Return to Gender 101

[Watser?]

Okay, not sure what bothers me more about this (extreme) example of Maher being a total frat boy dick, the casual racist warmongering or the casual sexist excusing of abuse, but it's waaaaaay fucked up. I hate this asshole's guts more than even Bill Oreilly (however you spell that).
Bill Maher: Hamas Is Like A 'Crazy Woman' That 'You Have To Slap'

[BrotherMan]

Por Que No Los Dos?

[Dingfod]

I would give Sofia Vergara five minutes of the best mediocre sex she ever had, so long as she didn't talk like Fran Drescher.

[Janet]

Hey, ES, Everyday Sexism's theme for the day is food policing by strangers. I bet you have tons of stories you could share.

[Ensign Steve]

[The Man]

Random links on gender-related topics:

Fifty Shades of Meh, Who Cares, That Book Sucked and So Will the Movie

Lemme be clear: I don’t care if people want to read bad books or watch bad movies. But having survived the Great Fifty Shades Philosophical Debate of 2012, I’m not especially thrilled to have these conversations all over again. You know, the conversations about how SHOCKING! it is that ladies enjoy reading sexytime stories, like that is some kind of new thing. Hell, even Mrs. Dick Cheney wrote her own sad version of a steamy sexytime story way back in 1981, long before everyone had to teach their kids about blowjobs, thanks a LOT, Bill Clinton.

And all of the puritanical judgmental blah blah blah about, as Mitch Albom called it, “not your typical sex”? Yup, I could easily live the rest of my life without that. I don’t know what “typical sex” is supposed to be — apparently, it includes “a little less p-word, a little less v-word” because even though Mitch is a supposed grown-up, he cannot bring himself to say PENIS and VAGINA — but my ovaries curl up in the fetal position and cry every time people try to dictate what kind of sex is “typical,” because that, my friends, is a slippery man-on-dog slope to self-righteous sons of bitches trying to write their own laws to regulate the kinds of sex — the gay kind, the unmarried kind, the for-pleasure-not-babies kind — that they think is icky and ewwww and should be publicly shunned, if not outright outlawed.

Without getting all TMI on you (no, I am not going to tell you what I keep in the drawer next to my bed, so don’t even ask), I’m pretty sure I’ve had PENIS and VAGINA sex that Mitch Albom would consider “not typical,” and WHO CARES? It’s safe and consensual, so really, does it matter if it involves — shudder, gasp — ropes or handcuffs or role-playing or slap-and-tickle or whatever else I and my partner du jour enjoy?

The first round of conversations about Shades was painful enough, and not in the hurts-so-good way. Aside from the terrible, TERRIBLE writing and the actually pretty boring sex scenes, the series also perpetuated all the worst kinds of stereotypes about people who are into BDSM and kink and do not blush at saying PENIS and VAGINA. [...]

I think it would be fan-fucking-tastic if we could act our age, not our shoe size, when it comes to sex. If we were capable of talking and behaving like grown-ups, without trying to define “typical” sex and, consequently, without judging and discriminating against people whose sex doesn’t meet that narrow definition of “typical,” whatever the hell it is, I don’t know, it’s not clear exactly, that’s sort of the point, everyone’s idea of sex is different and THAT IS OKAY. (Except for Rick Santorum. His idea of sex is that you should most definitely not enjoy it because sex is for making babies, not orgasms, and let us all have a second of sympathy for poor Mrs. Santorum.)

At a minimum, it would be great if we could get beyond blushing at words like PENIS and VAGINA. Remember when Michigan state Rep. Lisa Brown was INDEFINITELY BANNED from the House floor just for saying the word “vagina”? Yes, that happened, so it’s no wonder we cannot handle the idea of consenting adults getting it on with props or whatever.

Fun-Loving Anti-Abortion Pals Making New Friends Invading Unitarian Church, Calling Them Satan

Hey, Unitarians, if you’re so “tolerant,” why don’t you let fundamentalist Christians interrupt your services? You know that they’d be happy to let you start reading loudly from Ralph Waldo Emerson during one of their services. Seriously, the fundies are nothing to be afraid of — this bunch didn’t even murder anyone this time, so obviously they’re learning a thing or two about civility.

On the U.U. church’s Facebook page, Rev. Vandiver said that while diverse religious beliefs are a vital part of American freedom,

So apparently she just has no idea what the First Amendment is all about, since it requires people to sit quietly and nod while uninvited visitors yell at them about how they are abominations unto God. That’s what America was founded on, after all.

Area Woman Still Can't Stop Thinking About Sandra Fluke's Totalitarian Vagina

Well, now there is a lady, and she is a licensed clinical psychologist, although — oddly! — her website does not list any of her training or her schooling or her specialties except that she will psychologize your kids, which you should probably hop on, and can testify about forensic clinical psychologist stuff in four states, and those four states really might want to look into that, because this lady, well, she is a treat! She thinks Gloria Steinem is making Illuminati hand signs everywhere, and that Nancy Pelosi is here to murder all the grandbabies (that one is just obvious), and oh, so many thoughts about Sandra Fluke’s “All-American, Totalitarian” vagina. Still.

Deborah C. Tyler, Ph.D., writing in American “Thinker,” begins with a tale of a man who kept seeing so many vadges in a Rorschach test — as you do. Dr. Tyler, with no irony at all, declares this man obsessed, and decides that Sandra Fluke, not she, is obsessed with the vadge, because of how Fluke studied feminism in college and … Gloria Steinem? Some stuff.

I Take Birth Control Because I'm a Slutty Slut Who Sluts So Hard. You?

Anyway, birth control is pretty much like that. It is a medication type thing that some women (basically all women, like 99 percent of them) use in a medication type way for medical type reasons, such as, for example, endometriosis, which is extremely painful and can be treated with birth control. Such as also for example not wanting to grow a baby inside your body, which can be avoided with birth control. Such as also too for example you are getting married and then going on a fabulous two-week honeymoon to a five-star hotel on the beach, and you do NOT want to be a crampy, bloody, bloated bridezilla, so you’d like to skip it altogether please, which is possible with birth control. Stuff like that.

How. EVER.

There is one teeny tiny almost-not-worth-mentioning minor difference between birth control type medication and EVERY OTHER SINGLE TYPE OF MEDICATION. No one forces grandma to explain why she takes those baby aspirin every morning. We’ve never hauled kids in front of Congress to kidsplain why it is important for them to take their vitamins. Last time I checked, there were no laws restricting Rush Limbaugh’s access to boner pills, no Supreme Court justices scoffing at his “health” problems, no Bible-humpers telling him his limp dick is God’s will and that he is messing with the primal forces of nature, and also making Jesus sad, which violates the First Amendment now because everything is terrible.

But for some reason (see above re: everything is terrible), there is this expectation that women should justify why they REALLY need their medication so that the American public can decide, in its consistently infinite wisdom, whether those reasons are legitimate (nope, apparently they never are, HUH, WEIRD), or maybe those sex pill-popping sluts should just CLOSE THEIR LEGS! and buy a pack of condoms at the liquor store even though condoms don’t actually treat endometriosis or control your period, but what does that have to do with anything, right?

Iraqi Jerks Will Cut Off Your Clitoris for Whatever the Islamic Version of Jesus Is

The United Nations says that in Mosul, ISIS has ordered all women and girls between the ages of 11 and 45 to undergo female genital mutilation. We hope the Hobby Lobby folks don’t get any ideas.

UN official Jacqueline Badcock said that the edict could affect as many as four million women and girls in the ISIS-controlled area around Mosul. “This is not the will of Iraqi people, or the women of Iraq in these vulnerable areas covered by the terrorists,” she said.

The fatwa follows an earlier action this week expelling all Christians from Mosul, and the confiscation of their abandoned homes by ISIS.

The BBC notes that “some bloggers suggest that the edict, or fatwa, may be a fabrication aimed at discrediting ISIS,” but we’re inclined to think the UN probably has better sourcing than bloggers. Who knows?

Official ESPN Policy Allows Employees to Blame Women for the Domestic Violence Athletes Commit

Color me shocked that a conversation between Skip Bayless and Stephen A. Smith on ESPN’s loathsome First Take would lead Smith to blame women for domestic violence. [...]

The context of course is the NFL’s depressingly small 2 game suspension for Baltimore Ravens star running back Ray Rice knocking out his girlfriend (now wife) in the elevator of an Atlantic City casino. For comparison, a third offense for smoking marijuana is a 4 game suspension.

Satanic Temple Rides Hobby Lobby to Obvious Conclusion: Abortions for Everyone!

In a statement, the Satanic Temple said that it will use the Supreme Court’s recent Hobby Lobby decision to exempt its believers from state-mandated informed consent laws that require women considering abortions to read pro-life material. [...]

Because the Satanic Temple bases its belief “regarding personal health…on the best scientific understanding of the world, regardless of the religious or political beliefs of others,” it claims that state-mandated information with no basis in scientific fact violates its “religious” beliefs. [...]

[Satanic Temple] spokesperson, Lucien Greaves, points out that the controversial Hobby Lobby ruling bolsters their cause: “While we feel we have a strong case for an exemption regardless of the Hobby Lobby ruling, the Supreme Court has decided that religious beliefs are so sacrosanct that they can even trump scientific fact. This was made clear when they allowed Hobby Lobby to claim certain contraceptives were abortifacients, when in fact they are not. Because of the respect the Court has given to religious beliefs, and the fact that our our beliefs are based on best available knowledge, we expect that our belief in the illegitimacy of state-mandated ‘informational’ material is enough to exempt us, and those who hold our beliefs, from having to receive them.”

[Ymir's blood]

BBC News - Doubts grow over Isis 'FGM edict' in Iraq

[The Lone Ranger]

As a rule, I don't approve of "rape as drama." I won't bother to repeat what I wrote in this thread, but it occurs to me that, occasionally, it's necessary for an author to point certain things out.

Specifically, it's far too easy for the average male to think something along the lines of, "What's the big deal? It's just sex, after all.". I think that it's worth being reminded once in awhile that rape is a horrific thing to do to someone, and it's not just unwanted sex.

[Janet]

This could have gone in the Geek Girls thread, but it touches on more general things as well. The Village Voice has a lovely response to the gendered attacks on one of their reviewers. A Note to the Guardians of the Galaxy Fans Who are Calling our Critic a "Harlot". The graphic at the end is pretty awesome, too.

[LadyShea]

Did someone already post this quote (it was quoted in Janet's article)? If so, here it is again, if not, this rocks

"Just yesterday, a woman wrote an article analyzing what she thought was a poor comic book cover, and she was met with just a bunch of shitty anonymous people being awful to her online. I think that a huge problem is people who read comics and don't understand the point of superheroes, which is to be the best version of yourself. You love Captain America? Well, you know what Captain America would never do? Go online anonymously and shit on a girl for having an opinion." ~ Brian Michael Bendis, the writer of Marvel's current Guardians of the Galaxy comic-book series

[The Lone Ranger]

The accompanying image is perfect, too:

Bendis has a good point: how can people be so devoted to such characters while completely failing to understand what they're about?

[Ensign Steve]

I think what they are understanding is that heteronormative white males are heroes and everybody else is irrelevant. It's a point that has been driven home pretty hard.

[Ari]

Speaking of,
The Guardians of the Galaxy team,

Notice anyone missing?

[Angakuk]

Originally Posted by Ensign Steve

I think what they are understanding is that heteronormative white males are heroes and everybody else is irrelevant. It's a point that has been driven home pretty hard.

As a heteronormative white male I heroically object to the implications of your post.

[Ensign Steve]

You're doing it wrong. You didn't call me a cunt or threaten me with rape or nuthin!

[Ensign Steve]

Originally Posted by Ari

Speaking of,
The Guardians of the Galaxy team,

Notice anyone missing?

I have Justice League jammies that have everyone except Wonder Woman and Martian Manhunter. Sexist and racist!

[Angakuk]

Originally Posted by Ensign Steve

You're doing it wrong. You didn't call me a cunt or threaten me with rape or nuthin!

Consider all of that to be implied by my heroic objection.

[The Man]

the current british government is so terrible

[Ensign Steve]

So if I'm reading the unaltered version correctly, I am twice as likely to be raped if I have not been drinking?

Bottoms up!

[Janet]

I retweeted that over a week ago and I'm still getting notified regularly of more retweets. It's almost catching up to the #yesallwoman retweet I did.

[viscousmemories]

I just stumbled on this article, in which Justine Musk, Elon Musk's first wife, talks about giving up her identity to conform to his unreasonable expectations. I frequently despair having had a similar affect on the first woman I had a long-term relationship with, right down to compelling her to dye her hair to satisfy my desire to have a blonde girlfriend. I'm glad I'm not (quite) the asshole I was at 20.

[JoeP]

[thankshole]  

Here's the link to the actual first page Justine Musk Interview on Divorce from PayPal Cofounder of the article.

[BrotherMan]

YouTube

[The Man]

[Stormlight]

It's nice to get compliments!

The women of Fox's Outnumbered discussed the controversial issue of catcalling during Thursday's show and seemed to reach the consensus that, in the words of Kimberly Guilfoyle, "it's nice to get compliments."

So it's agreed then. You silly old FF womens should lighten up (again!) because secretly you all like it.