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

Month: June 2012

Immigration Good + Bad

The good news is that Obama announced an initiative that would stop the deportation of immigrants who came here as children and have either completed high school or served in the military. The bad news is that by many measures, children in immigrant families — 9 out of 10 of whom are U.S. citizens — aren’t doing as well as children of U.S.-born parents. Children of immigrant parents are less likely to complete high school, more likely to live in poverty, less likely to have health insurance and significantly less likely to become proficient in English by the 4th grade (and if a child isn’t proficient in English by the 4th grade, it’s unlikely they’ll ever catch up).

Why is my comment in moderation?

Just a reminder about our commenting system, for those who are new or those who are curious: When comments get filtered into moderation, it’s an automatic process–our comment system finds something it’s not entirely certain about, and so it’s held in the queue. So there’s really no point in asking, “Why is my last comment in moderation?” There’s no one around to answer.

The Non-Case Against Gay Parenting

By now you’ve probably seen the right-wing-funded study that says the children of gay parents fare far worse than the children of straight parents. And hopefully you’ve also seen that the study’s methodology was so sloppy that by its terms, Ted Haggard is a “gay dad.” But one thing I haven’t seen discussed is how the results of this study — even assuming it were accurate, which it’s not — should influence same-sex marriage rights litigation. The answer: It shouldn’t. I explain why in the Guardian. A taste:

Notes From My Boner: “Natural” beauty

In case you were wondering–and I know you were–it’s not just your boobs that are up for Internet approval. It’s also your makeup! At Pandagon, Amanda comments on the thoughtful guys who wants you to know that their boners will still think you’re pretty without that faceful of slap. Stop being insecure! You don’t need all the makeup! You’re pretty just as you are, which I can comfortably say despite never having seen you, with or without makeup!

In defense of the Black Widow

After the underutilization and literal objectification (Tony Stark: “I want one”) of the Black Widow in Iron Man 2, I was looking forward to seeing what would happen with her character in The Avengers under the directorial lens of Joss Whedon. I was not disappointed. Twice (once in IMAX). What did disappoint me? The same things that pissed off Fempop’s Kickpuncher, who found that no amount of badassery on the part of the Black Widow could direct men’s attention away from her (minimal) cleavage.