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So, I had a big argument with my 19th century sexist co-worker

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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:18 PM
Original message
So, I had a big argument with my 19th century sexist co-worker
We are one of those "wait to work" places, we have to wait for the people to bring work to us. We were watching the new "Manchurian Candidate". A scene with Meryl Streep came on, where she was trying to push her son as the VP candidate, and basically handing the rest of the political big-wigs their balls when my Christian, testosterone filled co-worker blurts out, with energy, mind you, that "SEE, now THAT is why a WOMAN will NEVER be elected PRESIDENT, because they ALL do THAT!"

Ok, I am a woman, I am a veteran, I served in Iraq the first time around, I played Women's Pro Football, and I work now and always have in a male-dominated career field. I like to defy convention. Also, this guy is sort of a do-do, and I, normally being measured in the top 2% of IQ, WAS REALLY PISSED OFF AT THIS COMMENT. I, even being a woman, have seen more and done more than anybody working there. SO, after a female co-worker and I debated a bit with him on it, saying that ALL women are not like that, and him saying, well, in my experience, they are, I told him no one made him get married. Then I calmed down a bit, and just said to him, "hey, you know really I found that comment pretty insulting." His eyes got real big, he pointed at me and said something to the effect of "Well, let me tell you, that is MY OPINION and if YOU DON'T like it I DON'T GIVE A SHIT!"

OHHHHHHHHH let me tell you, then it was on. I am not a dime dropper type, after that original comment I could have just been quiet and went and initiated a hostile work/sexual harrassment case, but I would rather just tell somebody to their face that there is an issue, I find as a human being that is a more effective way to deal with people than to do some kind of bullshit behind their back. So I, being a consciencious adult, decided I will just tell it to him, and leave it at that.

He said that "you can't tell a woman she is wrong, you can't reason with a woman." A little projection going on here? I said, "so all women are in the same boat." and again he said "yes, from what I've seen." I brought up that our current president cannot pronounce the word "nuclear", but still he persisted in his belief of a lack of emotional control in women. I tell him again that all women are not the same and that the comment is prejudicial, and I have to walk away because I feel like I am going to slap his Uncle Fester bald ass head.

I was standing outside the door, and I hear them still going on, talking about me, and I walk back in, I said, "why don't you talk about me where I can hear it, so I can respond, or is it always just he who talks the loudest wins the argument? And being so inferior and all I could take the math test for you so you can pass it this time!" So he walks away, walks up the hallway, and then comes back and attempts a half assed apology, I said I would not accept a forced apology, the time to apologize would have been when I originally commented that he was insulting, and that rather than go behind his back and drop a dime(like he so frequently does) I thought it more prudent to tell it to him. Then I just walk away up the hallway, and he said, "god, you're acting like a little kid!" and I walked BACK up the hallway, and said "WHO is acting like a kid here, I tell you that I thought something you said was insulting, and you tell me to shove it, who is the child??" Then he keeps saying, "you're acting like a kid, like a kid, Boss, stop her, you're acting like a kid." It was like kids going to their parents, "tell billy to stop poking me, billy is poking me, tell him to stop!!"
So my supervisor says, both of you need to stop, just settle down. I was pretty much aggravated the whole night by this idiot generalization. I have realized in life and from my travels that EVERY group has it's good and bad, every religion, every race, each sex, each organization, each political party, this is just a human reality. He seems to not realize this. He is headstrong and you cannot tell him is wrong, or even get him to look at things through somebody else's eyes in a calm manner.

I have a feeling though, that my head supervisor will hear about this from him, because he is a dime dropper, and I will be prepared if that is the case. I am just happy I will be transferred from there on the 12th of Jan.

Thanks for listening to the ramble...LOL.

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Blue-Jay Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:21 PM
Response to Original message
1. My eyes crossed after I read "Women's Pro Football".
That kicks more ass than I thought could be kicked. (Skittles excluded, obviously)

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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:23 PM
Response to Reply #1
2. LOL, thanks
I ended up breaking my wrist one game, but as they said in the Army, pain is weakness leaving the body...LOL.
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Blue-Jay Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:30 PM
Response to Reply #2
9. You GOTTA post a picture!
That rocks!
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:34 PM
Response to Reply #9
12. I lost my pics from it
:(
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Astrochimp Donating Member (212 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-31-04 07:07 PM
Response to Reply #12
30. One thing to try to learn is....
not to care about the opinion of idiots. Or as I regularly post " Do you think I care enough about you to give a fuck what you say?"

Works for me.

David
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Jan-01-05 06:35 AM
Response to Reply #30
34. I don't really care about his opinions
Edited on Sat Jan-01-05 06:48 AM by nytemare
When I told him in a calm voice what he said was insulting, and he reacted like he did, in that moment I felt compelled to fight back. His opinions could matter less to me, it is when they are discriminatory and sexist and when he feels the need to make it public in a professional setting that I felt it was prudent to comment on his statement. When he started yelling, then it escalated from there. :shrug:

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Astrochimp Donating Member (212 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Jan-01-05 07:58 PM
Response to Reply #34
36. I understand, but its............
easy for idiots to drag you down. Very hard to get balance. Right to defend yourself, but as you put it "I felt compelled to fight back". That is the hard one to keep in check. Hell, when I was reading your post I expected you to kick his ass anytime!

I got a zen/budda/cat thing most of the time, but still lose it somedays. To quote the great David Lee Roth- Rule 1 don't sweat the little shit, rule 2 it's all little shit.

David
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Sanity Claws Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:25 PM
Response to Original message
3. Dime dropper?
Sorry, I don't know the expression.
He is an asshole. But because it has now gotten elevated to the next level, you're both going to be viewed as assholes.


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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:26 PM
Response to Reply #3
4. Sorry, it is another term for "tattle tale" or "rat fink"
Edited on Thu Dec-30-04 06:27 PM by nytemare
Hope that helps. :) I don't know that he will tell the head boss, but it has been his M.O. for a while now, I will see.
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Darth_Kitten Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:29 PM
Response to Reply #4
6. He's a little snitch then....
if the head boss has any brains, he'll see this dick for what he is. :)

Whoops, there's that word again, "dick". Sorry. :)
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Sanity Claws Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:33 PM
Response to Reply #6
11. If he's the one who goes to the boss,
then he will be seen as a snitch and the boss will not like it. The boss will feel like he's dealing with children. If another worker goes to complain about the fight he/she saw, then my guess is that he will view the two of you as troublemakers.
Just my take on the way people usually react to things.
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:37 PM
Response to Reply #11
14. Well, the thing is here
I work at a government entity, and I could have a clear cut harassment complaint on my hands, especially after I commented to him that I found his remark insulting, and he continued on like he didn't care. The statement was very discriminatory, and I was conscientious enough to tell him, it should have stopped there.
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Sanity Claws Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:45 PM
Response to Reply #14
16. That comment would be considered harassing
I agree that the remark is harassing.
When met by harassment at work, you're supposed to tell the harasser that the remark is unappreciated and unwelcome, then report it.
So maybe you should report it so your version of events gets considered and not just this idiot's.

BTW, isn't it funny that we have a male president who is the son of a male president and this idiot is claiming that all women would try to make their sons president?
The truth is that primogeniture (I think that is the spelling) is the offspring of a patriarchal society, not a matriachal society.
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:48 PM
Response to Reply #16
18. The nighttime supervisor was there, and I spoke with him later
Edited on Thu Dec-30-04 06:49 PM by nytemare
in the evening about it. I explained to him why I felt the comment insulting, and why I thought it prudent to simply tell him that I found it insulting. He remarked that he was suprised at the reaction, and said that he will tell the main supervisor what happened should he be asked. I am happy with that.

on edit: the funny thing was, he wasn't really paying attention to the movie, I think he believed she was trying to run for president herself.
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Darth_Kitten Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:27 PM
Response to Original message
5. He's a dick.......
but then again, that's me.... ;)

you held your own, good for you!! :D :hi:
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:29 PM
Response to Reply #5
7. TY
Yeah at one point in the argument I told him that because I wouldn't be treated like a doormat like his impression of the way women should be does not make me a child.
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skygazer Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:29 PM
Response to Original message
8. There's no sense trying to argue with idiots like this
The best way to handle them is to ignore them and do a better job than they ever thought of doing. They won't realize it but everyone around you both will.

I told a story earlier on here about working construction with a guy who leaned on a post explaining to me why women should not be allowed in construction while I did all the work. Same mentality.
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:33 PM
Response to Reply #8
10. I suppose I figured it would stop when I told him
that I found the comment insulting, but when he basically told me to shove it, I guess I had to go with it...LOL.
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BrklynLiberal Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:34 PM
Response to Original message
13. Any point in filing a formal complaint against this schmuck?
Edited on Thu Dec-30-04 06:38 PM by BrklynLiberal
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:42 PM
Response to Reply #13
15. Thanks for the links
The funny thing is, offhand sexual comments really do not bother me at all. It is the discriminatory comments that blow my top. I suppose I take many things with a grain of salt, but when I find somebody directly insulting, then I felt the need to comment on it.

The links are informative, thank you. :)
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Boosterman Donating Member (515 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:46 PM
Response to Original message
17. He sounds like a jerk
Not all men are like that but there are some.

/dream
next time catch him in a dark alley. You sound like you can handle yourself. The guys who think women cant fight are dumb. I used to help teach a self defense class. Nothing like getting your butt kicked by a woman to bring you back to earth. I saw one guy (black belt in tang soo doo brown belt in judo and about 2 years of aikido) get his ass whooped by a screaming banshee in self defense class.
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 06:52 PM
Response to Reply #17
19. LOL
I know all men aren't like that. I do not put people into boxes like he does. The banshee thing would be funny enough to see. :)
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hickman1937 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 07:07 PM
Response to Original message
20. Do I have this right?
Mommy's little boy was throwing around inflamitory remarks, and when you called him on it he got hysterical and called the lunch Mom? Now Bullet Head is going to the Principal on you? You're in the drivers seat. You tried to deal with him in an adult way, but he needed a nap.
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 07:28 PM
Response to Reply #20
21. ROFL!!
I needed that, off to work I go to see mommy's boy.
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yorgatron Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Thu Dec-30-04 07:30 PM
Response to Reply #21
22. just an idea,but maybe
you could drop a brick in the bottom of a handbag and "accidently" smack him upside the head with it?
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-31-04 06:26 AM
Response to Reply #22
23. Yes, and he might believe that it was an accident, because
women are prone to accidents! :)
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NewJeffCT Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-31-04 08:14 AM
Response to Original message
24. I'm sure it's not just women
He probably doesn't use that "all women are like that" thing on just women... he probably also says things like "all blacks are like that" or "all gays are like this" as well.

Even if the guy got fired for his idiocy, he'd think of himself as a victim somehow.
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-31-04 04:52 PM
Response to Reply #24
25. Yes, he seems to think that other religions are inferior as well
Being a "good" Christian and all.
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ronnykmarshall Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-31-04 05:05 PM
Response to Original message
26. Go ahead, slap his Uncle Fester ASS!
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-31-04 05:08 PM
Response to Reply #26
27. Add a mustache, and that is him
He gives Uncle Fester a bad name, Fester was pretty cool.
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Coyul Donating Member (848 posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-31-04 05:48 PM
Response to Original message
28. I think you did very well
my mouth has always gottn me in trouble. The first thing that came to my mind was, yeah all guys with little penises say that.
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-31-04 06:59 PM
Response to Reply #28
29. That would have been a good one..lol.
I think the math test thing pissed him off, he failed a math test to go to another job that was pretty elementary math. Fractions and such. Nothing very complicated. He was offered help for it from me and another fellow at work, but didn't want the help.
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More Than A Feeling Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Fri Dec-31-04 07:20 PM
Response to Original message
31. Wow, congratulations
on successfully resisting the temptation to haul off and beat his ass! You must have the endurance of a saint.
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Jan-01-05 06:30 AM
Response to Reply #31
32. Well, I am sure I ended up yelling pretty loud though
This is the type who believes "he who talks the loudest wins", so I had to yell pretty loud to be heard over him. I am sort of beginning to think that the church he goes to feeds him a bunch of intolerant crap, because every so often if there is a gay guy on TV or something, he will say "Fag!" and shake his head in consternation.

The next time he tries the stuff, I am just going to start quoting the Bible to him, especially 1 Corinthians 13, the one about faith, hope and charity, the greatest of these being charity.

I was so pissed off I was shaking. I suppose the adrenaline was going..LOL.
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hollywood926 Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Jan-01-05 06:33 AM
Response to Original message
33. When/where were you in the first Gulf War?
I was in Bahrain at the time. I'm sure we've met. :-)
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nytemare Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Jan-01-05 06:38 AM
Response to Reply #33
35. I was actually in Iraq, in the northern part
I was in Zachu most of the time there. I spent some time in Dohuk and Mosul. I was there from April-July of '91, right after the war ended.
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knitter4democracy Donating Member (1000+ posts) Send PM | Profile | Ignore Sat Jan-01-05 08:38 PM
Response to Original message
37. Bravo!
Good job at holding yourself back from kicking his ass! I'm impressed!

It sort of reminded me of an incident in college when this total "white men are victims" jerk went off in a history class before the prof got there, and I lost it. He was saying how women can't ever be good politicians and how the civil rights movement has ruined everything, and I started off just trying to answer calmly and prove him wrong. Then he started getting nasty, and I lost it. Little did I know that the prof had walked in and was standing behind me until I saw the looks on everyone's faces. Then, the prof walks to his podium, looks at all of us, and says really quietly, "I agree with Carina. She's right." That was the end of it, and boy, did that feel good. :) Of course, he was the type to not listen to me, but another white guy telling him to knock it off, he'd listen to.
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