Do On To Others As They Would Do On To You

This is great (even if @atmccann did it aaaages ago) MT @katienotopoulos: man-free on Twitter #UnfollowAMan http://t.co/dtBksK0ErF
— Mona (@MonaChalabi) July 29, 2014

I probably don't have to say what my 1st reaction to this since it's already causally (Caucasian-lly) dismissed within the article, so moving on from that, I'd say my next one is sadness.  Sadness that this person doesn't think that there is any value in reading anything from someone based upon their gender;  much less their opinion.  I guess, as a man, it should make me feel ashamed of that part of my identity, that all my experiences as "me" are worth nothing in the sphere of influence simply because they can't be separated from the way I was born.  But I'm not ashamed because I know that's all bullshit;  I know I'm a better person by exposing myself to ALL faucets of the life-experience than I would be than without it.  The only discrimination I use in reserving my exposure has everything to do with the individual's actions & opinions;  if that person would like to hide behind their heritage or gender from any blame occurred on their part, that's their cross to bear.

But not mine.  Forgive me for setting the bar just a bit higher.

Recently, I was asked by someone who my favorite female authors were & I was surprised in the honest answer that I don't actively have any.  Sure, I read pieces written by women on blogs & sites, but I can't think of any novelist or comic book writer who has my baited attention in whatever her next project may be (I could say Gail Simone, but my actions speak much louder than whatever my intended preferences tell me).  This, I say, is also sad & a failing that I most likely would have to take responsibility for.  I couldn't use the excuse that there isn't or couldn't be any female writers whose work I would probably always enjoy because that sounds just as false & ridiculous as it is to type that out.  Still, I would say it's better than me saying to I have a "token" female on my Kindle or whatnot (or embarrassing things like "I watch movies based on Stephenie Meyer's works").  Needless to say, it's on the list of things I need to self-improve in the future; a self-made list, not anybody else's.

I can understand the need to "turn down the volume" on certain people who tend to be one-note in their views; I would say that's a universal experience; but I don't understand how that needs to be executed in any kind of sexist/racist/homophobic classification.  Nor can I understand how that can justified by citing the same kind of ugliness that the person is trying to distance them self from in the first place.

It's the kind of thing makes me want to not value anything you have to say anymore;  only I know I won't be making that distinction based on your gender.