You are right about the comments. The article did not even mention directly or indirectly what the comments are fighting about. In a different vein, and perhaps also controversial, I have been reading The Blade and the Chalice about how central asian nomadic invaders conquered the relatively peaceful settlers in Central Europe in successive waves from around 4,000 to 1,000 BC. In the process they seem to have overthrown the matrilineal peoples and Goddesses, and imposed patrilineal authoritarian societies and Gods. The Mycenean period was affected by the Dorian invaders/conquerers, and it seems the Crete and Cyprus islands may have been able to hold on to the old religions (female centric) longer than the mainlands.
the “goddess” myth was made up by feminists, who say there was once a heaven where women ruled until those evil men came in and ruined paradise.
The bad news is that the Linear B tablets from Pylos and Mycenae are full of information about female slaves in Mycenae (they were used to process and weave linen, and often were kidnapped from all over the Agean sea), and these tablets mention the male gods of the classic age Greek pantheon.
Pre mycenean Crete is called Minoan, and indeed the buildings dug up there have lots of women portrayed who might be goddesses, both as statues and wall paintings. but until they decipher Linear A, it is only a guess that there were goddesses and women ruled. After all, most countries with “goddesses” and “priestesses” (e.g. Mesopotamia, with Istar) didn’t have female equality either.
Even if there are great goddesses or even queens, it doesn’t mean that the average woman had any rights.
Those Central Asian invaders of the book are the Indo Europeans (think “white men” who are so hated by the PC)...
Yet before the Dorian invasions, the Ionican/Myceneans were Indo Europeans, as were the Hittites, and many think the Minoans, like the Etruscans, came from Lydia (Asia minor, now Turkey) and also spoke an Indo European language, but until the Linear A tablets are deciphered, that too is a guess.
Astarte and related goddesses were worshiped all over the Eastern Mediterranean and Middle East, but that didn't mean those cultures weren't dominated by male rulers and they also worshiped male gods. I'm thinking of Phoenicia, Ugarit, Babylonia and, yes, Cyprus.