I was just reading through some of the thread about taking a break from this forum, and felt this website might be of interest:

http://www.womensinspiration.com/index.html

Please do not misunderstand that I feel there are women oppressing women here. I found the website very informative, I now have a heightened interest in understanding more about women's relations.

After you have checked the website, I would appreciate if you would share your thoughts.

i agree with what's said there, but I don't see a solution to this problem anytime in the near future. There's a whole slew of reasons for this, and I couldn't begin to adequately describe them in a reasonable amount of time.

We're not familiar with you.

Please explain a tiny bit about yourself. Most of the other women here know each other's general background.

As for women oppressing other women...I guess it depends if it's prolonged harrassment. Then there are women who like to exercise control...like some of us have mothers who might abit controlling, etc. But where does one draw the line, if the the oppressor woman has also given well in other areas to oppressee??

Oppression I tend to use for treating woman as if she has no legal rights, when in fact she does have such rights. And part of that right ...is her LIFE. Her right to be alive, safe and healthy.

Bullying is a form of oppression...when carried over into adulthood, the bullyer becomes a controlling queen bee..

But I will stick to the right, specifc phrase to describe a type of unjust behaviour on the type of violation. Not use the word "oppression" which is very general...and can trivialize a woman who is beaten physically badly /enslaved sexually vs. a woman who is having a tough time in office politics.

I do not have a bullying mentality so I do not understand those who do...I will stand up for my beliefs and I was forced to fight back a woman or two who thought the could bulldoze their way over me (actually, I let the legal system do this which brought them down quite a few pegs...gave me great satisfaction after being beaten emotionally by them)...but to be the one to bully or push around...it's just not me.

Just my opinion...

I don't get the sense of women-oppressing-women on BWS. "Oppression" connotes deliberate effort.
I do know w-o-w exists, tho. I've fallen victim to it, myself.

Instead of oppression, I see the inability to meld personalities, which in my mind is different. Some women need to be stroked or have attention all the time, some every so often, some not at all. Each, if not taught better, doesn't understand the need of the other.
When two need the same, at the same time, and one gets while the other doesn't, it generally presents a problem.
Also, when one gets excessive attention for a time, then it dries up, they feel withdrawal symptoms - which I understand is natural.
It happens often that no more than one can be served at one time. The one doing without can feel slighted - most suredly at the worst of times, compounding feelings.
That's when women who have learned to recognize the strain and the cause, and who muster the courage to mediate, are most valuable... at least their learned talents are.
OK, that is just my opinion.
The website you've shared is great and I've put it in my favs. Thanks...

To add to gimster's remarks, particularily if a woman appears to be harrassing another woman verbally...some people just have far more direct personalities..tendency to say things based on how they feel instead of stopping and rephrasing it more nicely.

I do participate in another all-women's internet forum and it is devoted to cycling with a focus on women. http://forums.teamestrogen.com/showthread.php?p=277970#post277970 If you read the profiles of some of these women..they are tough and quite a number of them are...boomers! And some are in your face with questions.

And yea, some of them might ride off and not wait around for you. And repeatedly do this. That could be viewed as a minor form of put-down and adult bullying. I call it just stupid cliquishness, arrogance and unwillingness to learn about others outside your own level of competence for whatever skill you maybe good at.

I do seriously think some women in the workplace really take useful constructive comments to improve their work performance, far too personally. I know this because I have had to conduct work performance appraisals on other women. Some women cannot take any suggestions to improve...they get all flustered and hurt...no matter how nicely one has communicated to them with lots of generous deadlines to improve. Yet the other person, appraisee might feel "oppressed"/harrassed???

I still think real oppression ..is treating women and girls as if they have no legal rights, when in fact they do. And this translates well for mental harrassment where the person breaks down...but only if the person has not exercised their right to have counselling, psychological support services.

There are unintended tendencies amongst a group of women exclude other women. It could be simply the nature of topics and different approaches. The trick is that to prevent such insularity that the group remains committed to seriously welcome others and their constructive opinions that don't meet groupthink.

Isn’t it odd that the written comment from women, whom we’ve never met before can get under our skins in an amazingly hurtful way? Sorry to say, I’m no exception to that either. I just wonder why is that so? Why should we even care?

Maybe we are all here online to find what we don’t have in real life?

As for myself I can tell you why I’m here.

a) I love being connected to my home country; the lingo, the jokes, our common pasts, etc.
b) My entire family, except my DIL’s, are masters at interrupting me when I talk. It’s an uplifting feeling to be able to complete a sentence on the forum without some powerful male voice butting in and taking over.
c) I used to have a wonderful group of girlfriends, but since our move, and since I’ve opened my own business, I don’t have that anymore. This forum has fulfilled that gap so well, that I have been neglecting trying to make new friends. (not good, I know.)

What am I trying to say here? Oh, yes…maybe it’s just all about us. Maybe we’re seeking in this forum the respect and recognition that we so desire in real life. And if we don’t get it here either…it’s like a confirmation of what is happening throughout our lives. I’m sure this doesn’t apply to those that have wonderful stable marriages, perfect happy families and tons of friends…I’m sure they aren’t the sensitive ones. It’s those that don’t; who need a bit more TLC.

Ps...Gimster and Orchid did you major in Psychology? Excellent points.

I cannot get the site NY woman
it wont load for me.
Mountain ash

Hannelore, I can empathize with the need to connect with your home country when living abroad. You wrote: "Maybe we are all here online to find what we don’t have in real life?" For me, this community enhances and enriches what I have in real life. What I learn here enlightens me so that it helps me grow in real life: with relationships, with faith, with marriage, etc. You wrote: "Maybe we’re seeking in this forum the respect and recognition that we so desire in real life." That is well said for some. From this virtual site, I'm able to recognize the respectful relationships (or not) in real life. But I understand now when you say it is sort of a substitute for some for what they may not get in real life. NY started this thread by mentioning the "break from the forum thread." I'm trying to figure out the correlation between that thread and oppression. It's like comparing apples and oranges. I think that thread may be understood in the context of more than one post, and in the context of personality, perception, and behavior versus oppression of women. In the broadest sense off the top of my head I think oppression of women has to do with the deliberate, ingrained, and perpetual form of withholding and/or destroying equal rights for everyone. IMO, PL