Neutering boys is certainly one way of “Achieving gender equality through a continuous commitment to girls and women In sports” (as mentioned at the bottom of the flyer).
What the heck did they mean? “Nurturing fun” does not sit well with me. At least without a coma in between. Then, what a stupid spellchecker does not know the word nurturing.
I too assume that the “neutering” is a typo, but you do worry when the last line is so explicitly sexist.
Which brings me to my question. The LA parks are presumably a state actor, and therefore bound by the 14th Amdt. This is presumably sex discrimination, and last I remembered, faced intermediate scrutiny. But would something like this really survive even that level of scrutiny?
D.O.:
What the heck did they mean? “Nurturing fun” does not sit well with me. At least without a coma in between. Then, what a stupid spellchecker does not know the word nurturing.
Freudian slip? ;-) Either that or your idea of fun (or nurturing!) is extremely dangerous….
Fedya: Then, what a stupid spellchecker does not know the word nurturing.
Spell checkers can give you interesting results. I remember leaving the “r” out of “demised premises” one time when drafting a lease. Assuming that spell check would recognize the word, I clicked the top suggestion without reading it. Fortunately I re-read the lease after printing it and before sending it, as the anatomical member that spell check selected cannot legally be demised in most US jurisdictions.
D.O.: Then, what a stupid spellchecker does not know the word nurturing.
My theory:
The person writing it dropped an r, misspelling “nurturing” as “nuturing”. Then it would be logical for the spellchecker to suggest “neutering” first.
kumquat: The person writing it dropped an r, misspelling “nurturing” as “nuturing”. Then it would be logical for the spellchecker to suggest “neutering” first.
MS Word gives the following suggestions for “nuturing”:
The fun to be had here is with the “neutering” for “nurturing” substitution and all its amusing possibilities. What do people think, though, about the announcement’s stated goal of “Achieving gender equality through a continuous commitment to girls and women In (sic) sports.” Is that stated purpose utterly benign, a tad PC, or arguably worrisome?
Yankev: Spell checkers can give you interesting results. I remember leaving the “r” out of “demised premises” one time when drafting a lease. Assuming that spell check would recognize the word, I clicked the top suggestion without reading it. Fortunately I re-read the lease after printing it and before sending it, as the anatomical member that spell check selected cannot legally be demised in most US jurisdictions.
It is hard to imagine the anatomical member to which you allude being demised legally or otherwise by means of a lease*, but I can tell you that circumcisions have gone awry resulting in demised ones and lawsuits.
(*Allegedly, John Dellinger was prodigously endowed and that body part of his was preserved as a specimen in the collection of the National Museum of Health and Medicine of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Washington. If true, might it be said that upon his demise, Dillinger demised said body part to the government?)
Reharding Yankev’s comment about Dillinger’s penis at the National Museum of Health and Medicine, this is from the Museum’s frequently asked questions page on their Web site:
43. Do you have 20th-century gangster John Dillinger’s penis in the collection?
No. There was a photograph published after Dillinger was killed that showed him lying on an autopsy table. He’s naked except for a towel on his midsection and it seems to indicate he has a very large penis. Because the museum was the only place showing body parts people thought they must have cut it off and sent it to us. We don’t have it, but we get a lot of phone calls asking if we do.
Reality: Reharding Yankev’s comment about Dillinger’s penis at the National Museum of Health and Medicine, this is from the Museum’s frequently asked questions page on their Web site:
That was Neurodoc’s comment.You have attributed this to the wrong member.
spudbeach says:
Nothing funnier than a good typo! Now if only they had used “quotes” properly, it would be “unbeatable”.
November 9, 2009, 1:27 amDave N says:
Sounds painful, even if it is safe.
November 9, 2009, 1:36 amObeliskToucher says:
They must have quite a choir…
November 9, 2009, 1:39 amRichard Atwood says:
It’s all fun until someone loses a gonad.
November 9, 2009, 1:40 amBill Poser says:
I assume that when confronted with this blatant violation of gender equality, they will add spaying to the program.
November 9, 2009, 1:46 amPerseus says:
Neutering boys is certainly one way of “Achieving gender equality through a continuous commitment to girls and women In sports” (as mentioned at the bottom of the flyer).
November 9, 2009, 1:52 amyankee says:
I hope so! It is unconscionable that the Parks Department is providing safe and effective birth control to boys but not to girls.
November 9, 2009, 2:02 amJim W says:
Oh the perils of spellcheck.
I’m hoping they meant “nurturing” and the computer helped nudge a misspelling in the wrong direction.
November 9, 2009, 2:26 amD.O. says:
What the heck did they mean? “Nurturing fun” does not sit well with me. At least without a coma in between. Then, what a stupid spellchecker does not know the word nurturing.
November 9, 2009, 2:38 amBruce Hayden says:
I too assume that the “neutering” is a typo, but you do worry when the last line is so explicitly sexist.
Which brings me to my question. The LA parks are presumably a state actor, and therefore bound by the 14th Amdt. This is presumably sex discrimination, and last I remembered, faced intermediate scrutiny. But would something like this really survive even that level of scrutiny?
November 9, 2009, 2:44 amNickp says:
D.O.
I can understand why you might want to sleep on it, but isn’t a coma a wee bit excessive?
November 9, 2009, 8:46 amFedya says:
Freudian slip? ;-) Either that or your idea of fun (or nurturing!) is extremely dangerous….
November 9, 2009, 8:46 amYankev says:
Someone apparently concluded that three generations of males is enough.
November 9, 2009, 9:13 amSoronel Haetir says:
At least they are honest about their program.
November 9, 2009, 9:15 amYankev says:
Spell checkers can give you interesting results. I remember leaving the “r” out of “demised premises” one time when drafting a lease. Assuming that spell check would recognize the word, I clicked the top suggestion without reading it. Fortunately I re-read the lease after printing it and before sending it, as the anatomical member that spell check selected cannot legally be demised in most US jurisdictions.
November 9, 2009, 9:33 amkumquat says:
My theory:
November 9, 2009, 10:33 amThe person writing it dropped an r, misspelling “nurturing” as “nuturing”. Then it would be logical for the spellchecker to suggest “neutering” first.
egd says:
MS Word gives the following suggestions for “nuturing”:
Neutering
November 9, 2009, 11:38 amMuttering
Nattering
Untiring
Fub says:
Threadwinner!!
I’ll forgive the bill for cleaning coffee out of my keyboard — just buy Orin a beer.
November 9, 2009, 12:36 pmSmooth, like a Rhapsody says:
Too bad I do not have an ex-wife, then I could add:
November 9, 2009, 12:54 pm“They probably hired my ex-wife to run the thing”.
Hey, kids, come play in the “neutering fun and safe environment.” | BloGila.com says:
[...] From the L.A. Parks Department, where they’re into “achieving gender equality through a … [...]
November 9, 2009, 2:12 pmneurodoc says:
The fun to be had here is with the “neutering” for “nurturing” substitution and all its amusing possibilities. What do people think, though, about the announcement’s stated goal of “Achieving gender equality through a continuous commitment to girls and women In (sic) sports.” Is that stated purpose utterly benign, a tad PC, or arguably worrisome?
November 9, 2009, 3:03 pmneurodoc says:
It is hard to imagine the anatomical member to which you allude being demised legally or otherwise by means of a lease*, but I can tell you that circumcisions have gone awry resulting in demised ones and lawsuits.
(*Allegedly, John Dellinger was prodigously endowed and that body part of his was preserved as a specimen in the collection of the National Museum of Health and Medicine of the Armed Forces Institute of Pathology in Washington. If true, might it be said that upon his demise, Dillinger demised said body part to the government?)
November 9, 2009, 3:13 pmJim C. says:
What’s all the fuss about teaching kids veterinary skills?
November 9, 2009, 3:28 pmThe Den Mother says:
I’m almost more horrified by the missing comma than I am by the unfortunate typo.
November 9, 2009, 3:28 pmRichard Aubrey says:
If we neutered prisoners of war, it would be a war crime.
November 9, 2009, 3:57 pmBoys by the state?
Not so much.
In fact, that’s one part of the mission statement.
ShelbyC says:
Of course…
November 9, 2009, 6:33 pmReality says:
Reharding Yankev’s comment about Dillinger’s penis at the National Museum of Health and Medicine, this is from the Museum’s frequently asked questions page on their Web site:
43. Do you have 20th-century gangster John Dillinger’s penis in the collection?
No. There was a photograph published after Dillinger was killed that showed him lying on an autopsy table. He’s naked except for a towel on his midsection and it seems to indicate he has a very large penis. Because the museum was the only place showing body parts people thought they must have cut it off and sent it to us. We don’t have it, but we get a lot of phone calls asking if we do.
November 10, 2009, 7:09 amJMA says:
There is no missing comma between “nurturing” and “fun.” -.-
November 10, 2009, 9:54 amYankev says:
That was Neurodoc’s comment.You have attributed this to the wrong member.
November 11, 2009, 9:52 am