4 ms·

Women And Children First: Technology And Moral Panic

11 points by pwg 15y ago

btilly 15y ago
This reminds me of a piece of trivia. The reason that NY subway stations were originally painted white was to make them feel clean and safe so that women would go inside. Because they knew that the success of the subway was assured if they could get women to use them. Considering that subways changed people's relations to time, space and other people, they were wise to tackle that problem first.
billybob 15y ago
"We are still having conversations now about the meaning of 'opening doors'. Opening doors is seen as a transgressive act for feminists since the 1960s, but actually the action is rooted in notions of moral purity from 1600s. It has taken us 400 years and we still haven’t sorted out the door." Who is the "we" in that sentence? I've never had anyone, male or female, be upset with me for opening a door. I cannot imagine respecting someone who was angry about being shown a courtesy.
- ismarc 15y ago
  Here in Texas, it's common to have a door held for you by a stranger, whether you are old, young,male, female, disabled or ambulatory. I think it would be downright hilarious to watch someone get angry about it.
  - radicaldreamer 15y ago
    Exactly! It's considered common courtesy by everyone, for everyone.
- ryusage 15y ago
  You're right, but I suspect you're referring more to holding a door for someone, rather than making them wait a moment while you go out of your way to open it for them. I've had a female friend write off a first date because the guy seriously insisted on making her wait for him to open the car door. He thought he was being super polite, and making her feel special. She felt it was obnoxiously unnecessary, and it gave the (somewhat insulting) implication that it would somehow be wrong if she did it herself.
- sliverstorm 15y ago
  Men opening doors for women is a feminist issue, not an issue with rapid advances in door technology.
sedev 15y ago
Bell's research sounds fascinating - I wonder if it leads to any suggestions to getting over the moral panics more quickly? They're almost never productive, and they harm far more than they help. I'm thinking especially of the political angle, because in the current arrangement, there's no serious incentive for politicians to resist moral panics, and you could argue that there's a significant incentive for them to encourage moral panics (e.g. Michelle Bachmann's endless madness).
deleted 15y ago
[deleted]
bartl 15y ago
From a comment: > Is it right for developing elementary, pre-teen or teenage sons and daughters to be seen naked on the internet because cameras were left in an apartment or house recently rented or newly purchased? That's funny: when I was a kid (a few decades ago) the concern was that kids could see naked people. Now, apparently, the concern is that they could be seen naked themselves.

11 points by pwg 15y ago

This reminds me of a piece of trivia. The reason that NY subway stations were originally painted white was to make them feel clean and safe so that women would go inside. Because they knew that the success of the subway was assured if they could get women to use them. Considering that subways changed people's relations to time, space and other people, they were wise to tackle that problem first.

billybob 15y ago

"We are still having conversations now about the meaning of 'opening doors'. Opening doors is seen as a transgressive act for feminists since the 1960s, but actually the action is rooted in notions of moral purity from 1600s. It has taken us 400 years and we still haven’t sorted out the door." Who is the "we" in that sentence? I've never had anyone, male or female, be upset with me for opening a door. I cannot imagine respecting someone who was angry about being shown a courtesy.

ismarc 15y ago
Here in Texas, it's common to have a door held for you by a stranger, whether you are old, young,male, female, disabled or ambulatory. I think it would be downright hilarious to watch someone get angry about it.
- radicaldreamer 15y ago
  Exactly! It's considered common courtesy by everyone, for everyone.
ryusage 15y ago
You're right, but I suspect you're referring more to holding a door for someone, rather than making them wait a moment while you go out of your way to open it for them. I've had a female friend write off a first date because the guy seriously insisted on making her wait for him to open the car door. He thought he was being super polite, and making her feel special. She felt it was obnoxiously unnecessary, and it gave the (somewhat insulting) implication that it would somehow be wrong if she did it herself.
sliverstorm 15y ago
Men opening doors for women is a feminist issue, not an issue with rapid advances in door technology.

sedev 15y ago

Bell's research sounds fascinating - I wonder if it leads to any suggestions to getting over the moral panics more quickly? They're almost never productive, and they harm far more than they help. I'm thinking especially of the political angle, because in the current arrangement, there's no serious incentive for politicians to resist moral panics, and you could argue that there's a significant incentive for them to encourage moral panics (e.g. Michelle Bachmann's endless madness).

deleted 15y ago

[deleted]

bartl 15y ago

From a comment: > Is it right for developing elementary, pre-teen or teenage sons and daughters to be seen naked on the internet because cameras were left in an apartment or house recently rented or newly purchased? That's funny: when I was a kid (a few decades ago) the concern was that kids could see naked people. Now, apparently, the concern is that they could be seen naked themselves.