Question of the Day
I've got a few personal things to do this afternoon, so we're gonna wrap up early today...
What is the most interesting (non-triggering and non-criminal) thing you've ever seen out your window?
Daily Dose of Cute
As previously mentioned, a plate.
Iain's phone.
My compact.
And, every once in awhile, an actual pillow.
As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to share pix of the fuzzy, feathered, or scaled members of your family in comments.
The Wednesday Blogaround
This blogaround brought to you by icicles.
Recommended reading:
Trudy: [Content Note: Racism; injury] Racism Up Close: How a White Woman Tried to Get My GoFundMe Shut Down
Flavia: [CN: Discussion of consent; homophobia] More Musings on Consent within Feminism
Fannie: [CN: Misogyny] Patterns in Commenting
Travis: [CN: Death; exploitation] Death of Brazilian Stadium Workers Raises More Labor Concerns Ahead of World Cup
Shane: [CN: Misogyny; colorism; gender policing] The Politics of Sport: The Face
Ana: Wendy Wednesday: I Got To Meet Wendy Davis!
Leave your links and recommendations in comments...
Two-Minute Nostalgia Sublime
[Content Note: There is a strobe-light effect in this video.]
Annie Lennox: "Little Bird"
Mitt: The Movie
I mentioned this new Netflix documentary about Mitt Romney's road to losing In the News, but, for anyone who didn't click through or can't view video or whatever, and all of us who can't get enough Mitt Romney, here is the trailer, with description:
String music. Mitt Romney sits on a beige couch in a beige room, looking at his mobile phone. "I just can't believe you're gonna lose," says a man, offscreen. "Yeah," says Romney, with major shucks-face. Cut to his family sitting around the beige room, looking despondent. "So what do you think you say in a concession speech?" Romney looks around. No one answers. Everyone looks grim. "By the way," he says, "someone have the number for the President?" Another man offscreen says, "I do." Mitt Romney laughs. "Okay ha ha ha. I hadn't thought about that."
Piano music. Text onscreen: "A Netflix Documentary." Cut to Mitt Romney standing in front of a giant flag! I'm not even kidding!
HA HA DID I MAKE THIS DOCUMENTARY?
Text onscreen: "For 6 years, one filmmaker had exclusive access to Mitt Romney." #dreamjob
Cut to one of Romney's sons saying, "If you don't win, we'll still love you." He continues, over montagery of riding in a van, Romney hugging little white kids (maybe his grandkids?), fixing his tie in a mirror, and holding a white baby at a rally: "The country may think of you as a laughingstock, and we'll know the truth, and that's okay." Great pep talk! A+.
Cut to Romney in a chair getting make-up applied. He says in voiceover, "This is a very different setting than any of the debates we've held so far." Cut to Romney sitting on a debate stage talking to his team. "A dining room conversation is among members of the family. These are all people competing for the same job."
Cut to Romney in a car. "How in the world do we find these things out the day of the debate?" he asks exasperatedly. Cut to one of his sons, sitting in a nondescript room, who says, "He hates to disappoint." Cut to Romney standing in front of a mirror, ironing his sleeve. Like, while his arm is in the sleeve. Offscreen, a female voice asks, "Are you gonna iron it on you, seriously?" Laughter. He dabs the iron on his coatsleeve. "It's working!" Dab dab. "Ouch." Offscreen, a male voice says, "This may not end well."
Montagery. Romney stands stiffly in front of a TV camera beneath a bright light. The Romney family walks on the tarmac at dawn. Or dusk. Wevs. Footage of Romney with Ron Paul, Rick Santorum, and Newt Gingrich at a debate. (Ha ha remember the Four Horsemen of the Crapocalypse?! Good times.) In voiceover, a male anchor (Brian Williams, I think?) says: "A recent poll said that 43% of Americans are not even sure who you are."
Cut to Romney in another beige room, in front of a beige painting. "The flipping Mormon," he says, and smiles.
Cut to a reporter asking Romney in what looks like a church basement, "How did you feel on the stage?" Romney replies, "I was dying," and smiles.
Cut to Ann Romney saying to the camera, "I would not want to do this again. It's too much."
Cut to Romney laying down on the floor between seats on an airplane or train or something, and pulling a blanket over himself with the help of an assistant. In voiceover, he says, "I have looked, by the way, at what happens to anybody in this country who loses as the nominee of their party." Cut to Romney in a beige room holding a microphone, finishing the thought. "They become a loser for life." He makes the loser L sign on his forehead with his hand. Laughter. "All right? There's no—all right, that's it. It's over."
Guitar music. Footage of a Romney rally. People cheer. Text onscreen: "From producer Seth Gordon of the Academy Award winning documentary Undefeated."
Cut to Romney in a car, saying, "Barack Obama has changed our race, has changed our prospects." I assume he means the presidential race and not the white race. Cut to Romney sitting in front of a ROMNEY FOR GOVERNOR sign, listening to his iPad, then to Romney in another beige room, saying, "He's a very good debater; he's a lot better than the other guys. He's a much more effective debater than they are." Footage of Romney and President Obama shaking hands before a debate.
Patriotic music. Footage of a Romney rally. Text onscreen: "Whatever side you're on."
Cut to Romney lying in the snow. A kid comes and jumps on him and they roll down a hill. Cut to Ann rumpling his hair. Cut to his son in the nondescript room now saying, "He's getting beat up constantly—oh, Mitt Romney's a flip-flopper, he's this, he's that, and I go, 'Man, is this worth it?'" Cut to Romney, praying.
Cut to Mitt and Ann standing at a window in a beige room, and Mitt pats her bum. Text onscreen: "See another side."
Cut to Romney standing awkwardly in a hallway. In voiceover: "And it's like trying to convince people that Dan Quayle is smart. All right? You're not gonna convince 'em that Dan Quayle is smart!" Cut to Romney grinning in another fucking beige room. Romney followed by press. Romney deplaning. Romney in OMFG ANOTHER BEIGE ROOM, continuing his thought: "And that maybe I can't live with that. 'Oh, you flip on everything.' In which case, I think I'm a flawed candidate."
Cut to a Romney rally at which Romney is speaking. Text onscreen: "A film by Greg Whiteley."
Cut to the perspective of someone deplaning at an event. A male announcer says, "Please welcome the next president and first lady—" As Mitt and Ann Romney leave the plane, people begin to cheer. They wave.
Cut to Romney with his head in his hand, scratching his forehead. Offscreen, his son says, "A year ago, we told you that we'd love you no matter how this thing turned out, and—" Romney looks up and smiles. "And now you're not so sure?" His son says, "And now we're not so sure." Romney family hijinks!
Text onscreen: "MITT."
Quote of the Day
"The dog saved my life." --Cecil Williams on his guide dog, Orlando, who jumped onto Manhattan subway tracks in order to save Williams. Orlando attempted to keep Williams upright before his fall. When Williams fell, Orlando leaped off the platform and began licking William's face in order to rouse him. Witnesses called for help in time for the train to slow its approach and for both Williams and Orlando to duck their heads. Both survived with only minor injuries.
GOOD DOG, ORLANDO! All the treats and scritches!
In the News
Here is some stuff in the news today!
[Content Note: Terroristic threats] Federal prosecutors say that the student who called in bomb threats at Harvard earlier this week was trying to avoid having a take a final.
[CN: Misogyny] The ACLU has filed a complaint in federal court on behalf of Asia Myers, a pregnant woman whose employer "refused to give her an accommodation to avoid jeopardizing the health of her pregnancy" when her doctor advised following complications that she should avoid any lifting at her job as a nursing assistant at a long-term care facility. "Instead, her employer told her that she could either take unpaid leave or continue working without considerations for the health of her pregnancy."
[CN: Christian supremacy] US District Judge Brian Cogan "ruled yesterday that a group of Catholic institutions in New York do not have to comply with the Affordable Care Act (ACA) contraceptive coverage requirement." Swell.
[CN: Homophobia] President Obama and Vice President Biden will not attend the 2014 Winter Games in Sochi, in response to Russia's antigay policies, but the President "is sending some openly gay athletes in what's being seen as a message to that nation about diversity and acceptance in the face of Russia's laws banning 'gay propaganda'. Lesbian tennis legend Billie Jean King will attend the opening ceremonies in a delegation led by former Homeland Security secretary Janet Napolitano. Michael A. McFaul, United States Ambassador to the Russian Federation, Robert L. Nabors, Assistant to the President and Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy, and figure skater Brian Boitano will join them." Olympic silver medalist and bronze medalist in women's ice hockey Caitlin Cahow, a lesbian who will join the delegation for the closing ceremonies, said: "It's obviously a statement that's being made, but I think it's an incredibly respectful one. Basically, the White House is highlighting Americans who know what it means to have freedoms and liberties under the constitution. ...Hopefully, it will unify all of Team USA and send a message of love and acceptance to the world."
In case you are excited for some more 2016 presidential speculation three years in advance of the election, Democratic California Governor Jerry Brown has not ruled out a run for the presidency, and Republican Wisconsin Representative and former veep nominee Paul Ryan probably isn't going to run, according to his colleagues. Awww.
My pal Slade gets the Headline of the Day: "Hahaha Terrific: Bet This Mitt Netlfix Doc Gets 47% on Rotten Tomatoes." LOL! A+!
The Modern Republican Party, in Two Stories
[Content Note: Class warfare; racism.]
One: This story, by Greg Sargent, about how Republican governors' decision to opt out of Obamacare's Medicaid expansion is causing millions of people to fall "into a 'Medicaid gap,' making too much to qualify for traditional Medicaid, yet too little to qualify for subsidies on the exchanges." Sargent quotes a Kaiser study that explains:
These adults will not gain access to a new affordable coverage option and likely remain uninsured. Given their high uninsured rates and low incomes, people of color will be disproportionately impacted by this coverage gap, particularly poor uninsured Black adults residing in the southern region of the country where most states are not moving forward with the expansion. These continued coverage gaps and their varied impacts across groups will result in millions of poor adults remaining uninsured and likely lead to widening racial and ethnic as well as geographic disparities in coverage and access to care.Two: This story, by Chris Cillizza, about an ad being run "in New Hampshire that will be replicated endlessly by Republican candidates and groups in the 2014 midterm election." The ad, care of a conservative advocacy group called Ending Spending, targets Obamacare and "hits all of the high notes. It uses footage of [Democratic Senator Jeanne Shaheen] using the 'if you like your insurance you can keep it' line while noting on screen that President Obama was given the 'lie of the year' by PolitiFact for saying the same thing. A narrator points out that 20,000 New Hampshire residents have had their insurance canceled and that the Affordable Care Act offers only a single provider on the state's individual market."
So, Republicans create major gaps in access that render the Affordable Care Act less effective for voters than it could be, and then go after access in states where it's been implemented because they're angry that it's not accessible enough.
All they've got is trying to undermine the ACA from every possible angle, and still they have no meaningful alternative solutions to ending the health access crisis in the country.
Quickly
A long time ago, I mentioned that the local paper has a section called "Quickly," where people write in one- or two-line comments about random shit and the paper prints them. As you can imagine, this provides me with endless amusement on a constant basis.
The ones I love best are the meta-Quicklys, where people send in a comment just to comment about the quality of the other comments. Like, from Dec. 14:
Please, 10 more comments about trash cans — they just intrigue me to no end.Perfect. A+ sarcasm. That is a perfect meta-Quickly.
Another favorite is just the random blanket shaming of people's choices, i.e. from Dec. 9:
People with tattoos are just walking billboards advertising for the circus.LOL! Just try to imagine how pleased with hirself that submitter was seeing that in print.
I also love the ones from conservatives, who make terrific suggestions for What to Do with all the liberals. Also from Dec. 14 [CN: eliminationsm]:
Round up all the liberal lovers and send them to California and then make the fault lines so it moves away from America and becomes an island and nation of its Own.; And take your buddy and the debt along.Cool idea!
Religion is always a hot topic, too. I mean, you've got your evangelists, your experts, your hand-wringers who invoke Sodom and Gomorrah, your worship policers, and everyone's a critic.
Dec. 13: To a particular pastor in Crown Point: You're an inspiration for me to become an atheist.But I can't remember the last time a Quickly made me laugh as hard as this helpful correction:
Dec. 14: Its Judeo-Christian, not "Judeau." The etymology of the word has no French influence.Oh god. Quickly, don't ever change.
Photo of the Day
Julia Roberts and Meryl Streep on the red carpet in Los Angeles. [Photo via.]
Ever since Roberts and Streep started filming August: Osage County, a new film being released just in time for awards season WHAT A COINCIDENCE, I've seen headlines about how they hate each other, how they couldn't get along on set, how they are both angling for the same Oscar nomination, how they're going to destroy each other in a battle of estrogen-fueled hatred, etc.
This is a picture of them at the premiere of August: Osage County. I cannot believe how much they hate each other!
Sure, I know they're actresses. Maybe they really do hate each other! But even if they do, clearly they are both professional enough to set aside whatever differences they have to promote their film together in a perfectly normal way.
There are no fun misogynist narratives about that, though.
Fat
[Content Note: Fat bias.]
I think everyone knows I love Jennifer Lawrence with one million hearts, but I have to disagree with her here (in part):
"Why is humiliating people funny?" Lawrence, 23, asked. "I get it, I do it too. We all do it."I understand her point that the way in which women who are her size are called "fat" is problematic, because calling people fat who aren't contributes to a culture in which young women (especially, but not exclusively) are exhorted to have unrealistic standards for their own (and others') bodies. I agree with that. I also agree with her position that calling someone "fat" to humiliate them is problematic, because bullying is shitty and body policing is shitty and treating "fat" like it's an insult is shitty.
But the Oscar winner argues that fat-shaming on TV and elsewhere has an indisputably harmful effect on her young female fans.
"I think the media needs to take responsibility for the effect it has on our younger generation on these girls that are watching these television shows and picking up how to talk and how to be cool," she continued. "So all of the sudden being funny is making fun of the girl that's wearing an ugly dress. And the word fat! I just think it should be illegal to call somebody fat on TV. If we're regulating cigarettes and sex and cuss words because of the effect it has on our younger generation, why aren't we regulating things like calling somebody fat?"
This isn't the first time the young star has spoken out about weight. In the December 2012 issue of Elle Magazine, she said, "In Hollywood, I'm obese. I'm considered a fat actress."
But "fat" is a perfectly cromulent word to describe a body like mine. In fact, it is the word I prefer. It is a morally neutral word (or should be).
I don't want to be called big or large or plus-sized or overweight or any other word that carries an embedded comparison. I am perfectly happy with "fat."
The problem is not the word "fat," but the misuse of the word "fat," which in part is the result of the dearth of actual fat bodies in pop culture.
An Observation
[Content Note: Rape culture.]
And that is truly all I can muster about the Jameis Winston case and the things being written about his accuser right now.
Quote of the Day
[Content Note: Fat hatred.]
"Why is First Lady Michelle Obama supporting the humiliation of fat people? Ms. Obama, who has made fighting childhood obesity her signature issue, recently appeared for the second time on the television show The Biggest Loser. ...My colleagues and I have conducted research that suggests that exposure to moralizing messages promoted on shows like The Biggest Loser worsen anti-fat prejudice. We found that people who read a news report discussing an alleged obesity health crisis were more likely to agree—compared to those who read an article on a topic not related to weight—with stereotypes of fat people as unlikable, untrustworthy, and less intelligent than thinner people. Other studies have shown that individuals who think people can control their weight are more likely to believe that weight-based discrimination is justified. By aligning herself with The Biggest Loser, Michelle Obama further legitimizes anti-fat attitudes, and the ills they spread."—Abigail C. Saguy, from a great piece "Humiliating Fat People Is Hazardous to Our Health."
Legitimizing those attitudes may be less a bug of appearing on The Biggest Loser than a feature, since the First Lady may, like lots of folks who are invested in the narrative that all fat people can lose weight if only we try hard enough, believe that shaming fat people is an effective way of "motivating" us to lose weight.
One of the primary reasons lots of people invested in these narratives like and support The Biggest Loser is explicitly because it engages in shaming. Shaming which is much more visible than, say, dangerous dehydration, thus giving the appearance that it is the shame masquerading as "motivation" and "perspective" and "inspiration" which is the most effective tool in weight loss.
But, ah, fat people are not experiencing insufficient amounts of shame in our lives.
And eleventy metric fucktons of shaming cannot make a fat body thin, if that body isn't designed to be thin.
I say once again:
I will never be not fat.Some number of fat people are always going to be fat. It is not a moral failing; it is merely a fact of human diversity. A fact to which fat haters, who ostensibly care about our health so profoundly they must shame us to save us, they must break us down emotionally to make us see what wretched specimens we really are, are intractably resistant. They are too keen to eliminate us to bother listening to us. Or caring about us. Or accepting us.
To get rid of my fat body, you have got to get rid of me.
This is where the fat-hating narrative of "calories in, calories out!" and the universal treatment of every human body like it's a Bunsen burner gets us: It's all just about personal choice and fatties' bad choices, without regard for natural variation among human bodies, including disease and disability, individual histories of fad dieting, disordered eating, and/or trauma, or systemic problems like poverty, racism, fat hatred, food deserts, lack of safe outdoor spaces, corn subsidies, meat subsidies, and an entire industry that makes lots and lots of money off of shaming fat people that wouldn't exist if some people weren't fat, just for starters.
The horrible answer to the question of why the First Lady is supporting the humiliation of fat people is that she probably believes that humiliation is good for us.
See also: Michelle Obama's Guest Appearance on The Biggest Loser, Fatties Are Destroying America, Today in Fat-Hatin'.
[H/T to Marilynn Wann and Amanda Levitt.]
TV Corner: Homeland
[Content Note: Major spoilers for the finale of Season 3 of Homeland.]
SPOILERS. SO MANY SPOILERS. ALTHOUGH I AM TRYING TO KEEP IT AS VAGUE AS POSSIBLE! WHICH IS NOT VERY VAGUE!
Y'all, every episode of Homeland this season wrecked me. I knew, at least halfway through the season, how it was going to end, but even though I knew it was coming, I was still broken by it.
It was a great ending to the season. There was nothing left to do with Brody. He had been through every single thing that was conceivable for him to go through. What was his character going to become? What else could they do with him? Were he and Carrie ever going to have some sort of healthy, functional relationship? It was the right ending, and it was still hard.
I'll leave most of the discussion for comments (can we please talk about the final scene with the star OMG?) (and the talking her into parenting ack) (and poor Dana oh no), but I will just quickly say that I love Quinn. What Carrie has long been missing is a friend. Not a mentor (Saul), not a family support (her sister; her dad), not a lover (Brody), but a real friend. A peer. And Quinn has filled that hole. It makes the show better. I adore him for having her back.
Also: Everything about this interview (H/T to Iain) is perfect.
Life in a Small Town
![message to the police chief, with identifying information redacted, reading: '[Chief], Once again a prankster took the Baby Jesus from our outdoor [Name Redacted] Church. Could you put out an APB on the Christ Child please?! Ugh!'](http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v642/shakespeares_sister/shakes6/apbchristchild.jpg)
Pranks are the worst. I do not approve this prank or any other. But I approve every single thing about this message. "Ugh!"
Daily Dose of Cute
WHISKERS!
As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to share pix of the fuzzy, feathered, or scaled members of your family in comments.
