He's a jet of water?

Tucker Carlson is a douche bag. Sen. John Kerry is a douche bag. That perpetually tan guy who lives in the apartment below you and pops his pink polo collar is a douche bag.\nThe rules of language determine these statements to be nonsense.\nAccording to Random House Webster's Dictionary, a douche, n., is 1) a jet of water, sometimes with a cleansing agent, applied to a body part or cavity or 2) an instrument, as a syringe, for administering a douche.\nIt is undeniable that this tool is used primarily to "clean" vaginas. Douche bags are products for women's bodies.\nStill, an extraordinary amount of young people (especially, I've noticed, those in college) use "douche bag" to refer to an egotistical, moronic or otherwise unpleasant individual -- almost always a male. \nThe term's prevalence in this context extends further.\nThere are currently 23 Facebook groups that contain the word "douche bag." My favorites are "Dr. Phil is a Ginormous Douchebag" and "We Get Wasted Cuz Men are Douche Bags!!"\nThe Web site www.okcupid.com offers "The Douche Bag test," in which users answer questions about their personal lives to reveal their level of douche. (I answered the questions randomly and came out to be "douche-tacular." I wish I was joking.)\nThe problem: One wouldn't substitute stick of deodorant or antibacterial hand soap for douche bag when referring to the person he or she is insulting. It's the fact that a douche bag is used to clean a vagina that makes it so \ndemeaning.\nCan I not argue, then, that using douche bag as an insulting label is perpetuating the ideology that women are inferior to men? To say "Guy who wears visor backwards and upside-down is a jock strap," seems not quite as \neffective. \nThe douche bag is truly a rather bizarre item, not even necessary for a woman's hygiene, as the vagina cleans itself. I acknowledge that the term is typically used as a modifier in lighthearted fashion, to ensue laughter. But the underlying message persists: that being "womanly" parallels being unable or ignorant. \nAs a writer, I must consider the power and implications of words. Calling John Kerry overconfident might not be as amusing or colorful as "douche bag" might be, but at least that which was implied by the insult was stated, and nothing else.\nA final thought: Why are the males who feel compelled to go to tanning beds or use hair gel or wear pink commonly condemned as douche bags or "tools?" The fact that they care about their appearance challenges the skewed ideals of masculinity that exist in our culture. \nBreaking convention in this way isn't harmful; rather, perpetuating oppressive ideologies is.