C'est ce qu'elle a dit !

Next project

2010-06-04T11:10:00.000-07:00

Create a vegan version of the orange Tootsie Pop.

interesting article (:

2010-06-01T15:49:00.000-07:00

Read it:

Empathy is What Really Sets Vegetarians Apart (at least Neurologically Speaking)

One of my Summer goals

2010-05-14T11:52:00.000-07:00

-Save up for a harp (I've already gone around my house stealing people's change)

-And learn to play it.

I will eventually learn to play these songs :)

BUY SOME ANTIQUES!!

2010-05-14T10:15:00.000-07:00

Religion in Science Class?

2010-05-13T20:56:00.000-07:00

Wrote this for a college class. The last 2 paragraphs kinda bite, but I was so fed up with writing that I figured it was good enough.

Since the early 1900’s the debate has persisted on whether or not to teach creationism in public school science classes. Though the scientific theory of evolution remains a predominant part of the curriculum, it has been reported that, “creationism continues to be part of approximately one-fourth of high-school biology classes” (Moore, Cotner 4.) These findings have been quite unsettling to numerous scientific organizations and have defied state science-education guidelines (Moore, Cotner 4.) Despite logical and legal opposition, the range of arguments for creationism have dubiously clung from first amendment rights to (falsely) redefining science in order to include support for religious belief. From the studies I have conducted, not a single argument for teaching creationism in school has produced any logical or legal vindication. In view of the fact that creationism is not a scientific theory, and that its primarily blatant interference with the establishment clause displays the absence of legal justification, the arguments for creationism crumble under these simple refutations. In light of these facts, I have concluded that creationism has no place in our public school science classes.

The first and most obvious of reasons to omit Creation “theory” from science class is that creationism, by definition, is not a scientific theory but a religious belief. Before we discus creationism’s position in science lets first understand the definition of religion and science. In the New Oxford American Dictionary, religion is defined as, “The belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, esp. a personal God or gods.” In contrast, by the same dictionary, science is defined as, “The intellectual and practical activity encompassing the systematic study of the structure and behavior of the physical and natural world through observation and experiment.” Now, in order for a theory to be recognized as science it must be able to adhere to a set of five guidelines. These guide lines, compiled by the Darwinian philosopher Michael Ruse, state that, “for a theory to achieve scientific status it must be: Guided by natural law, explanatory by natural law, testable against the empirical world, tentative and falsifiable”(DeWolf 4.) By virtue of these criteria, it is incontestable that creationism does not qualify as a science. For it is the Judeo-Christian creation-story that is pushed on our schools the most, I will analyze the Bible passage, Genesis 1, to validate this conclusion. According to Genesis 1, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth,” further providing us only with vague explanations of how he did this, such as, “And God said, ‘Let there be….’” With no observed or even tangible evidence as to how a God could create the world, let alone exist, proves that the very principle of such a supernatural-conjuring could never be testable against the empirical world. Also, because creationism is accepted as a belief, it cannot be falsifiable. Since a belief is the unwavering embrace of an ideology with its only elucidation needing to be faith, a believer would not require verifiable evidence for them to feel that their ideology is fact. Knowing this, we can gather that because the belief can never be accepted as wrong by the believer, creationism is neither tentative or falsifiable. Through the inability to comply with the five scientific criteria, it can be concluded that, “creationism might be true, but it could never qualify as science” (DeWolf 5.)

The other reason in which creationism does not belong in the public school science curriculum is that it lacks legal back-up. Throughout the twentieth century, this issue has continued to push for the demarcation of laws in court. Creationists claim that banning creationism from school is an infringement on the first amendment right to the free exercise of religion. This in fact not true, for if you read the first amendment, it clearly states in the Establishment Clause that, “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion.” For instance, in the 1990 court case, Webster v. Lenox School District, Webster, a biology teacher, was prohibited from teaching creationism in class. In retaliation, Webster brought the claim that his freedom of speech was being violated to the district court, but the results did not come in his favor and the decision was further upheld by the Circuit Court of Appeals. The court claimed that including creationism would be a form of religious advocacy and thus unconstitutional (National Center for Science Education 2.) Again and again similar cases have popped up, and fortunately in most, the law had continues to be upheld.

It is often the defense of creationists that the law is committing a form of persecution on their beliefs. But how can that be? Science and the law have not at all claimed that the theory of creation is false, or have hindered their right to practice their beliefs. These factors have only protected the rights and restrictions presented to us as citizens of this country.

two incredible movies

2010-05-01T19:16:00.001-07:00

Whale Rider

Rabbit Proof Fence

WAIT! Don't throw that away!

2010-04-28T11:31:00.000-07:00

The Bagel Tupperware Holder

Tired of Keeping your bagels in those unsightly, inconvenient plastic bags? Tired of loosing shelf life to insufficient packaging? Then this is the answer to you prayers.

All you need in an empty blank-CD carrying case.

A simple and durable.

Easy to use, easy to clean.

Perfect for soccer games!

Goes great with your kitchen décor, for that sleek, modern look.

Perfect for on top of the fridge.

Abusing Wikipedia

2010-04-25T23:57:00.000-07:00

Abusing the edit option on Wikipedia. It will probably be changed back to the real place eventually, ha, bummer.

But for now....

Earth Day Sex

2010-04-23T02:09:00.001-07:00

ahahaha

Coachella 2010 pictures

2010-04-22T20:57:00.000-07:00

I have some of the pictures up on my flickr, go look :)

I love cartoons!

2010-04-14T11:22:00.001-07:00

2010-04-12T16:15:00.001-07:00

"I'm not carefree, no
I'm free to care
I just never do."

COACHELLA 2010

2010-04-12T13:20:00.000-07:00

This week!!!!!!!!

16th-18th oooh hell yeah!

Kris Kuksi

2010-04-11T23:23:00.000-07:00

THIS GUY'S ART WILL BLOW YOUR BIND!

http://kuksi.com/artworks/

2010-04-11T19:20:00.000-07:00

Talking Heads

“Listening Winds”

Mojique sees his village from a nearby hill

Mojique thinks of the days before Americans came

He sees the foreigners in growing numbers

He sees the foreigners in fancy houses

He thinks of the days that he can still remember...now.

Mojique holds a package in his quivering hands

Mojique sends the package to the American man

Softly, he glides along the streets and alleys

Up comes the wind that makes them run for cover

He feels the time is surely now or never...more.

The wind in my heart

The dust in my head

The wind in my heart

(Come to) Drive them away

Drive them away.

Mojique buys equipment in the marketplace

Mojique plants devices in the free trade zone

He feels the wind is lifting up his people

He calls the wind to guide him on his mission

He know his friend the wind is always standing...by.

Mojique smells the wind that comes from far away

Mojique waits for news in a quiet place

He feels the presence of the wind around him

He feels the power of the past behind him

He has the knowledge of the wind to guide him...on.

The wind in my heart

The dust in my head

The wind in my heart

(Come to) Drive them away

Drive them away.

Listening Wind - The Talking Heads en Yahoo! Video

Sexism and Christianity.

2010-04-10T01:20:00.000-07:00

Sexism

These are all pretty self-explanatory.

Timothy 2:11-12

"Let the woman learn in silence with all subjection to men.
But I forbid a woman to teach a man, nor to usurp authority over a man but to listen in silence
For Adam was formed first, then Eve;
Adam was not deceived, the woman was deceived and she became a transgressor.
Yet she will redeem herself by having babies - if they continue in faith and love and holiness, with self-control."

Corinthians 14:34-35

"Let your women keep silence in the churches: for it is not permitted unto them to speak; but they are commanded to be under obedience to men as also saith the law.
And if a woman wants to learn any thing, let them ask their husbands at home: for it is a shame for women to speak in the church."

Numbers 31:7-18

" "Have you allowed all the women to live?" he asked them. "They were the ones who followed Balaam's advice and were the means of turning the Israelites away from the LORD in what happened at Peor, so that a plague struck the LORD's people. Now kill all the boys. And kill every woman who has slept with a man, but save for yourselves every girl who has never slept with a man."

Deuteronomy 22:28-29 *

"If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her and they are discovered, he shall pay the girl's father fifty shekels of silver. He must marry the girl, for he has violated her. He can never divorce her as long as he lives."

Genesis 3:16

"I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee."

Deuteronomy 21:10-14

"When you go out to war against your enemies and the LORD, your God, delivers them into your hand, so that you take captives, if you see a comely woman among the captives and become so enamored of her that you wish to have her as wife, you may take her home to your house. But before she may live there, she must shave her head and pare her nails and lay aside her captive's garb. After she has mourned her father and mother for a full month, you may have relations with her, and you shall be her husband and she shall be your wife. However, if later on you lose your liking for her, you shall give her her freedom, if she wishes it; but you shall not sell her or enslave her, since she was married to you under compulsion."

Deuteronomy 22:13-21**

" If a man takes a wife and, after lying with her, dislikes her and slanders her and gives her a bad name, saying, "I married this woman, but when I approached her, I did not find proof of her virginity," then the girl's father and mother shall bring proof that she was a virgin to the town elders at the gate. The girl's father will say to the elders, "I gave my daughter in marriage to this man, but he dislikes her. Now he has slandered her and said, 'I did not find your daughter to be a virgin.' But here is the proof of my daughter's virginity." Then her parents shall display the cloth before the elders of the town, and the elders shall take the man and punish him. They shall fine him a hundred shekels of silver and give them to the girl's father, because this man has given an Israelite virgin a bad name. She shall continue to be his wife; he must not divorce her as long as he lives. If, however, the charge is true and no proof of the girl's virginity can be found, she shall be brought to the door of her father's house and there the men of her town shall stone her to death. She has done a disgraceful thing in Israel by being promiscuous while still in her father's house. You must purge the evil from among you."

* "If a man happens to meet a virgin who is not pledged to be married and rapes her and they are discovered..."

- "Happens to meet"? How about sexually harasses. "..virgin who is not pledged to be married.." why the fuck is that relevant?!? Rape is wrong no matter who it is, PERIOD. "..they are discovered.." I feel like the use of the word "They" seems to imply that she is willingly participating, as if it was consensual on both sides. In contrast, if replaced with the word "he" it would have shown that this act was one sided and not welcomed.

** "..no proof of the girl's virginity can be found, she shall be brought to the door of her father's house and there the men of her town shall stone her to death."

If a womyn has sex out side of marriage, she will be stoned to death. If a man rapes a womyn, he has to give her dad money then marry her. If you don't see the sexism in that then, that makes me sad.

(This is an older blog, I just reposted it because I think it's important for people to see.)

this blows my mind.

2010-04-08T20:05:00.000-07:00

No "gods" gunna..

2010-04-07T13:07:00.000-07:00

..tell me what apples I can't eat.

HAH

2010-04-07T13:01:00.001-07:00

A Creative Writing professor told his class one day: "Today we will experiment with a new form called the tandem story. The process is simple. Each person will pair off with the person sitting next to his or her desk.

As homework tonight, one of you will write the first paragraph of a short story. You will e-mail your partner that paragraph and send another copy to me. The partner will read the first paragraph and then add another paragraph to the story and send it back, also sending another copy to me. The first person will then add a third paragraph, and so on back-and-forth.

Remember to re-read what has been written each time in order to keep the story coherent. There is to be absolutely NO talking outside of the e-mails and anything you wish to say must be written in the e-mail. The story is over when both agree a conclusion has been reached."

The following was actually turned in by two of his English students:
Rebecca (GREEN)
Bill (BLUE).

THE STORY:
(first paragraph by Rebecca)

At first, Laurie couldn't decide which kind of tea she wanted. The chamomile, which used to be her favorite for lazy evenings at home, now reminded her too much of Carl, who once said, in happier times, that he liked chamomile. But she felt she must now, at all costs, keep her mind off Carl. His possessiveness was suffocating, and if she thought about him too much her asthma started acting up again. So chamomile was out of the question.

(second paragraph by Bill )

Meanwhile, Advance Sergeant Carl Harris, leader of the attack squadron now in orbit over Skylon 4, had more important things to think about than the neuroses of an air-headed asthmatic bimbo named Laurie with whom he had spent one sweaty night over a year ago. "A.S. Harris to Geostation 17," he said into his transgalactic communicator. " Polar orbit established. No sign of resistance so far..." But before he could sign off a bluish particle beam flashed out of nowhere and blasted a hole through his ship's cargo bay. The jolt from the direct hit sent him flying out of his seat and across the cockpit.

(Rebecca)

He bumped his head and died almost immediately, but not before he felt one last pang of regret for psychically brutalizing the one woman who had ever had feelings for him. Soon afterwards, Earth stopped its pointless
hostilities towards the peaceful farmers of Skylon 4. "Congress Passes Law Permanently Abolishing War and Space Travel," Laurie read in her newspaper one morning. The news simultaneously excited her and bored her. She stared out the window, dreaming of her youth, when the days had passed unhurriedly and carefree, with no newspaper to read, no television to distract her from
her sense of innocent wonder at all the beautiful things around her. "Why must one lose one's innocence to become a woman?" she pondered wistfully.

( Bill )

Little did she know, but she had less than 10 seconds to live. Thousands of miles above the city, the Anu'udrian mothership launched the first of its lithium fusion missiles. The dimwitted wimpy peaceniks who pushed the
Unilateral Aerospace disarmament Treaty through the Congress had left Earth a defenseless target for the hostile alien empires who were determined to
destroy the human race. Within two hours after the passage of the treaty the Anu'udrian ships were on course for Earth, carrying enough firepower to pulverize the entire planet. With no one to stop them, they swiftly initiated their diabolical plan. The lithium fusion missile entered the
atmosphere unimpeded. The President, in his top-secret mobile submarine headquarters on the ocean floor off the coast of Guam , felt the inconceivably massive explosion, which vaporized even poor, stupid Laurie.

(Rebecca)

This is absurd. I refuse to continue this mockery of literature. My writing partner is a violent, chauvinistic semi-literate adolescent.

( Bill )

Yeah? Well, my writing partner is a self-centered tedious neurotic whose attempts at writing are the literary equivalent of Valium. " Oh, shall I have chamomile tea? Or shall I have some other sort of F--KING TEA??? Oh no,
what am I to do? I'm such an air headed bimbo. I guess I've read too many Danielle Steele novels!"

(Rebecca)

A$$h@le.

( Bill )

B*tch!

(Rebecca)

F*** YOU - YOU NEANDERTHAL!!

( Bill )

In your dreams, Ho. Go drink some tea.

(TEACHER)

A+ - I really liked this one.

How is it possible to be this cool?

2010-04-05T22:15:00.001-07:00

I love you Janis

I just want to take a moment......

2010-04-05T21:55:00.000-07:00

...to acknowledge the all holy greatness that is vegan cheezey crackers.

We are not worthy.

Buy these and put them in your mouth.

click Foodfight!

Two things to say.

2010-04-03T17:01:00.000-07:00

- I just bought my Coachella ticket.

-I really need to take school more seriously.

Kindergarten-teacher-dress project

2010-04-01T21:40:00.000-07:00

I bought this dress at the Goodwill a long time ago cause I thought it had potential. I'm not totally sure what I'm going to turn this into yet, I'm just sorta playing it by ear so far.

The original dress. (the eyeball is a shot put I stole back in highschool, painted, and now use as a door stop.)

The purple lines are just chalk I used for guide lines for cutting.

First I cut out the tacky leopard print part.

Some quotes I like

2010-03-29T00:27:00.000-07:00

"Give a man a fish, and you'll feed him for a day; give him a religion, and he'll starve to death while praying for a fish." -Author Unknown

"Two hands working can accomplish more than a thousand clasped in prayer." -Author Unknown

"When we talk to God, we're praying. When God talks to us, we're schizophrenic." -Jane Wagner, In Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe, 1985, performed by Lily Tomlin

"Isn't man an amazing animal? He kills wildlife - birds, kangaroos, deer, all kinds of cats, coyotes, beavers, groundhogs, mice, foxes and dingoes - by the million in order to protect his domestic animals and their feed. Then he kills domestic animals by the billion and eats them. This in turn kills man by the millions, because eating all those animals leads to degenerative - and fatal - health conditions like heart disease, kidney disease, and cancer. So then man tortures and kills millions more animals to look for cures for these diseases. Elsewhere, millions of other human beings are being killed by hunger and malnutrition because the food they could eat is being used to fatten domestic animals. Meanwhile, some people are dying of sad laughter at the absurdity of man, who kills so easily and so violently, and once a year, sends out cards praying for Peace on Earth." -C.David Coats

Flickr favorites

2010-03-28T21:21:00.000-07:00

sanabria

The Gentleman Amateur

I'm Willemijn

olya zhuzhzhalova

"Do vegans taste better"

2010-03-24T23:42:00.000-07:00

Yes
Scientific studies have found when performing oral sex there are certain foods that can enhance and sweeten semen/ejaculate while others can deteriorate the flavor.

Foods that make semen taste gross include:
processed meat
Asparagus, chicken, garlic, onions, dairy products, broccoli, cauliflower, brussel sprouts, greasy food, spices, coffee and maybe even chocolate

Foods that make semen taste good:
FRUIT
Plums, mangoes, pineapples, nectarines, oranges, lemons, limes, parsley, coriander, spearmint, peppermint, grapefruit and green tea, and apples

*Thanks Wikianswers ;)

Eat your fruit everyone!

We need more smart vegans.

2010-03-23T01:33:00.000-07:00

I had a conversation once, with another girl that is vegan, concerning vegan advocacy. We were talking about the recent trend of soccer-mom-OC-housewives/newage-thinspiration-seekers who eat vegan, and wether or not it was beneficial to the ethical cause. She said, that though those people bug her and she disagrees with their motivations – they are still (often unintentionally) sparing the lives of many animals. Though her heart was in the right place, I took issue with this prospective. I feel this emerging trend is irrelevant to the ethical cause and culturally insignificant.
It would be more impact full and over all more gratifying to me if I were to get 1 intelligent/critical-thinking person to go vegan(for ethical reasons) rather than to get 10 less-than-discerning people (like those described above) to go vegan.
My reasons being:
-The 1 person is more likely to stay vegan, when conversely the other 10 will likely/eventually drop veganism and move on the the next diet trend.
-The 1 person will likely give, when asked, a more throughout and perspicacious explanation for their veganism. This interaction, hopefully, would project on the issue a more serious light in the minds of those in which this 1 person interacts with.
-Obviously people who are skeptical about veganism who interact with the 10 trendvegans will automatically be turned off by their weak and incompetent explanations. (They will in a sense, scare away potential vegans).

I guess what I'm mainly trying to get at is that even though it is easier to get larger amounts of people to go vegan by implementing scare tactics and propaganda, the results will be short lived, The (ethical) reason for being vegan will become lost under the sea of deceptive conquest for profusion. We need to work towards quality not quantity. Lets not waste our time using silly tactics to convince silly people.

...Would you rather have one pair of classic shoes that last forever, or a bunch of stylish shoes that will eventually fall apart.......

I love this youtuber

2010-03-22T14:12:00.001-07:00

This is ZOMGitscriss

Bold Native – A film about animal liberation.

2010-03-18T20:49:00.000-07:00

Check out the Bold Native site.

Coachella 2010

2010-03-17T01:20:00.000-07:00

Who I'm most excited to see:

Thom Yorke!!!!!

Grizzly Bear

MGMT

Devo

Dirty Projectors

Edward Sharp and the Magnetic Zeros

the XX

Gary Numan

Yann Tiersen

Oooooooh and, carpoolchella we will win you this year! You belong to us.

Maturity

2010-03-17T00:48:00.000-07:00

a Gift for the baby Jesus. (vegan magic cookie bars)

How we snuck food in during Coachella 2009.

A portrait of my beloved brother.

High school....

What I learn in math.

My new tattoo.

Not much else I can say about these pictures that they don't already say for themselves.

Reading list!

2010-03-14T23:32:00.000-07:00

Currently I am reading Ishmael by Daniel Quinn, and I really want to finish it cause I feel like I've been reading it forever. It's cause I always start to read a book, get really into it, then get busy with school or what have you, then it ends up taking me months to finally finish it. I want this cycle to end. And when it does, There are a lot of books that I plan on reading

(In no particular order) I want to read:

Making a Killing by Bob Torres

The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins

Before Nature Dies by Jean Dorst

The Outer Most House by Henry Beston

Knockemstiff by Donald Ray Pollock

Alice's Adventures in Wonderland & Through the Looking Glass by Lewis Carrol

Thanking the Monkey by Karen Dawn

Farm Sanctuary by Gene Baur

Sacred Cows And Golden Geese By C. Ray Greek, MD and Jean Swingle Greek, DVM

Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim by David Sedaris

The Story of B & My Ishmael by Daniel Quinn

Cold Mountain by Charles Frazier

Vegan Freak: Being Vegan in a NonVegan World by Bob and Jenna Torres

Living My Life by Emma Goldman

The Road by Cormac McCarthy

I may add more......

P.S. Has anyone read The Story of the Eye by Georges Bataille. First off, I bought the book with out knowing much about it accept for the fact that in an interview Björk said that she had read it and that it was very strange and that she recommends it to everyone. So I though "what the hell" and bought it. And I read it. And hmmmm. So apparently there is supposed to be some sort of deep psychological meaning behind the themes and characters, but I was just left confused. I need to talk about it with someone else who has read it cause all it seems like to me is a bizarre borderline pornographic story about 2 runaway teenage lovers that are obsessed with this girl that ends up getting sent to a mental institution, they break her out, she ends up committing suicide, they move to spain and live with some creepy guy, plan to murder someone, and all through out the book they screw around and do weird sexual things with hard boiled eggs, a dead person's eyeball, and urine. Here's what wikipedia says about it..........

Vegan pumpkin ice cream

2010-03-12T22:48:00.000-08:00

Soooo good :)!

2 c. Silk soy creamer
1 c. soy milk
¾ c. brown sugar
1 c. cooked, mashed pumpkin (homemade or canned; see note below)
1 ½ t. pumpkin pie spice
2 T. arrowroot
1 t. vanilla extract

Mix ¼ cup of soy milk with the 2 tablespoons of arrowroot and set aside.

Mix the soy creamer, remaining soy milk, brown sugar, pumpkin, and pumpkin pie spice together in a saucepan and bring to a boil. When the mixture has just started to boil, take off the heat and immediately stir in the arrowroot slurry. This should immediately cause the liquid to thicken (not a lot, but a noticeable amount; it will be thicker when it cools).

Stir in the vanilla.

Set the ice cream mixture aside to cool. Freeze according to your ice cream maker’s instructions.

Note: If you cook your own pumpkin, be sure to use a sugar pie pumpkin or other cooking pumpkin. Jack o'lantern pumpkins are cool for Halloween, but don't make for good eatin'. They're flavorless, watery, and stringy.

*recipe taken from A Vegan Ice Cream Paradise

Good Ass Vegan Brownies

2010-03-12T19:45:00.000-08:00

What you'll need:

-2 cups unbleached white flour (bob's red mill)

-2 cups sugar

-3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

-1 teaspoon salt

-1 teaspoon baking powder

-1 cup water

-1 cup canola oil

-1 teaspoon vanilla extract

-1/2 cup chocolate or vanilla almond milk

How to make 'em:

• Preheat oven to 350º

• In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, cocoa powder, baking powder, & salt. After the dry ingredients are well blended mix in the water, oil, vanilla, & chocolate or vanilla almond milk. You can use an electric mixed if you want to be a baby.

• Spread evenly into an 9x13 or 8x8 pan.

• Bake for 25-30 mins (for 9x13) or 55-65 mins (for 8x8) or until the tooth pick comes out clean.

Frankie

2010-03-12T15:12:00.001-08:00

I'll love you forever, I'll love you for always.

January 20, 1997 - May 5, 2009

master of bullshit

2010-03-12T01:49:00.000-08:00

I wrote this essay back in highschool the period before it was due, with alot of help from some girl that listened to way too much John and Ken on KFI. She told me what to talk about, I gave it the smart ass melodramatic wording. (note: I do not agree with what was written in this paper, it was kind of a joke cause everyone in that class knew that that teacher never read anything we would turn in. For example, 3.5 out of 5 days of the week he made us watch Law and Order and take a page of notes while the sat at his computer. We started catching on to the fact that he never looked at what we turned in so when we had to take notes instead we just quoted what the people were saying on the show, but we'd take quotes that sounded really funny out of context. Or we'd just make fun of the people on the show. Good times.)

Dear Congressman Miller,
I, myself am not by any means an expert on issues concerning the economy, but I feel that in this case the problem was obvious. Who in the right mind would pressure banks into giving loans to people who can not afford them, especially to give them out on a wide scale. How did the people who decided this not for see the inevitable out come? This could have been prevented.

It is my personal belief that you should consider resigning with posthaste from your position in office. You stood aside and did nothing to prevent the $12.5 billion increase in taxes which your party passed in February of this year. You are giving free handouts to unions, illegal aliens, and “Octomom” who consume the taxpayers’ hard-earned cash. You would bankrupt the whole state before you would take a pay cut. It is absolutely saddening to see what sort of riff-raff programs we must pay for. Therefore, I also propose not only that you step down, but also the entire Republican constituency, which turned against the people that voted you into a position of power and authority. Californians are unwilling to suspend their disbelief any longer under the tyrannical Republican Reich. Instead of playing slave to the unions, you should take into consideration what your (former) supporters have to say. Anyone who has taken a basic class in Economics knows that YOU DO NOT RAISE TAXES IN A RECESSION. “I'm not a believer in taxes, I'm not a believer of increasing fees. It's just under these circumstances it's necessary to do,” your governor said. It’s clear that we can no longer trust our so-called superior’s words.

I thank you for taking the time to respond to out letters, I wish you luck and hope that we will soon be able to arise from this mess. I look forward to your response and am hopeful for a prosperous future.

Regards,
Jessica C.

*These letters were actually sent to him.

Dancer in the Dark

2010-03-12T01:20:00.000-08:00

car shots on the road to San Fran and back

2010-03-12T00:22:00.000-08:00

It was destiny!

2010-03-11T23:26:00.000-08:00

As I walked through the hall to my math class today, I saw a book on the floor, sitting all alone. I figured someone must have left it there and would come back to get it eventually, so I paid it (or the sticky attached to it) little attention. Two-ish hours passed, and when I got out of my class the book was still there. So "what the hey, why not" I go over to it to see what it is and it's this book about spiritual enlightenment of the soul through divine song. I found this totally amusing, so I figured I'll foster care it for a while and then "pass it on" by means of hiding it in my friend Sophia's car and wait for her to find it hah.

A note from the previous owner

Joint Statement by a Group of Abolitionist Vegan Feminists for International Women's Day

2010-03-11T00:27:00.000-08:00

Reblogged, from My Face Is On Fire

As abolitionist vegans and feminists, we oppose the use of sexist tactics in the animal advocacy movement. Ethical animal rights veganism is part of the logical conclusion of opposition to the exploitation of all sentient beings -- both human animals and non-human animals. Opposing speciesism is incompatible with engaging in sexism or any other form of discrimination, such as racism, heterosexism, classism, and other forms of oppression.

Unfortunately, we have witnessed many female activists saying that there is nothing wrong with using "sex" as a tool to get our message across, using various arguments to try to justify this view. Further, other advocates have been unfairly attacked for "sexism" because they are openly critical of sexism and sexist choices in the movement. Neither should be acceptable to advocates who take anti-oppression work seriously.

Some advocates defend the use of sex by accusing us of being "anti-sex" or prudish. Abolitionist vegans are not prudes by any means, however, we see that the way sex is used to sell things in our patriarchal society reinforces a view of women as commodities. For example, just take a look at the way in which PETA uses sex in its campaigns - they reinforce harmful Western beauty standards by using only thin, large-breasted women, who tend to be posed to appear vulnerable and alluring to the (heterosexual male) intended viewer, as well as using only men who are muscular and trim and posed to look powerful and self-assured. When sexism is being used to try to "sell" justice for non-human animals, at the expense of reinforcing harmful attitudes towards human women, the irony is clear. The seriousness of the injustices committed against both non-human animals and human women in this world are cheapened by the use of tactics based on inane and harmful stereotypes; far from challenging the issue of animal exploitation, this kind of approach reinforces the very stereotypes that have harmed human women and non-human animals alike.

Some of the activists defending the use of sex believe that showing our sexuality will call the attention of potential vegans by appealing to their own self image, implying that when they see how sexy being vegan makes us, they will want to become vegan too. This notion is not only misguided but also detrimental to the actual message we should be getting across. Veganism is about animal rights, not about feeling sexy, or having better sex (characteristics we all know have little to do with being vegan or not, but with each individual's lifestyle and well-being) and it is most certainly not about "looking better" than people who eat meat.

Promoting veganism as a way to become "sexy", which unfortunately is almost always equated with "losing weight" in our society (for example, the book "Skinny Bitch" comes to mind), further reinforces prejudices against larger or overweight people, which harms both women and men in our society, but particularly women. Not to mention that veganism is not some magic bullet to lose weight - there exist plenty of vegans who are far from "skinny", who are essentially being given the message that they are failures by these sorts of campaigns that imply or flat-out promote veganism as a way to achieve western beauty standards. Appealing to these harmful standards not only reinforces them, but draws attention away from the true reason people should go vegan, which is to acknowledge the moral personhood of non-human animals.

Many of these activists defending sexist tactics claim that they are not, in fact, sexist tactics, that they "empower" the women who choose to participate in them, and so that criticizing these campaigns is disrespectful to these women - some even claim that to criticize them is itself sexist. These arguments are false for a number of reasons. First of all, these claims are usually made to male activists when they criticize such campaigns. But one's gender does not in and of itself make one more or less qualified to speak about sexism or feminism.

There is a real "men should shut up and listen to women" attitude in these claims that seeks to replace the egalitarianism that feminism demands with a hollow and biologically-based authoritarianism. As bell hooks suggests, while sisterhood is powerful, feminism is for everybody. As abolitionist vegan women, we are extremely glad to have as allies men such as Gary L. Francione, among others, who has been denouncing sexism in the animal advocacy movement and consistently speaking up for feminism for years. While we do of course believe that women should be listened to and taken seriously, listening does not equate to agreeing with or accepting someone's arguments simply because that person is female; disagreeing with those arguments and presenting logical counter-arguments does not equate to being sexist. It is unfortunate, but sexism is so pervasive in our society that some women do not even believe that it's still an issue, do not see how sexism has an impact on their lives, and do not feel that feminism is relevant to them. Some male feminist allies have spent years studying feminist theory; just because they're male doesn't invalidate this expertise.

Furthermore, the view that anything a woman chooses to do "empowers" her is simplistic in that it ignores the patriarchal context in which those choices are made. Yes, the women who participate in the campaigns we are criticizing have chosen to do so voluntarily, and some may feel liberated, or feel as if their choices are themselves a challenge to female objectification, and we do recognize that they feel this way. We are simply asking them to seriously consider that these campaigns are both harmful to women as well as ineffective in challenging the exploitation of non-human animals, and that, in view of this, women should no longer support or participate in them.

As stated above, the view that women are "empowered" or "liberated" by choosing to commodify themselves ignores the structural dimension of sexism in our patriarchal society. Whether we like it or not, our choices to try to "take back" patriarchy's commodification of women by participating in it voluntarily affect the lives of other women, especially women with less power. In a culture that still views and presents women as sex objects on a daily basis, the "taking back" or "reclaiming control" intent of these choices is entirely lost to the greater public, and the objectification and commodification is simply reinforced. When this sexism is reinforced as being acceptable or no big deal, the overall effect is to reinforce the attitudes that allow the trafficking, abuse, and other forms of exploitation and violence that are inflicted on women in poverty and of lower socio-economic status around the world every day.

Some claim that these campaigns are necessary to get the attention of the public. As we mentioned above, this draws attention away from the real reasons behind veganism: the rights of sentient beings not to be considered property. Getting attention at all costs is not the way to promote a serious issue such as violence against animals; in a world where this violence is already not taken seriously, attention-at-all-costs tactics only serve to further trivialize the issue. PETA's sexist campaigns do get attention, but overall it is attention for PETA, not for the real issues. It's a guerrilla marketing tactic designed to get people talking about PETA so that the donations keep flowing. (And look, it's working, since here we are talking about PETA, but we felt we couldn't discuss this issue without mentioning the largest and worst offender, unfortunately.)

Even more disturbing are the video campaigns that juxtapose sex and explicit, gory images of violence to animals, purportedly to grab the attention of young heterosexual men and then to inform them about the treatment of non-human animals. For example, PETA's "State of the Union Undress 2010" features a woman stripping "for the animals", after which a second video automatically begins playing, depicting graphic violence inflicted on nonhumans. How exactly is getting men to associate these sexually arousing images with gory images of violence going to help anything?

The campaigns that blatantly use sex and Western beauty standards are not the only sexist tactics used in the animal advocacy movement. For example, the longstanding campaigns against fur have a distinctly sexist element. By singling out fur, advocates are not only implying that there is some moral difference between fur and leather or other types of animal-derived clothing, which there is not, but they are also singling out those humans who wear fur while ignoring or minimizing the actions of those who wear other types of animals. Most fur in our society is worn by women. Effectively, these campaigns single out as morally wrong a particular use of non-humans mainly by women, while minimizing other equally morally wrong uses by all genders. Does pointing out that a little old lady in a fur coat is wrong to use animals while ignoring a biker in a leather jacket really help anything?

Also worth mentioning are the gender issues involved in animal exploitation. The animals exploited specifically for their milk and eggs are, it should be obvious, females being exploited for their reproductive cycles. They are repeatedly forcefully impregnated in the case of cows and other mammals used for their milk, i.e. raped, then their babies are taken from them, which causes extreme distress to mother and baby. Both mammals and birds are killed once they reach an age such that their reproductive cycle slows down or stops, and they are no longer profitable to their owners. Similarly, female animals of most of the species exploited by humans are used as "breeding" animals, forced to have litter after litter of young, and discarded when their usefulness for this purpose wanes.

While, as is to be expected in our speciesist society that considers non-humans property, feminism and sexism have always referred to humans, when looking at it from a perspective that is both abolitionist vegan and feminist, this exploitation of female animals' "femaleness" could be seen to fall into the intersection of these two struggles. It is odd that some people claim to be vegetarian (but not vegan) for "feminist reasons" - one would think that if someone believes the eating of animal flesh to be connected with the treatment of women "like meat", that they would also see the use of animal products that come specifically from female animals' reproductive cycles as being connected. Feminism is not merely a matter of having a vagina and a monologue; it is a daily lived practice, a dynamic force for change and liberation, a dialogue, a community, and a social transformation embodied in words and actions every turning moment of our lives.

If feminism is for everybody, that includes nonhuman animals. As animal rights advocates, whether we are male or female or genderqueer, it is our responsibility to oppose the exploitation and oppression of all sentient beings. This will be achieved by educating others in a creative and objective manner. How can we presume to end the exploitation of non-humans while encouraging or accepting the exploitation of our fellow human beings?

The bottom line is: commodifying ourselves does not truly "empower us". We can't use sexist methods to further a social justice issue. All exploitation of sentient beings is related; we're not going to end speciesism, the oppression of non-human animals simply because they are not human, without a firm commitment to ending sexism as well, and certainly not with the kind of attention-at-all-costs opportunism engaged in by certain activists at the expense of other oppressed groups.

Ana María Aboglio
Paola Aldana de Meoño
Jo Charlebois
Elizabeth Collins
Vera Cristofani
Mylène Ouellet
Trisha Roberts
Kerry Wyler

2010-03-11T00:23:00.000-08:00

"I love writing in Coffee Shops b/c every now & then I’ll pause pensively & ask the person next 2 me if u spell poopie with an IE or a Y."

-Paul Scheer (via saafz)

"Sullen Girl" - Fiona Apple

2010-03-10T22:41:00.000-08:00

"Sullen Girl"

Days like this, I don't know what to do with myself

All day -- and all night

I wander the halls along the walls and under my breath

I say to myself

I need fuel -- to take flight --

And there's too much going on

But it's calm under the waves, in the blue of my oblivion

Under the waves in the blue of my oblivion

Is that why they call me a sullen girl -- sullen girl

They don't know I used to sail the deep and tranquil sea

but he washed my shore and he took my pearl

And left an empty shell of me

And there's too much going on

But it's clam under the waves, in the blue of my oblivion

Under the waves in the blue of my oblivion

It's calm under the waves in the blur of my oblivion

This song makes me tear up, especially how it builds to the line "But it's calm under the waves, in the blue of my oblivion."From my interpretation of that line, I think "But it's calm under the waves" means that there is so much emotional turmoil in her life that she has become numb, that she has become so used to the pain it that is has almost become meaningless background noise (hence "under the waves"). And "in the blue of my oblivion." is the sense of unescapable hollowness, a bleak but calm lull.

This song is about when she was raped at 13, "but he washed my shore and he took my pearl - And left an empty shell of me"

Christo Javacheff

2010-03-02T13:14:00.001-08:00

AHAHAH

2010-02-17T21:22:00.000-08:00

"On a scale from 1 to Chris Brown, how pissed are you?"

Abandon-"Patricide"

2010-02-17T15:49:00.000-08:00

Abandon is my friends XVX hardcore band. I really like the lyrics to this song.

"Patricide"

I've seen how you scarred her. her screams didn't fall on deaf ears. the horror that you left her in won't fall away as do her tears. this is your legacy; it won't become my own. i'll abdicate the power of privilege and set fire to your throne. ever present but illusive, the specter of the patriarch looms in the shadows of our everyday lives, terrorizing and dehumanizing women, children, and all others who question tyrannical archetype that it embodies. men consume and are thus consumed by this facade, rendering themselves emotionally dead, unable to love others or even themselves. in this seemingly inescapable reign of hatred, there remains hope for liberation. we must reject and destroy all incarnations of patriarchy, by any means necessary. i deny you that power, and i'll let these words resound. this age is at it's end, and i pledge to cast you down. i've witnessed your vile ways, and violence is all i've seen, so i'll grip vengeance in my hands and put a knife where your heart should be. as i purge this disease from my being, i will hasten your demise. slay the father.

Persepolis

2010-02-16T19:09:00.000-08:00

Please see this movie, so good.

http://www.sonypictures.com/classics/persepolis/

hah

I will always love bright eyes

2010-02-15T22:17:00.000-08:00

K'naan -"In the Beginning"

2010-02-15T21:30:00.000-08:00

So -
In the beginning there was hum
From a poet whose pulse fell
Drum drum drum!

He would perform prayers and all
Till one day he heard a voice call
Come come come!

Suspicious he moved with vicious caution
Dismisses, he thinks it's a little off

People get held back
By the voice inside them

Yo -
The voice said I'm poised to speak inside you
Rejoice and please let me invite you
To evil, greed and lies too

Yeah -
Confusing days he moved in ways he soon became a kuuni
Boom boom boom
And knock on his door his lord is no more
And knock on his door his soul is no more

La la la la- yeah
La la la la- that was in the beginning
La la la la- as the story goes on
La la la la-

So so so -
The poet's got a proposal
He would always hope but never know
What it feels to be free

He would be the frozen imposed as the chosen on all those opposing
But he would be greedy
That's got him there
He's power hungry and proud too

People don't care, people just scared
People don't care, people just prayer

La la la la- yeah
La la la la- that was in the beginning
La la la la- there was a hum
La la la la- and things change
La la la la-

Yeah, yeah, yeah -
Say -
It's better to light a candle than to curse the dark
In the eyes of the youth there are question marks
Like freedom
Freedom for the mind and soul
We don't see them
See them for their worth at all
That's why we lead them
Lead them to these wars and what is it we feed them
Feed them our impurities and who it is we treat them
Treat them like the enemy humanity will need them
Need them like the blood we spill and where freedom

Freedom for the hearts we fill
Mislead them
They hunger for the love we give
But we cheat them

The cops beat them when all he wants is his freedom
So they defeat them
Whatever spirit he's got
Beat them

And they teach them that the rest of the world don't need him
And he believes it's a disease that he's heathen
Put up your fists if all you want is freedom
Put up your fists if all you want is -

La la la la- That was in the beginning
La la la la- And things change
La la la la-

Yeah, yeah, yeah -
And we keep holding on
And we keep being strong
And we keep going on
And on and on and on

And we keep holding on
And we keep being strong
And we keep going on
And on and on and on

"yo soy El Diablo"

2010-02-15T10:11:00.000-08:00

I asked my dad how to say "I'm an atheist" in spanish

and he said "just say 'yo soy El Diablo' "

hahaha

2010-02-14T18:54:00.000-08:00

You see me trying to smile up on this pole
But I'm just hiding the pain that's deep in my soul
You wanna fuck me
I already know
You wanna fuck me and toss me back on the floor

Started with my brother, first man I loved
Or should I say that he loved me?
I was in second grade, he was fourteen
In the shady of the trees
It was a summer breeze
Whole thing's a blurry dream
Behind the house, quiet as a mouse
He told me not to even breathe
A secret hard to keep
I didn't know till thirteen
By then I knew what to do
Just an old routine
Oh, the boys had a thing for me

You see me trying to smile up on this pole
But I'm just hiding the pain that's deep in my soul
You wanna fuck me
I already know
You wanna fuck me and toss me back on the floor

You see me trying to smile up on this pole
But I'm just hiding the pain that’s deep in my soul
You wanna fuck me
I already know
You wanna fuck me and toss me back on the floor

My mama she always said, "You're the brightest star
In life, you're sure to go so far"
Been at this club about four years
Hooked on dope, crying in the mirror
When we were just little girls
We learned to dance in mama's pearls
Baby, bend over and shake that ass
Hey, you wanna come home with me?
Hoping you fall in love with me
I could make love to you for free
We could just get a place and start a life
And try to make things right

You see me trying to smile up on this pole
But I'm just hiding the pain that's deep in my soul
You wanna fuck me
I already know
You wanna fuck me and toss me back on the floor

Started with my brother, first man I loved
Or should I say that he loved me?
I was in second grade, he was fourteen
In the shady of the trees
It was a summer breeze
Whole thing's a blurry dream
Behind the house, quiet as a mouse
He told me not to even breathe
A secret hard to keep
I didn't know till thirteen
By then I knew what to do
Just an old routine
Oh, the boys had a thing for me

You see me trying to smile up on this pole
But I'm just hiding the pain that's deep in my soul

You wanna fuck me
I already know
You wanna fuck me and toss me back on the floor

You see me trying to smile up on this pole
But I'm just hiding the pain that's deep in my soul

2010-02-13T13:42:00.000-08:00

protractor+news paper+glue stick+2 people w/ sick senses of humor

I love this artist

2010-02-12T10:22:00.000-08:00

He draws the coolest/cutes pictures! His flickr is link is http://www.flickr.com/photos/juanydiego/

Things that define my childhood

2010-02-12T01:49:00.001-08:00

This will be added to frequently.

-The Fool and the Flying Ship

-The Phil Hendrie Show that used to be on KFI in the 90's and early 2000's

-David Bowie, The talking Heads

-Space Ghost Coast to Coast

-Super Nintendo

-Making claymation movies.

-Curly shoelaces

-Fruit roll ups

-Bean burritos, spoon fulls of peanut butter

-Camping

-Night hide and go seek, night tag, truth or dare, neighborhood wars, bike rides through O'neil park

Reflection

2010-02-10T22:55:00.001-08:00

Again, awareness starts to peak ,
another day breaks in
It always takes me by surprise,
throwing me in the spin ...
...of things
Not knowing what it brings,
I do embrace it, even if, its not something I asked for
And even if , for all I get, I know I will pay more
For every life will end in death
And there is pain for every breath
You ever take, and you will break
In thousands of pieces,
As consciousness releases ,
Its side effects
it injects you with addictions,
Afflictions for which there is no pill
I am alive so I am ill
Because I am , therefore I feel
I dont just think about what thinking means
But also feel for other feeling things
And end up with a bleeding heart
Watching us tear this world apart
Can we stop now before alls gone ?
Can we undo the damage done ?

Yes, I am part of the game
And though I know Im part to blame
For all of this
I still see hope under the mess
And beauty in the Universe
I ponder on it in silence
Wonder what will be left of us
Before our sun finally bursts
And ends our cry and joy and lust
Before we all become star dust ...
again
Will we destroy ourselves by then ?
And leave behind just pain and shame
Or will we ever find the ways to win the game
The ways
to earn our place
as the enlightened consciousness
That creates art and conquers space
I hope theres hope for us ... but how ?
Look at us now ....

We invent Gods who bless our wars
And justify the hatred flooding our pores
We feed on life and kill our kind
Yet we pretend we were designed ...
intelligently ?!
Consequently, we find reasons
to commit evils
By falling on our knees
and asking God to please
Help us make bombs and do violent acts
To serve religions of peace
While trusting our kids to pedophile priests
This is us!

We close our eyes and praise the skies
Anesthetize our minds and fill our hearts with lies
About eternal paradise in afterlife
While we give birth to Hell on Earth
Is it worth it ?

The question was "Is veiling {an} oppression or a liberation for women. What do you think? "

2010-02-10T16:01:00.000-08:00

I very rarely debate with people on the internet, but sometimes I can't help but say something. Ha and I admit my first few comments were kinda snotty. This is the conversation between me, and "the art of veiling".

http://www.flickr.com/photos/79086208@N00/182330618/?editedcomment=1#comment72157623392390740

JⒺssica says:

Why aren't men made to wear veils? Seems a bit sexist to me.

The Art of Veiling says:

Hello Jessica

Why do men wear trousers and women skirts? Why do hindu women wear saris and their husbands not? Why do buddist monks wear orange dresses and buddist nuns not? Why do christian nuns wear veils and monks not?

Do you think that all this is a kind of sexism? Maybe you can find the answer on your own now...

JⒺssica says:

Maybe you didn't understand my question. I think this girl explains it pretty well.
saafz.tumblr.com/post/378356717/im-here-to-te ll-yall-once...
Also, this girl has a great blog, she's an ex-muslim. Read at your own spiritual risk V
saafz.tumblr.com/

The Art of Veiling says:

Or maybe you didn't understand my answer... and thanks for the links. But no, I will not read it.

JⒺssica says:

" Time and time again we hear about how the hijab liberates women from sexual objectification. I don’t think that’s true. The hijab objectifies women, just in a different way than the Western media does, for instance. The purpose of the hijab is to cover a woman up so she isn’t supposedly seen as a sexual object. Islam goes about this task by completely desexualizing the Muslim woman (covering her up from head to toe). Humans are sexual beings, and by desexualizing a person, you’re also dehumanizing and objectifying her. It can even be argued that the hijab in fact oversexualizes the Muslim woman’s body. Also, by covering women up, you are making every part of her body (besides the face and hands) sexual in some way. The hijab also puts great importance on the woman’s body, thus drawing attention even if the goal is to do otherwise. The Muslim woman is judged and valued on her sexuality (or lack thereof).

And why aren’t men required to wear hijab? Is it because women don’t have sexual desires and aren’t expected to look at men sexually? Why is it the woman’s responsibility to deflect attention away from herself? Can’t men control themselves, or are they wildly sexual, like Islam and patriachy would like us to believe? What’s wrong with sexual attention and sex anyways? Just some questions Muslims might want to ask themselves. "

The Art of Veiling says:

Hello Jessica,

you live in a free country and you have the right to dress like YOU want. So it would be greatly appreciated by my side if you give the same right to other women. Let every women choose her dress and if it is a burqa, then it is a burqa.

I guess that you will argue now with the fact that a lot of women in Islamic countries are not free to dress like the would like to. But please remind that on my photos you will not find any support for that.

So please stop with this comments. that would be fine.

JⒺssica says:

Well I just figured that since you said "Is veiling [an] oppression or a liberation for women. What do you think?", that you were inviting the opportunity to share opposing view points. But you seem not not like hearing these views, so i guess you should change it to, "veiling is liberation for women. I am is not open to debate."

JⒺssica says:

I'm not saying that you or anyone should not have the right to wear one, I'm just simply questioning the reasoning behind that choice.

JⒺssica says:

I can understand though that maybe one of the reason you choose to cover up is due to the fact that you don't like the way guys treat women, like whistling at them on the streets. But I don't think it is the woman's problem that the guy is being a chauvinistic pig. We shouldn't have to hide ourselves, it is counterproductive to the issue at hand. We should instead work to encourage change in the actions and attitudes that men have towards women. If you want to be treated with respect, you shouldn't have to wear a veil. You should be respected because no matter your gender is, you are human and it is your right.

So there are a few things women can do:
-Hide from men that treat you like objects.
-Or come out from under the covers and demand to not be treated like an object. because everyone deserves respect, common decency, and equality.

The Art of Veiling says:

Thanks for all that good suggestions. Yes, you are right. All women should be free and uncovered and life the great life of great us-americans.

...maybe later (in your life) you will learn more about other cultures and religions. And then maybe you will understand that your way of life is just a oppurtunity, not a must.

And if I would not accept other people views I would not discuss with you. I guess that you have a problem with other people views, not me.

JⒺssica says:
"Thanks for all that good suggestions. Yes, you are right. All women should be free and uncovered and life the great life of great us-americans."
-Are you being sarcastic? It's hard to tell by just reading text. And I may live in america, but I do disagree with a lot, or maybe even most of american culture. I am no jesus-freak-mcdonalds-eating-flag-waving-nati onalist, I'm the polar opposite. And how does me disagreeing with sexism translate to "america is great"? America is not great.

"...maybe later (in your life) you will learn more about other cultures and religions. And then maybe you will understand that your way of life is just a oppurtunity, not a must."
- You are avoiding my questions. I am telling you what I think, but I want to know specifically what you think about what I said in my last comment. I want to know if and why you disagree with the points that I have made.

"And if I would not accept other people views I would not discuss with you. I guess that you have a problem with other people views, not me."
- I accept that people have other views, and I feel that they have the right to have those views, I am only questioning the logic behind them. But it seem so far that in this conversation you have not at all responded directly to the content of my comments, but only to the nature that they are contrary to your beliefs. You have given me no specific arguments as to WHY you disagree with what I have to say. I am questioning you because I don't understand the logic behind veiling. And if you truly believe veiling is "liberating", than you should be able to answer my question and disprove my arguments very easily.
The Art of Veiling says:
I have the feeling that you are not looking for an answer. You want to "teach" what is right and wrong. And this is why you are not so very much different to all the "jesus-freak-mcdonalds-eating-flag-wavin g-nationalist".

I would suggest that we stop discussing this matter and all other matters. We have nothing in common. We are opposites and it would be a waste of time to discuss further and further.

Sorry.
JⒺssica says:
I do not want to "teach", I want to debate between our opposing views. I have asked many question, to which you unfortunately didn't even attempt to answers. So I am only left to infer that your position can not be backed by any logical rebuttal. That saddens me.
The Art of Veiling says:
I am sorry. But it seems for me that I am not able to give answers that you can or want to understand. Maybe you should try it in a few years...
JⒺssica says:
I have blogged this conversation, just a heads up.
The Art of Veiling says:
Hello Jessica.

I have checked your profile and saw that you are very young (17, 18 or something like that). So now I understand why our conversation was so difficult... I thought that it would be helpful for you if you could see and hear what young women in your age say about "veil and oppression". Here is the link:

www.youtube.com/user/ismailzd#p/u/3/U98LjX4Mt R8
JⒺssica says:
I'm actually 20 soon, which is beyond irrelevant. My age was no excuse for you to avoid answering questions that may require critical thinking. Lets not resort to ageism.
I'd watch it, but the link did not work, the channel showed up though. What was the name of the video? Odd you should send me some thing to watch when you wouldn't even read what I had sent you. Oh well.
The Art of Veiling says:
So you are 19 years old. Teenagers in your age do not ask questions to get answers, they just do it to start a trouble. This was and is my feeling regarding your questions. Therefore I will not answer them.
JⒺssica says:
Conveniently, you seem to have an excuse to dismiss everything I say.
I tried the link again, and at the top of the channel it keeps saying "incorrect parameters, please try again" (maybe it's just my computer), so I just looked in the side bar videos, an I'm guessing that the "behind the veil" video is the one you were intending to have me watch. So I watched it. what I got from it was "god wants us to cover up, you do not question god." And when it came to the guys being overtly flirty issue, I was unconvinced by their responses. I still think that wearing a veil doesn't solve the problem, it just avoids it. It makes it seem like a woman's body is the problem and not the actions/attitudes of men. It seems that veiling is merely a religious tradition rather than a logical solution.
The Art of Veiling says:
Jessica. You have it: veiling IS a religious tradition. That is what I wanted to say all the time. And that it is not the most logical solution (in your view). We have different views and that is o.k. for me.
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(What bothers me most is how willing people are to suspend logic in order to comply with baseless religious stipulations. That is all I have left to say about that conversation.)

nutritiondata.com

2010-02-08T16:13:00.000-08:00

I love this website, it will tell you anything you could imagine about millions of types of foods

http://www.nutritiondata.com/

A super opinionated essay I wrote for a political science class

2010-02-08T15:20:00.000-08:00

Putting Gay Marriage Back On The Ballot in 2010

On November 5, 2008, Proposition 8 was passed which banned gay couples from the right to marry. And after many months of emotional debates, passionate protesting, and amplified amounts of discrimination, many activists and average people alike were let down and disheartened by prop 8’s out come. We may have lost the battle but we haven’t lost the war. The big issue with supporters of gay marriage now is whether or not to put the issue back on the ballot in 2010. Some say it is too soon and that we should wait for 2012. Others say we shouldn’t let the issue go dormant. Though the goal is the same, opinions on tactics vary greatly.

One of the major no on proposition 8 campaigns, Equality California, has been receiving much criticism recently when it announced its refusal to support putting the issue back on the ballot in 2010. By doing this, many activists claim the group is “putting politically strategic considerations ahead of what they saw as the moral imperative of fighting for equal rights” (Herdt, 2009). Though I can understand arguments such as these put forth by activists, I do feel that in order to reach the ultimate goal, we may need to set emotions aside to review and discuss strategies that will be realistic and productive to the cause.

When it comes to holding out on the vote till 2012, there actually would be many positive factors that would come as a result. For instance, as America progresses, more and more we can see the push for a more socially liberal and accepting society. This push being fronted greatly by America’s youth. For example, “A Harvard Institute of Politics study in Spring of 2008 of 18-24 year olds also corroborated the findings that young voters are more tolerant concerning homosexuality; when asked if they agreed or disagreed with the statement "homosexual relationships between consenting adults are morally wrong,” 50% disagreed while 30% agreed and 20% neither agreed nor disagreed” (K. Soltis 2009). I feel the results of this study should be seen as incredibly positive, for if we look at it optimistically, there could be 20% more people that could possibly be swayed in favor of marriage equality. Thought the 18-24 population may not seem significantly large, we must still consider the more liberal members of the 17 and younger population. As we see the growth of a society that focuses more on reason and equality rather than religious conservatism and social conformity, it is easy to see the more open-minded youth will be our greatest weapon in up coming elections. For when we consider all the 15, 16, and 17 year old citizens who were unable to vote in the 2008 elections but will be of age in 3 years in 2012, there is a great chance that they could rock the vote to the left. I know first hand friends and relatives who have felt the frustration of not being able to contribute their vote against banning same-sex marriage due to their age. But so long as we keep pushing, there is still hope. All they need to do beat is that 4.2% difference between the 52.1% who voted yes on proposition 8 and the 47.9% who voted no.

On both sides of the 2010 / 2012 debate there is of course the obvious, unavoidable question of funding. This is another issues the 2010 initiative may have going against them. If gay marriage were to be put back on the ballot in 2010, and happened to loose, then a large amount of our campaign money will have been lost. But if we save up and wait till 2012 then we will have the advantages of greater financial support and a whole new batch of young voters that will be more likely to support the cause.

When it comes to changing the hearts and minds of voters who voted to ban same sex marriage, the 3 years until the 2012 elections will be ample time to run some truthful and compassionate campaigns. This will be especially important when trying to win over the vote of religious community and other socially conservative groups. To achieve our ultimate goal Marc Solomon, the Marriage Director of EQCA (Equality California), feels, “It takes commitment, time and significant numbers of volunteers to undo the lies the other side has been telling for decades. Going door-to-door with the truth is working [. . .] and if we do this work at the level we need to we can have majority support by 2012” (M. Solomon). I agree with Solomon, that if we want to win the majority vote we will need to constantly combat scare tactics such as the lie that gay marriage will be taught in schools, and that it will somehow affect the marriages of heterosexual couples.

Though opinions on this issue do conflict, I feel that it is imperative to for supporters to remember that the goal is the same. It is understandable the waiting three whole years seems daunting, but in every civil rights movement, people have learned that patience and determination were key in pressing forward.

Current musical obsessions

2010-02-06T16:55:00.001-08:00

The Talking Heads

Janis Joplin

Billie Holiday

Eydie Gorme

Ishmael

2010-02-06T02:03:00.000-08:00

I have been reading the book Ishmael, by Daniel Quinn, and have found myself asking a lot of questions that I had not often encountered in the past.

This book (from what I have read so far) has disguised/hinted at many issues/ideas like:

speciesism

anarcho primitivism

questioning human nature

questioning civilization

and more of course...

These are just some of notes this book has compelled me to take thus far.

(I kept accidentally spelling civilization as "cizilization" ha.)

Have you read the book?

What do you think?

Speciesisim

2010-02-06T01:49:00.000-08:00

"Nations breed for human greed.

In vain they suffer under false creed.

For tyranny's profit, we cover our eyes.

You can shut out your conscience, but never their cries."

Tim and Eric

2010-02-03T22:03:00.000-08:00

This is probably the funniest show on the planet, watch these in order.

Animal Rights "Terrorists"

2010-02-03T21:58:00.000-08:00

LOLZ

One of my favorite vegan youtubers

2010-02-02T22:56:00.000-08:00

This is Porolita22.