The More Things Seem to Change, the More They Stay the Same...

Redux.

I know there are millions of people, in the USA and in Europe (which presents itself as more sophisticated and urbane than us "cowboys" in the wild wild West), who think that women have achieved absolute equality with men.  Unfortunately, the title of the following article gives a bad name to the absolutely blameless Neanderthal humans.

Ukrainian women berate 'Neanderthal' PM for sexist remarks
Mykola Azarov enrages feminist groups by suggesting women are unsuitable for high political office
Luke Harding in Moscow
guardian.co.uk, Wednesday 24 March 2010 19.50 GMT

Ukraine's new pro-Russia prime minister, Mykola Azarov, has enraged feminist groups by suggesting that women are unsuitable for high political office and incapable of carrying out reforms.

Women's groups in Ukraine have angrily reported Azarov – who presides over an all-male cabinet – to the country's ombudsman following his remarks last week. They accuse him of gender discrimination and holding Neanderthal views.

Speaking on Friday, Azarov said Ukraine's economic problems were too difficult for any woman to handle.

"Some say our government is too large; others that there are no women," he said. "There's no one to look at during cabinet sessions: they're all boring faces. With all respect to women, conducting reforms is not women's business."

Ukraine's new woman-free government was capable of working 16 hours a day with "no breaks and weekends", Azarov boasted.

The prime minister's gaffe echoes comments made recently by the man who appointed him – Ukraine's new president, Viktor Yanukovych. During February's election campaign, Yanukovych declared that his female opponent, Yulia Tymoshenko, should "go to the kitchen".

Today, Azarov's political enemies denounced him as an unreconstructed dinosaur. They said his derisory remark, snubbing half of the country's 46 million population, underlined just how out of touch he is with ordinary Ukrainians.

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Against this current backdrop, I put forth for your consideration:

March 22, 2010, 6:09 pm
Using Quotas to Raise the Glass Ceiling
By THE EDITORS (The New York Times)
In 2002, Norway enacted a law requiring that 40 percent of all board members at state-owned and publicly listed companies be women by 2008.

Since then, Spain and the Netherlands have passed similar laws. Now Belgium, Britain, Germany, France and Sweden are considering legislative measures involving female quotas. And although Germany is also debating such a law, Deutsche Telekom, which is based in Bonn, announced last week that it would voluntarily introduce a quota aiming to fill 30 percent of upper and middle management jobs with women by the end of 2015.

Do quotas work? Would they work in the U.S.? Does the U.S. need them?  Viewpoints by:

Marit Hoel, Center for Corporate Diversity, Oslo
Amy Dittmar, University of Michigan
Peter Baldwin, author, “The Narcissism of Minor Differences”
Sharon Meers, former managing director at Goldman Sachs
Linda Hirshman, author, “Get to Work”