Random quote of the day

From Liss over at Shakesville:
P.S. Who the fuck uses “reverse racism” anymore? I was under the impression that most thinking people acknowledged quite some time ago that racism is racism, irrespective of whence it emanates, and that “reverse racism” was typically a phrase employed by the sort of ignorant doofuses who don’t get why it’s [...]

“Moment of silence” mandatory in Illinois schools (news to me!)…but not anymore?

Did you know:  Within the past year, a law was passed in Illinois saying that every school in the state must have a moment of silence in the morning, a time that would be suitable for prayer or contemplating the day’s activities.  I had no idea about this until my brother mentioned it in casual [...]

Christian Genes and Gay Genes

Via The Curvature, here is a funny parody of how much emphasis is placed on finding the “cause” of gayness.

This video is not only hi-larious, but it also brings up some interesting questions about how we look at our gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgendered friends. For example, those of us [...]

Roman Catholic Church to excommunicate female priests

Excommunication has been the standard punishment for the ordination of women, but this decree by the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith establishes the punishment as mandatory.

Boston takes steps to stop sexual assault on the subway

(yay alliteration!)
via feministing and NPR:
This is good stuff.  The Boston transit officials are cracking down on subway sexual assault (touching, groping, flashing, etc.) through a massive poster campaign and increased arrests of perpetrators.  The campaign is aimed at aggressively attacking this widespread problem that often goes unreported. 
Transit officials say women usually don’t report groping incidents [...]

Hypothetical technologies and choice

            I found this on Andrew Sullivan’s blockbuster The Daily Dish, but I doubt there’s much overlap in our readerships. A pair (I, II) of articles discusses the yet far-off possibility of artificial wombs, which could potentially end pregnancies of early-term fetuses while bearing them to term. From Conor Friedersdorf:
 

“I think that technology is going [...]

When this feminist can be humorful…(and also confused)

Check out these new Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) ads to “buckle up.”  Can you guess what they are using to sell their case?  Why, nothing other than sex!  And okay. Most ads like these I’m going to approach pretty humorlessly, but when the IDOT uses sex…to increase seat belt usage…I gotta chuckle at least [...]

Transgendered UK soldier awarded ₤250,000

             A transgendered Iraq veteran of the British armed forces has been awarded a ₤250,000 out-of-court settlement for distress after being ordered to wear a men’s uniform to a medical examination.
I’d imagine she tried to sue for many other counts of mockery, harassment and abuse, but the uniform violation was the only complaint her solicitor [...]

Memorial Day Post: Remembering Forgotten Troops: Soldiers with Disabilities

Memorial Day has been historically used as a time set aside to remember the soldiers who have died while fighting for our nation. Originally meant primarily to remember those who fought in the Civil War, we now use Memorial Day to honor all of our fallen soldiers from all of our military conflicts of [...]

As if anyone cares: LP announces candidate

For some reason, the Libertarian Party has nominated former Congressman Bob Barr (R-GA) for their presidential ticket, despite his vote for the PATRIOT Act, authorship of the Defense of Marriage Act, opposition to reproductive rights, and expansion of the drug war.
What does this kooky third party candidate mean to you? He could be McCain’s Nader.