In the News

Here is some stuff in the news today!

FuckWinter continues to fuck with everyone.

[Content Note: Gun violence] Welp: "During President Obama's State of the Union address in which he vowed to take action on—among other things—the pervasiveness of gun violence, there was yet another shooting on a school campus. Police were called to the campus of Tennessee State University shortly after 9:00pm, where an unidentified individual was found having been shot in the leg. The university has not yet released any information on either the suspect or the victim."

[CN: Misogyny; sexual harassment] An pseudonymous female games industry veteran gives an interview to Kotaku's Rachel Edidin about having been sexually harassed by a reporter seeking information on a fiercely guarded game in development: "When we finally talk, I'm struck immediately by how much Mercier feels obliged to qualify. Without asking, I learn how she dresses for work and professional events; how she acts in professional contexts; the image she strives to project; her boundaries for friends and friendly acquaintances and colleagues. She also tells me, unprompted the exact scope of her previous contact with and relationship to Josh Mattingly leading up to the conversation where he told her repeatedly and explicitly what he'd like to do to her vagina. She's seen the comments on Mattingly's apology post, and she's acutely aware that, in the court of public opinion, it's she, not necessarily Mattingly, who is on trial. ...When I point out the irony—that, of the two participants in the conversation, Mercier was the one worried that her behavior might burn a professional bridge—she laughs ruefully."

[CN: Rape culture] Indian politician Asha Mirje, a Nationalist Congress party (NCP) leader in western Maharashtra state, engages in some gross victim-blaming: "Did Nirbhaya really have to go and watch a movie at 11 in the night with her friend? ...Rapes take place also because of a woman's clothes, her behaviour and her presence at inappropriate places." Yeahno.

Do you want to find out more about income inequality near you? Check out this chart at ProPublica. (Although if you live in a very small county, information may not be available.)

[CN: Gun violence] A cable provider in South Africa will launch a 24-hour dedicated channel for the trial of Oscar Pistorius, which begins in March. Well, all the commentary around that case has been super responsible, so I'm sure filling 24 hours a day with gossip and theorizing will be terrific for everyone.

Breaking News: Human Beings Not Designed for Space Travel.

Budweiser, your beer stinks, but this ad is AMAZING.