text:
This is the lounge. You can discuss anything you want, but you will do it kindly.
Status: Heavily Moderated; Previous thread
This is the lounge. You can discuss anything you want, but you will do it kindly.
Status: Heavily Moderated; Previous thread
FossilFishy(Anti-Vulcanist) says
cicely That's pretty nice piece of percussion music, but I'm having serious doubts that the sounds are made by ice. It's possible of course, but there's some big red flags. Stuff recorded live out doors doesn't sound like that. Even with studio editing you'd expect some wind noise, or the rustling of jackets and the like. Still, it sounded good.
chigau (違う) says
It is currently 9:20PM, the temperature is +1°C.
Predicted overnight low is -21°C.
Don't you wish you were here?
FossilFishy(Anti-Vulcanist) says
Today chigau, I most certainly do. Even after six years I still struggle with the heat in a way that I didn't with the cold after I had a couple of Edmonton winters under my belt. Ah what it is to be 20 years older and slower to adapt….
Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says
I wonder how many … women were polled to come up with both lists…
yeah, the reciprocity would be interesting to note.
After which thought, I grabbed my dictionary to investigate the meaning of the reciprocal number of women polled for these lists. Wouldn't you know it?
Harvard student issues fake bomb threat to get out of final exam. From all indications, this led to no one being harmed. However, our tax dollars were wasted here. I'm guessing he didn't bother to think of how his actions could impact others.
yubal says
#281 rq
We can't complain, in general.
We are also happy about the development of our children. What we are worrying about lately is, that they most definitely will have unnecessary difficulties in their later life. Like finding a sustainable peer group or acceptance from others. We feel like raising children in a glass bottle, not connected to the outside world. So, even if they are happy now, did we give them the right start to survive in this society later by themselves?
Are you fucking kidding me?
Bettina Rodriguez and her daughter Isabel had planned their cruise for half a year. They would sail on the Carnival Triumph cruise ship and celebrate Isabel's birthday.
It was the trip of a lifetime. That is, until they awoke to a fire alarm, smoke in their hallway and then days and days of misery. Human waste was actually piling up in bags just outside their door.
"Just on our deck alone, there were the biohazard bags lined up across the floor," Bettina Rodriguez said. "We're talking about raw sewage at just the end of our deck alone. It was repulsive."
It was a nightmare, Rodriguez said. Now the nightmare has been made worse, she said, because of company documents that have just come to light. The cruise line's own reports, inspections and maintenance records detail a problem that had been developing on the Triumph more than a year before Rodriguez and her daughter were on board.
More than a year's worth of reports, inspections, and records indicating a problem with the Triumph, and they apparently did nothing.
But there's even greater outrage to come:
While Carnival Cruise Lines insists that what happened on the Triumph was just an accident, the company has dedicated $300 million in a fleet-wide safety upgrade, focusing on detecting and preventing any potential fire hazards in its engine rooms.
The company also points out to the passengers suing to read the fine print on their tickets, which says the cruise line never promised a safe trip.
Carnival's court filing says the contract that passengers agree to when they buy a ticket "makes absolutely no guarantee for safe passage, a seaworthy vessel, adequate and wholesome food, and sanitary and safe living conditions."
Emphasis mine.
WTF??!! This is their defense?
Am I wrong to think that it *is* the responsibility of the cruise line to ensure adequate food, sanitary and safe living conditions, and a seaworthy vessel?
Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says
No. You're not wrong to think it is the responsibility of the cruise line to ensure adequate food, sanitary and safe living conditions, and a seaworthy vessel…
…sort of.
I don't know what jurisdiction's laws will be employed here (I just spent a whole term studying that, and there's a lot to consider), but in common law jurisdictions exclusion and limitation clauses are themselves limited within contract law. Other jurisdictions cover such things with consumer protection law (that, essentially, creates implied conditions in the contract, so it's still within the contract, but not in "contract law" – meaning a rule about how to handle a contract. We're not interpreting/adjudicating contract clauses under consumer protection law, we're adding clauses in by statute. It's related, but not technically the same thing).
Actually, in common law jurisdictions, X&L is handled both within statute AND by overlaying consumer protection laws. Civil law jurisdictions – I think – have contract adjudication rules that likewise restrict what you can put in the X&L, but I'm not sure. Asian legal systems and Islamic legal systems are where I'm especially ignorant, so I can't say what would happen if they had a clause saying the contract would be adjudicated under the law of Taiwan or Japan (though Japan has imported some common law stuff in the area of contracts, but I have no idea how much or how faithfully).
A. Noyd says
Tony (#501)
Harvard student issues fake bomb threat to get out of final exam.
Well, I bet the Office of Student Conduct (or whatever Harvard calls it) will see to it he'll never have to take another final ever again.
Is this necessary? Is the "collision at home plate" such a key element of a centuries-old sport that the show must go on? Are we a bunch of wusses now, no longer willing or able to play this game in the way that our daddies and granddaddies did?
Or are we finally coming to our senses?
Major League Baseball believes the latter to be true. A proposal is being made, to be formally presented to team owners in January, to forever eliminate the "collision" from the baseball vernacular and rulebook.
No more bowling over the catcher. No more trying to "knock the ball out of his hands." No more trying to "knock him into the middle of next week," to quote some lame 20th century slang.
From now on, if agreed upon by all, a runner must slide into home plate — or at the very least try to dodge the catcher and the ball — rather than plow into him like a steer into a matador.
Kudos to Major League Baseball for working to ensure greater player safety.
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- says
Good morning
Gynecologist is still making me Lol. No, you don't have to give me a Pap smear, honey. I'm good.
I think what this means is their indignation at being expected to know the basics about how cis female anatomy usually works. Cycles, periods, what and where a uterus is…
While "being a chef" probably means "know how to make your own goddamn sandwich."
Some while ago I read a new German study about hetero men and what became quite apparent was that lots of their misery was due to the fact that their ideas about "what women want" were still stuck in the last century. So they thought their job still was "provider" and then they couldn't understand why she was unhappy because she wanted somebody who was a partner, a father and who was able to buy his own goddamn undies.
Azkyroth Drinked the Grammar Too :) says
x/0 = infinity. Don't let the formalists tell you otherwise. >.>
Look at the preeeeeety metallic colors on this wasp, which is a new discovery out of China.
Ear acupuncture may actually be effective. Effective at *what*, though?
Using continuous stimulation of five acupuncture points may be better at reducing abdominal fat (the midriff bulge) than single point stimulation, the findings suggest.
Auricular acupuncture therapy is based on the understanding that the outer ear represents all parts of the body. It was first used in France in 1956 by Dr Paul Nogier who noticed that a patient's back-ache was cured after s/he sustained a burn on the ear.
Since then the approach has been used to treat drug addiction and help people give up smoking and lose weight.
Is there something to this?
Auricular acupuncture is a diagnostic and treatment system based on normalizing the body's dysfunction through stimulation of points on the ear. Resulting amelioration of pain and illness is believed to be through the reticular formation and the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems (1).
Ear acupuncture, is an acupuncture technique similar to reflexology, and is speculated that the technique works because groups of pluripotent cells contain information from the whole organism and create regional organization centers representing different parts of the body, through recruitment of more cortex cells dedicated to specific areas of the body. Thus stimulation of a reflex point in the ear can relieve symptoms of distant pathology with a reliable duration.
In the last years modern clinical and basic research is confirming the efficacy of ear acupuncture mostly in the treatment of pain both acute and chronic (6–9), and of anxiety related disorders (10–12). While the treatment of irritable bowel syndrome, obesity, smoke cessation, alcohol withdrawal and other types of substance abuse disease is still waiting definitive confirmation
(note: The first link refers to the 12/16/13 release of the results of a randomized clincal trial of 5 ear acupuncture points for the treatment of overweight people. The full text is behind a paywall.
I wonder what Nerd's thoughts on this are…
The article from the NCBI dates back to 2007.)
chigau (違う) says
The across-the-street-people are having another party
or maybe it's the same party
oh, for the stamina of youth
Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says
I think I've seen 1 baseball game start to finish in my life (well, one other than kids playing). It was a minor league game 25-30 years ago.
So I'm pretty ignorant on this stuff. But I was under the impression that trashing the catcher was a response to catchers blocking the path to home plate.
isn't there a rule against running outside the …the… running path? So if there is, this would already be illegal if the catcher isn't blocking your path deliberately. If the catcher is blocking your path deliberately, doesn't the catcher have a say in preventing this?
Will they punish the catcher or the runner? Both?
Both seems the only reasonable option, as one is engaging in illegal behavior that has always been illegal – blocking the runner's path (hasn't that always been illegal? If not, why don't more people block running from 1st to 2nd while the short stop runs up to tag 2nd base?) and one will be engaging in behavior newly illegal by this rule.
But frankly, and I know this is total victim blaming here, but I think this is a special case where the logic holds, while we can agree that some things are never "asked for" by a catcher (like a punch included as the runner goes by) the unenhanced impact of body on body has to be exactly what the catcher intended, right – to slow the runner by a few moments so that an out can be scored?
If it's what the catcher intended, then isn't that the same as consent? How can you intend something without consenting to it?
So shouldn't the rule be overt attempts to injure the catcher are outlawed, but impact only, so long as the runner is on the running path, is actually the catcher violating the rule blocking runners and so it's the catcher that's penalized?
Am I so ridiculously ignorant of baseball that I'm missing something important? Has there been a trend of runners coating their uniforms with mace and smearing it on catchers as they go by, or something?
bluentx says
Did I really log on this time or have I just been "celebrating" too much (and halucinating?).
DISCLAIMER: This Samsung Andriod is a pain in the….
I feel you. Have you had trouble with FtB?
bluentx says
Phone (?) Kicked me out of ftb (again), Tony. I was testing logon and haven't checked last 20 ? Hours of posts. Will try that now… may not return from the ether…
–please ignore bad CAPs…etc.
bluentx says
Ok. Can't seem to access first page of current Lounge. *sigh*
rq says
At least you're here!!
re: that list from theoreticalgrrrl
Dunno about all the other (straight, cis) women here, but I for sure don't want my Husband to be my father and/or my brother (I'm surprised they left son off that list).
And if they think a man doesn't need all kinds of support and honesty and etc., then they have a seriously low opinion of men.
I'm really sad that list is going around on your Facebook, theoreticalgrrrl. I've started marking such things as spam automatically, although I don't know if that actually does anything. If I feel up to it, I like to add comments (in this case, something along the lines of You sure don't think much of men but with more snark).
Anyway, welcome, welcome, vent away, Tony mixes a mean drink, and there's usually some cookies around here… somewhere… *wipes crumbs away from mouth*
That was an interesting video, but even as a non-percussionist, I have questions about how they make those sounds on the ice in gloves… And also, the title says 'metre-thick' ice and they're not playing on metre-thick ice, they're playing on smaller broken slabs of ice, which isn't exactly what is described. The introductory playing looks suspicious to me, but the hands move too fast over an unclear background and it's hard to see if it is videoshopped in or not. The closest to a skeptical look at the video I found here. Everyone else is raving about it.
Tony re: baseball
I don't know how keen baseball fans are on their violence and substitutes, but if they're anything like hockey fans, prepare for an uproar (they wanted to reduce the contact aspect of hockey due to proof that percussions and chronic injuries were, umm, unhealthy, and… people went berserk – ruining the sport, spirit of the game, just a few small hits, etc. …). But I think it's the right decision.
rq says
Oh, and Tony, about auricular acupuncture, I found this, and wiki still calls it alternative, so I'm pretty sure it's still woo. Besides, anything connected to detoxification puts my hackles and suspicions way up.
A. Noyd says
Tony (#509)
Would it help to know that Nogier was a homeopath and that he decided which bits of the ear corresponded to which bits of the body based on the ear's resemblance (in his mind) to a fetus? (See here.)
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- says
Hi there
I just went home from school (internship on Wednesdays).
Either I get a bad cold or I have a vaccine reaction but no matter what I'm feeling like somebody chewed me up and spit me out again. I can't quite decide between I'm hungry and I want to puke. Maybe I'll just eat something and then do the puking…
*off to bed*
rq says
I find it's better to puke with a full stomach. :/ But that's just me.
Feel better soon!!!
rq says
I'm sure similar things have been posted, but here's another lesson on how to help someone having a panic attack / PTSD.
Still wondering what that secret code is. Probably more decipherings of sekrit messijis in junk DNA. (And really, comet ISON? Into the sun? I thought comets went around…)
I think Kevin Carr from Jamie Oliver's site lucked out. While the food here is generally delicious, all the haut cuisine is as inaccessible as always… But I also wonder what kinds of preconceptions about eastern European food he had before coming here?? It's not all sauerkraut and sausages, you know.
Go for the interviews, stay for the house-porn. I will never be that hip.
And to finish off, a look at Canada's apartheid and Mandela's legacy. Interesting and thought-provoking, though I confess I don't know enough to unwrap it completely.
bassmike says
Giliell I hope you're feeling better soon.
rq I too prefer (in as much as it can be considered a preference) to have a full stomach before being sick. Not an option my wife has had this week: she has no appetite and being sick. Not good. She's getting better though. I still have no appetite, but have so far avioded any other symptoms.
bassmike says
Can I also add to people's endorsement fo the lounge. It's the most welcoming place on the internet!
To quote someone people may recognise: 'Safe haven of the sleepless, where the deep fryer's always on.'
rq says
Ugh, so much sympathy for your wife! Dry-heaves are the worst. :(
And may you continue to avoid any other symptoms! And your daughter, too!
bassmike says
rq thanks! Having no appetite it this time of year is not fun. Hopefully we'both be better by the weekend. Last night our daughter ate more than either of her parents!
rq says
Yes, be well in time for the christmas feasting, in order to feel ill once again afterwards! :D Hopefully this plan will succeed.
Ye Olde Blacksmith
By the way, thank you for the invitation to 'collaborate' on a piece of art. I look forward to the result (whenever that may be). Very intrigued, and just a leetle beet excited, too. :)
FossilFishy(Anti-Vulcanist) says
In light of the ice drumming up thread:
A drummer uses natural environments to change the reverb on his kit. Very cool. Don't listen to the snap of the initial impact of the stick on drum head or cymbal, the real difference happens in the sounds that follow.
rq says
Now that is cool.
So why is there no 'car repair shop' button among the Effects functions on my keyboard??
FossilFishy(Anti-Vulcanist) says
I hope you and your wife feel better soon bassmike.
And I wanted to say that I hope you took my "real instrument" comment in the humourous manner in which it was intended. Pretty sure you did, but just in case…
Truth be told, despite spending over a decade playing in one band or another I never made enough money to pay for my gear*, let alone anything else. Anyone who has the dedication and the chops to do it for real has my admiration regardless of the number of strings on their instrument.
*Spending the majority of my time in a nine piece that only had 5 or 6 songs out of 40 odd in straight 4/4 might have had something to do with that. :) I should have bailed when I overheard our principle song writer mutter to himself "Dance to that fuckers." as he was working out a new riff. We weren't avant guard or experimental or what ever the fuck we thought we were. No, we were user hostile.
FossilFishy(Anti-Vulcanist) says
I'm pretty sure that comes with the latest software upgrade rq, along with abandoned factory and wind farm. That video also has the advantage of being pretty clearly for real. (Still not convinced by the ice one.)
bassmike says
FossilFishy I took your comment in the manner in which it was intended, so offence taken. As I mentioned; I play some percussion in the orchestra and have other (huge pun alert!!) strings to my bow in the form of playing other instruments.
Also, I get the 'not playing in 4/4' thing. My goto drummer is always on the lookout for including a 7/8 or 5/4 bar whenever he can. Sadly, I only encourage him.
And rq don't think I didn't see the 'messy bass players' comment a while ago. We bass players have long memories you know!
I have to sign off for today. Hopefully catch up with you all tomorrow. Thanks for all the good wishes, and I'll leave some cookies in the lounge, as I'm not interested in them at the moment. Stay safe.
rq says
*puts quarantine tape around bassmike's cookies*
I love quirky rhythms thrown in for no good reason! I know this is a repost, but this is my choir performing a traditional folk song in a contemporary choir arrangement (by which I mean it is newer than 10 years). And it is full of rhythm quirks, which makes it fun to sing and makes our conductor easy to piss off. :)
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- says
OK, I've eaten some rice, I've slept, I feel a little better
Best wishes to you, bassmike and your wife. If it's Norovirus it usually passes rather quickly, fortunately.
You (the choir) sound great.
I can only carry half a tune. Sometimes I make a deal with the little one: I'll stop singing if she stops crying. (OTOH, when she's cried herself into a real fit singing the lullabyes I sang her as a baby has a really soothing effect. Only I ruined "Scarborough Fair" for myself for all time)
rq says
Did you try singing both tracks at once? :) I like your deal with the little one. :D
Only Eldest has ever liked my singing, to tell the truth. Youngest is very actively against any kind of singing by me, to the point where he throws a fit even if I'm humming something abstractedly under my breath. He likes rock music, though – it's the only stuff that will get him dancing. The older two will dance to anything with a decent bass, and have recently proclaimed my Youngest Brother's glitchhop/dubstep/other related music to be The Best Music Evarrrr.
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- says
Nah, I'm not Agnes Nitt
I usually sing the man's lines first and then the woman's lines, although I love it best when there's a couple alternating the lines.
Portia, in absentia says
But of course I have to pass on news about Porsche.
rq says
That is awesome. Still, a ways to go before we can download a Portia…
rq says
And I found this. A simple tip for talking about race.
rq says
And then I found this article, and it's getting the spam marker on Facebook. Don't read it unless you want to be outraged. I can't even be bothered to put up a snarky comment for this.
most women and children will be expecting men to scrounge for food and water and to defend the home turf [ discussing the consequences of the fall of civilisation – lemme tellya, the Pharyngula Commune will not place such demands on anyone –rq ]
Over the past century, it was labor-saving appliances, invented by men and spread by capitalism, that liberated women from daily drudgery. [ From what I understand, a few of these appliances were invented by women, but I could be misremembering stuff from elementary school. — rq]
women, who generally prefer a safe, clean, quiet work environment [ Yup, this is why I love the forensics lab – it's clean, it's quiet, it's … ooooh bloodstain! –rq ]
And the whole article starts with this gem:
Ideologue professors at our leading universities indoctrinate impressionable undergraduates with carelessly fact-free theories alleging that gender is an arbitrary, oppressive fiction with no basis in biology.
I'm sure a few people in the Lounge would love to comment how gender is all based in biology and is not arbitrary or fluid at all… Right??
rq says
Oh and I missed this line:
And without strong men as models to either embrace or (for dissident lesbians) to resist, women will never attain a centered and profound sense of themselves as women.
That's right, you dissident lesbians – men are out there for you to RESIST! You may ask about gay men, but in this world, there are no gay men! No sensitive men! They all want to work on oil tankers! RARRRR!! Or something. :)
rq says
VW makes an efficient car. May it have a long and economic future! Together with the electric car.
birgerjohansson says
(crossposted from Ed Brayton's blog)
"If we must teach religious alternatives to scientific theories, there are thousands of sides, not just to evolution but to every other theory."
NB! This is the solution to how to deal with demands to "teach the controversy".
If the state demands the teaching of beliefs opposing science, the teachers should simply provide a summary of creation stories from all over the world.
Hindu, maya, viking, the creation story of the !Kung bushmen, the various versions of Aboriginean creation stories (if you go in alphabetical order, this should come first).
"Back in The Dream, Kangaroo Bloke created the Earth…"
rq says
rq says
*ahem* Here's a more comprehensie version of image two above, and I think I found my favourite. (Just google 'teach the controversy' in image mode… Gold!)
From your link-
Indeed, men are absolutely indispensable right now, invisible as it is to most feminists, who seem blind to the infrastructure that makes their own work lives possible. It is overwhelmingly men who do the dirty, dangerous work of building roads, pouring concrete, laying bricks, tarring roofs, hanging electric wires, excavating natural gas and sewage lines, cutting and clearing trees, and bulldozing the landscape for housing developments. It is men who heft and weld the giant steel beams that frame our office buildings, and it is men who do the hair-raising work of insetting and sealing the finely tempered plate-glass windows of skyscrapers 50 stories tall.
Every day along the Delaware River in Philadelphia, one can watch the passage of vast oil tankers and towering cargo ships arriving from all over the world. These stately colossi are loaded, steered and off-loaded by men. The modern economy, with its vast production and distribution network, is a male epic, in which women have found a productive role — but women were not its author. Surely, modern women are strong enough now to give credit where credit is due!
Yeah, women don't do any of those things.
And it couldn't be that the absence of women in many of those situations is due to rigid gender roles.
David Marjanović says
x/0 = infinity. Don't let the formalists tell you otherwise. >.>
Actually, it's everything from + ∞ to − ∞. The whole y axis, if you draw it.
Ear acupuncture, [sic] is an acupuncture technique similar to reflexology, and is speculated that the technique works because groups of pluripotent cells contain information from the whole organism and create regional organization centers representing different parts of the body, through recruitment of more cortex cells dedicated to specific areas of the body.
Yeah, right.
Authors, reviewers and editors fail development biology forever.
I'm sure similar things have been posted, but here's another lesson on how to help someone having a panic attack / PTSD.
♥ ♥ ♥ the cartoon ♥ ♥ ♥
VW makes an efficient car.
"The car doesn't move very quickly (0-60 in more than 12 seconds) or fast (top speed is 99mph)."
99 mph? That's, like, 160 km/h? There are a few highways in Germany where you're allowed to go faster than that; but anywhere else in the world? A common top limit for highways is 130!
"It won't break any speed records, but it can go 261 miles on one gallon of diesel fuel."
Now let's see what that means, because I'm used to fuel consumption being measured in liters per hundred kilometers. 10 is much, 3 ("The Three-Liter Car") is the goal, there's an almost unmarketed car that goes below that and looks normal but nobody knows about it (and it's weak).
Assuming I remember everything right, 1 mile = 1.602 km, and 1 gallon = 3.78 l.
261 miles/gallon
418.122 km/3.78 l
110.614 km/l
0.009 l/km
0.9 l/100 km
VW is only planning on making 250 of those, each for the price of 111,000 €. Let's hope they get surprised by enough demand that they start making them in series.
Lynna, OM says
We believe in life; we believe in traditional marriage. Our platform is what it always was and I've never advocated changing our positions on these issues. But what I have advocated is making sure that we have a tone of grace, love, and respect in the way that we communicate.
But you know, 80% of the public and most – overwhelmingly most – women agree with our position that, you know, abortion after four months should be illegal.
That's Republican National Committee Chair, Reince Priebus, speaking this morning. He can talk and pull stats out of his ass at the same time. It's impressive.
Republicans continue to have a policy problem when it comes to women voters, and not just a "tone" problem as they assert.
David Marjanović says
and I think I found my favourite.
♥ ♥ ♥
♥ ♥ ♥
♥ ♥ ♥
Timecube! And Xenu!
Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says
@fossilfishy & bassmike:
I love beating out some 7/8, but somehow I tend to screw up the 5/4.
The ice percussion was fun, but what really blew me away was how CLEAR the ice was.
That indicates (IIRC) that it froze very quickly in a still environment (no wind mixing bubbles between gathering ice grains, no slow gathering of large grains that are then welded to each other: the whole kit & caboodle freezes together.
i've never seen natural ice like that.
Those manly men GTOW who built the global economy!
So self-sufficient. Why I heard that in the early years they would pop out, gum a first meal of raw placenta while mom was still whining about how difficult was the labor, then toddled off to climb a tree in hopes of cornering a tasty squirrel. And it was in just such manly hunting endeavors that they learned to walk a steel scaffold. But if that wasn't enough, they left the later years behind by drilling watermelons so that they could, uh, drill watermelons, forcing their manly, man-babies to use their own muscles to break out of the rind, instead of learning to passively allow one self to be pushed out by a woman.
With a first meal of melon – so much more nitrifying than anything that might come from a woman, and eliminating that perverted stuff about sucking on a nipple – they would dash about in a burst a sugary energy, catching rabbits by hand instead of cornering squirrels in trees.
oh, the heady days, when first man realized that he was made to be able to perform overnight delivery. Sure, that first guy dropped dead at Sparta after running not much more than 150 stadia, but then man worked smarter and flew the airplane! The heady days of the DC-8, back when men were men and women were stewardesses!
And all with no help from the ladies at all!
Lynna, OM says
Darrell Issa, Chair of the House Oversight Committee, is hosting a road show in which he pretends to investigate the effects of Obamacare. Issa picks the questions that will be asked from the audience, and he even chooses who will ask those questions, and who will sit in the audience.
Issa is following the example set by Dan Burton, the congressman who started all kinds of witch hunts aimed at taking President Clinton down. This included investigating the White House Christmas card and the correspondence of the Clinton's cat. In other words, you make up scandals and then you use taxpayer money to prosecute these ridiculous "scandals." Like Issa, Burton was "crazed with hatred" for the President. Maddow provides details of this background before getting to the current Issa material at about 6:00.
Burton also subpoenaed documents and then released only cherry-picked portions of those documents, or he released classified documents by going against court orders. Darrell Issa is a master at these illegal and/or cherry-picked leaks. Issa's leaking problem is so big that the White House is now refusing to give him documents he has subpoenaed. The dude is a proven leaker, sending classified material and cherry-picked material directly to CNN on the same day that he receives it. Now he has the "Obama will not comply with subpoenas" schtick to add to his grievances. The big fight over subpoenas is not over.
Issa is big in Texas, and he is having an effect. Part of the Issa effect in Texas is keeping the sickest and the poorest people from signing up for healthcare insurance.
Lynna, OM says
This could be good news for Democrats: lots of Republicans retiring from Congress. Still, we will have to move quickly and aggressively to take advantage of it. 2014 elections will be marred by voter suppression laws that are aimed at lowering the number of Democratic Party voters. Getting out the vote, and getting around or over the hurdles to voting is not going to be easy.
…All told, there are now nine House members retiring at the end of this Congress, which isn't an especially large number, at least at this point in the process. But notice the partisan breakdown: eight of the nine are Republicans. Given the high re-election rate for incumbents, the ratio is welcome news at the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which certainly wants more vacant "red" seats that could turn "blue."
(This does not include the 13 House members who are giving up their seats to run for governor or the U.S. Senate. But even within this group, Republicans are putting more seats in play: eight of the 13 are GOP incumbents.)…
Portia, in absentia says
My paralegal accidentally sent me an email both complaining about me and leaking something personal I told her. Yaaaaaay. : / I decided to laugh it off and answered "Who are we talking about? She sounds awful!" : p
David Marjanović says
The ice percussion was fun, but what really blew me away was how CLEAR the ice was.
Lake Baykal is exceptionally clean. Crystallization germs must be few and far between. Maybe it got supercooled, and then much of it suddenly froze all at once.
"Who are we talking about? She sounds awful!" : p
I like that. :-)
opposablethumbs says
Oh, Portia, that's horrible – iirc, she seemed really supportive and friendly at first? Sounds like a very smart response on your part, though – you've effectively made it clear a) that you got the email – no pretending you didn't – b) that you have a sense of humour and c) that you're open to criticism and that she can raise any issues she has with you to your face, no need to sneak around behind your back.
So go you for dealing with it head on but in such a smart and non-confrontational way; and so sorry you had something so unpleasant happen, though :-(
rq says
Crip Dyke
i've never seen natural ice like that.
I've seen similar ice, though, granted, not that clear. I wonder if it forms every year as clear?
(from way upthread, and before I forget!)
I would say the answer to your question is YES – if you've given the tools to navigate the world in their toolbox, and you've taught them to use them, then I am positive that your daughter will be fine! Plus from what I've read of you around the Lounge and elsewhere, you sound like you're doing a fine job of life and parenting in general. :) Go you!
Of course, I'll probably be wondering similar things when mine get to that age.
[/advice from inexperience]
I hope things don't go on like that… :/ And then what opposablethumbs said, I think you've done the sensible thing, and now it's up to her to own up to what she did, or try to act like it never happened. Good luck!
Tony @545
Notice, though, how she writes overwhelmingly men, thus dismissing any and all contributions that women do make. And yes, nary a mention of chilly climates in certain job sectors, rigid gender roles imposed by culture on society and the stress involved in breaking them, the pressures women still feel to be 'feminine'… Also, she mentioned how the current system isn't due to the massive oppression of women throughout history, but I wonder – if women were so unoppressed, why did they have to fight for the vote?? Or would she rather women just not participate in society at all, and just be – as she says and I paraphrase – safe and comfortable in their homes, taking care of the helpless babes?
I don't understand people who can look so blindly to history and say "That was awesome! Let's keep doing it!" while totally missing the entire point.
rq says
I'm a bit worried about leaking the personal info, though…
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
Your paralegal doesn't seem like a trustworthy person.
I don't like her.
Your answer is great, regarding the badmouthing part. I guess a snarky "So, have you got any more scoop on this awful person? Just curious." addendum is out of the question?
chigau (違う) says
I think your was a good response but
Did anyone else get the email?
Bicarbonate says
Kids' names
Hi Everybody.
What are fashionable kids' names where you live? If you have young kids, nieces, nephews or grand-kids, what are their playmates', classmates' names? What names do you hear being called out when you go pick your little one up at school or daycare?
What are some names you like? Names you're tired of? A name that left an impression on you for some reason?
I'm not asking this for any particular reason. I'm just fascinated with names. I like to look at old town records of births and deaths and walk through graveyards looking at names. I read obituaries and every year I check census records' ranking of birth names.
I'd be particularly interested in hearing
Bicarbonate says
… I meant to erase that last phrase.
rq says
commonly heard girls' names:
Emīlija, Elīza, Elizabete, Līga, Ilze, Ilona, Viktorija, Dace, Gunta, Linda, Ieva, Alise, Ance, Annija, Kate/Katrīna, Marta, Beāte, Māra;
commonly heard boys' names:
Emīls, Kristians, Valters, Viesturs, Jānis (not to be confused with the alternate spelling of Janice), Krišjānis, Kristaps, Roberts, Matīss, Markuss, Andris/Andrejs, Mārtiņš, Valdis;
nice but more rare girls' names:
Jolanta, Viviāna, Gundega, Karīna, Maija, Rasma, Dagnija;
nice but more rare boys' names:
Juris, Edgars, Ēriks, Sandis, Miķelis, Tomass, Regnārs, Reinis;
There's probably a rather noticeable difference in popularity among Latvian names here in Latvia, and Latvian names given to children born in Canada/outside of Latvia. Latvians in Latvia tend to give their children (at least, it seems to be the fashion now) latvianised English or French names, instead of more traditional Latvian names (even in the case of, say, David, people are more likely to write it Deivids (phonetically) rather than Dāvids (the more traditional 'Latvian' way of spelling it).
For what it's worth, Husband and I avoided common names as much as possible and went with the good old-fashioned names of Nikodēms, Marians and Jonatans (which is a rare name here, although the English version is not).
Good response.
She must not worry about being seen as trustworthy…
AHA! I have finally found an example of Men's Rights activism!
Oh, wait…
"'Breaking' a school's rape reporting mechanism is apparently a form of Men's Rights activism."
A thematic follow-up to Lynna's #451:
Controversial voting laws requiring people to show identification at the polls have drawn criticism from those who believe it's simply a ploy to keep minorities and the elderly poor from voting. However, many Republicans, such as Iowa Secretary of State Matt Schultz, assert that in-person voter fraud is a real problem that threatens the very fabric of the American version of democracy.
To that end, in 2010 Schultz committed himself to tracking and prosecuting voter fraud. Now three years and $280,000 later, only 16 out of 2.1 million registered Iowa voters have charges pending.
Of those 16 people, five had the charges dismissed and five pleaded guilty, simply because it is a better legal option than risking going to trial wherein the penalty could be up to 10 years in prison. While Shultz claims that these numbers repudiate the idea "that there's no such thing as voter fraud," his critics say that these numbers prove that what in-person fraud exists is statistically insignificant.
In a move that will surprise nobody, Shultz wants even more money to support a larger investigation into voter fraud.
Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says
So, I've long been a huge fan of:
Jayne has been completely rehabilitated for me by the Firefly character.
in every case above, there is at least one famous man with the name (though Jayne is fictional) and at least one famous woman with the name. Certain communities may consider the names more or less feminine, more or less masculine, but the names have tradition behind them that really help.
Tera is a gender flexible Celtic name that's pretty awesome, though I'm not sure about any famous role models or even any good Tera characters in books.
Max is a great kids name, but it always feels a bit …much…to me when applied to an adult. YMMV.
My all-time favorite gender-flexible name belonged to a woman:
Nikola Jayne Victoria-Brown.
At the time I didn't think Jayne was very gender flexible, but the man they call Jayne cured that, for sure. It makes the name even more spectacularly awesome in retrospect.
I love the rhythm of it. Bum-bm-bm Bum gm-Bum-bm-bm Bm.
Dactylic Stress pause Dactylic Stress
it's just a really nice pattern.
i recommend names the fit that pattern, if last name allows.
David Marjanović says
That's a nickname in the original, and exclusively female as far as I'm aware.
cicely says
FossilFishy, my sympathies for you and Small Fry.
I had doubts about the lake percussion, as well, but know that I do not know enough to judge.
Look at the preeeeeety metallic colors on this wasp, which is a new discovery out of China.
*gentle hug* for Giliell. I know that hungry/nauseous cross-connect all too well….
If the state demands the teaching of beliefs opposing science, the teachers should simply provide a summary of creation stories from all over the world.
I've long thought that, if I were a science teacher, this is the way I would approach it, devoting at least two weeks to it, with the full panoply of surprise quizzes and tests. Then, when asked why I was "wasting the students' time" with such nonsense, I would say, "Because I am required by law to Teach the Controversy—which means, all the Controversy—not just the one you favor!"
After that, I would probably be in need of a new job, but hey! omelets and eggs, ya know.
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
In my generation ('86), it looks like people were going for simplicity with a lot of "ordinary" (also, biblical) names like Ivana, Petra, Maja (female) or Marko, Josip, Igor (male).
Kids these days have names like Sara, Lara, Iris (female) or Roko, Gregor, Niko…. I don't know a lot of people, so I'm not really sure.
I like longer names, more old-fashioned. Like Sofija, Katja, Katarina(female), Sebastian, Daniel, Krešimir (male).
What annoys me are alternate spellings that are bound to complicate people's lives. See, someone could be Daniel or Danijel, Sofia or Sofija. Even Katja or Katia. So I'm not sure if I'd actually use any of these names for a kid, I would probably go for something that won't make "with/without a j " the most often spoken phrase for them.
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
Yeah, Nataša is nice.
Obviously, I really like Beatrice, that's why I chose it for myself. Not really used here in Croatia, but there are some "adjusted" versions heard here or there (mostly in Istria), like Beatriče.
Bicarbonate says
Kresimir (I can't type it with the accents), nice!! I've always adoooored Igor. Thanks, B.
rq says
I like the name Beatrice (Beatrise here, pronounced in 4 syllables).
Oh, forgot to mention Kārlis/Karlīna ar pretty popular here at the moment, and also Māris (boy name).
I've always liked the shorter more typically Latvian names, as they're shorter and have nice rhythms to them – Āris, Tālis, Māris, Jurģis; and the more imported ones, like Ingus and Zemgus. I've also long preferred the shorter girls' names like Anna, Ieva, Lote, Juta, Lidija, but Husband and I couldn't agree on any – so we went the other way, for imported traditional but long names.
I'm in love with the name Adelaide, and I like the Latvian version of Isis (Izīda) for a girl (four syllables) and obviously our kids' names took the semi-religious route, because I like the flow of Latin/Greek names in Latvian.
I like any and all (or most) variants on Niko/Nicholas/Nicola/Niklāvs because my unknown grandfather (he died a month before I was born) was a Nikolajs, and the name always had a sort of mystery to it, so Eldest got Nikodēms because I wanted to commemorate, not imitate, but my sister still thinks I named him after her middle name (she's named after the opera, though, first name).
And I have a secret love affair with the names Cassander/Cassandra, but I'm not sure why. I used to be a big fan of the angel names (Gabrial, Raphael…) but they don't sound as nice in Latvian.
Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says
and adding
Nutmeg says
Names (western Canada)
My generation (now 25-30):
Girls: Katie/Katherine/Kathleen, Megan/Meghan, Krista/Kristine/Kristin, Erin, Danielle, Julie, Laura
Boys: Andrew, Michael, Timothy, Colin, Wray, Jason, Kyle
Young kids now:
Girls: Emma, Madeline, Abby/Addy, Ada/Ava
Boys: Ethan, Aidan, Riley
Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says
Also, with its big skies, open horselands, wildflower meadows, and ruggedly beautiful badlands, "Montana" because a very popular gender-flexible name, evoking all those varied images.
I say try to get in front of the trend. If that's what people like, name your kid Kazakhstan for the I-was-there-first cool factor.
There will be a cool factor, right?
People are gonna flock to it, right? Big skies! Meadows! Horse country! Badlands!
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- says
Waiting for my hair to dry a bit before heading to bed…
Girls: Jessica, Angelina, Zoe, Lika, Ewgenia, Anastasia, Alexandra, Jerzey, Lisa, Marie, Nia, Nina, Celine, Arueed, Kira, Kiara, Michelle, Laura…
We went for something completely different: Menina and Madita
Boys: Niklas, Niko, Max, Felix, Sebastian, Christoph(er), Paul, Arthur, Ludwig, Kevin, Noah, Justin, Jeremy, Alexander, Nils, Leon, Luca, Lukas, Tobias…
You'll note some Russian sounding names and rather old-fashioned German names like Arthur and Ludwig. Both usually mean German-Russian immigrants.
English names are unfortunately stigmatized as belonging to children of poor people with disciplinary problems. I'm sorry for every Kevin there is.
English names are unfortunately stigmatized as belonging to children of poor people with disciplinary problems. I'm sorry for every Kevin there is.
Do you mean English names are stigmatized in Germany? If so, that's interesting. How did that come to be?
morgan ?! epitheting a metaphor says
Re names… an amusing story.
Way back in 1980 a young woman in Santa Barbara, California escaped her paramour of many years duration and went to work for a mutual friend in New York City. The former paramour was a pompous but very wealthy scion of displaced European aristocracy. A year later the woman learned that the scion had married and his wife was expecting a male child. One afternoon the scion phoned the young woman's place of employment to boast about this development. The young woman generously offered congratulations and inquired after preferred names. Had one been chosen? The scion replied that they were nearly decided on Dibblemont Prothero then several family names. Oh, thought the young woman, poor kid. So the young woman laughed heartily and said, "Your're kidding! How gawd awful pretentious. Listen, if you don't know this already I'll clue you in… kids are cruel. If you give your son such a horrid name you will be to blame for the bullying he will undoubtedly receive."
The scion was offended at the young woman's response, sputtered something rude and ended the call. The young woman learned several months later that the scion named his son Michael David.
I like to think that I sent a huge good deed out into the universe by calling a fool a fool.
Lynna, OM says
Tony @562:
In a move that will surprise nobody, Shultz wants even more money to support a larger investigation into voter fraud.
For an economically conservative political party (at least that's what they claim), Republicans are sure big on wasting taxpayer dollars.
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
gender-neutral name I love: Vanja
Croatian immigrants returning back home after working in fureign countries for years, thought up names with weird spellings before it was cool (hipsters!). So a 80-years-old neighbor is called Mery.
carlie says
Ugh, so sorry to hear, Portia. Hopefully the info wasn't too sensitive, and now you know she's a person you can't trust with anything further. I have several friends I like a lot, but I've found out the hard way with them that nope, they don't get to be on the "trust with sensitive info" list. Some people are just too chatty.
Stayed home from work today, supposedly to get caught up and have some time for myself. That..kind of didn't happen, as a lot of chores got in the way. But at least a few things got off of my plate. Emotionally I'm still flopping around like a boneless chicken, but I'm forging through to the weekend with a couple of well-placed (by which I mean "those who won't mind") "sorry, I can't get that done by the deadline"s to get some breathing space. Ho ho ho.
Thanks to this commenter at Mano's, I have had the "pleasure" of reading The Female Privilege Checklist:
In contemplating the list with a colleague, we looked at the reverse, and created this list of 25 female privileges. Feel free to share, post, add to or comment on it, being careful to note the inspiration from Peggy McIntosh and Barry Deutsch.
1. I am physically able to give birth to another human being, and then do my best to mold her or him into the kind of person I choose.
2. I am not automatically expected to be the family breadwinner.
3. I feel free to wear a wide variety of clothes, from jeans to skimpy shorts to dresses as appropriate, without fear of ridicule.
4. I can choose to remain seated to meet most people.
5. I am not ashamed to ask for others' perspectives on an issue.
6. I feel free to exhibit a wide range of emotions, from tears to genuine belly laughter, without being told to shut up.
7. My stereotypical excesses in shopping, clothes, jewelry, personal care and consumption of chocolate usually are expected, even the source of jokes.
8. Public policies generally offer me an opportunity to bond with my offspring.
9. I am among the first to get off a sinking ship.
10. I can usually find someone with superior strength to help me overcome physically challenging obstacles, such as changing a tire or cutting a huge Christmas tree.
11. Changing my mind is seen as a birthright or prerogative.
12. I feel free to explore alternate career paths instead of being bound to a single career ladder.
13. I am used to asking for help, around the kitchen table or the proverbial water cooler or the conference room.
14. People I've never met are inclined to hold doors open and give up their seats for me.
15. I can be proud of the skill I have worked to develop at stretching limited financial resources.
16. I am not ashamed of using alternatives to positional power to reach my goals.
17. I know how to put a new roll of toilet paper in use and am not above doing it for the next person.
18. I am not ashamed to admit that the decisions I make reflect my personal values.
19. I am not afraid to create and maintain honest relationships with others.
20. I do not fear being accused of having an ethic of care in my professional life.
21. When I enter an office, I am likely to encounter those who can help me "in low places."
22. I am more likely to get hugs than handshakes, depending on the situation.
23. I am less likely to be seen as a threat, which allows me more subtle alternatives.
24. I can use men's "sheer fear of tears" to my advantage.
25. I can complain that these female privileges are relatively minor compared with the vast assortment of dominant male privileges, but I wouldn't change places for the world.
Now, I've been using privilege to mean unearned benefits or advantages granted by society to an individual based upon their membership in a particular group/class.
Based on *that* definition, more than a few of the so-called "Female Privileges" aren't benefits. #1 certainly isn't. Society doesn't grant women the "Pregnancy Privilege".
Some of the others are just bizaaaaaare.
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
Beautiful name that got ruined by stupid company using it for their product: Ariel.
rq says
Dibblemont Prothero?? …
I forgot to mention I like the name Felix.
And Krešimir is all kinds of awesome!
Husband was misidentified as Igor on our wedding day, thus I nearly married the wrong man (so to speak). But I suppose the pastor could be forgiven, as he was old and crotchety and Husband has an uncommon Latvian name (as do I).
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
I had two different people, who didn't know each other, continuously call me Jelena. My name is Renata.
I guess I just look like a Jelena.
rq says
I would like to dispute numbers 3, 5, and 10 right off the bat.
And the rest… They're not really privileges. Someone else will probably define it better than I could. But remaining seated while greeting someone – that's a privilege, really??? They were really reaching when they went for the toilet paper roll. And I'd rather get a handshake than a hug, in most life situations (yay touching me is a privilege??). Oh, and number six. I'm pretty sure there's people out there constantly telling women to shut up, no matter what emotions they're expressing.
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- says
Thanks to this commenter at Mano's, I have had the "pleasure" of reading The Female Privilege Checklist:
Apart from the things that are obviously work you do for other people, whoever wrote it doesn't know much about women and their lives.
And yeah, English names became very popular among mostly lower class people. Since they objectively struggle more while also often not having the best tools at hand to solve personal conflicts, those kids often end up as being the "troublemakers". And then people expect Kevins to be troublemakers and you got a vicious cycle going.
rq says
In Latvia, Emīls is the expected trouble-maker, due to a popular film called Emīla nedarbi (The Mischiefs of Emil, an adaptation of the (I believe) Lindgren book about Emil from Lenneberg (sp?)).
Of course,
I am less likely to be seen as a threat
is a definite advantage, amirite?
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
re. Tony's list (in batches):
1. I am physically able to give birth to another human being, and then do my best to mold her or him into the kind of person I choose.
2. I am not automatically expected to be the family breadwinner.
3. I feel free to wear a wide variety of clothes, from jeans to skimpy shorts to dresses as appropriate, without fear of ridicule.
4. I can choose to remain seated to meet most people.
5. I am not ashamed to ask for others' perspectives on an issue.
1. is creepy. I don't want to mold someone into the person I choose. That's horrible.
2. but I'm expected to be the family's bread maker. yay
3. Ah. I guess the devil really is in the details. when appropriate. Of course, where and when is something appropriate? I say wearing a short dress is appropriate whenever I chose it to wear (with possible exceptions of work, but only if short is meant to mean micro), other people's opinion would differ.
4. Amazing. Being able to vote has got nothing on this one.
But really, I at least half-get up whenever* being introduced to someone.
*ok, almost
5. Actually, I am. Often. I don't see what that's got to do with being a woman.
6. I feel free to exhibit a wide range of emotions, from tears to genuine belly laughter, without being told to shut up.
7. My stereotypical excesses in shopping, clothes, jewelry, personal care and consumption of chocolate usually are expected, even the source of jokes.
8. Public policies generally offer me an opportunity to bond with my offspring.
9. I am among the first to get off a sinking ship.
10. I can usually find someone with superior strength to help me overcome physically challenging obstacles, such as changing a tire or cutting a huge Christmas tree.
6. Huh? I might not be told to shut up, but starting to bawl at work would probably cause some changes in opinions about me… and behaviors. Word crazy would probably be mentioned. Or histerical.
Laughing is, as far as I know, "allowed" for all genders.
If anything, a strong laugh might be considered unfeminine, while a man can chortle as much as he wants. Also, I sometimes snort when something is funny. Totally unfeminine, as I've been told.
7. Um, if those weren't stereotypical, you wouldn't have to feel defensive about them in the first place.
8. You call it bonding, I call it handing you all the dirty work.
9. *eyeroll*
10. I do like to imagine a naked to the waist hunk wielding an axe, but really, isn't this a bit ridiculous? You're only at ten, I'm afraid you're get to "hunting for food" by 15.
I'm bored.
11. Changing my mind is seen as a birthright or prerogative.
Yeah, because being considered flighty by default is really something to be grateful for.
Ugh, fuck off.
morgan ?! epitheting a metaphor says
I love the name Ariel and first encountered it in Shakespeare's The Tempest. Unfortunately it has been thoroughly disneyfied and seems now to only reflect princess-like mermaids.
Also, in the realm of weird, I have a twin sister (not identical) with a short, one syllable first name similar to mine. Dozens of times I have been referred to by my sister's name although the person making the mistake had no way to know that I have a sister of that name. The names don't sound alike, they are just short punchy names. Weird.
Yeah, Dibblemont Prothero. Unbelievably ugly name methinks.
rq says
I rather like the name Prospero, but I'd never name my child that. Cymbeline, too. Actually, Shakespeare has a lot of awesome names that I would never apply in real life. But they work great on the characters.
Oh! I have to mention… My two favourite latvianisations (call it what it is – a bastardisation) of English names EVER are… (and this is in all seriousness) Veins and Brains – for Wayne and Brian. I'd consider the names for a pair of cats, but children? Nuh-uh.
I'd get you a half-naked lumberjack who was willing to chop some wood for you – or hunt a rabbit with his bare hands, or something equally rustic and manly (voluntarily, of course), just because you took the time to get to 11. :)
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
12. I feel free to explore alternate career paths instead of being bound to a single career ladder.
13. I am used to asking for help, around the kitchen table or the proverbial water cooler or the conference room.
14. People I've never met are inclined to hold doors open and give up their seats for me.
15. I can be proud of the skill I have worked to develop at stretching limited financial resources.
12. This is related to you being a woman… how exactly?
13. Why yes. Men are taught not to ask for help. That sucks. I don't get the "used to". I would understand "allowed to (without social repercussions)", but you seem to imply women are feeble things that soon get used to asking for help for everything.
14. It's nice to sit in public transport, I admit. But I'll have to wait to be an old woman for that. Holding doors open… well, that really shouldn't be so much trouble to do it yourself so I don't see what great havour you're getting there. When people have their hands full, it's only decent that someone close by holds the door open. Gender irrelevant.
15. HAHA. Translation: My partner/husband can't be fucked to do home finances.
For single women: Of course you get less money than a man, you just learn to deal with that.
16. I am not ashamed of using alternatives to positional power to reach my goals.
17. I know how to put a new roll of toilet paper in use and am not above doing it for the next person.
18. I am not ashamed to admit that the decisions I make reflect my personal values.
19. I am not afraid to create and maintain honest relationships with others.
20. I do not fear being accused of having an ethic of care in my professional life.
Translation: I'm never going to be given any real power when there's a man nearby.
17. Honey, a man knows how to do it too (seriously, what's there to know), he just doesn't want to do it.
This one just tells women they're suckers.
18. *don't get it*
19. She doesn't have a very high opinion of men, does she?
20. I do believe men who are serious about their jobs prefer to be considered professional and ethical.
21. When I enter an office, I am likely to encounter those who can help me "in low places."
22. I am more likely to get hugs than handshakes, depending on the situation.
23. I am less likely to be seen as a threat, which allows me more subtle alternatives.
24. I can use men's "sheer fear of tears" to my advantage.
25. I can complain that these female privileges are relatively minor compared with the vast assortment of dominant male privileges, but I wouldn't change places for the world.
21. Oh gad. Is she reading herself?
It wasn't explicit, but this totally reads as "Women get all the shitty jobs, so I'll have other women to rely on among cleaning ladies and office aides ".
22. Yeah, no thanks. Bring on the handshakes, save the hugs for friends.
23. Except that some of those stereotypes you list favourably do make you look like a thread. Like that "prerogative" to change your mind.
24. Oh, lucky lucky women. We can be lying assholes and manipulate men by our tears.
Yeah. that's only a privilege if you're an asshole.
25. Oh please, you sanctimonious asshole.
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
I can't believe I didn't fuck up all those blockquotes.
(after reading rq's)
Do I get two lumberjacks for getting all the way to the end?
rq says
Yes. I'll search some out for you when I get home. :) (Consenting volunteers only, of course!)
Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says
If we're going gendered, I think
is underused. There are lots of good names from deities, actually.
Pallas – again, from athena, but I actually think this is a gorgeous name, and it's used so rarely (and was a place-associated name anyway, IIRC) that I think it's pretty flexible.
Okay, look, the odds that anyone would do this are low, but someone named their kid hitler, so here goes:
What about comic-book names? I've always liked Cassandra, Callisto and Amora. I wouldn't name my kid Rogue, but I'd think seriously about giving a provocative rugrat that nickname.
Logan isn't bad.
i think Amira is a great name (Tagalog, i think)
Yes, Beatrice. You get two. Door #1.
You only need to search for one.
I've done part of the heavy lifting (phew…that was some effort), the rest is up to you :)
rq says
My thanks, good sir! :D Sounds like you had that one waiting around for an opportune moment… ;)
I'll take care of the second one. *tee hee*
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
Thank you, Tony, for going through so much trouble.
Oh, gee, I got to deliver a Tone vs. Substance argument on FB just now:
No, actually they don't. I am not interested in having what is deemed "proper discourse" with people (not referring to you) who are against equal rights. People like the douche from Duck Dynasty have said some horrible things about gay people, though they've not used "bad words". I've called them out, and in the process I've used "bad words". What is more important in an argument-the tone (i.e. the manner in which an idea is relayed), or substance (the idea being relayed)? I am of the opinion that my use of profanity does not change the substance of my point. If anyone chooses to comment on the profanity, they need to ask themselves, why *that*, rather than the substance of my comment, is what merits attention. For too long, people in marginalized communities have been told to quiet down, to not make a fuss, to be polite. That only gets you so far. That's why people need to get over this aversion to profanity. Yes, mindless profanity doesn't serve much purpose. Calling Ducky Dynasty Douchecake a…well…douchecake was done within the context of discussion Free Speech and the larger point that Free Speech works both ways.
All of that was in response to a post from a friend about the Duck Dynasty dude who said some anti-gay shit. I'm off to work, otherwise I'd pull up a link for ya'll.
rq says
Crip Dyke
Yeah, sorry about all the gendered names I'm throwing out. :( There aren't any non-gendered ones in Latvian, so it's hard to get back into the more English-thinking aspect of my brain that might come up with more gender neutral variables.
Alas, I've never been into comic books enough to name any good names from them, but I've always thought Wolverine had a nice ring to it, for a girl…
Beatrice, an amateur cynic looking for a happy thought says
It's going to be awkward when rq, in trying to best Tony, sends a lumberjack to my door.
Vanja is the only non-gendered name used here that comes to mind.
yazikus says
Names I hear at pre-school: Finnigan, Magnus, Ulrich, Aurora, Bailey (boys & girls), Raegan, Livi, Felix
Popular names: Payton, Ava, Aiden, etc.
I feel like there is a sort of de-stigmatization going on with more untraditional names, which I think is good. But during the hiring process where I work recently, this was said, "Well, we certainly can't have a 'Guadalupe' sitting at the front desk", and that resume was summarily tossed aside. So that is shitty.
Nerd of Redhead, Dances OM Trolls says
Last night the Redhead was on the phone to her parents. Her dad mentioned a PBS show on a strike by the copper miners in 1913 in Dah YooPee was running in his area. Since I lived in Dah YooPee for 15 years, it was of interest. After that, there was a show on how Arthur Conan Doyle via his Sherlock Holmes stories gave rise to the science of forensic evidence.
rq says
Go, Tony!!
I'm just going to leave some epic Latvian names here (epic as in they're from our national epic story), it's the closest I have to knowing comics with super-heroes. There's Lāčplēsis (bear-ripper), Kangars (not sure of the meaning, but he's the baddie), Aizkrauklis (I like to translate this as beyond-the-raven), and Koknesis (wood-carrier… and dirtier minds than mine will wreck the pronunciation in English…). Then there's Spīdola (shining-egg), Laimdota (given-by-luck), and Staburadze (also not sure, probably named after the location Staburags).
That being said, I know someone who named their child Lāčplēsis. The other male names haven't been used in the recent era. Laimdota is a fairly not-uncommon name for girls still, but because Spīdola is the witch of the story, she's not a popular namesake. And I don't think anyone has ever used the name Staburadze.
yazikus says
Non-gendered names: Courtney, Raegan, Payton, Juniper, Lee…
carlie says
Oh yeah, on tone v substance – I'm in a discussion right now that is sort of on the important side for me, involving making some operations guidelines. I started an argument about not using civility as one of the guidelines, and need to back it up. Apart from blog posts (maybe in addition to), are there any sociological studies anyone can point to about the harm that civility clauses can do to marginalized groups? I will search on my own too, just didn't know if there were any known go-tos that would be easy to list. Thank you.
rq says
Those are some cool names (I like Livi).
Oh, my best friend went Fleetwood Mac and named her daughter Rhiannon.
Not likely, at least not via overnight delivery. ;)
OH carlie I also forgot to dispense your *hugs*, here they are, sorry they're late!!
yazikus says
Oh, my best friend went Fleetwood Mac and named her daughter Rhiannon.
I love that song so much. I also knew someone who named their daughter for it.
When I walk into the pre-school and hear all of the kids hollering at each other I could totally imagine them all being little forest children in some cool fantasy epic. With cloaks and stuff.
My co-worker's sons go to school with a set of twins named Jealousy & Precious. Note sure what the parents were going for there. Naming in such a way is sure to be a self-fulfilling prophecy.
CaitieCat says
That one sounds Caucasian (like, Georgian, maybe?).
Let's see, my grandkids: Owen James; Naomi Ellen; Skyler Cadence; and Alexis Michelle, whose name was changed by her adoptive parents to Marta, and I don't remember the new middle name.
I'm good with most of them, though I do feel bad for Sky-guy, my youngest's first. And "Cadence", which she wants pronounced "kae-'da(n)s", the French way of saying the word – nasalized vowel and all – which is of course not a name. And is also a word in English, as "'kay-dnse", meaning sort of "the rhythm of the thing".
Also, his birth certificate is screwed up, because my daughter can't read for shit. So his birth certificate reads "Skyler Cadence LASTNAME LASTNAME", because she wrote in his full name as "first name" on the certificate, and then noticed the surname goes in another box, but was, alas, too dim to think of crossing it out or asking for another form. I love my daughter, but I'm never quite sure whether she's really suited to community living. She's got serious learning disabilities, along with a few other issues, that make her ability to care for herself quite dubious – when in school, she was in that awkward borderland between "too disabled to handle regular school" and "just eloquent enough to stay out of special needs education", and I think they fell on the wrong side for her (we sent her to an integrated private school with small classes, and nearly bankrupted ourselves doing it). Hence the adopted second, and her first is under the full-time custody of my ex. Sigh.
I love her very much, but I wish she didn't want so desperately to be a mother that she kept becoming pregnant by jerk-ass shitheads who disappear as soon as the pee-sticks come out. She's really vulnerable to any guy who's willing to say "I love you", and because of her disabilities, is completely incapable of detecting falsehood in others. Like, completely. No exaggeration. This was used to horrifically cruel effect by her schoolmates, all too frequently, in ways I'm sure you can all imagine. Poor kid.
Now she's decided she's Muslim (three months ago), and is sporting hijab most of the time (the black-sack-with-hair-cover look). Mostly, I suspect, because she met a friend who was Muslim, and liked the fellowshippy stuff that the friend took her to. Still…if it'll serve to keep her from getting pregnant constantly, I'm good with the Muslim thing.
I said too much, didn't I? I know, this was just about names. But my kid makes me really sad some days. :(
I just read about a couple who named their kid Kal-El.
yazikus says
Gosh CatieCat, that sounds really hard. I hope she is happy and stays safe.
Crip Dyke, Right Reverend Feminist FuckToy of Death & Her Handmaiden says
sorry about all the gendered names I'm throwing out.
don't worry about it. I'm not trying to napalm anything that has ever been connected to a gender. Wanting it to be non-compulsory is not the same as saying "kill it with fire".
Entire toy aisles where everything is pink, however?
Kill them with fire, for sure.
I've always thought Wolverine had a nice ring to it, for a girl…
i ♥ you.
chigau (違う) says
I'll leave this here, too.
Look what Ally has linked to.
This is painfully funny.
chigau (違う) says
I am now picturing the whole X-person Wolverine franchise in pink…
nail polish on the ends of those knuckle-sword thingys…
lacy bra…
and, of course, a hair ribbon
and long eye-lashes
sounds good
FossilFishy(Anti-Vulcanist) says
Off the top of my head In my daughter's six year old cohort:
Identifying as Girls; Zoe, Zali, Teegan, Schyler (sp?), Lizzie (Elizabeth)
Identifying as Boys: Lochlan, Baily, Samual, Dylan
I'm missing six, these are the ones The Small Fry talks about all the time.
The SF's name is also non-traditional. We'd narrowed the list down to 10 names for a boy and 10 for a girl by the time she was born. I'm a little ashamed that we never considered making a list of gender neutral names instead of separate lists, but there it is.
In the end the girl's list had nine traditional names, spelled in the traditional manner, and one that Ms. Fishy had invented by combining the names of a couple of her favorite people. We chose that one because how could we not? This little creature was perfectly unique, to us and to the world. It seemed weird in the moment to name her a well used name. And thus we doomed her to having to spell it for folks for the rest of her life. Ah well, at least it's phonetic and once spelled it's not easily mistaken thereafter.
Months later we also discovered that it was in fact a real name. It's a very old-fashioned Welsh male name, so somehow we backed into what now can be considered a gender neutral name.
carlie says
Big hugs to CatieCat.
I have a male cousin Skyler, which isn't as unusual as the one named Raiya (male). I'd divulge other family names, but that would probably tag my family too closely! There's a mix of downright odd creative names (not too many), straight-from-the-hills style old country names, and classics.
carlie says
And thus we doomed her to having to spell it for folks for the rest of her life
I have a strangely spelled first name, and after I got married acquired a strangely spelled last name to go with it. At least I can weed out telemarketers very quickly and with the honest statement "No one by that name lives here."
A. Noyd says
Beatrice (#589)
It wasn't explicit, but this totally reads as "Women get all the shitty jobs, so I'll have other women to rely on among cleaning ladies and office aides ".
Ohhh, is that what that one means? Sounds like a super awesome "privilege" from the PoV of the women "in low places." In addition to being stuck in a shit job, they have to suck up to women who will take advantage of them. Yeah, that's really unfair to all the dudes in the world.
FossilFishy(Anti-Vulcanist) says
Ha! Never thought of that.
I should have though because Ms Fishy kept her last name. I often get calls asking if they can speak to Mrs. {my last name}, or they say "Hello Mr. {her last name}." at which point I say: "There's no such person." and hang up.
Bicarbonate says
Just in case anyone's curious.
Here in descending order are the top 25 girl names in France for 2013: Emma, Manon, Chloé, Camille, Léa, Louise, Lola, Zoé, Jade, Léna, Clara, Inès, Maëlys, Lilou, Eva, Juliette, Anaïs, Clémence, Alice, Lucie, Romane, Sarah, Margaux, Ambre et Jeanne.
Boys: Louis, Lucas, Hugo, Nathan, Gabriel, Clément, Jules, Raphaël, Léo, Arthur, Tom, Baptiste, Théo, Éthan, Maxime, Maël, Mathis, Enzo, Timéo, Paul, Thomas, Antoine, Axel, Maxence, Sacha.
Maël is the newest on this list, it is also given to girls.
A. Noyd says
My response to that list of "female privileges" is out of moderation over on Mano's blog.
Hekuni Cat, MQG says
Tony [from days ago, regarding my cat curling up in a box]:
How big a box are we talking? Shoe box?
It is a No. 10 envelope box my husband brought home from work. It is approximately 12″ long, 9″ wide, and 4″ deep. Chloe curls up quite a bit to fit inside; she's about 10 lbs.
Speaking of cute things cats do, my tabby, Kayta does this adorable thing where she closes her mouth, but a portion of her tongue sticks out of her mouth. I call it the tongue thing (yeah, real clever, I know) and have tried taking a picture of it, but a moments distraction and she stops.
I had a previous cat who did that a lot. It made me think of a snake tasting the air. Since Miriya was a very security conscious cat, it is entirely possible she was testing air for hidden dangers. She used to make security sweeps of the house on a regular basis, and generally following particular patterns. Having once fallen into a filled bathtub at a young age, Miriya was forever wary of them and was always sure I was in mortal danger if I decided to take one (a very rare occurrence). She would check on me about every 30 seconds to make sure I was all right. :D
Hekuni Cat, MQG says
I'm basically threadrupt.
Ogvorbis – *hugs, chocolate, and support* I'm so glad you're commenting again.
cicely, David M, Portia, and rq – *pouncehugs with chocolate*
I'll also leave a pile of *pouncehugs* here for anyone who wants one, and another pile of *gentle hugs* for anyone who wants one but finds a pouncehug a bit overwhelming.
I've missed reading you guys, but the holiday season and two weeks of migraines have definitely put me behind on everything.
thunk: y'all know ageism is a thing? says
I'm horrible at names in general.
But see common russian ones here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eastern_Slavic_naming_customs#Given_first_name. >90% people I know that are from Russia or similar have first names on that list. Not me tho.
The sad part is that I can't think of anything better to replace male-coded given name. and people calling me by that *bugs* me.
A Noyd: @619:
I loved your point by point takedown at Mano's!
Hekuni Cat:
It is so adorable that your kitty would check on you when you took baths ☺
A. Noyd says
I wonder what Megyn Kelly would do if she found out she's basically Michael Scott, the boss character from The Office. Only even less subtle.
@Tony (#623)
Thank you!
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- says
Yeah, there's two women in this workgroup.
One is tall, blonde, skinny and wears glasses and some 23 years old and the other one is me, small, fat, dark-haired, without glasses and 34. No need to remember or indivisual names, guys, so that you send your mail to the right person, right?
I still feel like shit but I'll get my ass to college.
Names again:
Germany has RULES. And they are weird, because they were written in the 19th century and then got added to as the world changed which makes them a complete fucked-up patchwork. But names HAVE to be unequivocally male or female. Unless you're from somehwere that doesn't have any clear markers. Or they have any clear markers but of course nobody knows them here. And it's all within the power of the clerk who registers your child and then there are individual bastards who make you jump through hoops.
Mr.'s cousin is called Marion. Now, this could be either male or female, but it never got used as a male name in Germany. Instead boys would be called Mario. But when Mr.'s uncle arrived at the office to register her, the clerk told him that Marion was ambigous and they needed a second name. So he headed back to the hospital. They agreed on Maria after his dead mother. Back through town to the office. Well, no, since catholic men can have Maria as a second name Marion Maria still didn't make the cut. So he needed to go back to his wife again
Emil is popular here, too, but not stigmatized. It has a lot to do with social class. Since those who name their boy "Emil" after Lindgren's character are usually middle-class people who enjoyed an upbringing with books, that rubs off. The little one's name is the German version of Lindgren's female mischief-maker. Maedeken in the original, it was "translated" as "Madita" into German. I say "translated" because you can hardly translate a made up name. And never was a child more aptly named.
I see, we will never fight about a guy. Your "hot lumberjack" leaves me pretty cold. He looks like he's got not clue where to turn on the chainsaw which is good because he's half-nekkid and therefore unfit to wield one. It's like the pictures of almost naked women wearing a hardhat and holding a hammer. They make no sense to me. I want nakedness in a context where it makes sense.
Azkyroth Drinked the Grammar Too :) says
Azkyroth Drinked the Grammar Too :) says
Not that I'm hinting anything.
Also, I took a "career development" class this semester and half of it was basically apologia for this. >.>
bassmike says
Just catching up. Looks at quarantined cookies. Well if no-one else is going to have them…..
rq I'm very impressed with the choir! You sound excellent. I like the quirky rhythms too. I think it takes great skill to write a piece with them that is still good to listen to. Here's my orchestra playing a piece with similar time signature changes. On the first page of my music there are no two bars with the same time signature.
As to children's names: Ruby, Imogen and Charlotte seem popular for girls. Traditional names like Edward and Henry are coming back for boys.
rq says
This is for Beatrice. :)
Some more names I thought of while I was out:
Laila, Lalita, Madara (really love this one, it shortens nicely to Made), Indra, Aija;
Agnis, Gundars (means fire-maker!!), Jēkabs.
rq says
*thumbs up*
That was a very good read!
Hekuni Cat
Hmm, I kind of missed your *pouncehug*, so this time – you get a *pouncehug* in return!! And best wishes for the migraine not returning for a good long while.
Nicely done! I enjoyed your orchestra very much – hadn't heard that piece before, and I liked it!
Here, I'm going to show off some more: at 1.34.00, my choir gets on stage and we do some music. The first song is more of a classic (story about a princess in a sunken castle and how one day it will rise up again – very traditional, standard sort of tale), second one you've heard already, and the third one is about midsummer – I like it because it takes a regular 4/4 rhythm and does things to it to make it non-standard and interesting, midway shifting to a 3/4 rhythm but returning to the original melody in a different time. Was a lot of fun to sing, too – I do wish they'd shown more of our conductor, since he has this great style with economy of motion but absolute clarity of intent. And the camera kept missing me, so you can't see me at all in the close-ups. ;)
rq says
Azkyroth @627
Is that about the Lounge? No, I see it isn't… But dayum, it comes close!
rq says
And perhaps this confidence is more Giliell's style… ;)
carlie says
thunk – is your last name one that could be used as a nickname, possibly with the addition of a jaunty "y" at the end? Or do you have a middle name that can be modified?
Azkyroth – there was recently a tldr episode about something very much like that comic in terms of feel. Show description:
Before the Internet as we know it today, there were text-based bulletin board systems all over the country that people could dial into. One of those systems, M-net, happened to live in Alex's backyard, and it was his internet home base for the better part of a decade. Alex went back this week and found out that it's actually still running.
rq says
Crip Dyke
[a note]
I've always thought Wolverine had a nice ring to it, for a girl
While true, the reason why I thought so is kind of the opposite – runs the reverse course, if you will.
See, when I was little, I was (a) raised in a gendered language environment (Latvian); (b) forced to learn a non-gendered language by osmosis once I started school (English); and (c) taught a second gendered language while in school (French). Guess which language felt more comfortable and logical to my brain? So I always wondered why Wolverine had a girl's name – it's the ending, see, a very French-like feminine ending, because at that age grammar rules have no exceptions. And the regular form of 'wolf' looks like that (-f ending), and feminising similar words (bear with me here, I was under 10) in the French gives -ve endings, so, obviously, QED and all that, Wolverine is a girls' name… Why would they give a boy superhero such a girly name???
Then later I found out that wolverines aren't actually related to wolves (even more awesomely vicious creatures instead), and that whole thing where the English language is confusing in its gender indications (that is, it doesn't really have any). But it all made sense at the time. And I'm still sometimes sidelined by certain names or things in other languages, where my previous language patterns assign a particular gender, when the opposite is meant, and all this in spite of a rational and conscious part of my brain trying to interrupt and say that gendering people and things really isn't all that important. :)
And I ♥ you too. [/a note]
bassmike says
Here, I'm going to show off some more: at 1.34.00, my choir gets on stage and we do some music. The first song is more of a classic (story about a princess in a sunken castle and how one day it will rise up again – very traditional, standard sort of tale), second one you've heard already, and the third one is about midsummer – I like it because it takes a regular 4/4 rhythm and does things to it to make it non-standard and interesting, midway shifting to a 3/4 rhythm but returning to the original melody in a different time. Was a lot of fun to sing, too – I do wish they'd shown more of our conductor, since he has this great style with economy of motion but absolute clarity of intent. And the camera kept missing me, so you can't see me at all in the close-ups. ;)
Very nice! My Latvian is
pretty bad non-existent. I assume that it was a choir competition of sorts.
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- says
Well, if he could put on a shirt, please?
Would you believe it, the guy who fucked up his emails actually apologizes
Ye Olde Blacksmith - Spocktopus cuddler says
We went with Mackenzie for Daughter's name. I think it is pretty gender neutral, but it seems like it is mainly considered a girls name now, at least around these parts.
Some of the cooler names around here:
Identifies as female: Mariyam, Caelyn, Ava, Kennedy, Brooklyn
Identifies as male: Therin, Garret, Johl, Colier, Slater
There are, of course, a ton of
Michaels, Davids, Adams, Johns, and Justin's
Heathers, Autumns, Jennifers, Megans, and Madisons
Ye Olde Blacksmith - Spocktopus cuddler says
actually apologizes
That is refreshing.
rq says
Yay for the apology!
Yah, a competition of sorts – it's the annual amateur/non-professional choir review/ranking, with extra oomph due to the hemidecadal (that's a word, right?) Song Festival (just this past summer). We got third, nationally – which is actually fourth, since they have Grand Prix, then first, second, third, etc. … Weird if you ask me.
Giliell @626:
Oh, don't worry, we could still fight over a guy ☺. That was me trying to find a shirtless lumberjack–*any* shirtless lumberjack. I didn't find him attractive either.
Re: names
Marion is a nice name for either a boy or girl. It is really stupid that parents cannot name their children as they choose.
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- says
One day we need to find an appropriate one to do so ;)
Actually, that was when my stupid heteronormative brain finally realized that there was something "odd" with my new best friends: He and I were arguing about whether Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt is more attractive in Interview with a Vampire (Tom Cruise? Really? But he generally fancies smaller guys, so I guess it might be that) and she rolled her eyes on us. The rest of the heteronormative world went on to speculate for years about our apparent threesome…
Yes, the apology was refreshing.
It's as easy as that. No hard feelings anywhere.
rq says
Tom Cruise or Brad Pitt
Frankly, I don't find either one of them particularly appealing.
rq says
Ride the Unicorn!! (Cute idea!)
Doctor Who meets Sherlock (fanwork – I am… ambiguous about it, but it was rather nicely done).
The odd thing? Took me a while to actually figure it out.
bassmike says
We got third, nationally – which is actually fourth, since they have Grand Prix, then first, second, third, etc.
third/fourth sounds very good to me. The standard is very high.
CaitieCat says
Brad Pitt was definitely very hot – in Thelma and Louise, until he turns out to be (do I need to say spoilers for a twenty-year-old popular movie?) a bad guy. But that shirtless rhinestone cowboy…ahem…thing he had going on in that…ooh…pic was definitely…ahem…noticable.
Please excuse me.
I'll be in my bunk.
Ogvorbis: Failing at being human. says
Tony @641:
That was me trying to find a shirtless lumberjack–*any* shirtless lumberjack.
Good luck with that. Lumberjacks wear heavy long-sleeved shirts for a reason. The fellers on fires, in addition to the fire gear, also wear heavy leather chaps and goggles. Running a chain saw produces lots of high-speed small pieces of wood. Many of which are sharp.
Now, off duty, they may go shirtless. Possibly wearing just the chaps, but not on the job.
Hi, all.
Ye Olde Blacksmith - Spocktopus cuddler says
Ride the Unicorn!! (Cute idea!)
OMIPU! That gets printed out and stuck on Teh Project Board™! (Behind Sleipnir, of course)
Oh the possibilities… Unicorns, dragons, cephalopods (ooohh tricky), oh…DINOSAURS!!!!
*must not slip into creative fugue state… too much to do today*
rq says
I had not yet seen Thelma and Louise, and now I will never watch it!! *stomps off to the corner with blankie*
:) (Actually, I'm sure I'll watch it eventually, no matter the spoilers I hear in the meantime.)
Pteryxx says
mostly threadrupt… yay apologies, yay Ogvorbis and Ye Olde Blacksmith, yays to thunk and CD and everyone who keeps it fuzzy by being all human up in here.
carlie and Azkyroth: an xkcd commenter linked to this (sad) little story:
So http://xkcd.com/1305/ exists, which reminded me of the woman who talked to Clippy. This is a true story.
Link to comment with the full story
First of original Twitter series
Storify… twitter moves fast nowadays.
Ye Olde Blacksmith - Spocktopus cuddler says
*Spoctopus is pleased*
Ye Olde Blacksmith - Spocktopus cuddler says
*waves at Pteryxx* 8-)
Lynna, OM says
When a Republican politician angers Tea Partiers what can he do to get back in the good graces of the rabid right wing? Go after those freeloading school children!
Rep. Jack Kingston (R-Ga.) wants kids to learn early in life that there's no such thing as a free lunch. To make sure they absorb that lesson, he's proposing that low-income children do some manual labor in exchange for their subsidized meals.
On Saturday, Kingston, who is vying to be his party's Senate nominee next year, spoke at a meeting of the Jackson County Republican Party. He … came out against free lunches, saying that children should have to pay at least a nominal amount or do some work like sweeping cafeteria floors.
"But one of the things I've talked to the secretary of agriculture about: Why don't you have the kids pay a dime, pay a nickel to instill in them that there is, in fact, no such thing as a free lunch?" the congressman said. "Or maybe sweep the floor of the cafeteria – and yes, I understand that that would be an administrative problem, and I understand that it would probably lose you money. But think what we would gain as a society in getting people – getting the myth out of their head that there is such a thing as a free lunch."…
Rep. Jack Kingston, currently running for the U.S. Senate in his home state of Georgia, was in deep trouble when he said he was in favor of amending or fixing the Affordable Care Act rather than repealing it. He got out of this trouble by attacking the school lunch program for poor children.
What comes next? After you have gone after the lazy freeloading children, how much lower can you go to placate the rabid right wing?
Ogvorbis: Failing at being human. says
Why 'yay'? What did I do? Or what do you think I did?
rq says
I dunno, it's a sweet gesture, but I still find it creepy when men substitute their daughters in for their wives… :/
As for respect for others, well, if you mean "shitless of my dad", then yes, this works for me. (TW violence against children) I just don't see how spanking has anything to do with teaching respect. That's certainly not how my children are learning respect, and so far, they're catching on…
Pteryxx says
Ogvorbis: you came back. ♥
Ogvorbis: Failing at being human. says
First, sorry I murdered your name.
Second, not too sure how long I will last. Not in a good place right now. So I am pretending to be human.
Giliell, professional cynic -Ilk- says
Now, off duty, they may go shirtless. Possibly wearing just the chaps, but not on the job.
Depends on the job ;)
Good to see you, I hope you get in a better place soon
opposablethumbs says
Ogvorbis, it's good to see you – I hope you are OK, and please stay around. This place is the better for having you here.
Pteryxx says
Og: likewise re the place and the hopes. If you want or need the space, go on and take a break on purpose even – you're not obligated to stress out just to keep a presence here. We care that you're okay, not merely that you're making yourself available to us.
Oh, and don't worry about my nym – I rather like seeing the different and characteristic ways folks misspell it, not to mention mispronouncing it. (FossilFishy used to spell it differently almost every time. ) ~;>
Ye Olde Blacksmith - Spocktopus cuddler says
you're not obligated to stress out just to keep a presence here. We care that you're okay, not merely that you're making yourself available to us.
PZ Myers says
You may notice a sudden surge in approved comments appearing — akismet is acting up, and marking a whole lot of people as spam. Now cleared.
For your amusement, Eric Youngstrom is also raging in the spam queue and trying multiple pseudonyms to get through, so you might watch out in case he finally sneaks through. He's very, very upset that he can't comment here. It's his right, I guess.
PZ Myers says


text:
Cowlishaw: Why bringing in Tim Tebow wouldn't put competitive pressure on Tony Romo
Columnist Tim Cowlishaw answered your questions in a chat Thursday. Here are some highlights.
Old CowboyFan ... I admit to having been critical of Jerry regarding his trading, player evaluations, cap management, etc. But, on the other hand every city in America should have a facility as nice as JerryWorld as it is a great resource for north Texas. Now, for naming the stadium, I have a few suggestions: North Texas Star, The Cowboy Citadel, The Lone Star (not named after the beer), The Star. Corrall, stockyard, JerryWorld, Jones City, Jones Dome and house of Stars don't seem appropriate. What do you hear about naming rights? My best guess is the price is too high.
Tim Cowlishaw: I saw where Florida Atlantic University just gave its stadium naming rights to a company that builds prisons. I think that sort of thing would not play well in Roger Goodell's NFL. As for the Cowboys, I agree with you about the stadium drawing major events and look forward to going to the NCAA regional this year and Final Four next year. We can argue about whether or not it's a failure in terms of home-field advantage (it is, but a good team could render that meaningless). As for the name, haven't heard anything new and I'm glad Jerry has been unable or unwilling to change the name. I don't look forward to the day it has a corporate name.
Aron ... I was wondering why won't the Cowboys get Tim Tebow he could be a good addition to the Staff and would put pressure on Tony?
Tim Cowlishaw: What sort of pressure would Tim Tebow put on Tony Romo? Tim Tebow is this close to being out of the league as a quarterback. I'm just glad he made the wise decision not to come to town to speak where he was planning to speak. As far as football goes, Tebow might have a shot in Jacksonville where they love him and the team stinks. But he couldn't take the job away from Sanchez, so how's he going to take it from Romo?
Ollie Hodgey ... I see where Stepen Jones says keeping Doug Free is not out of the question! Why would they want to keep him? I see no value there!
Tim Cowlishaw: That's because you, like me and others, see his penalties and not much else. He had to do something right on a number of plays for an offense that picked up as many yards as this one. Now obviously he started to share time as the season went on, so that diminishes his value and the likelihood that there is real merit to keeping him. But at a much lower cap figure, I could see it happening.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
HSU had led by as many as three points of Friday's first-round Great American Conference men's tournament basketball game. That was, until the 10:33 mark of the first half.
ATU senior Will Paul, who had been on the bench since mid-January from a foot injury, came into the game and drained a 3-pointer to tie the score 12-12. That energized the Wonder Boys to manhandle the Reddies in the second half, as Arkansas Tech shot 9-of-16 behind the 3-point line and easily won 77-47.
The Wonder Boys (17-10) will play Southwestern Oklahoma State (12-15), which beat Arkansas-Monticello 77-69, in tonight's semifinals inside Bruin Fieldhouse. The game can be heard on KWKK 100.9 FM and online at athletics.atu.edu. ATU beat the Bulldogs 69-52 in Russellville in January and 60-57 in Weatherford in February.
"It's kind of hard to pinpoint or try to pick a certain word for it, but when he hit it, you could hear the charge in the crowd, and it was like he was saying 'OK, I'm back,'" Wonder Boys head coach Doug Karleskint said. "It's kind of reminiscent of his performances last year when he really took over and had some great games in this arena. The guys are really glad to see him back.
"Everybody knows what Will has had to go through. Dating back to June, this team has come together as a family and the players have really bonded and are rooting for each other. It's great to see Will go out and play instead of sit on the bench."
Wonder Boys senior Jared Williamson of Russellville, who led everybody with 25 points, hit a pair of free throws that gave Arkansas Tech the lead for good with 7:55 left in the opening quarter. Tyler Friedel, who finished with 14 points, hit the first of three 3-pointers, then Williamson added a layup, 3-pointer and free throws to increase the Wonder Boys' lead. Marshawn Arnold's free throws set the halftime score at 31-21.
ATU hit 50 percent of its shots (12-of-24) from the field and 5-of-7 behind the 3-point line in the first half. But the Wonder Boys put HSU (14-13) away by outscoring the Reddies 40-15 in the game's final 15 minutes. Arkansas Tech's 30-point margin is the largest in the nine-game history of the GAC men's championship tournament, as the Wonder Boys improved to 4-0 in GAC tournament games.
Friedel added six rebounds to his 14-point performance off the bench. Willie Kirkland netted 14, as he and Friedel hit 6-of-8 behind the 3-point line. Williamson, last year's tournament MVP, hit 7-of-14 from the field and shot something at the free-throw line. Paul played 10 minutes, scored five points and grabbed three rebounds. Arnold finished with 10 points and eight rebounds.
ATU outrebounded HSU 42-28 and committed just eight turnovers.
"Unbelievable," Karleskint said about Williamson. "He feels pretty confident in this building right now. I thought about what he's meant to this team all year, and he's probably our most important piece. He's an all-conference player, and he showed why today.
"Willie is a high-character person. I challenged him at halftime, but told him he had to take good shots and get to the rim and get to the foul line. He did, and that's why he had a great second half. Tyler and Marshawn were great. Tyler is just catching and shooting, and he looked like a big-time player on defense."
Great American Conference Men's Tournament
Bruin Fieldhouse, Bartlesville, Okla.
Game 1: Southwestern Oklahoma State 77, Arkansas-Monticello 69
Game 2: Arkansas Tech 77, Henderson State 47
Game 3: Harding 62, Southern Arkansas 43
Game 4: Ouachita Baptist 67, Southeastern Oklahoma State 60
Saturday, Semifinals
Game 5: Southwestern Oklahoma State (12-15) vs. Arkansas Tech (17-10), 6 p.m.
Game 6: Harding (21-8) vs. Ouachita Baptist (15-12), 8:30 p.m.
Sunday, Championship
Game 7: Semifinal winners, 3:30 p.m.
GAC Women's Tournament
Game 1: Harding 77, Southeastern Oklahoma State 63
Game 2: Southwestern Oklahoma State 69, Henderson State 59
Game 3: Arkansas Tech 68, Arkansas-Monticello 62 (OT)
Game 4: East Central 81, Ouachita Baptist 69
Saturday, Semifinals
Game 5: Harding (19-8) vs. Southwestern Oklahoma State (22-5), noon
Game 6: Arkansas Tech (21-6) vs. East Central (19-8), 2:30 p.m.
Sunday, Championship
Game 7: Semifinal winners, 1 p.m.