What about it Ladies? [Archive]

C-Stepper

10-05-2005, 19:52

Since I tend to be the classic fence-sitter, it shouldn't be a surprise that I voted "other".

I definitely see a need, sorta, but...how many "female issues" are there?? :-? The backpacker forums have a women's section, but the same issues are discussed over and over and the area sees little "on-topic" traffic.

Or, are we thinking that we can discuss anything, on-topic or not, just like the Women's Hiking forums? I can't keep up in there, there's just too much going on and seems to never be on topic (not that it's bad, but with limited time and not knowing the other posters, the Women's Hikers forum rarely holds my interest).

Hammock Hanger

10-05-2005, 20:06

Is there an interest in this forum? Would you use it as intended, meaning to talk about female issues on hiking? Or would you rather be referred out to an already existing Women only forum that requires more detailed screening?

Someone had to ask, figured it might as well be me. :)
I am more then willing to support this forum. If we find that the traffic is just not worthy of keeping it ATTroll can close it down. There are a number of issues of a female matter that women like to discuss with women. It could be that the same questions get asked over and over but then those are the specific questions that this forum is for.

If we are to keep it then I do not feel that it should be viewed by men. If the shy women or girls know that men can read it they will be just as unlikely to ask the questions as they would if it was an open forum.

No I'm not being wishy washy, I personally do not need a women's only forum, but I know of women who will not speak up or ask question in an open forum, so it is for them that I am saying YES to the forum. SUe

Lilred

10-05-2005, 20:31

I voted other as well. I don't feel the need to go to a women's only forum. I'll open my big mouth and ask anything. However, like HH posted, there are women who are sensitive, so I would support such a forum. My thought is that perhaps a women's forum would be welcomed by those guys who might feel uncomfortable stumbling upon a 'feminine issues' thread.

Marta

10-05-2005, 20:41

I voted "Other." I can't say I'm not interested at all, or I wouldn't have checked out this thread. But I don't particularly feel the need for the forum myself. I have figured out the technical issues of being a woman hiking through trial and error. (I was frankly amazed, however, at the variety of peeing techniques the women on the Yahoo! group described in response to someone's question. Who knew...? I bet that's got some of you really curious now...)

On the pro side...I like chatting with other women who hike. We are fairly few and far between out there. On the con side...if you require the presence of other women to enable you to hike, you might want to choose another hobby because we are few and far between out there.

So I'm firmly on the fence about the forum.

dixicritter

10-05-2005, 21:06

Being firmly on the fence is fine too. :)

I voted for the forum, mostly not for myself.

SGT Rock thinks it's funny that I care about this issue btw....LOL.

sliderule

10-05-2005, 22:29

I would like this. I think it could be interesting, fun, and maybe feel a little safer than some of the other forums.

Jane in CTI see nothing wrong with a "female issues" forum. But female only? Don't kid yourselves. How are you going to verify gender over the internet? Can you tell if I am a boy or a girl?

Smile

10-05-2005, 22:33

Yes, I think this is an appropriate option on WB. One has to "weed" through the User CP's to see if you are talking to a women or a man, and frankly I don't want to discuss tampon use with guys that are complete strangers, and acutally "internet" strangers. No more than we can discuss the discomfort and solutions for jock itch when we can't experience that sort of thing - that's what other guys are for.

It's nice to be able to just go on a woman's forum and meet other folks that hike, and possibly meet up with some hiking partners as well quickly and easily.

I think it should be viewed by Women only, that just makes sense. If guys want to know about how to store pads from rain on a hike, let them ask their woman!

saimyoji

10-05-2005, 22:48

I see nothing wrong with a "female issues" forum. But female only? Don't kid yourselves. How are you going to verify gender over the internet? Can you tell if I am a boy or a girl? You have made numerous posts here...a quick review of them reveals much about you.....:-?

....or perhaps only what you want us to know......:-?:-?

Almost There

10-05-2005, 22:52

Good for you ladies, as a guy I think you deserve your own forum, for a safety issue I think it would be great if you ladies could link up together for hiking. I believe most trail folk would look out for you, but thinking about my wife, who is tiny, I would prefer if she started out with others if she was gonna go off without me. Us know-it-all men don't need to keep dispensing you advice, especially where a seasoned female hiker probably could lend you all more relevant advice for your needs.(ie: Gear as well as specific female questions, that we as men have no business lending advice on, but if you have read these threads enough you know there is someone bound to tell you the best way to do something.) Don't know how you can really keep the guys off, but if you can then I think you should all enjoy the privacy of your own forum.

DebW

10-06-2005, 10:07

I think this kind of forum has a place. It's a different format from the Women Hiker's List and some may find it preferrable to go to a topic of interest rather than reading an email list. I can see discussions on issues of women's gear, safety, hygiene, maybe even those looking for female hiking partners. Why not start it up and see how it works.

Bolo

10-06-2005, 10:47

It's a different format from the Women Hiker's List and some may find it preferrable to go to a topic of interest rather than reading an email list. Agree with you DebW. I like the WB format much better than the Women's Hiker list.
I would support a women only forum but who chose PINK??? :)

Bolo

dixicritter

10-06-2005, 10:58

Troll chose pink for now, but I'm sure we can get him to change that without any trouble. :)

Any suggestions on background color??

titanium_hiker

10-06-2005, 11:16

a nice wine colour?

sliderule

10-06-2005, 11:37

I think it should be viewed by Women only, that just makes sense. Such a limitation is not only impractical, it is impossible. Gender cannot be determined via the internet.

CynJ

10-06-2005, 12:09

My thought (as I stated in the other thread) is that there should be a "Women's Issues" forum section that is moderated but open to all.

If there is a Women's section - and someone who is shy or new feels uncomfortable posting a question - they will at least see a grouping of posts by other women and they can pm someone their question.

The pink needs to go though....bluck......maybe light green? Or dark magenta? Its just too stark a transition for the eyes from the regular pages.

(FYI - I voted options 2 & 4)

dixicritter

10-06-2005, 13:21

Such a limitation is not only impractical, it is impossible. Gender cannot be determined via the internet.

You are correct that gender cannot be determined via the internet. Hence it would have to be that we trust the honesty of our posters here in choosing their correct gender at sign up. That being the case, if a male decided to try and pass himself off as female there would be nothing we could do about that.

Bunny

10-06-2005, 15:08

While it's nice to have a place where women can discuss things they might not otherwise be comfortable discussing, I think that some of these things are relevant/interesting to men as well. (For example, fathers who hadn't previously considered how to prepare for their 12 year old daughters, guys who want to take their girlfriends backpacking, etc.)

While I'm relatively new to WhiteBlaze, I have never yet seen anyone post something blatently sexist or crude. Because of this, I'm not sure if a women only forum is absolutely necessary.

My suggestion would be to have a "Women's Forum", but to allow it to be open to all.

Auntie Mame

10-15-2005, 19:51

Minority groups need voices, and a forum such as this one can only enhance the sharing of information and encouragement among women hikers. Great idea, and time will tell if members utilize it enough to continue.
I'd like to launch a discussion about the dynamics of leadership when hiking with a male spouse: I notice that he has some different priorities than I do when we are on the trail.He and I need to really keep on top of this area of dispute, so that we can progress with both of our interests in mind. Getting older has helped, as has his willingness to be more open to other ways of doing things. I tend to be far less attached to the goal of "getting there" than he is, and more interested in experiencing what comes along as it comes along. We get into a struggle when we lose sensitivity to each others' values. Formerly, I would concede to his, but now I have more respect for my own preferences, and seek to strike a balance rather than to go one way over the other. Any other coupled women dealing with this?

Just Jeff

10-15-2005, 20:28

I don't really see how women would feel more comfortable posting in a "women's only" forum that men can read and comment on.

Not saying it's not needed or wanted, just that the only difference from the other fourms right now is the color. (And oh man what a color.)

I am interested in some of the topics because I'm trying to talk my wife into becoming a hiker, though.

Just two cents from a guy.

Frolicking Dinosaurs

10-15-2005, 20:54

I'm the female half of an older hiking couple. I've had several questions that I wouldn't even consider posting on this site because of comments I've seen in threads on sensitive topics. I might ask such questions in a female only forum. However, I've also seen several Dads picking up ideas and pointers on how to take care of their teen daughters' needs on the trail so I question the wisdom of restricting the forum to females exclusively.

I've been appalled by some of the comments I've seen a handful of guys make in threads regarding female-specific topics. The same posters tend to be disruptive in threads on other topics as well so I don't think the issue is gender-based discrimination. They are the people who convinced BB software designers to offer the 'ignore' feature on BB software and I've lowered the stress of reading this site considerably by using that feature to eliminate posts from a handful of troublemakers from what shows up on my monitor.

This may not be possible at WB, but I'd like to toss out the idea of a forum for 'sensitive topics' that is open to both male and female posters. What I am suggesting is a forum that is administered a bit more stringently that the other forums here - meaning that those who make rude and crude comments would lose the privilege of viewing and posting in the 'sensitive topic' forum, but not other forums on this site. A second way to deal with crude posters would be to put their posts in the sensitive topic area on 'pre-moderated status' - meaning a admin would read thier posts before they appeared in the thread and could block offensive posts. Either of these methods could result in a safer / friendly environment where all posters could discuss things like menstrual issues, sexual issues and hygiene / health issues.

Rain Man

10-15-2005, 20:57

... I'd like to launch a discussion about the dynamics of leadership when hiking with a male spouse ...

Don't leave out male fathers! The male leadership role MIGHT be more established or reasonable in that relationship,-- or so "Dad" might wrongly think! LOL

My daughter Grass discovered that problem. Or, did I?!

Rain:sunMan

.

Auntie Mame

10-15-2005, 21:24

Oops. Just found the thread about couples' hiking issues, and may have diverted from this thread's intention without meaning to. My apologies.

Dharma

10-17-2005, 20:28

I'd like to echo Bunny' post. I haven't witnesses the crude language people have spoken of and I feel the information will be useful to more than women.

A better topic for discussion would be WHY women feel they need a private forum. If you're afraid to post on an anonymous forum, how are you going to act on the trail with real people? That scares me.

While it's nice to have a place where women can discuss things they might not otherwise be comfortable discussing, I think that some of these things are relevant/interesting to men as well. (For example, fathers who hadn't previously considered how to prepare for their 12 year old daughters, guys who want to take their girlfriends backpacking, etc.)

While I'm relatively new to WhiteBlaze, I have never yet seen anyone post something blatently sexist or crude. Because of this, I'm not sure if a women only forum is absolutely necessary.

My suggestion would be to have a "Women's Forum", but to allow it to be open to all.

Singer

10-19-2005, 23:40

I like having a women's forum. It provides a place to ask quesitons about a range of issues that one may feel uncomfortable talking to men about. This can be anything from hygeine to a venting about how some men treat you on the trail. I also don't mind that men will view the forum. It might give them some insight into the issues we feel are important, how we think, and what we are trying to deal with on an every day basis. I would hope, that they keep in mind that we aren't excluding or bashing them. I am glad that there are men who have posted in this forum. All posts here so far have seemed to be honest and non critical. :)

Singer

10-19-2005, 23:51

I'd like to echo Bunny' post. I haven't witnesses the crude language people have spoken of and I feel the information will be useful to more than women.

A better topic for discussion would be WHY women feel they need a private forum. If you're afraid to post on an anonymous forum, how are you going to act on the trail with real people? That scares me.

My answer to this is that I'm not afraid to speak my mind. I have received critical comments to my opinion in other threads. I don't mind criticism, but when I take part in a discussion, I don't want a someone out there bashing me just to bash. There are examples in all the thread replies. If I want to talk about a sensitive issue, I want a place to do it in where every poster knows that people's feelings could be hurt. So if this forum had been called "Sensitive issues only", that would have been OK.

d'shadow

12-31-2007, 00:24

While I support a woman's forum, I would like it open to men also. Cannot imagine a man interested in tampon use, any mention of this kind of item, usually makes the men I know shudder :rolleyes: However, I do like it when a man feels free to ask advice from the female gender. Any innappropiate answers, or attitudes can be edited by the moderator. fact is, I check out this forum on a regular basis. I also like knowing how other women have handled female problems. I usually hike with men, so cannot discuss it with them.

take-a-knee

12-31-2007, 00:29

Marta

12-31-2007, 06:25

I hadn't heard about about a huge portion of the US female population dying off...I had no idea you "guys" were a minority now.

On Whiteblaze?

Where's a statistician with time on his/her hands to compare male/female membership and posting ratios?

Mainly the women's forum was a response to the tendency of threads to degenerate into irritating (to some of us) pissing contests.

Yahtzee

12-31-2007, 06:36

Women don't have pissing contests? Your missing out on some mindless fun.

Frolicking Dinosaurs

12-31-2007, 08:47

Women don't have pissing contests? Your missing out on some mindless fun.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E8ZLvqkOLzk

Frolicking Dinosaurs

12-31-2007, 09:41

While I support a woman's forum, I would like it open to men also. .... However, I do like it when a man feels free to ask advice from the female gender. Any innappropiate answers, or attitudes can be edited by the moderator.This is how this forum works. men are welcome as long as they are adding info or asking questions.... we remove the inaapropriate comments some fellows just have to make. Those who aren't mature enough to participate as demostrated by repeatedly interjecting inappropriate comments are banned from this forum. So far, this has worked.

dixicritter

12-31-2007, 10:56

Absolutely correct Dino. Men are welcome in the Female Hikers Forum as long as they leave the inappropriate (read Neanderthal) posts out on the on the main forum. There is a sticky at the top of the forum that explains how it all works if anyone is really confused it can be found here... http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showthread.php?t=12432

To date we have had to ban only 3 members from this forum total and before anyone asks... NO I will not name names. We want the women to feel safe to post in this forum about issues that are specific to female hikers. Let's face women and men are most decidedly different and we're all grateful for that fact. :)

Now let's get off this subject once and for all shall we? Please?

Smile

12-31-2007, 11:40

Good idea DC.
It does seem that the guys feel left out - how about a men's forum for them to discuss their private health issues and needs? :)

Just to balance things out a little.

dixicritter

12-31-2007, 12:02

The reason we haven't set a men's forum is that the men have the whole rest of the board to discuss freely whatever they like. This isn't my idea but what Attroll and SGT Rock said.

Edited to add... I didn't set up this forum in the first place... Attroll did, just so everyone is clear on this. :)

Maple

12-31-2007, 12:34

Most issues I will discuss in general forum, but there are subjects and issues that come up from time to time that you truly want another woman's point of view on. I for one am greatful for this forum. Keep up the good work.

Auntie Mame

12-31-2007, 12:47

Its been a couple of years since this thread began. I notice that men appear to find this forum irresistable. Sometimes more men reply or comment than women. I heard that studies suggest when men start the dialogue in a meeting, women will often not participate. To my amazement, I found that to be true. It is in the light of that kind of thing that I support opportunities for special purpose forums, here or elsewhere. Dominance is often more fully perceived by the ones dominated than by the dominator(s).