I'm mad. So very, very mad.

Not, as one might expect, over the fact that I have six papers due in one week. Nor can I boast a confrontation with an annoying Republican. In fact, considering my cushy life, I have very little to be mad about. But I am.

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A friend of mine quoted something at me the other night about how all the tragedies of the world can be traced back to a woman's fickle heart. Now, I'm fairly certain that he just found this amusing, but I did not. At all. Contrarily, I find that idea insulting, untrue and an horrific thing to say to any woman.

Men cannot understand the ramifications of being a woman. I know that this is a partyline sentiment which many people might find argument with. However, I must disagree with these allegedly "enlightened" people and tell them this: Men do not understand the Female Condition. I'm not saying that this makes them bad people. And I'm not claiming any intimate knowledge of the Male Condition, so don't get uppity with me over my "hypocrisy."

I got in an argument today about the morality of thought. Now, in general, I don't think that punishing people for their thoughts is just. When we begin regulating thought, we will have lost all true freedom. So, perhaps I suffered from the horrors of asymptotic language when I told my friend that thinking carnal thoughts about women on the street shouldn't be allowed to happen.

However, I truly believe that thinking these thoughts is a violation of someone else's rights. The sanctity of one's body should not be compromised by any individual at any time without express permission. Therefore, having a strange man wink at you on the street, blow you a kiss, whistle, make naughty comments, is more than just an annoyance. To me it's more serious than the word "harassment" can entail. Of course, this could be a result of the nerve-wracking experience of a man following you, courting you with rough language, and telling you you're a "bitch" because you won't lie down on the sidewalk and do the dirty with him.

Men don't get this.

They cannot comprehend that thoughts could do so much damage. They've never experienced some stranger deliberately letting them know that he/she would like to violate them ten ways to Sunday, and they probably never will. It is a purely feminine experience. By virtue of being born male, they have a right to personal space that women are denied daily.

So for a man to tell a woman that men have the right to "think whatever they want" about her…That's inexcusable, insulting, and, frankly, terrifying to me. But what is more terrifying is that some women aren't pissed off about what we've been told is our lot in life. They just except that this is how things are and try to take the comments, whistles, jeers, etc as compliments.

Screw that. I refuse.