Sometimes, I have no words

http://blogs.houstonpress.com/hairballs/2008/12/galveston_false_arrest.php

And sometimes, I only need three. WHAT THE FUCK???

This poor kid. I don't feel qualified to talk about the racism a young black girl faces growing up in Texas, but as a human being I can't help but be revolted by this.

Growing up, we all learn to call the police when we're in trouble. They exist to watch and protect us. But who's watching them? I wonder sometimes.

Questions I Have for the Galveston, TX Police

1. Are your undercover police officers blind? I don't see how else they could mistake a twelve-year-old black child for an adult white woman. What was this, the Helen Keller division?

2. Since when does wearing short shorts equal practicing prostitution? Prostitutes do wear pants, you know. And skirts, even. Also, I might point out that many types of everyday exercise wear (like bicycle shorts and yoga pants) are also tight-fitting. Also, it's fucking TEXAS. You should at least understand the desire to wear as little as possible to avoid dying from the dry heat.

3. If Dymond Milburn had actually been a prostitute, would that have justified the violence used against her? Do most prostitutes require three men to bring them downtown? If so, is it like in Sin City where the prostitutes have machine guns, throwing stars and katanas?

And, oh yeah...prostitutes are human beings as well. In case y'all didn't know down there in Texas. And guess what? So are black people! How bout that!

The most sickening part of this is that they're charging the VICTIM. I want to throw up. I am so outraged I'm literally sick with it. This makes no sense, and yet these officers will likely get away with it. Because their victim is young, black, and a girl. And she's in Texas.

Why didn't we let the South secede again?

Abomination? Try OBAMA-NATION!

http://community.feministing.com/2008/12/prop-8--the-musical.html

This is just plain hysterical. I can't believe how many famous people are in this. Jack Black, Alison Janney, John C. Reilly, Sarah Chalke...just to name a few. And a surprise guest at the end! :D I'm not gonna tell--you'll have to see for yourself.

Now you see it, now you don't

So Prop 8 passed in California. Remember how gays finally got the right to marry, as was their right to begin with as human beings and American citizens?

Well, that right is gone, baby, gone. This is truly disgusting. What the FUCK is this all about?

Gays want to 'redefine marriage', I've heard. Um...GOOD. You know how high the divorce rate is these days? I don't, but I know it's pretty fucking high. What's the matter, all you straight, God-fearing people? You scared the gays will be better at marriage than YOU are? Ooooh.

I was at a wedding recently where the priest went into 'people wanting to redefine marriage'. I almost threw up in the aisle. This was a hateful act, completely discriminatory--but it was inappropriate to boot. The priest had no right whatsoever to impose HIS ideology on two people who loved each other.

Neither does society. Neither does the government. And then need to suck it up.

The ancient, lost-to-the-ages definition of marriage was basically ownership of a woman by her father, then transference of said ownership to a husband. This was done for dozens of reasons, few of them having anything to do with love.

My married (or soon-to-be-married) friends will probably kick my ass for saying this, but it's true: that's why women are pressured to take on their husband's last names. Engagement rings? Ownership symbols. Yeah, I went there.

It's not overtly intended to be ownership ANYMORE. (I still think it is, though. Sorry, brides and brides-to-be of my acquaintaince.) We've changed the definition of marriage from ye olden days. Unfortunately, these people in the religious right? They still think of marriage as a (white) man owning a (white) woman.

Oh, they don't SAY that. Usually. It tends to be covert, but it's there. They don't want their masculinity challenged--thereby their power--and ownership--and control. THAT is what this is about. The scaredy-cat realization that maybe, just maybe, NO ONE should control ANYONE ELSE. EVER.

I'll let Keith Olbermann make the point much better than I just did:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVUecPhQPqY

Keith is the fucking MAN, yo.

Wow, trippy

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fRB2wFhXIPs

I'm relatively certain that even if I understood Japanese, this still wouldn't make sense. But it's freakin' hilarious.

Japanese pplz 4 Obama! They sure put out some obnoxiously catchy music, don't they?

Wow. Just wow.

Barack Obama is the President-Elect of the United States. I'm still a bit shell-shocked. After eight years of guarded cynicism, I finally see a glimmer of hope.

America had a choice: fear or hope. For the first time in eight years, America no longer has to be defined by fear. Now we're free of that fear, and I for one feel liberated and exhilarated.

But the greatest victory is the racial barrier that has prevented African-Americans from holding the highest office in the nation. It has come crumbling down, and thank God for that! Of course, racism isn't dead--there's still plenty of it in Washington--and pretty much everywere, really.

However, bear this in mind--once, black people were considered three-fifths of a person. Now, a black man is President of the United States, and leader of the free world.

I am grateful that I got to be a part of this great victory, and I hope it will be the first of many!

This brought tears to my eyes:
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhuO5iXefghd1jpdSy4cngBYSaVBso4Wyfya9je5osBBZjOKgW7WG3rdq6qe1AjU7CntDcOu7dx_CFszt5A7rLDRQmsfzkgcwZ6FONN9x-6KdMO8Sc-lx8KqRcqJLTGtLN1DTIEVcEZsrk/s1600-h/ta081105.gif

OMG...

Funniest. Thing. Ever.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_TiQCJXpbKg

Alright, if you don't know what 'RickRolling' is, it means you are probably a dinosaur. But because I love you anyway, here's the definition: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rick_roll

I had no idea Obama was such a great vocal stylist! :D

Kickin' it old school

I was thinking about the shitty double standards women face when it comes to sex and birth control. And really, it comes from one underlying theme.

Women are not supposed to enjoy sex. Sex is for women to provide, and men to enjoy. Thus, the idea of birth control is laughabe to people who think this way. Women are PUT ON THIS EARTH for sex, and makin' babies. THAT IS OUR PURPOSE. THE WHOLE THING. THERE IS NO MORE.

Y'know, there's nothing I hate more than when other people try to tell me what MY purpose is. Like I don't know waht's best for me, and that I don't know what my body is telling me.

I answer said douchebags with this:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXehCYGWO_k

I remember dancing to this song when I was twelve. I feel olllld.

In Memorium

Two posts in one day. You lucky people you.

Here's a poem for the 'Culture of Life' crowd:

Dripping down
Red stains
Spreading like water
...how can there be so much?
...weak....
Why must I be punished?
Why am I not trusted to make my own decisions?
Why does God hate me so?
Draining...my life...
My future...
......Oblivion

Explain to me why you advocate the deaths of all the women who WILL perish if Roe V. Wade is overturned, and how you can possibly call yourselves pro-LIFE in the bargain.

Fuck that noise.

A Mixed Bag of Color Commentary

http://www.feministing.com/archives/011741.html#comments

GO JOE! Say what you want about the man, but at least he GENUINELY cares about women's issues. (Yes, conservative Republicans, I'm looking at YOU.)

Isn't it fantastic how the Republicans suddenly care about feminism? I mean....wow. They sure had me fooled! Allowing those with blatantly anti-woman views (Pat Buchanan, Rush Limbaugh) to ally themselves with him.

(Brief aside: Rush likes to talk about 'feminazis' a lot. Which means he's probably jerking off to some mental image of a bunch of us in thigh-high leather boots and skankified SS uniforms. And whips too, probably. There always seem to be whips.)

And OMG...on my drive to work, I see so many McCain/Palin signs that it's literally horrifying. I think my hair might actually be turning white from this. On the plus side, it's given us a clear signal of whose lawn we should TP this Halloween. ;) Bonus points if you hammer pegs into the lawn to spell out "Obama Rules!"

No, no, I don't actually advocate vandalism. I don't think it will help, but I feel a certain amount of schadenfraude in thinking about it. Look, I never said I was a nice woman.

Oh yeah....and a John McCain ad came in our mail today. No idea how that happened. I'm just impressed that it didn't burst into flames upon entering our home.

Women's Health is a joke to John McCain

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SGZOyxfiNoU

Holy crap on a stick. This guy is un-fucking-believable.

Let's recap: John McCain thinks women are too stupid to be paid fairly. (I guess he thinks we should spend our time primping and having plastic surgery, like his wife.) He thinks we use our 'health' as an 'excuse' to undergo fucking MEDICAL PROCEDURES. (Bitch and moan about ideology all you want, at its technical base, abortion is a medical procedure. Fucking deal with it.)

So this is what you truly think of women, Senator McCain? Well, you can go jerk off to the American flag---your dumb ass is not getting my vote.

And guys? Barack, you pay attention too: the term is NOT partial-birth abortion. It's called Dialation and Extraction. (DE). And it's rare anyway, so I've never understood the point of this particular debate. Saying you're opposed to DE is like saying you're opposed to drinking curdled milk.

I'll post on the debate in full later on. Right now I need to go alleviate my rising blood pressure.

Obama is made of awesome

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PWR5wyoIM68

WHOOYEAH. I love Obama's calm, confident demeanor. THIS is what we need in a leader, peeps. Not a 'maverick', but someone who genuinely gives a shit about doing his job responsibly.

Don't get me wrong, I love mavericks....in their place. Which is the Old West. But Washington? Not so much.

I seem to recall another Washington outsider maverick-y type....someone who charmed the American people with his ability to seem like someone you could have a beer with. I also remember that, for eight years, it didn't go so well. We need someone who can truly perform this job with honor, compassion and responsibility.

I can't predict whether or not Obama can truly make things better. All I know is that he can keep them from getting worse.

A Culture of Life

So I was reviewing the McCain-Palin position on choice. Oh yes. THAT choice.

I've always thought that McCain pretty much thought 'women's issues' to be beneath him. He's concerned with IMPORTANT things, you see. War and such. Because he so obviously doesn't give a shit, he's fucking dangerous.

Because he is more likely to let Palin handle all that, and we all know where SHE stands on this issue.

Apparently there is a place in hell reserved for women who don't help other women. Palin misquoted this statement in a recent speech.

If that's so, Sarah...looks like we're both going to the same place. Because I've reviewed your policies, read your interviews, and yes, even watched some of them. (I'm still cleaning vomit from my hair.) And you have yet to do ANYTHING that helps other women.

And then there's this bullshit about a 'culture of life'. I've always know that conservatives revere fetuses (feti?) as sacred. What they don't touch on is what they think of the women said fetuses reside in.

There are a shitload of stupid assumptions on women who seek abortions. That they're slutty. They shouldn't have had sex if they didn't want babies. They should have thought of that before. They're irresponsible. That they'll just use it as an excuse to be promiscuous, and as a source of birth control. These are just some, and some of the nicer ones at that.

First off, the 'slut' issue. Stay the fuck out of my Fallopian tubes, Government. You have no place telling me not to have sex if I don't want babies. Why not just say what you really mean---"Women shouldn't be having sex except at the pleasure of men." Women's sexual enjoyment has always been feared, for whatever reason. Please don't ask me to rationalize this bullshit. It causes me to short-circuit.

Irresponsibility? PLEASE. Women are not children. We understand consequences. We do not need Daddy looking after us. We understand that prevention is best, and try to do so. We are not always successful. That's not a result of irresponsiblity, and it can happen for any number of reasons. None of which should be government issues.

All of this serves to devalue pregnant women, make them less human than the fetus within them. It's worth ruining a woman's life, in the name of Palin's 'culture of life'? Whose life?

I'm not thinking of fetuses at all. I'm thinking of the millions of women who have died in agony through self-induced abortions. And I'm thinking that their lives are worth just as much--if not more--than whatever is in their wombs.

Culture of Life, Sarah Palin. LIFE. How about the lives of all these yet-breathing women, whose lives you could potentially hold in your delicately manicured hands?

Are we simply not worth protecting?

Apparently not.

Thoughts on the Debate

I don't spend nearly enough time talking up Joe Biden, but after seeing him speak at Linvilla Orchards last month, and watching last night's debate, I just have two words:

Go, Joe!

Now Joe Biden has his flaws. His 'George of the Jungle'-esque habit of referring to himself in the third person, for example. His occasional tendency to 'lack discipline'. But I like him. He reminds me of the most empathetic, wise, funny man I ever knew--my grandfather, Jack Luke Sr.

I think Grampop would have said a lot of the same things, if he were still here. I know he sure as hell would have had things to say about the reverential references to the Reagan era! There would have been a lot more 'goddamns' in his statements, but the non-judgemental wisdom would still have been there.

I do regret he's not here, because I'd love to hear his reaction to Sarah Palin! (He had an incredible gift of being able to call bullshit in one witty, hilarious comment.) It would be a laugh we could all use. I've heard it said that I have a similar talent--and I plan on deploying it full-force from now till November 4th.

Biden is originally from Claymont, Delaware--a stone's throw from my house. Listening to him talk about his past, as well as his family tragedy, was one of the best moments in the debate. Maybe it's only because I grew up in the general area, and thus could connect more easily to his stories. (Equally amazing in a different way was when he tore down the 'maverick' label. I was in awe.)

As for Gov. Palin....well, most of my blog has been dedicated to exposing her for the ridiculous fraud she is. And last night...ugh. I needed a stiff drink after I was done watching her. No, it's not the accent--I actually sort of love her accent. Makes me think of Fargo. Only problem is, it's really hard not to crack up when actually confronted with a real person who talks like this.

I was just disappointed she didn't say 'donchaknow'. I was really hoping for that.

I will say that McCain prepped her well. They've created a My Fair Palin. I half-expected her to sing about dancing all night or possibly things being 'loverly'.

As it was, I could have cheerfully yanked her offstage via cane when her response to Joe Biden's emotional stories about his family was so inappropriately chipper. That was truly sickening. I have no idea why she was smiling so much--for someone who loves her kids so much (and I have no doubt she does, just for the record), you'd think she'd be more empathetic.

And that, ultimately, is why I could never vote for her. This woman does not have a shred of empathy for others. Not working mothers (so why so many of them keep saying they relate to her, I can't imagine--MY working mother doesn't!), not victims of rape, and not even pregnant teenagers who need HELP, not lectures on how they are damaged goods.

I don't give a shit if her heart is in the right place--her policies are not. Let's all take a moment to remember that George W. Bush's heart was also in the right place. Except, it wasn't any damn use to us working stiffs. Keep that in mind in the voting booth, peeps.

Maverick, my ass

Read this:

http://www.salon.com/mwt/feature/2008/09/30/palin_pity/

Brilliant. Totally fucking brilliant, embodying everything I believe about the rightful criticism of Sarah Palin. However, I think Dems should take it one step further--remove the focus from Palin completely, and put it where it belongs--on John McCain, who thought women so simple, so easily manipulated, that he could garner their vote with such a blatant deception.

My favorite part:

When your project is reliant on gaining the support of women whose
reproductive rights you would limit, whose access to birth control and sex
education you would curtail, whose healthcare options you would decrease, whose
civil liberties you would take away and whose children and husbands and brothers
(and sisters and daughters and friends) you would send to war in Iraq, Iran,
Pakistan, Russia and wherever else you saw fit without actually understanding
international relations, I don't feel bad for you.

You know, John, I never thought you hated women. I thought you didn't give a shit. You still don't. Only now you think we're stupid as well.

Too stupid to be paid fairly. (We need more education and training, apparently--despite the fact that the graduation rate is higher for woment than it is for men.) Too stupid to notice the exchange of one woman for another.

Thanks for the insult to my intelligence, and that of every woman in America.

I now know where I stand....in the kitchen. Barefoot. Pregnant. Allowed to hold a position of power only if I smile and simper and never challenge you or threaten your domination by displaying such unattractive qualities as, oh, say, my own opinions. Or an ability to dominate in my own right.

Hey! That sounds kinda like Hillary Clinton. And, wow...she's nothing like Sarah Palin! She calls bullshit, makes people uncomfortable, and would probably be giving John McCain the finger right about now if she were in Palin's place. In other words, she'd be standing up for herself, giving him hell for using her so blatantly and stupidly.

THAT'S feminism, people. Accept no substitutes.

During the debates you continually stated that Senator Obama 'doesn't understand' or 'doesn't get it'. Of course he does. He has your number and you know it.

The games you're playing now are low and underhanded, the very antithesis of everything you once were. I never agreed with your policies, John, but once upon a time you were honorable. Now even Karl Rove is saying you're fighting dirty. That's like having Machiavelli tell you that you've gone too far.

America, wake up! You're being led like sheep (AGAIN). Don't be fooled by the Red Herring that is Gov. Palin! She ain't the real deal, and it only takes one working brain stem to figure that one out. Take yours out of the closet, dust if off, and get it working again.

Feminism and such

http://evilslutopia.com/2008/09/sarah-palin-not-feminist.html

The Evil Sluts have done it again. I am in awe.

Ok, I'm over it now

After ranting about Palin for the past couple of days, I am ready to move on.

I plan on actively involving myself in the Obama/Biden campaign from here on out--I'll do whatever it takes to get them in office. I don't know if they can truly affect change, but they will most definitely keep things from getting worse. That's what I really care about most at this point.

I don't get paid much. I can't afford the gorram wage gap. I am a woman of childbearing age--I can't afford NOT to have birth control. One in four women are raped--there's no reason to think I am exempt from this statistic, and thus I can't afford NOT to have the care and vigilance necessary to see justice done--and I can't afford to waste nine months of my life reliving that horror just because my rights as a human being offend Jesus. Fuck that noise. Christianity's all right, but it doesn't belong in the government.

I'm tired of religious rhetoric--maybe we are a nation of faith, but it sure as hell hasn't gotten us anywhere. If I hear the word 'morals' one more time, I'm going to throw up on someone's shoes. Morals don't buy me a roof over my head or food on my table.

Bush didn't cheat on his wife (to be fair, no one would want him) but he was one of the most embarrassing presidents in history. He's a man of faith, but his brain seems to be out to lunch.

So let's try something different this time around. Vote with your gray matter, and we can make this country respectable again.

Where my girls at?

Alright, liberal media. You and I need to have a talk.

Can we just stop talking about Sarah Palin's family life? It's stupid on so many levels.

I'm all for criticizing her, as my past blog entries have shown. This lady is a handmaiden of the patriarchy. She's no good to any of us radfems.

Which is why the Dems need to step up their efforts. Stop pondering whether she can handle career and family, no one gives a shit. That's just going to alienate people.

It would behoove Obama and Biden at this point to get Hillary Clinton and Gloria Steinem to go on the news shows and point out how and why Palin is the wrong person for the job--and why she is NOT a feminist by any stretch of the imagination. Let's get back to the issues, to the things that truly matter.

Biden RuLeZ

http://evilslutopia.com/

Check out Biden's record on women's issues....I don't always agree with him, but the fact remains that Biden has done WAY more for women than She Who Must Not Be Elected.

I hope he annhilates her like a pro-feminist ninja during the debates. My fear is the influx of stupid people that this country seems to be experiencing. Tragically, that's not a valid reason to prevent them from voting. (Oh, calm down, it's a joke--disenfranchisement is not cool, no matter what.)

Go Obama/Biden, go! Let intelligence reign once more!

****NEWSFLASH****

Sexism is BAD! No kidding! I just found this out.

Gee, it's a good thing Fox News is there to shine a beacon of truthiness on such goings-on, what with their coverage of Sarah Palin's VP nomination and the sexism she's encountering on the way.

...wait, what?

DID I MISS SOMETHING??? Were they not the ones levelling sexist bullshit at Hillary Clinton EVERY GODDAMNED STEP OF THE WAY during her presidential campaign? WHAT THE FUCK???
Wait, wait, I got it now. It's not a bad thing if it happens to a liberal. It's only bad and wrong if it happens to a conservative.

These shitheads have no business even MENTIONING the word 'sexism'. Conservatives block the progress of equality every damn day. Limiting reproductive freedom, refusing to equalize the wage gap between the sexes...oh yeah, they're real fucking freedom fighters. Who the fuck are they fooling, exactly? Because I'm not falling for their bullshit.

They think they're progressive now? Why? Because a woman's on the ticket? Uh....no. The only reason McCain chose a woman was because Barack didn't. Why would he? B-Rock needed the Old White Guy Vote, so he picked an OWG as his running mate.

This Republican rhetoric is making my brain leak out my ears. QUIT TURNING SHIT AROUND WHEN IT SUITS YOU, DAMMIT!

It breaks down like this, assholes:

• 
  You don't support my right to choose/control the number of kids I have
  You don't support my right to equal pay for equal work (and gosh, neither does Sarah Palin, who IS a woman! Huh.)
  
• You have absolutely no right whatsoever to act as though you've JUST discovered that women are discriminated against when YOU YOURSELVES have been active in said discrimination while pretending it doesn't exist.

I'll borrow a quote from "Tremors" here:
"FUH-HUUUUUUUUUUUCK YOUUUUUUUUUU!!!!!!!!!!"

Thank you, Kevin Bacon. I believe that says it all.

Did I miss something???!!!

Why do people keep calling Sarah Palin a feminist? I know that conservatives are fucking retarded as a general rule, but this is ridiculous even for them. I actually believe that they have no right even to USE the word feminism, since an overwhelming majority of their policies and ideologies are anything BUT feminist. And now they're acting like they've JUST discovered it.

Bitches, PLEASE.

Sarah Palin is a woman who has benefitted from feminism. For the record, she did not shatter any glass ceilings in her VP nomination. That would be Geraldine Ferraro in 1984. (Anyone remember her?) If it wasn't for the work of feminists past, Sarah Palin could not have gotten where she is today.

I'm not decrying her abilities, but I am LIVID that she would even consider calling herself a feminist. To my mind, a true feminist wants to better the lives of ALL women--not just the ones like herself. Sarah Palin clearly is not. She is not willing to help working mothers or pregnant teens. She is not willing to fight for equal pay for equal work, so that women can better support themselves. It is her stance on the rights of victims of rape and incest that disgust me the most. She believes that they should be forced to give birth to the fruit of a deep personal and physical trauma. "You don't have to KEEP it!" is not a valid response to this, FYI. She's still in favor of sentencing victims of these heinous crimes to nine months of reliving the atrocity committed against them.

In other words, she's pro-rape. In all fairness, she probably thinks that rape "only happens to stupid sluts who don't listen to daddy and do what Jesus tells them". You cannot have anti-feminist views and claim to be a feminist. This logic is not our earth logic. Pardon me, everyone. There will be a slight delay as I attempt to control the gray matter currently leaking out of my ears.

Words cannot express my hatred and disgust of this woman and her policies. McCain is bad enough in his own right, but Palin? A Margaret Atwoodsian disaster awaits us if the McCain/Palin ticket wins.