Women in tech

This article transitions from passive aggressive to outright aggressive from beginning to end. The opening sentence, "It is equal parts hilarious and depressing that Google executive chairman Eric Schmidt was called out for repeatedly interrupting Megan Smith, chief technology officer for the United States, while trying to talk about diversity and women in tech" comes across almost mockingly. The final two sentences, "if men in male-dominated fields like tech (and politics and venture capital and journalism and and and…) are serious about diversity and women’s leadership, then they need to STFU more often. Literally. The problem will not be solved by women leaning in. Instead, men need to lean back. Hard." are downright harsh and aggressive. The author's tone makes me feel like she is bias and doesn't understand or bother to look into the male side of the argument. The title, "Lean back, Eric Schmidt! How interrupting men & unconscious bias are killing women’s careers" also seems overzealous. Although the article provides factual evidence that men interrupt women far more often than they interrupt men or women interrupt men, it gives no evidence that this is killing women's careers. The article also asks for men to "debug" or stop interrupting women. In addition perhaps there should be a call to action for women to stand up against being interrupting or exploit and expose the problem.  

Tropes

Sarkeesian uses pathos appeals to make her point about tropes and women in video games. This is pathos because ultimately, the portrayal of women in video games is a moral issue dealing with emotions. Wether or not you agree with Sarkeesian's points, I do not believe she should receive death threats. The most extreme examples of video games portraying women in a harmful manner are niche games only played by the most hardcore gamers. This group is obviously extremely dedicated and passionate about their games, which could explain the extreme reaction. Sarkeesian's videos definitely make you think about how video games influence our thoughts and culture. Do the games reflect our culture and appeal to us or push us in the direction of their content? This is my ultimate question and it is a great discussion topic. 

Crying Men

I found this article to be very interesting. The author structured the article well, giving a good amount of background leading up to relating the issue to modern times. The arguemant is made through logos appeals. Men crying less than women was of course not shocking, however, men openly crying in the past was. The author said this was due to a greater level of intimacy between people living together. Today, we live amount strangers where the open expression of emotion can be viewed as out of place and weird. To end the article the author says men should cry more because people who cry are usually the most satisfied. I wouldn't say men need to cry more. I would say more emotional expression, maybe just talking to a close friend or partner, would lead to better mental health amongst males.

Stand Whose Ground

I find it sad that victims of domestic violence are being prosecuted and imprisoned for defending themselves in their own homes. The author relies on pathos appeals to gain the reader's sympathy for these victims. The author writes about how tragic it is that the stand your ground law is prohibiting domestic violence victims from standing up for themselves. The article harps on the flaws with SYG laws rather than offering a solution. I understand the frustration with the issue and find the use of loopholes regarding domestic violence disgusting. But the author's statement about how cases "would play out differently if we lived in a world where women’s lives mattered." This statement is a prime example of pathos appeal. With the issue being so serious, I think the author loses some credibility by including this statement. It makes her seem a bit ridiculous because women's lives of course matter.

Naked people

This article immediately grabbed my attention by talking about the young girl posing in front of a camera. Sexualization and objectification are demeaning and wrong at all ages and certainly not justifiable but nine years old is especially disgusting. The article made some interesting points. The evidence presented was done by credible researchers, but dealing with an issue about perception, I would like to see some research on why people's minds change about a person when they are naked. Psychological information would leave the reader more informed. Nonetheless, the article got my attention.

The Conspiracy of Silence

The idea that a woman should stay silent in exchange for not getting beaten disturbs me. I understand living in fear of an abusive partner, but if crimes are not brought to light there will never be justice. Staying silent not only weakens the victim, but also puts others at risk. Organizations like The Retreat foster a constructive environment for  the abused. By establishing more organizations and stronger safety nets, victims will feel more confident to stand up against their abusers.

Domestic Violence

Compared to our last article, I found this author's objective, logos based approach refreshing. The author references detailed studies done by the CDC. Above all I found the statistics on intimate partner violence to be startling. I cannot imagine being trapped in a relationship with an abusive partner. I understand most people are fearful to distance themselves from a violent partner. But I strongly believe that this attitude is the cause of these alarming statistics. Without abused partners rising up for change, these numbers will only get worse and worse. One thing I found interesting about the article involved the tone. It almost seemed like the author was putting off or discrediting the women surveyed at times. At the beginning, the author introduces the studies stating, "The survey, released by the CDC Wednesday, marks the beginning of a new annual project to look at how many women say they've been abused." "Say they've been abused" is much more questioning than "have been abused." The extremely high rape statistics also disturbed me. The article stated that this elevation could be due to "how the surveys were done, who chose to participate and how "rape" and other types of assault were defined or interpreted." This statement reminded me of how important context is when looking at statistics. No one statistic tells the entire story, so we must seek out all sides.