Does 'woman' ever come to mind when you say those words?
No.
And, 'woman' doesn't come to my mind at all when talking about hunky firemen either.
But, this morning, all anybody is talking about is sexist behavior in fire halls and of course, then it goes on to hiring practices regarding women in non traditional occupations, etc... all to do with some female firefighter's complaints of her supervisor making certain remarks to her. Big deal. Sexist behaviour is everywhere. If you are a woman or a man, get used to it.. learn to deal with it or figure out how to get around it or quash it. Yourself. Why complain to anybody who will listen? Whiners never prosper.
First, if you are considering applying for a position in male dominated areas... make sure you can do the job. Physically, emotionally, and mentally. Second, get used to the fact that you will be badgered, or belittled, or worse, every step of the way and then perhaps, reconsider. Or.... figure it out. Yourself. If you can't do all of the above...don't bother applying. And, besides that...if you want to be a fireman, be big, strong, burly and able to lift a 200 lb dead weight, unconscious man, and, get him and yourself out of a burning building without batting any of your eyelashes. Which, by the way, you won't have after your first fire.
Get real. Who really needs to do every single male dominated job in the world? Maybe we should actually leave a couple bastions of male dominance. I definitely want a big, strong, ultra fit fire'man' rescuing me if my house is on fire and I am incapacitated. Even a 100 lb. woman is more than most people can lift, male or female. I don't give a damn about gender equality. And, I sure as hell don't want some token woman firefighter showing up asking me if I can walk when my legs are broken....no thanks. If you can physically beat out male counterparts for a physically challenging job...good on ya.... but that's the only criteria I want followed in some occupations. Of course, that's only my personal opinion... and, I'm entitled to it.
I've worked in male dominated occupations. Long before modern day so-called liberation. Back in the 60's we did it to make a dollar more per hour. End of story. Oh, just a minute it isn't.
