1. the best argument for funding talented women, is its inevitability. the smartest men understand this. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQnDDKDiSy8

2. part of being a good entrepreneur is managing your own psychology. women—and i anticipate raising ire when i say this—have much to learn in this regard. not simply because we are relatively new to worlds men have long-accessed and enjoyed (with the corresponding body of wisdom and experience that accompanies such things, including the management of one's own psychology, which is nothing more than self-mastery), but also because we sometimes lose focus along the way. we stop building and start arguing. this is a natural process and i believe an important one for us to collectively go through: the debating, the feeling-out of collective boundaries and external asks. but we are not organized, we sometimes get emotional to the point where we become unintelligible, uncommunicative or irrational, and lose credibility along the way. if you are to wage a war then you must find a way to unite around a common purpose, set your sights on victory and then take intelligent action, individual or otherwise. (coincidentally, we also need role models who are both vocal AND able to organize women.) alas, in our early stages we seem to spend a lot of time arguing. so: less bicker, more build. whether your own projects or community, every hour matters.

3. on YC-ness: how many female founders have worked very closely alongside a VC-funded YC-alum (who happens to be a white male)? i am a minority female founder who has experienced this, and was astounded. temporarily laying aside the argument of how to actually get in if you do fit that stereotype: the intrinsically, deeply supportive nature of this network is such that many of you, if exposed to it, would be tempted to apply. many of you would apply. it wasn't the contacts, or the advice, or the credibility it conferred (those things helped with everything from recruiting to raising $, of course—not to mention the comparative ease of getting meetings): what impressed me was this battle-hardened community offering the gift of time and emotional support to one another...generosity on a scale one rarely sees in any business context (qualities which i believe will only improve in the years to come, particularly as YC evolves to include more women). my conclusion? apply to YC. and i would suggest, if a group of mostly-white male geeks does not interest you, and i understand if that is the case, then apply to a female-oriented accelerator or better yet: assemble a group of kickass female founders, mentors and investors and start your own. (remember, the genesis of a good product is building something you need.)

4. food for thought: if there were a female version of YC, would you apply? would i? i am not sure i would. i do not live in a vacuum; the world i seek to conquer is a male-dominated world (at present); and part of self-mastery includes mastering one's environment, not creating a bubble within it. but it is an interesting thought-experiment and useful to ponder.

*btw, not making this about white vs non-white. that alone would be the subject of a 1k post thread.