"HA HA THIS BABY HAS MITT ROMNEY STICKERS ON IT! THAT IS WEIRD AND FUNNY!"
"I've got you."
Today in Juxtaposing Babies
"HA HA THIS BABY HAS MITT ROMNEY STICKERS ON IT! THAT IS WEIRD AND FUNNY!"
"I've got you."
Daily Dose of Cute
It's hot! And after a long walk yesterday, we had some hot dogs panting their faces off in our living room!
Video Description: Zelda sits on the chaise in front of me, panting, her blue-spotted tongue lolling out of her mouth. Dudley stands in the background, also panting. "Why don't you guys drink some water?" I suggest. Zelda is all "good idea!" and hops up and goes to the water bowl. Lap lap lap. Dudley looks like he's considering it, then turns, like he might flop on the couch instead. "Dudley, why don't you drink some water?" I say. He walks back to the water dish; turns and looks at Iain. "Drink some water, silly!" he says. "Go on, Dudz!" I tell him. He looks at me, tongue lolling. He looks into the kitchen. Looks at Iain. "Dudley," I say. "Drink some water, c'mon." *kissy noises* He looks at me then finally goes to the bowl. Lap lap lap. "That's a good boy," I tell him. He stands and pants, looking around. "The tongue of doom," I say. "C'mere, Dudz." *kissy noises* "Come." He starts to come to me, then thinks better, looks in the kitchen (because he wants a treat, which I won't give him yet because bloat), then drinks some more water. Zelda lies on the floor nearby, panting and lolling her mottled tongue. Dudley stands and lolls. "What a good boy," I tell him.
"It's hot!"
"It's hot!"
"We're so hot!"
The "Rape Turns Ladies Into Superheroes!" Trope
[Content Note: Sexual violence; rape culture; rape in entertainment.]
So, this weekend, Iain and I were watching some show about video games (as usual), and it featured the "controversial" scene in the origin story of Lara Croft in the new Tomb Raider, during which she fights her way out of an attempted sexual assault. Aphra_Behn recently wrote about it here, and Lake Desire has an excellent round-up on the subject at The Border House. The scene was shitty to watch, and made me not want to play the game, even though Tomb Raider is one of my favorite all-time games (and I battled my way through 3-D navigation issues caused by an information processing disorder just to play it).
More than being shitty to watch, it just pissed me off to 10 because I hate with the fiery passion of ten thousand suns the ubiquitous trope that surviving sexual violence (or attempted sexual violence) turns women into superheroes.
(Geek Feminism has published the Rape As Back Story page TVTropes recently decided did not meet their content policy, which has some examples of the rape-as-empowerment meme mixed in among the plethoric examples of rape being used as short-hand for character development, especially for female characters. Quentin Tarantino has used this device in multiple films, with rape-revenge arcs serving as either primary or secondary plots.)
It's lazy storytelling, but, more than that, it's wrong.
In Aphra's post, she noted: "No, fending off an attacker didn't turn me into a badass fighter, sirs. It turned me into a fucking mess who blamed myself for getting into the situation." She is certainly not alone in having been temporarily or permanently changed in ways that can send a survivor tumbling headlong into feelings of vulnerability, doubt, fear, and other things that feel a lot like weakness as they undermine one's senses of self and safety.
Survivors are not "broken," but sexual violence can be injurious, and to pretend instead that it magically imbues women with superhuman strength and ability is to pretend that a broken leg turns a fella into LeBron James, rather than a dude with a cast who needs to heal like the mortal that he is.
Which is not to say that women who have survived sexual violence and gone on to do amazing things directly related to sexual violence don't exist. They do. There are female prosecutors, cops, social workers, counselors, activists, writers, actors, artists for whom victims' advocacy is central to their work. Many of them are as close a thing to superheroes as there are in this world.
But they didn't arrive at that point by magic. And they aren't where they are because sexual violence filled them with some kind of special superhero-making pixie dust. They are there by virtue of their own strength and resilience and tenacity.
To credit sexual violence with the creation of heroes robs them of their agency. And, worse yet, it gives the credit to rapists.
Monday Blogaround
This blogaround brought to you by spoons.
Recommended Reading:
Maria: A Bad Day for Pedophiles and Their Enablers in PA as Jerry Sandusky and Monsignor William Lynn Are Convicted
Andy: Supreme Court Rules on Arizona Immigration, Juvenile Prison Sentencing, and Montana Campaign Finance Laws
Julianne: Asian Americans Respond to Pew: We're Not Your Model Minority
Indian Homemaker: Misogyny Disguised as Flattery
rboylorn: The Evolution of a Down Ass Chick, Part II (or Why Miss Independent Is Probably Single) [Content Note: The post at this link includes discussion of misogynist and racist tropes.]
Sean: It's a Girl Thing [Content Note: The post at this link includes discussion of misogyny.]
Ragen: Things Obesity Is Not [Content Note: The post at this link includes discussion of fat-hating tropes.]
Jorge: Summer Project 1: Time on My Hands [I have pool envy!]
Leave your links and recommendations in comments...
Brave
[Content Note: Scottish and ginger stereotyping, Othering, racism, misogyny.]
So, I haven't seen Pixar's new film Brave. And I'm probably not going to.
I am genuinely glad Pixar did a film that a lot of people are receiving well because of a female protagonist. I am not glad, however, that they did it while trading on Scottish stereotypes.
Or, as Graeme McMillan put it in Time: "Look at Brave with its heroine rising above the cliché of the demure, passive princess even as those in her immediate vicinity seem to have come from Celtic Cliché Central Casting."
Brave is certainly not the first film to do this. The central character of Shrek is a character who encompasses all the negative stereotypes of the Scots—grumpy, penny-pinching, misanthropic, hulking oafs. The dour Scots. (Note the irony of its being a movie about tolerance whose lead reinforces the very narratives that underlie caricatures used to marginalize Scots.) Mike Myers, who voiced Shrek, built a career on playing Scottish stereotypes: From the grumpy shopkeep in SNL's recurring "If It's Not Scottish, It's Crap!" sketch, to the Scottish dad in So I Married an Axe Murderer, to the loathsome kilt-clad Fat Bastard of the Austin Powers franchise. Every time we see a trailer for Brave, Iain grumbles: "How is Mike Myers not in that movie?"
Scottish stereotypes have shown up as sidekicks, comic relief characters, Magical Celts, and noble domestics at least as far back as Scotty on Star Trek (who wasn't even played by a Scot). One of Disney's most famous secondary characters is Scrooge McDuck, an embodiment of the stingy Scot stereotype. The Simpsons have Groundskeeper Willie. The Smurfs were updated with Scottish stereotype "Gutsy Smurf." Robin Williams cross-dressed his way into his children's hearts as Mrs. Doubtfire. Ewen Bremmer, best known as Spud from Trainspotting, often pops up as a token Scottish caricature, often with a "hilariously" impenetrable Teuchter accent, like kooky pilot Declan in The Rundown.
Dwarves in fantasy franchises are routinely made Scottish, and Scotland (along with other Celtic cultures) is frequently the backdrop for "magical historical fiction"—it is a place inhabited by dragons where wizards roam the Highlands. Or, a place where helpful Scottish sidekicks help train dragons, anyway.
And broad Scottish stereotypes are increasingly popping up in American advertising.
The point is: Brave is in good company.
Please understand: I'm not telling you not to like Brave. I'm asking you to understand it in a larger cultural context, which is more complicated than the good news about Pixar finally realizing girls exist.
Like its cohorts, Brave is doing something very cynical in its appropriation of Scottish culture for the backdrop of this film: It's using the most identifiably tribal white culture to side-step charges of racism while playing the same goddamn exploitative game of hilarious caricatures and noble savages.
Scottish people, with their clans and tartans and ubiquitous red hair, have become the go-to group for makers of pop culture who want all the fun of racial stereotyping without the charges of racism.
"Scots are tribal with weird indigenous clothing and silly instruments and some old language and funny words and goofy accent and ginger hair, and these facts have been used to marginalize this occupied nation for centuries, but they're WHITE, so it's okay!"
These are the exact things that have been used to paint reductive pictures of people of color in animated (and non-animated) films for years.
That Scots are now frequently used as "hilarious" sidekicks and broad comedic punchlines, and historical Scotland as a shorthand for "magical kingdom," and that Scots are the most identifiably tribal white culture is not a coincidence.
Whiteness is not a monolith.
Acknowledging that a universal white culture is a fallacy even though a universal white privilege is not, is an important part of dismantling white supremacy. Othering certain groups of white people isn't a part of dismantling white supremacy; in fact, it serves to reinforce the racist narrative that there is a default "normal (white) culture" from which people exclude themselves by being "different."
When people of Scottish extraction don't object to Othering, that silence is construed as tacit tolerance and used to suggest that peoples of color, particularly indigenous peoples, who object to similar treatment of their cultures are "oversensitive" and "overreacting" and all the other familiar silencing tactics.
Meanwhile, when people of Scottish extraction do object—surprise!—the same silencing tactics are used against them.
Which is all the evidence one should need to identify that it's the same gross game, in a whiter package.
And hey—speaking of packagaing: Spudsy texted me this picture (which I am posting with his permission, along with our accompanying conversation) of a red wig being marketed in association with Brave:
Egypt Election Open Thread
Fireworks explode as supporters of Muslim Brotherhood's president-elect Mohamed Morsy celebrate his victory at the election at Tahrir Square in Cairo June 24, 2012. Islamist Morsy was declared Egypt's first freely elected president on Sunday, sparking joy among his Muslim Brotherhood supporters on the streets who vowed to continue a struggle to take power from the generals who retain ultimate control. [Reuters Pictures]Reuters: "Islamist Mohamed Morsy was declared Egypt's first freely elected president on Sunday, sparking joy among his Muslim Brotherhood supporters on the streets who vowed to wrest more power from armed forces reluctant to cede ultimate control."
I don't have a whole lot to say about this. I hope that women will find inclusion and respect in this new government, and fear that they won't.
Sunday Shuffle
We saw Brave yesterday and I, personally, loved it to itty bitty bits. I also came home and immediately bought the soundtrack and have listened to it non-stop.
How about you?
Open Thread
This week's open threads have been brought to you by chickens. Bok bok.
The Virtual Pub Is Open
[Explanations: lol your fat. pathetic anger bread. hey your gay.]
TFIF, Shakers!
Belly up to the bar,
and name your poison!
Shelter Star
Do you want to read a nice article about a rescued shelter dog who became a movie star and has a nice life now, along with his rescued doggie doubles? Go read about this lucky shelter dog. [Content Note: Reference to self-harm.]
There is a decent chance it will make you momentarily happy.
Illinois State Atty General & Cook County State's Atty Refuse to Defend Ban on Same-Sex Marriage
This is just amazing:
The Illinois State Attorney General and the Cook County State's Attorney announced this week that they will not enforce the state's ban on same-sex marriage and will not defend the law in court. Attorney General Lisa Madigan and Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez were expected to defend Illinois' 16 year ban on same-sex marriage in an upcoming case brought by the ACLU and Lambda Legal on behalf of 25 same-sex couples. The announcement shocked many legal experts and some have said it will make it so that a judge will almost immediately strike down the same-sex marriage ban.What truly wonderful news.
Alvarez, State's Attorney for Cook County, the county that includes Chicago, told the Associated Press that "I took an oath when I was sworn in to defend the constitution of the state of Illinois and I believe that's what I'm doing," Alvarez said in an interview with The Associated Press. "I'm not going to defend something I believe is in violation of the constitution."
...The Chicago Tribune reports that this "marks the first time a state has refused to contest a lawsuit questioning the constitutionality of a gay marriage ban."
Civil unions were smoothly passed into law by the Illinois state legislature last year, and, if for some unforeseen reason the ban on marriage equality is not struck down in court, the state legislature is likely to pass the "Religious Freedom and Marriage Fairness Act," which would enact marriage equality while explicitly exempting religious organizations from being legally required to perform same-sex marriages (thus undercutting a common objection to such legislation, not that any proposed legislation has ever tried to mandate such a thing).
The long and the short of it is that Illinois will have marriage equality, probably very soon.
BushQuotes!
Chapter 5, page 62: "I knew that if I worked hard and hustled I could make a living."
That is definitely a quote from page 62 of Privilege, Balls, and Bootstraps.
[From George Bush's A Charge to Keep, gifted to me by Deeky, because he hates me. In the US, all people who plan to run for president write a shitty book. (Some are less shitty than others, by which I mean the Democrats' books.) A Charge to Keep was George W. Bush's shitty I-wanna-be-president book, published in 1999. I am blogging one random quote per page every day until I have either made my way through the book or lost it behind a couch.]
I Literally Cannot Stop Laughing at This; I Think My Brain Might Be Broken?
Obviously, it is PERFECT that they (who? THEY.) are making a major motion picture out of the depressingly popular book Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus, Semi-Colons Belong in the Garbage, and obviously it is SUPER PERFECT that the film is a Reese Witherspoon vehicle, so I didn't think it was even possible for things to MOAR PERFECTER, but then I read this (emphasis mine):
Bryan Buckley returns to features on the Reese Witherspoon vehicle Men Are From Mars, Women Are From Venus at Lionsgate Summit. The film is based on the John Gray self-help title, a guide to relationships and marriage that is the best selling non-fiction hardcover book of all-time (excepting the Bible and Koran) with over 7 million copies in circulation.LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL FOREVERRRRRRR!!!
...While Buckley has stuck mostly to commercials, you've likely seen his work. Called "King of the Super Bowl," he has directed over 40 spots for the annual NFL title game.
Yes. Men Are from Mars, Women Are from Venus starring Reese Witherspoon directed by the King of the Super Bowl. This is the film I want to be watching when Doomsday comes.
Number of the Day
4,500,000: The number of pigeon craps it would take to destroy a Smart Car. As calculated by Smart Car.
Win.
Reproductive Rights Updates: Mississpppi, Oklahoma, Ohio
Back in April, Mississippi governor Phil Bryant signed into law legislation that would potentially have the effect of closing the state's lone clinic. Starting next month, the clinic may indeed be closed:
Beginning July 1, all abortion-clinic physicians must have admitting privileges at a local hospital under a law passed by the Republican-led Legislature and signed by Republican Governor Phil Bryant in April. At the Jackson Women’s Health Organization, the state’s sole remaining clinic providing elective abortions, none of the three physicians who perform the procedure has been granted those privileges.This does nothing to protect the health of anyone seeking an abortion. This simply makes it more onerous to access a (legal) necessary medical procedure, which of course, was the real goal.
Betty Thompson, a spokeswoman for the clinic in the state capital, said the doctors have applied to seven area hospitals for admitting privileges. All three are already board certified in obstetrics and gynecology, as the new law also requires, she said.
’Certainly Qualified’
“We are crossing every T and dotting every I to make sure we have every opportunity to receive admitting privileges,” she said. “We are certainly qualified.”
The state Health Department will meet July 11 to approve regulations to enforce the law, said Liz Sharlot, a department spokeswoman.
[...]
“The Legislature took steps to end abortion in Mississippi by requiring doctors performing abortion to have admitting privileges at a local hospital,” Lieutenant Governor Tate Reeves says on his website recapping accomplishments from the legislative session that ended last month. “This measure not only protects the health of the mother but should close the only abortion clinic in Mississippi.”
***
In Ooooooooklahoma where the wind comes sweepin' down the plain, the attorney general is appealing a recent ruling that struck down a terrible mandatory ultrasound law:
OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) -- Oklahoma Attorney General Scott Pruitt has appealed a ruling that struck down a law requiring women seeking abortions to have an ultrasound image placed in front of them and listen to a description of the fetus before the procedure is performed.The AG is insisting the law is about "informed consent" since people seeking abortions have no idea what they're doing and/or don't know anything about pregnancy. Or so the assumptions by people like Scott Pruitt seem to go.
Pruitt filed an appeal of Oklahoma County District Judge Bryan Dixon's decision with the Oklahoma Supreme Court Thursday.
Dixon ruled the law is unconstitutional because it addresses only patients, physicians and sonographers who deal with abortions. He rejected Pruitt's request to reconsider his decision.
***
In Ohio, it looks like a "personhood" amendment will not be heading to the ballot:
With less than two weeks before a crucial July deadline, [Personhood Ohio]'s director says it has close to 20,000, or 5 percent, of the roughly 385,000 signatures required for the proposed personhood constitutional amendment to appear on November ballots.Hey, Patrick, FYI: banning abortion is not "seeing that everyone's child is protected by love and law". That's actually a gross perversion of that ideal.
[...]
Organizers say personhood amendments have a good chance to qualify for fall ballots in Montana and again in Colorado. Each state has a lower threshold of required signatures than Ohio. About 86,000 signatures are needed by early August in Colorado, while fewer than 49,000 are required by Friday in Montana.
The measures vary in some details, but in general they define human life as beginning with fertilization and are intended to ban virtually all abortions, even in cases of rape and incest. Many physicians have said the measures could make some birth control illegal and deter in vitro fertilization.
Supporters in Ohio have hoped to alleviate those concerns by rephrasing their proposed amendment to say it wouldn't affect "genuine contraception" or in vitro fertilization procedures.
[...]
Johnston [Patrick, director] said Personhood Ohio volunteers will push hard in the final days to circulate petitions in churches on Sundays and sign people up at conferences, fairs and festivals.
"I pray we make it," Johnston said.
And if they don't? "We're going to keep working until we get the signatures and see that everyone's child is protected by love and by law," he said.
Daily Dose of Cute
Video Description: Zelly the Black-and-Tan Mutt lies in the grass, her head up, ears alert, sniffing the air, surveying the garden. I pan to the right to find Dudley the Greyhound, lying in the grass, sunning himself dreamily.
Not-Watch Dog and Watch Dog
Zelly
Dudz
Quote of the Day
"Never mind what privatization does or doesn't do to state budgets; think instead of what it does for both the campaign coffers and the personal finances of politicians and their friends. As more and more government functions get privatized, states become pay-to-play paradises, in which both political contributions and contracts for friends and relatives become a quid pro quo for getting government business. ... [What The New York Times discovered about prison privatization in New Jersey is] almost surely a glimpse of a pervasive and growing reality, of a corrupt nexus of privatization and patronage that is undermining government across much of our nation."—Paul Krugman, in a must-read piece about centering prison privatization, and the resulting horrors, within the context of privatization generally, and the false associations with privatization and free market enterprise.
