There is a historical reason why medicine centered around males, and it isn't "because men hate women". It's because, in the infancy of medicine (as a science), the technology did not exist to adequately evaluate the hormonal shifts that a woman experiences over the course of her life. Men were much more predictable subjects, and so medicine focused on men. Science needs predictability. But society and culture continued to protect women by insulating them from war, giving them preference in life threatening situations (lifeboats on the Titanic), creating laws that held men accountable for the spurious actions of their wives, and transferring the tax burden from women to men. Was it a perfect system? Well no, but you are looking at history through the eyes of a 21st century human being who has luxuries and social niceties never experienced let alone anticipated by other civilizations. Let's assume a smartphone is designed for a male hand. (This is silly, have you ever held an iPhone 4? My fat male sausage fingers can't type a thing on that tiny piece of hardware!) But there are plenty of institutions and cultural norms that have historically protected and benefitted women at the expense of men, not because society was "against men", but because it was a historical balancing act, tempered by the available knowledge at the time, to preserve societies and grow cultures. Perhaps we are at a turning point. Technology is the great leveler, giving people the ability to do things that, without technology, would be impossible. But it's not moral shortcomings that plague us. It's ignorance. Western women have all the opportunity in the world. Historical barriers are a part of that, for everyone, not just women. Stop feeling guilty. Encourage creativity and productivity. There is room enough for us all to contribute.
// , “It is not so important to be serious as it is to be serious about the important things. The monkey wears an expression of seriousness... but the monkey is serious because he itches."(No/No)
There is a historical reason why medicine centered around males, and it isn't "because men hate women". It's because, in the infancy of medicine (as a science), the technology did not exist to adequately evaluate the hormonal shifts that a woman experiences over the course of her life. Men were much more predictable subjects, and so medicine focused on men. Science needs predictability. But society and culture continued to protect women by insulating them from war, giving them preference in life threatening situations (lifeboats on the Titanic), creating laws that held men accountable for the spurious actions of their wives, and transferring the tax burden from women to men. Was it a perfect system? Well no, but you are looking at history through the eyes of a 21st century human being who has luxuries and social niceties never experienced let alone anticipated by other civilizations. Let's assume a smartphone is designed for a male hand. (This is silly, have you ever held an iPhone 4? My fat male sausage fingers can't type a thing on that tiny piece of hardware!) But there are plenty of institutions and cultural norms that have historically protected and benefitted women at the expense of men, not because society was "against men", but because it was a historical balancing act, tempered by the available knowledge at the time, to preserve societies and grow cultures. Perhaps we are at a turning point. Technology is the great leveler, giving people the ability to do things that, without technology, would be impossible. But it's not moral shortcomings that plague us. It's ignorance. Western women have all the opportunity in the world. Historical barriers are a part of that, for everyone, not just women. Stop feeling guilty. Encourage creativity and productivity. There is room enough for us all to contribute.
I've read also that this had some unfortunate side effects for the wives, too, but fair enough.