Report Cards

There's this great little story today about a man who saved a small group of report cards from the Manhattan Trade School for Girls and the stories he discovered there. This is such a great moment of an amateur historian working with a primary source. I love that he contacted the families and gave them information they might not otherwise have.
That said, I'm not sure if I want my future family members seeing my report cards. Mostly they are decent, but if there are the kinds of notes that these have, then really, even I don't want to know.

Seperate and Unequal

So, a few days ago I wrote about how I didn't think men were obsolete/less important. And thankfully, someone agrees with me. Sort of. Christina Hoff Sommers talks about how men are more likely to run for political office, are more likely to win Nobel prizes, get patents, etc. But then she makes all kind of assumptions about gender that make me want to gag. She assumes men are by nature, more violent. She talks about their economic power as if it was their right and as if capitalism were okay. Oh, and she assumes there's nothing wrong with the military. She basically says that women are separate but equal, even though she should know better than that. And honestly, some of her claims make me feel like she isn't really talking about the original article that touched off all this debate in the first place.
All of this is so frustrating. The obsolete question seems like the wrong framework to even be dealing with this issue. We need to celebrate gains (especially for queer women, women of color, disabled women, etc.) and acknowledge all the work that needs to be done. Men are not inherently anything; it's all cultural, so they can't be obsolete; the only thing obsolete is the way some of them have been raised.

Hope Springs Eternal

So Hanna Rosin's article last year called "The End of Men" was just this totally talked about piece. And it poses some interesting theories, which I found myself revisiting when I read this interview with her.
I'd like to start off by saying that I find no use for men. By this I mean I find no use for the stereotypical bro/vague jerk that most men are. The only men I like are men who act like women and certain flavors of gentlemen. Otherwise, they just a waste. One of the problems I have with this article is its broad category of men. Even my categories are too broad for generalization, so this one is too.
At one point in the article, there's discussion of how men are nowhere near as successful as women, but there still people's boyfriends. And I find this troublesome because I don't want a deadbeat, and frankly, I don't think that should be heterosexual women's one option: someone useless. I'd rather be alone. I'd rather be with someone with goals, even if those goals exist outside of a capitalist framework of valuable work.
I also dislike the assumption that men are somehow going to have less cultural or political power just because they're losing other power. I suspect that male-centrism will probably hold on pretty tight, and there will unfortunately be plenty of women who, with false conscienceness, will let them. And you know, just because women are making money doesn't mean they are controlling it. Women's labor has been more prevalent for a much longer time than Rosin is talking about, but it hasn't been paid. Also, thinking of it within a framework of capitalism is misleading anyway, since everyone within a capitalist system is inherently oppressed.

Notes of the Death Penalty

So I spent the morning reading up on the death penalty. I read this story about a young man who may have confessed to a crime he might not have committed. I couldn't believe some of the details of this story: a man killed his possibly cheating wife, stuffed her in a car and then drove around to show people. I can't believe people say there is gender equality when things like this happen.
And then I read up on what John Paul Stevens, the former Supreme Court justice, thinks about the death penalty in reference to a particular book on the subject. There were lots of good facts in here too. Michigan (!) apparently made the revolutionary decision to outlaw the death penalty for everything except treason in 1846. And then after that, they decided that the state had to wait fifteen years before killing someone. And that 130 people have been set free (mostly from DNA evidence) since 1973.

Porn Crazy

Reading this article called, and I kid you not, Is Pornography Driving Men Crazy?
What strikes me as bogus is that none of the studies cited compare men who watch porn versus men who don't. I can think of a lot of young men in my own circle of friends who would probably die of sheer embarrassment before watching something like that.
One of the things that I wonder if it is true is the claim that men are having more trouble with impotence and premature ejaculation because of porn. All those idealized images of men in porn would probably make any man feel less than, and I'm wondering if it's similar to the way models in fashion magazines encourage women to starve themselves in order to have the perfect body.
I also think it is really disturbing that hardcore porn is used to desensitize doctors and soldiers. There's something really awful about that, about the statement it makes on the kinds of people we're training.
Part of me really wants to poll my guy friends about this subject, though I think with friends like Jimmy and Nate, I'm not going to get very far.

Sexual Identity and the Online World

Reading this article today on how two straight men have apparently been reverse outed after it turns out that they were not the lesbians they claimed to be online.  I find so much of this article to be offensive.
First of all, I hate the comments from various people that no one would listen to a white man.  It's such a whiny thing to say.  White men always have space in the world to talk to the point where they dominate the conversation.  Marginalized people wanting a space to talk to one another and about the issues important to them is a perfectly legitimate desire. 
The article also ignores whether or not anyone would need to hear the views of these two men.  Is there some reason I should want to hear MacMaster observations of Syria?  Has he been to Syria?  Is he an expert on the Middle East?  (It mentions he was in graduate school, which could indicate he has some intellectual background to talk about things, but otherwise, who knows.) 
What really frustrates me about this whole thing is that when actual lesbians, especially those from a nonWestern country do want to talk about these issues on the Internet, people will dismiss them as potentially frauds. 

Hair Porn

I hate to admit this, but most of the boys* I'm attracted to have nice hair.  I should qualify this by saying it's nice hair on their individual faces and it goes with their personality and most importantly, it gets washed regularly, but seriously, I love a boy with a good head of hair. 
Among other things, I love the brief moment where someone's hairs all messed up.  It makes me fantasize about the very good morning I would have with them.  So I love this little bit of Matt Smith.  Yum. 
*If you're reading this Dan, I don't care what you say about the difference between boys and men.  I will call you lot men when you start acting like it.  Among other things, this means not having hissy fits over the difference between boys and men. 

Night at Grandma's

It looks like I am going to spend tonight at my Grandma's.  It's not that big of a deal, but after all that has happened today, my Grandma threw up right as my Mom (who is also with me here tonight) got her into bed.  She was literally sitting on the side of the bed. 
I don't really want to spend the night here, since the power has gone back on now at home, but there's not a lot of choice in the matter.  I'm just grateful I don't have to go to church tomorrow. 

I watched a little of SNL tonight, which featured Taylor Lautner.  Like I've said before, I don't like Twilight, but I'm falling further in love with Taylor Lautner.  He's so sweet, and I get the feeling that he is at his happiest when performing, as all great actors are.  I love that he can't give an interview for beans. 

Oh God.  Am I emotionally cheating on my current celebrity boyfriend, Vincent?
I'm so sad Lautner is going to GVSU, a school not so far from my school.  In my imaginary world, I totally charm Lautner, not by throwing myself at him or by dolling myself up, but through my wit, like Elizabeth Bennet.  This is, I know, crazy talk. 
I texted my sister, since my Mom told me she likes Lautner.  This surprised me, because, well, she hates reading, so there's no way in hell she's read the books.  And she never mentioned the movies.  It's good to know that we have the same taste in men in at least one way.  Usually we totally disagree. 
Then I texted Nate, since he thinks Lautner is a moron.  He complains that he sounds like an idiot in interviews.  I disagree, obviously.  I just think he's nervous when he gives interviews, afraid he's going to say something stupid.  As someone who has given interviews before, I can tell you it's nerve wracking, especially when the interviewer comes at you with something you didn't expect.  And I've said some super stupid things during interviews.  It's like a curse I have. 
Nate and I talked a little, giggling over stuff.  I love him so much.  He's a nice boy.  
My Mom is falling in and out of sleep as I move around in the apartment doing things.  I'm trying to read through that romance novel that I mentioned. 
So far, it's been okay.  There's been some explaining of Amish culture, which I like.  The character keeps talking about how obedient she is, and that drives me nuts.  I hate hearing about women who are obedient.  Seriously, it's the most famous archetype for women, right behind women who are sluts and leave the narrator/stand-in for author all confused as to what women want. 
The other thing this book discusses is the tourist trade associated with the Amish.  Josie is into the Amish (she likes to take pictures of them, which I quietly disapprove of.)  But I was thinking, maybe if I ever make some money worth talking about, I'll buy her a weekend trip to Pennsylvania to see the Amish.  She'd love it.  And how expensive could it be, really, since the Amish are notoriously old-timey. 
Of course, what I should be doing is watching the end of this season of Doctor Who, but there are other distractions, like my Grandma getting up in the middle of the night. She just threw up again.  Christine has been talking about the season finale all day, making vague illusions to what happened.  I want to yell at her to stop, because, seriously, it's annoying me. 
This is the first time I've ever spent the night at her new place.  It's going to be kind of strange to see how it compares to when I was a kid and spent the night at her place. 

Dei Gratia

Bah. I keep hoping for interesting stories, but these days, my life is mostly confined to my place, writing papers.
The writing of these papers goes well. It's slow going, but there is stuff to show for it at the end of the day. Not much, usually, but something.
Among other things, I am writing two papers, one on Matilda of Tuscany and the other on Teresa of Avila. Today, I managed to finish most of my outline on Matilda and write four pages on Teresa. So not bad. Not awesome, but I read through six different sources for the outline on Matilda, so even though it doesn't look like much on paper, I went through a lot of information.
I guess what I wish I was writing on was Matilda's awesome military might or her second husband, instead of her relationship with Pope Gregory VII. Matilda was one of the most important military leaders in European history, but she is often overlooked because she's female and no one thinks much about the Investiture Contest as a war. (Ask Henry IV what he thinks about that.)
I love women warrior images. I doubt anyone who knows me, and how proud I am of my Viking and Hun heritage, will be surprised to hear this. I love Buffy Summers, Joan of Arc, Xena, Athena, Starbuck, Fa Mulan, Sailor Moon, Boudica, Anita Blake, Nzingha, the Amazons, Artemis, Cordelia, Judith, hell, I even love the Halliwell sisters (especially Prue.) I love watching a woman kick a man's ass, especially a bastard who really deserves it. I wish there were more stories about women warriors, because I feel like those are the heroes I need in my life but don't ever get enough of. Instead I get the "save me, handsome man!" women, who annoy me. I want a woman to save the day and herself. I want women who are brave.

For example, this is the video of Chester French's "She Loves Everybody." I stumbled upon this band back in the summer of 2007 (check out their song "I'm Not Over You" if you like this.) I love this music video, not just because I love the song and the band and the boys are cute. No, I love that she beats these boys to a pulp. I love how she gently smooths their hair back, how they flinch, and then BAM! Bloody goodness.
In addition to fantasizing about women warriors, I also want to write about Matilda of Tuscany's second husband, Welf V, who she married when he was 17 and she was 46. I want to write a historical romance about it. Even though, the terrible side note of all of this is that after five years of marriage they separated.
So basically, when I'm suppose to be working on papers, these are the random thoughts I end up having. Which is not the end of the world, but it's not really helping me get these papers done.

T-bags

While out on one of my walks, I saw a young man in skin-tight jeans that were hanging way down his hips. Suffice to say, I was pretty surprised to see something like this. He was combining two dumb things that people thing are cool: tight pants and baggy jeans.
I don't want to be a traitor to my generation or anything, but I don't get how guys these days dress. I mean, come on. It just looks like they fell out of bed, changed into tight jeans, but didn't bother with their shirt, then put on some large glasses and then took their greasy hair and covered it up with a backwards cap. And we're expected to swoon? I don't think so.
What should we name this new abomination? T-bags? (Tight+baggy=?) If we chose this, of course, then we could call them T-baggers, which might easily be confused with tea baggers of a more political quality. But I think it's clear the same amount of doucheness is part of both groups, who think they know what's best for people.

*I'd just like to say that I'm writing this in jest. I don't usually mind hipsters; I just find them funny, and sometimes, adorable. (Depending on who they are, of course. If you're a douche, it doesn't matter what you wear; you're still damned to irritate everyone.) And yeah, I was totally inspired. Amy Heckling, make a movie about now.