11 May 2007

Solidarity of Chauvinists

The other day I was having lunch at the sushi bar down the street. It is a come-si-come-ca restaurant, the air smells a bit fishy and the fish doesn't always look so fresh. On this happy day it wasn't the fish that smelled up the place as much as the patrons. One guy in particular. He walks in with his cell phone earpiece in, maybe talking a little in the restaurant (always pleasant to hear, someone else’s broken conversation with a phantom, and with the ear-piece of course, he sounds like a manic). He takes a seat at the bar, orders a beer, a large amount of sushi and proceeds to get comfortable in his ill-fitting shorts.
Altogether not too bad yet.
Then as a group of early twenty something girls finished their quick lunch, stood up and walked to the door, Joel the Mexican sushi chef said good-bye to them. This also is not too bizarre. It is a local, neighborhood restaurant, most people know each other. The earpiece clad man then looked at Joel and said, "Le mujeres, que bueno," in probably the worst Spanish accent I have ever heard. Joel, who certainly heard the man, registered he mans remark with the least reaction possible. He simply looked to the side a little, and then looked down, back to his work, with a very annoyed look on his face.
How strange it is that a man who clearly has no previous experience with another, no friendship, no relationship, no nothing, thinks it is OK to perve out on some girls who are way too young him, and then make a comment about it to this total stranger. Like 'this is what he is thinking too'? I know that I think the same as everyone in my gender? Please tell me where this bizarre thought process come from, it does not make sense. I hope that every woman I pass in the street doesn't think that she knows what I am thinking because we share a gender. Please!!!
Not much later a news story came out in my hometown about a city councilman who clearly felt this solidarity of chauvinists. His ride along took place in the middle of the night when the bars were closing up downtown and, to top it off, the police officer he was with was brand new to the town. In the middle of the ride along he starts spouting inappropriate comments to the police officer. "Look at that fat ass, that's great," and comments such as this erupt from the councilman. The poor police officer just sat through it thinking that he was getting set-up, (which makes sense) and tells his boss the next day. A couple months later, it is the front story in the daily news and that councilman is apologizing to everyone in town.
Looks like the solidarity of chauvinists is actually a one-way ticket to some bad self-marketing.

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