by

Je Me Souviens

Categories: momento mori, the patriarchy: you can't live with it....that is all

Today is the anniversary of the infamous École Polytechnique Massacre.

For those of you who don’t know, here are the basics: on December 6, 1989, a gunman named Marc Lépine entered the École Polytechnique in Montreal, an engineering college. He entered a classroom, separated the men from the women, and then shot all nine of the women, killing six. He then began wandering the school, specifically targeting women, before taking his own life. He killed 14 women, wounded 10 others, and also wounded four men.

Before setting out on his mass murder, he had left a suicide note which mentioned that he specifically targeted “feminists” for ruining his life, and included a list of nineteen women he wanted to die because they were feminists.

Today is commemorated as National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women in Canada. Survivors of the massacre helped pass a gun control law that required the registration of all firearms–and which probably has helped reduce firearm-related violence against women.(Which is something to think about, O ye who criticize TDOR for being an ineffectual “pity party.”)

And the response has been a serious consideration of how misogyny pervades our society, right? Or about how violence and especially armed violence is a plague, right? No. It seems lots of folks deny that what has to be one of the most brain-thuddingly obvious acts of violent misogyny in recent history…wasn’t misogyny at all, no ma’am. Oh, and the Harper government wants to drop the gun registry. Nice commemoration, assholes.

CaitieCat on Shakesville has a poignant post on the subject today, and I highly recommend (and when was the last time you read a post from me with this sentiment?) the comments thread. The Toronto Star has an article about how the lives of the survivors have changed, and how many of them have fought to prevent further massacres, and for women’s rights in general.

Je me souviens. Je ne oublierai jamais. Jamais encore.

by

Science Makes the Heart Grow Fonder

Categories: stuff i like

There is so much miserable shit in this world.

There’s the a many wars. An economy that seems geared to either kill us all or return us to feudalism (the line’s fifty-fifty either way.) And not to mention the constant and perpetual oppression that stems from the horror that everybody isn’t just like yourself, and maybe you can turn a buck on that fact.

In this crapsack world, Mythbusters is a shining light of goodness.

I mean, yes there’s Adam and Jamie and the whole “hey, science actually proves things! Knowledge is good and fun to acquire” message they cleverly disguise by blowing shit up with great abandon.

More than that, there is Kari Byron.

I love Kari Byron. Even if she did do a FHM spread, sigh.

I mean, first, she is a full-fledged member of the team. She works on all their advanced crazy toys. She’s always there when they blow stuff up, and she has a ton of her own good ideas.

And the fact that she’s a woman is never particularly comment upon. She’s just another member of the build crew.

And she does all this stuff even when she’s nine months pregnant. Which is awesome. There is something in me that delights at the sight of her swaddled in a bulletproof vest, testing their latest explosive craziness experiment.

Also, she does cool and weird conceptual art.

But beyond all that: you know what’s cool? Today I’m watching an episode where they are testing whether or not you can really hold on to the roof or hood of a car if the person driving tries to do maneuvers to throw you off. So they build this boom rig attached to the car that will let them hang from it without flying off to their death.

And Adam paints it bright pink.

That is awesome. And it’s symptomatic of the show, because for all of their We Love The Big Booms, it never is all about macho BS about how big their booms are. They need a color to make the boom show up on camera. They choose pink. No biggie.

Life should be more like Mythbusters.

by

Blogging From Home: Anomie Of Unemployment Edition

Categories: all about me, silly blather

Okay, unemployed is a strong word for me: I haven’t worked a fulltime W-2 job in over 10 years, and I have some contract work that will be coming down the pike soonish, plus a serious line on an actual job. But still: for the first time in a couple of years, I have no place to be to make money right now.

Funny, it actually is like the last time I was out of work around Christmas, four years ago: which incidentally was about two months before the collapse of my marriage.

Anyway, my damn jet lag (and spending too much time reading a Culture novel the last few nights) finally caught up with me and I crashed this morning–fed the Evil Feline Overlords and passed out in bed again. So I didn’t get much done today. I was going to walk over to the library to get more Banks novels, but I checked the website and they’re all out or on hold.

So I’m going to treat myself to a fabulously cheap calzone for dinner. I thought about ordering a movie from my cable company, but the best I saw was the new Transformers movie. Then I remembered I have “Ginger Snaps” on my DVR, and I also set the same to record “Heathers,” a movie I had never seen before. So definitely some blog fodder coming.

Anything is better than watching TNT tonight–they’re showing Spielberg’s 9/11 porn adaption of “War of the Worlds.”

by

Duck, Duck, Silly Goose

Categories: why i blog

OK, so some of you may wonder where the hell I’ve been, assuming anyone still reads me given my recent vanishing act.

The answer is–well, I’ve been through the wringer. Not quite. Rather, I’ve been in California, which was quite pleasant, though I did miss the Great American Metropolis.

I also lost my major client and so I’ve been looking for work rather more actively than I’ve been writing.

And I had a bit of a case of burnout, something I think is going to be my perpetual inheritance as long as I insist on being the on the Radical side of the fence.

And a lot of other not so great excuses. There you are.

I have been thinking about just how I want to continue in my writing on these subjects. For one thing, I think at least on this blog I may open up just a little bit and do some more personal pieces, or at least personal experience pieces.

My vision for The Second Awakening was always to be an analysis site–there are plenty of places on Ye Olde Blogosphereee where you can get up to date info on how badly the world sucks. I never planned to break news. So I see what I do as catching up on stories and bringing my own view to things.

But one thing I’ve learned in writing these last–sheesh, seven months?–is that I need, or want, or have to if I want the whole analysis thing to work, tie stories and outrages to a larger theoretical framework. This is what Sady at Tiger Beatdown does so seemingly effortlessly, and it’s what I want to learn how to do. (And speaking of the Ol’ Tiger Beatdown, it looks like I’m going to be a semi-demi-occasionally-regular contributor there–yay!)

And also maybe do stuff at Op-Ed length (600-800 words for you aspiring writers) which is not only easier on the brain and fingers, but something that writing for Below the Belt has really trained me how to do.

So…so what, Cat? So this. I do plan to do more writing, here and at other venues. There will be posts! It may take a while to gear back up, but this is what I do. It’s all I’ve ever wanted to do (well, that and get paid for it…I’m working on that one.) I’m not giving up anytime soon.

by

General Francisco Franco Is Still Dead, and Hiram Montserrate Is Still A Douche

Categories: bitterness, douchebaggery, hiram monserrate watch, i heart oppression, the patriarchy: you can't live with it....that is all

So the New York State Senate finally got around to voting on legalizing gay marriage today:

Marriage equality failed today in the New York Senate after a years-long battle to bring the issue to a vote. The final tally: 24 YES, 38 NO. Among the surprises was a “no” vote from Queens Democrat Sen. Hiram Monserrate, who had previously been a vocal supporter. In October, Monserrate narrowly escaped a felony assault conviction for slashing the face of his girlfriend with a broken glass. Monserrate’s NYC office: (718) 205-3881. His Albany office: (518) 455-2529.

Yes, it’s our old friend Hiram Montserrate shocking nobody with a fucking brain that he once again turned out to be lying, devious jerk. We knew he hated women; now we know he hates gays: fortunately, the New York State Senate takes so few damn meaningful votes that we may have to go months before we find the next group Montserrate thinks is disposable.

And fuck, it sucks that NYS couldn’t make this happen, although there is hope now for future votes (and primary challenges to the Democrats who voted No.)

by

BTB: The Wages of Transness

Categories: below the belt, i get around

Yanno, these days I guess I’m lucky to be able to even write these damn things, let alone tell anyone about them: but I have a post up at Below the Belt about the tragic death of Mike Penner, and transition in general:

Transition, as you may have heard, is really hard.

There is the actual physical nature of it: the hormones, the changes to your body, the surgeries (if you want them), the hair removal (if you want or need that too), the way you look in the mirror, the way people look at you. There is the long period when you may look like you could be either gender, or neither, when passing as your birth gender is as hard or harder than passing as your new gender.

Enjoy.

by

BTB: TDOR

Categories: below the belt, TDOR

I’ve got a post about today–Transgender Day of Remembrance—up on Below the Belt:

Today is the eleventh annual Transgender Day of Remembrance (TDOR), a day when trans people and allies are encouraged to pause and remember the people who have died in the previous year for the simple crime of being trans (or even, in the case of one person on this year’s list, loving a trans person.) Today events will be held all around the world to memorialize, celebrate, and educate people about the lives of trans people and the all-to-often fatal prejudice they face.

Which isn’t to say that there aren’t controversies even inside the trans community about TDOR. Some people find it overly morbid–that by making our annual celebration about people who have been killed, we make ourselves out to be victims, not strong people struggling against sometimes impossible barriers. (I once heard a transsexual woman describe the day as a “pity party.”) Another criticism is that we should be celebrating our lives, not our deaths–that people who are trans and live “normal” or “successful” lives should be the focus of our celebration, not the unfortunates that died.

But not me.

 The rest is here.

by

Hobbyhorses

Categories: jay smooth tells it like it T-I-S, media tool kit, politicians have penises

Here’s a quick duck-in to discuss some hobbyhorses of mine–the Polanski debacle, and the Senate filibuster rules! (What, you didn’t know I have an obsession with that? Good thing most of you haven’t met me in person, I natter on about them a lot.)

First, Jay Smooth does an amazing take down of all the arguments people have been throwing around about why Rapin’ Roman should go free or something:

Like a lot of people, I always like Jay Smooth, but that was teh awesome.

(h/t to the fabulous Lena D.)

Next, here’s a nifty piece from Gail Collins and everyone’s favorite muddle-headed voice of conservative received wisdom, David Brooks, where they talk about the House’s recent health care bill. Gail voices one of my particular frustrations with the Senate’s arcane rules:

We used to think of the filibuster as a dramatic, once-in-a-blue-moon vehicle that was used only in extreme circumstances, like Jimmy Stewart in “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.” (What I like about that movie, in retrospect, is that Stewart was not standing there, holding the floor all by himself for hour after hour until he collapsed from exhaustion, in order to save puppies or fight unemployment. It was because the evil Claude Rains was trying to destroy his career, and Jimmy had to prove that he was as saintly as ever. It was all about him. So very Senate like.) Or, of course, when the Southerners wanted to stop civil rights legislation.

But now, a minority of senators don’t have to bother to actually keep talking, or take turns talking, or even hang around the chambers to bring progress to a screeching halt. They just declare their intention (it’s the thought that counts) and nothing can go forward without 60 votes.

That’s crazy. If we’re going to have this system, the filibuster should be reserved for matters that can’t be undone later, like important judicial nominations. Or wars. Not normal domestic policy, no matter how large.

 I so 100% agree with that. It would be a will of the people moment–if you’ve judged opinion correctly, then people will support your principled stand against oppressive legislation; otherwise, they’ll think you’re a bunch of obstructionist clowns.

Honestly, I can’t see why the Democrats wouldn’t go for this–can you imagine the glee in Chuck Shumer’s face as he goes on talk show after talk show to run the same damn clip of Orrin Hatch reading the AMA membership lists into the Congressional Record? It would be great.

Gail then goes on to attack Joe Lieberman, which is always good fun. She doesn’t, however, mention the single largest problem with the health care bills: the evil Stupak-Pitts amendment, the greatest rollback in women’s health and reproductive rights in over a quarter of a century, and something Ms. Collins might presumably be interested in.

Unless, of course, she thinks it’s just “politics” instead of “fundamental rights.”

Or maybe she was afraid of offending Bobo’s delicate sensibilities. WEV.

by

Female Imponderablization

Categories: below the belt, i get around

Hey! It’s time for another Below the Belt post.…..this time, on DRAG!

Nowadays, Halloween isn’t much of a holiday for me; I rarely make special plans for it or bother to get a costume–and considering the average woman’s costume–Sexy Ninja! Sexy Vacuum Cleaner Salesperson! Sexy First Lady!–that’s maybe for the best. (I may not be a radical feminist–they won’t take me–but come on, people–Amanda Hess at the Sexist has done yeowoman’s duty on this subject.)

This Halloween, however, I was out in San Francisco and went to see a friend’s performance in a drag show. So I donned my homemade ironic vampire disguise–fangs, pvc duster and dress, boots, and my “…And Then Buffy Staked Edward. The End.” tee shirt–and caught some decidedly non-vintage drag.

 You know the drill!

1 2 … 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 … 20 21