Agency - Blog Posts
something I find kinda interesting about radfems is that because they believe that womanhood is characterized by universal experiences of trauma and oppression, and because they believe that only they and people who agree with them correctly understand the nature of this oppression, they end up sounding like they believe that the only reason women would like things that they think are bad is if they're somehow being tricked into liking it
does a woman like wearing makeup or revealing clothes? patriarchal brainwashing. a cis woman who identifies as a lesbian dating a trans woman with a penis? she's doing it out of guilt or pity, or she was pressured into it. afab people coming out as non-binary or trans men? that's just internalized misogyny making them want to escape womanhood. hijabi women keeping their heads covered and dressing modestly? obviously they've been pressured into it by their oppressive islamic upbringing. women who are into kink, particularly if they're submissive? abuse victims who don't realize their male partners are taking advantage of them
women aren't allowed to like things under radical feminism. every aspect of a woman's life is either a political statement or a decision made under duress. women have free will and agency unless they disagree with me, in which case they're helpless victims who can't recognize how oppressed they truly are.
don't get me wrong, I think it's worth examining why you enjoy doing the things you're doing. the modern state of corporatized pop-feminism has found a way to frame nearly every act, regardless of how harmful to one's self or others, as feminist, and that's a trap that you certainly don't want to fall into. but the vision of womanhood that radfems paint is so bleak and joyless that it can never adequately act as an answer to that problem
Sean bienvenidos japonistaarqueológicos, a una nueva actualidad del país del sol naciente. En este caso os comentaré que se han actualizado los datos del número de islas del archipiélago Japonés, dicho esto pónganse cómodos que empezamos. - La información viene de la agencia Geoespacial de Japón, el número de islas son de 14125 en todo el país, más del doble del número anunciado hasta ahora, en 1987 el cálculo era de 6852 islas. - El número de islas en cada prefectura Nagasaki 1479 Hokkaido 1473 Kagoshima 1256 Iwate 861 Okinawa 691. - ¿Qué opinan al respecto? Espero que tengan una buena semana y nos vemos en próximas publicaciones de Japón - 日出づる国から新しいニュースへようこそ。今回は、日本列島の島の数が更新されたことをお伝えします。 - 国土地理院からの情報ですが、日本全国の島の数は14125で、今まで発表されていた数（1987年は6852島）の2倍以上になっています。 - 各都道府県の島嶼数 長崎県 1479 北海道 1473 鹿児島県 1256 岩手県 861 沖縄県 691 - いかがでしょうか？今週も良い一週間をお過ごしください。また、今後の日本からの投稿でお会いしましょう。 - Welcome to a new update from the land of the rising sun. In this case I will tell you that we have updated the data on the number of islands in the Japanese archipelago, so make yourselves comfortable and let's get started. - The information comes from the Geospatial agency of Japan, the number of islands is 14125 in the whole country, more than double the number announced until now, in 1987 the estimate was 6852 islands. - The number of islands in each prefecture Nagasaki 1479 Hokkaido 1473 Kagoshima 1256 Iwate 861 Okinawa 691. - What do you think about it? I hope you have a good week and see you in future posts from Japan.
It’s truly ridiculous that doctors are allowed to turn away patients because they choose to have agency over their bodies and willingly choose treatments that may affect their fertility. Sign and share to support medical justice!
Land a Career with the US Government
I shared all my advice on how to land a career US Government! Semesters that I am not working at NASA Johnson Space Center I study at the University of Minnesota Duluth and work in their Career and Internship Services. I am training into a Peer Educator position soon to help students edit resumes, write blog posts and give general career advice. In their Peer Educator Blog "Peer Into Your Career" I shared my US Government career tips. If someone wants to work for NASA or any other agency this three part blog series is where I would direct them!
Part 1: Using the US government's USAJobs.gov as a job search engine.
Part 2: Perfecting your resume on USAJob.gov's resume builder.
Part 3: A Pathways Internship, an awesome US Government career experience for college students.
Throughout my time as a Peer Educator I will write monthly posts for the "Peer Into Your Career" blog.
WAYS TO GET INVOLVED
"Peer Into Your Career" blog by U of MN Duluth Peer Educators has many great posts help you in every aspect of your career! From when you first start searching to later in your career.
Visit your university/ college's Career Center! These wise folks are more than happy to help you out and are full of quality wisdom.
For non USAJobs.gov resume builder tips check out U of MN Duluth's Career Handbook for resume tips and more!
Side note: I did not successfully land the T-38 Jet simulator so ask me about career landing advice not plane landing advice. I did a few loops though. Yes that is Astronaut Gregory C Johnson in the co-pilot seat!
So we’ve been watching this series called How We Won The War and they’re currently doing a section about female ATA pilots during WW2 and holy shit look how badass they are They were the first women allowed into, let alone fly, an RAF aircraft. Their male peers were of they opinion that they should “go back to the kitchen” so only let them fly shitty archaic planes with open cockpits that nearly caused them to freeze to death one winter. They tried to make them wear skirts and stockings during winter but they were like “haha no” and wore proper flight gear instead. They flew in terrible weather with poor visibility, no radio and no electronic navigational equipment. Though not permitted to fly into combat zones they were still frequently under fire. Over time their contribution to the air force was recognised and the ATA was the first government organisation to give equal pay for equal work regardless of gender.
http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1107767469/get-anna-may-wong-on-public-tv/widget/video.html
From Colorlines:
by Channing Kennedy Thursday, November 10 2011
If you’re reading this, you’re probably interested in the history of racebending and POC representation in cinema — and that means you need to get familiar with Anna May Wong, the black-and-white-era film star who made a career out of smashing barriers in Hollywood. A new documentary by filmmaker Yunah Hong, Anna May Wong: In Her Own Words, can bring her story to PBS, but not without your help.
Wong’s Hollywood career is fascinating and instructive. Despite being a California-born native English speaker who didn’t visit China until adulthood, Wong was only given roles that reinforced stereotypes about hypersexualized, deceitful Asian women. Time’s film critic Richard Corliss identifies three rules that hemmed in Wong’s career, even at the peak of her success: she couldn’t kiss (unless she was being savaged by an Asian man), she had to die, and off-screen, she always got paid a fraction of what her co-stars earned. And for her trouble, she was cast by Chinese newspapers as a traitor and an embarrasment.
So why, as someone subject to her own misrepresentations of Asian women, did Wong take these roles? One answer is illustrated in a role she didn’t get, a cowering Chinese peasant in 1937’s The Good Earth — played in yellowface by German actress Luise Rainer. Landing the roles was Wong’s only chance to humanize the stereotypes.
Want to know how Anna May Wong felt about her career? Yunah Hong’s new documentary, made over the last eight years, tells Wong’s story through new interviews and archival footage. The film is completed, but in order for PBS to air it, Hong has to raise $12,000 in the next 19 days to pay for the archival footage’s licensing fees.
As Hong says on her Kickstarter page:
Many older Asian Americans look down on Anna for playing stock Asian characters. But a younger generation sees her as a pioneering artist who beat the odds in a tough industry. Besides her strength as a woman, I admire her for pushing herself as an actress. When her film roles were limited, she traveled around Europe performing in cabarets, polishing her talents as a singer, dancer and monologuist. When MGM didn’t cast her in The Good Earth, a film set in China, she went to China anyway and filmed her trip. Long before anyone was called a “community activist,” she devoted herself to the Chinese American community’s war effort during World War II. She was way ahead of her time. Her courage to be herself against all odds is truly inspiring, the kind of story I want my ten-year-old daughter to know.
I am not a woman of feminine frivolity or fear, but I direct these letters to you for the advantage of my whole kingdom; when you receive them accept me and the whole kingdom of Lombardy. I shall give you so many cities, castles, renowned palaces, and infinite gold and silver; over all these you will have an illustrious name if you make yourself dear to me. Do not consider me bold that I approach you first. It is permitted as much to the virile as to the feminine sex to desire a legitimate spouse. Nor does it matter if a man or a woman make the first move in love as long it involves an indissoluble marriage. Which can not be except by the consent of both. Fare well.
~ Matilda of Canossa's marriage proposal for purely political reasons to Guelph V of Bavaria, her second husband.
1089 A.D.
This Woman Does a Pretty Convincing Batman-Style Beatdown When it comes to bringing action found in popular comics, anime and video games to life, the Thousand Pounds Action Company sets a pretty high standard. They’ve done videos based off of DC Comics, Naruto Shippuden and Street Fighter and now they’re adding the Dark Knight’s latest video game to their portfolio. The young lady in the clip is Mickey Facchinello and she really makes me want to see a Batgirl kicking ass in the Batman video game universe. Folks familiar with Arkham City’s combat moveset will see a bunch of familiar moves and camera tricks. Sure, there are no costumes but, with fight choreography this good, who needs ‘em?
Holy badass, Batman! Batwoman in Arkham City anyone?
If that sounds like a terrible recipe for abuse of power, that’s because it is.
If enacted, a new law would make it so a simple allegation of copyright infringement—with no review process—could lead to the shutdown of sites from YouTube to Wikipedia to MoveOn.org. Any...
Laleh Seddigh (born 1977), is an Iranian female race car driver. Racing both on circuits and in rallies, she is recognized as the best female racer in the country. Seddigh had to get special permission from a local ayatollah in order to compete against men. A PhD student from Tehran, she has been nicknamed "a little Schumacher" after the German Formula One champion.
"Resistance from men does not bother me. Once I get on the track I like to use my technical skills, take control and dominate the other drivers."
People who need people are threatened by people who don’t. The idea of seeking contentment alone is heretical, for society steadfastly decrees that our completeness lies in others.
Lionel Fisher (via middlenameconfused)
The funeral monument of Countess Matilda di Canossa, Pope Gregory VII's great champion against the Emperor Henry VI. The monument was conceived by Bernini who began it in 1633. The statue of Matilda is by Andrea Bolgi (1605-1656). The central bas-relief which shows Henry IV kneeling before Gregory VII on January 28th, 1077 after waiting or three days and three nights to be received, is the work of Stefano Speranza. The two cherubs supporting the inscription are by Andrea Bolgi (on the right) and Luigi Bernini, the brother of Gian Lorenzo (on the left).
For more than 600 years, following King Odoacer's overthrow of the last Western Roman Emperor in 476 when he officially became the King of Italy - no army based in Italy had ever defeated the German invaders.
That is until Matilde Di Canossa accomplished what seemed like an impossible undertaking. Among her many great accomplishments, her defeat of the Holy Roman Emperor - Henry IV - was a major turning point for the Catholic Church, for Western Europe and for Italy. It earned her the honorific "Madonna of War" or as she is also known, "Gran Contessa" and "Gran Duchessa" - The Grand Countess and the Grand Duchess. For indeed, she held legal claim over both titles and more.
awesomestuffwomendid:
Crushed the armies of the Holy Roman Empire who tried to attack the Vatican from 1080 to 1095 (Matilda of Tuscany)
nothing-terribly-new:
Matilda of Canossa gets her epithet from the name of her family fortress. It’s a rare badass indeed who can claim that they’re named after a castle, but if anybody in Medieval Europe is worthy of that distinction, it’s probably Matilda. For 60 years, this hardcore warrior woman kicked asses in Northern Italy, providing the main military defense force for none other than the Roman Popes, single-handedly taking on any challenges to the Papacy. She’s now one of the few women from the Middle Ages known for her prowess in combat, and her role as the Pope’s personal badass isn’t the sort of honor that got handed out to any douchebag with a castle. She was tough, nobody fucked with her, and – more importantly – as long as she was around nobody fucked with the Pope without thinking twice about it first.
Whole history.
harvestheart:
Vestal Virgins
The priestesses of the goddess Vesta were known as the Vestal Virgins. They were responsible for maintaining the sacred fire within the Temple of Vesta on the Forum Romanum. Other duties included performing rituals in regards to the Goddess Vesta, and baking the sacred salt cake to be used at numerous ceremonies in the year. They were the only female priests within the roman religious system. The head of the college of Vesta was called the Virgo Vestalis Maxima, and she was under the direct authority of the Pontifex Maximus.
The college of Vesta had 18 members, though 6 were considered actual Vestal Virgins at any given time. They were selected from distinguished patrician families at an age from three to ten, and such appointments were considered a top honor for any family to receive. They each served thirty years, the first ten years as novices, then ten years as actual vestal virgins, and finally ten years as supervisors responsible for training the novices. After the thirty years of duty they were released from their duties and could then maintain a private life, including the right to marry. For men, arranging a marriage with a former vestal virgin was highly prestigious, regardless of age or the ability to have children.
The vestals vowed to live in chastity for the thirty years their tenure lasted. In return they were allowed many privileges not given to ordinary Roman women. As one example, the vestals were not subject to the pater potestas of their fathers. Essentially they were allowed to handle their own properties and engage in legal contracts, they were allowed to travel around the city in a carriage and they had special seats in the front row at the various games, where, in contrast women were normally relegated to the back seats. They were considered inviolable and sacred and their blood could not be spilt without fear of terrible repercussion from the gods. So sacred and divine-like were these priestesses, that if a person sentenced to death met a vestal virgin on his way to the execution, he would be automatically pardoned. Of course, special care would be taken to prevent or to make sure this would happen, depending on the circumstances.
While enjoying many benefits, including a rather luxurious life in the House of Vestal Virgins, punishment for breaking the rules were severe. The punishment for breaking the vow of chastity was death by burial alive as this was the adopted to kill a vestal without shedding her blood. Such executions would take place in the “Evil Fields”, or Campus Sceleratus, just outside the Servian Wall. Their lover would be flogged to death on the Comitium. While these executions took place several times, it was obviously a rare event that carried all sorts of negative omens with it.
While the Pontifex Maximus continues to the present day as an office of the higher order in the Catholic Church, the order of the vestals was disbanded in 394 AD, when non-Christian cults were banned by Theodosius. The Church, wisely trying to keep the general population with a sense of familiarity, readily adopted the use of convents and position of nuns that held many of the same rules and customs as the Vestals.
http://www.unrv.com/culture/vestal-virgins.php
rararasputin:
Eugène Delacroix, Clorinda Rescues Olindo und Sophronia, 1856
It is probably the dirty story of history: that Catherine the Great (1727-1796), the lusty ruler of Russia, was so wild with sexual desire that one day she was screwing a horse when the harness broke and killed her. It's simply not true. Catherine liked officers of the Imperial Horse Guard, not the horses. Yes, Catherine also liked sex - one of her favorite toasts was "God grant us our desires and grant them quickly." This ruler of a vast empire had a dozen documented lovers (really, male mistresses) over her thirty-four years in power. But she had them one after another. This level of sexual consumption would hardly rate a footnote for most male monarchs; in fact, their virility might have been questioned. What was unusual about Catherine was how organized she was in selecting her lovers. She had a lady-in-waiting sample the man's prowess in bed and then she had a British doctor examine him for diseases. The young officer would soon be given 100,000 rubles and a country estate. No doubt what roiled foreign diplomats was that this woman, who was pretty when young, grew stout and gray, and at age sixty-two was still taking the likes of twenty-one-year-old Platon Zuboff to bed. That bred jealousies and rumormongering, and tales of horses. Actually, Catherine was one of the greatest and toughest female monarchs of all time: this German-born princess plotted the death of her dotty husband, Czar Peter III, she expanded the borders of Russia, crushed rebellions, built gorgeous palaces, and was a generous patron of the arts, corresponding personally with Voltaire and Diderot. How did she die? Catherine suffered a stroke on her way to the water closet and died on a straw mat three days later, with eyewitnesses there.
- "Catherine the Great and the Horse" from An Underground Education by Richard Zacks
CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE AGENCY STORMTROOPERS
RESOURCE PIRATES
TERRAN RELATED LIFE SUPPORT AND DEFENSIVE SYSTEMS IMMEDIATELY DEPORT OR KILL OR CAPTURE INTRUDERS OR INVADERS AS A GENERAL RULE AND ARE ENTIRELY AUTOMATED OR AUTOMATIC AND REQUIRE NO ORDERS TO FUNCTION OR EVEN KNOWLEDGE AMONG PERSONS AS TO THE PARTICULAR DETAILS OF THOSE TYPES OF FUNCTIONS. IT WOULD NEVER MAKE SENSE THAT SOMEONE WOULD BE GIVEN ACCESS TO TERRAN RELATED SYSTEMS BASED UPON AN INDIVIDUAL'S ASSENT AND INDIVIDUAL ORDERS MIGHT ADD TO TERRAN RELATED SYSTEMS FUNCTIONS BUT THEY ARE ALL ESSENTIALLY ROOTED IN MASSIVE BRAIN EMULATING COMPUTERS AND SO TYPICALLY ACT AS THOUGH ALL MEMBERS OF A SOCIETY HAD VOTED IN RELATION TO EVERYTHING DONE. PLEASE RESEARCH WIRELESS BRAIN MEMORY BACKUP TECHNOLOGY FOR FURTHER INSIGHT.