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Oscar Pistorius: Perceptions of Disability and Masculinity

December 16, 2015 sarah.stoess

Now that you all already know the main facts of the Oscar Pistorius’ case — that he fatally shot his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp, on February 14, 2013, in the bathroom of his estate in Pretoria, South Africa – and especially now that the sentence has changed, I thought that I would delve deeper into Oscar Pistorius’ intent on murdering his girlfriend, Reeva Steenkamp. I think that we can all agree that Oscar Pistorius shot through the bathroom of his estate four times and that his girlfriend ended up dead because of it; however, there has been some controversy over whether the homicide was pre-meditated, with him knowing full well that his girlfriend was in the bathroom, or if it was accidental, with him thinking that an intruder was in the house, just chilling out in the bathroom with the door shut. It is completely possible that an intruder could have been in the house that night, given the high crime rate, especially in gated communities. The following image states the order of events that happened the night of the shooting.

Source: National Post, http://www.michelleniniblog.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/reeva-steenkamp-4.jpg

From here on out, I am going to assume that his testimony of what happened that night was completely truthful. However, regardless of whether he thought that he was shooting an intruder or if he thought that he was shooting Reeva Steenkamp, his intentions were the same. There was no way that he could shoot a person four times through a small bathroom with nowhere to go and not kill them. However, the act of grabbing a gun when he heard sounds coming from the bathroom was likely the result of the fact that he was disabled and was more likely to experience fear and feel that his life was being threatened.

Q: Is the fact that Oscar Pistorius is disabled an excuse for him to kill his girlfriend? Are there any excuses for him for shooting Reeva Steenkamp?

No, even though disabled people feel more threatened than able-bodied individuals due to the fact that when they are in high-stress situations, they are less mobile and less likely to get out of the situation, just because he does not have the bottom half of his legs is no excuse to committing murder. He still has two working eyes and he could see if his girlfriend was in bed with him before shooting up a bathroom door.

It is also believed that Pistorius’ disability led him to feel emasculated, because disability is often considered feminine. He used women, sports, and guns to develop his masculinity. He was involved in relationships with attractive blonde women to satisfy any inadequacies in his life. He probably engaged in younger, thin, blonde women thinking that they would be insecure and that he could diminish his insecurities by controlling them and being the “man” in the relationship.

The Most Important Question: Did the emasculation from his disability cause Oscar Pistorius to shoot Reeva Steenkamp?

Q: If you were in the same situation as Oscar Pistorius, would you do the same thing that he did? Why or why not?

Personally, I would not have done what he did. First, I would have looked to see if my significant other was still in bed and then when I saw that she was not in bed, I would have just assumed that it was her in the bathroom and gone back to sleep.

References:

Abrahams, N., Jewkes, R., & Matthews, S. (2010). Guns and Gender-Based Violence in South Africa. South African Medical Journal, 100 (9), 586-588. Retrieved from http://www.samj.org.za/index.php/samj/index

Breetzke, G. D., & Cohn, E. G. (2013). Burglary in Gated Communities: An Empirical Analysis Using Routine Activities Theory. International Criminal Justice Review, 23 (1), 56-74. DOI: 10.1177/1057567713476887

Cherney, J. L., & Lindemann, K. (2014). Queering Street: Homosociality, Masculinity, and Disability in Friday Night Lights. Western Journal of Communication, 78 (1), 1-21. DOI: 10.1080/10570314.2013.792388

Hickey-Moody, A. (2015). Carbon Fibre Masculinity: Disability and Surfaces of Homosociality. Journal of the Theoretical Humanities, 20 (1), 1-17. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/0969725X.2015.000000

Onishi, N. (2015, December 3). Oscar Pistorius Guilty in Murder of Reeva Steenkamp, Appeals Court Rules. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/04/world/africa/oscar-pistorius.html?_r=0

(2014). Oscar Pistorius Trial: Evidence. BBC News. Retrieved from http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-26417240

Women’s Rights and Selective Patriarchy

December 16, 2015 aaron.wagner

We no longer live in the crude days of centuries past. This is a new modern era and as such society should change to reflect our positive change in the world. I am talking about Women’s rights and how it clashes with the idea of patriarchy. Is there a place for patriarchy in america? Can it exist alongside Equal rights for women? I say in a way, yes.

All men, women, and children are created equal is what we like to tell each other at all points in our lives. While this may be true, not all jobs are created equal. The jobs in question are any and all manner of manual labor that involves cohesiveness and fluid teamwork. For instance lets have a look at the military. As recently as this year, the army is allowing women to train for combat roles. This is new as before women were restricted from fighting. While some may claim this is a win for women’s rights… it isn’t. Now let me tell you why you Rosie the Riveters out there.

While the army was playing with the idea of female soldiers, which is still currently in trials, the Marine Corps ran a similar test. However the Marines would appear to be more thorough in their needs for a soldier. Their findings were that women were not able to reliably handle the normal gear for duty, women added a different aspect to the war fighting unit that destabilizes and causes combat ineffectiveness, and lastly along with the strength disparity, women aren’t able to carry a battle buddy out from the battlefield in times of need.

There are zero problems with the women in this test group, they were all fit and were attempting the same courses as the males. In the end its just not the right place for women to be. And that is NOT a bad thing. Women are equally valuable alongside men in many different professions, specially in non combat roles. Now how about patriarchy, how does this tie you ask? Well by keeping women out of certain male roles, greater efficiency can be achieved. Roles such as a leader of combat troops or a construction manager. Both of these roles require experience and labor to achieve. If women were to achieve there jobs then there would be a lack of a bond between worker and superior. By keeping men in charge of labor intensive fields as well as combat roles, our workforce will work far more efficiently.

I like to call this concept “Selective Patriarchy”. By allowing men to remain in power in certain roles, we benefit as a whole. But only for these professions. Women on average make 78 cents for every dollar a male makes and that is truly an issue worth fighting for. Certain ons may not be for women, but all jobs deserve to pay equally no matter what gender you are.

Women deserve the right to pursue any and all professions they desire. However at the same time, a respect for what duties men also fulfill is warranted. Some times it is acceptable to allow a strong male presence to lead over a female. In other professions and environments this is entirely unacceptable. By understanding the balance between the genders, i firmly believe we can achieve a more fluid and happy society.

-Aaron Wagner

Works cited

Bordo, S. (2003). Unbearable weight: Feminism, Western culture, and the body.

Univ of California Press.

Clinton, H. R. (2004). Living history. Simon and Schuster. Book.

Gruhl, J., Spohn, C., & Welch, S. (1981). Women as policymakers: The case of

trial judges. American Journal of Political Science, 308-322.

Rice, C. E. (2015). Women in the Infantry: Understanding Issues of Physical Strength, Economics, and Small-Unit Cohesion. Military Review, 95(2), 48.

Smith, J. E., Gavrilets, S., Mulder, M. B., Hooper, P. L., El Mouden, C., Nettle, D., … & van Vugt, M. (2015). Leadership in Mammalian Societies: Emergence, Distribution, Power, and Payoff. Trends in ecology & evolution.

FINAL POST: The Subordination of Women through the Normalization of Brothels and the Sex Industry

December 16, 2015 tay.schueler

(http://www.maguzz.com/amsterdam-red-light-district.html)

Look at the image above. Do you recognize this place? This is the ‘Red Light District’ in Amsterdam. In this area, the trade or sexual services for money, goods, or exchanges of services is perfectly normal and well accepted. People from all over the world come to the red light to participate in the services offered which are typically considered taboo or illegal in their country of origin.

(http://vanillaskydreaming.com/inside-amsterdams-red-light-district/)

Women stand in windows parading their bodies around for viewers to see on display. Users of this sector of the sex industry are given the opportunity to walk down the streets and essentially window shop for their good time that night. The use of women for sex and leaving women without free choice is becoming such a normal aspect to most of society. We see it in Amsterdam’s Red Light district with the legal sale and encouragement of women to join the sex industry. Again we see it in places such as India that women are used for sex without consent and nothing is done. Women are being viewed plainly as sexual objects throughout the world. By turning women into sexual objects we are abandoning their humanistic aspects and turning them into an object, ready for anyone’s use.

We see this normalization of prostitution and the sex industry in the United States as well. For instance, the State of Nevada is the only state in the United States that has allowed for the use of brothels and has legalized prostitution within certain district limits. I personally feel like a large portion of citizens in the U.S. did not even know Nevada has prostitution laws making the act legal. That was until recently, when earlier in 2015, celebrity basketball player for the Lakers and ex-husband to Khloe Kardashian, Lamar Odom, had an incident at one of the brothels available in Nevada.

(http://i3.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article6635846.ece/ALTERNATES/s615/Lamar-Odom.jpg)

As some may know, Lamar Odom was reported at ‘Love Ranch’ in Nevada earlier in 2015 where he reportedly overdose and spent ridiculous amounts of money for female companionship (e.g.: sexual services). Odom was found by two of the females onsite who had been servicing him during his week long stay. Medical teams quickly responded and brought Odom to a hospital where he has been in recovery.

What most people do not see wrong with this story is how normal it was for Odom to be reported at a brothel. Nor was his drug use out of character, because I mean he was in a brothel and drugs and prostitutes kind of go hand in hand. The use of women for sex has become such a normal part of our society. Women fulfilling the sexual needs for males is essentially saying males have the upper hand while women are just things. This is similar to the ‘sexual contract’, which states men have control and access over a woman’s body. Good bye social contract, hello sexual contract.

The women who choose to partake in the sex industry set precedent for how all women are seen or viewed in society. This will set a norm for a patriarchal state.

Question(s):

Is the normalization of the sex industry leading to a more patriarchal state?
Does celebrity use of prostitutes and brothels normalize the sex industry?

Volume over Substance: Why Donald Trump is leading the GOP Despite Sexism & Racism

October 29, 2015 brenna.moore

Donald Trump, despite if we like it or not, has been the face of the Republican Presidential Election. Between sound bites, memes, and jokes at his expense, all we hear about is Donald Trump’s folly on the internet and other media outlets. How loud he is, abrasive, racist, and sexist. To be honest, if I have to look at his unsettling, overly tanned faced one more damn time I’m probably going to projectile vomit. While that may be a strong statement, a style that Trump is used to, So why is he still around?

Donald Trump is routinely mocked and proved wrong for his political stand points. When asked about view points or statement’s he’s previously made, he attacks viciously, Shoving it off as no big deal, as if his opposition has no clue what they’re talking about. As seen in the above footage, Donald trump responds being confronted on his sexist remarks with catchy buzzwords. His use of “political correctness”, “power”, “brain”, “strength”, and “quickness” are met with applause from the crowd. Frankly, his response makes no sense, so why was it met by the GOP crowd with such encouragement? Because the Republican voters no longer want facts or thought out policies, they want a headline. The right wing voters are looking for some one to identify with, and to them it’s the man with the comb over who stands against political correctness. Republican voters can find something to identify with, they believe Donald Trump is just speaking his mind, and they find that it goes against the political grain, even if what Trump says is sexist or racist. What republican voters and the GOP don’t seem to fully realize is that Trump’s persona of “I just say what I think, I don’t have time for political correctness” is just another tool for election and to gain popularity. Donald Trump has done too much business to have absolutely no idea what he’s doing in the political field. His political success is not by accident, or a side effect of his “unadulterated” personality.

We live in a world largely dominated by social media and the internet. People on the internet see a buzz word filed headline and pass it onto their Facebook page. Then some one on their friend’s list sees that article, and shares it as well. All of this going on without reading the article’s content, which may go on to more in depth than what you may read in the headline. This is essentially the political style of Donald Trump. Trump speaks loudly and frequently, often speaking like he’s writing headlines for political fluff articles. Building a wall around Mexico doesn’t make any sense, but it’s a strikingly powerful image for those who are racist against Hispanics and immigrants. With that quick line, he’ll have gained their support. Saying that the GOP moderator Megyn Kelly had PMS as the reason she questioned him against his sexist comments is appalling, but to every person that feels that women just get too bitchy on their periods, that could have been music to their ears. ” We need strength, we need quickness, we need energy, and we need brain, to turn this country around”, he spoke in the GOP debate above. It really doesn’t make a whole lot of sense, but it sounds good, and dammit, it’ll get him voters.

Questions:

1: What do you believe has caused the GOP to become almost comical in their presidential elections? How does the parade of politics effect the Criminal Justice System, are the issues in the CJS being push under the rug for more sensational issues?

2. Is Volume over Substance going to become a new standard for politics? Is Trump just speaking loudly what many voters are quietly thinking, including blatant sexism. If so, what state is our country’s feminism in?

Sources:

Illing, Sean. “The Terrifying Reason Donald Trump Is Winning: The Infantilized Conservative Base Wants Rage, Not Ideas.” Saloncom RSS. 8 Sept. 2015. Web

The, Editors. “Why Donald Trump Is Winning.” The Nation. 30 July 2015. Web. 29 Oct. 2015.