Manifesto of the Men's Equity Party Through most of history, women have been unfairly oppressed. But in the 20th century in the US and other western countries, many wrongs were righted. Women were given the right to vote. Official discrimination was outlawed, and unofficial discrimination dropped dramatically. Most careers became open to women in practice as well as in theory. Women began to outnumber men in college enrollment and in many professions. The gender gap in pay steadily narrowed. Then came the 21st century. Women have continued their gains. Now, in the year 2040, we say to you: Things have gone too far! Women earn more than men. A man can be convicted of rape based solely on the woman's word. Women can retroactively withdraw their consent. Cases where women might be lying or mistaken are dismissed as lies contrived by misogynists. In fact, women can easily blackmail men and many do. In divorce proceedings, women are always granted custody if they want it. Men are liable for child support if they had sex with the women during the relevant time frame or at any time displayed a parental interest. Men are also liable for child support labor levies, as in cleaning the house and doing the children's laundry when no one is home. Women are given a $100,000 credit per child in asset distribution based on the pain and suffering they endured during pregnancy and childbirth. Some women don't want child custody -- indeed, they want to give birth and then give the father the sole responsibility for raising the child -- in both labor and finances -- while they return to their high-powered careers. Women are never liable for child support. Women's magazines now cavalierly recommend that women arrange to be impregnated by artificial insemination from genetically desirable donors. Women can have it all by not telling their husbands about the artificial insemination. It brings to mind the cowbird who lays her egg in the nest of another bird, duping her into doing all the work. While sometimes required against their will to take custody of children who may not even be theirs, men are forbidden to be alone with children who are not their responsibility. Failing to take adequate measures to ensure another adult is present at all times is a criminal offense. If a child or woman alleges that a man has sexually abused the child, the man is automatically guilty. The campaign against sexual harassment has gone too far. In public places, video surveillance is used to issue citations. Consider a woman who has walked by a man and is thus unable to see where he is looking. Even if there is no other human around, if the man is observed on a surveillance camera looking at the woman's rear end, he is liable for a fine of up to $400 for sexual harassment. A citation for sexual harassment means a man is barred from voting. With more than 30% of adult males having received such citations, the electorate is predominantly female. Elected officials -- now themselves 70% women -- are answerable to women alone. A second citation earns a man a place in the category of dangerous criminals and requires him to wear an ankle monitor if he wishes to stay out of prison. All pornography is outlawed -- a man with a collection of images of women is guilty of a crime if the pattern of images suggests that he was using them for sexual arousal -- even if the images are from ordinary clothing catalogs. We implore womankind to see the present situation as the injustice that it is. We are your sons and brothers, flesh of your flesh. We deserve equal rights! Restore the vote to all, regardless of convictions for minor crimes that should not be criminal matters. Let us return to an era when everyone is presumed innocent until proven guilty and the word of a man is of equal weight to that of a woman. There is also a fertility crisis in the land. It has been observed for some time that when women have complete control of their fertility, they choose small families. As of a decade ago, they were choosing very small families -- an average of 1.7 children per woman. Bearing children also has come more and more to have stigma among women -- talented women don't take time for the tedious animal duty of bearing new life. Five years ago scientists identified a further decrease in fertility. It appears that many pairings of individual men and women are infertile, for reasons as yet unknown. But this has caused a further decline in the birthrate. Many women will not become pregnant unless they take active steps beyond having regular intercourse with a partner. For those who are honest with their partners, they hesitate to seek other sperm because he will not be the father. Because of such fears and simple inertia, many never do have children. Surveys show that the unease over fertility has in turn led women to be even more hesitant about bringing children into an uncertain world, and the birthrate is due to decline further. Our society faces a downward population spiral, with no end in sight. The women who rule society cannot agree on a plan of action. The Men's Equity Party favors lavish incentives to encourage women to bear children. The situation is dire enough that we would even recommend mandatory career leave for women who do not make a good-faith effort to become mothers, to counteract the advantages they otherwise accrue over women who do bear children. For millenia, women were oppressed, but society flourished. We righted a wrong, achieved equality between the sexes and society continued to flourish. But now women have come to dominate men, you have created a new wrong and this has led to a society in crisis and decline. We must act! Join the Men's Equity Party! |