ita, I needed you today!

This is the second time I wanted to trot you out as an example this week!

Today's convo was about violence as an American tradition. One of the 4 men in the room said, ""Women are less violent than men."

"Wha! I beg to differ!"

And I laid the smackdown on him. For example, studies show that women hit their husbands at much the same rate as men hit their wives, though with less success. though I hear they are apt to use common household items as weapons; the most common being the phone.

Then I pointed out that women are excellent at exacting violence within the social realm. It just doesn't look the same as physical violence, though it can be devasting just the same.

Then he tried to trot out that he was talking about physical violence and how, since women have less testosterone than mine they eschew physical violence.

I think you should come with me one day to a meeting and kick him in the head.

Were you going to be a particular dead person, or just dead in general?

women hit their husbands at much the same rate as men hit their wives

Very interesting. I think women probably hit each other less often than men hit each other, but still.

It's funny -- I do think the best women at krav are exceptions -- but not to their gender. They're exceptional, end of story. It's not that statistically anomalous, I swear, just to fight. Lots of guys don't want to either.

eta:

Were you going to be a particular dead person

Indira Gandhi, hence the sari. Off the hook of tastelessness!

the most common being the phone.

The phone? Interesting. Wonder why? I suppose it's portable but has some heft, it's often close at hand... I guess for me (if I were going to hit anyone, which I'm not likely to) it'd probably be a book, but not everyone has books to hand, while almost everyone (in the US, at least) does have phones.

Kat! I feel so close to you right now.

Very interesting. I think women probably hit each other less often than men hit each other, but still.

Yeah, probably

There's also a greater stigma for a man to report domestic violence than a woman.

And the physical effects of being hit by most women aren't the same as the physical effects of being hit by most men, I'd assume.

Which is a roundabout way of saying injuries caused by violence are most often caused by men. And the victims of that violence, statistically, are most often other men. Yet injuries caused by the violence TO women are also most often caused by men.

I just happen to have my EW right in front of me right now {yes, I'm reading it and watching TV and posting, why?} and there's an article about Diane Farr,who played Laura on Rescue Me. She says lugging the firefighter equipment around was sending her to the chiropractor and acupunctionist too often so when the Numb3rs gig came up she jumped.

And I remember hearing some vauge references to Sabrina Lloyd being some kind of problem child and that's why she was written out of Sliders and now Numb3rs. But I don't know what that is all about.

Can you tell I just caught up on all the shows I taped this week?

For me, both Numb3rs and Threshold is all about the casts. The stories are secondary.

how come, Erika?

Cause I'm crime lady today? I got more crime stats.

Also, WTR the phone. I wonder how it's weapon-of-choiceness is being changed by cordless phones (less heft) and cell phones (ditto).

I'd still say grab a knife. But that's just me.

I think phones have a better payoff than books -- fit the hand well for bludgeoning, more aerodynamic, and more pointy bits, and if a land line, good heft.

I wouldn't throw a phone because I might break it, and that would make me madder. Crockery -- that'd be practical.

the victims of that violence, statistically, are most often other men

Hmm. I'm in the middle of judging man-on-woman violence as worse than man-on-man, but it's more that violence among people who're more equally matched in weight and strength is less bad. And that's more often going to happen within the genders, but really, if you're picking fights with people your own size, you're a bit of an idiot.

There was a point at the start of that, really.

Comment from the middle of Spooks episode 1, series 4: Spies should keep their phones on vibrate, as a general rule.