It makes me wonder if the explanation is the same as the one suggested for the phenomenon known as helicopter parenting which has risen up at the same time. Because big risks like sudden death from many diseases & war have been largely absent from western experience for decades..
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...we have turned our attention to much less likely risks and protections from them. So kids are not allowed to walk to the park & play on their own coz the possibility exists that they could encounter a paedophile or other danger or just fall off a swing.
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I thought this when looking at the song in which the woman listed all the things she couldn't do because she was a woman. Included opening the door in pyjamas. The chances of the person on the other side being a home-invading rapist is statistically very low indeed but possible
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Is it possible that this is a similar narrowing of attention to possible but unlikely dangers which are then built up to something some women live with as a constant fear and limit their lives in response to? It seems possible.
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If so, some kind of free range female adulting advocacy could be warranted in cases where women are limiting their lives in fear of a danger that is very unlikely. Obv not in cases where the fear of attack is realistic. And in either case, focus is still needed on reducing danger
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I don’t spend every day thinking I’m about to die. I do respond to innocent situations like footsteps close behind me on a dark street with more instinctive flight or fight response than most men would. Because there is greater inherent risk.
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That is not supported by statistics. Men are much more likely to suffer violent attack from strangers than women are and many of them have pointed out that they do feel afraid when alone on dark street with a strange man or men.
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But their justified fear of violence isn’t cemented by commentary on their bodies, clothing, appearance and expression every time they leave the house. Someone yelling “nice tits” may not mean physical harm. But they remind you of its possibility.
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I think we could expand upon your tweet here. When out and about, I am usually unconcerned with short/fat/scrawny men or men in nice clothes. It's the tall/muscular/dour/tattooed/poor ones I assess first & foremost. Also the ones wearing hoods and/or hats to obscure their faces.
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At the bar or waiting for a bus or wherever, I size up the latter group as fast as I can and I'm always on the lookout for more who may yet show up, depending on circumstances... Things can turn physical in a split second and then it's on. Sometimes without an exchange of words.
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Merely seeing these men in or near a liquor store, bar, bus stop, what have you, doesn't mean a physical altercation will occur but seeing them reminds one of the possiblity. Sometimes I stop reading Twitter when I see suspicious men to instead have my phone ready to call police
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Thinking aloud here. The safe, nonthreatening men are in suits or have children in tow. Or they're disabled/frail/scrawny/timid. Perhaps men don't talk about fear of other men as much as they comment on the confidence they experience around unimposing, unintimidating men.
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When something bad happens to me, I never wonder if it was because I’m a woman. I instinctively look at what actions I can change or weaknesses I can improve upon. Even if I ever was targeted because of my gender, my response has served me better than a victim mentality would
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
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@triggerpod get Helen in your show -
We've invited Helen, look forward to hearing back from her
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And this is one of the problems with exalting "lived experience" over facts. Women, especially when bombarded with this type of "feminist empowerment" are more likely to be anxious about safety despite being objectively more safe than men.
Thanks. Twitter will use this to make your timeline better. UndoUndo
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If I remember correctly, women overestimate their risk of becoming a victim of a violent crime in the public sphere by a factor of 40, men only by 3. Take that with a grain of salt, though. I need to dig up that study again.
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