Patriarchies

Alice Evans has hollowed out a subniche on Twitter in the larger feminist-interrogates-the-patriarchy niche. Evans is notable in that Razib Khan retweets her stuff. Turtle Island this week now raises up Evans' findings (from last week). Evans floats kind words for the Latin Catholic Church!

Evans had done some major work in Zambia, even learning the local language; this explains Razib's interest. That she's going against inbreeding and giving credit to the Latins, will likely pique HBDChick (in all definitions of "pique"; Evans really should have credited her, lest Evans go full Slate Star Codex).

I must confess that I had avoided Evans' posts on Twitter on account "patriarchy" as a term rather turns me off, as a male, since male-power (if it existed) would benefit me personally; by the same token I don't trust women who talk "patriarchy" on account male-power would (by definition) reduce womens' agency, personally. Evans somehow, I don't know how, has blasted past her biases such that she can, with sobriety, explain how not all patriarchies are, er, equal. She also knows such practices as should be anathema to all mankind, like inbreeding; and practices as might harm the immediate economy but offer long-term social trade-offs. Who, whom - again.

As to these trades, Evans throws unpulled punches against the religion of the Arabs. I use that term with due care: it is Umayyad praxis of "Islam" which comes to play here, followed by the post-Umayyad Arab-speaking tribes. I noted some time ago, when writing Throne of Glass, that the Umayyads weren't completely patriachal... yet. This was, I thought, exactly because the first Umayyads who cared about Islam, the Marwânids, were cousin-bumpers. Later when and where the 'Abbâsids took over (that is: not Spain, not really western Maghreb either) the royals left their cousins alone but at the cost of going EXTREMELY patriarchal. The next rungs down in the 'Abbâsid 'Irâq assuredly kept up the praxis, which is notable to this day. And it wasn't just the Arab-speaking Muslims. Pope Timothy tried to ban cousin marriage among the Christians (for which even Leo III - I think - needed Carolingian prompting) but failed at it. Basically if Islam is to work within civilised society it cannot be the Islam as historically practiced in the Near East and along North Africa.

Keeping aside from the Battle Of The Sexes, what patriarchy offers to men, is a reason for those men to support not only their own children - any baby daddy with proof of paternity and a 90+ IQ will do that - but to support baby mamma. Otherwise we are just wolves.