Jeremy Stangroom

Did Ellis possibly mean the "gender binary"? We have to change DNA if we want to change sex, but men's and women's roles in society are influenced by culture and have varied historically.

I don't think he knows what he means. He does explicitly say in a subsequent tweet something to the effect that the sex binary is a cultural creation, which obviously it isn't (except to the extent that all concepts are specified in language, etc).

A view: There are societies in the world, usually small-scale and mobile peoples, where there is far more gender equality. What we see as "our history" is only a part of humanity's response to how to live. It's patriarchal and nasty, but it's not inevitable.

Well it's not "our" history, the history of many, many diverse societies is the history of conflict. Plus, though I understand the attraction of the Margaret Mead vision, I don't buy it. Human beings, mainly men, slaughter each other.

There are other studies of peaceful societies. If killing each other was always the norm how could the species have survived at all?

Because we haven't quite perfected it! I'm not denying that there are tribal societies that are relatively harmonious. Is it not the case that they are normally fairly isolated?

Well, we all live in our bubble of one sort or another, but there are plenty who go to great lengths to avoid conflict (though are usually aware that there are other peoples around who, errr.... don't).

Thanks, it's appreciated. But really, as you suggest, it's not warranted. I can turn off my computer, & all this nincompoopery goes away (which obviously isn't the case for women, generally, & for gender critical feminists, in particular, whose livelihoods are often on the line).