In life taking EVERYTHING into consideration who gets the best deal in life men or women?

Question

Hi, I was just wondering taking EVERYTHING into account who gets the best deal in life men or women? Before you post your answer please weight up all the pros and cons.

Answer 1

Wide open question, so you're sure to get a lot of answers. Basically it depends on a lot of things, mostly luck and a few breaks, no matter if one is male or female.

If you're lucky enough to be born into a developed First World nation, then your gender is fairly irrelevant. If you're unlucky enough to be born into a poor country, then it is better to be male, because of the insane idea of sexism that still exists, plus some pretty brutal practices for both boys and girls for coming of age ceremonies.

Let's say you're lucky enough to be born American, Canadian or European. If you survive infant years, toddler years, don't do anything stupid or have a bad accident in teen years, then you're pretty well home free. But you also need to be lucky enough, as a boy or a girl, not to be molested or abused, because although those wounds don't show outwardly, they never really heal inside one's heart, mind and spirit.

Let's say you are a First Worlder who survives easily, gets a good education, isn't molested or abused, and doesn't have any bad accidents. Genetics also come into play. One thing that makes life easier by far is simple good health. Having a strong skeleton, good teeth, no major chronic illnesses will help a person to get ahead in life, survive, thrive and possibly mate if they want to, although Goddess knows with six billion in the world, we need to have more pleasure and fewer screaming, puking, crying conseequences of sex!

The main goal between birth and mid-20s is also learning how to fit into society, how to standardize your behavior while at the same time developing your own personality. For both genders, there is a big push toward not being a social retard and being date-able and marriageable. And of course in Western societies there is a big push to develop yourself, to become autonomous, independent, and to grow yourself as a person.

From there, the road divides. For men and women who elect to remain childfree, their roads are pretty much the same: college, then job, and a continuing upward trajectory. For women who have children, there is a different path, and there is a power gap in capitalistic societies. In 21st century America, it is an economic punishment to have a child. It has to be something the woman and her partner/husband really want, to put up with lots of lip support but little to no real actual physical or governmental support in raising children.

Overall, I'd say women have it better, but I could be just a wee bit biased, being one myself. Overall we are not the ones who are incarcerated in DROVES. We are able to give life, if we choose. We live up to a DECADE longer on average than men do. We are cleaner, neater, kinder... BUT if you do get us angry, women fight to kill. Women don't usually fight for dominance or even care about dominance like men do... but we do fight to kill. Not to show who's boss, not to maim... but to kill. Those mother bear instincts are there.

I think it's no accident that women are the genetic gatekeepers, either. Men will screw anything and anyone. Women have millennia of pickiness in their DNA, and this is a very good thing. We are also the keepers of language, too, and in general, we are the glue that holds society together, not to mention family and friends.

This past summer, I traveled to Ireland, where I got to go underneath an ancient church, into a crypt, then into the crypt itself where there were mummified remains. One was a 400-year-old body of a nun, who had lived to be over 100, back in the Middle Ages. Not only was she tough to have survived to such a ripe old age back then, but I imagine that she was also genetically blessed, and lucky.

Ultimately life is what we make it. Your outlook determines a lot in life. No one gets out of life alive, so no matter if you are male or female, be happy, don't worry. Plan for the future but live in the now. But, being female, I'll be counting my blessings in that extra 10 years of life. ;)

Cheers, K

P. S. I looked at some of the other answers here, and a lot of what was said here is based on surface stuff. I'm 38 years old, been overweight all my life -- but I have a razor-sharp mind, a kind heart and a kind face. People smile at me and help me wherever I go, partly because I look kind, and partly because I simply expect good treatment. Your expectations, no matter if you are male or female, help your life as well.

Two summers ago I traveled and missed a connection so I was stranded. I asked for help, and a very nice Scotsman pointed me to a house, and the people there gave me shelter for the night. I'm female, about 5'5", with a kind face, and am overweight. It helps that I'm a teacher, too, I think. But I thought about it -- what if I had been male, older, taller, darker? I might have had to have slept in the rough.

I feel like I'm lucky to be a woman because I do catch breaks because of my gender, my looks, a nice smile. But I also never want to trade on those things or depend on those things. Mostly I want to pay my own way and make my own way through life on my own merits, as much as possible. But it is very nice to be treated well.

Answer 2

I think women have the best deal. Why? Because if I was offered the chance to change gender I wouldn't choose to, so from a lifetime (up to and including middle age) of being a woman I have subconsciously decided that this is the best state to be in.

Women can often choose to opt into a male environment (pub, football etc) probably more easily than men can do the reverse. Therefore we have the best of both worlds.

Thankfully now it is rare to find discrimination in the workplace which has made a huge difference. 20 or 30 years ago that would have been a significant factor and probably influenced me in giving a different answer.

I also think that some people are better suited to one gender rather than another and that occasionally the physical aspects are at odds with the self-image; hence trans-sexuals. For most of us we find advantages to being the way we are so there probably is no definitive answer.

Answer 3

Men...and it's not because I'm all bitter and twisted (I am, but it's not the reason) but because deep down they truly have the most control over their lives.
I've done a lot of so-called men's jobs (mechanic, motorcycle courier etc etc) and have been passed over for promotion or a wage rise (yah well, he's got a wife and kids, or, I can't see the boys taking orders from a woman...) it wasn't until I was 40 with no dependants that employers realised I wasn't about to run off and get pregnant and by then it was too late for a career, also I have suffered abuse because a girl is smaller, weaker - even though I did powerlifting.
Men do not have periods, pregnancies nor struggle round with screaming brats hanging from their hips
nope sorry I could go on for hours about this

Answer 4

Men do.
But in the US, women have it a lot better than women of most other countries.
The only real con of being a man is your life expectancy is several years shorter than a females.
Women make less money, usually have fewer educational opportunites, are at risk for more cancers, have menstral cramps, die in childbirth, are at risk for physical attacks more than men, etc.
Women also get the shaft in most marriages.
Society views older men as handsome, distinguised. But older women are seen as "ugly" or in need of a face lift, boob life, wrinkle cream (not my opinion, but that's what the media throws at us).
In the US, women aren't given job advancements as often as men due to maternity leave, etc.
Also in the US,
women are charged more for haircuts, drycleaning, ripped off on home improvement & auto repairs, etc.
Birth control is almost always *their* responsibility, although it shouldn't be.
Women have far more expenses than men, but yet they make less money.
The only thing I can think of that a man pays more for is auto insurance when he's a teen or young adult. Then after 25, it evens out.
I don't want to hear about how men have to pay for dates. First of all, lots of couples go dutch on dates. Plus, men often *buy* a girl dinner in hopes of getting lucky, and if they do, that's not really lost money. Know what I mean?

Answer 5

That's actually pretty tough. In society, I honestly believed that humans were designed to be the leaders and woman the followers. The problem arises when men are not good leaders, so women are forced to take over. That sets off an entire chain of events that just leads to chaos and all that jazz. So on the one hand, men have a lot of pressure to be a good leader and take care of the women and everything screws up if they don't, but women kinda have to sit back and watch the men screw up the leading, ya'kno? so which is more difficult?

however, after taking into consideration giving birth, menstral cycles, shopping for jeans, and plastic surgery, in THIS society at least, I'd rather be a guy.

Answer 6

Women... although we get bloody once a month and we have to go through childbirth and all that, I still think women have the better deal. For men it must be tougher trying to fit into a role, you have to go out to work to support your family (whether or not she needs help) and you have to be brave, you have to be strict with the children, and you have to make the first move all the time,.
But for women you can get a job or you can stay at home as a housewife, and you can be scared of spiders, and you can be whoever you want, society does not have any strict rules for women anymore.

Answer 7

If one takes.... Everything.... into account then....no one gets a good deal ...we all die.....that's it ...end of game .

In the mean while Men or Women, loose some, win some ...varies wildly
Depends so much on the individual attitude to life and the condition they are in mentally..

Answer 8

Well, if you're taking EVERYTHING into consideration you have to look at men and women all over the world.

Seeing how women are treated in many cultures, men definitely have the best deal.

Answer 9

Why differentiate? Basically, men and women are all the same.... feel the same things and want the same things. We just pretend we're different and act accordingly! Once we start accepting that we're as good, bad, strong, vulnerable etc. as eachother, life will a whole lot better for both sexes.

Answer 10

It's got to be women. They have much more choice in life, whether to have children, stay at home, have a career, have both... where as men have to go with the flow. They're expected to 'conform' in every way. Married or children or not, they're expected to work and provide. Pretty simple and boring routine for them.

Answer 11

take for example having a child. a women goes thru the pain of delivering the baby. but she can give up work to look after the child altho that can be stressful at times. meanwhile the bloke has to carry on work probably doing overtime and missing out on bringing up the child but doesn't have the stress of a newborne in the house. i think its pretty even on most examples i can think of.