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Aug. 5, 2015 - Sargon of Akkad - Carl Benjamin
09:11
The Great Air Conditioning Conspiracy
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So two weeks ago in this week in Stupid, I featured an article on The Telegraph by Rhodika Sanghai.
Radhika had effectively just read an article in The Washington Post where a bunch of social scientists had claimed that women were generally too cold in offices because of air conditioning and decided that what she would do is write exactly the same article from her own perspective, press publish and call it a day.
Now I know that this seems like the very apex of first world problems, but I'm sure next week they'll completely shatter that glass ceiling.
Now I assumed that this problem was the result of a slow news day, and after two weeks of not hearing anything about it, I assumed it had gone away.
But apparently they're having slow news days at Sky as well.
As for reasons unknown, they decided that they would interview Rhodika about her amazing article.
There it was.
There I was thinking it was just me that had a problem, but it turns out it's the air conditioning that's sexist.
What a moronic thing to say.
The air conditioning can't be sexist.
The people who set the air conditioning can be sexist.
They could say, hey, women won't like it if we turn it up really high.
They'll be really cold because they've got lower body mass or whatever.
That could be a case of sexism.
But I'm sure Rhodika isn't going to be so stupid as to disagree with her.
I know.
And this person gets paid to put her opinions out into the public domain in a national newspaper.
So many women in our office have the exact same problem.
Okay, so we're going to go with the word problem.
That's fine.
That's absolutely fine.
If you want to turn this a problem, then we will term it a problem.
Just to be neutral about it, we're talking about the relative heat of the office compared to the outside world.
And for the majority of women, it's too cold.
Please continue.
You know, we just sit there absolutely freezing at our desks trying to type.
That's awful.
That is just absolutely awful.
Absolutely freezing.
Sat at their desks in the offices trying to type.
Wait a minute, who the hell is this?
Do you mind?
I'm trying to empathise with some poor ladies who are a little bit cold in their offices due to the air conditioning being on too high.
Get out of here, you damn fallacy of relative privation.
You can probably tell I've got a cold right now, which I blame all on the AC.
I'm going to go ahead and presume that you mean from spreading the virus about.
And so it's just so actually quite nice to see this research.
It's just such a relief to know that there's actually proof that this is happening, that women, you know, do feel the cold more than men.
Okay, one study isn't proof, but it is some evidence towards what everyone already knows.
But yes, I think we can all agree that women feel the cold more than men.
Presumably due to morphological reasons.
What's your point?
And that the AC in offices is normally regulated more for a male's temperature than a woman's.
Well, that's something you just pulled out of your ass, isn't it?
I mean, your study doesn't say anything like that.
It just talks about the core temperatures of men and women.
It doesn't go on to examine the average temperature of an office.
And even if it did, there is no male or female regulated temperature.
It's morphological.
It's about body, shape, and type.
And it's an explanation for these constant battles you'll see in offices right across the country between the sexes for control of their office thermostat.
That you've completely made up.
Where the fuck is this going on?
I've worked in offices my whole life.
Never happened.
Never happened once.
Yeah, exactly.
really but it kind of sounds like it might be true and I think don't lie to us as well You know, one of the biggest problems is that often in offices, it is men who control temperatures.
You know, that's just something I found anecdotally.
Great.
Well, I've found anecdotally that it's bossy controlling women in the offices who control the AC.
And because majority of the men in offices seem to be absolutely fine with the temperatures, you know, women kind of just sit there on the corner feeling absolutely frozen.
Women or you?
Because I don't think you've got any numbers on this.
I think that this is again very anecdotal and very subjective.
And probably indicative that there is no real problem here.
And.
You really sound like you're trying to pad this out, just so you know.
know often like actually nothing's being done to help them You're absolutely right.
Nothing's being done to help them.
Nothing is being done to help these poor women.
It's a terrible thing.
I mean, people are busy donating their money to Africa.
They're busy sending food and medical supplies to refugees.
Little did they know that in their own countries, there were poor women who are the victims of oppression by air conditioning.
And you know, it might sound like a bit of a silly, light-hearted issue.
What?
Women in Britain complaining that the air conditioning is a bit too high in the summer, so they're a bit chilly.
Why would you think that sounds a bit silly?
But actually, it's really uncomfortable being freezing at your desk every day.
And there is literally nothing that can be done about it.
Take it from me.
Or to rephrase it, I'm too cold in my office, and for some reason, I don't just talk to my boss or put on a cardi.
No, I know I experienced the same because what I've often found is you go in on a really hot summer's day, you're wearing summer clothes, you go into an office, and it's absolutely freezing.
Oh no!
It must be terrible in Portugal or wherever you're broadcasting from.
Because where I'm broadcasting from, we're not getting hot summer's days.
I think even for some men it must be too cold.
I don't understand why air conditioning is often so cold.
Well, it's clearly a sexist patriarchal conspiracy.
So what you have to do is then take a jumper in with you and put that jumper on in order to be able to function.
Well, there's an injustice if I've ever heard one.
Are you guys like basket cases if you don't have your jumpers?
Yeah, honestly, I think so many women listening now are going to just be nodding their heads thinking, yes, that is exactly my reality.
Yeah, but even more people are staring slack jawed in disbelief that this is being given airtime.
You know, we joke at work that we actually can't dress fashionably anymore for summer because you actually just can't go in in sandals.
You can't go in in a summer dress because you're going to have to put on the jumper or the emergency cardigan.
Well, it's work, not a fucking fashion parade.
Dress fancy on your own time when you're not being oppressed by the air conditioning.
So, yeah, it is quite frustrating, especially when you then go out on your lunch break or your commute home and you're absolutely boiling.
Or you're on your commute home and the air conditioning in your car is too high and you're freezing in your own car and there's nothing you can do.
Outside, and I think there is a bit of a problem when it's warmer outside than it is inside your office.
Bravo, that is amazing.
Have you forgotten what the purpose of air conditioning is?
The point is that it's really hot outside and cooler in your office because it's so hot outside.
We're not talking about the winter, we're talking about the summer, you fucking moron.
So what's the solution then?
Because we can't have men overheating in the offices, can we?
Well, you say that, but that is in fact exactly what she's proposing.
No, I think we just need a bit more flexibility, you know.
No, I have no idea.
Explain it to me.
I think it is just essentially common sense.
I think if it were common sense, it wouldn't have got this far.
So if, you know, an office is noticing that a number of women are complaining about the cold, they need to be more flexible.
You know, they need to actually kind of.
Suspiciously long pause.
Lower it.
Yeah, but the point is that that would leave everyone else in the office, both male and female, who weren't excessively cold, really hot.
And not just say that all the men are fine.
Yeah, because you don't care.
Everyone else who isn't cold is going to be uncomfortable with your solution.
You know, now there is actually proof that this is actually an issue.
There doesn't need to be proof of you saying that you feel the cold more than other people.
That's not something that requires proof.
We'll take you at your word.
The question is that won't everyone who isn't you and the cadre of skinny women who are getting too cold in their offices overheat?
Just because you're too cold doesn't mean everyone else isn't going to be too hot.
I think they need to kind of take women's considerations into account.
You have no idea how many women you speak for.
As far as I can tell, you speak for about five who wrote articles on this.
Do you really think that you, an unelected, petite, slender woman, should really represent all women right here and right now?
Because it kind of sounds like you're fat-shaming.
You know what?
Maybe there could be more flexibility with men not having to wear suits in some offices.
My god, imagine the entitlement.
You know, I'm a bit cold in my office.
Instead of putting on a jumper, I'm going to demand everyone else change what they're wearing so we can change the ambient temperature of the office to suit me.
And they can come in in t-shirts or whatever they need to be the right temperature.
Oh yeah, that's very professional and businesslike.
I'm sure that that's going to be what happens instead of you either speaking to your boss to turn down your thermostats or you wearing a fucking jumper.
Jesus Christ, what a waste of everyone's time this segment was.
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