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Open Thread + Blog Note
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I am feeling super under the weather today. I don't know if it's allergies or if I'm getting a cold or what is happening in my face, but I feel awful, so I'm going to take the day off in the hope that some rest will help.
I hope I'll see you tomorrow. If I need more time, I will let you know. My apologies for the interruption.
In the meantime, here's a piece that was published at BNR over the weekend, some of which will be familiar to longtime readers, as it was adapted from previous work, but there's lots more new stuff, too: "The Dark History and Destructive Legacy of Republican Fearmongering."
The Virtual Pub Is Open
[Explanations: lol your fat. pathetic anger bread. hey your gay.]
Belly up to the bar,
and be in this space together.
The Friday Blogaround
This blogaround brought to you by mac n cheese.
Recommended Reading:
Amie: [Content Note: Mass shootings; domestic violence] We Need to Talk About the Role of Domestic Violence in Mass Shootings
Ragen: [CN: Queerphobia; fat hatred] Sometimes It's The Little Things
Sameer: [CN: Misogyny; Pulse shooting] Michelle Obama's Advice to Men at United State of Women Summit: 'Be Better'
Brian: [CN: Fat hatred] My Story. My Promise. My Hope.
Lakshmi: [CN: Disablism] Zayn Malik opened up about his anxiety. Here's why that matters.
TLC: [CN: Transphobia; racism; sexual violence] Formerly Detained TransLatina Immigrant Women Share Experiences, Demands in Historic Meeting with ICE Officials
Leave your links and recommendations in comments. Self-promotion welcome and encouraged!
OMG
Many, many people are saying this is a tremendous poll! Only losers won't RT this classy poll! Sad! https://t.co/7heURnVxUG
— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) June 17, 2016
#MathTrumpsDonald https://t.co/7heURnVxUG
— Melissa McEwan (@Shakestweetz) June 17, 2016
Just in case Donald Trump ever has the sense to delete his tweet, here's a screencap of it (note the poll at the bottom):
Daily Dose of Cute
"Yes, perfect, thank you. Now do my other ear, Two-Legs."
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: Stories related to the Pulse Shooting; next four paragraphs. If you want to skip over these, just begin after the triple asterisk.]
If this isn't the (second) best argument for not treating this guy like he's a celebrity by running his face all over the news, I don't know what is: "An official familiar with the timeline told CBS News that Mateen was active on social media before and during the rampage. ...[A]fter the gunfire began, Mateen paused. Sources told CBS News he searched for 'Pulse Orlando' and 'shooting,' perhaps to see if the massacre was trending online." For much more on this subject, see Peter Daou: "A Post-Orlando Reckoning: The Media and Republicans Have Done the Killer's Bidding."
A JetBlue flight attendant recounts what happened on a flight on which the grandmother of victim Luis Omar Ocasio-Capo was a passenger: "I had the idea to pass around a piece of paper to everyone on board and invite them to sign it for this grieving grandmother. I talked it over with Melinda and she started the process from the back of the plane. As we took beverage orders, we whispered a heads up about the plan as we went. Halfway through, Melinda called me, 'Kel, I think you should start another paper from the front. Folks are writing PARAGRAPHS.' So I did. Then we started one in the middle. Lastly, running out of time on our hour and fifteen minute flight, we handed out pieces of paper to everyone still waiting. When we gathered them together to present them to her, we didn't have just a sheet of paper covered in names, which is what I had envisioned. Instead, we had page after page after page after page of long messages offering condolences, peace, love, and support." Blub.
John McCain goes full Trump and blames President Obama for the attack. I don't even know what to say anymore about the Republican response to this. I really don't.
Anderson Cooper takes down Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi a second time after the complained about their first interview: "After the segment aired, Bondi called in to WOR 710 radio and blamed Cooper for misleading her about the interview’s objective and editing her in a bad light. One problem, Cooper had his receipts and showed them on air that night." Whoooooooops.
* * *
[CN: Wildfires] "A wildfire in Santa Barbara County that's threatening homes and closing major highways more than doubled in size overnight to 4,000 acres, federal officials said early Friday. Chewing through vegetation that hasn't burned since the 1950s and pushed by 40 mph winds, the Sherpa fire crawled toward Highway 101 between El Capitan State Beach and Gaviota, forcing the California Highway Patrol to shut down the coastal route overnight. ...The Santa Barbara County Sheriff's Office said mandatory evacuations for El Capitan, Refugio, Venadito, and Las Flores canyons north of Santa Barbara remained in effect, while residents of neighboring communities such as Las Llagas, Gato, Las Varas, Dos Pueblos, and Eagle canyons received evacuation warnings." Damn.
[CN: Video may autoplay at link] "Sanders' Long Refusal to Endorse Clinton Hurts His Leverage." Haha no kidding.
Meanwhile, on the other side of the aisle: "Dozens of GOP Delegates Launch New Push to Halt Donald Trump." Y'all, this election is going to continue to get uglier and uglier. There is no way the Republican Party is going to just sit on their butts and watch their nominee go down in flames. Hillary Clinton is never going to be allowed to take an easy stroll into the White House: Not by the GOP and not by the media. Something is going to upend this race. And I strongly suspect it's going to involve Trump not being the nominee anymore, followed by the installation of a "moderate" who will become the superhero of the GOP and the new BFF of the media. Get ready. The next few months are not going to be easy.
[CN: Video may autoplay at link] Relatedly: "Florida Rep. David Jolly on Friday announced he will pull out of the Republican primary to replace Sen. Marco Rubio. Jolly instead will for reelection to his seat in Congress, citing 'unfinished business' in an email to supporters Friday afternoon. He said he had been convinced to run for Senate by insiders who told him redistricting made his reelection to the House too difficult, but decided he wanted to continue doing the job he has. The move, though, comes as Rubio has in recent days signaled he might accede to pressure to run for reelection to his seat." Get out of the way, Jolly! At the moment, Rubio polls poorly next to the Democratic challenger. As do a number of Republican Senate candidates. This is the Trump Effect, and the GOP ain't gonna sit idly by.
Cool: "Oxygen has been detected in a galaxy from long, long ago and far, far away. 13.1 billion light-years away, to be exact. This galaxy—which we're observing as it was just 700 million years after the birth of the universe—shows the oldest signs of oxygen scientists have ever seen. That's a big deal: In the immediate aftermath of the Big Bang, only the lightest elements—helium, lithium and hydrogen—existed. Heavier elements, such as carbon and oxygen, are necessary for the formation of life as we know it. But these elements didn't form until the first stars had aged enough to produce them by way of fusion."
Heads-up, Ghostbuster nerdz: The cast of Ghostbusters will be on The Graham Norton Show tonight!
And finally! "Human Chain Pulls Dog out of Deep Channel in Heartwarming Rescue." Precisely as advertised. ♥
Please Support Shakesville
This is, for those who have requested it, your bi-monthly reminder to donate to Shakesville and an important fundraiser to keep Shakesville going.If you value the content and/or community in this space, please consider setting up a subscription or making a one-time contribution.
If you have appreciated being able to tune into Shakesville and/or my Twitter feed for coverage of the presidential primaries, for getting distilled news about politics or other topics, for a safe and image-free space to discuss difficult subjects, for pop culture deconstruction, for recipes, for the Fat Fashion threads, or for whatever else you appreciate at Shakesville, whether it's the moderation, community in the Open Threads, Film Corner, video transcripts, the blogarounds, or anything else, please remember that Shakesville is run exclusively on donations.
I cannot afford to do this full-time for free, but, even if I could, fundraising is also one of the most feminist acts I do here. I ask to be paid for my work because progressive feminist advocacy has value; because women's work has value.
I would certainly be grateful for your support, if you are able to chip in. The donation link is in the sidebar to the right. Or click here.
Thank you to each of you who donates or has donated, whether monthly or as a one-off. I am deeply appreciative. This community couldn't exist without that support, truly. Thank you.
My thanks as well to everyone who contributes to the space in other ways, whether as a contributor, a moderator, a guest writer, a transcriber, and/or as someone who takes the time to send me a note of support and encouragement. (Or cool artwork!) This community couldn't exist without you, either.
Please note that I don't want anyone to feel obliged to contribute financially, especially if money is tight. There is a big enough readership that no one needs to donate if it would be a hardship, and no one should ever feel bad about that. ♥
I Write Letters
Dear Lady in This Picture:
I don't know you, but I just want to say hello, as a fellow enthusiastic Hillary-head. Hello!
Sometimes, when I am feeling discouraged or demoralized by this election, which is a lot, I scroll through Hillary's Flickr feed for inspiration. It never fails to lift my spirits to be reminded that I'm not alone. Not in my support for Hillary, and not at my keyboard. The things I write, I write for myself, but I also write for people, most of whose faces I never see and voices I never hear, but who are just as excited at the prospect of electing Hillary as I am.
I was very happy to see this picture of you. Your smile is infectious. Your enthusiasm radiates through the screen. I don't know if you are a huggy person, but, if you are, I would love to give you the biggest, squeeziest hug.
I would love to hear all about your work as an ironworker, and would love to tell you all about my work as a political writer, if that's something you were interested to hear. I bet we'd have a lot to tell each other about working in jobs predominantly held by men, and I bet that's maybe part of the reason that we both like Hillary, too.
But most of all, I'd just like to say thank you. Thank you for your abundantly joyful smile, which I saw at a moment in which I needed it.
Warmest regards,
Liss
#ImWithHer
Good Job, Philly!
Last night, the Philadelphia School Reform Commission adopted a new policy for transgender students. In a statement, Superintendent William R. Hite said: "Every student deserves to know their rights will be recognized and upheld at school. This policy provides clear guidance and will help to ensure that our schools remain welcoming to all of our students."
The policy, effective immediately, reads:
* Students may be addressed by names and pronouns corresponding to their gender identity. This applies to interactions with other students and staff, and all written records, including report cards, class rosters, and photo ID.The neat part about this is that it wasn't obliged by a lawsuit; it wasn't begrudging. It was because the Philly school system saw a need to protect its trans students, so it did the decent thing just because it's the decent thing.
* Transgender identity, legal name, and sex assigned at birth is confidential.
* Students may participate in gender-segregated groups that correspond to their gender identity.
* Schools should use gender-neutral language in communication with all students and families, regardless of a student's gender identity.
* Students may access locker rooms and restrooms that correspond to their gender identity.
* Students may also dress in accordance with their gender identity. Schools may not adopt dress codes on the basis of gender.
Relatedly: Did you know that Pennsylvania is the only state with a transgender physician general? It's true! Dr. Rachel Levine!
I watched Dr. Levine give a speech to an attorney's group recently, on LGBT law, and she was seriously terrific. I would not be mad at all if President Hillary Clinton chose Dr. Rachel Levine as Surgeon General. I'm just saying!
But I digress! Good job, Philly!
So Bernie Said Some Stuff Last Night
If you want to watch Bernie saying some stuff last night, you can watch the video here. And if you'd like to read the transcript, you can do that here.
I think my favorite line of the whole thing was this: "It is no secret that Secretary Clinton and I have strong disagreements on some very important issues."
Yes. For example: Like whether she is the Democratic nominee.
In case you're wondering: No, he did not drop out. No, he did not endorse her. Yes, he did say "twenty-seven dollars."
And that's pretty much all I have to say about that.
Question of the Day
Suggested by Shaker Aeryl: "What commonly underrated artists (musicians, actors, writers etc.) do you just adore?"
Two-Minute Nostalgia Sublime
Heavy D & the Boyz: "Now That We Found Love"
The see-through plastic suit in this video is possibly my favorite costume choice in the entirety of '90s music videos. Which, if you were alive in the '90s and watching music videos, I don't have to tell you is really saying something.
Quote of the Day
[Content Note: Pulse shooting.]
This debate needs to change; it's outgrown the old political stalemates. The notion that the answer to this tragedy would be to make sure that more people in a nightclub are similarly armed to the killer defies common sense. Those who'd defend the easy accessibility of assault weapons should meet these families and explain why that makes sense. They should meet with the Newtown families—some of whom [Vice President Joe Biden] saw yesterday, whose children would now be finishing fifth grade—on why it is that we think our liberty requires these repeated tragedies. That's not the meaning of liberty.During the same address, delivered moments ago in Orlando, President Obama also said that this was not just a terrorist attack, but a crime of hatred against the LGBT community. "You can't," he said, "break up the world into us vs. them and denigrate groups [on their identities] and not feed something very dangerous in this world.
I'm pleased to hear that the Senate will hold votes on preventing individuals with possible terrorist ties from buying guns, including assault weapons. I truly hope that Senators will rise to the moment and do the right thing. I hope that Senators who voted no on background checks after Newtown have a change of heart. And then I hope the House does the right thing and helps end the plague of violence that these weapons of war inflict on so many young lives.
I've said this before: We will not be able to stop every tragedy. We can't wipe away hatred and evil from every heart in this world. But we can stop some tragedies. We can save some lives. We can reduce the impact of a terrorist attack if we're smart.
And if we don't act, we will keep seeing more massacres like this, because we'll be choosing to allow them to happen.
There is no (or should be no) us vs. them, he argued. "There's only us. Americans."
UPDATE: A complete transcript of the President's remarks is below the fold.
Daily Dose of Cute
As always, please feel welcome and encouraged to share pix of the fuzzy, feathered, or scaled members of your family in comments.
Clinton's Campaign Is Firing on All Cylinders
I've got a new piece up at BNR about Team Hillary's outstanding general election rollout:
Yes, it's objectively true that Donald's campaign is a major flop. The candidate himself is a full-tilt bigotry machine with the presidential fitness of a garden gnome. His team is comprised of bullies and ne'er-do-wells, who have utterly failed to build a national campaign that's ready to compete in a general election.There is much more at the link! So head on over to read the whole thing!
But it's important to recognize that Hillary's campaign is not merely successful by comparison to Donald's clown show. It is objectively successful by the standards of any presidential campaign. Including her own 2008 campaign. Which is yet another indication that Hillary listens, takes her lessons, learns from them, and grows.
Which just happens to be another stark contrast with Donald.
This has been a long campaign for Hillary and her team already. Their stamina is amazing. Which is not merely an observation about the campaign, but, frankly, another qualification for the presidency.
The presidency is not a sprint; it's a marathon. I'm both impressed and reassured to see Hillary getting her second wind in a big way, right at the moment lots of other people would stumble.
In the News
Here is some stuff in the news today...
[Content Note: Pulse shooting] President Obama is traveling to Orlando today to meet privately with survivors and grieving families. The President "will 'make clear that the country stands with the people of Orlando, stands with the LGBT community in Orlando as they grieve,' a White House spokesman said. Few details have been released but no major speech is planned."
[Continued CN] Also having traveled to Orlando are 12 golden retrievers who are trained as comfort dogs: "They had come to offer comfort to some of the victims of the attack, the families of those killed and the emergency medical workers, as well as anyone else in the city in need of some canine affection after the deadliest shooting in American history. ...Tim Hetzner, the president of the charity, said that the dogs in Orlando were helping to provide a feeling of safety, allowing those in distress to relax their guard and express their vulnerability during a difficult time. 'We've had a lot of people here that start petting the dog, and they break out crying,' he said. The dogs and their 20 handlers have visited hospitals and churches, and attended vigils and memorial services. On Wednesday, they visited some of the hospitalized victims and met with the staff of Pulse, the gay nightclub where the shooting occurred. 'People couldn't get out of their bed, so we had to bring the dog up so they could pet the dog while laying down,' Mr. Hetzner said. 'They start smiling, and in a couple cases, they started talking as much as they could.'" Blub.
In case you are wondering why it was that Bernie Sanders could be arsed to participate in the Senate filibuster last night to demand a vote on gun reforms, he "was in Burlington, Vt., ahead of a simulcast speech to supporters today. (He is not expected to concede.) He'd been in Washington the night before the filibuster began, for the Democratic luncheon and a meeting with Hillary Clinton, but he was not able to return to the city. 'It just didn't work yesterday,' said Sanders spokesman Michael Briggs. 'We're keeping an eye on votes next week.'" Oh. It just didn't work out. Sure.
Here's a cool line from that same article, following a note about what Sanders tweeted: "Hillary Clinton did roughly the same thing." Yeah, roughly. Except for the fact that she's not a sitting senator, so the fact that she only tweeted her support is actually rather NOT ROUGHLY THE SAME THING AT ALL.
[CN: War on agency; abortion; sexual violence] Disappointing: "Obama Administration Punts on Helms Amendment: The administration confirmed to Rewire that the president's remarks on 'treating survivors' at the United State of Women Summit Tuesday will not translate into executive action on the Helms Amendment—the subject of a demonstration that preceded Tuesday's summit activities."
Oprah Winfrey has endorsed Hillary Clinton. "You're gonna get a female president! And you're gonna get a female president! Everybody in here is gonna get a female president!!!"
Hillary has also secured the endorsement of the AFL-CIO: "Hillary Clinton is a proven leader who shares our values," said AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka in a statement. "Throughout the campaign, she has demonstrated a strong commitment to the issues that matter to working people, and our members have taken notice."
Ohio Governor John Kasich and Morning Joe host Joe Scarborough had a terrific exchange (ahem) about whose fault Donald Trump is. Kasich says it's the media's fault, like his party and its base and the cultivation of hatred had nothing to do with it. Meanwhile, Scarborough acts as though the media has no choice in whether to cover Trump. No one wants any responsibility. Cool. I guess how Donald Trump became the Republican nominee is a mystery lost to the sands of time.
Meanwhile, one of Donald Trump's campaign co-chairs and policy advisers Sam Clovis says of criticism from other prominent Republicans and the party leadership: "Either they want to get behind the presumptive nominee who will be the nominee of this party and make sure that we do everything we can to win in November or we're just asking them if they can't do that, then just shut the hell up." What a terrific team Trump has put together.
Congratulations to Jamie Shupe, who has won their legal battle to identify as neither male nor female, a historic ruling that makes them the first legally non-binary person in the US.
A woman parked in a space reserved for veterans. Someone who didn't know her left a note on her car reading: "This parking is for veterans, lady. Learn to read & have some respect." I bet you can guess how this ends! If you guessed that the person who wrote the note is a misogynistic asshole and the woman to whom it was written is a Navy veteran whose Facebook response has gone viral, give yourself a thousand points!
Wow: "Scientists have collected a second burst of gravitational waves sweeping through the Earth. The warping of space-time was sensed on Christmas Day in the US at the Advanced LIGO laboratories—the same facilities that made the historic first detection in September last year. Back then, the waves came from two huge coalescing black holes. This new set of waves, likewise, is ascribed to a black hole merger—but a smaller one. Reporting the event in the journal Physical Review Letters, the international collaboration that operates LIGO says the two objects involved had masses that were 14 and eight times that of our Sun."
[CN: Moving GIFs at link] And finally! Rescue pig and French bulldog puppy are BFFs. I MEAN.
Labour MP Jo Cox Dies After Attack
[Content Note: Guns; stabbing; death.]
Following a constituency meeting and one week before the EU referendum vote (commonly referred to as Brexit), Labour MP Jo Cox was killed by a man who shot and stabbed her multiple times. She was pronounced dead by a doctor at the scene.
My sincerest condolences to her family, friends, colleagues, constituents, and countrypeople.
The suspected killer, unofficially identified as Tommy Mair, 52, has been arrested. Police are "investigating reports that the suspect shouted 'Britain first,' a possible reference to the far-right political party of that name, as he launched the attack. Police are understood to be talking to at least one witness who claimed to have heard the attacker shout the words, and the motivation for the incident will form part of their inquiry.
There is more information about the attack at the link, and the Guardian has live updates here.
I don't know what to say except this: I am so sorry. And I grieve mightily that we are living in a world (as have we always) in which violence is regarded as the only political solution for so many people.
