ASK Musings

No matter where you go, there you are.

Monthly Archive: January 2017

Sunday

29

January 2017

0

COMMENTS

What I’m Reading – January 29, 2017

Written by , Posted in Feminism, Politics, What I'm Reading

The last week has shown what a monster we have in the White House. Remember that every day.

Fight Back

  • “The New York Taxi Drivers Alliance on Saturday said it would not make any pickups from John F. Kennedy International Airport after two Iraqi travelers were detained trying to enter the U.S. following President Trump’s immigration ban.” NY taxis refuse to pick up from JFK over refugee detention (by Brooke Seipel, at The Hill)
  • “The freedom struggles of black people that have shaped the very nature of this country’s history cannot be deleted with the sweep of a hand. We cannot be made to forget that black lives do matter. This is a country anchored in slavery and colonialism, which means for better or for worse the very history of the United States is a history of immigration and enslavement. Spreading xenophobia, hurling accusations of murder and rape and building walls will not erase history. No human being is illegal.” Here’s the Full Transcript Of Angela Davis’s Women’s March Speech (Angela Davis)
  • “On Friday, during Inauguration Day protests, D.C. police arrested 230 demonstrators after corralling them at 12th and L streets NW. Defense attorneys and some of those arrested are likening the treatment to the problematic mass arrests at ­Pershing Park nearly 15 years ago, saying these protesters, too, were “trapped and detained” and then arrested without being given dispersal orders.” Defense attorneys allege police trapped and then arrested protesters (By Peter Hermann and Michael E. Miller via @postlocal)
  • “The intention of this weekly document is to make clear suggestions for action backed by well-considered research. If an issue doesn’t affect you, consider whether you would support this issue on behalf of other Americans and act accordingly. Although these topics have been well researched and are intended to be helpful, they are still subject to human error. Please do your own research!” What to Do This Week
  • “Rewire Legislative Tracker is an easily searchable database of the laws, people, organizations, and litigation involved in sexual and reproductive health and justice in the United States, as well as the connections among them. Primarily focused on the anti-choice universe, the database provides factual summaries of key topics, lawsuits, and laws. It is available for use by the public with credit to Rewire.” Legislative Tracker
  • “While many tech reactions have been muted and largely focused in how to deal with hardships that could result for employees because of the ban, some tech leaders — such as Netflix’s Reed Hastings — have issued strong challenges to Trump’s action. “Trump’s actions are hurting Netflix employees around the world, and are so un-American it pains us all,” wrote Hastings in a personal statement on Facebook. “Worse, these actions will make America less safe (through hatred and loss of allies) rather than more safe.”” Airbnb, Salesforce and Etsy’s CEOs are the latest tech leaders to speak out against Trump’s Muslim ban (by Kara Swisher via Recode)

Horrifying Legislation and Executive Action

  • “If the REINS Act had been in effect, it’s unlikely that the Tea Party-dominated Republican caucus in the House would have approved of any of these rules. Future standard setting under the entire body of legislation enacted over the past 40 years to protect the public, from the Clean Air Act to the Dodd Frank financial sector reforms, would be frozen. Over time, as new health, safety, consumer and labor protection issues arise, all of these laws will effectively have been repealed, with no public debate and no accountability. It will also be impossible to restore them as long as the REINS Act is in effect, because by requiring Congress to approve every regulation, it makes it impossible to pass technically complex and scientifically valid rules on any topic of controversy.” The Most Dangerous Bill You’ve Never Heard Of Just Passed The House (by Carl Pope, via Huffington Post)
  • “In its simplest form, turning Medicaid into a “block grant” simply means handing control of the program — and the funding for it — over to the states. But in all these plans the details reveal something else, too: a massive cut to Medicaid spending that could throw tens of millions of people off the program. To understand how that works, you need to understand the unusual way that Medicaid works.” Donald Trump’s plan to cut Medicaid spending, explained (by Sarah Kliff via @Vox)
  • “None of that money is spent on performing abortions. The Helms Amendment has prevented U.S. tax dollars from funding overseas abortions since 1973. Proponents of the global gag rule believe the policy is nevertheless still necessary, arguing that Helms isn’t strong enough by itself. But the Guttmacher Institute and other opponents of the gag rule say that such restrictions have devastating effects on international organizations, often forcing them to close their clinics or reduce their services, denying women access to help from safe providers and even hampering HIV prevention efforts.” Donald Trump Reinstates Ronald Reagan’s Abortion ‘Global Gag Rule’ (by Amanda Terkel and Laura Bassett, via The Huffington Post)
  • “President Barack Obama signed a continuing resolution Dec. 10 that included $100 million specifically for Flint’s water crisis, but as reported by MLive, that legislation included a process for the city to apply for the funds through a grant program at the state Department of Environmental Quality. Anna Heaton, press secretary for Michigan Gov. Rick Snyder, said in an email to MLive that the “statutory language is being reviewed to see if the [Drinking Water Revolving Fund] grants [targeting Flint] would be affected.” “We haven’t received any guidance from the federal government,” Heaton’s statement said.” Flint, Mich., Left Wondering How Trump’s EPA Freeze Will Impact the $100,000,000 It Was Promised in Grant Aid (by Monique Judge, via The Root)
  • ““It’s basically a fear tactic,” Wang told BuzzFeed News. “The weekly list is part and parcel of Trump’s efforts to intimidate and coerce cities, counties, and states.” Wang said declined detainer outcome reports are unreliable because they’re issued without probable cause to believe they are deportable and have lead to people being wrongly detained, including UC citizens. As recently as Tuesday, a federal court found that immigration authorities and the state of Rhode Island violated a US citizen’s constitutional rights by detaining her without probable cause.” Trump To Publish Weekly List Of Crimes Committed By Undocumented Immigrants In Sanctuary Cities (by Adolfo Flores, at Buzzfeed News)
  • “Weatherford says that he woke up the morning after the event to “several homophobic and transphobic slurs as well as (sexual) threats” on social media, through his UW work email, and on a website where students can rate their professors.” UW Instructor Gets Doxxed, Harassed and Threatened After the Milo Yiannopoulos Protests (by Amber Cortes via The Stranger)

White Feminism

  • “When women of color speak out of the anger that laces so many of our contacts with white women, we are often told that we are ‘creating a mood of hopelessness,’ ‘preventing white women from getting past guilt,’ or ‘standing in the way of trusting communication and action,'” Lorde said. In short, black women were accused of stunting feminism, thwarting its efficacy and momentum. They were bursting the bubble of “sisterhood” and “solidarity” within a movement that has historically marginalize them. In order to make any true progress, Lorde maintained that women must agree in some measure to abandon these illusions of unity. Acknowledging women’s differences, accepting criticism and embracing each other’s anger will only make the feminist movement stronger.” Women of color are being blamed for dividing the Women’s March — and it’s nothing new (by Marie Solis, via @mic)

Good Things

  • “In an unprecedented event, nine black women were elected as circuit and district judges in Jefferson County, Alabama, this November. For a predominantly Republican state, the Democratic sweep came as a surprise, as Alabama is one of the few states that judges still have to run on party lines to get elected.” Why the Election of 9 Black Female Judges in Alabama Matters (by Lindsay Peoples via @TheCut)

Saturday

28

January 2017

0

COMMENTS

Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books by Azar Nafisi

Written by , Posted in Feminism, Politics, Reviews

Four Stars

Best for: People interested in one story of life under authoritarian governments.

In a nutshell: A professor uses literature as the framework for her memoir of life teaching in Iran.

Line that sticks with me: “Lack of empathy was to my mind the central sin of the regime, from which all the others flowed.”

Why I chose it: I flew the weekend after the election, and saw this in the airport. I figured perhaps it would be good to study up on life under leadership that doesn’t view everyone equally.

Review: I’d heard about this book many times before, and thought it was all about a group of young girls who got together to read literature that they couldn’t access in other venues. That’s not entirely accurate. Instead it is the memoir of a professor that includes, in some parts, a group of women in their 20s getting together with the professor to discuss literature.

The book is organized into four parts, each using an author as the background to the events. It does not go chronologically; it jumps around a bit, which I found somewhat challenging, although I think it ultimately works well.

The book spends a lot of time exploring what it means to both receive an education and try to educate others with the implementing many strict rules. Dr. Nafisi spends a fair bit of time, for example, looking at what it would mean to follow the requirement to wear the veil, as she would not choose to wear one if it were not mandated. Is that a fight that it is worth undertaking if it means she would not be able to share her lectures with her students?

I think one of the more shocking things for me was how almost casually the author discusses how many people – including some of her own students – are thrown in jail for years for seemingly minor issues. And then they are released and it’s … it’s a big deal but also not surprising. It’s terrifying, and I have to say that given the utterly despicable things the 45th president has done in just the last eight days, I don’t think it’s too ridiculous to think it could happen here, too.

Before reading this book, I knew very little about Iran in the 80s and 90s. And obviously reading one book does not mean I know much more than I did before. But through the lovely writing of Dr. Nafisi, I feel like I understand some of the different perspectives of those living under the regime.

Wednesday

25

January 2017

0

COMMENTS

Finding Zoe by Brandi Rarus

Written by , Posted in Reviews

Two Stars

Best for: People interested in learning a bit more about Deaf culture in the U.S. and who also have a strong stomach for not great writing and questionable storytelling.

In a nutshell: Deaf mother with three hearing sons desperately wants a daughter; Deaf husband not totally on board; teenager gets pregnant and surrenders daughter for adoption. True story.

Line that sticks with me: “He felt that part of the magic and mystery of giving birth to a child is parenting that particular child. However, he believed that the one benefit of adopting a child was being able to decide whether that child was right for his family.”

Why I chose it: A colleague selected this for our equity and social justice book club, as she was interested in learning about Deaf culture and about adoption.

Review: First, I should explain that the line that sticks with me is because I found that opinion really challenging and ultimately a bit offensive.

Author Brandi Rarus went deaf when she was six, and was raised in a hearing family. This story is mostly her story, and it is educational but ultimately frustrated me. The biographical parts of Ms. Rarus’s story are interesting, as she can effectively describe the different factions in Deaf culture, the challenges Deaf children can face in education and in determining where they fit and who they are in the hearing world. She also was involved in many important moments in Deaf history in the U.S., including the Deaf President Now protests at Gallaudet and the passage of the ADA. Additionally, she was Miss Deaf America.

I appreciate the honesty Ms. Rarus shares throughout the book but MAN does she put a lot of pressure on the imaginary daughter who eventually materializes in Zoe. She is essentially desperate for a daughter to add to her family of three boys, and while I’ll never understand that desire (I don’t have kids), I get that people have it. The frustrating part for me is the assumptions and the language she uses to describe her future child – basically she sounds like she wants a doll and a best girlfriend. It looks like it turned out okay but what if Zoe turned out to hate shopping or pretty clothes, and got along better with her father than mother?

Additionally, even though I just lauded the honesty, there is something about how all of the players involved in Zoe’s adoption are described that feels false. Like everyone got final review, so nothing is true. And there are so many players – the birth mother, the birth father, the first adoptive family, the foster family, and everyone’s extended family. It can be hard to keep up. There’s also a very confusing situation with the birth father and birth mother and the courts that makes zero sense to me – basically the birth father wants to keep Zoe, but the birth mother wants to place her up for adoption, so she sues to terminate the birth father’s rights so she can have full rights and then surrender the daughter. I just found it odd that courts would terminate parental rights without any cause just so the child could then be adopted. I’m sure there’s a legal reason, but the book doesn’t explain it.

There is a fair bit of religion in here, which is not my thing but was fine and obviously fits as it is part of their story. However, there were some glowing comments about what appears to be a crisis pregnancy center (yikes) and some disparaging and questionable comments about Planned Parenthood and abortion, so that was unpleasant to read.

And finally, I found the discussion the first adoptive family have when they find out that Zoe might have hearing and other developmental challenges to be deeply distressing. First, the idea that there is only ‘one’ good thing about adoption seems very narrow-minded. And the man who made the comment I shared above sounded a bit more like this adoptive father thinks of adopting a child is like picking out a puppy. I get the idea that when adopting, the child should be placed in the home that will be best for her, but more I think this particular father just wanted a more “perfect” child.

Sunday

22

January 2017

0

COMMENTS

What I’m Reading – January 21, 2017

Written by , Posted in Feminism, Politics, What I'm Reading

It happened. But then the next day, millions of people showed up to fight back. Now we have to keep it up.

Fight Back

  • “Women’s March crowds at cities across the country on Saturday have grown so large that the only way to capture them is with overhead shots. Below, overhead photos and videos from Washington, Los Angeles, Chicago, New York, Memphis, Nashville, Boston, Raleigh, and more.” Overhead Shots Show Massive Women’s March Crowds in Cities Across America (via @Slate)
  • “In some ways, protecting ourselves digitally in the Trump era will be the same as protecting ourselves in any other era, since good digital practices are important no matter who’s in power or what’s happening in the larger political sphere. The free speech threats under Trump, however, could well be greater than anything we’ve experienced in the past.” How To Protect Yourself Digitally In The Trump Era (by Vivian Wagner, via @ESTBLSHMNT)
  • “Allred said at the press conference that after Zervos came forward, Trump “lied, debased and denigrated” her in public, denying that he’d ever met her. She pointed out some of the many public statements Trump made about Zervos and the other women who accused him of sexual assault or harassment.” Former Apprentice Contestant Summer Zervos, Who Accused Trump of Sexual Harassment, Files Defamation Lawsuit Against Him (by Anna Merlan, h/t @Jezebel)
  • “I know that Empress Duchess Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama, Queen of my heart, said “when they go low, we go high.” But see? I’m going to act like she followed that up with a silent “except when it comes for Donald Trump, then all bets are off.” I need that, because that dude goes so low that I feel like we have no choice but to go gutter.” A Handy Guide to Disrespecting Cheeto Satan From Inauguration and Beyond (by Luvvie Ajayi, via @Luvvie)
  • “Murphy had traveled to Philly from Toronto, where another data-rescuing hackathon had taken place a month prior. Murphy brought with her a list of all the data sets that were too tough for the Toronto volunteers to crack before their event ended. “Part of the work is finding where the data set is downloadable—and then sometimes that data set is hooked up to many other data sets,” she said, making a tree-like motion with her hands.” Rogue Scientists Race to Save Climate Data from Trump (by Zoe Schlanger, via @Wired)

Disability Rights

White Supremacy

“Justice” System

  • “Lori Kavitz is a mother of two boys, and is exactly the kind of prisoner this program was created for and yet, her clemency request was denied just last week. Advocates have no idea why. Meanwhile, men with much more significant criminal histories have already received clemency under the project.” Obama’s Clemency Program Has Failed Incarcerated Women (by Britni, via @ESTBLSHMNT)
  • “Republican lawmakers in the state introduced a bill last week in the legislature that would not hold motorists liable for negligently running over someone obstructing a roadway. The bill was introduced in response to a year of protests over a proposed pipeline near the Standing Rock Indian Reservation.” Running over protesters on roadways could soon be legal in North Dakota (by Justin Boggs, h/t @AdamWeinstein)
  • “For much of modern American history, police officers were considered, by most judges and jurors, to be the most reliable narrators in a courtroom — professional and neutral arbiters of facts. The increasing prevalence of camera footage eroded that bedrock of the justice system, wiping out powers long held by law enforcement. Within the last half decade, a new reality has set in for cops, lawyers, and judges: Videos have replaced police reports and testimony as the most credible version of events, proving time and again, with increasing frequency, that police officers lie.” Blue Lies Matter (by Albert Samaha, via@BuzzFeedNews)

Misogyny

  • “The co-worker, however, did not want to speak with him, and instead left the office. In an effort not to be left alone with von Keyserling, the victim left with her co-worker. As she walked by, he allegedly “pinched her groin area.” She responded that if he ever did that again, she would punch him.” Connecticut Politician Arrested For Grabbing Woman’s Groin, Called it A ‘Joke’ (by Lauren Evans, via Jezebel)

45th President’s Policies

  • “At the Department of Justice, the blueprint calls for eliminating the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services, Violence Against Women Grants and the Legal Services Corporation and for reducing funding for its Civil Rights and its Environment and Natural Resources divisions.” Trump team prepares dramatic cuts (by Alexander Bolton, via @TheHill)
  • “However, photographs of the crowd gathered to watch the inauguration of the 45th president showed a smaller crowd than in past ceremonies, particularly the massive crowds that gathered to watch Barack Obama be sworn in as the nation’s first black president.” President Trump’s Spokesman Just Lied About The Size Of The Inauguration Crowd (by Salvador Hernandez, via @BuzzFeedNews)

Tuesday

17

January 2017

0

COMMENTS

March: Book Three by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell

Written by , Posted in Politics, Reviews

Five Stars

Best for: Anyone who thinks we don’t still need the voting rights act.

In a nutshell: This is the final – and longest – of three graphic novels about the life of John Lewis. It covers the mid-60s, culminating in the march from Selma to Montgomery and the passing of the voting rights act.

Line that sticks with me: “In Mississippi that summer we suffered more than 1000 arrests, 80 beatings, 35 shootings, 35 church burnings, and 30 bombings.”

Why I chose it: Because the first two books were great and I wanted to learn more.

Review: This final book covers a lot of ground, starting with a church bombing that killed four little girls, through voter registration drives that were accompanied by murders, and a peaceful march that ended up dubbed Bloody Sunday thanks to the vicious actions of the police.

It’s a rough read, but a critical one. I learned so much in the 250 pages, including more detail on some events that I had vaguely heard about previously. For example, I knew that the 1964 Democratic National Convention was contentious, but I didn’t know any of the details. It was so impressive to read about the very deliberate attempts to get the voices of the Mississippi Freedom Democratic Party heard.

Reading about the people who stood in line all day, not allowed to leave to drink water or use the bathroom, only to not be allowed to register to vote – or to be ‘allowed’ but then face ridiculously complicated literacy tests – was infuriating. Then to read about the passing of the voting rights act, and the triumph it was, only to be reminded about how the Supreme Court gutted it recently, leading to voter suppression during this most recent election. It’s like 20 steps forward, 19 steps back (forty years later).

Friday is going to happen, and some people will refer to the PEOTUS as President. Anyone who finds that deplorable but isn’t as well-educated on the past as they should be (like me) would be well advised to read this series to recognize what the fight for rights can look like.

Monday

16

January 2017

0

COMMENTS

March: Book Two by John Lewis, Andrew Aydin and Nate Powell

Written by , Posted in Politics, Reviews

Five Stars

Best for: Anyone who doesn’t know about John Lewis. Also, anyone who does. Also, judging from the latest Pajiba post, Rob Schneider. Ooof.

In a nutshell: This is the second of three graphic novels about the life of John Lewis. It covers the early 60s, focusing on the Freedom Rides and the March on Washington.

Line that sticks with me: “We found out later that [Birmingham Police Chief ‘Bull’ Connor] had promised the Ku Klux Klan fifteen minutes with the bus before he’d make any arrests.”

Why I chose it: I really enjoyed book one and wanted to read the next part of the story.

Review: After I finished this book, I took a minute to wander over to Facebook and was greeted by a whole lot of crap being posted on the Pajiba article about Rob Schneider’s ignorant statement about Congressman Lewis and Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. It clearly was shared in some cesspool connected to the white supremacist movement, and it brought out some of the worst our country has to offer.

After finishing this book, I have no doubt that some of these same commenters would have thrown rocks and bottles at the Freedom Riders if they had been nearby. The same ones who claim that MLK ‘won’ civil rights, and that ‘reverse’ racism is the real problem, talk as though they would have supported the fight for integration and equal rights. But I see in them the people Congressman Lewis is talking about, who beat peaceful protestors sitting at lunch counters or who scoffed at those marching on Washington D.C. I see in them the same people who were angry that Black people were trying to buy tickets to see a movie in the whites-only theater, as opposed to the people who should have been angry that a whites-only theater even existed. I think I used to buy into the idea that racism would fade away as the old racist whites died off, but the last few months have shown me – a bit late, I know – that the old racist whites are being replaced by young racist whites who are just champing at the bit to spit in the faces of people seeking the equal rights that this country is still denying to so many.

This book was harder to read than Book One, but I also think it was a bit better. In discussing the freedom rides and other actions, it really gets into the discussions and disagreement that can arise when movements have the same goal but different methods. I think it is naïve to believe that everyone who is ostensibly fighting for the same causes and outcomes will agree on how to do that, and it’s inappropriate to judge the efficacy of a movement just because not everyone agrees on how to act.

Monday

16

January 2017

0

COMMENTS

March: Book One by John Lewis, Adrew Aydin and Nate Powell

Written by , Posted in Reviews

Four Stars

Best for: Anyone who doesn’t know about John Lewis. Also, anyone who does. Also, the PEOTUS, because damn.

In a nutshell: This is the first of three graphic novels about the life of John Lewis. It covers his childhood through early college, including his participation in lunch counter sit-ins.

Line that sticks with me: “The police, conspicuously absent while we were beaten, arrived quickly after the mob wore themselves out.”

Why I chose it: My husband purchased the three books last year and just finished the last two this weekend. I haven’t enjoyed graphic novels I’d read previously, but given the shameful comments the soon-to-be President shared this weekend, I thought I’d give it a go.

Review: I have a feeling that this is going to happen a lot with the books I choose this year, but wow, my mostly white, all-suburban California public education failed me in many ways when it comes to U.S. history and current affairs. Also, my parents didn’t express any interest in making sure I was aware of the civil rights movement. I wish I’d recognized then how critical it would be to learn about that part of history, but I’m catching up as much as I can now.

I appreciate the storytelling device, which follows Congressman Lewis through the day when President Obama is inaugurated, and provides opportunities for him to tell his story to a constituent who happens to stop by. We learn about his childhood on a farm, his segregated schooling, his attempt to attend a white college that ignored his application, and finally his work organizing and participating in nonviolent protests of racist policies.

I know there is a naïveté in what I’m about to say, but even though I know it is real, I still have a challenging time accepting that there are people who will shout the n-word and beat up black people, and police who stand by (or actively participate). I just cannot understand. I know it happened – and still happens today – it’s just that it’s so. Fucking. Ridiculous.

The focus on nonviolent protest also intrigues me, because while I can see how effective it can be, I also do wonder about the effectiveness of violence as self-defense. One of my best friends is Quaker, and we’ve had many discussions about the Quaker commitment to pacifism, and the challenges of how we’d like the world to be (one where people do respond to nonviolent protest) versus the world we live in (where that isn’t always the case).

I’m looking forward to reading the next volume, both to learn more about Congressman Lewis and to see what I can learn from his actions that can help as I fight against the injustices going on right now.

Sunday

15

January 2017

0

COMMENTS

What I’m Reading: January 15, 2017

Written by , Posted in Childfree, Feminism, Politics, What I'm Reading

At this time next week, President Obama will be former President Obama. He did many things I disagree with, but I will miss him so much.

Fight Back

  • “During a town hall meeting, an ex-Reagan campaigner — who initially opposed Obamacare — stood in front of Paul Ryan and thanked President Obama, saying that without the ACA, he would be dead today. Ryan essentially offered him a lie, saying something to the effect that after the ACA is repealed, it will be replaced with high-risk pools, which do not work. But don’t worry. Paul Ryan also showed the town-hall audience that he knows how to do The Dab. SAVED!” The Appalling Last 24 Hours Of GOP Politics (by Dustin Rowles, @Pajiba)
  • “The platform supports increased accountability for perpetrators of police brutality and racial profiling, demanding the demilitarization of American law enforcement and an end to mass incarceration. It calls for comprehensive antidiscrimination protections, health care, and gender-affirming identity documents for LGBTQ people. It calls unions “critical to a healthy and thriving economy” and aligns the march with movements for the rights of sex workers, farmworkers, and domestic workers.” The Women’s March on Washington Has Released an Unapologetically Progressive Platform (by Christina Cauterucci, via @Slate)
  • “That’s right: Sessions was apparently too racist for the GOP of Ronald Reagan but will likely pass muster with the GOP of Donald Trump. And when critics say Sessions’s confirmation would be a blow to equality, it’s not just about comments from his past — it’s about his present-day views. His positions on voting rights, criminal justice, and immigration mean confirmation would represent a massive setback for civil rights for African Americans and other people of color.” If you want the truth about racism, listen to the Sessions hearing, not just Obama’s farewell (by Jenee Desmond-Harris, via @vox)

Ableism

  • “The outrage over the mocking stems from a perception of disability that is stigmatizing in and of itself: We’re a defenseless group, already leading pitiable lives. Never mind that Kovaleski is a successful, established reporter. Because of his disability, he’s viewed as an underdog. Streep’s speech directly played into this stigma, referring to Kovaleski as “someone [Trump] out-ranked in privilege, power, and the capacity to fight back.” Though that’s true in that Kovaleski is just a journalist while Trump is a wealthy President-elect with a major following and constant media coverage, it’s evident that Streep meant what she said in reference to Kovaleski’s disability. Kovaleski has now become a shallow symbol of disability, a poor guy being bullied, while the rest of his humanity is ignored.” I’m A Disabled Woman Who’s NOT Celebrating Meryl Streep’s Golden Globes Speech (by Emily Ladau, via @ESTBLSHMNT)

Capitalism

  • “As a businessman, he said it was fair enough for him to be concerned about protecting his properties from abusive partners who might smash his doors down. He admitted that the system was stacked against single people on average or lower incomes — but said poor people were not his concern.” Kent landlord bans ‘battered wives’ and single mothers from renting properties (by Charlotte England, h/t @ACallToMenUK)

Representation

“Justice” System

  • “Although Mosby’s attorneys said she had immunity from prosecution for actions taken as a state’s attorney, Garbis noted that her office had said it conducted an independent investigation.” Federal Judge Allows Malicious Prosecution Lawsuit Against Marilyn Mosby to Proceed (by Monique Judge, via The Root)
  • “Police officers are starkly divided by race, about race. Among white officers, 92 percent say the country has made the changes needed to give black people equal rights to white people. Just 6 percent of white officers say the country needs to continue making changes to give black people equal rights. Among black officers, those percentages are 29 percent and 69 percent, respectively. The racial gap on the issue among police officers is much wider than it is among all Americans. Among both white and black Americans, civilians are far more likely than officers to say the country needs to keep changing to address racism.” Police Officers Say Scrutiny Of Police Killings Has Made Their Job Tougher (by Carl Bialik, via Five Thirty Eight)

Reproductive Choice

  • “Once you have kids, you start to want them to do better, to be better off, than everyone else, and you make decisions that may be good for your own family but not for society or the world. People always talk about having kids as an unselfish act. And it is true that once you have them, you, in some sense, subordinate yourself to them. But you also subordinate everything else to them, as an extension of yourself, which makes you far more, rather than less, selfish. When you say, “I’d give the world for you,” you mean it, and you do.” My wife and I don’t want kids. Ever. So I decided to get a vasectomy. (by Baynard Woods, via @Vox)
  • “H.R. 490 (legislative text found here) would prohibit abortions as soon as a fetal heartbeat is detected. This can occur as early as six weeks into a pregnancy — a time period before many women know they’re pregnant.” A New Bill Introduced in Congress Would Constitute a Total Abortion Ban (by Gabriella Paiella, via @NYMag)

Sexual Assault

  • “Preventing colleges from investigating sexual assault incidents until the conclusion of a criminal case, which typically takes anywhere from six months to three years, sometimes even longer, would directly conflict with what the US Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights says schools must do under the gender equity law Title IX.” Georgia Lawmaker Wants To Stop Colleges From Investigating Rapes (by Tyler Kingkade, via @BuzzFeedNews)

Sunday

15

January 2017

0

COMMENTS

On Living by Kerry Egan

Written by , Posted in Reviews

Three Stars

Best for: Someone who wants to provoke (a bit of) deeper thinking on the ways we live our lives.

In a nutshell: A hospice chaplain uses stories from families and individuals she has assisted to make sense of life.

Line that sticks with me: “The things you lose do shape who you become. But the losses don’t obliterate what came before.”

Why I Chose It: This was an impulse buy only in that it was on my list and I didn’t yet own it. I added this one when I saw it being mentioned in multiple different forums. But yesterday, as we were wandering a book store, I thought maybe it would be a somewhat profound choice to read as I celebrated my birthday.

Review: I enjoy reading books like this, which involve health or medical information intertwined with personal stories. Ms. Egan is a hospice chaplain who, years earlier, experienced months of postpartum psychosis after a very challenging childbirth. She weaves that story throughout the book, providing a lens through which the reader can connect the sometimes-philosophical items to the realities we live in.

The stories were all interesting but not overly sentimental or heart-wrenching. Everyone is dying, so that obviously sets a certain baseline, but I did not find myself tearing up at all, which I often find myself doing when reading books like this one. Some moments were funny, some were sweet, and some were sad.

The nuggets of wisdom that come from these stories and the ways Ms. Egan connect them to her own life experiences are relatable. Ideas about how to be kinder to yourself and others, the things we put off, the ways we live based on other people’s opinions, all were within the realm of my reality. I underlined quite a few passages that I know I’ll go back to.

As a final aside, I am not a religious person, so I appreciated that while there was definitely talk of religion, the stories rarely involved discussion of God or religion, but when they did, they certainly weren’t off-putting.

Sunday

8

January 2017

0

COMMENTS

What I’m Reading – January 8, 2017

Written by , Posted in Feminism, Politics, What I'm Reading

The horror show of the incoming administration continues to unfold. The latest? Paul Ryan seeking to deny access to medical care to millions of women who rely on Planned Parenthood. The misogyny is strong with that one.

Fight Back

  • “The use of the rule would not be simple; a majority of the House and the Senate would still have to approve any such amendment. At the same time, opponents and supporters agree that the work of 2.1 million civil servants, designed to be insulated from politics, is now vulnerable to the whims of elected officials.” House Republicans revive obscure rule that allows them to slash the pay of individual federal workers to $1 (by Jenna Portnoy and Lisa Rein, via @WashingtonPost)
  • “Call it what you want. I don’t care. Complain that we’re making shit about race — you know what? We are. Complain that we’re keeping the left from focusing only on class — yup, and proudly so. Complain all you want because I am not and will never be ashamed of focusing on the politics of identity. I will not feel a moment’s guilt for slowing this whole train down to make sure that everyone can get on and we’re on the right track. I will proudly own up to making shit hard for you.” Thank God For Identity Politics (by Ijeoma Oluo, via @ESTBLSHMNT)
  • “Paul Ryan said that he would roll defunding Planned Parenthood into the reconciliation bill that will also include repealing Obamacare. That it’s a reconciliation bill means that in the Senate, they need only 50 votes to pass it. Republicans have 52 seats. As Kylie pointed out, defunding both Obamacare and Planned Parenthood would be a double whammy for low-income women and could be seen as an attack on human rights.” The Nightmarish Last 24 Hours of GOP Politics, Summarized (by Dustin Rowles, via @Pajiba)
  • ““We have got just a tremendous number of calls to our office here and district offices concerned about this,” Rep. Walter Jones (R-NC) said, according to Bloomberg News. Jones’ Communications Director Allison Tucker told ThinkProgress the congressman also received numerous emails and messages on Facebook from constituents.” Flooded with phone calls from voters, House GOP drops effort to gut ethics panel (by Kira Lerner, via @ThinkProgress)
  • “I hate to disappoint anyone, but the breaking point for me wasn’t the trolls themselves (if I have learned anything from the dark side of Twitter, it is how to feel nothing when a frog calls you a cunt) – it was the global repercussions of Twitter’s refusal to stop them. The white supremacist, anti-feminist, isolationist, transphobic “alt-right” movement has been beta-testing its propaganda and intimidation machine on marginalised Twitter communities for years now – how much hate speech will bystanders ignore? When will Twitter intervene and start protecting its users? – and discovered, to its leering delight, that the limit did not exist. No one cared.” I’ve left Twitter. It is unusable for anyone but trolls, robots and dictators (by Lindy West, at The Guardian)
  • “These days everybody from left to right — from Dean Baker to conservative Arthur C. Brooks — addresses this breakdown of the labor market by advocating full employment, as if having a job is self-evidently a good thing, no matter how dangerous, demanding or demeaning it is. But “full employment” is not the way to restore our faith in hard work, or in playing by the rules or whatever. (Note that the official unemployment rate is already below 6 percent, which is pretty close to what economists used to call full employment.) Crappy jobs for everyone won’t solve any social problem we now face.” Column: Why we need to say goodbye to work (by James Livingston at PBS)

“Justice” System

  • ““[Cuomo] has rejected a groundbreaking and bipartisan fix to our deeply flawed public defense system and left in place the status quo, in which the state violates the rights of New Yorkers every day and delivers unequal justice,” said NYCLU Executive Director Donna Lieberman.” New York governor celebrates New Year’s by denying effective counsel to the state’s poor (by Kira Lerner, via @ThinkProgress)
  • “According to the report, Dajerria Becton and her legal guardian, Shashona Becton, filed a complaint last month claiming that former Police Cpl. Eric Casebolt violated the teen’s constitutional rights through the use of excessive force and holding her without probable cause. The family is also saying that the city and the Police Department are responsible for her injuries by not training officers properly.” Black Teen Slammed to Ground at Texas Pool Party Sues Ex-Cop, City for $5,000,000 (by Breanna Edwards, via @TheRoot)
  • “Organized by the Arundel Bay Area Chapter of Jack and Jill of America Inc., “Race & the Law” was one of more than 225 similar events held around the country last year and more than 50 such events scheduled across the nation in the first three months of 2017. They are places where anxious black parents bring their children in hopes of preparing them for potentially fateful encounters with the police. They are, in essence, mini boot camps for children about how to be black in 21st-century America.” Black parents take their kids to school on how to deal with police (by Janell Ross, via @WashingtonPost)

Sports

  • “In the first half of the Sugar Bowl, ESPN’s Brent Musburger embarked on a bumbling broadcast booth thought experiment about Mixon. He called the punch “troubling,” an adjective the (relative lack of) severity of which would be better applied to his own words than Mixon’s actions, before wishing the running back luck in the NFL. In and of itself, the soliloquy was tone deaf, not to mention what Musburger didn’t say. He uttered not a word about Molitor, and it would have been so easy. He could have wished her well in her recovery, or acknowledged that the video of the punch, released in December, seemed to show both students’ anger issues. At the least he could have expressed hope that both had dealt with that anger and would move on healed from that night. But not a word.” Joe Mixon’s actions, and how we’ve viewed them, cast shadow over Sugar Bowl (by Joan Niesen, via @JoanNiesen)