I recently finished the December issue of National Geographic. The highlight was a spectacular article on the restoration process for the cathedral of Notre Dame which was completed last week. For those of you who have forgotten, the iconic building was severely damaged by fire in April of 2019.
I was struck by two particular aspects of the restoration project. First, the effort was a cooperative effort which included a couple thousand individuals from a myriad of backgrounds and disciplines. While I am sure there was someone, or a few someones who led the project, it was clear from reading the article that opinions, perspectives and viewpoints from countless artisans, craftsmen, historians, engineers, even fire safety experts, among others, were instrumental in creating the end result.
For me, it confirms my belief, despite the current popularity of me first philosophies, that our greatest accomplishments are cooperative in nature.
The second amazing feature is the simple fact that the final product will combine the styles and innovations of three eras of construction, medieval, 19th century and today. Again, I am sure there were some compromises from people who represented those three eras, yet mutual respect and support among them produced the end result.
If possible, I recommend you access the article online, or by purchasing a copy of the edition. As it is the December issue, which historically includes dozens of pictures of the year, it is worth having on that score as well.
Another interesting article in this edition touched on research into gender roles, or more specifically, how a new tool for studying human remains is upending what we thought we knew about gender in past societies.
For instance, in 2008 archaeologists discovered a tomb in Spain which contained lavish goods. At the time, scholars estimated the site to be 4500 to 5200 years old, and, based on the apparent age of the skeleton, and the luxuriousness of the burial, it was assumed that this was a man who had held an elite position in that society.
Flash forward to 2023 when a team of researchers used a new method to infer the biological sex, the protein from a tooth. Their conclusion was that this body was female, not male, a determination that could challenge our understanding of the importance and role of women in past societies.
Now certainly, one tomb of a women with elite status within their community, does not a trend make. However, it is also true that when interpreting information, our biases often dictate the direction which our conclusions might follow. In other words, if we assume all past societies were led by men, we assume all evidence of stature and influence align with our prejudice for male dominated societal structures, then any evidence of elite female burials must assume a secondary position to the husband, father, brother, etc.
This simple deduction, that when research fields are dominated by men who live in societies controlled by men, the vast percentage of discoveries and analyses of those discoveries will tend to emphasize a male dominated explanation. One might even say that should someone offer the suggestion of a female dominated society, much ridicule would follow.
I say this, despite the adage that behind every successful man, there is a woman, because even when that saying is remotely believed, at the end of the day it is still the man in question that receives the praise and adulation.
One of the numerous advantages to reading history, not just his story, is that there are indeed a plethora of women who made huge contributions to our culture, although they have most likely been overlooked, not just by their contemporaries, but by the history books as well.
As simple proof of this claim is that while stories of women taking on male pseudonyms to hide their gender is replete in history, it is difficult to name a male who took on a female pseudonym. It just wasn't necessary and in fact, would most likely have created the opposite effect.
Interestingly, another recently reevaluated discovery, this time of two side by side skeletons holding hands, was determined to be two males. And so, again, it makes one wonder how and why the difficulty with homosexuality evolved.
While I am no scientist, hold no advanced degrees, have not spent my life researching this topic, I don't need to have any sort of extensive knowledge base to comment on my theory. It is both the beauty and the beast of the internet, of having the ability to communicate with the entire world, and be able to access information from that world without filter for fact or truth.
My theory then? It is religion that has created much of the bias against strong female leaders and against love between same sex partners. Religion, that world-wide industry of control which exists to save us from the "other", and which, no coincidence, is controlled by men.
One last note on this topic. Over the summer, during a conversation with relatives, when I suggested that there weren't a lot of women fighter pilots in America's military because women were not historically allowed to attempt to qualify, my response was met with derision by someone who truly believes that my contention was typical of those who believe in diversity, equity and inclusion. You know, us woke people.
This is not to say that this particular person doesn't think there may be exceptions, the occasional women who can be successful in a man's job, but his belief is that we have gone too far in thinking that any women who believes they can do it, deserves the support and opportunity to do so. He was unable to understand that his own niece, who is currently employed in a profession that women were not allowed to pursue just a few generations ago, just needed the chance to try, a chance not afforded to women in the recent past.
While it is encouraging that my niece has been able to achieve her dream, it is still frustrating to see that the pendulum seems to have stopped in these past eight to ten years. I see this trend away from gender equality in the odious abortion laws that are resulting in the death of young women, and in the equally repulsive laws that are isolating people who are struggling with their gender identity and who have now been labelled the lepers of our culture.
One other interesting item along these lines is that there was a brief article detailing the all women crew who are studying climate change at the top of the world in an environment that women "could not handle", or so was believed not that long ago. Another example of women achieving despite the prevalent belief that they just can't.
Lastly, there was a brief mention in the December issue about a new form of energy made from sunlight, water and carbon dioxide. Could this solar synthetic fluid replace fossil fuels in the next fifty years?
One could easily imagine that what will hold it back, may simply be the same axiom that women have faced for most of history; that it just can't be done. Of course, such an advancement in energy might also face an uphill battle from the fossil fuel industry, who like some men who are unwilling to surrender the possibility that they are the dominant sex, will not willingly give up their position of dominance, power and money.
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