You never know where information will come from. I'm reading The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest and there is a one page in between chapters chapter that references the historian Diodorus from Sicily in the second century B.C.
He wrote about the Amazons of Libya. This Amazon reign was a gynaecocracy,a government by women. Only women were allowed to hold high office, including in the military.
According to legend, the realm was ruled by Queen Myrina who along with 30,000 female soldiers and 3,000 female cavalry, defeated a number of male armies as they rocked their way through Egypt and Syria all the way to the Aegean.
These women rejected marriage as subjugation. They were granted a leave of absence to copulate with randomly selected males from other villages in order to have kids.
Only a woman who had killed a man in battle was allowed to give up her virginity.
I love this. We need us some of that in the good ole US of A.
I went online to read up some of Diodorus's words and was not disappointed.
"Now there have been in Libya a number of races of women who were warlike and greatly admired for their manly vigor..." I love the manly vigor thing, everything defined from the point of view of a man. What is womanly vigor? Probably more terrifying than the manly version because it would be flavored with intelligence and sensitivity.
He talks about how the women practiced the arts of war and were required to serve in the army and afterwards to administer the government.
"The men, however, like our married women, spent their days about the house, carrying out the orders which were given them by their wives; and they took no part in military campaigns or in office or in the exercise of freedom of speech in the affairs of the community by virtue of which they might become presumptuous and rise up against the women."
I absolutely love that.
Why not give this social system and form of government a try?
Men have essentially destroyed this planet and created an order where the rich rule and the rest struggle. Where corruption and graft and back room deals and lying, cheating and stealing are the accepted norm.
Because men are so goddamn ego driven and competitive that they limit their potential through tunnel vision.
In these times when basic rights are being challenged or regressed or destroyed, it would be fun to witness a revolution that turns everything upside down. I think we humans are so far gone as a race that the only thing that can save us is nuclear change.
But hoping for the rise to equality of women in power is about as realistic as hoping for an end to racism.
Because the order of everything was established long ago and those in power have the money and resources to fight any attempt at change.
I overhear ni*ger jokes and condescending comments about women much more than you would expect in 2012. They will always be there because we humans are petty and think we are defending our turf by demeaning others.
The next joke or comment I hear should be the last. The first ever made was too much.
Anyway I just think it would be cool to reverse the order and see what happens. My gut tells me women would do a much better job. Then again you have to consider that absolute power corrupts absolutely.
If that turned out to be the case it would be a final judgement on the human race and a very negative one.
I'm ready to give it a shot. I love to cook, I dance to my iPod while doing the dishes, and I love being home with our cats. Don't even mind cleaning the kitty litter box.
Carol is stronger than me anyway. She's the one who has held it all together over the years as I zigged and zagged indulging my poetic sensibilities to the detriment of anything resembling a career.
Bring it on, baby, we got nothing to lose.
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