my first experience of stingy gender politics

occurred in music class when the slacking teacher, bless her, decided to let us listen to some recorded music of our choice. naturally there was no consensus choice. no one could agree. soon enough though the girls coalesced around duran duran. and by staking out such an extremist position they showed they had no interest in compromise. this naturally radicalised the boys into a solid voting bloc—the boys weren't going to listen to music performed by boys who looked like girls—who sought something equally offensive to the other side. so we pushed for iron maiden. not many of us liked iron maiden, but we felt we had to meet extreme provocation in kind. i forget how the thing ended up. but the experience was instructive. salient lessons struck home. the unbridgeable gap which often separates the sexes. and, ominously, how ruthless girls can be in negotiations.