Feathers.

“It comes down to who is the patient. Is the woman the patient, or is the fetus the patient? One or other is the patient. I’ve never heard a fetus talk to me. I’ve heard thousands and thousands of women share their pain, their desperation, and their hopelessness.” —

Dr. George Tiller, an abortion provider from Wichita, Kansas, who was murdered on May 31, 2009. (via iamdrtiller)

May 31

Rabbi Dr Jonathan Romain, said that Christians and Jewish people who oppose homosexual relationships on biblical grounds were applying double standards unless they also believed in some of the more obscure commands in the Old Testament.

He told a debate on gay marriage in London that religious texts had to be reinterpreted for new generations meaning, he argued, that same sex couples should be allowed to marry.

The debate, co-hosted by the religious campaign group Catholic Voices and the British Humanist Association also heard claims that David Cameron’s plans to legalise gay marriage had more to do with “elitism” and “snobbery” than equality.

Dr Romain, the minister of Maidenhead Synagogue, is a leading figure in the liberal-leaning Reform Judaism which has publicly given its support to same-sex marriage.

He told the debate that Christians could not take references in the Old Testament to homosexuality as an “abomination” literally unless they also practised circumcision or adhered to the Jewish food laws.

No Christian or secularist can quote those passages – or certainly not with any credibility,” he said.

“For if they do suddenly start getting pious about verses in the Bible – by which I mean the Hebrew Bible or Old Testament – then they can only do so if they adhere to other verses in it such as circumcising all your male children, as it also commands; abstaining from pork or prawns, as it also commands; not wearing garments in which wool and linen is mixed, as it also commands.

“If you don’t keep up these, but do object to homosexuality, then you are just doing a pick and mix job, and are driven not by religious beliefs but by gay prejudice.”

He added: “If you take this approach to scripture you should also not object to stoning rebellious children or nailing your slave’s ear to the door post.”

May 29

Men who want to flirt with women have to realize: Women live in a state of continual vigilance about sexual safety. It’s like having a mild case of hay fever that never goes away. It’s not debilitating. You’re not weak. You’re not afraid. You just suck it up and get on with your life. It’s nothing that’s going to stop you from making discoveries, or climbing mountains, or falling in love. Sometimes you can almost forget about it. It doesn’t mean it’s not there, subtly sucking your energy. You learn to avoid situations that make it worse and seek out conditions that make it better.

If a female stranger is wary around you, it is not because she suspects you are a rapist, or that all men are rapists. It’s because a general level of circumspection is what vigilance requires. Don’t take it personally.

If this frustrates you, try to remember that women are blamed for lapsed vigilance. If a woman does get raped, everyone rushes to see where she let her guard down. Was she drinking? Was she alone? Was she wearing a short skirt? Did she go to a strange man’s room for coffee at 4am?

A woman must be seen to be vigilant as well as be vigilant. If she is deemed insufficiently vigilant, she will be at least partly blamed for any sexual violence that befalls her. If she’s regarded as downright reckless, that “evidence” can be used to completely exonerate her rapist. If it comes down to a he said/she said dispute over whether sex was consensual, as so many rape cases do, the dispute becomes a referendum on whether the woman seems like the sort of reckless person who would have sex with a stranger.

If a woman does go back to a strange man’s hotel room at 4am, even if she only wants a coffee and conversation, she’s more or less given him the power to rape her. No jury is going to believe she went up there for anything but sex. So, don’t be surprised if a stranger reacts badly to that suggestion.

May 28

Twice in the last 24 hours I’ve been harassed on the street by men who felt that it was fine to catcall me, ask for my name, comment on my appearance and even try to grab at my tattoos without my permission. It makes my blood boil; I tell people about it and half the time I get told that I’m overreacting or being sensitive. I’ve had people tell me I’m cold, that claiming to be a feminist makes me unattractive (the logic behind that is dizzying at best), even that I’m a man-hater. Guys tell me to toughen up. Girls tell me to ignore it. Great.

Y’know, I’m all for equal rights. The next time a woman pulls up next to me in her car and asks me my name and where I’m going, then tells me to smile for her only to loudly call me a bitch and threaten me before driving away when I don’t, I’ll be happy to place the blame on her. The next time a middle-aged woman sits next to me on the bus and flashes her vagina at me because she gets off on making me uncomfortable, I’ll be sure to take notes.

Fair is fair.

(A round of applause for Ms Kate, please.)

May 24

May 22

Okay: In the role playing game known as The Real World, “Straight White Male” is the lowest difficulty setting there is.

This means that the default behaviors for almost all the non-player characters in the game are easier on you than they would be otherwise. The default barriers for completions of quests are lower. Your leveling-up thresholds come more quickly. You automatically gain entry to some parts of the map that others have to work for. The game is easier to play, automatically, and when you need help, by default it’s easier to get.

You can lose playing on the lowest difficulty setting. The lowest difficulty setting is still the easiest setting to win on. The player who plays on the “Gay Minority Female” setting? Hardcore.

Feathers.

Jun 03

Jun 02

Jun 01

May 31

May 29

May 28

May 24

May 22

May 19

Hand Holding by chaoslife