Men and the Media... are they treated fairly?

ManOfTheHouse and I have discussed this one a lot.  When we were dating I had a little sign on my wall that said “A woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle” – this offended him.  I got a little tiny bike and put it in my fish tank.

The media can make fun of men… for being fat, stupid, man-whores, or whatever…   just watch any episode of your favorite sitcom and see for yourself.  The media doesn’t seem to be able to get away with the same kind of teasing of women.   It doesn’t go over well with NOW or the suffragettes or something. 

My problem?  I laugh hysterically when Raymond does something stupid and Debra gives him crap about it.  It’s funny…  you know what?  ManOfTheHouse laughs too… and then we have to question WHY we’re laughing, whether or not I think all men are stupid (of course not… those writers are BRILLIANT!) or dorky like they are portrayed.  We've discussed it ad infinitum...  I am not a man-hater just because I laugh am I?

Let's review some evidence shall we?

 c'mon, I only managed to sit through 3 minutes of this show and I wanted to shoot him...  the wife - not winning any awards for her brains but in comparison - give the woman the nobel peace prize!

 okay - so the men practically wore their feet to the bone and even invented a flying machine once... but the women always snickered behind their backs about how they'd gotten what they wanted...  hmmm... maybe this was just the pre-cursor to the "using sex as a tool" post?

 Couldn't stand each other, couldn't seem to let go of each other...  holy CRAP man, you're a psychiatrist, lay down on that couch and figure out that she's poison for you! 

 okay - so she was a little dumb...  but who always ended up looking stupid?  who always ended up apologizing to a girl who lived in a bottle? 

 never mind... bad example...  Ricky ended up looking like a saint usually... but MAN was he played like a fiddle (or like a bongo drum?) by that redhead...

oh... don't get me started - it was just annoying...  at least they both came off looking dumb usually...

ugh.  just ugh.

okay - neither of these couples makes any sense to me... but I laugh myself silly EVERY time I see the episode where the suitcase stays on the stairs for weeks...  or the one where he buys the wrong hose and the wrong napkins (Debra's just a little picky you say?) and ends up burning down the kitchen.  Yep, he'll always look worse than her.

Homer is the epitome of an oaf...  and Marge seems like a smart lady... well, aside from her choice of spouse and hairstyles...

Okay - they're both educated, intelligent people right???  So how is it that Cliff always ends up being the one manipulated by his wife and children... he ends up looking like an idiot despite his ability to get through medical school.

 maybe not an official "couple" - but still, who looked stupid?  every. single. day.  Why?  Because the audience (98.967% female) ate it up!  (and yes, I did just make up that statistic.

While trolling the internet for images I noticed that a few of them were accompanied by articles about how these men "married up" - apparently that is a good thing for men... what's the term for that if it's a woman "marrying up"...  yeah - gold diggers


In the end - yes it bugs me... and yes, I wish there was a little more fairness in the world... but only if that fairness were sprinkled with drop dead hilarity.

Will I write a letter to my congressman or the head of CBS/NBC and ABC?Probably not… I just don’t think it’s that huge a deal… Will I defend men staunchly? You bet – I happen to think men are pretty awesome… I married one after all!

Do men and women see things differently - ummm... well, I think the very existence (and popularity) of this blog proves that!  Luckily ManOfTheHouse and I can enjoy a funny television show together without coming to blows... because chick flicks are out (neither of us find them all that compelling) and  I can’t bring myself to watch 007 movies – I saw one, once… and just couldn’t stomach the fact that the woman was an object of sexual desire and not much else...  I AM a woman however, I hear these have a lot more appeal is you’re sporting the right combination of chromosomes… Can you even imagine for a second if a movie were made and the guy was some brainless idiot that just got carted along for the slow screen shots of their pecs bouncing up and down as they ran after their female companion who was saving their sorry behind every step of the way?    Yeah… wouldn’t sell in an action movie!  I guess guys get their genre (action... and maybe the news) and women get the rest of media to poke fun at them.

So, whaddya think?  Does the media slam on men more than necessary?  More than it slams on women?

and... do you laugh anyway?