Julian Morrison

"Muslims make up just 6% of the population of Europe, and have consistently committed less than 0.5%..."

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:01:57 -0400

“Muslims make up just 6% of the population of Europe, and have consistently committed less than 0.5% of the terrorist attacks over the last 5 years. Much is still unknown about the attackers, yet already there has been a widespread consensus that this is the result of Islamic extremism. Today all Muslims in Britain are being blamed for the actions of two men. Particularly shocking was the BBC’s Nick Robinson rushing to say the men were of “Muslim appearance”, and the reporter on ITV news describes it as the “day that Baghdad style violence came to South London.”

The media’s repeated scapegoating of the Muslim population and its continual ‘clash of civilisations’ narrative must be challenged. It is time we recognise and fight against the distorted depictions of Muslims we see every day in the media. When a Muslim murders a white man it is denounced as terrorism and considered worthy of rolling news coverage but when a Muslim is killed in a racist attack, like the one on 75 year-old Mohammed Saleem in Birmingham earlier this month, it is treated as a one-off murder and largely ignored. These blatant double standards are not acceptable.”

- We Will Not Let Fear Divide Us. Stand Against Racism. (via foucaultthehaters)

Why aren't more people freaking out about the new Venezuelan labor law?

Wed, 22 May 2013 04:09:17 -0400

africansunset:

bluandorange:

monetizeyourcat:

dancepunksnotdead:

You know, the one that gives housewives/full-time mothers a pension— wages for housework?

It’s ONLY A HUGE VICTORY FOR FEMINISM, SOCIALISM, AND WOMEN OF COLOR. Not a big deal or anything. Tumblr is mysteriously silent about this.

http://rabble.ca/columnists/2013/05/venezuelas-new-labour-law-best-mothers-day-gift

holy shit!

fucking COOL

Basically why I’m on tumblr.

psychopacifist: mr-cappadocia: You didn’t think too deeply...

Tue, 21 May 2013 02:18:17 -0400

psychopacifist:

mr-cappadocia:

You didn’t think too deeply about this did you? Of course not. If you were prone to thinking deeply about things… you probably wouldn’t be a Feminist, now would you?

Yooooooooooooooooooo!

Shit that was uncanny!

Dirty medicine - Fortune Features

Fri, 17 May 2013 11:31:04 -0400

Dirty medicine - Fortune Features:

The epic inside story of long-term criminal fraud at Ranbaxy, the Indian drug company that makes generic Lipitor for millions of Americans.

Holy shit, what?

This is important for trans people because a lot of us use generics off the internet when official funded prescriptions are unavailable. Heck, it’s clearly important for everybody.

Reblog! Spread this link!

And look up who makes the generic drugs you use.

That Feminist Dyke: ghettokaiba: According to tumblr social justice warriors, if you’re...

Fri, 17 May 2013 09:23:05 -0400

That Feminist Dyke: ghettokaiba: According to tumblr social justice warriors, if you’re...:

thatfeministdyke:

ghettokaiba:

According to tumblr social justice warriors, if you’re more than one of these things then your opinion is instantly invalid

straight

white

male

happy with the gender you were born with

thin

If you’re straight, your opinion on homosexual matters and homophobia is worth nothing. If you’re white, your opinion on racism is worth nothing. If you’re male, your opinion on sexism is worth nothing. If you’re cis, your opinion on transphobia and trans* issues is worth nothing. If you’re thin, your opinion on fatphobia and fat positivity is worth nothing.

You are privileged over that group. These are not your oppressions. You, the oppressor, do not get an opinion.

It’s pretty simple. No one is telling you your opinion is invalid on everything, don’t even fucking act like we are.

On Mr. Fox's Application For A Security Position At The Poultry Facility

Fri, 17 May 2013 06:02:43 -0400

On Mr. Fox's Application For A Security Position At The Poultry Facility:

It’s a grim and mistrustful thing to say, but when someone says, “I really want to guard the henhouse,” it is necessary to evaluate whether they’re the fox.

"“It’s not as simple as that. It’s not a black-and-white issue. There are so many shades of..."

Thu, 16 May 2013 07:28:12 -0400

“

“It’s not as simple as that. It’s not a black-and-white issue. There are so many shades of gray.”

“There’s no grays, only white that’s got grubby. I’m surprised you don’t know that. And sin, young man, is when you treat people as things. Including yourself. That’s what sin is.”

“It’s a lot more complicated than that-“

“No. It ain’t. When people say things are more complicated than that, they means they’re getting worried that they won’t like the truth. People as things, that’s where it starts.”

“Oh, I’m sure there are worse crimes-“

“But they starts with thinking about people as things…”

”

- Terry Pratchett, Carpe Jugulum (1998)

Granny Weatherwax, who is a stubborn and judgmental character (including towards herself), sees this as a personal level problem that could be solved with enough personal self discipline. She’s not mistaken about the mechanism, but her focus at the level of the individual is hugely misleading.

First: actively treating people as things is not the only problem. There is also a huge problem with passively failing to adequately personalize people you have only ever experienced as abstractions. This doesn’t feel like a moral choice, it feels like nothing. When you buy cheap clothes, it doesn’t feel like dropping factories on people in Bangladesh. Going against it feels like a huge heap of work and “political correctness” and extra expense. This also includes personalizing people in principle, but not giving them as much weight as “real” people, the ones you have actually met. This is probably a flaw at the level of the architecture of the human brain. Working around it is always going to be effort.

Second: we live in a culture of domination and coercion that spans from the economy to the street to our family relationships and affects every place on Earth, and we are not free to make purely personal moral decisions unrestricted by this context. (And our survival decisions propagate this context to other people.) Unwinding this mess is a huge multi-century project of liberation and individualizing the blame is actively unhelpful.

Photo

Wed, 15 May 2013 05:22:25 -0400

At the Edge of Night: Who Owns a Woman's Truth?

Tue, 14 May 2013 20:20:57 -0400

At the Edge of Night: Who Owns a Woman's Truth?:

You do not get to decide for a trans person when they should come out. Period. There is no way for me to garland this with pretty words. You simply do not do this. You do not get to decide where, when, and how coming out is “for their own good.” Especially not when she is in the hospital and completely unable to have input on the decision.

raycat: not-blonde: Winona Ryder in high school “I was wearing...

Mon, 13 May 2013 20:58:33 -0400

raycat:

not-blonde:

Winona Ryder in high school

“I was wearing an old Salvation Army shop boy’s suit. As I went to the bathroom I heard people saying, ‘Hey, faggot’. They slammed my head into a locker. I fell to the ground and they started to kick the shit out of me. I had to have stitches. The school kicked me out, not the bullies.

“Years later, I went to a coffee shop and I ran into one of the girls who’d kicked me, and she said, ‘Winona, Winona, can I have your autograph?’ And I said, ‘Do you remember me? Remember in seventh grade you beat up that kid?’ And she said, ‘Kind of’. And I said, ‘That was me. Go fuck yourself.’”

wow i love you

alexandraerin: futuretechreport: Geography of Hate -...

Mon, 13 May 2013 14:19:44 -0400

alexandraerin:

futuretechreport:

Geography of Hate - Crowdsourcing Tech Plots out Most Aggressive Areas With Racist, Homophobic and Ableist Tweets

Just a month or two ago I highlighted a site that kept count of homophobic language on Twitter. Floating Sheep’s visualization of hatred is extremely powerful.

Outside of the obvious social views on this map, what is most interesting from a pure technology perspective is how Twitter is consistently looked to (above all other networks) to take the pulse of a country.

Floating Sheep’s map charting hate tweets, which allows you to search on several flavors of hate, is a creative use of data and mapping to raise awareness.

via: fastcompany

This advances my theory that artificial lighting is attracted to hate.

Cute but it isn’t so. Observe the north-west, and the bible belt, lighting intensity versus red blobs. This data has indeed been population normalized to an extent (not completely though, as you’d see noise amplification in the “one cow and a whole lot of corn” states).

harrow-adrift: John Markley @ Toy Soldiers What John is describing is the Apex Fallacy, which was...

Mon, 13 May 2013 03:48:57 -0400

harrow-adrift:

John Markley @ Toy Soldiers

What John is describing is the Apex Fallacy, which was once explained in a wonderful metaphor involving watermelons.

(via siryouarebeingmocked)

What this guy fails to understand, and feminism does understand, is that a person can be in overlapping categories of privilege and marginalization, and that the interaction between them is complex and changes over historical time. For example, a black man can have little power over white women, while still retaining the ability to exert his privilege against black women, and while still retaining the ability to participate in keeping women in general down by street harassment (which he would not have had in the 1940s). And the poorest white guy will still have privilege of being believed by cops and judges over his equally poor wife.

7 THOUGHTS ON WOMEN IN GAMES

Wed, 08 May 2013 17:26:14 -0400

7 THOUGHTS ON WOMEN IN GAMES:

It feels fucking weird and queasy to try and smile along with someone you suspect has no stake in your reality and will toss you under the bus for any old reason. It feels terrible because you want to smile too. You want to get along. But you know better. You know they aren’t along for the long ride.

Porpentine, being awesome as per usual.

"… a study comparing heterosexual and lesbian mothers concluded that the two groups have similar..."

Wed, 08 May 2013 12:30:47 -0400

“

… a study comparing heterosexual and lesbian mothers concluded that the two groups have similar sex-role behavior and attitudes towards ideal child behavior. My immediate response as a lawyer was to be elated - one more piece of evidence to help convince a judge that our clients are not really “different” kinds of mothers at all.

But as a lesbian, a feminist, and a mother with a vision of an entirely different way of raising our children, I was horrified. I am not pleased to discover that my lesbian sisters pose no threat to the perpetuation of patriarchal child-rearing.

”

- Nancy Polikoff, Lesbian mothers, lesbian families: Legal obstacles, legal challenges, in NYU Review of Law and Social Change 14 (1986), p908

quoted in Suzanne Slater, The Lesbian Family Life Cycle (The Free Press, 1995), pp. 92-3

Slater also notes that, “[Feminist] parents must often choose between safeguarding their custody of their children and abandoning the very values they wish to offer them.”

(via radtransfem)

Do a (disabled, mentally ill, queer) femme a favour...

Tue, 07 May 2013 21:03:58 -0400

marigold-zephyr:

I know I don’t have many followers on here, but those who do see this, please consider sharing far and wide. I’m a disabled queer femme living in London, UK, and I’ve had some problems with my benefit payments. I misread a letter thinking it said that my housing benefit would be suspended within a month if I didn’t send evidence, it actually said that my benefits were already suspended (because they cut my ESA and I’m in the middle of an appeal and they wont pay out housing benefit without that income, go figure) and I have a month to send evidence to get it reinstated. To highlight how bad it is, I have £197 coming in this month in total not figuring into account food and living costs, and my rent is £560. I have a couple of hundred in my savings but I need to make a few hundred more to make rent by the 17th - so TEN DAYS. Please consider buying some of my clothing on ebay here -

http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/morwennamara/m.html?item=300901983352&pt=UK_Women_s_Tops_Shirts&hash=item460f27e478&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2562

I can also provide services just as knitting, sewing, crocheting, plaiting hair, make up, life modelling etc for donations. Please email me at monnie_mo@hotmail.com. It’s not possible for me to get a job due to my disabilities, and even if I was cured tomorrow in this climate with my lack of formal education (I was out of school by age 12 because of disabilities) I wouldn’t get a job. I’m also going to compile an ebook soon about emotional trauma (fun!), disability, queerness, femmeness and bodies. So keep an eye out. Thanks!

Now you’re thinking with portals.

Mon, 06 May 2013 16:19:41 -0400

Now you’re thinking with portals.

"This is the place in which, it seems to me, most white Americans find themselves. They are dimly, or..."

Fri, 03 May 2013 23:34:08 -0400

“This is the place in which, it seems to me, most white Americans find themselves. They are dimly, or vividly, aware that the history they have fed themselves is mainly a lie, but they do not know how to release themselves from it, and they suffer enormously from the resulting personal incoherence. This incoherence is heard nowhere more plainly than in those stammering, terrified dialogues white Americans sometimes entertain with that black conscience, the black man in America.

The nature of this stammering can be reduced to a plea: Do not blame me. I was not there. I did not do it. My history has nothing to do with Europe or the slave trade. Anyway, it was your chiefs who sold you to me. I was not present on the middle passage. I am not responsible for the textile mills of Manchester, or the cotton fields of Mississippi. Besides, consider how the English, too, suffered in those mills and in those awful cities! I, also, despise the governors of Southern states and the sheriffs of Southern counties; and I also want your child to have a decent education and rise as high as his capabilities will permit. I have nothing against you, nothing! What have you got against me? What do you want?

But, on the same day, in another gathering, and in the most private chamber of his heart always, he, the white man, remains proud of that history for which he does not wish to pay, and from which, materially, he has profited so much.”

- James Baldwin, Unnameable Objects, Unspeakable Crimes

James Baldwin wrote these words in 1966

1966

I repeat 1966

It is 2013

47 years later and White people are still strumming to this same tune of “don’t blame me”.

Wow.

(via theraceproblem)

Brain teasers for egalitarians/equalists.

Wed, 01 May 2013 17:12:07 -0400

alexandraerin:

Say I’m 32 years old and you’re 22 years old.

In how many years will we be the same age?

…

Silly question, right? If you define aging as a process that stops at death, the only way we’ll ever be the same age is if I die first. If you don’t, then we’ll never be the same age. Every time you age a year, I also age a year. Since our ages increase at the same rate, you will never catch up to my head start. We have achieved a total equality of aging, but that does not change the permanent inequality of our age.

Okay, say I have a million dollars and you’re completely broke. If we both get a dollar a day, how long will it take you to catch up with me?

Now, this one’s even sillier, because if you have no other resources, your dollar a day is going to be eaten up by basic living expenses that it doesn’t quite meet, and I have an excess of money that can be spent on money-making opportunities that pay off far better than an additional $365 a year. I could literally burn the dollar I’m getting as part of our Totally Equal Income and still make more money in a year than you do just by sticking my money in the bank.

But still: both of us getting a dollar a day is totally equal, right? It means we’re being treated exactly the same.

And now, final problem:

If we have a world that contains structural inequalities, systemic imbalances, disproportionate danger faced by some, and unequal access to resources and opportunities, is “treating everyone the same” really going to result in equality?

Show your work.

freedominwickedness: skysquids: thedarkplumber: livelaughaweso...

Wed, 01 May 2013 11:52:06 -0400

freedominwickedness:

skysquids:

thedarkplumber:

livelaughawesome:

skysquids:

so here is what happens to me when we do the ‘urinals’ vs ‘no urinals’ bathroom setup. it becomes an opportunity to out me, make assumptions about my genitals, essentialize my gender according to my birth sex, and push me into the men’s room. this is actually what happens to me when we do this. let’s not do this, ok? spread the word.

this is such a fucking valid perspective on this.

the whole point of the bathroom talk is to open up bathrooms to EVERYBODY and create a safer space for all people, not to just “segregate into trans friendly categories”. a genital segregated bathroom is just as shitty as a gender segregated bathroom.

The described scenario is likely at first, because people still assume “with urinal” to be for penises and “no urinal” to be for vaginas. Which is against the actual purpose of the signs; they do not say “for penises” and “for vaginas.”

It is an option that allows those who value the convenience of a urinal to have access to one while not saying who’s allowed to use one. Ideally all bathrooms would have urinals, but the money to retrofit every bathroom ever would be enormous, and removing every urinal would be a shame because they cut down on time spent in public bathrooms and they’re just nice to use for those who want them.

There is nothing but social pressure stopping a person from picking a urinal or no urinal bathroom. And if anyone’s waiting for social pressure to dissipate without being challenged they may be in for a long, looooong wait.

It is not a perfect solution, but it is a fair middleground. Any opposition can be explained away with the fact that is not just a gender based social issue, but a way to streamline the restroom experience. No more waiting on a bathroom behind three men while the girl’s one is empty. No having to figure out if you walked down the wrong hallway if restrooms aren’t right next to each other. No awkwardly walking into the wrong bathroom.

I am not oblivious to the fact that it is not going to be easy to degender and de-sexualize bathrooms. But this idea is nothing radical, which every person who owns a business will appreciate. And at least it’s a big first step to make on places that already have urinals, or wish to include them in the future.

but here’s the issue: in the mean time this ‘solution’ in no way addresses the safety of trans women. i would now be expected to use the bathroom with cis straight males, so its a loss for me safety-wise. is that really worth shorter lines? not to me, not to many women. and its precisely the fact that social pressure will not dissipate that this ‘solution’ will in effect create additional opportunity to speculate on my gender / body / genitals. this is not my theory on this, this is my actual experience with this situation. like, what is this a step towards? because from where i’m sitting, its increased danger with very minimal upside. i can see this helping out genderqueer folks, but i don’t really support easing things for trans* folks at the expense of trans women’s safety - considering that we already face the worst rates of violence in such situations. i’d rather have a solution that keeps trans women safe while making bathrooms more comfortable for other trans* folks as well. i’ve experienced this, and i’m not for it.

The theoretical goal is all well and good, but the reality — as you’ve pointed out — is that this rebadging of bathrooms creates a superficial veneer of trans-friendliness while continuing to endanger trans women and CAMAB nonbinary trans* people.

Fair-weather allies and CAFAB trans* people are eager to support this kind of thing because it makes them look good and feel good for very little effort, but any serious advocate of trans rights will understand that they need to sit down and listen to the people who actually have their safety at stake.

The actual way to fix this is single-occupant fully-contained unisex cubicles with locking doors. An unshared loo is by definition, not shared with dangerous cis men. In the UK, I’ve found coffee chains (Starbucks, Costa, Nero) are good for these particularly. This means rebuilding, though, for businesses that did it the wrong way. Sticky tape and paper won’t cut it.

sometimesfairytale: brostorian: mater—tua: thatisludicrous: t...

Wed, 01 May 2013 04:18:00 -0400

Yeah, you'll be dead after playing this.

"Arranged by accident"

"Release the penguins"

"Have a nice day"

"Remove cattle from stage"

"Bow really fast, slippage may occur"

"Light explosives now....and...now."

"Insert peanuts"

sometimesfairytale:

brostorian:

mater—tua:

thatisludicrous:

theburntsouffle:

madygcomics:

pocopiumosso:

My middle school orchestra teacher has this hanging in her room. It’s fantastic.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tds0qoxWVss

This is what it sounds like. REALLY good song.

[gif snipped]

My friend keeps practising it. Fucking amazing. I’m fairly certain the music got written by someone doodling geometric figures on a sheet of music paper and then realizing they’d actually written the song of the gods.

“Arranged by Accident”

It sounds like a boss battle.

Audio danmaku. It even sounds like Touhou.