i think bill maher is wrong, and here's why: (mature post ALERT!)
The mistreatment of women is wrong, no matter what tools a society might use to do so. In some Arab lands the tool they use to oppress women is the Law- stating that women can't have certain civil rights (ring a bell, niggas? but thats another topic for another day). In the Western world, we oppress our women socially and economically, by way of objectifying them, valuing them merely as sexual beings, and denying them equal pay for the same work.
Now Bill Maher made mention of a women who was beheaded in some Arab country recently, and how that was an example of how much worse Arab women have it than American women. Well shit, American women fall victim to the same senseless violence in this country every damn day- murders, rapes, abuse happen EVERYDAY here. The only difference is that American women have the right to seek legal action against those who would knowingly commit these crimes against them. In Arab lands, that's not always the case.
So then the question remains, HOW are we BETTER if we commit the same crimes against our women??? Is it because we allow women to press charges after they are raped or abused? Are we better because our women can drive cars and vote? Maybe a little- but as long as we commit the same crimes, we are just as wrong. What difference does it make if you can vote but you can be secretly denied a job because of your sex? What does it matter that our women can wear whatever they want, if we objectify, judge, and- in some cases- sexually assault them when they do?
They kill their women senselessly... WE kill our women senselessly
They objectify their women... WE objectify our women
They oppress their womens civil rights by LAW... WE do it SOCIALLY and ECONOMICALLY