Shakesville

Horses Are the Best

image of an elderly woman who appears to be white squeezing a therapy mini horse's neck

I can't even deal with how ridiculously adorbz and generally awesome this is:

Gentle Carousel began nearly two decades ago, with a focus on bringing miniature horses to people who aren't mobile.

"People who were not able to travel but would also benefit from an equine experience," [Debbie Garcia-Bengochea, co-founder of Gentle Carousel Miniature Therapy Horses] said.

Garcia-Bengochea says her therapy horses are just like full-sized horses in terms of personality, preferences and intelligence.

What makes them especially well-suited for this line of work -- on top of careful breeding, and two years of intensive training -- is being so adorably wee.

"While a large horse can be intimidating to a small child or a fragile senior, the miniature horses were easier for them to trust and befriend," Garcia-Bengochea says.

...There's really no such thing as an ordinary day for Gentle Carousel's horses. They might be visiting hospitals or hospices, nursing homes or homeless shelters, libraries or homes to see someone who is housebound -- anywhere that people could use the kind of pick-me-up bestowed by a calm, empathetic, 2.5-foot tall, stuffed animal-like creature, whose very existence makes the world a happier place.

"These little horses bring their special love where it is needed most," says Garcia-Bengochea.

I absolutely adore horses, of any size, and I can totally appreciate how the miniature horses are less intimidating than their larger cousins for lots of folks, especially kids. This is just terrific. There is something incredibly powerful and calming, at least for me, about spending time with horses. Every chance I've ever had to hang out with, care for, ride, walk beside, or nuzzle the velvety muzzle of a horse, I've taken it, for literally as long as I can remember.

image of me as a toddler feeding a carrot to a brown and white horse

image of me as a toddler feeding a carrot to a brown and white horse

That's my wee diaper-sagged ass feeding carrots to Todie, our neighbor's horse. I was about thirteen months old in that photo, which was taken the summer of 1975.

My mom and I used to walk down to the pasture, which was maybe 100 yards from our house, and it always seemed like the longest walk in the world, because I couldn't wait to see Todie, and his small companion pony Princess. I loved them beyond words.

One of the privileges of growing up in an exurban area is access to animals, which not every kid in the city and suburbs has so easily (or at all). I love that therapy programs like this one, particularly when they also do visits at libraries, are not only providing much-needed therapeutic visits to people who (more evidently) need it, but also exposing more kids to animals with whom they might not get to interact otherwise.

Oh no!

image of Scott Walker looking confused and dejected, to which I've added text reading: 'Can you tell me why nobody likes me?'

Republican presidential candidate and Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker is suspending his campaign:

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is suspending his presidential campaign today, effectively ending a once-promising GOP presidential bid that collapsed over the summer, according to several Republicans briefed on his plans. He planned to deliver the news at a 5 p.m. CT press conference in Madison, Wis.

...On key issues of the day — from calls to end birthright citizenship to the jailing of a Kentucky county official who refused to issue same-sex marriage licenses — Walker struggled more than other candidates to clearly explain where he stands.

On several issues, he attempted to not take a side — including when asked earlier this month what he would do to directly address the crisis facing Europe as hundreds of thousands of refugees from Syria and other war-torn countries search for a safe place to live. Walker said the United States must fight the Islamic State, which he said is at the root of the crisis, but he wouldn't take a stance beyond that.

What a crying shame. Who would have thought that building a career out of dumpster diving behind the Indiana Governor's mansion for your policy ideas and then refusing to actually elucidate any positions on the national stage would have resulted in a terrible, laughable, pathetic attempt to run for president of a global superpower?

JUST BAD LUCK, I GUESS.

Good riddance to you, Scott Walker, and I'm sorry you're still stuck with him, Wisconsin.

And then there were fifteen.

Quote of the Day

"You will understand that we are worried that the justifiably excellent reputation of the German car industry and in particular that of Volkswagen suffers."—German Economy Minister Sigmar Gabriel, on the EPA's findings that some VW models came loaded with a 'defeat device' that "allowed VW cars to emit less during [emissions testing] than they would while driving normally." Gabriel then "urged VW to clear up the allegations."

Really? Like, I get that this is a major economic blow, and I don't begrudge the German Economy Minister the right to comment on that, but VW screwing over millions of people and engaging in a profound corporate fraud is maybe not the right time to interject your concerns about "the justifiably excellent reputation of the German car industry."

Optics: F.

The Monday Blogaround

This blogaround brought to you by the smell of freshly cut grass.

Recommended Reading:

Sameer: Prominent Black Lives Matter Activists Met with Senior White House Officials

Diep: [Content Note: Racism; appropriation] Keep Your Hands off of My Kimono, White People

Bijhan: [CN: Misogyny] Strong Female Characters Are Rarely Strong and Barely Characters

Brigit: [CN: Discussion of sexuality and sex abuse; film spoilers] Clitoral Readings of The Piano, Turn Me On, Dammit, and Secretary

Kyler: [CN: Transphobia; gender policing] U.S. Military Denies Chelsea Manning's Request to Grow Her Hair Out

Digby: [CN: Disablist language; racism] A Skeptical Villager

David: Man with Massive Simpsons Tattoo on Back Holds Guinness Record

Leave your links and recommendations in comments. Self-promotion welcome and encouraged!

Two-Minute Nostalgia Sublime

[Content Note: There is some flickery-style editing in this video.]

The Bangles: "Manic Monday"

Daily Dose of Cute

image of Matilda the Fuzzy Sealpoint Cat lying on the arm of the loveseat with the tip of her tongue sticking out

Maximum Matilda.
As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to share pix of the fuzzy, feathered, or scaled members of your family in comments.

In the News

Here is some stuff in the news today...

[Content Note: Islamophobia; victim-blaming; video autoplays at link] Bill Maher continues to be an Islamophobic shitlord, using a segment of his show Friday night to discuss Ahmed Mohamed and his clock and engaging in more rank Islamophobia. And his guests Mark Cuban, George Pataki, and Chris Matthews happily joined in, with only journalist Jorge Ramos pushing back. For fuck's sake.

[CN: Islamophobia] And you knew Richard Dawkins had to get in the act, because he is the worst.

[CN: Islamophobia] In other news, Dr. Ben Carson said that a Muslim should never be president: "I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that." Senator Bernie Sanders pushed back, saying: "You know, this is the year 2015. You judge candidates for president not on their religion, not on the color of their skin, but on their ideas on what they stand for. … I was very disappointed in Dr. Carson's statement." Which is definitely more politic than saying, "Dr. Ben Carson, shut the fuck up, you asshole."

[CN: Islamophobia] And meanwhile, Donald Trump implies that President Obama is a Muslim, but begrudgingly offers that he's "willing to take [Obama] at his word" about being a Christian. This fucking guy.

[CN: Sexual violence; child abuse; child neglect; rape culture] This is utterly horrifying and rage-making: "Rampant sexual abuse of children has long been a problem in Afghanistan, particularly among armed commanders who dominate much of the rural landscape and can bully the population. The practice is called bacha bazi, literally 'boy play,' and American soldiers and Marines have been instructed not to intervene—in some cases, not even when their Afghan allies have abused boys on military bases, according to interviews and court records. ...'The reason we were here is because we heard the terrible things the Taliban were doing to people, how they were taking away human rights,' said Dan Quinn, a former Special Forces captain who beat up an American-backed militia commander for keeping a boy chained to his bed as a sex slave. 'But we were putting people into power who would do things that were worse than the Taliban did—that was something village elders voiced to me.'The policy of instructing soldiers to ignore child sexual abuse by their Afghan allies is coming under new scrutiny, particularly as it emerges that service members like Captain Quinn have faced discipline, even career ruin, for disobeying it." What the fuck are we even doing. Goddammit.

[CN: Refugee crisis] Good: "In response to the current crisis in the Middle East and Europe, Secretary of State John Kerry announced that the United States will significantly increase the number of refugees it will accept over the next two years. Currently, the U.S. accept 70,000 refugees from all over the world per year. In fiscal year 2016, that number will increase to 85,000. And in 2017, the total will be 100,000... That number, of course, will include a lot more refugees from Syria than the U.S. has taken in this year: just 1,500 since that country's internal conflict began four years ago. ...The Obama administration had previously said it would accept 10,000 Syrian refugees over the next year, which will be possible within this new cap. 'This step is in keeping with America's best tradition as a land of second chances and a beacon of hope,' Kerry said, adding that the U.S. would also continue to supply financial aid to the humanitarian effort to solve this crisis."

Fuck you, Volkswagon: "Volkswagen's chief executive has said sorry after US regulators found some of its cars disguised pollution levels. 'I personally am deeply sorry that we have broken the trust of our customers and the public,' Martin Winterkorn said. He has launched an investigation into the device that allowed VW cars to emit less during tests than they would while driving normally. ...The German carmaker was ordered to recall half a million cars on Friday. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) found the 'defeat device' in diesel cars including the Audi A3, VW Jetta, Beetle, Golf, and Passat models. In addition to paying for the recall, VW faces fines that could add up to billions of dollars. There may also be criminal charges for VW executives." As well there should be.

RIP Jackie Collins. "She lived a wonderfully full life and was adored by her family, friends, and the millions of readers who she has been entertaining for over 4 decades. She was a true inspiration, a trail blazer for women in fiction, and a creative force. She will live on through her characters but we already miss her beyond words."

This is brilliant: "The Truth Behind Instagram Photos."

Do you need more Tom Hardy with dogs in your day? Then you are in luck!

And finally! This husky is DEEPLY AGGRIEVED about not getting a bite of hamburger. LOL oh dogs! Never change.

Ha Ha But Seriously Who Cares If You're a Woman

[Content Note: Misogyny.]

Yesterday, Hillary Clinton appeared on CBS' Face the Nation, and she talked about a whole bunch of stuff, including foreign policy and her email usage while Secretary of State, and the full transcript of her interview is available here. Toward the end of her interview with host John Dickerson came this exchange:

Dickerson: In the politics this year, it looks like everybody wants an outsider. [laughter] Now, that puts you in a fix. [crosstalk] Does it put you in a fix? Tell us why it doesn't put you in a fix.

Clinton: I cannot imagine anyone being more of an outsider than the first woman president. I mean, really, let's think about that.

Dickerson: Now, I agree, but your name—we have not...

Clinton: I mean, if you line up—if you— All these mothers and fathers bring me the place mats with all the presidents, and they bring their daughters, and they say, my daughter has a question for you. And the daughter says, how come there are no girls on this place mat?

Dickerson: I agree that that is a difference.

Clinton: I think that's a pretty big unconventional choice.

Dickerson: Yes. But you know what I'm asking.

Clinton: Well, I know you're asking, do we want people who have never been elected to anything, who have no political experience, who have never made any hard choices in the public arena? Well, voters are going to have to decide that.

That face all fucking day.

In this day and age, in the era of Citizens United, no one who runs for president and is taken seriously by one of the two major political parties and the media and the pollsters is truly an "outsider" in the way John Dickerson wants us to understand its usage. No one. If you have access to the people who fund presidential elections, you cannot be an considered an "outsider" in any kind of meaningful way.

Being a woman, however, does make one an outsider. Forty-four presidents, all of them men.

And the best Dickerson has in response to this crucial observation is "yes but." As if it doesn't matter.

It matters.

The Emmys

[Content Note: Discussion of misogynoir; trans-appropriation.]

Last night was the 67th Emmy Awards, and I didn't watch it, because I forgot. So I don't have anything to say about what I'm sure were eleventy-seven inappropriate jokes and other bullshit with which awards shows are inevitably rife, but here is the complete list of winners, and I have a couple things to say about that.

First of all: YAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAYAY VIOLA DAVIS!!!!!!! Viola Davis became the first ever black woman to win Outstanding Lead Actress in a Drama, for How to Get Away with Murder, a show I love, and her acceptance speech was everything:

Adrian Brody, the white male presenter: And the Emmy goes to...Viola Davis, How to Get Away with Murder. [cheers and applause]

[Viola Davis throws up her hands and then makes her way to the stage; Taraji P. Henson intercepts her in the aisle and gives her a huge hug. A female announcer says: "This is the first Emmy win and nomination for Viola Davis, who is a graduate of Juilliard." Davis steps onstage, accepts the Emmy statuette from Brody, and stands in front of the mic. She sighs emotionally, looking around the room. Henson stands and applauds.]

Davis: "In my mind, I see a line. And over that line, I see green fields and lovely flowers and beautiful white women with their arms stretched out to me over that line, but I can't seem to get there nohow. I can't seem to get over that line." That was Harriet Tubman in the 1800s. And let me tell you something: The only thing that separates women of color from anyone else is opportunity. [applause] You cannot win an Emmy for roles that are simply not there. [applause] So here's to all the writers, the awesome people, that are Ben Sherwood, Paul Lieb, Peter Nowalk, Shonda Rhimes [cheers] — people who have redefined what it means to beautiful, to be sexy, to be a leading woman, to be black. [cheers and applause] And to the Taraji P. Hensons, the Kerry Washingtons, the Halle Berrys, the Nicole Beharies, the Meagan Goods, to Gabrielle Union, thank you for taking us over that line. Thank you for the Television Academy. Thank you.

Viola Davis forever.

Davis was, remarkably, not the only black woman who won an Emmy last night. Uzo Aduba won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama for Orange Is the New Black, and Regina King won Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Miniseries or a Movie for American Crime. I love both of them yay!

Also: HBO's Bessie, the biopic of Blues singer Bessie Smith starring Queen Latifah, won Outstanding Television Movie.

Reg E. Cathey also won Outstanding Guest Actor in a Drama Series for House of Cards, but it was still a very white night overall. HBO picked up a shit-ton of awards for Game of Thrones, Veep, and Olive Kitteridge, which are all super white.

(And as much as I love Peter Dinklage, I am crushed that Jonathan Banks did not win Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama for Better Call Saul. Boo.)

In LGBTQI news: Jane Lynch won Outstanding Host For A Reality Or Reality-Competition Program for Hollywood Game Night, and Jeffrey Tambor won Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy for Transparent, in which he plays a trans woman. Got that? A man won Outstanding Lead Actor for playing a trans woman. I mean.

So, did you watch? What did you think?

Abortion Is Healthcare, and Healthcare Is a Right

[Content Note: War on agency.]

On Friday, Congress voted to defund Planned Parenthood, on the basis that Planned Parenthood provides abortions, despite the fact that no federal funding is used to subsidize the procedure (even though it should be, because abortion is healthcare):

House Republicans vented their rage against Planned Parenthood on Friday, voting to block all federal financing for the organization, which they accused of profiting from the sale of aborted fetuses for medical research. It was unclear, however, if the vote would mollify conservative lawmakers who have threatened to force a government shutdown over the abortion issue.

Neither the Planned Parenthood bill, which passed 241 to 187, nor a second anti-abortion measure approved on Friday has any chance of becoming law because of opposition from Senate Democrats and President Obama. But the deep emotion expressed by Republican lawmakers during debate underscored the challenge facing party leaders in the days ahead.

...Many Republicans tried to put the debate in starkly emotive terms — describing the births of grandchildren, the planned adoptions of orphans and ultrasound images of fetuses in the womb.

"No matter what party you belong to, we should all agree that taxpayer dollars should not be used for harvesting baby parts for profit," Representative Tim Walberg of Michigan said. "But the debate today is about more than these barbaric practices. It is about the very character of our nation."

Yeah, it sure is. And apparently the character of our nation, at least part of it, is using demonstrable lies to defend denying crucial healthcare services to a population that is disproportionately women, because control of women and our bodies is one of the primary planks in the Republican Party platform.

[NB: Not only women need access to the services Planned Parenthood provides, including abortion. The primary target of these Republican attacks are women, and it is women who are routinely invoked by Republicans who insist they are "protecting" us, as though forcing us into back alleys is some kind of fucking protection. The root of this attack is misogyny, even though there are men and non-binary people who are caught in the legislative crossfire.]

Meanwhile, although this shit has almost zero chance of passing the Senate, and, even if it did, would be vetoed by President Obama, Senator Ted Cruz continues to threaten to try to force a government shutdown if his colleagues don't support legislation to strip Planned Parenthood of all federal funding.

Because denying reproductive healthcare and bodily autonomy to people is so important that it's worth shutting down the entire government over it.

On Friday night, I did some tweeting about this horseshit, and those tweets are collected in this Storify.

And I will say, once again, that I am, and will always be, pro-abortion for any person who wants or needs one. Because abortion is healthcare, and healthcare is a right.

Open Thread

image of a purple rose

Hosted by an Ebb Tide Rose.

The Virtual Pub Is Open

image of a pub Photoshopped to be named 'The No Buffoonery Saloon'

[Explanations: lol your fat. pathetic anger bread. hey your gay.]

TFIF, Shakers!

Belly up to the bar,
and name your poison!

The Friday Blogaround

This blogaround brought to you by whiskers.

Recommended Reading:

Pidgeon [Content Note: Police brutality; racism; misogyny; domestic violence] "You Ain't Shit" Says Cop to Young Person

Sesali: [CN: Fat hatred; misogynoir; sexual assault] Stop Excluding Black Women in Fat Acceptance Movements

Anonymous: [CN: Domestic violence; racism; misogyny] Without Scars: Domestic Violence, Abuse, and the Tech Pipeline

Joseph: [CN: White straight cis male privilege] Nerd Guys, Pandering, and "Forced" Diversity

Kenrya: Lupita Nyong'o Is Luminous on Vogue's October Cover

Atrios: Values

Vishavjit: [CN: Racism; violence] From Chicago to Alabama: Hate Crime Comics

Julie: [video] A Parrot Sliding Down a Bannister, Because Obviously

Leave your links and recommendations in comments. Self-promotion welcome and encouraged!

Good Lord

[Content Note: Violence; racism.]

Your Republican primary, Shakers:

A huge Republican political gathering on Mackinac Island got under way Thursday night with a barroom incident in which a top official for presidential candidate Sen. Marco Rubio allegedly threw a punch at a Michigan consultant working for Sen, Rand Paul of Kentucky.

The alleged incident took place at Horn's Bar, a popular nightspot on Mackinac Island, which hosts the Mackinac Republican Leadership Conference, which is held every year and has drawn six GOP presidential hopefuls this year.

John Yob, a Grand Rapids political consultant who is national political director and chief Michigan strategist for the Rand Paul campaign, said on Facebook Friday morning that he was punched in the face inside the bar by Rich Beeson, who is deputy campaign manager for Rubio, a Florida senator.

LEADERSHIP!

Meanwhile, Republican candidate and Ohio Governor John Kasich says that Latin@s should vote for Republicans, because he leaves tips for maids, or something:

The last question of the GOP gathering at the exclusive golf club was straightforward: "Do you have a strategy for attracting a significant chunk of the Latino vote?"

..."I think it's a matter of inclusiveness and I think it's a matter of tone," the governor started out.

He briefly described his immigration stance, which includes finishing a wall along the Mexican border but also providing a potential path to citizenship for the millions of undocumented immigrants in the U.S.

"I look at our friends in the Latino community as people that ought to be voting Republican. I mean, they're very strong family. We could all learn a little from them about the importance of family, couldn't we? Because they are great, they are God-fearing, hard-working folks. And a lot of them do jobs that they're willing to do.

"That's why, in a hotel, you leave a little tip, you know?"

He praised the housekeeper of his Los Angeles hotel room, who wrote a note: "I really want you to know that I care about your stay."

Kasich said he later found out she was Hispanic when he met her in the hallway. "I needed a little more soap, you know?"

There ain't enough soap in the world to scrub this guy of the bullshit in which he covers himself.

Y'all, I have been writing about presidential elections for eleven years. I started just before the 2004 Bush vs. Kerry election. I covered the 2008 primaries and election, and the 2012 primary and election. Long before I started this blog, even long before I was old enough to vote, I had a profound fascination with presidential politics and immersed myself in the minutiae of every election.

I have never, ever, in all my days seen a Republican field this terrible.

And that is really saying something, when you remember Tom Tancredo running for president.

Two-Minute Nostalgia Sublime

Theme from "The Golden Girls."

Daily Dose of Cute

image of Matilda the Fuzzy Sealpoint Cat lying on the arm of the loveseat and peeking at me over a shirt left on the arm

Just look at this adorable monster!
As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to share pix of the fuzzy, feathered, or scaled members of your family in comments.

In the News

Here is some stuff in the news today...

[Content Note: Refugee crisis] Croatia says it will not accept any more refugees: "After suddenly landing in the path of the biggest migration in Europe for decades, Croatia said on Friday it could no longer offer them refuge and would wave them onwards, challenging the EU to find a policy to receive them. The [refugees], mostly from poor or war-torn countries in the Middle East, Africa, and Asia, have streamed into Croatia since Wednesday, after Hungary blocked what had been the main route with a metal fence and riot police at its border with Serbia. 'We cannot register and accommodate these people any longer,' Croatian Prime Minister Zoran Milanovic told a news conference in the capital Zagreb. 'They will get food, water, and medical help, and then they can move on. The European Union must know that Croatia will not become a migrant 'hotspot'. We have hearts, but we also have heads.'" Fuck.

[CN: Anti-immigrant rhetoric; racism] This is amazing: "An Open Letter to Presidential Candidates from 100 Immigrant Women: The rhetoric and solutions we have heard are not grounded in reality. The reality is, many of you count on immigrants every day. We know, because we clean your homes and take care of your children and aging parents. We drive you to work, cook and serve your food. We teach your children language, art and dance. We design your apps and build your homes. In this country, we are interdependent. The 11 million undocumented people living and working in this country are integral to this economy and our social fabric." YES.

[CN: Sexual violence] What say you, Bill Cosby? "Bill Cosby faces renewed public focus on allegations he drugged and sexually attacked large numbers of women over a prolonged period after the cable TV channel A&E broadcast on Thursday night the stories of 13 of his avowed victims on Cosby: The Women Speak. ...The 13 women related stories that ranged in date from the late 1960s through to the late 1980s. Several women raised similar allegations that they had been promised help by Cosby in their fledgling acting careers, had been encouraged to visit him in Las Vegas or Los Angeles, and had then been drugged and sexually attacked." And he continues to maintain that they are all liars. Okay.

In good news: "Same-sex couples will be able to marry in Ireland by year's end after the Supreme Court turned away an appeal of a challenge to the country's historic referendum victory back in May." Yay!

[CN: Sexual harassment; misogyny] In more good news—or, at least, a good outcome to a terrible situation: "New York utility company Con Edison will be forced to pay $3.8 million to more than 300 of its women workers who were subjected to sexual harassment and gender-based discrimination. Con Edison, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and the New York attorney general's office reached the joint settlement this week, ending a government investigation that began in 2007. New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman said: 'This agreement sends a clear message to employers across New York State: All women, including those working in male-dominated work-places, are entitled to equal justice under law.'"

[CN: Carcerality] I haven't read the details yet, and I wish it were more comprehensive prison abolition, but this sounds like a solid start, at least: "Sen. Bernie Sanders said he hopes to end the 'private, for-profit prison racket' with the introduction Thursday of bills to ban private prisons, reinstate the federal parole system, and eliminate quotas for the number of immigrants held in detention. The Vermont independent, who is running for the Democratic presidential nomination, introduced the 'Justice is not for Sale Act' with Democratic Reps. Raúl Grijalva of Arizona, Keith Ellison of Minnesota, and Bobby Rush of Illinois. It would bar the federal government from contracting with private incarceration companies starting two years after passage."

[CN: Misogyny] Jesus fucking Jones, everything about this, starting with the picture at the top of the article, is the woooooorst: "What Is Hillary's Greatest Accomplishment? Carly Fiorina dared Democrats to name it. 20 top Dems accepted the challenge."

Tom Hardy explains why he was contemptuous of a question about his sexuality, and it was pretty much exactly what I said about its being an unwinnable game "that puts people in the position of being accused of lying, denying, distancing, or upholding their own privilege." Says Hardy, after referring to his having been coy about his sexuality (and also misrepresented) in previous interviews, he goes on: "I'm quite sensitive and I feel like I've let people down for something that I actually didn't ask for, for something that's important to a lot of people. Should I come out of the closet when I'm not in one? I ought to maybe come out of the closet, even though that's a lie, to do the right thing. Or, if I say no, then I'm homophobic? Bless him, he's young. But at the same time, it left me feeling like I have to do something about that. And it's like why? Whose business is it anyway and isn't that the point?" I love him the end.

[CN: Video may autoplay at link] And finally! Tillie the Setter stayed with her doggie friend Phoebe the Basset Hound for a week after Phoebe got trapped in a concrete cistern. Every day, Tillie would leave for a short time to look for help. And finally: "On Sept. 14, [the animal rescue organization Vashon Island Pet Protectors] received a call saying that while they were out on their property, a 'reddish' dog had come up to them a few times, before promptly heading back into a ravine. Based on the tip, volunteers made their way into the ravine, said Amy Carey with VIPP. After a bit of searching, the volunteers heard a small one-woof response when they called out to Tillie. A few minutes later they found her lying beside the old cistern with her head resting on the concrete wall. 'They knew that meant Phoebe was inside the cistern. Every breath was held and every doggie prayer offered that the peek over the rim would somehow find her safe,' Carey said. Both dogs were cold and hungry but are doing well." Blub.

Recommended Reading

[Content Note: Racism; appropriation; white supremacy.]

Jenny Zhang on white poet Michael Derrick Hudson's use of the Chinese pen name Yi-Fen Chou: "They Pretend to Be Us While Pretending We Don't Exist."

This is just an extraordinary piece of writing. I'm not even going to excerpt it; just go read the whole thing.

[H/T to my friend OKG.]

This Is Where We Are

[Content Note: Racism; birtherism; Islamophobia.]

Last night, at a rally in New Hampshire, an audience member said that President Obama is a Muslim, and Republican candidate Donald Trump did not even bother to correct him:

The exchange came during a post-debate rally in Rochester, N.H., during which Trump asked the audience for questions rather than giving a speech. To kick things off, Trump pointed at a man in the audience: "Okay, this man. I like this guy."

"We have a problem in this country, it's called Muslims," the man said. "We know our current president is one. You know, he's not even an American. Birth certificate, man."

"Right," Trump said, then adding with a shake of his head: "We need this question? This first question."

Obviously Trump wasn't happy with the question, but he didn't condemn it, either. Because his entire campaign is rooted in xenophobia, and to directly challenge it would be to undermine the very reason his supporters like him.

This incident is reminiscent of one on the 2008 campaign trail, in which one of then-GOP nominee John McCain's supporters made the same accusation against the President—except McCain responded in a very different way:

A white man, holding the mic at a townhall event: —and, uh, frankly, we're scared. Um, we're scared of an Obama presidency.

Edit. McCain, holding the mic: First of all, I want to be president of the United States, and obviously I do not want Senator Obama to be. But I have to tell you, I have to tell you, he is a decent person, and a person that you do not have to be scared as president of the United States. [outraged noises from audience] Now, I—I just—I just—now look, I— If I didn't think I would be one heck of a lot better president, I wouldn't be running, okay? [cheers and applause] And that's the point. That's the point. Um.

Edit. A white woman, holding the mic: I gotta ask you a question. I do not, uh, believe in—I can't trust Obama. [McCain nods] I—I have read about him, and he's not—he's not—he's a, um, he's an Arab. He is not— [McCain shakes his head] No? [McCain reaches for the mic and takes it away]

McCain: No. No, ma'am. No, ma'am. He's a—he's a decent family man and citizen that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues, and that's what this campaign is all about. He's not. Thank you.

Now, obviously McCain's response is still garbage, because "Arab" and "decent family man and citizen" are not mutually exclusive categories. But at least he didn't let that shit slide without any pushback at all.

And we're talking about a man who engaged in a campaign absolutely filled with racist dogwhistles against the President. Which exposes McCain's rank hypocrisy. But when faced with a supporter explicitly saying what he'd been dogwhistling, he denounced it.

Trump can't even be bothered to do that.

When John fucking McCain is the standard-bearer for decency, and your party's front runner can't even live up to the rock bottom expectations established by McNasty, you have derailed.

If This Was Your Best Decision, Welp.

[Content Note: Islamophobia; police misconduct; carcerality. Video may autoplay at link.]

Irving Police Chief Larry Boyd has admitted that the police determined very quickly that ninth-grader Ahmed Mohamed had not brought an actual bomb to school—which, of course, was obvious from the start. As Shaker livi immediately pointed out in comments, the school was never evactuated. MSNBC host Chris Hayes questioned the chief about what was sure a curious damn response if the school administrators and police actually thought Mohamed had built a bomb and brought it to school:

Hayes pointed out that, despite the allegations against the teen, no bomb squad was called to the MacArthur campus, nor was the campus evacuated.

"Once it's determined that this is just a clock or just a piece of electronics, why then the arrest and all of that?" he asked Boyd. "That's very hard for folks to understand."

"I get that. I understand the concern," the chief responded. "The officers pretty quickly determined that they weren't investigating an explosive device. What their investigation centered around is the law violation of bringing a device into a facility like that that is intended to create a level of alarm. In other words, a hoax bomb — something that is not really a bomb, but is designed and presented in a way that it creates people to be afraid."

"Right, but he never called it a bomb, right?" Hayes countered. "He just kept calling it a clock. I mean, it never came out of his lips, he never did something or started showing it around saying, 'Look at this bomb I have.' He said, 'Look at my clock.'"

"There definitely was some confusion and some level of information that didn't come out immediately," Boyd said, adding that in many cases, someone who would make a "hoax bomb" would not be likely to admit to doing so to police.

"With what they had at that time, they made the best decision that they had at that point in time," he told a visibly skeptical Hayes.

What utter bullshit. And, seriously, if that is the best decision that police could make, based on a child building a clock and calling it a clock and showing it off as a clock, that doesn't say much for the Irving police's collective decision-making abilities.

The truth is, this is just another example (see also) of the state-sanctioned harassment and intimidation of Muslims, and another example of how students of color are funneled into the school-to-prison pipeline. It's nothing more or less sophisticated than the entirely typical rank racism practiced and sanctioned by US institutions every damn day.