Are you a feminist?

There's an interesting discussion going on over at figleaf's blog about calling yourself a feminist.

My personal stance is that I don't give a damn whether you call yourself a dragon, what matters is whether you breathe fire.

Or, in other words, I've known people who called themselves "feminists" who were sexist lunatics, and people who never used the term who were thoughtful and respectful about gender issues. And frankly the word "feminist" is a little off-putting--"fem"? I'm not particularly pro-woman as opposed to men, I just want people to be decent to people!

And yet I call myself a feminist, mostly because there isn't a better word that doesn't carry its own weird baggage. My idea of feminism is really equality--that under the law and in the social sphere your gender shouldn't interfere with you living the way you want. That if you want to be a soldier or a Presidential candidate or a stay-at-home parent or you want to feel safe in your workplace or your home, no one needs to check in your undies first. (Or your partner's undies. Or, for that matter, your partners' undies.) Is that really "feminism"? It's what I believe and I guess it's close enough.