road to find out

The ultra-Orthodox men in Israel who are exerting control over women claim that they are honoring women. In effect they are saying: We do not treat women as sex objects as you in Western society do. Our women are about more than their bodies, and that is why their bodies must be fully covered.

In fact, though, their actions objectify and hyper-sexualize women. Think about it: By saying that all women must hide their bodies, they are saying that every woman is an object who can stir a man’s sexual thoughts. Thus, every woman who passes their field of vision is sized up on the basis of how much of her body is covered. She is not seen as a complete person, only as a potential inducement to sin.

…

At heart, we are talking about a blame-the-victim mentality. It shifts the responsibility of managing a man’s sexual urges from himself to every woman he may or may not encounter. It is a cousin to the mentality behind the claim, “She was asking for it.”

- Dov Linzer, “Lechery, Immodesty and the Talmud”

Dear Mr. Brautigam,

I came across your album entitled, “Mozart: Piano Concertos Nos. 24 & 25” and I first and foremost want to say that it is beautiful and very well done.  My question, however, is this:  what is the story behind the photograph chosen for the album cover of a man hammering a fallen tree?  One doesn’t typically associate Mozart with lumberjacks, but the juxtaposition is certainly intriguing—in a good way.  Any story that would explain the association should undoubtedly be a good one, so I’m hoping you’ll share it with me.

Sincerely,
Ian Chapman

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Dear Mr. Chapman,

the idea behind the Mozart covers is to show the various stages in the making of a fortepiano (somewhere there is a small paragraph in the booklet explaining this)
Since the cd you saw was only Vol. 2, we’re still very much at the hacking stage…
Things will become more civilized, I can promise you!

With best wishes,
Ronald Brautigam