I have a guilty pleasure.  I download Cosmo on my iPad.  I know it’s a dirty habit but anyway, there is a careers section in Cosmo and this month it’s all about the language we use when we talk about women in power, meaning that a woman with the exact same characteristics professionally will more likely be called “bossy” while her male counterpart would be called “commanding.”

There are many examples of this but these articles got me thinking about a discussion I had with father during the Democratic primaries for the 2008 elections, you know basically a race between Hillary and Obama.  My father who was against Hillary for real, respectable political reasons was talking to me about how a woman will never be elected president in this country because women don’t like to see other women succeed.  I then argued that was a bunch of hogwash and then listed off a bunch of countries that have or have had female heads of government.  And then my father’s response made me even more angry, saying something to the likes of, yes and everyone probably called them a bitch, women most of all.

To me it seems crazy that women would be holding other women down but you see ethe examples in TV and movies, very rarely do women get to have it all, in tv and magazines female politicians, CEOs, and judges are called bossy, bitches, and blunt, while their male counterparts are  called, ambitious, commanding, and tell-it-like-it is.

Labels are important, just ask any middle schooler who gets called a slut.  Our words, these labels, do matter and how we treat people matter as well.  Promotions are based in a large part by the opinions or your superiors.  Words matter and we can’t pretend like it doesn’t.  We have to as a society notice this linguistical double standard and put a stop to it. Continue Reading »

So as I have been complaining about the Superbowl on all forms of media, you can check out my latest YouTube video here.  I would like to talk about one of the advertisements.  GoldieBlox competed in a contest run by Intuit, that paid for a 30 second Superbowl commercial, which cost Intuit, according to Forbes roughly 4 million dollars.  We all know that the Superbowl is one of the most watched television specials in the United States, so a company paying for a small business to have a Superbowl advertisement is amazing.  I noticed that advertisement very quickly when i was watching the Superbowl, mostly because it wasn’t one of the many beer and car commercials.  I am glad to see that a company like GoldieBlox is able to get off the ground and they were able to create a controversy free advert, they used Quiet Riot’s Cum on Feel the Noise instead of the Beastie Boys song Girls.  It will take a little more time to see if this ad equals to sales, but I and the rest of the world saw this advertisement.  I am sure it will do nothing but good for a brand that is truly looking to do something good for girls.

image via: https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-qFyi6-olBLQ/TX_RDX02slI/AAAAAAAABxc/rP-5xC6gaQk/s1600/congress%2Bbudget%2Bdeficit.jpg

So, in a rarity that not one person would ever see happening, a budget was passed.  A real budget was passed and not just some continuing resolution that will only continue the previous budget and prevent shutdown.  CNN’s article In a Rare Bipartisan Action Congress Approves a 1.1 Trillion Dollar Budget highlights the important gains and losses of both parties in this budget, but here’s my question, with a congress that has had such a difficult time passing anything, where I remember reading a statement by a noted congressman stating that this congress is so divisive that they wouldn’t be able to pass the 10 Commandments if they tried, how could this budget get passed in roughly 4 days.  That’s staggering for any budget bill, even if the Congress wasn’t so divided.

I have a theory.  So do you remember that budget shutdown.  I really believe that Congress doesn’t want that to happen again, and I believe even more that these Congress men and women want to keep their jobs.  It may not be a presidential election year but it is a congressional election year 33 Senatorial seats will be up for reelection and according to multiple sources all 435 members of the House are up for re-election.  The Congress has to prove that they can work and that they can do the basic constitutional function of a Congress.  Americans can get a clean sweep of the House of Representatives this year and I think that Congress men and women are afraid that the American people will take advantage of that.  What do you think?

image via http://cdn.searchbuzzco.netdna-cdn.com

The passing of Nelson Mandela has brought out every sort of media person, person with a blog and twitter to say many things.  Now some people talk about Mandela as some sort of god-like hero ment to be worshiped for his great deeds.  Others are quick to remind you that he was human, with faults and those in his political party weren’t always as upright and moral as he was.  Others are then quick to remind you of the faults of your own nation when talking about the memory of this man.

My question is, are we allowed to remember people as great heroes?  Americans love to do this, remind people that the Founding Fathers were not perfect men, but does the fact that these men were not perfect and some of these men did some very bad things, change the accomplishments of these men?  Does the fact that Thomas Jefferson owned slaves change the fact that he was the main writer of the Declaration of Independence?  Does the fact that Kennedy was a womanizer change what he did during his historic 100 days in office?

Maybe it’s the fault of Watergate, the fact that we, and now I am only speaking about Americans in general, don’t have blind faith in leaders.  It’s difficult for us to hero-worship, and even when we create heroes, ie movie superheros, they must have faults.  We cannot have a 1950s Superman who only stands for “truth, justice, and the American way,” anymore, we have to have a hero who has made good and bad choices.  Maybe it’s more realistic, but is it wrong to remember a great leader, like Nelson Mandela for what his accomplishments stood for?

I am sad to report that Nelson Mandela at the age of 95 has passed on, December 5, 2013, after a long battle with illness.  He was one of the greatest leaders the world has ever seen.  He is a man who shows that we can fight for our beliefs and we can change the world.  Mandela’s story is well known by most.  Imprisoned for 27 years, South Africa’s first democratically elected president, but what he leaves us is a legacy that teaches us that there are morals and beliefs that are worth fighting for.  I hope that we can all take Mandela’s legacy to heart.

http://www.news.com.au/world/obituary-nelson-mandelas-extraordinary-life-lived-for-the-greater-good/story-fndir2ev-1226776680992

https://www.facebook.com/nelsonmandela

http://www.nytimes.com/1986/10/03/politics/03REAG.html?smid=tw-share

The Beastie Boys have issued an open letter the GoldieBlox stating they were “impressed by the creativity and the message” of the GoldieBlox video, adding, “We strongly support empowering young girls, breaking down gender stereotypes and igniting a passion for technology and engineering.” However, the group continues, “make no mistake, your video is an advertisement that is designed to sell a product, and long ago, we made a conscious decision not to permit our music and/or name to be used in product ads.”

This statement was written after GoldieBlox had filed a lawsuit against the Beastie Boys saying that their song was a parody, which makes it free from copyright infringement statues.

According to consiquenceofsound.net,  ”Adam ‘MCA’ Yauch banned usage of his music in advertisements. It read: “Notwithstanding anything to the contrary, in no event may my image or name or any music or any artistic property created by me be used for advertising purposes.”” in his will.

Is the song in the commercial from GoldieBlox a parody, yes absolutely, but they are using the music written by the Beastie Boys to sell a product.  If GoldieBlox wasn’t looking to sell a product there would be nothing wrong here.  But they are advertising a product and I think the Beastie Boys have a right to ask their song to be removed from the video.

Below are both videos.

http://consequenceofsound.net/2013/11/beastie-boys-issue-open-letter-to-goldieblox-say-theyre-the-ones-being-sued/

An unknown caller called emergency services from a payphone at about 9:30 am New Haven time, and told the dispatcher that his roommate was on his way to Yale University to shoot people.  This call lead to the university being shut down, local schools being put on lock down and all safety precautions being taken to protect the safety of the remaining students on campus, it is Thanksgiving break at Yale, and the community.

This post could begin some sort of rant on a need for gun control, when in reality the caller was probably some sort of prankster.  This post could begin some sort of argument on being able to see people who are making phone calls, wait I think that the government can do that… But in reality I am writing this to say thank goodness the police took that call seriously, and that goodness, that it probably was a prank. I know that America has become a country with a lot more fears in recent years, but sometimes those fears are founded in something real, and taking threats and warnings seriously does save lives, see the Titanic for an example when warnings aren’t taken seriously.

I hope that these types of calls don’t become normal.  I wish that school shootings weren’t something that America is known for internationally.  But I just want to say thank goodness for the New Haven police and the Yale Campus police for taking the safety of its students and community in the highest regards.

http://news.nationalpost.com/2013/11/25/this-is-not-a-test-yale-on-lockdown-as-police-in-tactical-gear-hunt-for-gunman/

http://m.apnews.com/ap/db_289563/contentdetail.htm?contentguid=kuhiLoWX

image via PFLAG baltimore

ENDA, what is it?  Other than an acronym that made me think of a woman’s name.  ENDA stands for Employment Non-Discrimination Act, one of the more understandable acronyms that Congress has named a bill in a while.    This bill would prevent employers from refusing to hire or fire someone based on their sexual orientation or gender identity.  This is similar to laws that protect people based on race, religion, gender and disability.  Honestly I had thought that these laws already existed.  I am sorry to be so wrong and so misinformed.  Laws protecting people based on sexual orientation and gender identity have been a state by state issue, 21 states and DC have laws protecting people based on sexual orientation, and 17 states and DC have laws protecting people based on gender identity.  This idea, having a law to protect workers based on sexual orientation, according to the Public Research Institute in a May poll is supported by almost 7 out of 10 Americans.

Republicans believe that ENDA mostly unnecessary because many states have laws protecting people based on sexual orientation, and most companies have polices banning this form of discrimination.  Many Republicans also believe that ENDA is written too broadly and would increase lawsuits, but research has shown that in states with similar laws to ENDA there hasn’t been an increase in these forms of lawsuits.  Maybe because companies are policing themselves as well.

With a 64 to 32 vote, which means that it was bipartisan, ENDA passed the Senate.  Which means there is some Republican leadership, including John McCain who tweeted this press release http://www.mccain.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/press-releases?ID=22ba5a3d-75df-4dea-950e-e681b23b6224 .  So Boehner refusing to bring this bill up to a vote shows how much he doesn’t care about what the American people want.  He believes that this law would cause frivolous lawsuits and a loss of small business jobs, so he won’t let the House vote on this bill, even though most believe there are enough votes in the House for this bill to pass.  Harry Reid even said on Thursday, that ENDA would, “pass by a nice margin in the House if the speaker would allow a vote.”  So, I guess we will see what will happen next.  And how more political stand stilling will affect this next election.

So Not to long ago a reader named Cara sent me an email with this info-graphic below.  You can find the info-graphic and even more information at http://www.superscholar.org/brain-trust/ which also includes at the bottom links to the sources that the website used.  Underneath the picture in the article it has lists of which countries spend how much money on scientific research and other things of the nature.  I found it very interesting to read so I hope you all can check it out and look at the entire article.