In the News

Here is some stuff in the news today...

[Content Note: War; bombing; death] You won't see much about this in US media sources today, unfortunately, not nearly as much as it deserves, but today marks the 70th anniversary of the US' atomic bombing of Hiroshima, in which 140,000 people died, 80,000 of them instantaneously, and many more were injured and suffered lifelong effects. We have all kinds of narratives about why this mass extermination of civilian humans was necessary in order to end the second World War, but there is no justification for what is surely what of the greatest shames in this nation's history.

[CN: Voter suppression] In good news: "One day before the 50th anniversary of the Voting Rights Act, one of the most conservative federal appeals courts in the country wielded that law to strike down a Texas voter suppression law. A unanimous panel of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, in an opinion written by a George W. Bush appointee, held that Texas's voter ID law violates the Voting Rights Act and must, at the very least, be significantly weakened. Though the court did not accept every argument raised against the state's voter ID law, and its opinion does not go nearly as far as a trial judge's decision which also struck down this law, it is a significant blow to the state's efforts to make voting more difficult." By way of reminder, however, the Supreme Court upheld Indiana's voter ID law in 2008, so this surely isn't done.

Further on the subject of voting rights: "Rep. John Lewis and Sen. Patrick Leahy: Restore voting rights." YES.

[CN: Violence; death; disablism] Another white man, this time brandishing a hatchet, a pellet gun, and pepper spray, assaulted people in a movie theater, before being shot and killed by police. The theater was showing Mad Max: Fury Road, another movie loved by lots of women this summer. The man, we are duly informed, "had been committed for mental health issues four times in 2004 and 2007." Fortunately, no one (besides the attacker) was seriously injured physically.

[CN: Police misconduct] A Rohnert Park (California) Public Safety officer pulled a gun on a guy filming him, who recorded the interaction, and now "Rohnert Park Mayor Amy Ahanotu and City Manager Darrin Jenkins said in a statement that an internal review will be conducted to determine if the proper protocols were followed." If there is any way that this incident doesn't violate "proper protocols," those protocols need to be changed. For fuck's sake.

[CN: War on agency] Long heaving sigh: "Despite the absence of evidence that Planned Parenthood violated any laws, Colorado State University (CSU) officials have suspended the school from acquiring fetal tissue from entities linked to Planned Parenthood until 'Congressional investigations are concluded.' CSU President Tony Frank made the decision in the wake of pressure from anti-choice Rep. Doug Lamborn (R-Colorado Springs), who demanded in a July 17 letter that the university stop the 'purchases of aborted babies' body parts' for use in research."

[CN: Misogyny] Rolling Stones undead legend Keith Richards has found a whole new way to blame women for the break-up of the Beatles: "Those rabid female fans were the wedge that drove apart the Beatles, according to Richards. There were 'no PAs. And 3,000 screaming chicks could just wail you out of the whole place. Just looking at the crowd, you could see them dragging the chicks out, sweating, screaming, convulsing. Astonishing, even at that age. At the same time, a whole roomful of chicks yelling at you is not so shabby, either. Because the year before, nobody would look at you. But they talk about us—the Beatles, those chicks wore those guys out. They stopped touring in 1966—they were done already. They were ready to go to India and shit.'" I barely even know what this guy is talking about, but at least Yoko Ono is getting a break from the Blame Game. At least singularly, since apparently the fault lies with ALL OF WOMANKIND.

The moon photobombs the Earth. LOL.

I loooooooove pinball, and I totally want to go to Pinburgh now!

Congratulations to B-52's singer Kate Pierson and her longtime partner Monica Coleman who got married in Hawaii. Yay!

[CN: Moving gifs at link] And finally! This video of happysillyfunny baby goats playing in a barn while an unimpressed cat (who looks EXACTLY like Olivia!!!) looks on is the best!