http://www.amptoons.com/blog Feminist, anti-racist, pro-fat, plus whatever else we feel like talking about. Thu, 19 Nov 2009 04:47:50 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en North Star Liberal, which decided to launch by calling Minnesota House Speaker Margaret Anderson Kelliher, DFL-Minneapolis, fat and mannish. Of course, it’s okay because they also mocked the appearances of male politicians, which, er, only makes things worse. Also, it’s “snarky,” which is evidently now code for “place where people ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/18/minnesota-liberal-blogs-you-can-avoid-if-youre-liberal/ So as you may recall, a couple weeks ago Hannity "accidentally" used video from Glenn Beck's 9/12 rally to show how well-attended Rep. Michele Bachmann's rally was. An easy mistake, of course -- anybody could accidentally mistake raw footage of a recent rally with archival footage from a completely different ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/18/truthiness-in-action/ I am trying very hard to see where Newsweek's choice to use Sarah Palin's Runner's World photo as their cover is a horribly sexist decision that belittles women everywhere. No, seriously, I am -- I'm aware I'm not going to see a flaw the first time I look at something, ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/17/no-it-isnt-sexist/ Is there ever a time when Hollywood is not FAILing? First up, What these people need is a honky syndrome goes off planet in: James Cameron’s Avatar Lawd ha’ mercy internets. Lord ha mercy. Because Hollywood sure as hell won’t. You know, a lot of those bullshit tropes that show ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/16/linkspam-hollywood-fail-edition/ I'm going to imagine "2012" happens in the same universe as "The Ugly Truth," so all those characters die horribly. Dave Weigel Consider this an open thread for you to share thoughts, self-promotion, and random bits of arcana. http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/14/quote-du-jour-and-open-thread/ First off, let me note that I hate Carrie Prejean as much as the next sentient human. That out of the way, it's time for me to defend Carrie Prejean. As you may have heard, former Miss California USA-slash-anti-gay activist Carrie Prejean has a sex tape that's gotten loose, and perhaps ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/13/carrie-prejean-totally-masturbating-on-sex-tape1111-lolomg1111/ Is there a "My mother was pro-choice" / "My mother is pro-choice" bumpersticker? And if not, why not? I vaguely wish there were a "Sorry your mother was pro-life. My mother chose me" bumpersticker, but it's too long, and there's no way to make sure the snark would just reach ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/11/my-mother-is-pro-choice/ Posted with the kind permission of Kevin Moore. Click on the cartoon to see it bigger, and to see Kevin's commentary and links. In addition to Kevin's comments, I'd point out this post by Ezra, pointing out that (by the weird definition of "subsidize" conservatives are suddenly using), Stupak "did not ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/11/in-contempt-on-the-stupak-amendment/ So, as I have said elsewhere, I have been feeling guilty about not posting about the goings on Iran of late, and I am beginning to formulate some posts I'd like to write, but this news article caught my eye. No matter how much I might disagree with and oppose ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/11/bbc-news-middle-east-iran-denounces-oxford-scholarship/ As has been noted previously, I love dates like this. (Thanks to Jake Squid for pointing this one out to me!) Consider this an open thread. Post what you like, with whom you like, for as long as you like. Self-linkage is welcome. http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/10/posted-at-141312-111009/ I don't believe in "natural" rights. Rights are a human institution; those rights that aren't institutionalized by humans don't exist. The only rights I, or any of us, have, are the rights that are recognized by the society in which we live. So I don't think -- for example -- that ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/10/i-dont-believe-in-natural-rights/ Someday someone will explain to me this fascination America has with the idea that Michelle Obama has white relatives like it’s remotely unusual for a descendant of slaves in America. I notice with all the talk of “So and so was impregnated by X slaveowner” and the rush to interview ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/09/race-psychology-and-family-dynamics/ I need to do a little self-promotion. This past Saturday, my colleague and friend Marcia McNair interviewed me about my book The Silence Of Men on her BlogTalk Radio show, The Power of Poetry. I hope you'll give a listen. Marcia is a perceptive reader and wonderful interviewer and her questions ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/09/richard-jeffrey-newman-on-the-power-of-poetry/ The Cold War was a fact of life. My parents had grown up during it; I had grown up during it. And I had little doubt my children would grow up during it. From before my parents were born, the Soviet Union and the United States of America were the premier ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/09/twenty-years-ago-today/ Post what you like, when you like, about what you like, with whatever links (including self-links) you like, for whatever purpose you like, wearing whatever underwear you like, eating whatever food you like, and liking what you like because you like it. Like, wow. * * * The first two minutes of ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/09/open-thread-and-link-farm-4722109-dinner-edition/ The Supreme Court in England is set to rule by the end of this year on a case involving a question that has vexed Jewish communities throughout the world for centuries: Who is a Jew? The case began because a 12-year-old boy whose father was born Jewish and whose mother ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/08/who-is-a-jew-court-ruling-in-britain-raises-question-from-the-new-york-times/ Does teen literature exaggerate the mean girl phenomena too much? Neesha Meminger: “This is a question I’ve often pondered myself. I think my main concern with the “mean girls” phenomenon is that they focus on inter-personal dynamics without also looking at the larger, social, economic, and political constructs within which we ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/08/linkspam-on-the-weekend-posts-rattling-around-in-my-head-edition/ At least one Republican, Rep. John Shadegg, R-Ariz., says he'll vote present on the amendment, and has four or five other members of the GOP who will join him. That may not be enough to scuttle the amendment, but it would make it close -- Stupak has claimed between 220 ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/07/could-the-gop-stop-the-stupak-amendment/ Today should be a good day. It should be a day when Democrats and decent people celebrate the passage of health care reform out of the House of Representatives. But unfortunately, the usual suspects have decided that health care can't be reformed if said reform leads to women having control ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/07/stupak-amendment-makes-a-good-day-bad/ First of all, please check this list of Representatives at RH Reality check. If one of them is your representative, please give them a call right now. They'll be voting at any time now, so don't wait. The news: House Democratic leaders agreed Friday night to settle an impasse over abortion by ... http://www.amptoons.com/blog/archives/2009/11/07/abortion-rights-get-thrown-under-health-care-bus/