December 6, 2009 by admin
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New Paper journalist Joanne Soh was rapped for her sexist
remarks made in a recent article on 4 December entitled – “My mum
is right: All men are pigs.” as part of series discussing why men
still cheat even when they have a beautiful wife like Tiger
Wood’s.
Joanne began her article with a typical
stereotype of men:
“My mother once offered sage advice: We must always be aware
of our husbands’ activities, regardess of how devoted and loving
they are. Her rationale? Men are born with roving eyes, een the
good and the well-brought up ones.”
She subsequently launched a tirade against men by laying
the blame for cheating on spouses solely on them.
Her article brought a torrent of criticisms from readers the
very next day, expectedly from men which were published in today’s
New Paper.
Jimmy Ho felt that marriage breakdowns are
sometimes contributed by women:
“If men are pigs….then who are the asses that married us?
The comment is at best a sexist piece. It is extremely judgmental
and myopic to say the least…..Marriage breaks apart for various
reaasons, the roving eye of a man is obviously one of them, but
does that exclude the problems that may have been caused by the
woman?”
Yeh Siang Hui wrote that infidelity is not
gender-specific:
“What was most offensive, of course, was her declaration –
“Men are pigs”. This is unfair, unreasonable, unprofessional, and
uncalled-for. The writer has conveniently forgotten that if men
cheat, so do women. Just as there are wives with cheating husbands,
there are husbands with cheating wives too. Just as there are
men with roving eyes, so too, women with roving
eyes.”
His views were shared by Lawrence Soh:
“I have friends who were dumped when their wives found more
lucrative relationships. Women generally worship wealth, status,
good life and power, and if they cannot attain these on their own
steam, they search for these through relationships, legitimate or
otherwise. We see this everywhere. Unfortunately, the Women’s
Charter does not give men this advantage. Divorce is a very
expensive affair for men.”
Others simply brush aside Joanne’s arguments and throw brickbats
at her “professionalism” as a journalist.
Ambrose Sim wrote:
“Your article is highly offensive and unreasonable. It
seriously lacks objectivity and is unprofessional from a
journalistic point of view.”
Javert Ong added:
“Not all men are pigs, and it is extremely rude and
unpleasant to call men names. Can we call women bitches, sluts,
crows if they commit adultery?”
Not surprisingly, the women-folk are supportive of Joanne and
jumped to her defence.
Karina Wong even praised Joanne’s article:
“Just wanted to compliment you on a well written article.
Simply love it! Even if these men deny their affairs, it is a fact
that they are born with roving eyes and when it comes to women,
they are never rational.”
Christina Teo thanked Joanne for revealing the
truth that men are indeed “pigs”:
“Men are pigs. Thanks to your columnist Joanne Soh for
writing it.”
Judging from the wide disparity between the opinions of both
sexes, it does appear that the adage – “Men are from Mars and Women
are from Venus” holds some truth after all.
But how does this explain the rising divorce rates in Singapore
due to adultery, which is the commonest cited cause? Why are our
children more likely to stray than our parents?
According to a New Paper report published on the same day, one
lawyer said that three out of every 10 adultery cases she sees
nowadays involve the wife. A decade ago, it was only one out of
10.
A private investigator said he has seen the number of adultery
cases involving cheating wives rise from 30 per cent of all cases
10 years ago to 50 per cent.
How does Joanne Soh feel sleeping besides a “pig”? And what are
her husband’s thoughts on her unwarranted outburst against men?
Perhaps it is nothing more than a gimmick to attract readers to the
New Paper which has been suffering from declining readership.
Sensitive topics like race, religion and politics are considered
taboo in Singapore. Bashing men, however, is one sure way of
driving up one’s readership without attracting unwanted attention
from the authorities.
Comments source: The New Paper, 6 December
2009
Are men “pigs” with roving eyes?
http://www.temasekreview.com/2009/12/06/new-paper-journalist-joanne-soh-got-rapped-for-remark-that-all-men-are-pigs/
