Nice to see…
Mirjam Wester joined IOHK as senior research manager in 2018. She supports senior management in managing IOHK’s global research initiatives and is working with IOHK’s Chief Scientist Prof. Aggelos Kiayias at the IOHK research lab at University of Edinburgh.
There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio,
Than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
Shakespeare, Hamlet (1.5.167-8), Hamlet to Horatio
Meanwhile, all it takes for gender-based discrimination in the job market to exist is for one employer to say “women/men don’t usually want to do this, so anyone who does is abnormal and we shouldn’t take the risk of hiring them.”
Does anybody think that never happens?
There is nothing to see, a qualified individual being hired for a position, that is all there is. Thinking that a Woman getting a job in a specific space or position is somehow an accomplishment because she is Woman is really disrespectful and patronizing. That is what you see, because you are so fixated on gender.
The only way you can achieve this conclusion, is that you see Women as either Victims or Less than capable as Men.
By all of this Gender-nonsense-focus now there is suddenly a question in general, if people are there because of competence or because they are there due to identity-politics. Something that was never a question before.
I have this bank branch I go to very often, Ive been coming for 2 years, never ever have I noticed that there was only Women hired there, and the 2 bank managers are also Women. Never. I just want my bank-services done… Its only because of all this focus on gender, that Ive ever come to notice this as a thing.
Many US Banks you go into, have a Asian, a black, a Women, a Man… Its just funny, because you can clearly see how this is purposefully setup… and Its just pathetic… a real decay of our society that we have become this stupid.
Just something recently I fell over… These things have serious consequences… and Its stupidity at the highest levels. (watch the first 3.5 minutes)
I know most here have expressed being against things like this with special benefits, but this is what you inherently promote. When you promote the premises that there is real widesspread discrimination, people will take this to an extreme, but it is all on a false premise. Go ahead and do it, but also be ready to take the responsibility of all the consequences promoting a false premise has.
Private businesses in general only care about profit, that is all they care about, and all they should care about.
They will discriminate on market-basis.
That is why it is impossible for there to be a gender wage cap, if business could save money by hiring women only for the same job and the same risk, there would be savvy entrepreneurs doing this to make more profit. By doing this, there would be competition and it would eventually be equalized. The reason no one is doing this, is because it simply does not exist. Its impossible in a free-market, even if there was such weird phenomenon that could only exist with government policies.
Like in Denmark, if a Woman gets pregnant, she can leave for almost a year with salary paid by the business. If such a law is in place, that means a Woman in her young years, have to be priced lower because this is a added risk. That is not wrong, that is not discrimination, that is market pricing. Now this doesn’t even take place, because the government is using force, but if things should be fair, it should be. Of course this law should be taken off the books in the first place, making it individually contactable, these laws hurt women, because it makes them less desirable to hire. Many small businesses with few employees, could go bankrupt should such a event take place.
On a last note. Businesses are private property equal to your own home, and should be legally allowed to discriminate on any factor they want, just as employees are allowed to discriminate towards employers on any factor they want. But discrimination is bad for business, so this is never something you will really find in a free market, because the pursuit of money is higher than the dislike of certain people (should someone have that)
That is why the free-market provides the purest of systems, both in efficiency and morally, because people dont care about who you are, how you look like, how popular you are, who you know, what you believe, only what you can provide in value.
Crony-capitalism and socialism is all about non-sense and social points to get ahead, that is the system we are on the path of creating. Just look at Chinas new social-system, with everything being ranked and you get points etc. If we eventually go to base-salary, things like that will be adjusted accordingly… Its a bad bad path.
Opportunities? Gender bias? Very varied depending on your country, environment, education, religion, family …etc, etc.
As a soon-to-be-60 year old female senior management executive and consultant in the building, construction and property management industry in New Zealand and Australia; I have been very fortunate to never encounter gender bias but have found mutual respect and professionalism.
What I have recently encountered is age discrimination, often arising from the naivety or inexperience of young recruitment officers who immediately assume I will retire soon, be slow, that I am beyond learning or incapable. I have found it very interesting! I am never likely to retire, I don’t believe in it, there is always some way I can contribute to society. As for keeping up? I am currently doing 60 adventure activities in 60 days, day 22 today and I’m heading out to hike a mountain nearby. As for learning? With thanks to all of you, I have navigated my way around and into the blockchain and cryptocurrency world, review ICOs, trade, follow the updates and explore alternative uses for the technology. I cannot imagine not wanting to learn or try something new. My male counterparts are planning retirement and believe they are too old to start entering into new phases of technology and currency.
How can Cardano and IOHK impact on gender equality? My independent opinion: they already have and constantly are. It is not just about the employment of equal numbers of males / females; I would expect there to be a strong correlation between the percentages of males and females entering IT studies at university and employment ratios, how many females are actually available? Cardano and IOHK are impacting greatly on gender equality and also educational, opportunity and economic equality of different countries throughout the world; by introducing the technology, training and educating, and providing opportunities to third world countries. They are innovative leaders in so many ways and I expect that in later years they will be written into history.
Says pretty much every woman ever that you actually speak to, and have had success. I have spoken with so many, and none have ever given me concrete examples of this widespread discrimination other than the gender-statistics, which are completely explainable or it boils down to some straw-man example, or an event in their own lives that could just as well have happened to a man.
Even if someone encounters an event, where they were somehow discriminated because of their gender, that is again not widespread structural discrimination.
It is not that you have been fortunate, this is the norm, there is simply no structural gender discrimination in Western society, which includes Australia.
You seemed to have a reasonable approach to it, but you did use the word “fortunate” which do seem to indicate that you believe it is there. Even though you have never experienced it… Why do you believe this, why is that?
Because this is pretty much the same for all women I talk with… They have never experienced it… They just think its there, and even seem to think Its obvious that it is there… Because thats what they have been told by society, often by people with political agendas, simply using the masses as a pawn… or by people who do nothing other than “study” things from a academical standpoint… They are not out in the real world or they use the faulty premise that women and men are biologically identical which of course leads to the wrong conclusions…
I would encourage you to relook your position on this, and really see if it holds truth to your own objective mind - would love to hear anything you would argue your position from. But if you dont really have any, and are just taking others words for it, take a fresh relook at things… You might be surprised what you find… Because that is what is really needed here, is for more Women to not just jump on this bandwagon, just because they are women…
Keep up the good life spirit though, very nice to read positive and inspiring mentality.
Hi Sally! Soon-to-be 65 year old male here, still recovering from knee replacement and very envious of your adventuring… I wish you the very best of luck with it, and especially no knee problems…
Watching tv last night there was a young Russian guy, Putin supporter, saying “No, there’s no homosexuality here in Russia, some sex-addicted men yes, but no homosexuals, it’s not part of our culture.” And I thought, now who does that remind me of… 
Oh gosh, my apologies if I was unclear, I don’t have my head in the sand, just didn’t explain well enough!
My opening line was: Gender bias? Very varied depending on your country, environment, education, religion, family …etc, etc.
I do believe it is present, certainly more evident and systemic in some countries and societies where women are not provided with an equal education or skill set; or where religion restricts behaviour or influences attitudes. In Australia and New Zealand I do believe it is also evident, though I agree it is not national structural discrimination, but isolated cases and, until recently, also evident within some government departments as identified in previous MBIE NZ reviews and reports. for example:
examples of guidelines available in NZ to support legislation:
https://www.employment.govt.nz/hours-and-wages/pay/pay-equity/gender-job-evaluation-standard/
https://www.employment.govt.nz/hours-and-wages/pay/pay-equity/equitable-job-evaluation/
Australian Human Rights Commission has multiple data and reports available:
https://www.humanrights.gov.au/education/face-facts/face-facts-gender-equality-2018
I am fortunate, in may ways. I have had an education and I have had many opportunities. I am grateful for that!
People with an extreme free market agenda will tell you that’s all politically correct garbage, but fortunately they’re a small, though vocal, minority.
Yes it is definitely sad that freedom, truth, science, non-aggression and volunteerism, has become an extreme position these days - because unfortunately these are the only societies worth living in, and through out history people have risked death, and still do, to escape their own to migrate to such societies - and we are in the mist of destroying that in the only societies left we have these components in. Its been a long process, but it is picking up speed.
Once Europe and the US fall, to Its decay of degenerate generations, there will be no place to go to.
You have no idea what you are doing, what you are taking part of, and where this will end. I hope you live long enough to see, because you will eventually find yourself living in, what you once refereed to as a third world country.
Free people and free markets are interchangeable.
I do not have a freedom agenda for just myself, I want freedom for everyone, even those who disagree with me, or people I dont like. Freedom as a core value is the only society where we can all live peacefully together, and all get what we want, in a moral way - and if anyone feels like they want to live differently, or have different rules, they are free, to create their own societies within. Where people can come and leave as they wish. That is what freedom allows.
Imposing freedom and protective rights on you as an individual, is not imposing on you, that is why I can be for it, on behalf of you, and everyone else regardless of what beliefs you might have.
You will have all the rights to enslave yourself through your own actions or stupidity, but will not have right to enslave or impose on someone else.
As an example If people wanted communism or socialism or something entirely different, they can create their own little society where things work like that, where they dont use force, violence and aggression on people who dont want to take part in that. They would be competing in a free system, of competing systems. That is great. Of course very few would go there, cause it would be a slum in mist of a abundance of wealth everywhere else, but I am all for choice.
Do we really need to mint new gendered slurs for the blockchain space?
Just seems to be a way for ideologues to generate extra animosity in order to set us against each other.
A good way to reduce animosity is to just let the small stuff go…
(as opposed to resurrecting a contentious thread that had been resting in peace)
Are they thought? It’s a different culture. Do these women feel oppressed themselves or do westerners label them as such by imposing their values on them? They have a different understanding, different values. I’m not judging it right or wrong, but these values are perpetuated by women themselves by choice and probably for a good reason, it’s not something imposed on them by men. Remember every man came out of a woman, to think that there’s some battle of sexes going on is silly. There are other things at play here.
Not really a debate I want to be a part of as my personal opinion leans towards saying yes they are oppressed, whether it is a different culture or not and whether they feel oppressed or not should not be considered if the rights of men and woman in the region can be measured and the women lack the same rights as the men.
You’re not talking about women’s rights here, you’re talking about westernization. You’re saying my world view, my values are right and theirs is wrong. It’s difficult to understand from an outsiders perspective, you would have to live with them to get it. Muslim culture is not big on individualism. Muslims operate as a family unit, and women wield a lot of power within that structure. They are fanatical when it comes to respect, anyone older than you is a big brother or big sister. To speak informally to an elder is unthinkable. When you greet a person you kiss them on both cheeks, when you shake their hand you put your free hand on your heart to show respect. When you eat, you eat as a family, from a shared plate, and everyone from two year old and on will sit patiently and wait for the elder of the house to break the bread and start the meal. The amount of “respect” and “power” Muslim women exert within Muslim culture is unmatched. This idea of “systematic oppression of women” in Muslim culture is a political tool that draws its power from xenophobia.
I suppose my views of equal rights for everyone is a foundation I stand on proudly and I have no problem with voicing my opposition to the idea of a culture that harbors a design to limit the rights of someone based on their sex.
I have never heard of a woman from that region explain that they have the same rights as men, yet I have read/watched/heard countless woman speak of the denial of rights women suffer there, really this is not something that someone can persuade me to see in a different light until it is common knowledge and apparent that equal rights are truly a thing there.
You don’t own the trademark of “equal rights for everyone.” United States is a fairly new country, Middle East has been around Greek and Roman ideas far longer. I feel like getting Reza Aslan over here
I’ve lived in both cultures. I personally prefer western individualism, yet I cannot demonize Muslim culture as I cannot hide behind a curtain of ignorance and clearly I’m far more aware of political rhetoric and mass media manipulation. I’m here to inform you that your conception of this culture, is more than slightly orthogonal to reality.
I am interested to understand how in the world you are able to take a few of my comments on the subject and make a decision on what exactly my “conception” is concerning a culture,
and how you decide that it is not inline with the norms of reality, the universal idea of equal rights is not set by the U.S. standards, the Middle East or Greeks or Roman’s, it is a universally recognized approach to personal human freedoms with no regard to what culture someone lives in or what society norms people choose to live under, but thank you for the personal insult! It is very humbling and won’t be forgotten soon.
Do you really want me to dissect this? because I can do it line by line.
