No wonder young girls don't get into science.

[Jenne]

I think the "boys' sets" are more gender-neutral.  If you have a girl that's into physics and chemistry, buying the magnet sets, the erector sets and the chem sets is not going to awry.

I think it's rather the opposite--the makeup and perfume are very girl-specific.  As a mom to only boys (as of today's date, anyway), I have to say boys' "toys" can be way more gender-neutralized than girls'.  Mostly because of colors schemes, etc. 

Not that this still isn't an issue, mind you.  I think it's rather sad that the manufacturers can't market things in a way that add up to BETTER LEARNING rather than gender-role reinforcements.  *shrug*  But that's when a parent's discernment is inserted, and you just say FUCK IT ALL  my kid wants to learn, so here's a crack-your-own geode set, or here's a rock tumbler, or here's a solar system for your ceiling (my 12 mo old niece just got one for her birthday this weekend...).

Even the boy's sets are gender-specific, and here's the simple reason why: If a boy wanted to play with the girls set, it would be frowned upon.

As a friend of mine says, "Girls can wear jeans and cut their hair short, wear shirts and boots, because it's okay to be a boy. But for a boy to look like a girl is degrading, because you think that being a girl is degrading." It's misogyny, plain and simple.

Yep.

My son is a beautiful child with large eyes and delicate features. He likes to wear his hair long and he used to love wearing dresses and women's shoes around the house. His dad used to make fun of him and say "everybody will think you're a girl". Because that's a deterrent?

So he just wore dresses and women's shoes around my house, where nobody gives a fuck. He stopped doing it, but he still wears makeup sometimes.

Also, total Brony. Not at all kidding.

There was a mom recently who put out a book about her preschooler who liked to wear dresses.  She did it so people at school would understand--she said her family was only just then starting to grasp why he wanted to wear them, pretend to be a princess, etc.  She claimed the book helped.  http://www.amazon.com/Princess-story-about-young-loves/dp/0615395945  She calls him "My Princess Boy."

It reminded me of the time I was teaching preschool in the LA bay area at a private pre-K through 5th grade school.  There were dress-up clothes for the 3 and 4 year olds to play in, and this one boy always chose the blue, silky dress.  And I let him, because I knew what he felt when he played in it--the same feeling I always had trying on beautiful, floaty dresses.

His mother came in and picked him up one day and yelled and screamed at me.  Said that if his father ever knew he dressed up in dresses at school, he'd beat his child, her then ME.  I stared at her.  And then I hated her.  I couldn't believe this kid, this beautiful boy, was in the hands of these monsters.  I mean, she was trying to be funny about it, but to me, it's not a joke.  That kid was on his way to being fairly screwed up if wearing a dress for play was a matter for a beating.

[Cramulus]

interesting / related

http://www.thefrisky.com/2011-11-29/what-ad-agencies-created-when-asked-to-rebrand-girls/

It's a sad but true fact that in some parts of the world, especially China, baby boys are favored over baby girls. In fact, boys are so strongly favored in some rural areas of China that girls are aborted after their gender is known and as a result there's a drastic imbalance in the population.

But even in countries where baby girls are brought into the nursery, parents can have a hard time when they learn they're decorating it pink instead of blue.  This has a lot to do with existing sexist prejudices that adversely impact females in society — like lack of access to education and employment — that privilege males and incentivize parents to have boys.

So the magazine Fast Company thought up something completely innovative: it asked a half dozen ad agencies to rebrand girls with mock advertisements. Oh, if sexism were only as simple as bad advertising! The agencies primarily focused on targeting parents — er, consumers — in the U.S. and China and several opted to highlight perceived reasons that girls are better than boys, rather than just appreciating girls for their own sakes. For that reason I'm not sure I like all of these, although all the mock ads are certainly creative.

the article has 9 images. Here's two:

                       

[The Good Reverend Roger]

I understand why we want boys.  A boy is someone you can do man stuff with.

Turns out, though, that you can do that shit with daughters, too.  Taking my girl shooting in January, for example. 

[Elder Iptuous]

they come in pink...

but to counter the flimsiness that pink inherently imparts, perhaps you could accessorize with pink testicles to dangle off the charging handle:

[Triple Zero]

interesting / related

http://www.thefrisky.com/2011-11-29/what-ad-agencies-created-when-asked-to-rebrand-girls/

Just checked that article. It was ... weird.

The commentary next to the fake-ads was pretty moronic IMO, sometimes the graphics design, sometimes the content, sometimes the fact it reminded them of "True Blood", pretty random.

The ads weren't that good either, but then I expect that's because they weren't serious and therefore probably weren't budgeted like a real ad either.

Eh, the commentary just really bugged me for some reason

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

I understand why we want boys.  A boy is someone you can do man stuff with.

Turns out, though, that you can do that shit with daughters, too.  Taking my girl shooting in January, for example. 

Yep. My son wanted a baby brother so he would have someone to play video games with. Then he found out that LO is a badass video game ninja. She's also a pretty pretty princess in pink. Granted, the pink is usually filthy and tattered by the end of the day from all her ninja backyard baddassery, but it's fucking pink.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

they come in pink...

but to counter the flimsiness that pink inherently imparts, perhaps you could accessorize with pink testicles to dangle off the charging handle:

I normally hate those fucking testicles, but in this case I kind of love them. 

Also, I like things that are all sissified while remaining bad ass. Because pretty princesses like TGRR want to be badass, too.

[Suu]

My little sister is the patron saint of awesome, who, much like LO, was the type of girl who would rock the pretty dress while she beat the shit out of all the boys in the neighborhood.

Don't get me wrong, I love my brother, but watching my sister win bets at the bar for knowing baseball stats and doing shots of whiskey brings tears to my eyes.

[Sir Squid Diddimus]

Is it wrong that I like that Hello Kitty gun?
No, it just makes it appealing because it's two things I like in one.

[Suu]

I just sent that pic to my sister, and she told me she wants to take it to the range. 

[The Good Reverend Roger]

they come in pink...

but to counter the flimsiness that pink inherently imparts, perhaps you could accessorize with pink testicles to dangle off the charging handle:

I normally hate those fucking testicles, but in this case I kind of love them. 

Also, I like things that are all sissified while remaining bad ass. Because pretty princesses like TGRR want to be badass, too.

oooooooooooo

[Kai]

I think the "boys' sets" are more gender-neutral.  If you have a girl that's into physics and chemistry, buying the magnet sets, the erector sets and the chem sets is not going to awry.

I think it's rather the opposite--the makeup and perfume are very girl-specific.  As a mom to only boys (as of today's date, anyway), I have to say boys' "toys" can be way more gender-neutralized than girls'.  Mostly because of colors schemes, etc. 

Not that this still isn't an issue, mind you.  I think it's rather sad that the manufacturers can't market things in a way that add up to BETTER LEARNING rather than gender-role reinforcements.  *shrug*  But that's when a parent's discernment is inserted, and you just say FUCK IT ALL  my kid wants to learn, so here's a crack-your-own geode set, or here's a rock tumbler, or here's a solar system for your ceiling (my 12 mo old niece just got one for her birthday this weekend...).

Even the boy's sets are gender-specific, and here's the simple reason why: If a boy wanted to play with the girls set, it would be frowned upon.

As a friend of mine says, "Girls can wear jeans and cut their hair short, wear shirts and boots, because it's okay to be a boy. But for a boy to look like a girl is degrading, because you think that being a girl is degrading." It's misogyny, plain and simple.

Yep.

My son is a beautiful child with large eyes and delicate features. He likes to wear his hair long and he used to love wearing dresses and women's shoes around the house. His dad used to make fun of him and say "everybody will think you're a girl". Because that's a deterrent?

So he just wore dresses and women's shoes around my house, where nobody gives a fuck. He stopped doing it, but he still wears makeup sometimes.

Also, total Brony. Not at all kidding.

There was a mom recently who put out a book about her preschooler who liked to wear dresses.  She did it so people at school would understand--she said her family was only just then starting to grasp why he wanted to wear them, pretend to be a princess, etc.  She claimed the book helped.  http://www.amazon.com/Princess-story-about-young-loves/dp/0615395945  She calls him "My Princess Boy."

It reminded me of the time I was teaching preschool in the LA bay area at a private pre-K through 5th grade school.  There were dress-up clothes for the 3 and 4 year olds to play in, and this one boy always chose the blue, silky dress.  And I let him, because I knew what he felt when he played in it--the same feeling I always had trying on beautiful, floaty dresses.

His mother came in and picked him up one day and yelled and screamed at me.  Said that if his father ever knew he dressed up in dresses at school, he'd beat his child, her then ME.  I stared at her.  And then I hated her.  I couldn't believe this kid, this beautiful boy, was in the hands of these monsters.  I mean, she was trying to be funny about it, but to me, it's not a joke.  That kid was on his way to being fairly screwed up if wearing a dress for play was a matter for a beating.

I think it's pretty screwed up that wearing a dress at all was a matter for a beating.

[The Good Reverend Roger]

I think it's pretty screwed up that wearing a dress at all was a matter for a beating.

He's not living up to his father's preconceived expectations.  What was the dad supposed to do?  He HAD to beat the homo out of the kid, right?  Otherwise he'd have to watch football alone when he's 80.

I think you need to show a little more sensitivity here, Kai.

TGRR,
Just ran his tongue through the side of his cheek.

[Elder Iptuous]

...
His mother came in and picked him up one day and yelled and screamed at me.  Said that if his father ever knew he dressed up in dresses at school, he'd beat his child, her then ME.  I stared at her.  And then I hated her.  I couldn't believe this kid, this beautiful boy, was in the hands of these monsters.  I mean, she was trying to be funny about it, but to me, it's not a joke.  That kid was on his way to being fairly screwed up if wearing a dress for play was a matter for a beating.

for clarification... was she joking about the beating thing, or did you get the impression that it was an actual possibility?

[Kai]

I think it's pretty screwed up that wearing a dress at all was a matter for a beating.

He's not living up to his father's preconceived expectations.  What was the dad supposed to do?  He HAD to beat the homo out of the kid, right?  Otherwise he'd have to watch football alone when he's 80.

I think you need to show a little more sensitivity here, Kai.

TGRR,
Just ran his tongue through the side of his cheek.

Sometimes, despite the fact that I know it's explicit horror mirth, I still want to punch someone when you write things like this.