Olympic Weightlifter's Incredible Take-Down of Sexist Jerks:

[redqueen]

"We Don't Lift Weights in Order to Look Hot"

http://www.alternet.org/hot-news-views/olympic-weightlifters-incredible-take-down-sexist-jerks-we-dont-lift-weights-order

Being able to lift 267 pounds is only one of the things that makes 18 year-old British Olympic weightlifter Zoe Smith tough. She can also swat down sexist Twitter trolls like they’re flies.

While Smith was preparing to set an Olympic record for Great Britain in the clean-and-jerk event, men (and some women) on Twitter were busy saying she wasn’t attractive enough, or that she was manly, or that there was something wrong with her body because she was so muscular.

So Smith took to her blog to respond:

(We) don’t lift weights in order to look hot, especially for the likes of men like that. What makes them think that we even WANT them to find us attractive? If you do, thanks very much, we’re flattered. But if you don’t, why do you really need to voice this opinion in the first place, and what makes you think we actually give a toss that you, personally, do not find us attractive? What do you want us to do? Shall we stop weightlifting, amend our diet in order to completely get rid of our ‘manly’ muscles, and become housewives in the sheer hope that one day you will look more favourably upon us and we might actually have a shot with you?! Cause you are clearly the kindest, most attractive type of man to grace the earth with your presence.

Oh but wait, you aren’t. This may be shocking to you, but we actually would rather be attractive to people who aren’t closed-minded and ignorant. Crazy, eh?! We, as any women with an ounce of self-confidence would, prefer our men to be confident enough in themselves to not feel emasculated by the fact that we aren’t weak and feeble.

...

Love it. She is awesome.

[calimary]

1. Love it!!!

[procon]

2. Brilliant retort!

[bunnies]

3. yeah. Shes a real dog.

[redqueen]

4. But she has *big muscles*!

Not those hot sexxxy muscles like women 'should'.



Back when I was doing kung fu a sales guy who visited the office where I worked noticed my big arms and actually came up and squeezed my upper arm, and informed me that I was too hard, and that women were supposed to be soft. He's lucky we were at my office and not in a bar.

[bunnies]

5. Seriously.

A punch in the face would have been appropriate.

Must be "hard" to be so threatened by "the weaker sex". Idiots.

[47of74]

28. Followed by a knee to the ol' berries

[Chorophyll]

6. Kickass! Good for her. nt

[rocktivity]

7. She's not attractive enough?

For WHAT???


rocktivity

[redqueen]

8. They are put off by her big muscles.

Which are (by some huge coincidence I'm sure) not shown in those pics.

[CrispyQ]

9. Fab response!

Young women like this keep me hopeful!

[Scout]

10. but, but, don't all women just live and die for "compliments" from strangers?

got into it in meta or somewhere on DU about "compliments" ... why, we should just ignore it if we don't like them, or on the other hand go up and tell them "No i am not sexy, so you stop saying that!"

stupid shits. they just can't seem to comprehend that many women do not want, nor need, "compliments" from strangers/men to feel good about ourselves, or think that we are sexy. i feel like i've been slimed when strangers talk about my looks, or that i'm sexy, or they like my breasts, or my butt, or whatever. keep it to yourself asshole, i don't care if you like how i look or not.

[seabeyond]

18. yes. if YOU are not "flattered" that a man takes the time to say you are fuckable, YOU have an issue

yes. i read that. a whole subthread of stupid male not getting it.

[redqueen]

19. There's so much I'd like to say about this.

"keep it to yourself asshole, i don't care if you like how i look or not."

That pretty much sums it up. I had a horrible experience a couple of weeks ago with a man I previously had thought was nice. I had to explain to him why what he said was offensive. He perfomed an obviously insincere apology, then doubled down by telling me in even more explicit language what exactly it was about me that drew the unwanted attention. Twice. I made my displeasure with his "compliments" so obvious that he called after me as I walked away asking me not to call the cops. Talk about stupid shits...

[Nay]

27. Amen, sister. I was horrified and angered when, as a very young woman, it dawned on me that

for many men, I was just a fuckable thing and they were totally up front about it by having the NERVE to mention my looks. We're total strangers, you prick, get out of my face.

[whathehell]

34. +10 n/t

[madrchsod]

11. she`s cute and worked hard to get where she`s at

i looked at all the pictures of her on google and i`m trying to figure out why they don`t like her body. i guess they are just jealous of her ability to look fit and cute at the same time.

[redqueen]

17. There seems to be a special kind of contempt ...

for a woman with a conventionally "cute" or "pretty" face, but who otherwise does not adhere to societal dictates as to how a "pretty" girl or woman should look. Whether it is being fat, muscular, having lots of tattoos or a weird hairdo... many seem almost offended that the "pretty" faced woman in question isn't doing what society says she should to meet cultural expectations of "beauty".

As LynneSin says below, beauty comes from within. Sadly, way too many people adopt the wall street / ad agency / Hollywood idea of beauty.

[marew]

33. Exactly! n/t

[LynneSin]

12. She is a thousand times more beautiful than any asshole who judges her on her outside alone

Beauty radiates from within and she's got alot of that.

[Mopar151]

13. This lady has it goin' on!

"We, as any women with an ounce of self-confidence would, prefer our men to be confident enough in themselves to not feel emasculated by the fact that we aren’t weak and feeble."

Oddly enough, most of the guys I run into who are averse to girls with muscles are jocks.

[eShirl]

25. They fear that finding strong muscular women attractive, somehow means they're gay.

They should relax, and just be attracted to whoever they are attracted to.

[SpankMe]

14. Google image Zoe Smith.

She's not at all "unattractive".

People are just dicks, plain and simple.

[TahitiNut]

15. With that response, Zoe has become suddenly VERY attractive to me.

That's HAWT!

[Spitfire of ATJ]

16. Love the poster.

[img][/img]

[AtheistCrusader]

20. Not to be sexist myself but

any dude that says she's unattractive can fuck right off.

[seabeyond]

21. ha. at least you clarified it, huh. lol. this is a tricky one.

to call bullshit on saying she is not attractive, and to not play the game.

women run into that one all the time

[AtheistCrusader]

22. Yeah. I recognize that she might not be attractive to certain individuals

and that's fine. Everyone has different tastes and attractions. Everyone's welcome to their own tastes and preferences.

But to declare that she is unattractive period, is a positive statement that can be easily falsified (all we need is one person to say 'I like her appearance' and boom, headshot on that declaration) and should be shamed for reinforcing stereotypes.

Flipping it around and saying 'ooh she's hot' doesn't really fix the problem. I can accept that certain people might not find her attractive. Going beyond your own assessment and attempting to claim she is this or that isn't within the power of any person.

I'm not even going to voice my personal opinion on her appearance. I do admire her self-confidence, and her achievements though.

[seabeyond]

23. even more, how many women are calling out the men for not being attractive enough? i do not think

that is why they are in front of the camera, right here, right now.

[sufrommich]

24. She is awesome. Zing! nt

[caseymoz]

26. Good comeback. Not incredible, though.

This should be the obvious point any woman would make when faced with this type of heckling.

If the point could be made succinctly, in one sentence, I'd give that a standing ovation. Such as:

"I don't care what self-absorbed ignoramuses think of my body. I have a better reason for training than to supply them premium wanking material."

Now that would be an incredible quote.

[Ferretherder]

29. Well, I guess I'll just WADE right on in it, here...

...I think the woman is VERY attractive, and I can't possibly see why any guy would find her otherwise. However, I've always found women with muscles to be particularly attractive, even when I was into bodybuilding, myself, back in the day.

...loved her response - she's also quite intelligent, another turn-on.

(sigh) ...I know I'm flame bait now, but, oh well.....

[trumad]

30. Post in the Men's Group

they may faint.

[seabeyond]

32. she is one of the very few radfems i am sure..... what she says doesnt count. dontcha know.

[caseymoz]

37. Or, maybe saying . . .

. . . "I'm from the men's group and I approve of this message," is just too awkward.

[seabeyond]

38. it could be, but then they would have to address the contradictions of the past.

seems to be the knee jerk that if a woman is not fawning over their objectification, sexualization, or pornification of themselves by a man, the reason is they are prudes, anti sex, dworkins or

a radfem.

omg

and they should just stfu. because really, .... it is just a very small group with a very loud voice.

how many recommends????

but, though i dont see perfectly with you on your analysis in all things, i do appreciate approaching it in conversation and thought. it is dismissing thought, though, with dworkism and prude and anti sex without addressing what is said i have an issue with.

[caseymoz]

41. I've seen men take the attitude

that a woman is either physically attractive to him or worthless. This especially goes for high-profilers and celebrities. A few corollaries to this are if she's not attractive to him, she's obviously doing something wrong, and her only reason to dress well, exercise and have good hygiene is to make herself attractive to men generally and him specifically.

And I wish I could say it's only some hetero men, or a few of them, but to tell you the truth, I've never seen a guy other than myself call another guy out for this attitude. I'm not saying they don't exist, I just haven't seen them. I also don't know why I get it and other guys don't. Perhaps the ones who do are just wisely staying silent. Nevertheless, generally men either join in in agreement that a female isn't attractive, they add on more and more insulting statements about a woman's looks, and/or you get factions who think she's attractive against those who think she isn't. A few of the latter actually showed up here for "support." However, it completely misses the point.

I don't think there's a patriarchy, but just seeing guys automatically fall into this behavior and then become a chorus and counter-chorus with it, all while never seeming to understand the point, tells me that there's definitely something, and women have legitimate complaint about it.

There are better reasons for a woman to get offended with this than being prudes, anti-sex, dworkins, rad-fems, or so on, and being insulted by it doesn't make her any of those. It's totally obnoxious.

BTW, Off-topic: I'm sorry you're offended by the term "rad-fem," but it would not be correct to say I disagree often with feminists, because I consider myself pro-feminist. I need a word for those of the faction I can't agree with, can't compromise with. I'm trying various other terms, which, I guess, may be more or less offensive than "rad-fem."

[seabeyond]

43. make herself attractive to men generally and him specifically.

studies show women dress for other women. until we grow up and it is all about us and being the best we can be. i am going ot say the same work for men. having two boys and having to buy their clothes and going thru that whole mess. it is not about the girl, it is about their pals and fitting in.

yes, men like to believe the women really are here for them. we are not. not saying we do not want to look our best, but it is for us.

also, men tend to not challenge their friends. it takes a really insightful man to challenge a group of men. one on one is more likely. as a group, probably not gonna happen. question. do you see once you speak up, other men agreeing? i see that would happen. if you cant recall, think about it next time.

I also don't know why I get it and other guys don't.

i love this one, because for me it goes to a personal spiritual journey i had a decade ago. we hold onto something out of fear. fear of loss. even if not healthy. even if we know it is hurtful. what people do not realize is once it is let go, then one is free. and there is no better feeling than that. the work to hold onto something that is not universally right it a struggle and painful. to let go, one is free. so they think it will be a loss but reality is, it would be such a fuckin gain.

I don't think there's a patriarchy, but just seeing guys automatically fall into this behavior and then become a chorus and counter-chorus with it, all while never seeming to understand the point, tells me that there's definitely something, and women have legitimate complaint about it.

the patriarchy would be the all of society holding to created roles we are suppose to live for dominance. from infancy a boy baby and girl baby are treated different. she is so beautiful. so nice. so quiet. so sweet, so nurturing the way she takes care of her baby. he is so energetic, look at him move, see that football block, he is going to be a great soccer player with that kick. a doctor a lawyer a president.

I'm sorry you're offended by the term "rad-fem,"

i am no more offended with radfem than i am with being called a liberal or feminist. it is the intent in the usage. the definition of radfem doesnt bother me at all. mens forum goes out and pulls the most extreme radfem talk and say see.... see, this is what those radfems are in hof. they use it to insult. like rush limbaugh and the coulters and others use liberal as an insult.


Radical feminism is a current perspective within feminism that focuses on the theory of patriarchy as a system of power that organizes society into a complex of relationships based on the assertion that male supremacy[1] oppresses women. Radical feminism aims to challenge and overthrow patriarchy by opposing standard gender roles and oppression of women and calls for a radical reordering of society.[1] Early radical feminism, arising within second-wave feminism in the 1960s,[2] typically viewed patriarchy as a "transhistorical phenomenon"[3] prior to or deeper than other sources of oppression, "not only the oldest and most universal form of domination but the primary form"[4] and the model for all others.[4] Later politics derived from radical feminism ranged from cultural feminism[1] to more syncretic politics that placed issues of class, economics, etc. on a par with patriarchy as sources of oppression.[5]
Radical feminists locate the root cause of women's oppression in patriarchal gender relations, as opposed to legal systems (as in liberal feminism) or class conflict (as in socialist feminism and Marxist feminism).

[caseymoz]

46. Women dress for other women?

I find that implausible. What studies, where? Women dress for different reasons at different times. If they do dress mostly for other women, being ruled by the Clique seems just marginally better to me than being ruled by the Patriarchy. Obviously there are women who think that women should dress as a service to other women. They chime in on websites how this woman is letting down others of the gender by her revealing attire.

Were these studies self-reported? Remember how people self-reporting their radio listening habits thought they listened to Rush Limbaugh all the time? When ratings agencies turned to automated surveillance to detect such habits, Limbaugh's ratings disappeared?

What's more, we do a lot of things for unconscious reasons. On something as basic and habit laden as dressing, when a person has to explain it consciously, they will often make a mess of it. If they have to think back on every time they've put on a specific article of clothing and why they put it on, without consulting the notes they've apparently been keeping all their life, how likely is it to be accurate? Consider also that there are no consequences to a wrong answer, and they are very influenced by what they think the surveyor wants to hear.

Biology informs us that behaviors like dressing, male or female, are related to mating. If she's doing it for herself or a group of women, the genes that swayed those tastes move them in a direction to maximize reproductive success. No matter her immediate idea of what she's doing, or what her tastes are, somehow it's still going to correlate with what the other sex finds attractive. Why? Because her tastes start with her genetics. If she's dressing to "fit in," with the other women, somehow their tastes are going to be influenced by what attracts the opposite sex. If this weren't true of human beings, we would be the only animal in the whole kingdom where sexual selection doesn't apply.

If a woman is dressed for weightlifting, however, her conscious attractiveness to men is definitely not her first consideration, or even her third or fourth. No, she'd leave her sponsor to take care of that. Step up, Adidas!

I have to note, though, how much men criticizing a woman's attractiveness are attire does bother them. Women don't treat it as though men aren't a consideration. The fact that a woman can be so praised just for having any come back to it at all (as in this case), just underscores the fact that it frequently leaves females speechless.

[seabeyond]

45. also, believing, being conditioned to believe that a womans purpose is for the man

Last edited Thu Aug 2, 2012, 06:12 PM - Edit history (1)

(and that really is what it is about) then allows him to own her sexuality. it is not her ownership of her sexuality, but giving it to him for ownership. it is not about her. it is about him.

that is the crux of the issue of the imbalanced.

a man not only owns his, and will no way give it up, seeing how it is the be all end all of all the universe, but he owns hers also, cause her sexuality is really about him.

[valerief]

31. Just so long as she doesn't hurt her back.

[yesphan]

36. Well played, indeed !

[allan01]

39. re:Olympic Weightlifter's Incredible Take-Down of Sexist Jerks:

bravo

[Rabid_Rabbit]

40. How mean-spirited can you get

writing these statements on twitter. I know she does not need my approval but I find her attractive. What would motivate somebody to take time out of their day just to twitter such mean statements?

[ismnotwasm]

42. Heh

That's the deal about using nasty opinion's about another's physical appearance in terms of sexual desirability.

Women are conditioned to give a shit about the generic male's opinion about physical appearance, hence all the uncomfortable things we do to ourselves and all the money we spend on some weird barbie look; a good percentage of men are so used to this I think they get insulted at lack of effort to support their sexual entitlement.

Here is a women in the top of her field (she's in the fucking Olympics you misogynist losers--why WOULD she give you or your bullshit the time of day?), and out come the little anonymous Internet chickenshits, creepy sad sacks who thought their opinion of mattered in the first place. Smackdown.

[seabeyond]

44. I think they get insulted at lack of effort to support their sexual entitlement.

succinct and tot he point. that is what it is all about.