Gender confusion?

Why do people insist on including gender when describing some professions or activities?

“What does he do for a living?”

“He’s a male nurse.”

We’ve already established we’re talking about a male. Do they think if they just say “nurse” we’re going to assume he magically turns into a woman when he goes to work? Do male and female nurses provide different care?

“He’s a male model.”

Oh, if you would have just said “model,” I would have assumed he was cross dressing because there aren’t enough female models to go around.

Then when it comes to women, it seems these types of qualifications are often used for the sporting professions. Lady golfer, woman soccer player, female wrestler. Okay, the wrestling might actually be a different sport, especially if there’s mud involved, but you get my point. You might find yourself under attack if you said “female neurosurgeon,” “lady firefighter,” or “woman plumber.” But for sports, it seems to be accepted.

Let’s examine how it should be done. If you’ve already established gender, there is no need to throw the adjective in there. He’s a nurse. She’s a CEO. He’s a model. She’s a golfer.

But but but… what about Golf Chick? Don’t get your feathers all atwitter. The word “golf” describes what kind of chick I am, instead of the other way around.

Next post.