Fact is, most girls are afraid of spiders, slimy things

Bonnie Jakubos (Daily Bee, Jan. 26) takes issue with my statement that “most girls are afraid of spiders and slimy things” but she doesn’t actually refute it. She simply states that boys are equally afraid, which is demonstrably false. There are plenty of articles on the internet which refute her contention.

Women are different from men and girls are different from boys. One can deny the obvious but one cannot change reality. And rather than being a “hasty generalization,” my statement was an absolute truth. In logic a hasty generalization is defined as “basing a general statement on too small a sample; building general rules from accidental or exceptional situations.”  (A.J. Hoover, Don’t You Believe It!) My statement was not based on a small sampling of girls. It was based on a lifetime of observation. It is also supported by biological studies of male and female genetics and by anthropological studies of culture and tradition, which Bonnie should know if she has forty years of experience as a biologist and educator.

Bonnie believes that “words like ‘most’ should be backed up by actual data.” But can she back up her belief with actual data? Can she prove by empirical science that her belief is verifiable fact? Or is it just her opinion, the same as girls and boys being equal in their fear of creepy things? I think it’s just her opinion.

Most girls really are afraid of spiders and slimy things. And that’s not outdated chauvinism. That’s a fact.

MONTE HEIL

Sagle