In defense of the sanctimonious women's studies set || First feminist blog on the internet

Aziz Ansari is an asshole, and Caitlin Flanagan is also an asshole

The world (or, at least, the part of it that I live in) has been talking about the recent expose by a woman, pseudonymously known as Grace, who went out on a date with comedian Aziz Ansari and ended up getting persistently and aggressively pursued, and aggressively kissed, fingered, and dry humped, plus a weird thing where he kept sticking his fingers down her throat, over her objections. In a statement Ansari released in response, he doesn’t dispute her account of the events of the night — he that he’d thought she was into it. There have been a lot of analyses and responses, many of which I’ll get to later on this blog. But then Caitlin Flanagan decided to jump in — because of course she did — being, as is her way, the fucking worst. So here’s some stuff about “The Humiliation of Aziz Ansari.”

Oprah won the Cecil B. DeMille Award, and her acceptance speech was everything

Last night, Oprah Winfrey became the first black woman to receive the Cecil B. DeMille Lifetime Achievement Award at the 2018 Golden Globes. She started her shattering speech by recounting a moment from her own childhood, watching Sidney Poitier become the first black man to receive a Best Actor Oscar in 1964. And her speech only became more moving and heart-wrenching and inspiring from there.

Mika Brzezinski wants to know if it’s cool to attack accusers we don’t like.

Yesterday, Minnesota Sen. Al Franken announced his pending resignation after a seventh woman has come forward to accuse him of sexual harassment and dozens of Senate Democrats have called on him to step down. This morning, on Morning Joe, Mika Brzezinski stood up for Franken by identifying his first accuser, Leeann Tweeden, as a Playboy model and a Republican, and asking if maybe “I believe women” doesn’t have to apply to all women. Y’know, like women who are accusing a man you like.

Because We Need It: Sorry, can’t pun at the moment

It almost feels too self-indulgent to enjoy even tiny lighthearted pleasures while people are dying and people are being attacked for protesting people dying. Almost. It could be argued that We Need It even more. And We Need It to double up on awesome women.

Quick hit: Still “presidential,” y’all?

Trump has spent the first not-even-six months of his presidency showing exactly how crass, juvenile, reactionary, impulsive, and vindictive he is in all aspects of his personal life and his presidency. Conduct becoming the presidency? It sure is if you ask him. And public figures left and right were certainly all about his presidentiality four months ago.