Blogging is too a legitimate academic subject

Or so say some people at a colloquium that was held last week somewhere.

I bet that chick who spoke second wishes she'd known how shitty the camera angle was, so that she'd have made use of the podium.

Stuart E. Anderson of Great Falls, Montana: Asshole

On Mother's Day, this ad appeared in the Great Falls Tribune.

The ad reads:

The sanctity of human life has always been one of our most cherished heritages. The family unit is the foundation of our society. The devotion and sacrifice of mothers over the years and the continual care and concern for their unborn has been the cornerstone of the family. On this Mother’s Day 2007, we wish to express our gratitude to all mothers for their unselfishness in our behalf. As health-care professionals, we call upon the American people to once again reaffirm the right to life for future generations of the unborn and join with us in our efforts to restore respect, dignity and value to each human life—born or unborn.

You'll be unsurprised to find out that a week and a half later, when a woman went in to Snyder Drugs, which is owned by the Anderson family (one of the signatories to the ad), she was handed this note instead of her prescription; it reads

Snyder Drug has decided to no longer carry oral contraceptives. Although we no longer will carry this particular medication, we will continue to serve your prescription needs with utmost care and trust. We will be happy to transfer your oral contraceptive prescription to another pharmacy of your choice in a timely manner. If you have any questions regarding this matter, please direct them to the pharmacy owners, Stuart Anderson or Kurt and Kori Depner. By the end of May, we will no longer stock this class of medication. Sincerely, Stuart E. Anderson, R.Ph/owner.

Interestingly, the story doesn't appear to have been covered in the Great Falls Tribune, the paper that carried the ad; the only place I've found mention of it is on the Montana Netroots blog. Sadly, the author of the Montana Netroots post gets distracted by the issue of property rights and whether business owners have the right to run their businesses "as they see fit."

The real issue here is that Stuart E. Anderson, R.Ph, is a registered pharmacist and Snyder Drugs is a pharmacy. Which is to say, Mr. Anderson and his business are licensed by the state to dispense prescribed medications.

Which they are refusing to do.

Now, why are they refusing to dispense medications that are prescribed only to women? It isn't because oral contraceptives cause abortion--they don't. It isn't because they can prevent implantation of a fertilized egg, either, because while that may be theoretically possible, there's no evidence that oral contraceptives actually work that way--as a registered pharmacist surely knows.

I can only assume, then, that it's because Stuart E. Anderson and the co-owners of Snyder Drugs, Kurt and Kori Depner, are sexist jackasses who think that their license to dispense drugs is less important than their god-given right to pass judgment on women.

I hope that the State of Montana respects their choice by taking away Mr. Anderson's pharmacist's license and his and the Depner's right to own a pharmacy.

This post will be cross-posted over at SG this afternoon.

The Supreme Court Hates Women

AARRRGGGHHH.

The decision came in a case involving a supervisor at a Goodyear Tire plant in Gadsden, Ala., the only woman among 16 men at the same management level, who was paid less than any of her colleagues, including those with less seniority. She learned that fact late in a career of nearly 20 years — too late, according to the Supreme Court’s majority.

The court held on Tuesday that employees may not bring suit under the principal federal anti-discrimination law unless they have filed a formal complaint with a federal agency within 180 days after their pay was set.

That's it, ladies. Officially being a good little girl and giving your employer the benefit of the doubt is going to fuck you over. What you want to be doing now is demanding knowledge of your coworkers salaries from day one, and every time there's a raise or a promotion, and don't forget you want details of their benefits, work experience, transfers, titles, and perks. From here on out, anything that raises even the slightest doubt in your mind, you file suit--no more with the looking for "patterns" of discrimination.

Seriously. Equal pay for equal work? We're still fighting over this? Not the details of what it means, but the simple idea that it's the law? What? The? Fuck?

It's either that or attacking half the supreme court with a fucking baseball bat.

This MeMe Roth Jordin Sparks Fat Nonsense

Sigh. All the smart people are talking about this thing. Many interesting things are being said, but imho no one's identified the real issue, which is pretty simple.

This whole "I'm so concerned for her health!! And the health of all the impressionable girls who watch American Idol!"

Uh huh. Gosh, MeMe, that's mighty white of you. Funny how your concern doesn't extend to any of the health issues that don't make people . . . aesthetically displeasing.

Here's the thing: anyone dissing fat people? Who concern trolls it by wringing their hands over the health of perfect strangers? Is a big fat liar.

Not that it needs to be said, but Jordin Sparks is not obese. She's not a tiny thing, and she's not Hollywood stick thin. She's a young woman who looks--NOT THAT IT MATTERS--just fine.

Is she healthy? Lacking an MD and access to the woman's medical records, I'm not qualified to say.

"her UCLA department had a secret reserve of money that they used to supplement the salaries of male faculty"

One of the things people I've been hanging out with this week have been asking me is if I'm going to look for another academic gig. To which the answer is, I'll probably try to pick up some courses at the local CC or maybe CSUCI, both of which have the kind of student population I like best and the corresponding educational missions I support.

At one point I mighta thought about applying to UCLA, but maybe not.

The commute would suck anyway.

Not Professional Standup Comics*

In a shocking and unprecedented demonstration of an actual sense of humor, Ogged linked to The Beth And Val Show.

I love, love, love the internets.



*Funnier.

I wish this blog well

passive-aggressive notes from roommates, neighbors, coworkers and strangers. Really, is there anything more perfect for blog fodder?

Their blogroll's awesome, too.

Newsflash: Karl Zinsmeister Has . . . Issues

According to a new article on Think Progress, Karl Zinsmeister--the current Chief Domestic Policy Advisor to the Bush administration--thinks it's cool to stereotype and bitch about working women:

“He went to his son’s basketball game, and then he would give Jo [Roback-Pal] a hard time about a doctor’s appointment,” Rollins says. … While Zinsmeister frequently complained about Roback-Pal to other staffers at the magazine — telling [then-business manager Garth] Cadiz that she was “useless” and “never there” — her former colleagues say that she never missed a deadline and that he was “abusive” toward her. When she angered him by taking a four-month maternity leave, Zinsmeister told Cadiz, “I am never going to hire another woman because they just get pregnant and leave.”

Yawn. Just another day at the office for Bushco. Family values are all well and good as window dressing--the odd basketball game? Appropriately American and Manly--but pregnant working women who have to see doctors? Stupid bitches, everyone knows that you have to make "choices" in life, and if you "choose" to have a baby, you can't expect the same privileges as everyone else.*

Curious, I did a li'l googling on Mr. Zinsmeister. Folks who attend to these things probably already knew that he was a partisan douchebag, the kind who would argue that the real Abu Ghraib story is about the merciless assaults of the terrorist insurgents. In other words, what we should pay attention to is what those people are doing wrong; our own fuckups aren't newsworthy as long as we can point fingers at someone else. Like his heroic comic book about the Manly Doings of the 82nd Airborne in Iraq, a group he was embedded in as a reporter and therefore obviously draws reflected glory from (just look at that picture of him! So militaristic! So jut-jawed!). The 82nd Airborne's torture of Iraqi detainess? Never mind that: let's talk about exciting things, like bombs and helicopters and high-tech weaponry and cartoonishly two-dimensional soldiers.

Pretty par for the Bush administration course; I can see why they hired him.

He mighta gotten one thing right, though, when he said that

people in Washington are morally repugnant, cheating, shifty human beings.

Most of them aren't; but the people like him certainly are.

*Note that this is illogical: most "everyone else" also has children, but since they don't actuallly give birth to them, possessing them is a kind of property value, and hence as American as apple pie. You can't deprive people (read: rich white guys) of their property in Republican America. On the other hand, it's yet another piece of evidence that paying attention to who is and isn't an asshole about women's rights is a pretty good yardstick to who is and isn't an asshole, full stop.

Cross-posted over at SG

Also Appearing At

I realize not everyone really wants to click over to a site that contains pictures of half-nekked women--nor can many of you during the work week. But it's Saturday, people, and most of you have seen half-nekked women before. So if you've been missing some of my more snarky cultural commentary, you can see what else I've been up to over at SG--that link'll take you to the Bitch PhD Recent Posts page where you can enjoy my emerging Photoshop Gimp (it's free!) skillz and underappreciated bitchy humor. (Though I suppose I should warn you in fairness that I did a recent post with a banner pic of a hydrocephalic fetus, so if you've suffered a pregnancy loss or something, you might not want to click over.)

In more substantive, less self-serving news, you're unlikely to read in the papers that

in the next week or so, Rep. Rosa L. DeLauro (D-CT) will re-introduce to Congress the FDA Scientific Fairness for Women Act. The purpose of the bill is to make women’s health issues a priority at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

The FDA Scientific Fairness for Women Act attempts to take the politics out of women’s health decision-making at FDA. Among other things, it would:

§ Elevate the Office of Women's Health within the FDA so that the office reports directly to the Commissioner, instead of being buried two levels down from the Commissioner;

§ Rescind approval of silicone breast implants if the manufacturers cannot conclusively demonstrate their safety for the life of the implant; and

§ Require FDA to convene a workshop to review and evaluate current scientific data on the use of emergency contraception by young women under the age of 18.

This via an email from a reader, who also provides this handy link to write your representatives and tell them to get on board.

I will admit, in all honesty, that--not having paid much attention at all to the silicone implant health discussions--I'm agonostic on the question of whether silicone implants are a long-term health hazard. I remember Norplant getting pulled off the market with arguments that the silicone tubes could cause autoimmune disorders and so on, and my understanding of that is that it's bunk.

Now, I'm ALL FOR being cautious about new products and their effects on women's health; but part of doing so responsibly, I think, is to differentiate between rumor and evidence. Like I said, I do not know which the silicone breast implant fears are based on. But having done my research on Norplant back when I had it (and to this day I miss it--best birth control evah!), my understanding is that silicone is neutral in the body, which is why they use it for hip replacements and so on. Of course, maybe the liquid shit circulates differently and causes problems that solid silicone doesn't, and by and large breast implants are the work of the devil anyway. But in any case, I felt that intellectual honesty required full disclosure on that issue.

HOWEVER. Elevating the Office of Women's Health to a higher position in the FDA, and continuing to put pressure on the Real Science behind Plan B, which should be handed out free to every girl as soon as she gets her first period, imho, are both very worthy goals. And I support 'em 100%.

And the weekend, she is upon us

We've got plans for the weekend, but currently Mr. B. is back in exciting Shafter (no, my people there weren't migrants--they were farmers and given to bitching about the Okies along with every other group of people who weren't them) helping my uncle clear out Grandpa's house. I've got a talk to write and email--which I promised by a couple of days ago, but I suck--and I just got asked (and agreed like the dunce that I am) to help with PK's school's "Summer Olympics" in June. PK is practicing roqueting on the lawn, I'm wearing my favorite new skirt from Target, which is green and foofy and has ridiculous eyelet cutout on the underlayer and big deep pockets (so useful, so rare) and looks great with, say, a white tailored shirt from Ann Taylor that cost three times as much but worn with its peer item--say, a cheap cotton scoopneck tshirt from Old Navy--manages me to look like a chubby muscular woman who's trying to look femme and not quite realizing that femme isn't a good look for her. I totally love it.

Also, we are starting to look at buying a house. You can only imagine the joy this brings us all.

Linkety link link

Wow, I've managed to pile up quite a backlog of interesting links, questions, and friendly hellos. Email is teh awesome; email is teh devil. Sans further ado, here's some reading matter for you. You weren't going to get any work done today anyway, were you?

Congressmen try living on food stamps--and blog about the experience.

Yesterday, I didn’t eat anything at all until lunchtime, and that really took a lot out of me. So far today I’ve had some cottage cheese, a cup of coffee and a peanut butter and jelly sandwich. I think that now that my body has had some time to adjust, it’s a little easier, but my energy level is still noticeably lower than normal.

As people have read and begun to talk to me about our small effort to bring attention to a very big concern, I was surprised by how many people I work with at a small cancer nonprofit have faced this personally.

Another survey of blog readers by a grad student in Poli Sci. If you can do one good thing today, helping a grad student with her dissertation is a noble cause. Please don't discuss the survey in comments--'twill bias the results--and know that any identifying demographic info asked for will be stripped from your specific answers by the software.

Lindsay the Fabulous rakes the muck about Bush's disgraced "birth control czar" Eric Keroack. You know, the birth control = abstinence guy.

Nancy Goldstein, who is a most fabulous chica with a most fabulous wife, reviews Michael Beschloss's book about "Presidential Courage." Find out what she thinks of his glowing story of Republican heroism through the years.

Some good folks are pushing a UN Treaty for Women's Rights. Tell your senators to ratify the thing already 'cause women are people too.

How are those bitchy chicks with PhDs doing in Universities? See what Ms. has to say.

Remember how grateful we all were to Cecilia Fire Thunder for stepping up when it looked like South Dakota women were going to be the first on the "no abortions, nohow" list? Let's not be all white about it: continue to support Indian women in South Dakota (and wherever you live), one third of whom will be raped in their lifetimes. We all know that reservations are some of the worst ghettos in America, and that the consequences of poverty usually fall hardest on women. Pony up.

Hopefully you're aware of the Walter Reed scandal, because I'm not up to filling you in. It's just the tip of a much larger iceberg of bullshit (bad metaphor alert!) in how the Bush Administration and its biggest fans, the Religious Right treat military vets.

Okay, enough bad news. Here's some great news: the fabulous Miss Flea, who continues to be my role model in all things blogular (a role model I'm well aware I haven't been living up to of late), is expanding her empire. And we, the seekers of free first-class content are the beneficiaries. She's guest blogging at Feministe and runs a brand-new sex column over at Offsprung, Neal Pollack's new online parenting magazine for people like us. Amanda's got a gig over there, too, covering politics without having to worry about whether or not she ruffles the panties of cranky Catholic Bill Donohue. I have to admit that I am fighting back feelings of green, green envy.

Still a bad person, me

If you somehow missed the Salon interview with Tinky Winky about Falwell's death, do go read it.

I was reading portions of it to Mr. B. and he said, quite matter-of-factly, "Oh, did you know they also talked to Po?"

Me, confused: What?
Mr. B.: Po, you know, the red Teletubby.
Me: Okay... who talked to Po? Tinky?
Mr. B.: No, the media.
Me, starting to get it: Ah. And?
Mr. B.: They asked him if he was sad about Falwell's death. And do you know what he said?
Me: What?
Mr. B.: Naooooooo.......

Jerry Fell. Well?

I started the day full of hatred. But then I heard the news that Jerry Falwell had dropped dead, and my mind turned to higher things. Like the nature of "god" and "evil." And what message God could possibly be sending us by smiting Jerry down. We know the Lord moves in mysterious ways, so there's got to be some twisted counter-intuitive meaning. Was Jerry killed to punish the feminists and homosexuals? Or is his death intended to demonstrate our evil nature as we refuse to bow down in sorrow? Perhaps it signals God's disapproval of Congress for trying to end the War on Iraqi Terrorism. Could He be punishing America for voting Democratic in the last election? Maybe Jerry's death is meant as a warning to Mexico City for having recently decriminalized abortion? Or to the Vatican for having pulled back on the Pope's statement that pro-choice politicians excommunicate themselves? It might be a premonition of worse to come if Hillary wins the Democratic nomination. It could be a sign to Bush that his recent move to acknowledge the existence of greenhouse gases violates God's will. Or perhaps it's to punish Alberto Gonzales for criticizing his second in command instead of standing up for the administration's god-given right to fire anyone who is not enthusiastic enough about doing the Lord's work. Perhaps instead it's a warning to the World Bank to stop being mean to Wolfowitz. So many possibilities!

If only Jerry were here to tell us.

Free to good home

A commenter writes:

finally took your advice and had a bra fitting at Nordstrom today and found out that all my nice wacoal & chantelle 36B bras are too big for me. I'm actually at 32C!!! Who knew! Anyhow, I want my nice collection of too large bras to go to a good home--i.e., someone who knows they are 36B.

So I thought of you first but I don't know your size. If you aren't a 36B and know someone who appreciates nice lingerie, I would be happy to mail them to her. I've probably got about 7-8 bras that I spend $60 or more/each on--they should go to someone woman who would appreciate them and whom they would fit.

Alas, despite the timeliness of this offer--I'm in the middle of a bra fitting crisis, yes, ME!--this is not the size I require. But maybe it's yours?

If you're a proper 36B, email me w/ your address and I'll pass it along--first come, first serve.

Okay! Bras claimed. Sorry, ladies.

Happy Mother's Day

Give yourself twenty-two minutes to watch this. Really. You'll thank me.

New York Event for Reproductive Rights

The US Supreme Court and the South Dakota abortion ban:
Organizing for Reproductive Justice

Speakers:

Nancy Goldstein is Director of Communications and Development for National Advocates for Pregnant Women and co-editor of The Gender Politics of HIV/AIDS in Women (NYU Press, 1997)

Cari Sietstra is the founder of Law Students for Choice and a South Dakota native. She returned to organize against the state’s comprehensive abortion ban.

Thursday May 10th 2007
7:00 PM
Bluestockings Bookstore
172 Allen Street
(between Stanton and Rivington Streets in Manhattan: take F train to 2nd Avenue or J/M/Z to Essex/Delancy)

Organized by Solidarity
For more information email Chloe.Tribich@gmail.com

No one else is gonna do it

How long do you think it takes to bike 4 1/2 miles? Come up with your answer and then highlight the white space immediately below to find out the truth.

Four and a half hours.

I shit you not. If you don't have kids, you cannot possibly have any earthly idea how damn difficult it is to ride with a child to the doctor's and back, in traffic, when the child is a little nervous on a bike, not AT ALL happy about going to see the doctor in order to have his penis examined, and you have only 45 minutes to get there.

But let me try to give you a little idea.

Me, trying to be heard over traffic: PSEUDONYMOUS KID, WE REALLY NEED TO GO A LITTLE FASTER.
Pseudonymous Kid: MAMA! I'M SLOWING DOWN SO YOU CAN RIDE NEXT TO ME!
Me: THEN MOVE OVER SO I DON'T RUN INTO YOU!
Pseudonymous Kid: I CAN'T MOVE OVER, I'M AFRAID THE BIKE WILL TIP! (Because the bike lane slopes down near the curb, obviously)
Me: PK, I HAVE TO RIDE BEHIND YOU SO I'M BETWEEN YOU AND THE CARS.
Pseudonymous Kid: BUT I WANT TO TALK TO YOU!
Me: IT'S OKAY, I'M RIGHT HERE.
Pseudonymous Kid: I CAN'T SEE YOU! (Drifts closer to the white line as he tries to look over his shoulder.)
Me: PK, YOU HAVE TO RIDE CLOSER TO THE CURB!
Pseudonymous Kid: MAMA, DON'T YELL AT ME!
Me: I WANT YOU TO BE ABLE TO HEAR ME!
Pseudonymous Kid: YOU DON'T HAVE TO YELL! I'M ALREADY STRESSED OUT! (Begins sobbing.)
Me: OKAY, STOP FOR A MINUTE.

Pseudonymous Kid pulls over and stops. I stop behind him. I lay my bike down on the curb, go over, kneel down, give him a hug.

Me: Sweetie, what's wrong?
Pseudonymous Kid: I don't want to go to the doctor!
Me: Honey, it'll be okay. Really. I'll be there.
Pseudonymous Kid: There's nothing wrong with my penis! I hate doctors!
Me: Buddy, the regular doctor just wants the penis doctor to have a look at your foreskin to make sure it isn't too tight. That's all. It'll be fine. We'll go get ice cream afterwards. (This last bit makes me feel like a child molestor.)
Pseudonymous Kid: I hate this!
Me: Aww, sweetie, I know. Look, I'm sorry, but we really have to get going, we're going to be late. Do you want some water?
Pseudonymous Kid: No. Give me the bottle.
Me: Here you go.

Pseudonymous Kid drinks some water, hands me back the bottle.

Me: Ready?
Pseudonymous Kid: Don't rush me! (Starts to pedal. I follow.)
Me: PK, CAN YOU GO A LITTLE FASTER? IT'S REALLY HARD FOR ME TO RIDE THIS SLOWLY WITHOUT FALLING OVER.
Pseudonymous Kid: DON'T RUSH ME!
Me: I'M NOT TRYING TO RUSH YOU, I JUST DON'T WANT TO HAVE TO CHOOSE BETWEEN RUNNING INTO YOU OR RUNNING INTO A CAR.
Pseudonymous Kid: (Pedalling a little faster) HOW'S THIS?
Me: GREAT! YOU'RE DOING GREAT!


Someday, maybe he'll thank me for helping him learn to ride a bike. I have to admit that I got a lot of "I love you, Mama"s and "you're my favorite mama"s yesterday.

But somehow, it just isn't enough. Someone needs to be giving out medals, yo.

Liberal's just another word for gay

And proud of it.

Holy Act of Congress!

Phutatorious' Chestnut, who no longer seems to blog at Is There No Sin in It?,* sent me this link to an awesome 1974 psa for equal pay.



Check out Robin's reactions. Priceless. You always knew he was a little prig, didn't you?


*Bonus: A White Bear has two great posts about grading on the front page right now.

Notes on Nothing much

1. Let my next kid (if I have another) be stupid. Smart kids ask too many damn questions. What I wouldn't give for a child who would just say "oh, okay" instead of "why?"

2. This house is a mess, dudes. And we're having a realtor/friend/mom of one of PK's classmates over tonight for dinner to talk about looking for a place to buy. My day is fucking shot.

3. PK is on a campaign to get me to quit smoking. He follows me when I sneak outside and begs me not to smoke, and (by his own admission) hangs around while I'm out there lest I sneakily light up once he goes back inside. Goddamn little bugger. The worst part is, it's fucking working. Congratulatory messages or smug little notes will be deleted, because I don't want to hear it.

4. According to a letter sent home by the school system last week, PK is now classified as a "truant." Because he's had too many "unexcused" absences and tardies. We are to "discuss this with our child" and sign the slip and send it back. Mr. B. signed the slip and wrote a note saying that we are *not* discussing it with PK--who hardly needs to stress out more about shit that isn't up to him--and that since he's in first grade, the lateness/absences are clearly his parents fault and we will do better from now on. My suggestion was to write a note saying "bite me," but he felt that was inappropriate, for some reason. California really needs to fund schools according to enrollment, not average daily attendance, the fuckers.

Anthony Ciolli: Poor Widdle Baby

This post is mostly verbatim from an email I got from a person who wishes to remain anonymous.

There is a law student message board called AutoAdmit.com. It is, in a word, awful: full of the most reprehensible reactionary sexist, racist, bullshit.

AutoAdmit has repeatedly harassed female law students. Because the board did not make their pages un-Googleable, the harassment creates a public record under the women's names. A few female law students who were the subject of the harassment were unable to get jobs, probably in part because recruiters Googled their names and decided the women were too much of a risk for the reputation driven business that is law. The targeted women were all smart, attractive, and attended very highly ranked law schools.

The Washington Post article linked in the paragraph above above brought some scrutiny to the assholes over at AutoAdmit; the guy in charge of the site said, more or less, blah blah freedom of speech. Okay, fine.

One of the first consequences of AutoAdmit's free speech as XXXtreme sport attitude came when a Boalt 1L student posted a shooting threat against UC Hastings less than 48 hours after the VT massacre. As a consequence, he's being
expelled.

Today the WSJ law blog noted that one of the self-identified administrators of the board, Anthony Ciolli, who repeatedly defended his support for the vicious harassment as free speech just had his job offer at a well-regarded law firm rescinded.

According to the WSJ, the firm rescinded it because Ciolli had repeated chances to repudiate the harassment of female law students and the systemic racism and homophobia on that site and never did. Note that despite their free speech defense, the moderators of the board freely pulled threads calling the harassers to task, but refused to pull threads harassing female law students by name, including those which included graphic threats of rape and violence. They were asked repeatedly by the victims to pull the threads and refused.

The comments on the WSJ blog post are full of whining about how the First Amendment is being violated, except of course the First Amendment doesn't apply to private actors and the government isn't involved in the slightest here. [My correspondent writes that he/she is] a little ashamed that my fellow lawyers and law students misunderstood Constitutional Law so fundamentally.

This is the power of the market in all its glory, nothing more and nothing less. Law firms will not risk their ability to attract valuable clients on a 23-year-old who endorses violently homophobic, racist, and sexist threats. I think the law firm was absolutely in the right here. Ciolli is paying the price that his female victims paid, except they didn't deserve it, and he does.

Live by the sword, die by the sword, motherfucker.

More here and here. That last link has the precious comment that "the last thing" poor Anthony "wanted was this to be public. I just want to be left alone."

Mmhm. Cry me a fucking river.

Two thoughts about the Republican party

1. All the Republican candidates look alike. How the fuck are you supposed to tell which is which? (Check out this image of a cameraman with a cheat sheet to try to help. Poor guy.)

2. Sweet, sweet, implosion: when internal ideological contradictions collide.

[Sen. Lautenberg's (D-NJ)] bill essentially gives the Attorney General the direct authority (above and beyond the Brady Bill) to prevent those on terrorist watch lists from purchasing firearms. Gonzales and the Administration, in their quest for ever-increasing power, have offered no objection to the bill's contents.
This leads to a double-bind for the GOP--if they support the bill, they do the following:

1. betray their rabidly pro-gun base in favor of federal power to prevent gun ownership, and

2. give the Democrats a legislative anti-gun victory in the wake of the shootings at Virginia Tech;

If they oppose the bill, they:

1. Deny the Executive authority in an issue of national security; and

2. Put themselves on record as saying that dangerous firearms should be in the hands of known terrorists.

AHAHAHAHAHAHHA!

Can you hear me now?

So Mr. Bicyclemark spent a few hours futzing around with the code--which is still not clean, RonO, I'm sorry--and the site does appear to work now in Safari for me. It's still slow, which seems to be an ad issue, and at some point I might get around to tinkering with the different ad codes just to see if the tradeoff between money and performance is really worth it (some ads pay better than others). But it *will* load, and if you don't want to wait for the ads, just make it stop loading.

I don't know what the story is with IE. If it ain't working for you Msoft slaves, (1) switch to Firefox; (2) stop reading blogs at work?

No, actually, if it's not working, let me know and I'll pay Mark or someone else who knows how to write for that stupid-ass program to fix it. Just because I love you all so much.



Oh, P.S. I got rid of the blogroll, temporarily, because it's hopelessly out of date at this point and has a lot of dead links. A shorter updated roll with new links will be up at some point. No really.

But probably not this month because I have two articles and a talk to write.

Family values

Ms. Kate sent me a link to this cool quiz about contemporary American families. Most of you reading this site, I bet, will do pretty well--contrary to right-wing family values rhetoric, feminist families seem to be doing pretty damn well by children, thankyouverymuch.

Sample answer, for those of you too lazy to take the quiz (but if you want to, don't scroll down until afterwards):

When parents work different shifts, it puts stress on their marriage, but children often reported enjoying the greater time they spent with their fathers, said Karen Gareis of the Families & Work Program at Brandeis University. Without the mother around, these Dads developed closer bonds with the children and were rated as better parents by their children than fathers whose wives worked day shifts.

Hey, tits-for-brains!

This is an ad for breast implants.

Via the Stay Free Daily, courtesy M. Le Apostropher.

All legit and shit

Check it out: feminist blogging has its own special issue of a real genuine academic journal. With, natch, an associated blog for discussion.

It's like we're being co-opted or something.

Fabulous

Too good not to quote:

She had been a dame, a founding member of that trim, yakkety-yak sisterhood which saw no reason that men should rule the roost and no contretemps so sticky that a woman could not oil her way out of it through dialogue alone.

From Anthony Lane's profile of Barbara Stanwyck in last week's New Yorker.

I really love Lane's writing.