'Apple is terrified of women’s bodies and women’s pleasure' – fresh tech sex storm Apple is weathering a sexism storm after its website apparently refused to engrave a raunchy poem on a newly ordered iPhone. Enraged that the California giant allowed penis, dick and similar words to be engraved on mobes – but, crucially, not clit – men and women in favour of equal opportunities have given Apple boss Tim Cook …
not if you live in Scunthorpe?
And if you live here don't even think about engraving your address on the back
...would be to not censor anything. Let people engrave sex organs, hate speech, whatever.
If they want to pay over the odds to make themselves look like monumental dobbers, then who is Apple to stop them?
Reminds me of the story where Nike (I think) banned the word "sweatshop" from its customer embroidery service.
"But seriously, if you're getting an iPhone engraved like it was a bit of jewellery you're a moron anyway."
Really? I think it's a good way of making your device unique and identifiable. Think of it this way.You have 2 100% identical looking iPads, one is your dads and contains nude photos of your mum as the background, the other is yours...both have no battery left and your chargers are no where to be found...Do you feel lucky punk? well? Do ya?
You have 2 100% identical looking iPads, one is your dads and contains nude photos of your mum as the background, the other is yours...both have no battery left and your chargers are no where to be found...
An interesting hypothetical situation to be sure. Lets analyse this scenario...
"You have 2 100% identical looking iPads". If this is indeed the case, then I'd suggest you not only have too much money, but are a sucker for punishment. In any case, as any fule kno, apple products are already uniquely identifiable by the pattern of fractures in the glass fronts.
one is your dads and contains nude photos of your mum as the background, the other is yours. Well, what a stylish chap your father appears to be. Certainly, if I had nude pictures of my spouse on any device, I wouldn't leave it lying around, particularly not if other family members were about. Lets not even start on what a hideously gauche thing to do this would be in the first place, and not dwell on what your mother might think about your father acting in such a way.
both have no battery left and your chargers are no where to be found. Maybe it's time for apple to accept that the de facto standard charger is the micro-usb cable, and stop fleecing its customers for custom cables? Stop laughing there at the back!
>Lets not even start on what a hideously gauche thing to do this would be in the first place, and not dwell on what your mother might think about your father acting in such a way.
Tim, is that you? ;)
Well, probably not, given your apparent disdain for iThings, but seriously man, lighten up! Try not to be so British. One thing none of us can deny about our parents is that, at one time at least, they found each other attractive. And they did the nasty. Yes they did. Sleep well ;)
Wrote :- "I think the obvious solution would be to simply ban the offending words for man bits, then everyone can be unhappy.
The obvious solution would be for people to let Apple decide what they will and won't do within their own premises, and if you want something they won't do then go to a local engraver to get it done. If you have an argument with the local engraver then at least it won't be World news.
Oh, I suppose I've missed the point - the feminists want to manufacture world news wherever possible.
"if you want something they won't do then go to a local engraver to get it done"
That would have been my first thought and exactly what I would do if I cared enough. If I paid out that sort of money for a device then it would be mine to deface in whatever manner I found amusing at the time. A lot of the appeal of iKit is the "let them handle the tricky stuff" ethos and I suppose that people shouldn't moan if Apple handles whatever it is in a way that suits them. It is sexist and probably should be changed; but it's only a couple of crappy lines of text. With a halfway decent engraver you can have graphics and customise it properly.
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Dick, cock, and so on have perfectly normal non-vulgar/sexual meanings.
Clit, and the other c word do not.
The problem with rabid feminists is they see sexism everywhere.
However, as stated in the article, Apple accept 'penis', but not 'vagina'.
The problem with misogynists is that they often refuse to accept that sexism exists, even when it is pointed out to them.
To be perfectly clear here, the same applies to misandrists (I once heard a 'feminist' acquaintance claim that there is no such thing as misandry, which ironically is a very sexist thing to say, particularly for someone who claims to rail against sexism).
Actually, the article does not mention vagina at all, that is something qoted from a tweet, therefore heresay and not really part of the article. I have no idea whether is is true or not, but the article makes no such claim.
So, this fact makes your assertion "Apple accept 'penis', but not 'vagina'" incorrect on the basis of the information asserted in the article.
The article is specifically about the abbreviated form of the word clitoris (clit), and one (for some people) slightly embarrassing correct word for the male appendage, penis.
The problem with people with an axe to grind, is they grind it without engaging their brains first. That's usually the dead give away.
Have a nice weekend.
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Can we lay this tired old meme to rest? It was almost certainly a pomegranate, not an apple. People in the distant past tended not to distinguish fruit as we do - but I believe there are some very old pictures of what is possibly the origin myth borrowed by the Bible, and the fruit shown is a pomegranate.
Would they have done as well if named Pomegranate Computer? At least they wouldn't have been sued by Apple Corp.
The story that I heard back in the late 70s was that Jobs was eating an apple at the time and they looked at it when they were deciding on the name and they chose that. Hence the bitemarks at the time.
I looks like one of those tastefless foam filled Washington apples to me. Certainly not a pomegranate.
Almost certainly a pomegranate. Cut one in half, and it resembles female genitalia. Cut an apple in half (across the core) and all you get is a vague pentangle.
The symbolism of the apple and knowledge either go deeper than the translation of that myth, or they wanted to replace the frankly obvious symbolism of a woman biting into a pomegranate and gaining the 'knowledge' of her sexuality.
People in the distant past may not have distinguished fruit as we do (well, they didn't have marketing departments, lucky buggers) but i can safely say that it wasn't a banana. If banana had been the 'fruit of knowledge', I'm sure all that would have been learnt was good technique and mouth ulcers should she do it too often.
The 60's are over though, and we're deep in another 'puritan' era. For different reasons than the earlier ones. Companies don't want to challenge possible majority morals in case it impacts sales or causes a PC furor and results in bad publicity.
It's long been accepted that slang'names for male genitals are acceptable but slang terms for female genitals are not. Alternative comedians in the 80's found this out, attempted to fight it and made no impact really, as here we are, 30 years later.
If Apple were a British company, maybe they'd have more whimsy. Or if Apple were not so big and intransient (look to AppStore policing for obvious prior-art).
Peace, Out.
A pomegranate cut in half looks like disease ridden female genitalia. It's OK to have second thoughts if you see a vagina that looks like that. Now a sheep on the other hand, that's a dead ringer for an Eskimo with her pants half down.
A pomegranate cut in half looks like disease ridden female genitalia. It's OK to have second thoughts if you see a vagina that looks like that. Now a sheep on the other hand, that's a dead ringer for an Eskimo with her pants half down.
see icon
By the same logic, consider Shicklgruber. It is rather hard to imagine a mass of Germans shouting, "Heil Shicklgruber!" Also, it really doesn't matter whether it is an apple, a pomegranate or even a banana. The Bible is pure myth in the first place.
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On the other hand, try asking the iOS spell check to suggest a suitable alternative for "abirtion" or "abortoin". I've tried a number of alternatives and it just won't do it...
If Apple are going to take the approach of censoring certain words, they will by necessity be picking sides.
> Why do anonymous men go around the internet pretending sexism doesn't exist?
The question:
Why do feminists always claim that anything that offends them is due to misogyny?does not imply that sexism does not exist, it merely implies that not everything that is offensive to feminists is due to misogyny and still leaves the option that some things they find offensive might well be due to misogyny.
Clearly, since your logic is flawed, you are using female logic.
"My hypothesis was correct: the reason I cannot use the word clit is because Apple is so entrenched with sexism and misogyny, and frankly, is terrified of women’s bodies and women’s pleasure."
No, it just means their horrible prudes with misguided (probably lawyer backed) policies on allowing words to be cut into the devices that will be on public show. I'm not sure how not allowing the word clit to be inscribed immediately means that they fear womens bodies.
I mean, she has a pretty good point about the rather strange lack of equality on this (even if it is a bit niche), but fuck me, lose the jingoism, it makes you look like you have a mental age of twelve, which is no way to get your argument across.
All IMHO of course.
Steven "I don't fear womens bodies and sexuality, I'm just fat and ugly and don't get any" R.
Good point in all fairness, but the overblown way in which she makes it, throwing other accusations around is childish and stupid. That's not sexist, that's objective assessment.
If she wants to be taken seriously (which presumably, being a feminist and given the subject matter, she would) then she might want to work on her presentation and argument skills. She could be male, female, black, white, whatever - the comment comes across as being from a gobby kid, shouting out anything to get attention - the irony being it doesn't *require* that sort of behaviour as the point is already perfectly valid and worthy of debate/questioning/attention.
Again, all IMHO, etc.
Why exactly would you want the various words for genitalia, gender orientation, sexual activity etc. engraved on your phone. Sorry I just don't get it ..... a phone is a phone, or am I missing something here? Anyone who knows and cares about me already knows my orientation and which words I will and won't use.
... that a sign of a collapsing civilization is its mass cultural emulation of the lower class. I've also seen this concept expressed as 'Worship of the Noble Savage'.
Etching 'Noble Savage' poetry onto the back of your iOS device certainly qualifies. (O_o) Equal opportunity obscenity makes me laugh at the people who insist upon it. If Apple chooses not to participate, that's fine with me.
You are missing the point. If they disallowed both then it would be fine. But by saying that it's only women's body parts which are not allowed then the question of 'Why?' springs to mind.
I agree it's a rather crass thing to do your device, but if that is what floats your boat then who I am (or apple) to stop them?
You've got your Societal Collapse Indicator turned wrong way round. The 'Noble Savage' is an artifice created by elements of a society who wish to differentiate themselves from the peasants in futile attempts to appear greater than they are. The 'Noble Savage' is the equivalent of a plot hole filler that serves as a contemporary, anthropological 'missing link'.
The entire concept is an underdeveloped 'logical step' that establishes an imaginary bridge between socioeconomic classes. That bridge is a crucial element in societies embracing vertically oriented classism because it creates a route by which people can 'move up' in society. If the peasants can become middle class then those in the middle class can become part of the upper class. But the key word there is 'imaginary'. There is no permanent 'bridge' and each person my devise ways to create their own bridge.
But that's hard. People would rather go to great lengths to make themselves appear to belong to a higher class by adopting attitudes and affectations they believe are indicative of the behavior of higher classes. You can always tell what's going on when people think savagery, or lack thereof, is a function of socioeconomic status. A confused middle class believes savagery falls of as class rises, but the reverse is actually the case. Savagery falls off in the middle class, due to mediocrity, but increases in either direction. The savagery of the peasants is very visible because it tends to happen on a small scale that individuals can relate to. Upperclass savagery is far nastier, but the scale is so large people mistake it for randomized currents in a huge system simply because they don't like reminding themselves they are effectively no closer to the upperclass than the hobo waving the broken beer bottle at them.
From my perspective societal artifices like 'Noble Savage' are like the mechanics of farting. The first person to bring it up is the source of their own complaint.
It's not "censorship". Last time I checked, Apple were not a country with a seat at the UN. Censorship is perfectly legal if you're a private entity. The media does it all the bloody time and nobody bangs on about them 'censoring' whenever they bleep out bits of Frankie Boyle's jokes.
Apple have an image they're trying to present to the public—an almost Disney-like one that tries to portray a 'squeaky clean' company and ethic. Apple is also a business. Businesses are explicitly allowed to refuse to do work for a customer if they don't want to, if they feel it would make their employees uncomfortable, or even if they just feel it would violate their core precepts, such as their brand image.
(Note: You're also free to sue said businesses into oblivion if you genuinely believe they denied service to you on grounds of racism, sexism, or some other legally-covered "-ism". But that's entirely your own decision.)
Chances are, their filtering policy is based on how a nation's media treats such words: If they're routinely bleeped out on TV and radio, it'll probably be added to the filter. "Dick" and "penis" are rarely bleeped in the UK or US, and arguably aren't even considered swear words. "Clit" and "cunt", on the other hand, certainly are.
There's a good reason why Roger's Profanisaurus (PBUV*) has been so popular, and is so filled with inventive euphemisms: rather than fight the media's self-censorship, it's easier—and a hell of a lot more fun—to just work around it.
* "Praise Be Unto Viz". Let's see if El Reg are happy with this.
So Apple objects to inscribing words describing female genitals on an iPhone, yet has an entire ad campaign based around a song that originally described male genitals?
(So what did you think 'Gigantic' described? - the next line 'a big, big love' is another clue)
http://antiquiet.com/music/2014/04/apple-iphone-commercial-pixies-gigantic-black-phallus/
"does Apple believe that its devices continue to belong to it even after being 'sold'"
Well, they do pride themselves on the high resale value. I imagine the appeal of a second hand iThing with 'I'm with this cunt -->' inscribed on the back might be lower than for an identical but rather less sullied one.
Hey, I know a lot of people.
A whole bunch called Dick.
A couple of Dicks are right cunts. Roger though, is a penis who gets cocky all the time, until his company went tits-up that is.
And Willy is a wanker.
Hope I never have to write a eulogy for any of those tossers.
(anonymous, for fearing the wrath of the moderator)
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