Link Farm & Open Thread #29

I have lost my watch. It’s somewhere within a foot or so of my desk, or perhaps on my desk. I can tell because it beeps once an hour. But I can’t find it. I’m torn between being annoyed and amused by the situation.

Anyway, some links:

Ink and Incapability: 18th Carnival of the Feminists!

Written World: The 1st Carnival of Feminist Fantasy & Science Fiction Fans!

Obsidian Wings: Anti-Illegal-Immigrant Policy Could Throw Over A Million Americans Off Medicaid
A strong example of why – bad as Democrats are – Republicans are either thoughtless or malicious when it comes to writing policy. And see also Respectful of Otters.

Education Sector: “Boy Crisis” in Schools Debunked

There’s no doubt that some groups of boys—particularly Hispanic and black boys and boys from low-income homes—are in real trouble. But the predominant issues for them are race and class, not gender. Closing racial and economic gaps would help poor and minority boys more than closing gender gaps, and focusing on gender gaps may distract attention from the bigger problems facing these youngsters.

BallastExiztance: Being autistic is not a disease and requires no cure
An impressive collection of quotes from a wide variety of autistic people.

Blac(k)ademic: Why Are We All So Hostile?

why, then, do we continue to blog? obviously, no one is really engaing in any valuable exchange. we are waist-deep in valid arguments, experiences, ideas and perspectives, but we don’t see that because we are to quick to point out how “stupid” that other woman was when she said (insert anything that you disagree with right here).

Women’s Space/The Margins: Female Soldiers Die of Dehydration Trying To Avoid Rape

Capitalism Bad, Tree Pretty: Raising Children Should Not Be Treated As A Hobby

Official Shrub.com: Maybe your time could be spent better elsewhere, but you do not speak for me.
Good rebuttal to the “why are you wasting your time on activism that isn’t my area of interest?” line of criticism.

LA Times: Our Brains Are Hard-Wired To Ignore Global Warming

The fact is that if climate change were caused by gay sex, or by the practice of eating kittens, millions of protesters would be massing in the streets. [Curtsy: Feministe.]

Real Men Are Not: On Black Male Compensation and White Over-Compensation
I’d particularly recommend reading the exchange between Lindsey and Luke in comments.

Reappropriate: The Voting Rights Act and English as The Official Language

…When the government tells its people that those who do not speak English are “less American”, they not only challenge our access to basic constitutional rights and civil liberties, but send us the message that despite their best efforts, they — us, our sisters, our brothers, our mothers, our fathers, our aunts and uncles and grandmothers and grandfathers — non-English speaking immigrant populations — are not welcome here.

Feminist Law Professors: The Real Toy Story (photos from factories abroad)

Nathan Newman: Ulysses Grant: Best. President. Ever.

If Grant is not more respected, it is because the fight for racial justice and Reconstruction that he oversaw has been so rawly defamed over our history to the point of almost being forgotten. (Curtsy: Mahablog).

Big Fat Blog: Town To Fat People: We Don’t Want Your Kind Shopping Here

The Colorblind Society: Chris Matthews Defends Segregation

Granny Gets A Vibrator: Black Immersion Month

This is an experiment for me. I’m not trying to be black, or become black or pretend like I’m black or any of that stuff. I’m just very curious to learn how looking at the world through this lens will affect me, my white thinking, and my white perspective.

Red State Feminist: Some Men’s Rights Activist Sickos Defend Murder and Attempted Murder

Girl Wonder: The Sexist Treatment DC Comics Gave the Death of the Female Robin
Lots of activists demand monuments, but this is the only one I’ve ever seen demand a monument be erected in a fictional space. But I found the essay quite persuasive, and I hope DC gives in to their demands.

Feminist Allies: Alpha Male Feminism

Photo Essay: Our Weight-Obsessed Culture
Curtsy: Big Fat Blog

True Confessions of an Hourly Bookseller: Feminist Critique of Y, The Last Man
Pretty much gets at all the reasons I stopped buying this comic book. Curtsy: Melinda Casino

BlackProf: Still Struggling For Our Inalienable Rights

Today, another class of political elites–incumbent politicians and various partisan officials–seek to govern without the people’s consent. They do so by manipulating an ever-changing matrix of election practices, such as district boundaries, antiquated voting machines, and barriers to voting. These practices determine who votes and how votes get counted.

Egotistical Whining: Racism FAQ

Vigilance: Cross Burned At Gay Man’s House In Tennessee

Spiegelman was right! Cats Who Look Like Hitler
Curtsy: Punk Ass Blog.