Time Apologizes For Allowing “Feminist” to Lead Its Dumb Poll

So Time every year engages in a stunning piece of bad journalism by running a poll for what words ought to be “banned.”  The piece is terrible journalism all around.  First, the winner doesn’t get banned because we have a First Amendment, duh.  Indeed, past winners like OMG, YOLO and Twerk didn’t seem to disappear.  At best, it reflects what words its respondents are sick and tired of.

And then there is the fact that the poll is utterly unscientific given that it is one of those “internet polls.”  So it is a survey of those who decide to take the time to answer these polls, which often induces people to try to game the outcome.  Of course it works fine for Time’s advertisers because it means more clicks, but it is simply terrible journalism.

(And don’t get me started on the fact that some of the “words” they are proposing to ban are actually “phrases.”)

And despite all efforts, they managed to make it worse.  This year, they decided to include the word “feminist” on the list of nominees and then, to the anger of many radical feminists, it was far and away the winner.  At last reporting it go 51% of the votes, with the next highest vote-getter receiving 12%.  Which in turn caused radical feminists to freak out, which in turn made Twitchy laugh.  Which in turn led to this bootlicking editor’s note on the poll itself:

Editor’s Note:

TIME apologizes for the execution of this poll; the word ‘feminist’ should not have been included in a list of words to ban. While we meant to invite debate about some ways the word was used this year, that nuance was lost, and we regret that its inclusion has become a distraction from the important debate over equality and justice.

–Nancy Gibbs

In other words:

Dear American people,

We are sorry that in our fake, unscientific poll of words we say should be banned (although we just mean shunned), that we allowed some unsanctioned expression to occur.  We will not let this occur in the future.

Time

Of course they opened up the poll to a a pro-feminist outcome by including “bossy” on the list of words to ban, which you might recall was a big coordinated message a bit back and even has its own website.  One suspects that they would have been perfectly happy if “bossy” won, indicating how evolved we are.

That being said, how many people are there out there who simultaneously claims that they hate feminism but 1) support Sarah Palin for President, 2) admire Michelle Malkin, Laura Ingraham, Ann Coulter, Megyn Kelly or a dozen other smart women in the public eye, 3) support women being allowed to work in any field they want, if they have the qualifications, and so on?  Guess what?  If you think women should vote, should have equal employment opportunities, should be allowed to be President if they are the best qualified, you are a feminist!  Sort of.

At least that is what feminism originally meant: equal opportunity, right to vote, right to work if they are qualified for the job, etc.  But what has happened in recent years is that radical feminism has taken over the mantle of “feminism” so that what many of us associate with the word “feminist” is what is better called “radical feminism.”

So what this badly unscientific poll represents is how badly the “feminist” brand has been ruined by the radical feminists.  The truth is ordinary feminism has so won the war that its downright unthinkable for us to go back to the days when, for instance, a woman was told she couldn’t be a lawyer because she was a woman.  As for the sullying of the reputation of the word “feminist,” the correct solution is for those who defend the term to clean their own house, and not to suppress the debate as Time is attempting to do.

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My wife and I have lost our jobs due to the harassment of convicted terrorist (and adjudicated pedophile) Brett Kimberlin, including an attempt to get us killed and to frame me for a crime carrying a sentence of up to ten years.  I know that claim sounds fantastic, but if you read starting here, you will see absolute proof of these claims using documentary and video evidence.  If you would like to help in the fight to hold Mr. Kimberlin accountable, please hit the donation link on the right.  And thank you.

Follow me at Twitter @aaronworthing, mostly for snark and site updates.  And you can purchase my book (or borrow it for free if you have Amazon Prime), Archangel: A Novel of Alternate, Recent History here.  And you can read a little more about my novel, here.

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Disclaimer:

I have accused some people, particularly Brett Kimberlin, of reprehensible conduct.  In some cases, the conduct is even criminal.  In all cases, the only justice I want is through the appropriate legal process—such as the criminal justice system.  I do not want to see vigilante violence against any person or any threat of such violence.  This kind of conduct is not only morally wrong, but it is counter-productive.

In the particular case of Brett Kimberlin, I do not want you to even contact him.  Do not call him.  Do not write him a letter.  Do not write him an email.  Do not text-message him.  Do not engage in any kind of directed communication.  I say this in part because under Maryland law, that can quickly become harassment and I don’t want that to happen to him.

And for that matter, don’t go on his property.  Don’t sneak around and try to photograph him.  Frankly try not to even be within his field of vision.  Your behavior could quickly cross the line into harassment in that way too (not to mention trespass and other concerns).

And do not contact his organizations, either.  And most of all, leave his family alone.

The only exception to all that is that if you are reporting on this, there is of course nothing wrong with contacting him for things like his official response to any stories you might report.  And even then if he tells you to stop contacting him, obey that request.  That this is a key element in making out a harassment claim under Maryland law—that a person asks you to stop and you refuse.

And let me say something else.  In my heart of hearts, I don’t believe that any person supporting me has done any of the above.  But if any of you have, stop it, and if you haven’t don’t start.