After my post went live, I linked to it on Facebook and Twitter. I emailed the link to men and women. Men responded by introducing me to someone who was in a position to hire me, by sending me links to job listings that could be a fit, or by directing me to opportunities that resulted in paying work.
Women responded emotionally — with support or sympathy. Men responded proactively. Women responded passively — or not at all. Every response that led to paying work was from a man.
A commenter (Lydia Netzer) to Breslin's post ponders why women didn't help as much when Breslin was given a pink-slip:
Love this post. I especially was interested in the part about men do / women feel. I hope you elaborate on that in the future. Women secretly don’t want to help you succeed? Women don’t know what to do to help? Women aren’t in a position to help?
Perhaps this is a case where men's skills for taking action come in handy. Many times, women complain that men want to find a solution and do something when faced with a problem. Women often want to talk about it, but talking is not always the answer, especially in the face of unemployment.