Relax, women! Let's face it, we're just...kind of dim.

(or, Why I'm switching to the New York Times)

The following is a letter I wrote to the Ombudsman of the Washington Post in response to the Sunday Outlook piece by Charlotte Allen, "We Scream, We Swoon. How Dumb Can We Get?"

If there was ever any question as to whether sexism is alive and well in this country, please read the above-linked op-ed and then try to imagine someone making the same argument about black people or Catholics. (Hint: eugenics, anyone?) More importantly, try to imagine an editorial about black people being feebleminded on the front page of the Sunday Outlook section of a national newspaper.

The letter:

To: ombudsman@washpost.com

I have been a loyal WaPo reader since I was a child growing up in Fairfax, Virginia. I will continue to read the Washington Post. But I cannot in good conscience let the op-ed piece by Charlotte Allen go by unchallenged.

What disgusts me more than her point of view is the fact that such a highly esteemed newspaper would choose to validate it with so many column inches in the Sunday edition of its Outlook section. What's next - Fred Phelps' perspective on why Lawrence King is rotting in hell?

Congratulations for using a cheap trick to get the blogosphere chattering about your paper. I'm utterly disgusted. Come to think of it, maybe I will switch to the New York Times after all.

Juliette "Dim Woman" Gomez
Richmond, Virginia