moominmuppet

I need a specific icon for these posts. I should ponder that.

Anyway, trying to wade through my inbox, and I've got entirely too much tagged as "to read/post", so here it comes:

Some impressively hideous racism on a local radio channel, link from meganj28

PolyMedia has some astute things to say about poly media coverage, and how it happens (and a bit more about poly coverage is Australia)

This is concerning on a number of levels: Hamas dress code aims to make Gaza more Islamic from jajy1979

Clit talk, with Mary Roach -- I haven't gotten a chance to watch it yet, but I think it's something different than her TED talk, and knowing her writing and speaking in general, I bet it's good.

Doctors help tame wild myths, medical misconceptions with a dose of reality

Notes from a bitch...pondering the privilege of anger... -- a good piece about why it's so infuriating that there's so much focus on Professor Gates' anger. Also, bradhicks has a great post about it.

What's so funny about rape? Damned good question. And a lot of good points about pretending to be all edgy when there's nothing the least bit subversive about supporting the dominant paradigm with your humor. That specifically speaks to my distaste for shock jocks, especially. It's possible to be thoroughly lewd, crude, and shocking, and amuse the hell out of me by actually using that humor to look at social issues from a new perspective. It's also possible, and a lot more common, to simply use those tactics to reinforce disgusting and damaging stereotypes.

Oh, yay! Audacia Ray is guestblogging for Feministe! (has lots of links to cool things she's involved in)

Also, I don't think I've mentioned it recently, but zodarzone does regular comic reviews. If comics are your thing, you might want to wander over to his journal and check it out.

Quick Hit: Houston Mayor proclaims first Transgender Day

Can't see this from work either, so listing it here partially for my own reference: Wordweaverlynn points to some Craigslist poetry in response to penis-pic personals

Mama_hogswatch is smack on target with this column about poly dating (and Leora's comment is particularly true and relevant, too)

mama_hogswatch also posted a bibliography of poly-helpful books (not the usual contenders -- this is wider-ranging, and covers general communication/shared households/etc)

Serena Williams rockin' the body acceptance!

As many as 87% of employer-based insurance programs cover abortion. I mention this because, although it's such a political hot-potato that I don't think there's any chance any governmental plan will be allowed to cover it (much like the Hyde Amendment screws women on Medicaid), people need to understand it's not an unusual thing to have covered, and this will have a big impact on women who end up on any governmental plan that's likely to come into existence. More on this

This year at Comic Con, EA encouraged attendees to grope its "booth babes" -- promising attendees dinner with the "babes" if they took and published a photo of themselves sexually harassing the women.

On a lighter note, awesome old school Willy Wonka icons

(My Vagina is) Eight Miles Wide. Worth watching. Probably not at work. Especially not with the sound turned up.

My brother Jajy1979 recommends the Bill Moyers this week on Healthcare, and on Rage on the Airwaves

What's wrong with the new pro-lifers: The progressive anti-abortion movement still doesn't truly value the life and identity of the mother

NATIONAL POLITICS & POLICY | Surgeon General Nominee Backs Obama's Positions on Reproductive Health, White House Says -- Reassuring to hear, although I'm already a big fan.

Some more examination of the Withdrawal as Contraception study that created so many waves

OK, it's break time. That's all for now, although I'm only partially through my mailbox.

So, I've been reading a YA fantasy series called Artemis Fowl. In general, they're pretty fun -- sort of a mix of Chrestomanci and Phule's Company. But aside from the weirdness of naming your male character Artemis without, apparently, intending to be genderfucky, there's one thing that's really getting under my skin.

There's bad blood between humans and fairies. The fairies are not the bad guys, but they do use some insulting terms for humans. For some ungodly reason, the author settled on "Mud People". *twitch* WTF? I'm going to assume cluelessness on his part, not an intentional association between his protagonists and fucking asshole white supremacists. I think it's a damned good argument for googling your words before you make up new names/insults/etc. Go ahead. Google "mud people". Welcome to the wonderful world of white power websites. Please keep your in-flight barf bags close at hand.

It's apparently online now, so I can talk about it here

This didn't happen at one of the two Cleveland abortion clinics where I escort, but it happened to the Akron group, with whom we have a lot of overlap (we originally trained them when they wanted to start a group down there, and some folks escort with both). It's very close to home; I'm still trying to figure out if this guy might be one I've seen at our clinics previously that roughly fits the description. The descriptions of the reactions of the cops and medical personnel don't surprise me, sadly, but they do infuriate me. Unfortunately, I'm going to be out-of-state this weekend and can't be there to show solidarity in person.

And one of the dangers of filing police reports is having one's full name and address in the public record, right where the psychos can go find it. We've got some tactics for handling that up here, but I don't know if they used the same down there. It worries me.

We knew violence was likely to escalate under a democratic administration (the more threatened the nutjobs feel, the more extreme and dangerous they get), and we've seen it. We're still mourning Dr. Tiller, clinics around the country are reporting more activity and scarier behavior from the antis, and this is the first major physical attack on an escort in our area in the decade I've been escorting.

Clevelanders: We really desperately need more escorts. We're always running shorthanded, and larger teams are safer. If you, or anyone you know, might be available for about 4 hours on a Saturday morning once a month or so, for a rollicking good time of insults and harassment (it does provide great joke material with the other escorts, though, and I've met a lot of awesome folks through escorting), and you're interested in getting training, please let me know ASAP; we're scheduling a training soon. I won't pretend there's no danger involved, but I also think it's important to remember it's still a statistically low danger, thankfully (in the US, I only know of one escort killed). If you're not in Cleveland, and you care about these issues, please check and see if you have a local escorting group!


Abortion defender brutally attacked at Women's Clinic
Saturday, 25 July 2009 17:28

Take Action in Akron- Saturday, August 1
Abortion on Demand and Without Apology!

This leaflet is from Revolution Books, Cleveland

Every Saturday morning at the Akron Women's Medical Group, a brave core of people put their bodies on the line to defend women and the right to abortion. They confront groups of loud and obnoxious anti-abortion protestors, and the intensity of these confrontations have escalated since the killing of Dr. George Tiller. In fact, a number of the anti-abortion protestors in Akron proudly declare that they think it was great that Dr. Tiller got killed, that "he got what he deserved!"

So on Saturday, July 18, a new level of threat and violence occurred. The anti-abortion protesters were getting right in the face of the clinic defenders, yelling at them,and waving around their phony bloody fetus posters. Charles Wright, a long time women's rights advocate, was getting pushed back by one of the anti's, a very large man who arrived at the scene on a motorcyle, and before anyone knew it, he hit Charles...hard...on the side of the head and he crashed to the ground! He lay in and out of consciousness for about 15 minutes, waiting for an ambulance. In the meantime, the doctor from the clinic came outside and tried to assist. Charles was eventually placed in the Intensive Care Unit of Akron City Hospital, where it was discovered that he had suffered 6 broken ribs! He is in intense pain, and can barely move or sleep.

The guy that assaulted Charles made a quick getaway on his motorcyle. He is described as someone who is not a regular anti-abortion protester, but one they've seen many times before. When the police finally came, the only questions that were asked were of Charles' partner, Tom. Tom told me, "All they wanted to know was Charles' name, address, phone number, and social security number. The cop also kept complaining, 'you guys act like children, not adults, and I'm always having to down here..." Tom said he'd never seen this cop at the clinic before, and as of Tuesday, had still not been contacted by the police. Tom also said that at another incident at the clinic, he called the cops and no one ever showed up. At this point, the police are saying the person who assaulted Charles will be charged with felonious assault, but they don't know who this person is and Tom suspects that the police report is sitting in some detective's inbox.

And if that wasn't bad enough, Charles told me: "When I was at City Hospital for a couple day, the women working there asked why I was there and I said thatI was attacked by pro-life people. Their attitude was so Republican, they were like the people who were standing against us at the clinic! This scared me even more...I was in their hospital! It was like being cared for by the enemy.

Tom also told me that, months before, he had called his Akron City Councilman to complain about the conduct of the anti's at the clinic. He was told, "you should pray about it." !!!

I've known Charles and Tom for 30 years. These are people who have always stood up for justice. They are activists for women's rights, gay rights, and proudly promote atheism. They are also good friends of Revolution Books.

We talked more about the incident, why they think it happened, and what should be done:

Charles: I was in a bad mood that Saturday morning, and I didn't want to go to the clinic because I hate dealing with those people, they're morons, and I'd rather listen to music. But deep down, I have a commitment that all women should have the right to choose. Abortion is between a woman and her doctor. Any woman should be able to get an abortion if she needs one.

Tom: Or if she wants one.

Charles: Most people are in denial that sometimes women need abortions. Sometimes you hear "These women need to be responsible. Well. People make mistakes, and that's ok.

Tom: These people (the anti's) think that they're so absolutely right that any opposing view can be opposed in any way- from a simple polite discussion, to in-your-face yelling, to the physical. They cause so much trouble at these clinics that people will stay away, they won't come for abortions, the landlords will cancel their leases or not renew them, the people in the neighborhood get tired of it--so the powers that be say, "let's just get rid of the clinics."

At this point, there is a LOT of fear among clinic defenders in Akron to go back to the clinic. WE NEED TO STAND WITH THEM. We cannot let this kind of attack go down. It is time to wake up and shake off the illusions that someone else (especially the police and Obama) are going to save us. And if we don't feel courageous, or feel like stepping into dangerous situations, then we need to struggle with ourselves, and others, to step up, deal with reality, and get out there anyway.

I propose that ALL people from Northeast Ohio who defend the right to abortion BE AT THE CLINIC IN AKRON NEXT SATURDAY, August 1, and stand together against this movement that would reduce women to being slaves.

Revolution Books will bring the 14 foot banner we carried at Notre Dame University during the Obama/abortion controvery, that reads: ABORTION ON DEMAND AND WITHOUT APOLOGY.

BE THERE!
10 am
Akron Women's Medical Group
839 E. Market St.
Bring banners and signs, and all your friends!


"When it comes to abortion, there is ONLY ONE moral question: Will women be fully emancipated human beings in control of their lives and reproduction OR will we be forced to submit to patriarchal male authority and to breed against our will? A woman who cannot decide for herself, without any shame, judgment or restrictions, when and whether she chooses to have a child, has no more freedom than a slave. The movement to forcibly deny women the right to abortion and to birth control is a movement to enslave women. With its aims, its methods, and its morality, there can be no compromise".
Sunsara Taylor http://www.sunsara.blogspot.com/


Revolution Books, 2804 Mayfield Rd Cleveland Hts
216-932-2543 [email protected] This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
http://revolutionbookscleveland.intuitwebsites.com/
Store Hours: 3 - 8pm, Wed - Sat