I think it's par for the course, iguana, if anyone suggests the justification for their preferences sound a little suspect. There's nothing wrong with finding one character more appealing than another, in fact that's what an awful lot of threads on this board are all about. I'm quite happy with people saying Ezri is immensely more appealing/sexier/more fun to them than Jadzia (or vice versa, since Jadzia seems to be winning) because that's a natural human response. It's the justification some people are giving for this preference that is interesting.
But I wonder, if people didn't know that some of the people who said they preferred Ezri were men, if that would change the kinds of comments made towards them.
I certainly have no agenda for wanting women weakened or held back, but I prefer Ezri and prefer the way she treats men too. Quite simply, I think that if I want to be treated with respect as a woman, then I should treat men with respect too, because we are human beings (or in Trek, Trill beings and Bajoran beings, etc.) and all have an equal right to dignity. I do not think I have any need to suspect men like
Rush Limborg or
Shran or
Distorted Humor of misogynism. Nor have I ever
been disrespected or treated as unequal by them. Their conduct towards me speaks for itself.
I do not see what is so controversial about the idea of not playing with or manipulating other people's feelings,
especially romantic feelings. I hated the fact that Kirk treated women that way, and I find it no more excusable when Jadzia Dax does it. It's not funny or appealing to me to see that. I wouldn't trust someone in
any kind of relationship, romantic or non-romantic, if I knew they got their kicks from toying with people that way. As far as I'm concerned, what's bad for the goose is bad for the gander, too.
Respect towards others is a
universal virtue, and I don't care for seeing the lack of it. When I see that, it removes the possibility of romance (if I were considering dating a man),
or the possibility of friendship (if I were considering being friends with a woman). If I see that in one part of someone's life, I have no guarantee that same behavior won't cross into working relationships or friendships too.
An interesting point was made about the fact that Kira has had multiple relationships and even one-night stands. I never saw any signs that she treated Bareil as someone to manipulate, or Shakaar, or Odo. There was always a relationship as equals, where both the male and female were
strong together. No sense of disparity, attacks on each other's values, etc. Hence, I respect her more. I would feel more confident in a friendship with her, too, based on that.