to lose their shackles and have a say and develop
careers, is that it did also lead to the breakdown of the family unit. Men have
slowly become demasculinated as the roles collide and women appear in more and
more previously male dominated career roles.
One example is how equality allows women to
work in the fire service. If a woman can demonstrate she can perform the job as
well as a man and is not in anyway hindering, endangering the public with her
presence then of course she deserves as does a man to do that job. However it
is often the case that firewomen cannot perform equally to the standard of
their male counterparts. They do not have the strength to do the same duties.
In these cases there is something very wrong with equality. Equality should not
come at the detriment of society and safety.
Women are more equal than men in many
areas. Women get widows benefits whereas men do not. Men, whose wives die,
become full time dads to their children yet are left in poverty due to their
lack of 'equal' rights.
If we are going to strive towards equality let us first consider what we are giving up about being unique.
The Cleveland Clinic says this here:
"
Women have taken on multiple roles to adapt to changes in society
today. They continue meeting household and family responsibilities,
while at the same time working and trying to maintain personal
interests. Women can view these roles as challenges, or they can
perceive them as threats. As demands increase to fulfill these roles,
women often feel a sense of losing control and helplessness, making
them prone to stress and burnout.
For most women, stress ranks at the top of the list of daily problems.
Women are more likely candidates for stress than are men. Women strive
to be perfect in all areas of their lives, and women do not spend
enough time taking care of themselves. Women need to understand stress,
recognize warning signs, and develop coping skills to maintain health
in all dimensions of their lives."
The NCBI - National Center for Biotechnology Information says this here:
"This literature review focuses on distressing or negative aspects of
enacting the specific primary roles of worker, wife, and mother.Vicarious stress and inadequate social support for women in these roles
may contribute to immunosuppression and disease vulnerability. Some
women may choose the sick role as a means of escape from taxing role
responsibilities."
Here is a link detailing some of the many health risks to women who
undertake certain jobs and why their physiology (in some cases not all) puts them at risk.
Note re comments following this article: I have not made any suggestion here that women belong in the home. This article is re 'one step too far' and merely reflects concern that womens roles have expanded beyond what is reasonable or healthy. It also reflects the fact that men are still denied equal rights to women who have financial benefits which are still currently denied to men.
I welcome all comments, but please try to avoid saying:
'
are you saying.............' then follow that up with a long list of things I have NOT said.
If I have not said it, then of course the answer is
'no...I am not saying it'.Thank you and may the debate rage on.
