Overall, do you think it's more beneficial to be a male or a female?

In My Humble Opinion
1

I mean, think about it.

I did and I figured, well, females are subject to periods and PMS. They also have the burden of giving birth. And on top of that, are usually looked at as the weaker sex. Not that I think that. Actually quite the opposite, I think females are a lot stronger than males in many ways, and that both sexes are equal.

But I was in on a conversation the other night that consisted of about 5 females and 3 males. This subject came up and all 5 females insisted that they had it tougher than males and would gladly be a male if they had the choice. So, in their opinion, it was more beneficial to be a male.

I was just wondering what other females thought, and what the males thought as well.
Note, this doesn’t ask what you’d rather be…or if you’re proud of being your gender or even what the better gender is. Just which is it more BENEFICIAL to be in your opinion.

2

Eh. In terms of physical stuff girls might (might) have it a little worse, but it’s hard to say. I hate having my period and from what I’ve seen pregnancy can be both a blessing and a curse. I sure am glad, though, that I’ve never had to deal with protecting external genitalia or experienced blue balls.

To the extent that women are viewed as the weaker sex, that much more of a burden is put on men to be strong. It’s not really fair to anybody. (Though I don’t have much experience of either of these attitudes in my life.)

Basically, I think it’s a toss-up.

3

When it comes to dating, at least, I think that women are in the better position. I know some will disagree, but frankly, I envy them.

4

I like being a boy because it means I get to have sex with gay boys.

5

To each; his/her own.

6

Men have it easier as it’s only been in the past century that women were treated as anything more than commodites to trade and even in the modern age of ostensible equal rights, they still make less money, don’t wield as much power, and are attacked more viciously if they dare challenge the status quo.

7

Really? Wow. I’m glad to be female, periods, difficult pregnancies, and all. There are some wonderful parts to pregnancy.

I do think it’s a toss-up. Men have these huge expectations placed on them to be providers; how scary must that be to wake up with every morning, if you’re the sole bread-winner for the family? Or just having a lot of people expect you to do the approaching in a dating situation?

Women are expected to be strong in different ways, too. Nearly always the care-giver, patient, and expected to take all the blame for whatever happens to their children, no matter what it is. The most amazing things get blamed on Mom.

(Yes, I know my list is outmoded and stuff. But it’s still true for large segments of the population.)

I’ll keep my gender, thanks.

8

As a lifelong female, I’ve got to say that if I switched genders, I would really miss the multiple orgasms. :smiley:

9

Female. But I’m obviously incapable of evaluating this on any kind of objective basis.

In terms of how society treats men and women, my experience has been that men have it eaiser overall, but that doesn’t in any way mean better or more beneficial.

10

On the physical side I’d say men definately have it better. I mean really, we can pee standing up, we age better and no “monthly dues” so to speak. As a matter of fact, the only thing we really have to worry about is the size of our penis. And even that should only be worried about by the insecure males.

As far as the other stuff goes? I’d say women have quite a few advantages. God how I’d love to have a woman ask me out, pick me up for the date, then PAY for the frick’n night out. How great would that be?

Then there is also other stuff like my ex-girlfriend who got a job as a secretary. When she aplied, the job requirements were: Type 60wpm, proficient in word, excel, ect… Well, my ex didn’t know any of this stuff. She could maybe type 30wpm and I know for a fact she didn’t know squat about computers. But you know what? They gave her the job anyway. And I’m SURE it had nothing to do with her nice rack. :rolleyes:

11

Man definitely. Firstly the opportunities are more open for males. This decreases as time passes but males still have bonuses. Though you’d hit double word score if you could be female when applying to college and getting scholarships then switch to male once you’ve gotten them. The edge would be small though as female-oriented scholarships are still pretty rare compared to race oriented ones.

If we ever return to the law of the jungle I’ll be glad I’m a man. If you’re a man you’re on a more level playing field against any challengers that try to mess with you. If you’re a fit and tough man you have at least a good fighting chance against most any other man you have to tango with. And you can probably defeat almost all women.

12

My life would probably be a lot easier if I were male.

First off, I’m a traveller, and men have an easier time traveling alone. I try not to let it stop me, but I do have to be more careful, and there are good chunks of the world that are going to be very very hard for me to travel in. I really do have to pay more attention to what I where, what places I go to (is the nice shopowner offering me tea or trying to drug me?!?) and how I interact with males. Sometimes I benefit from being female (some people try to take care of me. And for some reason taxi drivers are less likely to rip me off) but it doesn’t make up for the safety factor.

I also value things like living in cities, being out at night, being awake at odd hours and generally doing things that make a lot of people say I’m gonna end up dead in a ditch one day. What is merely eccentric for an identical male is suddenly dangerous for me. Once again, I try not to let it stop me, but I can’t say it never does.

I’m in a male dominated field (filmmaking) and it’s a hard place for women to be taken seriously. Women are ghettoized into documentaries or touchy-feely experiemental crap. It’s possible to use the novelty aspect of “girl filmmaker” to get some attention, but I want people to take me seriously for my ideas, not who I am. Anyway, it’s still very much a man’s field and I don’t have the same networking oppertunities that guys have.

Physically, all the reproductive stuff is a pain in the ass (especially preventing unwanted pregnancy) and so is the nagging worry about weight and looks that every woman, no matter how self-assured, feels to some degree. I’m just now getting that feeling of “Oh God, I’m above the age that is considered a young hot thing” and I really don’t want to know what it’s like to hit middle age and know my wrinkles, fat, and whathaveyou make me have lesser value in the eyes of so many. I know men get uncomfortable with the loss of their looks, but a middle aged man can still be considered handsome, whereas a middle aged woman isn’t without a lot of surgical assistance. I know men are uncomfortable when they gain weight, but packing on twenty extra pounds probably won’t affect your life too much, whereas I’d face “no fatty” personal ads and other crap like that.

I do think the big advantage to being a woman is that we have much more flexible roles early in life. I’m not expected to be strong or sucessful or really much of anything. This changes later when people are going to expect me to start having babies, but it’s nice right now.

13

Ask someone who’s tried both. Men have it way easier, are you kidding? Job opportunities and advancement are a biggie. Guys, if you ever switch sides, you too will experience some of the unique joys of womanhood. Like the terror of walking alone at night.

The positive benefits of femininity are more intangible and harder to explain to someone who hasn’t been there. All I can tell you is that it feels like where I belong.

14

Female, and let’s see if I can explain this without coming off horribly wrong.

As a female, I have more socially condoned options available to me. I can be all weak and helpless and get men to take care of me and do stuff for me, if I choose, or I can be independent and take care of myself. I can have a career, or I can stay at home and have babies, and society is pretty much ok with either option. I can be a dumb trophy wife to some rich man, or I can be the CEO of my own company, or anything in between.

A man would catch more flak for being all helpless and letting someone else take care of him. Men who stay home with the kids are still something of an oddity, to many people. To some extent, men are still expected to be the provider, the protector. Men don’t really have a choice about having a job. I think men get stuck with more responsibility, and fewer choices.

I’m not saying this is right, but it’s the way it is . Mostly. In my perception, at least.

15

I agree completely. I think perceptions need to change.

16

Well… it depends… will I be a hot woman ? :stuck_out_tongue: Naturally we imagine that hot women can have sex anytime with anyone they want…

I prefer being male… from pissing standing up (no long lines) to all sorts of physical discomforts. Even if society were truly equalitarian and non-sexist…

17

[QUOTE=dangermom]
Really? Wow. I’m glad to be female, periods, difficult pregnancies, and all. There are some wonderful parts to pregnancy.

I do think it’s a toss-up. Men have these huge expectations placed on them to be providers; how scary must that be to wake up with every morning, if you’re the sole bread-winner for the family? Or just having a lot of people expect you to do the approaching in a dating situation?

I find it interesting that there are still some people that think that MEN are the only ones having the pressure of providing for a family. As a woman, I wake up each morning knowing that I am the sole provider for these wonderful human beings that count on me for everything. On top of that, as a woman I am still expected to run a household efficiently, organize doctors/dentist/extracurricular activities and shop for the Birthday presents and order the cake. So, yes, it is much more beneficial to be a man and it has nothing to do with PMS and pregnancy.
I would also like to add that equal pay for equal work is still not a reality in the 21th century. :frowning:

18

:smack: wow, how did that get so big! I certainly apologize

19

It is *easier * to be a male, but I am perfectly happy being female.

20

Of course the flip side is that they probably get offered dick constantly.