Because @kmcdonovgh Knows You’re a Victim of Heteronormative Patriarchy

Posted on | February 22, 2014 | 77 Comments

Salon.com assistant editor Katie McDonough:

Evangelical Christianity makes visible — through purity pledges and doctrine assigning women the role of man’s “helpmate” — the norms and expectations about female virginity and subservience that so often remain hidden in the secular world. While it may be tempting to draw a red line around Christian fundamentalist views on gender and sexuality to distinguish them from supposedly evolved “secular” culture, there is considerable, uncomfortable overlap between the two. . . .

(Watch out! Heteronormative patriarchy is comin’ to get ya!)

Susan Patton is a joke, but she’s not the only person arguing in mainstream publications that women who have sex outside of marriage are setting themselves up for disaster and heartbreak. (Hi, Ross Douthat!)
In an opinion piece for the Wall Street Journal last week, Patton warned single women, “The grandmotherly message of yesterday is still true today: Men won’t buy the cow if the milk is free.”
This is purity culture passed off as “commonsense” wisdom, which was published in a “serious” and secular paper.

Well, she goes on from there, all of it inspired by an article by Kiera Feldman in The New Republic, about which I’d written a few hundred words that got gobbled up by a computer glitch, and I don’t feel like re-writing it. Basically, if you don’t want to travel The Strait and Narrow Way, there are many on-ramps for the Highway to Hell. The idea that somebody is forcing women to adhere to a Christian moral code is one of those persecution fantasies that feminists cherish as justifying their eternal vigilance for “choice.”

Matt Barber takes a whack at the feminist piñata:

In what amounts to little more than an anti-Christian hit piece on Patrick Henry College . . . Ms. McDonough says that it’s time for American women to reject all those biblically imposed “gender complementarian” norms and do away with our “toxic purity culture” once and for all.

Nobody is trying to stop Katie McDonough from whoring around, so why does she feel threatened by “purity culture”? Why do feminists reject moral criticism of fornication — that’s “slut-shaming”! — but accept criticism of fornication by radical lesbian feminists who denounce heterosexual PIV (penis-in-vagina) as “always rape“?

If you study feminist writing carefully, you discover that the ideology presents young women with two alternatives:

Have sex with lots of men, because that’s “empowering”!
or
Be a lesbian, which is even more “empowering”!

The one option feminism emphatically condemns is traditional Judeo-Christian moral teaching about pre-marital chastity.

“[T]he idea of ‘virginity’ in our culture . . . [is] an extremely problematic concept, bolstering up a highly heteronormative hierarchy of what is and isn’t defined as sex.”
— Jess McCabe, “‘Virginity’ is an outdated concept”

“Even the way we see sexual intercourse is male-defined! . . . What we understand about this concept of virginity, in a sense, invalidates queer sex. . . .
“Society has embedded within our minds that when a woman loses her virginity, she loses something . . . All of this isn’t such a surprise of course when we remember that for centuries, women have been seen as property and not individual human beings. The concept of virginity reinforces this idea, that a woman’s worth is intrinsically linked to her sexuality.”
— Hew Li-Sha, “A Feminist Interpretation of the First Time”

“The idea of your first penis-in-vagina sexual encounter being something significant and life altering (well, for women anyway) has origins in women being considered property.
“That is to say, virginity is a social construction that came about because of the commodification of women. . . .
“Virginity is heteronormative.
“Virginity assumes that penis-in-vagina sex is somehow a special type of sex that is different from all others.
“This means that there is an assumption that engaging in heterosexual vaginal sex is the standard (and should be) for your sexual activities.
“Heterosexuality is the norm, and virginity just works as reinforcement to this.”
— Erin McKelle, “Losing Virginity for Good”

Take notes — this will be on the final exam. The basic feminist idea is that if you have moral objections to screwing around, you’re not only a victim of the patriarchy, you’re a gay-bashing hater, too. You’re invalidating “queer sex” and “bolstering up a highly heteronormative hierarchy.”

Is it a coincidence that this rhetoric sounds like it belongs in a book, Lesbian Pick-Up Lines for Women’s Studies Majors?

Category: Feminism

Comments

77 Responses to “Because @kmcdonovgh Knows You’re a Victim of Heteronormative Patriarchy”

Political Rift » Because @kmcdonovgh Knows You’re a Victim of Heteronormative Patriarchy
February 22nd, 2014 @ 10:25 am

[…] Robert Stacy McCain Salon.com assistant editor Katie McDonough: Evangelical Christianity makes visible — through […]
gntlman
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:28 am

RT @smitty_one_each: TOM Because @kmcdonovgh Knows You’re a Victim of Heteronormative Patriarchy http://t.co/CgODQBmtoJ #TCOT
IsaeliStar
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:31 am

RT @smitty_one_each: TOM Because @kmcdonovgh Knows You’re a Victim of Heteronormative Patriarchy http://t.co/CgODQBmtoJ #TCOT
rmnixondeceased
February 22nd, 2014 @ 10:33 am

She pointedly ignores that Christian teaching requires chastity and virginity prior to marriage from everyone, both male and female. It also requires chasity within the marriage, that is, no adultery, not even lusting in the heart. These things are sins. Something she ignores to pimp her viewpoint and agenda.
bridget
February 22nd, 2014 @ 10:35 am

Did these brain trusts miss the fact that intercourse is the only way in which the human race can continue its existence? Did it also miss the fact that sex that leads to procreation is something that a functional society has an interest in regulating? Seriously, middle school biology explains this.

“Nobody is trying to stop Katie McDonough from whoring around, so why does she feel threatened by “purity culture”?”

As one of my friends wisely pointed out, there is no reason why slut-shaming is a bad thing. Either be a loud and proud whore and don’t let the haters get you down, or maybe the shame is coming from yourself and a hint to change your whoring ways.
Evi L. Bloggerlady
February 22nd, 2014 @ 10:43 am

Heteronormative Patriarchy = the way the world has been run for the last 40,000 years…
badanov
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:02 am

Nobody is trying to stop Katie McDonough from whoring around

Right to the heart of the matter, huh, RSM? Not stopping for coffee or bathroom break.
joethefatman
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:10 am

“The one option feminism emphatically condemns is traditional Judeo-Christian moral teaching about pre-marital chastity.”

Also known as self respect.
DaveO
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:24 am

Why does Katie McDonough feel threatened by the “purity culture?” Guilty conscience, courtesy of a Holy Spirit she doesn’t recognise. The further a person sinks, the more strident the guilt, and the greater the anger at feeling guilt, leading to greater needs to taunt the guilt as a means of escape. At some point, the guilt-anger-escape spiral resembles insanity.
DaveO
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:33 am

Goes back to the feminist conflict of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Faced with status quo, or feminism within a Christian context, or Porno-feminism (paid for courtesy of Hugh Hefner and Larry Flynt), the feminists laid back, spread ’em, and believed they won, STD and babies, and emotional holocaust be damned. Feminists are more enslaved to men than ever before and their leaders know it.
Stogie Chomper
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:41 am

Well if lusting in the heart is a sin, all those practicing Rule 5 are sinners bound for Hell…but I really doubt this is true. Attraction to the opposite sex is normal, healthy and good.
Stogie Chomper
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:41 am

Heteronormative and PROUD of it.
rmnixondeceased
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:50 am

Heh. True, but concupiscence is a very minor sin and forgiven by Christ if we but accept His sacrifice and follow His directions as contained in the New Testament. The natural attraction is a good thing and learning how to bridle in natural lust is part of the maturing process in both physical and emotional maturity as well as Christian maturity in faith.
We are all sinners but forgiveness is available to all.
DumbLongCon
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:50 am

Hahahahahahahaha! Yes, if we have sex before the man made pact of marriage we’re all going to hell! LOLOLOL! You Christians are always good for laughs. Dont ever change. You make it easier for liberals to win elections.
rmnixondeceased
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:52 am

Laugh all you want, I’ll pray for your immortal soul.
DLC
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:52 am

I kinda loathe rad fems, but I will always hate conservatives more, and if they’re working to kick over the Puritan culture America has been saddled with for a few hundred years then more power to them.
rmnixondeceased
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:54 am

Heh. Another lost child to be put on the daily prayer roll …
Socialism: Organized Evil
February 22nd, 2014 @ 11:55 am

In their reactionary war against Western civilization, today’s liberals use three main attack vectors:-Attacking the family-Attacking private property-Attacking Christianity

Know your adversary.
Stogie Chomper
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:05 pm

Yes, if the Swedish Bikini Team assaulted me tomorrow demanding sex, I would turn them down (er, ah, I think) because I love my wife too much. Sex is one thing, love is another, and both are best when present together for the same woman.
Stogie Chomper
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:07 pm

I’m not a Christian and I don’t believe in Hell, but I do not like the intense hatred, sarcasm and ridicule of leftists like you. Your one defining attribute is hate, and you display it here in your comment.
Nan
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:08 pm

Next thing you know, there’ll be a 12-step program to take care of that.
Nan
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:08 pm

He loves you anyway, God, I mean; I can’t speak for Mr. Nixon.
Nan
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:09 pm

Ideally, they’d like to redefine life so that children come from test tubes and are never in their mother’s womb and sex never leads to procreation.
Nan
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:10 pm

Natural law is written on man’s heart.
rmnixondeceased
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:15 pm

Amen my friend! We have both been blessed by God with wives who love us and we love them in return. I am quite sure my wife will be immediately translated to Heaven upon her demise simply for putting up with me! The demands on her as I decline daily towards my own death are huge and she handles them with grace and a loving heart!
rmnixondeceased
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:21 pm

I love all of God’s creation, even the haters. That does not mean I like them …
joethefatman
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:23 pm

Man that would be har…difficult to turn down.
rmnixondeceased
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:25 pm

🙂 How ya been Joe? Good to see you’re still flying the DeRP colors!
joethefatman
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:26 pm

Doing well. Still around anyway. So how y’all is?
rmnixondeceased
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:27 pm

Crappy but happy … every day out of the grave is a blessing!
joethefatman
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:28 pm

I so very much agree!
Linda
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:38 pm

Crappy but happy. I’m going to have to steal that phrase! God bless you.
maniakmedic
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:49 pm

It’s always been interesting to me to be lectured on how stuffy and prudish and obviously imprisoned and brainwashed by that outdated silliness known as a belief in Jesus Christ a person is if they choose to not engage in sex outside of marriage. Yep, I’m the one with no control over my life. The person who can exhibit self control over my body and reserve my energy and passions for positive outlets. But according to these people I’d be a better, more well-rounded, “freer” person if I became a slave to my body and gave it whatever it wants whenever it wants. Yep, totally sounds like freedom from me.

As for all this crap about the heteronormative patriarchy: LOL! Only in a feminist’s fevered dreams does giving in to multiple men’s desires for sex on demand not constitute being shackled by the patriarchy while having enough self respect to not jump in the sack with anything walking past with dangly bits means I’m pining for the days of yore when a man could knock his wife up and demand she get in the kitchen – barefoot, of course – and make him a sammich.

Feminists: winning the gold in the self parody olympics.
rmnixondeceased
February 22nd, 2014 @ 12:58 pm

Thanks! Use it freely as it is a true outlook!
rmnixondeceased
February 22nd, 2014 @ 1:00 pm

I hope and pray that you are well and doing fantastic!
joethefatman
February 22nd, 2014 @ 1:12 pm

Thank you and you as well.
Jeanette Victoria
February 22nd, 2014 @ 1:21 pm

This is simply insane yet no one wants to just come out and say that. The fact anyone give this woman ant attention at all is scary. She is delusional
robertstacymccain
February 22nd, 2014 @ 1:34 pm

There are few things so beautiful in the world as the English declarative sentence.
robertstacymccain
February 22nd, 2014 @ 1:43 pm

“She is delusional”

No, she’s a feminist.

To-may-to. To-mah-to.
Jeanette Victoria
February 22nd, 2014 @ 2:04 pm

As far as I can tell there is no difference
jakee308
February 22nd, 2014 @ 3:03 pm

Let’s just stop having kids because frankly, the current institutions of western civilization are turning it into a suicide pact so let’s hurry the process along.

Do they take one minute to think about what the result would be if their cockamamy ideas took hold and became widespread and considered worthy of being followed?

They’re starting to see the results of a few of them through Obama and the future is looking rather grim. Maybe it’s better if we just give up now and mix up a couple million gallons of kool aid for everyone, strap on our purple sneaks and wrap our capes around us and go out with a whimper.
jakee308
February 22nd, 2014 @ 3:03 pm

Let’s just stop having kids because frankly, the current institutions of western civilization are turning it into a suicide pact so let’s hurry the process along.

Do they take one minute to think about what the result would be if their cockamamy ideas took hold and became widespread and considered worthy of being followed?

They’re starting to see the results of a few of them through Obama and the future is looking rather grim. Maybe it’s better if we just give up now and mix up a couple million gallons of kool aid for everyone, strap on our purple sneaks and wrap our capes around us and go out with a whimper.
Michael Smith
February 22nd, 2014 @ 3:28 pm

Every time hear the words “heteronormative patriarchy”, I think “cultural Marxism”. It think it was Georg Lukacs way back in 1919 who tried to destroy Christianity in Hungary through promoting sexualization of the Hungarian youth, actively teaching them all sorts of sexual perversions and promoting promiscuity contrary to Christian teachings – trying to make them believe that Christianity was not right and was only inhibiting their “development”. These feminists are nothing but warmed over disciples of their patriarch, Georg Lukacs…
Stogie Chomper
February 22nd, 2014 @ 3:51 pm

If that program involves whiskey and cigars, count me in!
La Pucelle
February 22nd, 2014 @ 5:04 pm

To be fair, this looks to be more click-bait for Salon. It’s undeniable that the left (and many self-styled “libertarians”) is obsessed with sex (or more accurately, leftism attracts many of those desperate-for-love/pleasure/fun because of its permissiveness) but McDonough’s freaking out sounds shrill even to the hedonists.

She just comes across as a mentally unstable female PUA who is upset that her pool of nubile future victims isn’t as large as she’d like. Salon seems to use moonbattery like hers to score some viewers. A click is still a click, be it from a similarly whackadoodle feminist or an Internet rubbernecker.
K-Bob
February 22nd, 2014 @ 6:11 pm

It’s getting to the insane point with these modern “feminists” where if you’re not renting out the ol’ ham wallet (or loaning it to stranger who votes the same way you do), you’re a victim of the patriarchy.

Ah, the terminology one picks up over at the HQ.
Nan
February 22nd, 2014 @ 6:12 pm

They fear sammich-making women.
K-Bob
February 22nd, 2014 @ 6:12 pm

The kids don’t know what they’re missing.
K-Bob
February 22nd, 2014 @ 6:23 pm

Damn straight.
K-Bob
February 22nd, 2014 @ 6:25 pm

Yes, the House of Representatives, the majority of statehouses and govenorships all attest to that, don’t they?