Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Friday, September 24, 2010
Sadly, yes
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
Monday Miscellanea
Consumer advocate to set up watchdog agency
Warren has been known to say such kick-ass things as this:
Motherhood is now the single-best indicator that an unmarried middle-class woman will end up bankrupt. In the world of financial devastation, there are two groups of people: single mothers and others.Check out 5 reasons to love Elizabeth Warren here.
And while we're talking about ass-kicking women...check 'em:
Just sayin'...
During a recession, the effects of ageism are more clearly visible:
For the Unemployed Over 50, Fears of Never Working Again
And according to this review, the presence of shows like Huge and Mike and Molly reflect the positive influence of the Fat Acceptance movement in mainstream culture:
And yet despite its disappointments, “Mike & Molly” is significant as the second fictional series in recent months to take weight not as a sideshow but rather as a central, animating subject, surpassing even the efforts made by “Roseanne” in the 1980s and ’90s. “Huge,” a drama about teenagers at a fat camp, which appeared this summer on ABC Family, displayed a similar sensitivity, a tone aimed at correcting for the reflexive cultural judgments levied against the overweight at a time when obesity has been cast as one of the greatest blights of our age.Both series indicate the extent to which the countervailing sentiment, the fat-acceptance movement, begun in the 1960s, has gained traction in the mainstream as a rebuttal to political and social forces seeking to tax Mountain Dew and convince you that every time you have a second slice of pizza the devil grows an extra pair of horns. “Mike & Molly” is a mushy and human exploration of the struggle to find pleasure away from the bakery aisle, and the fight fat people wage against objectification.
I wouldn't bet the show will be unproblematic, but it seems like a step in the right direction.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Tea-Partiers @ the courthouse
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Thursday, September 16, 2010
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Video of the Day
Christine O'Donnell, now the official Republican candidate in the Delaware race. It's delicious, y'all.
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
An unhealthy, overly-processed food additive by any other name
Corn syrup producers want sweeter name: corn sugar
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Stuck
I think part of the problem is the strange response these kinds of posts get. When I post on something like this (or an intensely personal post on my childbirth or breastfeeding experience) the hits that post gets jumps from the usual hundreds to thousands very quickly. But the comments don't always reflects that. If a post like this gets 80 comments it's often getting read about 8,000 times. One such post got over 23,000 hits and only 17 comments. So first of all it's weird that I'm talking about this really private intense stuff and there are all these people out there reading it silently. Some of them are linking it or posting it on Facebook, according to my stat counter. But I don't know who they are or what they're thinking about. What made them read it in the first place, and what response did they have? Why does such a small percentage of the readers for these posts comment compared to other posts? Does it feel more dangerous to comment, or do they not know what to say? When I read a really personal post I feel more inclined to comment, but maybe that's just me.
So anyway, I'm curious about this dynamic and what it means. Your thoughts?
Thursday, September 9, 2010
OMG WTF is UP with Feminism, y'all?!?
I've been on a bit of an internet hiatus lately, what with my busy life and all the thoughts cookin' in my head and a vacation to the land of thick rainforests and come-and-go internet signals. But, of course, you can't step away from the feminist blogosphere for long without missing some kind of kerfuffle or other involving calling out and/or flaming and/or angry discussions about triggering behavior, which is always followed up by a widespread and generalized panic about OMG The State of Feminism. Maybe I'm just cynical and world-weary, but here's how I tend to feel everytime this dog and pony show commences:
- It would probably behoove us all to remember that Feminism≠Internet Feminism.
- It would probably behoove us all to remember that Internet Feminists are not a monolithic group. There's a huge range of perspectives and writing styles and personalities and outlooks among feminist blogs, y'all. Feeling disillusioned by the actions of some? Seek out new voices. They're there.
- Criticizing someone's fucked up words or actions is totally different and generally more effective than attacking their character. Maybe their words or actions truly are a reflection of a deeply flawed character. Or maybe they're a generally sincere and good person who has this one flaw or a total lack of experience in this area or whatever. Attacking their character probably isn't going to result in a learning experience for them or a furthering of the dialogue.
- If you're getting a giant ego boost off of calling someone out and escalating the situation into a flame-war, then you probly need to engage in a little soul-searching. Gettin' your metaphorical rocks off in a flame war? It's quite likely that you're oblivious to the beam in your own eye even while you're attacking someone else for the speck in theirs. Step away frm the computer and take a look in the mirror, my friend.
- And finally, feminism is a human activity. It's a social movement engaged in by humans. And humans ain't perfect. We've all got our shortcomings and blindspots and bad days and impulsive moments. So quarrels will arise and insensitive things will be said and tempers will flare. It doesn't mean Feminism is busted. It means feminism is a human activity with it's ups and downs and flaws and moments of beauty and warmth and banality and pettiness. And that's OK.
And anyway...the fighting and hating and swarming...it takes a lot of energy. I need all my energy for the good stuff and the meaningful stuff and the tough stuff in my life. And the ego boost you get from that kinda stuff? It lasts, and it doesn't have a bitter aftertaste.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
I'm back
New Study Estimates Neonatal Circumcision Death Rate Higher Than Suffocation and Auto Accidents
Interesting, no? For more info on circumcision and a good resource for research realities vs cultural misconceptions and medical dogma, check out Intact America.
More later, y'all. Happy Wednesday!
Friday, September 3, 2010
My grandmother, with her plane and her firstborn.
Happy Labor Day weekend, from Seattle.
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