I've donated a handful of times over the years, both blood and plasma. I don't do it as much lately because there is no close location, which kinda sucks. Hopefully once I am back in a more populated area I will be able to get back into it.

I loved the movie, though I do agree that it was a bit heavy on the CGI. They got Diana's character right, they didn't overly sexualize her, and they didn't have the romance with Steve Trevor dominate her story.

Haven't seen sources on the wage gap thing... and it sure as heck still exists at my work.

But yeah... actual feminists are the ones out there fighting against gender stereotypes and wanting equality for all. We do fight against all those things that you think we should fight against... I'm not sure where you have been for the last century. But we also fight to maintain access to health care, to promote racial equality (because women of color have a whole separate battle to fight on top of being female), to promote LGBTQ equality, to fight against the idea that a man is less of a man if he shows emotion, or chooses to be a stay-at-home dad, or wants paternity leave. We fight for justice for victims of sexual abuse, regardless of gender... because rape doesn't just happen to women. And we fight to ensure that our voices are not silenced... we won the right to vote less than 100 years ago, and we have to make sure to keep fighting to prevent it from being taken away.

And yes, there are some extreme misandrists out there that go too far and think all men are bad and whatever. They are a minority, and many other feminists call them out on their behavior when encountered.

And because I need do say this... you are male, and clearly uneducated when it comes to feminists or what women actually have to deal with... so what right do you have to try to dictate what we should and should not do? We don't really have "the ability to act however we please"... we still don't get equal respect. We still don't have the same social rights. You don't know what we deal with, so do not presume. Talk and actually listen to the women around you about what they have to put up with... how they are treated by men and society... how they view feminism. It helps build understanding and mutual respect... and that is what is at the core of actual feminism.

Since my name was mentioned...

Hi. Welcome to the board. Nice to have other history lovers around.

Eniitan : Yeah, I didn't even know that was a thing you could be allergic to until I got my results back from the allergist. But it explains why I cannot breath if someone is within 100 feet of me with a lit cigarette.

Dust, dust mites, various pollens, corn pollen, cat dander, cockroaches, one kind of mold that I can't remember, and formaldehyde (which shows itself primarily in my reaction to cigarette smoke, because guess what they put in them!)

I have been told it is either of the following:

1) I am far too forgiving. People have been horrible to me, used me, walked all over me, done things others have wanted to kill them for... and I have forgiven them. Even when I really shouldn't. I've stayed in abusive relationships and toxic friendships far longer than I should, even to the detriment of my mental and emotional well-being, because I kept finding ways to forgive.

2) I am incredibly judgemental of myself. Probably relating to internalizing of the above mentioned forgiving problem... I tended to turn a lot of it inward and blame myself for the problems happening. As a result... well... you know that little negative voice in the back of your mind that criticizes you? Yeah... mine is downright vicious. Like... trolls on the darkest section of Reddit vicious.

geeogree : Heh, yeah, I like to pop in now and again to remind people I still exist.

I forgot that was a thing, to be honest.

Heh thank you. Had to work, but overall had a rather good one this year.


But yeah, I am ancient in board terms... gods... I think it was 2003 when I first registered.... then there was a board wipe and I had to reregister.

Ironically, I registered that second time on this very day... so yeah, 12 years, man. Wow!

If they are no longer keeping your feet warm, then no. But, to be honest, I would never wear Uggs in the first place. I prefer my winter boots to be waterproof.

For the record, anyone that uses the C-word to insult someone is despicable. It's up there with the N-word on the list of words that only exist to dehumanize others.


That said, screw her. You know your own self worth. The Lesbian part shouldn't be viewed as an insult. If you are lesbian, so what? If you're not, so what? It's like saying you have green eyes or black hair... it's a description. The second word, however... well... I kinda already stated my thoughts on that. And that it was a female that used it is even more insulting and I can see why it would bother you. She cannot get past her own insecurities with her self-image so she sought to tear you down by objectifying you. This tells me that she isn't worth talking to or dealing with until she can get over her own issues.

You are who you are. What matters is that you are comfortable in your own skin. Focus on that, on improving yourself however you see fit in order to be happy with who you are. When you hit that point, what that girl said to you in middle school won't even matter anymore.

I think Janus said it nicely... bullying is seeking to diminish a person's self worth either through words or actions.

When I was a kid, I was bullied constantly for being fat. Some of it was physical, but a lot of it was emotional. Name calling, insults, actively isolating me. Not one or two times, but constant and unrelenting. To be popular at my grade school, you had to make me cry. So they put gum in my hair, threw my backpack and lunchbox over the fence into the park, pulled chairs out from under me, called me names  mocking my weight, name, skin color, heritage, family members, etc etc. Verbal actually became more common because it was easier to hide. I could prove they put gum in my hair, I couldn't prove that they called me a "f***ing fat white girl who should just die."

When I got older it was for being a witch. Again, mostly verbal. The particular kid that did it would call me "cat killer" even though anyone that knows anything about Wicca and Paganism would know that hurting any animal is against all we stand for.

Bullies like to provoke reactions. They love it when you get angry. I gave them that in spades. I would run after them, but couldn't catch them. I would tell the adults and be ignored or told to "just ignore it". The kid that harassed me for being a witch was the only one that was forced to stop because after he provoked me enough to get us sent to the office, I mentioned the magic words "religious discrimination" and the Vice Principle shut him down to avoid a lawsuit.

This was all before the common usage of the internet. I can only imagine how bad it is now with cyberbullying.

One of the conditions for the exemption from taxes is that churches are supposed to stay out of politics.

Many of them ignore that rule. For that reason alone, they should lose the exempt status. You want to break the rules, no more game for you.

What has happened in Paris is reprehensible and tragic. Murder over religion is perhaps the most idiotic thing I can imagine, but it keeps happening. The solidarity in it's wake, however, is something that I find inspiring.

What I find particularly sad is that you have the conservative media outlets here in the US spouting their Islamaphobic hatred immediately and saying things like "where are the moderate Muslims denouncing it?" They were doing so from the moment the news broke. Countless social media posts and public statements saying "This is not Islam, these attacks are horrible"... yet they chose to ignore them in order to stir up hatred. They chose to ignore that one of the officers that died was Muslim.

Hatred begets more hatred. I don't care if it helps your ratings. It makes you just as bad as the radicals in ISIS that are training these people.

To be honest, if you are interested in learning about what Islam says on various things, guys, why don't you actually pick up a copy of the Qur'an and read it? Go to the source! I have a copy around here somewhere that I have been meaning to read myself. Personally, I think the world would be a better place if we were more secular and didn't let religion cause such conflicts; but one of the steps to getting there, I think is to actually understand the faiths of others instead of going on speculation, hearsay, and second/third/fourth hand knowledge.

People are making jokes? And not even good ones? Wow... that is just... sad.

Ok... I am probably going to get yelled at or banned for this.

If you are freaking about about Ebola and have not had direct contact with an infected person, you are an idiot and need to calm the heck down.

Do not listen to the media hype. Just don't.

There have been THREE cases diagnosed in the US. Five people total have been on US soil with ebola (the two flown in from Africa for treatment). One has died, and the two other cases diagnosed here are nurses that treated him who apparently did not follow proper protocol. The NIH and CDC know what to expect, are not panicking, and are managing the situation.

To put this in perspective... there have been 3 cases of ebola in America since this crisis began a few month ago. There are 5,000 to 10,000 cases per WEEK in Africa.

The nature of the 24 hour news cycle makes this even worse. The claims that the CDC said the disease is airborne is insane. The official said that it was a new strain that they were studying and that they could not rule out airborne transmission. "Could not rule out" and "is" are two very VERY different things in the medical profession. However, the media nutjobs grabbed that snippet, twisted it, and ran. Yes, I am looking at you, Fox News.

You know what America could really use right now? Our Surgeon General. You know, that office that is supposed to be in charge of all this? The Nation's Doctor? But we don't have one because Congress won't stop playing their bs political games and approve the President's appointment to the position.

This is a medical epidemic in Africa that has world-wide implications. We, as a nation, cannot afford to be divided over political parties on this. You dislike the President, that is fine... it has nothing to do with this crisis and if you try to make it into that, you are a horrible person and should just stay the hell out of it because you have nothing of value to add to the discourse! Yes, I am sick and tired of the partisan crap in this country. Can you tell?

Isolation isn't going to work. Unless you are proposing turning all those countries into walled-off death camps with fences and guards, you are not going to keep people from leaving. Such tactics will also, inevitably, lead to increase racial problems because idiots that are afraid of ebola (and yes, they are idiots) are going to freak out at every black person on a plane, in a doctor's office, or with a cough. Think I am wrong? Remember  the uptick in violence and discrimination against anyone that even looked Arab after the 9/11 attacks? I do.

I am watching the Congressional hearing with the CDC right now. The questions that some of these people are asking are beyond idiotic and repetitive. It literally hurts my brain to watch this.


UPDATE: The CDC has stated, factually, that they have ruled out airborne transmission as a possibility. See, research.

Also, this... at least one person on Fox News actually cares about facts. Watch this, it is really all you need to know.

http://www.upworthy.com/keep-calm-and-listen-to-this-guy-debunk-the-ebola-scare-in-3-minutes?c=ufb1

If research can be presented to me that shows it actually has a benefit, then yeah, sure. It's not like they just hand you a spoon right there in the delivery room... they typically take it, dry it out, powder it and put it in capsules now. I'm fine taking one of those if it does all the things that it says it does.

I was neutral on this whole topic until one of my friends went on a massive anti-circumcision bent (she calls herself an "intactivist")... her Facebook rants have made me hate the entire movement. I question her sources, the science behind them, and her word choices.

That said, yes it is by definition a form of mutilation. It is also a surgical procedure, and as such you should consult with an actual doctor before making the decision. I don't buy into the scare notion of doctors forcing you to get it done for more money. No doctor I know would do that, and if they would, I would be switching doctors to one that actually cared about the well-being of my family.

I am still ambivalent on the choice of the male involved, since most circumcisions are done right after birth since it is easier (and for the Judeo-Christians, it is when their faith dictates that it be done). Would it be better to do it later so he has a say in it? Maybe. But that is going to lead to other problems besides a slower healing time and a higher chance of infection (he's not going to want mom and dad making sure that area is clean after the surgery once he is out of diapers). Most guys I have met that are circumcised are totally fine with it and even prefer it, but wouldn't have done it later in life because they would then have to deal with the recovery. As a baby, you don't really remember it and you were being completely taken care of anyway.

It is definitely a topic that requires more discourse, that is for sure. But it is one that really does need respect on all sides, since it is not productive to have everyone yelling at each other.

The phrase "Under God" was added in 1954. Do you know why?

Well, what else was going on in the world in 1954? Oh... right... the Cold War between America and the Soviet Union. So... communism views organized religion as an "opiate of the masses"... a drug to keep them compliant. Therefore, the Soviet Union was largely atheist (the people mostly were not, but they had to keep it hidden because practicing religion was illegal). The phrase Under God was added because Eisenhower and company wanted to further emphasis the difference between us and the "godless Soviets." It was not really for unity... it was an "us versus them" and "we have a deity on our side" mentality. Therefore, the phrase really is more divisive than unifying in its meaning. Which, as others have so rightly pointed out, is grossly out of place in a pledge of unity and fealty to our country.

Now, being a non Judeo-Christian, I am and always have been very uncomfortable with that part of the pledge. I don't say it. I won't lead the pledge either because I know that I will have to omit that part and it will cause me trouble. This made student teaching very interesting for me, and whenever I manage to get a teaching job, will make me glad that they do the pledge over the PA system.