Nearly every time I raise the issue of misogynist epithets these days, I catch a lot of flak from men (and a few women) who say I'm merely exalting PCism. In the '70s, when some charitable feminists with more important things to do reeducated me, more people seemed receptive to the idea that it exposed some heartfelt sexism to use "pussy" and other words to denigrate a man for being like a woman. Just another area, I suppose, like reproductive rights, where back-sliding is rampant.

I really like the notion that because he once wrote he's a feminist, he is. Asshole is a perfectly reasonable epithet, it's not gender-specific, and it gets the point a cross just as well. Of course, labeling him as such might just be giving him the satisfaction...

I challenge people to substitute the term "morally correct" or even "correct" for "politically correct." It is wrong to denigrate women, regrdless of the reason. It is wrong to call women men, even though I have feminist friends who do it. I also have a problem with using sexual parts of either gender to denigrate someone. By using sexual terms to mean really terrible things, we are saying we think sex is bad.

I had a young hip friend tell me that someone was a "douchebag." "That's out of line," I told him. "No, you don't understand," he said. "This guy really is a douchebag. "No, you don't understand," I said. "You're saying there's something wrong with my vagina."

I hope that I can seem to you to be less of a jerk than your correspondent because, although I tend to disagree with part of your position, I do give a damn what you think. That said, here goes...

I've wondered why 'bitch' is a hard word for many people to relinquish, including many confident, non-traditional women. (I don't go around using it but I do sometimes feel vindicated when I hear someone described that way.) It seems odd to suggest that all these users are motivated by gender bias, although some surely are. My explanation would be that one often means something more specific than criticizing the recipient of the term for being a woman -- specifically, that a persona of sweetness or apparent sympathy, in accord with traditional notions of True Womanhood and congruent with the nurturing and caregiving roles still disproportionately and unjustly assigned to women, is belied by subsequent behavior. A juxtaposition of femininity with meanness gives the term an added sting or efficacy that wouldn't attach to the term 'jerk' or a gender-neutral equivalent. My interpretation would also help explain why some feminists have tried to appropriate the term as containing positive implications in some instances (cf. the magazine Bitch: Feminist Response to Pop Culture). So, insofar as this idea is persuasive as an explanation of what is sometimes meant by the term, does that change how you view the term in some of its applications?

you are being a tad hypersensitive.

I still enjoy reading your site, but I think that jumping down someone's throat every time they use the word "bitch", especially someone who most likely agrees with you on almost all feminist issues, is counterproductive.

..."feminist" calls a woman not only a bitch, but a "stupid, stupid bitch." That's not even the kind of shit most women say to each jokingly. That's just hateful trash. What kind of "feminist" starts in on a woman's weight, her hair, her clothes when discussing her politics? What the hell does that have to do with anything? Bringing Ann Coulter's gender into the conversation, when her politics/words/opinions provide us with so much already, is just lazy and sexist. Call yourself a “feminist� ‘til the cows come home, but clearly it ain’t true.

I don't know whether some of his friends are gay, but I know him...and I'm pretty sure HE'S gay. So maybe he's his own best friend?