Raising Some Hard Earned Cash
If you have not done so already, please read the last two posts from Jewschool, and then come back here.
[Waiting for you to finish reading…]
Thanks for coming back.
The subject of both of the posts I just asked you to read are intended to be eye-catching and possibly even intentionally offensive. However, the Ms. Holocaust Survivor event, was titled provocatively while the content of the event was empowering and kind. As we look at the buy-us-dinner fundraising idea from the self-proclaimed voice of the Jewish blogosphere you don’t quite get over that initial bad taste in your mouth.
Taking a deep dive into the Jewlicious fundraising ideas, and the lackluster apology/excuses of its editor, we all feel just a bit dirty.
Clearly, as was pointed out in the comments of the Jewlicious post by the same editor making the excuses, we at Jewschool love to drive traffic by talking in-side baseball. However, I am an avid fan of the sport and dabble just a bit in media criticism. And the shameful attempt to pass the buck on this sexist, misogynistic and other “big-boy words” project, could be called a two down, bottom of the 9th kind of moment.
The Optics
The men and women involved in the Jewslicious fundraiser had to know what this would look like. They had to know how it would play. But it seems like they were genuinely surprised the feminists and lefties were upset with their choice to showcase two women, described as gorgeous, in a post written by a man to raise money from philanthropists by setting up an evening on the town between said philanthropist and previously mentioned gorgeous woman. (When you lay it out like that, it does sound pretty bad doesn’t it?) If, as the excuse reads, the women were the only two available for the fundraiser, why didn’t they write the post announcing the program? The optics of this move were short-sighted and weakly executed. I look forward to reading the post about the dates…
Fixing Misogynistic Problems By Pretending to Exploit Men
So to fix the problem, CK et. al. chose to sell dates with handsome men. By evening the playing field, he reasoned in his pissy post, the feminists and lefties would shut up. (Please see this post…not really shutting up.) However, unlike the women, one of the men being sold was writing the solicitation. So, not really even. Also, when you should just apologize but you just make up excuses, you sound like Fox News.
Own it
If you take a risk, like selling bloggers to the highest bidder to raise money for your conference, you may have to deal with the consequences. Taking on significant risk brings about two things: 1. Greater reward. 2. Greater downside. In this case, it seems that an ill-informed choice lead to a risky position without full understanding of the potential impact. No risk taker is always lucky, but those who are revered by the community, are the ones who own the choices. Sure take the risk, but own the choice. Don’t sit back and blame people for not understanding the vision when this was exactly what you wanted in the first place. Our two posts and more so the Sisterhood article about this stupid idea to raise cash has given new life to the exploitation of the Jewlicious blogging staff this fundraising idea. So stop trying to say we are too sensitive or whatever else, and just own it.
These are my two cents, presented just a few hours before Shabbat East Coast Time…because like I said, I like inside baseball.
The optics of the situation are actually much simpler to understand. With all the self righteous indignation that Jewschool writers and a couple of others have tried to muster, the fact is that the egg is on your faces as the assumption on your parts that Dave is a pimp and the two women involved are brainless dolts who are selling themselves is what’s truly offensive. Optically speaking, the only conclusion is that some people are unable to overcome their own biases and see victims and victimizes where there are none and, more egregiously, continue to see the world as if it is some vestige of the 1950s.
Ooo, Optician, you’re so much cleverer than all of us who think that you’re an ass. Please, spank us again, you know how we women and girly-men feminists love that. Clearly the fact that you want to do it makes it not sexist. Optician get yourself some glasses.
Could you at least comment in a way that makes sense?
To recap, jewlicious published something inoffensive, a Forward writer who often misinterprets basic news events went prostitution crazy and jewschool tried to moralize. Neither the woman or the girly-male feminist bothered to consider the thoughts and opinion of the two very well educated women who apparently volunteered for the gig and who didn’t perceive it as anything but a worthwhile way to help raise funding for a worthy cause. One of the stupider claims made was that since Abitbol didn’t link to their previous posts that somehow this proves the misogyny here. Another stupid defense by jewschool is the suggestion that you didn’t REALLY mean that this was about prostitution. No? Then what was all the noise about?
Basically, you guys took the low road with what was obviously done in good fun. You arent embarrassed but you should be.
Now excuse me, I think I’ll head out to read a Jewschool and Forward writer’s latest piece since I so enjoyed the one he did where an armless black man got raped by a manly Israeli Jew.
Optician, I was about to respond to your comment, and then I noticed that you called me a “girly-male feminist.” I’m equally offended and honored. I also think that the mere fact you used that phrase means I really don’t need to reply. Your “defense” speaks for itself.
Quit while you’re ahead, and kindly don’t comment here again if you’re just going to spout sexist bullsh*t.
Um, I was quoting your friend and compatriot KRG. Now don’t be too surprised this happened. It reveals your humorlessness, poor eye for detail and inability to make sense of basic facts. I find it amusing that it’s you and Naomi from Forward who have led this stupid attack on Jewlicious because whenever I read her articles, I get the same sense about her inability to properly interpret facts that are fairly obvious. Cheers.
Right, because women never agree to do things which are sexist, even when they themselves are well-edimacated people. That never happens. Also, it would be difficult to consider their thoughts about it, as they haven’t made them known. Or at least Jewlicious hasn’t. Finally, you are aware, I presume, that “you’re humorless” isn’t actually a response to having pointed out that someone has been offensive. As the wonderful Judith martin (Miss Manners) has pointed out many times, if you didn’t mean to be offensive, the proper response isn’t to tell someone that they can’t take a joke, but to apologize. If that isn’t what the person does, that it is reasonable to assume that they did in fact mean to offend.
…or that they didn’t mean to, but don’t care that they did (which is almost as bad).
Well, actually, the women did make their feelings known at least three times that I can count. Once, by participating. The second time, in a Haaretz interview ( published before this post) and the third time in a comment on the Forward’s Sisterhood blog about this supposed prostitution. In two of the three instances, support was indicated, awareness of what they were doing was indicated and rejection of your and the Forward’s assertions was also indicated. And those are just the places I’ve seen, there may be others.
Now, if you or others find this offensive, tough luck. You don’t deserve an apology or even an explanation when you don’t even have the decency to assume these women have a brain, a choice and the right to make that choice. On the contrary, you should be apologizing to the two women involved, as well as to Abitbol. If you succeeded in scaring away donors then you should also be deeply ashamed.
Now run along, shameless puppies, go find some other self-righteous twaddle to sell to like-minded fools.
Once again, please point to any instance whereby we mentioned an auction? Or that we were selling actual bloggers as opposed to their time? When exactly did I say that I was the voice of the Jewish blogosphere? Please allow me to be perfectly clear, I am the voice of me. That’s it. But I would still like to see where you got that impression dcc. When “optician” said that you all had a poor eye for detail, he wasn’t kidding. And please explain that scantily clad JDate ad? Where it happens, eh?