Here is some stuff in the news today...
Today is the Scottish independence vote, and it's really coming down to the wire. The Guardian has live coverage here. I've been chatting with my Scottish cousin about it this morning, and it's very exciting! What a nail-biter!
[Content Note: Misogyny] And the pendulum swings back: First, Hillary was supposed to go away. Then she was supposed to run for president or be accused of ruining the Democrats' chances and destroying the entire country and possibly the planet. And now it's back to go away again: "Left blasts Clinton in secret emails." Of course.
Wow: "The proportion of privately insured U.S. women who paid zero dollars out of pocket for oral contraceptive pills increased sharply, from 15% to 67%, between the fall of 2012 (before the ACA's contraceptive coverage requirement took effect for most women) and the spring of 2014, according to a new Guttmacher study published in the journal Contraception." That is remarkable.
In less good news: "Despite an Overall Decline in the Poverty Rate, the Number of Women in Poverty Hasn't Changed in a Year." Fuck.
[CN: Harassment; sexual assault; misogynistic slur] A NYC bartender wrote an open letter to the reprehensible shitbird who grabbed her ass and propositioned her. And he responded by saying he's grabbed lots of asses but never hers, then calling her a "fucking cunt" and vowing: "I will make sure she doesn't get another job in New York City. I know everybody. The bar owners, the club owners—that's a terrible thing to write about somebody." Well, you've convinced me of your moral superiority, sir!
[CN: Wildfires] California Governor Jerry Brown has declared a state of emergency "in response to a raging wildfire that has threatened thousands of homes in what is being called the state's worst-ever fire season. Brown has put all state resources at the disposal of his Office of Emergency Services in response to the so-called King fire, the largest of 11 major wildfires raging across the drought-ridden state, and another powerful blaze farther north, he said."
[CN: Class warfare] I really think we're going to have to start calling it something other than the justice system, unless we all agree it's ironic: "Innocent People in New York Who Can't Afford a Lawyer Are Pretty Much Doomed."
Neato: "Astronomers from the University of Utah recently found a supermassive black hole in a very small dwarf galaxy, M60-UCD1, one of the smallest galaxies currently known. This discovery could mean that other similar dwarf galaxies, which are dense, could also have large black holes, meaning that black holes, in general, are more common than originally thought. Astronomers also now believe that these galaxies were once part of other larger galaxies that separated after collisions with yet other galaxies."
Lifetime is making a Grumpy Cat Christmas movie, because of course it is, and they just announced that the voice of Grumpy Cat will be Audrey Plaza. OBVIOUSLY. WHO ELSE COULD IT POSSIBLY BE? NO ONE!!!
In the News
Another NFL Player Arrested for Domestic Violence
[Content Note: Domestic violence; misogyny.]
Yesterday, Arizona Cardinals running back Jonathan Dwyer was arrested on domestic violence and aggravated assault charges. He has charged with "one count of aggravated assault causing a fracture, one count aggravated assault involving a minor, two counts of criminal damage, one count of preventing the use of a phone in an emergency, and assault."
He was immediately deactivated by the NFL team.Shortly afterward, according to police, "the victim left the state with their child," and a report was filed with Phoenix Police Department on September 11, at which time the investigation began.
"We became aware of these allegations this afternoon when notified by the Phoenix police and are cooperating fully," the Cardinals said in a statement release on their verified twitter account. "Given the serious nature of the allegations we have taken the immediate step to deactivate Jonathan from all team activities. We will continue to closely monitor this as it develops and evaluate additional information as it become available."
The incidents involved a 27-year-old female and an 18-month old child. The incidents occurred on July 21 and July 22.
I don't know why the report was delayed, but I wonder if perhaps seeing, via the Ray Rice, Greg Hardy, and Adrian Peterson cases, that she might have a chance of being taken seriously, the victim decided to come forward. That is the power of publicly and meaningfully addressing domestic violence cases.
Which is not to say there is not a long, long way to go. Via my friend Dr. Gray, this interview with actor, activist, survivor of childhood abuse, and former NFL player Terry Crews shines a light on how difficult it is and will continue to be to address domestic violence among professional football players:
"The NFL culture, the sports culture, has decided that they are more valuable than women," Crews believes. "I've heard people laugh about keeping their pimp hand strong and keeping her in control so that she knows her place. But think about how evil that is for one man to think that he's actually more valuable than a woman, because as a human being your worth is immeasurable."They'd rather die than stand for that. They'd rather kill than stand for it, too.
And even when Crews takes a stand against domestic violence, he is met with negative comments. "Because of my stance on domestic violence and standing [up] for women I have tons of men coming at me like 'You are a punk, you are a punk, look at you, get your skirt and go pop your pecks somewhere.' ...This is the mentality I'm talking about, the challenge, the male pride. ...Pride is a thing that kills you. ...Male pride is so tough that they feel that any time a woman back talks it's they'd rather die than stand for that, than actually have a women tell them what's up and then they would say, 'Okay, you know what, I got to hit her. I got to lash out.'"
Which goes back to what Crews said, and what we talk about around here all the time: Privilege is dangerous. Supremacist thinking is dangerous. Dehumanization is dangerous. Failing to view another human as your equal, failing to acknowledge and respect their humanity, is dangerous.
You don't imagine someone who is your equal is "back talking" you. You don't justify hurting someone who is your equal with wounded pride, because evidence of their humanity is an affront to your dominion.
Privilege is toxic.
And, the truth is, we need to take a long, hard look at celebrating a game that is deeply rooted in and profoundly encouraging of aggressive masculinity. We ask these players to conform to stereotypes of toxic masculinity; we oblige them to spend their entire lives immersed in a culture of toxic masculinity; we turn our heads away when they take drugs that make them stronger and tangentially more prone to rage; we treat with indifference the head injuries they sustain, which can affect judgment and impulse control; we pay them enormous sums of money to play, in front of cheering crowds, an aggressive sport that consists primarily of bashing into other men to physically achieve their objective of winning; we shame them when they fail to be sufficiently aggressive; and then we expect them to turn off the "smash to win" impulse they spend most of their lives perfecting, the moment they walk off the field.
We reward them handsomely for demonstrations of physical aggression on the field, and then we hold them uniquely, exclusively, individually responsible when they do the same thing off the field.
Maybe we need to ask ourselves, as a culture, if we're really okay with asking women and children to continue to pay the price for our entertainment.
Good Morning! Or Whatever!
I have a medical test this morning, so I'll be away for a bit. Hopefully it won't take too long. In the meantime, please enjoy this adorable video of a bulldog puppy playing with an ice cube!
Video Description: A supercute tiny brown and white bulldog puppy wearing a blue collar barks at an ice cube on the hardwood floor inside his home. He leaps at it, nudges it with his nose, chases it around, barks at it some more. It is a very dramatic battle!
Question of the Day
What book have you (re)read with the most frequency?
(If you haven't ever given any book multiple readings, feel free to name the book you're most likely to read again. Parents and other carers of small children, please feel free to exclude books you've read a zillion times at bedtime, for example. This is more a question about books you've read singularly for your own pleasure.)
I have an acquaintance who re-reads The Lord of the Rings trilogy once every year. That's dedication!
I don't read anything that often, but I have re-read many books, despite my endless list of books I still want to read, which I will never conquer unless I live to be a hundred million years old. (Super senior discount!)
I Love This
I don't know how long this advert for the Samsung Galaxy Tab has been running, but I saw it for the first time last night, and I love it so much! Since I spend an inordinate amount of time complaining about shitty advertising, I like to occasionally highlight the ads that do a good job, too. To be abundantly clear, I'm not affiliated with or being compensated by Samsung in any way, and I'm not endorsing the product; I just like the ad.
Actress Kristen Bell, a 34-year-old thin white blond woman, lies in bed with her real-life husband, actor Dax Shepard, a 39-year-old thin white sandy-haired man. it is morning. They are holding hands, and looking at their hands. Shepard says, referring to Bell's hands, "How do you even hold things with these little guys?" She laughs. "Hey," he says, "we promised we'd hike." He grabs the tablet from the nightstand. "I'm checking the weather."I feel like the transcript doesn't quite capture the sweetness of the actual ad. It is very sweet, and Bell and Shepard are charming together. I imagine this will feel like home to a lot of couples.
"Uh-oh," says Bell, pointing at the screen, which reads 83° and partly sunny. "We'd better play it safe and focus on mental fitness." Snuggled up, they give each other a look of agreement.
Cut to Bell, who is pregnant, dancing at the bathroom sink in pajamas. "Could it be I'm falling in love with youuuuuu?" she sings, while the song plays from her tablet.
Downstairs, Shepard watches a dirtbike race on his tablet in the kitchen, while he eats something. A call comes in from Bell. "What are you doing down there?" she asks him. He tells her, "Ah, watching a baby tutorial!"
Cut to the two of them eating lunch on the balcony. Shepard, in a terribly unintelligible accent, runs lines for an audition. He reads the script on his tablet, while Bell films him with hers. She lowers her tablet. "Is the audition to play a Portuguese guy?" she asks him. "No. British," he tells her. "Oh," she says.
Cut to Bell playing a video game on her tablet and making excited noises. "Wooooo yes!" she shouts. "Did you just deliver?" Shepard asks.
Cut to Bell at home, video chatting with Shepard, who is out and about. "It's a no-go on the pierogies," he tells her. "Kale chop," she tells him. Later: "Kale salad's out," he informs her. "Frozen yogurt," she requests. Later: "Whaaaaat!" he shouts triumphantly as he holds up frozen yogurt.
Cut to back home; Bell is standing at the window, holding her tablet and weeping. "Honey, are you okay?" Shepard asks her. She shows him the video she's been watching on her tablet of a cat playing with a dog's tail. "He's being so nice!" she says through tears. He hugs her from behind. "I'd prefer you didn't watch these when you're pregnant, sweetie," he says gently, and she nods in agreement. "Okay."
Cut to Bell poolside, curled up in a chair, watching a yoga video on her tablet. "You are really going for it!" Shepard says, handing her a drink. "Eyes are muscles, too," she says.
Cut to early evening, and Shepard is standing by the window in a tuxedo. Bell enters in a black gown. "Perfect," he tells her. "I don't know," she shrugs, then turns and leaves. Later: Shepard is sitting on the back of the couch, his jacket lying beside him. Bell twirls in a party dress. "Beautiful," he tells her. "I feel like it makes me look pregnant," she says. Later: Shepard is sitting on the couch, in the gathering dark, looking at his tablet. Bell returns wearing a long stripey gown. "Honey?" she says. "Spectacular," he tells her, glancing over his shoulder. "You didn't even look!" she says. "Of course I did!" he tells her. "What are you watching?" she asks him, walking over to him. He is watching The Princess Bride, and Wesley is just about to kiss Buttercup. "I love this scene," Bell breathes.
Cut to the two of them snuggled on the couch in the darkness, watching the tablet, still all dressed up to go out. "How late are we?" she asks. Shepard, munching on popcorn, looks at his watch. "Um, it ended two hours ago." They snuggle in to keep watching the movie.
Voiceover with info about the tablet.
Surely Iain and I are not the only couple who's also had the Giant Hand Tiny Hand conversation, lol...?
An Observation
[Content Note: Corporal punishment.]
Two observations, actually, regarding Minnesota Vikings' running back Adrian Peterson, who is facing a child-abuse charge for spanking his four-year-old son.
1. "Domestic violence" is a term generally associated with intimate partner abuse, but it refers to all familial violence. That includes violence against children.
Part of the reason we tend to exclude violence against children in our discussions of and thinking about domestic violence is because there are people who would never argue in ten million years that violence is an acceptable consequence for an adult who will nonetheless defend quite vehemently the idea that violence is an acceptable consequence for a child.
It is a truly peculiar exception that we allow, under the auspices of parenting, to allow an adult to physically hurt a child. We generally don't tolerate adults hitting other adults who are misbehaving, nor do we tolerate children hitting other children, and children are never allowed to hit adults, but the most lopsided of all these power differentials—an adult hitting a child—is widely tolerated and even encouraged.
But, you know, only as long as it doesn't go "too far." That being arbitrarily defined by pretty much anyone and everyone else besides the child being harmed.
2. Over the last couple of days, I've seen so many defenses of spanking, from both progressives and conservatives, which are some variation on: "My parents hit me and I turned out just fine."
Good for you. But who cares.
I almost can't think of a more useless metric for social policy than anecdotal evidence some number of people manage to survive a societal harm without crumbling or turning into monsters.
Surely, we can do better than that. Surely we should.
Daily Dose of Cute
Wee Sophs, on the cat tower beside my desk.
As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to share pix of the fuzzy, feathered, or scaled members of your family in comments.
The Can't Fucking Win List
[Content Note: Misogyny; abuse.]
I'm a little late to this one, but here is the latest video of Jay Smooth being awesome, in case anyone hasn't yet seen it, because EVERYONE SHOULD SEE IT.
Hey, so I have a quick question—there's a lot of stuff in the news about women, how women are treated, right now, and I wanna contribute and be a part of the conversation, but I'm having trouble keeping track: Does anyone have a complete, up-to-date list of everything that women are supposed to do and not do so that they qualify for having their humanity respected?Here is my best start on the current, up-to-date Can't Fucking Win List:
Like, okay, I know that if women wanna feel safe in public, they're supposed to not [air quotes] "dress a certain way," and then if they don't dress a certain way, and they still get harassed and assaulted all the time, there are other things that they're doing or not doing to earn a right to safety, but what are those other things? I'm having trouble keeping track.
I know that women are not supposed to [air quotes] "sleep around" all the time, because then you're a slut and you're the reason men hate you, but you're also not supposed to turn down men's advances all the time, or put them in the [air quotes] "friend zone," because then you're a cold-hearted bitch and you're the reason men hate you. So, but then, how, what are you supposed to— I don't follow; I don't understand how that works.
And then with a right to privacy, is the rule that, if you want a right to privacy, you just don't have a private life? Or is it if you don't want things stolen, don't have anything private that people might want to steal? Is it just don't use any of the technology that everyone uses to communicate nowadays? Which—I'm not clear on that.
There's just so many things to keep in your head at one time! I wanna do my part, as a man, and keep reminding women of the rules, but it's just so many rules, and we keep changing them and adding more—it's hard to keep it all in your head!
I kinda feel like it would be easier if we had a list of rules for men to follow, and we just passed that around amongst ourselves—and it kinda feels like it would be less of a hassle. Like, it could be a short list. It could just have one thing on it! It could say: "Hello, asshole, women are human beings."
And we could take that and pass it around to each other every day. And even if we did need more follow-up on the specifics, that would be so much less paperwork. It seems like a much more streamlined workflow.
But I'm sure there's a reason we're not doing that. So if someone could send me the most current, up-to-date list of all the freedoms and aspects of life women are expected to voluntarily opt out of so they have a right to feel safe, and everything else that women are supposed to do, and not do, so that they qualify for being recognized as a human being—if someone could just send me the current list, and a way to subscribe to automatic updates, since we keep changing it, um, I'll be glad to pass that along.
Be pretty. But not too pretty. But definitely don't be ugly.
Don't be fat. But don't be too thin, either. Also don't be too muscled. Or too tall. Or too short.
Don't have a visible disability. But if you do, be inspiring to able-bodied people. But also don't call attention to your disability. Don't use it as an excuse to fail to achieve anything, but also don't expect special accommodations.
Don't have an invisible disability. Especially not mental illness. But if you do, disclose it or be prepared to be accused of concealing it. Don't get mad when we use it against you after you disclose it. Not disclosing it makes you a liar. Disclosing it makes you a self-pitying martyr. Insufficient evidence of your disability means you're lying. Evidence of your disability means you're attention-seeking.
Have confidence. But don't be an arrogant bitch. Have ambition. But not too much ambition that it makes you unlikable. Communicate what you think you deserve. Stop acting like you think you deserve something.
Age naturally. Cosmetic surgery is for narcissistic bitches. OMG look at how old she looks; why doesn't she do something with herself?
If you have cosmetic procedures to look youthful and talk about it openly, you are such an asshole. If you are suspected of having had cosmetic procedures to look youthful and don't cop to it, you are such an asshole.
Women who want nothing more than to get married and have babies are pathetic for these reasons. Women who don't want to get married and have babies are pathetic for those reasons.
Women should have children. But not too many children, unless they want to be compared to farm animals.
Women who are working mothers are terrible because X. Women who are stay-at-home parents are terrible because Y.
Female politicians must be soft and nurturing and nonthreatening, but simultaneously tough and hard and aggressive.
Trans* women who hew closely to traditional feminine beauty standards are upholding the patriarchy. Trans* women who don't hew closely to traditional feminine beauty standards aren't women.
Women should be sexy. But not too sexy. Women should be demure. But not too demure.
Women should conform to very rigid beauty standards. Women should be individuals.
A woman who defends herself against rumor and gossip is defensive, thus proving it must be true. A woman who doesn't defend herself against rumor and gossip concedes via her silence that it must be true.
Women should be independent. Women should not make men feel like they don't need them.
Straight women should not be interested in how much a man makes. Straight women should not expect men to make themselves appealing, considerate, well-rounded, supportive, interesting, egalitarian partners if they have a lot of money.
Women should put out. But not too often. And not too soon.
Women should not behave "like women" in the workplace. Women should not behave "like men" in the workplace.
If a woman charges or asks for money in exchange for her work, a service, and/or content, she is a money-grubbing monster. If a woman provides her work, a service, and/or content for free, then it doesn't belong to her.
Women should like things coded feminine to prove their womanhood. Women should not like things coded feminine to prove their humanity.
Women should like pink things. Women should hate pink things.
Women should not be attracted to other women. Women should be attracted to other women if it's for the titillation of men.
All women are bisexual. Bisexual women don't exist.
Women belong in the kitchen. At home. Women don't belong in the kitchen. At fine dining restaurants.
Women should never speak about how they are distrustful of male strangers, because that is profiling and man-hating and NOT ALL MEN. Women should do everything they can to protect themselves from men.
Women should decorate the world. Women who go into the world, if they want to avoid being harassed and/or assaulted and/or raped, must be careful what they wear, how they wear it, how they carry themselves, where they walk, when they walk there, with whom they walk, whom they trust, what they do, where they do it, with whom they do it, what they drink, how much they drink, whether they make eye contact, if they're alone, if they're with a stranger, if they're in a group, if they're in a group of strangers, if it's dark, if the area is unfamiliar, if they're carrying something, how they carry it, what kind of shoes they're wearing in case they have to run, what kind of purse they carry, what jewelry they wear, what time it is, what street it is, what environment it is, how many people they sleep with, what kind of people they sleep with, who their friends are, to whom they give their number, who's around when the delivery guy comes, to get an apartment where they can see who's at the door before they're seen, to check before they open the door to the delivery guy, to own a dog or a dog-sound-making machine, to get a roommate, to take self-defense, to always be alert always pay attention always watch their back always be aware of their surroundings and never let their guard down for a moment lest they be harmed and if they are and didn't follow all the rules it's their fault.
It's always our fault. That's the entire purpose of the Can't Fucking Win List. To make sure that we are always to blame for the harm done to us. Always.
* * *
The above is, of course, hardly a comprehensive list. Please feel welcome and very encouraged to leave your own additions to the Can't Fucking Win List in comments.
The Wednesday Blogaround
This blogaround brought to you by owls.
Recommended Reading:
Nina: [Content Note: War on agency; death] Why Is the U.S. Standing Between Women and Health Care?
Prison Culture: Shanesha Taylor Regains Custody of Her Children
Carla: [CN: Racism; police brutality] In Ferguson, Healing Proves Elusive
stavvers: [CN: Misogyny; death] Murder by Mistake Is Just as Terrifying
BYP: [CN: Racism; police brutality] Trial Set for Cop Who Fatally Shot Rekia Boyd
Trudy: [CN: Racism; racist slur; misogyny; harassment; auditing] Privilege and Using Individual Compliments/Insults to Derail Conversations about Oppression
PaKou: [CN: Racism; racist gesture] A Conversation about Race, Identity, and Discrimination with My 6-Year Old
Andy: Twins Come Out as Gay, Capture Parents' Reaction on Hidden Camera
Digby: Quote of the Day: John Boehner
Leave your links and recommendations in comments. Self-promotion welcome and encouraged!
In the News
Here is some stuff in the news today...
[Content Note: Terrorism; war] ISIS has released a new high-production video "in which the terrorist group appears to threaten U.S. troops and the White House. The 42-second spot—complete with gun battles, explosions and footage of President Obama—is called 'Flames of War.' At the end of the clip, the words 'fighting has just begun' shows up and is followed by 'coming soon.' ...The latest video was released just hours after Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, testified in front of the Senate Armed Services Committee on Tuesday and acknowledged that sending ground troops into Iraq isn't out of the question."
[CN: Police brutality; racism] Officer Darren Wilson, the Ferguson police officer who shot and killed Michael Brown, still has not been arrested. Protestors continue to demand his arrest.
[CN: War on agency] Jeffrey Toobin on "The Disappearing 'Undue Burden' Standard for Abortion Rights." Fuck.
[CN: Death penalty; abuse; neglect; sexual assault; misogynoir] Texas is set to execute Lisa Coleman, who was convicted of kidnapping and murder for the death of nine-year-old Davontae Williams. It was a horrible death, from abuse and neglect, and Coleman deserves to be in prison. But to secure the death penalty, the murder charge was aggravated by a kidnapping charge, using a very unusual interpretation of the kidnapping statute. Further, Coleman is bipolar and a survivor of extensive abuse herself. Coleman's partner and Davontae's mother, Marcella Williams, pleaded guilty and was given a life sentence. John Stickels, one of Coleman's attorneys, says: "The state singled Lisa out and figured some way to get her the death penalty because she was black, a lesbian, and an easy target...it was a slam dunk. The facts of the case were horrible. We are not asking for her to be released, we are just asking the state to be fair and follow the law." End the death penalty now.
Something something Scotland? JUST KIDDING. Suffice it to say, this has been discussed A LOT at Shakes Manor.
Awesome: "The Woman Who Created the Bechdel Test Is Officially a Genius." My friend (and Shaker) masculine_lady said of this year's fellows (a complete list of whom is here): "The MacArthur Genius Class of 2014 is full of lesbians (& perhaps other varieties of queer too), feminists and advocates for racial, gender and economic justice! Social justice work is the work of geniuses!" Right on. (Quoted with permission.)
This is a really remarkable time-lapse video of a South Korean digital artist known as Stonehouse "live painting" a woman from birth to death. Absolutely extraordinary.
Do you need some underwater puppies? Here are some underwater puppies.
And finally: I was just watching this video of a baby and a husky having an important conversation, and it made Zelly jump up from a deep sleep and fart so loudly it scared Sophie, who went leaping off my desk like a bat out of hell. Quite the commotion, lol!
Number of the Day
[Content Note: Domestic violence; descriptions of violence.]
Nearly one in five: The number of men who admit having engaged in physical abuse of an intimate partner.
The data is a decade old but it comes from face-to-face interviews with men and might suggest the true number of men who have physically abused intimate partners is even higher, the University of Michigan researchers say. And it's of great interest after the release of video in which football player Ray Rice punches his wife, who was his fiancée at the time, in an elevator.To underline: Nearly one in five men admitted in face-to-face interviews having physically assaulted an intimate partner. The number almost certainly would have been even higher if respondents had been given the option to answer anonymously.
Dr. Vijay Singh and colleagues used data from a larger national survey. The 500 men were asked: "Over the course of your relationship, how often have you ever done any of these things (pushed, grabbed, or shoved; threw something; slapped or hit; kicked, bit, or hit with a fist; beat up; choked; burned or scalded; threatened with a knife or gun) to your current spouse/partner?"
Nineteen percent admitted they had done so at least once, the team reported in Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine.
And, as Dr. Singh notes, "It did not ask about emotional abuse. It did not ask about sexual abuse." Although there would certainly be overlap with respondents who self-reported physical nonsexual abuse, it would also be a higher number if all forms of abuse were reported.
That is an awful lot of men. And yet many of the men who claim to be among the "good guys" will look at that number and reflexively, defensively, aggressively respond to any suggestion that this needs to change with "not all men."
Which is why it's so hard to change.
More Hobby Lobby Fallout
[Content Note: Religious supremacy; child abuse.]
Perfect:
Citing Burwell v. Hobby Lobby, the Supreme Court's decision last June holding that the religious objections of a business' owners could trump federal rules requiring that business to include birth control coverage in its health plan, a federal judge in Utah held last week that a member of a polygamist religious sect could refuse to testify in a federal investigation into alleged violations of child labor laws because he objects to testifying on religious grounds.Incredible. Not only does this even more deeply entrench religious privilege in this nation, to an absurd degree, conferring an extraordinary amount of latitude to religious people who want their own individual rule of law, but it also creates an environment in which any institution or organization which calls itself religious can break the law with surety no accomplices in the lawbreaking can be compelled to testify, as long as they've taken a "religious vow" not to discuss internal affairs.
The case involves the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS), a religious sect with as many as 10,000 members [led by Warren Jeffs, who is currently in prison after he was convicted of sexually assaulting two underage girls who he claimed have taken as wives].
...The federal child labor investigation arose from a CNN report investigating claims that Jeffs "ordered all schools closed for a week so children could go to work picking pecans off trees at a private ranch" in Utah. The report included video of "hundreds of children, many of them very small" working on the ranch. When the reporters arrived, CNN also caught video of the FLDS children fleeing the cameras.
Yet, according to an order signed by Judge David Sam, a Reagan appointee to a trial court in Utah, the federal officials investigating this alleged violation of child labor laws will not be able to require an FLDS member named Vernon Steed to provide information that could aid the investigation because Steed objects to giving certain testimony on religious grounds. Steed claims that he's made "religious vows 'not to discuss matters related to the internal affairs or organization of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.'" According to Judge Sam's opinion, that's enough to exempt him from providing the testimony he does not want to give.
...[Judge Sam ruled] that the federal government's efforts to obtain Steed's testimony is a "substantial" burden on his faith.
Which, you know, might sound like unjustified alarmism except for the fact that one of the largest religious institutions in the world has spent decades orchestrating a vast conspiracy to conceal the widespread sexual abuse of children.
Precisely what we don't need is more opportunity for religious organizations to evade legal accountability for criminal harm.
Question of the Day
Suggested by Shaker plot_thickens: "What kind of transportation do you use the most, and what's your favorite way to go from here to there?"
Just in Case
Here is just a terrific picture of a greyhound who is very happy to be dressed as a unicorn, in case you need it:
Sometimes you just have a day where you need a greyhound who is very happy to be dressed as a unicorn. I get it.
[Picture via Etsy seller AcmeCouture, maker of many adorable things!]
Um
[Content Note: Misogyny; antisemitic violence.]
So, I'm reading this story about a geep—a rare goat-sheep hybrid—just born in Germany, which sent me in search of pictures of the wee devil, which eventually led me to this article about a geep born last month in an Arizona petting zoo. Confirmed: Geeps are adorable.
Anyway. At the bottom of the second article, there was one of those ubiquitous "Promoted Stories" ad blocks. I detest these things with an abundant loathing, and here is a pretty good example of why:
Um. One of these things is really, really not like the others.
It was so jarring. Story about cute animal la la la promoted content about cute animals tra la la and then here is the mugshot of infamous Nazi war criminal Ilse Koch juxtaposed with the image of a grinning dog with a bird on its head!
The fuck.
What struck me most about this was the thought that most people will look at it and not see anything particularly weird. It's just a collection of "funny stories," the kinds of "funny stories" with which the internet is filled. Pets, flubs on film sets, murderous women.
Which says something about how we regard violence, and how we regard women, and how we regard women who commit violent acts. That we treat them like kooky oddities is deeply rooted in misogynist dehumanization and disempowerment.
I know, I know—who cares. It's just some randomly generated ads, and it's such a little thing it hardly warrants comment.
Except for how it's the little things that create the fertile soil in which everything else takes root and from whence everything else springs; all the little things, so many little things, is the way the fundamental idea that women are not equal to men, are not even fully human, is conveyed over and over and over again.
And for the fact that this isn't really a post about this one little thing, so much as it is a post about all the little things just like it, all over the internet—the collected lists about women doing things, good things or bad things; curated examples of women that feed into tropes about women and inform stereotypes about women—and how womanhood is conveyed reductively; dichotomously.
And people are making money on the back of this little thing. Money that will be used to make more of these little things, so many little things, to justify paying women less and harming them without consequence and all of those big things, so many big things.
* * *
Just after I finished writing the above, I read this article about world population aging at an alarming rate, which supposedly "will have a significant negative effect on economic growth over the next two decades across all regions." The piece ends thus:
But policymakers can minimize the impact by encouraging immigration to expand the workforce, and by investing in technology to help workers become more productive.Enticing stay-at-home mothers to return to their jobs. And just like that, being a stay-at-home mother isn't itself a job.
Other measures could include policies to keep people in work by raising the retirement age or enticing stay-at-home mothers to return to their jobs.
I also love the idea that every woman who is a stay-at-home parent has chosen that role specifically because working outside of the home isn't "enticing" enough.
Which is to say nothing, of course, about the fact that women are disproportionately the providers of in-family elder care, as well. (Also not "a job.") Good luck "enticing" women away from the necessary provision of care during a global "aging boom," especially in places where there's no socialized elder care and it costs more to secure private care than many women could make at a full-time job.
It's just the casual eliding of millions of women's practical realities, in favor of a flippant turn of phrase that trivializes stay-at-home mothers.
* * *
People accuse feminists of "looking for things to get mad about." I don't have to make any effort. These things are everywhere I look. All day, every day.
You Say Tomato, I Say Close Combat Advising
[Content Note: War.]
In spite of President Obama's repeated assurances that he will not be ordering troops back into ground combat in Iraq, Army General Martin Dempsey, Chair of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told the Senate armed services committee today "that US ground troops may directly join Iraqi forces in combat against the Islamic State (Isis)" and "that he could see himself recommending the use of some US military forces now in Iraq to embed within Iraqi and Kurdish units to take territory away from Isis."
"If we reach the point where I believe our advisers should accompany Iraqi troops on attacks against specific [Isis] targets, I will recommend that to the president," Dempsey said, preferring the term "close combat advising".So there will definitely totally for sure be no ground forces in direct combat, but there may be some close combat advising. It's kind of like how we're not just bombing the shit out of Iraq, but using drones to execute precision strikes on specific targets.
It was the most thorough public acknowledgement yet from Pentagon leaders that the roughly 1,600 US troops Obama has deployed to Iraq since June may in fact be used in a ground combat role, something Obama has directly ruled out, most recently in a televised speech last week.
Dempsey, who has for years warned about the "unintended consequences" of Americanizing the Syrian civil war that gave rise to Isis, said he envisioned "close combat advising" for operations on the order of taking Mosul, Iraq's second largest city, away from Isis.
He also opened the door to using US "advisers" to call in air strikes from the ground...
Obama's prohibition on ground forces in a combat role was less ironclad than the president has publicly stated, Dempsey suggested.
"At this point, his stated policy is we will not have US ground forces in direct combat," Dempsey said, to include spotting for US air strikes. "But he has told me as well to come back to him on a case-by-case basis."
Since I already had no faith whatsoever that the new mission in Iraq would ever remain as limited as we're being promised, this did not come as a surprise. I did find it rather extraordinary, however, that Dempsey said "the latest US war in Iraq, and soon in Syria, will last several years." Oh good. For a moment I was worried the war profiteers might not have sufficient time to skim enough profits off the pointless deaths of soldiers and civilians to buy that shiny new yacht they've been wanting.
Why Does Anyone Listen to Richard Dawkins Anymore?
[Content Note: Rape apologia; misogyny; gender essentialism.]
That, of course, is a rhetorical question. People still listen to Richard Dawkins, despite the fact that he is a misogynist, racist, disablist rape apologist (not a comprehensive list), because he is a straight white man who upholds the kyriarchy under the auspices of science and rational thought. He confers the illusion of credible objectivity onto ancient oppressions and indecencies, and allows smug fauxgressives to pretend that their brand of subjugative abuse is superior to the brands justified by belief in deities.
Five days ago, BuzzFeed contributor Mark Oppenheimer published a piece [cn: description of sexual assault] on the misogyny endemic to movement atheism, a subject which has been discussed in this space (and many others) plenty of times. In his piece, Oppenheimer detailed Michael Shermer's alleged sexual assault of Alison Smith—an incident which has been long discussed in skeptic circles.
Smith reports that Shermer invited her for drinks, only to realize "he wasn't drinking them; he was hiding them underneath the table and pretending to drink them. I was drunk. After that, it all gets kind of blurry. I started to walk back to my hotel room, and he followed me and caught up with me." Shermer tricked Smith, then, once she was too inebriated to consent, he steered her back to his hotel room and sexually assaulted her. Other women have reported similar victimization.
Two hours after the piece went live, Richard Dawkins tweeted: "Officer, it's not my fault I was drunk driving. You see, somebody got me drunk."
There are a number of things wrong with that. Suffice it to say: Conflating being a drunk driver with being raped while intoxicated is bullshit.
And not just because it's an aggressive indecent bit of victim-blaming. For someone who prides himself on his splendid reasoning skills, that's a spectacularly poor bit of thinking, too.
Dawkins, however, routinely occupies himself with philosophical discussions on the nature of sexual assault. Just two months ago, for example, he tweeted: "Date rape is bad. Stranger rape at knifepoint is worse. If you think that's an endorsement of date rape, go away and learn how to think."
His expert thinkin' credentials invoked once again, in defense of diminishing the gravity of a crime he's now deemed the exclusive responsibility of its victims.
Naturally, critics of Dawkins' victim-blaming were dismissed as hysterics and reactionaries, blah blah yawn, who don't understand that Richard Dawkins is a feminist ally, blah blah fart.
One day later, another prominent movement atheist, Sam Harris, was profiled in the Washington Post, and the piece ended with this passage:
I also asked Harris at the event why the vast majority of atheists — and many of those who buy his books — are male, a topic which has prompted some to raise questions of sexism in the atheist community. Harris' answer was both silly and then provocative.Estrogen vibe. Wow.
It can only be attributed to my "overwhelming lack of sex appeal," he said to huge laughter.
"I think it may have to do with my person slant as an author, being very critical of bad ideas. This can sound very angry to people. People just don't like to have their ideas criticized. There's something about that critical posture that is to some degree intrinsically male and more attractive to guys than to women," he said. "The atheist variable just has this – it doesn't obviously have this nurturing, coherence-building extra estrogen vibe that you would want by default if you wanted to attract as many women as men."
Dawkins, naturally, jumped to his defense, accusing critics of Harris' rank misogyny of merely being outraged as clickbait and recommending—I shit you not—professional anti-feminist Christina Hoff Sommers as a solid thinker on the subject.
This is well beyond the criticisms that the most prominent leaders of movement atheism have failed to be sufficiently inclusive. This is one of the most prominent leaders of movement atheism actively defending rapist and misogynists, from even the most basic criticisms.
I note with gales of mirthless laughter that Sam Harris suggests it is women who don't have the constitution for having our ideas criticized.
[Related Reading: This Female Atheist, and Where She Is.]
