Attraction: How it has evolved

I just saw this picture and thought it was hilarious. So here's for a little lighthearted feminism...

"Again I renew the call for a return to virtue" -Elaine S. Dalton

Two weeks ago, the world had the wonderful opportunity to hear from a Prophet of God and other of God's chosen leaders. The meetings were wonderful. One of my favorite talks was by Sister Elaine S. Dalton, a leader chosen by God to lead the young women's organization. Her talk hit on every point I strive to emphasize here on my blog. Though criticized by "Mormon Feminist Housewives", her talk was sensitive and straightforward in calling for respect of women. Their criticism actually motivated me  review and more carefully study Sister Dalton's, which proved to be a very uplifting and reaffirming experience. Here's my recap and commentary on her talk...

My favorite part of her talk was when she called for a return to virtue. She stated,

"Again I renew the call for a return to virtue. Virtue is the strength and power of daughters of God. What would the world be like if virtue- a pattern of thought and behavior based on high moral standards, including chastity- were reinstated in our society as a most highly prized value? If immorality, pornography, and abuse decreased, would there be fewer broken marriages, broken lives, and broken hearts? Would media ennoble and enable rather than objectify and degrade God's precious daughters? If all humanity really understood the importance of the statement "We are daughters of our Heavenly Father," how would women be regarded and treated?" (emphasis added by me!)

This paragraph is the whole point of my blog. If we as a society based our morals on the belief that women are daughters of God, so much of what I see at the battered women's shelter would disappear, laws would reflect the serious nature of the crimes committed against women. (Sister Dalton may not have necessarily been talking about laws and crimes, but this is my commentary) Sister Dalton's comments reached every concern that is faced by women today- chastity before marriage, domestic violence, sexual assault, pornography. She was criticized by the "Mormon Feminist" group as being insensitive to the victims of sexual assault, yet I believe she has a better understanding of victims than the mormon feminists do. The feminists ridiculed her for using the scripture Moroni 9:9 "And notwithstanding this great abomination of the Lamanites, it doth not exceed that of our people in Moriantum. For behold, many of the daughters of the Lamanites have they taken prisoners; and after depriving them of that which was most dear and precious above all things, which is chastity and virtue-" They claimed that her use of this scripture was insensitive to those who had been raped/ sexually assualted because she was telling them that they had their virtue taken from them. First of all, the scripture states that, not Sister Dalton. Secondly, victims of rape have had their virtue stolen from them; that is what is so evil about the crime. By saying they have not had their virtue taken from them, it is like saying murders have not taken life. I think it is a grave injustice to victims to say they have not had anything taken from them. By not acknowledging this fact, victims are not given a chance to recognize their feelings and heal properly. There is nothing worse than discounting a woman's feelings! Instead of validation and healing, a woman could feel confused about her sense of loss and helpless. In using this scripture, Sister Dalton validates the victims' sense of loss. She sympathizes with them in calling for a renewed recognition of the importance of virtue. If the world understood how precious virtue is, and treated rape as a crime that robs a woman of her sacred virtue, don't you think it would be taken more seriously? Maybe instead of society questioning a rape victim and whispering that she brought it on herself or that she wanted it but just felt guilty afterward, maybe they would stand up for the injustice that it is and prosecute the perpetrator. Now in so saying that a victim's virtue has been taken from her (or him, I sometimes forget to include that men are victims as well), I want to emphasize that she can heal through the atonement of Jesus Christ- not repent, she/he has no need for repenting as it wasn't a sin on their part, but the atonement offers the potential for not only repenting but also for healing. Preach My Gospel states, "All that is unfair about life can be made right through the Atonement". That includes wrongs that were done to us at no fault of our own. Where sexual assault is rampant on the earth today, Worldwide Sexual Assault Statistics claims that 1 in 3 women in the world have been raped or sexually assaulted, Sister Dalton is pointing out that if the world focused on women's virtue, if children were taught from an early age that women were to be respected as daughters of God, this would greatly reduce the rate of violence against women and tolerance for it. Obviously the way we're handling things now isn't lowering the rate of sexual assault and domestic violence. Its time to call for media to "ennoble (I love that concept of an ennobled woman) and enable" women, time for the "wait until marriage" girl or boy to be celebrated instead of mocked, and time to recognize that when you mess with a woman, you won't just have to deal with her father, one day you'll answer to her Heavenly Father. Thank you Sis. Dalton for expressing the Lord's concern for His daughters to the world. Thank you for standing up for our virtue and worth!

For Elaine S. Dalton's full talk see: We Are Daughters of Our Heavenly Father

The Women of Harry Potter

I LOVE this video I found about the women in the Harry Potter books. It brings together my two loves, Harry Potter and the ennobling of women. Awesome. Its a little long but take a look...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5Pj-MPN_co

(Some were having trouble viewing the embedded video, so here is the link)

Ready to Take Action?

Okay blog viewers, now is the chance for you to take action against a startling proposition. The Federal Communication Commission is considering changing its policy to allow the f-word on television and radio stations during daytime hours when children are watching/listening, and to allow female frontal nudity (which is "non-sexual" apparently) on television. These expletives will only be allowed as "fleeting", thank goodness right, because we all know that as soon as you hear that word or see that image its gone from your mind forever. (Yes, I am being sarcastic). I don't know how anyone could standby and allow this to happen. Without warning, children are going to be exposed to these things while flipping through the channels. And we wonder why kids aren't kids anymore. We throw them into adult situations and expect them to retain their innocence. It surprises me that we would ever even seek to change an "indecency policy". If it was indecent a year ago- its still indecent. Here is the link to the public announcement concerning the change:

FCC Press Release

Just a side note- Since this is a feminist blog, why is it okay to show female frontal nudity? Seriously though. Why are women's bodies chosen to be the allowed image on tv? As if we need to make even more commonplace women's degradation in public. It's disgusting that even though we're all liberalized and "equal" now, we're starting to become even less respected and valued with every passing day. How is allowing female nudity on television going to further society's views of women? It isn't. Feminism was about women being seen as intelligent, capable human beings ready to contribute to society. It was focused on gaining the vote for women, having an intellectual voice among men. It was about having opportunities to express themselves in creative spheres. Women were tired of being their husband's objects. They wanted more of life than having babies. Women craved respect. But now, we're allowing women to be objectified once more. I'm not a man, but I feel safe enough in saying that I don't think a man is thinking about how creative or intelligent women are when women are before them unclothed. So, women (and men!) exercise your voice by resisting this policy change. Don't allow men to decide that the world should be entitled to seeing a nude female on tv, no matter how fleeting the image may be.

Here's how to comment:

1. Go to http://apps.fcc.gov/ecfs/upload/begin?procName=&filedFrom=X.
2. Enter the code "13-86" in the "Proceeding Number" box and fill out the few remaining required fields.
3. Enter your comment in the text box provided and click "Continue."
4. From there, review your comment and click "Confirm."


Here's a comment template from the American Family Association, which you can copy and paste into the comment box:

I oppose any changes to the current FCC indecency standards that would allow television and radio stations to broadcast expletives and nudity on the public airwaves, even if brief or "fleeting."

The Supreme Court has confirmed the FCC's authority to enforce policies regarding expletives and nudity, especially during times when children are likely to be watching or listening.

Relaxing the current policy would not serve the public interest and I urge the FCC to reject all proposals that would allow for the broadcast of expletives and nudity on FCC-licensed stations.