From the Mailbag

Shaker roro80 sends along this piece of important NOOZ, and quite rightly summarizes it as "a heart-warming tale from CNN about how even though the author is a 'man's man' and feels guilt for nothing (unlike the lady-creatures—oh, sorry 'puritan chumps'), he still lowers himself to enjoy lady-like pleasures. Which he definitely doesn't feel guilt about. Because guilt is for girls."

Shaker Francesca forwards the link to this post (may be NSFW) featuring some "edgy" (totally sexist) can packaging. I particularly like, ahem, the one with two spouts, as well as the design at the very bottom, which inventively makes two cans better than one! *headdesk*

Shaker Hayley sends this story (and I know someone else sent it as well, but I can't remember who it was; my apologies) about the Girl Guides of Canada introducing a new merit badge to promote positive body images. I love the badge and the idea behind it—although I'm not sure that equating, even indirectly, being fat with being a three-eyed alien ("There are different activities for each age group, with younger girls earning their badge by completing tasks such as creating a craft called an Awesome Alien. 'They create a funky alien that may have three eye balls or two right hands. It's about celebrating differences,' said [Rebecca Tye, girl program co-ordinator].) is a particularly great message.

Shaker Miranda sends this link, about German Chancellor Angela Merkel's image being used in an underwear advert, with the note: "As if being unnecessarily grabbed by Bush wasn't enough." Seriously.

Shaker Gnatalby forwards this indescribably awful story [trigger warning] with the note: "Yeah, I'm pretty sure this should be headlined 'Rape for Debt Payoff'." Indeed it should. But instead, it is of course headlined "Sex for Debt Payoff"—because everyone knows that "sex" for a woman is being "offered up as a prostitute [and] treated like a piece of property" by your boyfriend, who grants access to your sleeping body without your consent as payment to a man to whom he's indebted and then sits in a chair doing nothing while you scream in protest. Fucking hell.

Shaker Katie emails the unfortunate news that the Texas State Senate has approved a law that "would ask women seeking abortions to first have and view an ultrasound." They also passed a proposal to create a "Choose Life" license plate.

But, in good news from Texas, Shaker Abby emails this story about the University of Texas unveiling a statue of Barbara Jordan on campus last week. Says Abby: "Her statue is the first one of a woman on the campus. This is a result of a student-run initiative of the women's organization Orange Jackets. Teaspoons!" Woot!

Shaker Audrey forwards this story [trigger warning] of being All In, in which a male bus driver in Tokyo reported that his route was being used by a 73-year-old man to regularly molest a 14-year-old mentally disabled girl on his bus, and was told by the management of the bus company that he should consider "how he felt about not working for them anymore." Given the choice between allowing the girl to continue to be sexually assaulted and losing his job, the driver installed a video camera, captured the man in action, and turned the video over to police, resulting in the arrest of the perpetrator, who confessed to the crime and said: "I did it because I thought she wouldn't tell anyone about it," underlining the importance of the driver being All In.

Shaker knitmeapony sends a lovely little bit of teaspooning found in Chicago's Red Eye: "An article that's your bog-standard boring 'here's how to be in a committed relationship' sort of story. With one photograph—of a gay couple, looking perfectly banal. A gay couple. As a boring relationship, non-LGBTQI-focused story illustration. Presented without comment, without snarky language, without air quotes. Just a normal couple in their kitchen, talking about normal, boring relationship stuff. It's kept me grinning for half the morning."

And Shaker Siobhan emails: "Tolkien was RIGHT!"

The extinct hominids commonly known as hobbits may have been small of body and brain, but their feet were exceptionally long, and they were flat.

Hee.