In the News

Here is some stuff in the news today...

Today is the Scottish independence vote, and it's really coming down to the wire. The Guardian has live coverage here. I've been chatting with my Scottish cousin about it this morning, and it's very exciting! What a nail-biter!

[Content Note: Misogyny] And the pendulum swings back: First, Hillary was supposed to go away. Then she was supposed to run for president or be accused of ruining the Democrats' chances and destroying the entire country and possibly the planet. And now it's back to go away again: "Left blasts Clinton in secret emails." Of course.

Wow: "The proportion of privately insured U.S. women who paid zero dollars out of pocket for oral contraceptive pills increased sharply, from 15% to 67%, between the fall of 2012 (before the ACA's contraceptive coverage requirement took effect for most women) and the spring of 2014, according to a new Guttmacher study published in the journal Contraception." That is remarkable.

In less good news: "Despite an Overall Decline in the Poverty Rate, the Number of Women in Poverty Hasn't Changed in a Year." Fuck.

[CN: Harassment; sexual assault; misogynistic slur] A NYC bartender wrote an open letter to the reprehensible shitbird who grabbed her ass and propositioned her. And he responded by saying he's grabbed lots of asses but never hers, then calling her a "fucking cunt" and vowing: "I will make sure she doesn't get another job in New York City. I know everybody. The bar owners, the club owners—that's a terrible thing to write about somebody." Well, you've convinced me of your moral superiority, sir!

[CN: Wildfires] California Governor Jerry Brown has declared a state of emergency "in response to a raging wildfire that has threatened thousands of homes in what is being called the state's worst-ever fire season. Brown has put all state resources at the disposal of his Office of Emergency Services in response to the so-called King fire, the largest of 11 major wildfires raging across the drought-ridden state, and another powerful blaze farther north, he said."

[CN: Class warfare] I really think we're going to have to start calling it something other than the justice system, unless we all agree it's ironic: "Innocent People in New York Who Can't Afford a Lawyer Are Pretty Much Doomed."

Neato: "Astronomers from the University of Utah recently found a supermassive black hole in a very small dwarf galaxy, M60-UCD1, one of the smallest galaxies currently known. This discovery could mean that other similar dwarf galaxies, which are dense, could also have large black holes, meaning that black holes, in general, are more common than originally thought. Astronomers also now believe that these galaxies were once part of other larger galaxies that separated after collisions with yet other galaxies."

Lifetime is making a Grumpy Cat Christmas movie, because of course it is, and they just announced that the voice of Grumpy Cat will be Audrey Plaza. OBVIOUSLY. WHO ELSE COULD IT POSSIBLY BE? NO ONE!!!