> IMHO, saying "Men are jerks" is no less disgusting from a sterotypical standpoint than saying "blacks are stupid." They both represent stereotypes that are easilly disproven...

So what? What's wrong with a false stereotype unless it is also offensive? "Blacks are stupid" is certainly offensive. There's no excuse for it. Interracial relationships are not inherently fraught with instinctively high strung emotions. Every instinct and hormone in our bodies is not crying out for an interracial relationship of any particular kind -- if anything, our herding instincts unwisely keep us apart. When we approach interracial relationships, we are free to approach them rationally; when prejudicial ideas like "blacks are stupid" crop up, they are the result of ignorance and inexperience at the very least, and probably also insecurity, fear, resentment, and any other number of inherently destructive emotions that a civilized, thinking individual should be able to recognize and quash.

On the other hand, where do statements like "men are jerks" come from? Relationships between men and women ARE fraught with instinctively high strung emotions. Every instinct and hormone in our bodies IS crying out for a relationship. Men and women are drawn together, and common sense and reason do not always follow. When ideas like "men are jerks" crop up, they typically aren't the result of ignorance or inexperience but an unfortunate amount of ACTUAL experience, and such statements are made as part of the healing process. They may not be admirable statements to make, and they may not be the best direction in which to release high strung emotions, but they ARE natural and understandable emotions, and diverting them via rational thought is not always or even often an option. Furthermore, a little thought on the part of an audience of such statements need not divine very deeply to figure out that the source of such statements is not an absolute faith in their truth but rather a need for an emotional release. I don't know if Den-Kara had this need or if she was just joking, but there are plenty of clues that would indicate either or both and none to suggest she is actually scornful of half the world's population.

Genuine sexism runs a lot deeper and beyond such throwaway statements. The best men and women can do for each other is to confront only those cases, let the statements designed to further a healing process go, and laugh at the statements meant to be humorous.