Every time I turn on Sky news they are talking about bringing in quotas for women into the Liberal Party. I want to throw something at the TV. You had Katherine Deeves! You had Moira Deeming! You force good women out of the party. The interview with the deputy leader of the Nationals yesterday was appalling. Her party wanted to bring back the horrifically cruel live export trade and even she can't openly support women's biological sex based rights, to a female reporter on the most 'right wing' news channel in Australia. They are clueless. The obvious thing to do is just have a few men start to identify as women. Problem solved! Or maybe do some actual clear thinking.
I was just listening to Louise Perry on Meghan Daum's podcast, talking about Elizabeth Warren's article saying that women are now caught between the right to full and free expression as individuals who want to make the most of our innate talents, but that comes at a cost in that most women now don't have families; less than half of women age 30 are married and have kids, whereas 50 years ago it was most women, and almost none of them will have as many children as they wanted, or the home and life they had expected. What began as a choice soon becomes an imperative as have two incomes has driven the cost of housing up exponentially with no change in living standards, and there are so many downstream effects on children. The women of the 70s were actually far better off in terms of freedom and choice (certain women anyway) than those comparable women in their 20s now. It was sobering. Maybe the model of individual liberty doesn't work for women and families at scale? Or not past one or two generations with the residual effects of the social limiting influences and religious moral codes of a shared high trust society of the preceding era? What actually is good for people, individually and at scale, and makes them the happiest, produces the most stable children and societies is not what we choose as individuals. Everything from dating apps to market and career options incentivizes the opposite.
Of course it's still a million times better than life on the frontier! I didn't know about the prairee madness.
Anyway, I think a lot of people blame the Greens for the gender stuff and suspect Labor have been coerced into it. But we will see their true colours now.
I found Peter Dutton an extremely hard sell. It was the only election where I felt that I really didn't want to vote. Do we know where Tim Wilson stands on the issue of Women's biological rights and the transing of children? He's a gay man but very much a classic free speech libertarian. The left absolutely hate him of course, being an 'agnostic zionist', but that would be fun to watch and he has principles at least. He's not exactly an Australian Douglas Murray, but if you squint really hard, does he pass as the least worst option? What do you think?
Great post. Yes, since when has biological reality been a cultural construction? Since when has opposing lunacy that totally defies scientific reality made a person a card holding member of the Far Right? And when will we finally see a supposed political Conservative who won't just throw out the age old (and simply true) category of biological woman? And when will we see a supposed political Liberal who will stand against forcing everyone to accept autogynephilic males 'performing' being women in women's private spaces? And when will some politician who avows the "decent Australian fair go" notion of fairness make sure that women are not forced to apply top compete against men in women's sport? Are the Libs listening???
I don't think gender identity, Tickle vs Giggle etc were on the minds of voters last Saturday. It wasn't discussed in the campaign, and mainstream media avoid covering it at all. The UK Supreme court ruling that woman and sex in their 2010 equality act meant biological sex may yet have an influence on Australia, quietly. But the 'no debate' tactic has been the trans lobby's most effective tool. Discussion on the topic causes most people to decide that female sports should be female only, that men don't belong in women's prisons.
I just discovered your Substack and am glad to have done so. I live in the US, am a lifelong liberal, and have been worried for years about the increasing ILliberalism of "my" side.
I loathe Trump & Co. with every fiber of my being, but am alarmed that the most supposedly progressive of my liberal confrères don't see the mote in their own eye and have adopted many of the same oppressive techniques as the MAGA crowd.
Edie why can’t you just stand as an Independent, me and my mates would all vote for you. Hurry up.
Every time I turn on Sky news they are talking about bringing in quotas for women into the Liberal Party. I want to throw something at the TV. You had Katherine Deeves! You had Moira Deeming! You force good women out of the party. The interview with the deputy leader of the Nationals yesterday was appalling. Her party wanted to bring back the horrifically cruel live export trade and even she can't openly support women's biological sex based rights, to a female reporter on the most 'right wing' news channel in Australia. They are clueless. The obvious thing to do is just have a few men start to identify as women. Problem solved! Or maybe do some actual clear thinking.
I was just listening to Louise Perry on Meghan Daum's podcast, talking about Elizabeth Warren's article saying that women are now caught between the right to full and free expression as individuals who want to make the most of our innate talents, but that comes at a cost in that most women now don't have families; less than half of women age 30 are married and have kids, whereas 50 years ago it was most women, and almost none of them will have as many children as they wanted, or the home and life they had expected. What began as a choice soon becomes an imperative as have two incomes has driven the cost of housing up exponentially with no change in living standards, and there are so many downstream effects on children. The women of the 70s were actually far better off in terms of freedom and choice (certain women anyway) than those comparable women in their 20s now. It was sobering. Maybe the model of individual liberty doesn't work for women and families at scale? Or not past one or two generations with the residual effects of the social limiting influences and religious moral codes of a shared high trust society of the preceding era? What actually is good for people, individually and at scale, and makes them the happiest, produces the most stable children and societies is not what we choose as individuals. Everything from dating apps to market and career options incentivizes the opposite.
Of course it's still a million times better than life on the frontier! I didn't know about the prairee madness.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/strifes-rich-pageant/202008/too-little-house-the-verge-prairie-madness
Anyway, I think a lot of people blame the Greens for the gender stuff and suspect Labor have been coerced into it. But we will see their true colours now.
I found Peter Dutton an extremely hard sell. It was the only election where I felt that I really didn't want to vote. Do we know where Tim Wilson stands on the issue of Women's biological rights and the transing of children? He's a gay man but very much a classic free speech libertarian. The left absolutely hate him of course, being an 'agnostic zionist', but that would be fun to watch and he has principles at least. He's not exactly an Australian Douglas Murray, but if you squint really hard, does he pass as the least worst option? What do you think?
Great post. Yes, since when has biological reality been a cultural construction? Since when has opposing lunacy that totally defies scientific reality made a person a card holding member of the Far Right? And when will we finally see a supposed political Conservative who won't just throw out the age old (and simply true) category of biological woman? And when will we see a supposed political Liberal who will stand against forcing everyone to accept autogynephilic males 'performing' being women in women's private spaces? And when will some politician who avows the "decent Australian fair go" notion of fairness make sure that women are not forced to apply top compete against men in women's sport? Are the Libs listening???
Excellent piece, Edie. Thanks. Classical liberalism and women’s rights go hand in hand.
Well said! Thank you
I don't think gender identity, Tickle vs Giggle etc were on the minds of voters last Saturday. It wasn't discussed in the campaign, and mainstream media avoid covering it at all. The UK Supreme court ruling that woman and sex in their 2010 equality act meant biological sex may yet have an influence on Australia, quietly. But the 'no debate' tactic has been the trans lobby's most effective tool. Discussion on the topic causes most people to decide that female sports should be female only, that men don't belong in women's prisons.
I just discovered your Substack and am glad to have done so. I live in the US, am a lifelong liberal, and have been worried for years about the increasing ILliberalism of "my" side.
I loathe Trump & Co. with every fiber of my being, but am alarmed that the most supposedly progressive of my liberal confrères don't see the mote in their own eye and have adopted many of the same oppressive techniques as the MAGA crowd.