Breaking News: Benazir Bhutto assassinated at political rally


Pakistan’s former prime minister and leading contender to serve for the third time was killed today in a suicide bomb attack. Bhutto was the first woman to lead a Muslim country, and served as an inspiration for many.
This was not the first attempt on her life; 134 people were killed in a previous attack just a few months ago. During today’s campaign rally, she was shot in the neck and chest immediately before a man blew himself up, killing at least 20 others.
It is a very sad day.


Pakistan’s former prime minister and leading contender to serve for the third time was killed today in a suicide bomb attack. Bhutto was the first woman to lead a Muslim country, and served as an ...

Not Oprah’s Book Club: Learning to Drive

I feel like I’m way late to this party (or is it a roller derby match?) but nonetheless, I wanted to put my two cents in on Katha Pollitt’s Learning to Drive.
When the book initially launched in September, Pollitt got some nasty reviews claiming that the essays only amounted to undignified groaning and moaning. I smelled an anti-feminist rat then, but the stench was totally confirmed when I read this moving, hilarious, brave collection over the last week.
First of all, these are personal essays not political manifestos. There is political content, and of course Pollitt is known for her biting systemic analysis in The Nation, but why would any reader be so inflexible as to not give ...

I feel like I’m way late to this party (or is it a roller derby match?) but nonetheless, I wanted to put my two cents in on Katha Pollitt’s Learning to Drive.
When the book initially ...

What’s in a test?

After talks last spring in New Jersey of making HIV testing mandatory for pregnant women, we find that the state has decided to move forward and enforce new legislation.
The law requires health care providers to make the test a part of routine prenatal care, with an “opt out” exception. However, newborns will also be required to be tested if the mother is HIV positive or her HIV status is unknown.
We had some really good discussion here around the issue, where commenter Sassygirl pointed out the ACLU’s position with some background information on mandatory testing for pregnant women and newborns, which explains that the testing of newborns is more or less senseless. It also features ...

After talks last spring in New Jersey of making HIV testing mandatory for pregnant women, we find that the state has decided to move forward and enforce new legislation.
The law requires health care providers ...

When diets and babies collide

Haven’t you ever wanted society’s unwavering insistence that all women have babies be combined with some good old fashioned diet mania? No? Well too bad. Enter The Fertility Diet.
Okay, okay. I realize that there’s probably some truth to the idea that what you choose to eat has some bearing on your fertility. But I can’t help but find the idea of women dieting for every fucking reason in their life – from losing baby fat to gaining baby! – hilarious (in a sad way).

Haven’t you ever wanted society’s unwavering insistence that all women have babies be combined with some good old fashioned diet mania? No? Well too bad. Enter The Fertility Diet.
Okay, okay. I ...

“Choose State-Approved Two-Parent Adoption” license plates

We’ve written before about “Choose Life” license plates, which several states offer to benefit anti-choice groups. Well, it turns out Florida is raking in money from the “Choose Life” plates faster than they can spend it. Why, you ask?

Women can’t receive help from the program if they plan to parent their children. It was established strictly for women who plan to give their babies up for adoption and need financial help during the pregnancy.

Wow. So despite the fact that the number of single mothers is on the rise, the state of Florida is won’t use the “Choose Life” cash to help them out. These license plates should really say “Choose Adoption.”

Arnall said she’s frustrated by the ...

We’ve written before about “Choose Life” license plates, which several states offer to benefit anti-choice groups. Well, it turns out Florida is raking in money from the “Choose Life” plates faster than they can spend ...

I may not be a conspiracy theorist, but. . .


I find this to be odd. Apparently, the MPAA has rather inconsistent guidelines for what is considered inappropriate verse appropriate imagery for movie promotions. Via Think Progress, the poster for Alex Gibney’s new documentary, Taxi to the Dark Side, has been rejected because it is not “suitable” for all audiences. The poster shown here, is an image of two soldiers walking a hooded person away. Censorship is usually fickle and inconsistent, but for some reason it appears that when torture is fictitious, graphic imagery is appropriate. It is when it represents reality, it must be censored.
For example, can we forget the lovely image for the movie, Captivity?


Amanda at Think Progress
...


I find this to be odd. Apparently, the MPAA has rather inconsistent guidelines for what is considered inappropriate verse appropriate imagery for movie promotions. Via Think Progress, the poster for Alex Gibney’s new documentary, ...

Latina women at greater risk for breast cancer?

According to U.S. researchers, a gene known to give many Jewish women a higher risk of cancer may also put U.S. Latina women at high risk.

They found that 3.5 percent of Hispanic women entered in a Northern California breast cancer registry had the BRCA1 genetic mutation, compared to 8.3 percent of Ashkenazic Jews and 2.2 percent of non-Ashkenazic white women.
Ashkenazis are members of the group of Jews that settled in central, northern, and later eastern Europe and developed Yiddish as their spoken language.
The BRCA1 gene mutation raises the risk of breast and ovarian cancer, with the risk of developing breast cancer by age 70 put at 65 percent, the researchers said. Women who find out they have ...

According to U.S. researchers, a gene known to give many Jewish women a higher risk of cancer may also put U.S. Latina women at high risk.

They found that 3.5 percent of Hispanic women entered in a ...

Fun with Feminist Flickr (leaving on a jet plane edition)


I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday season and are looking forward to a fun new year. And New Year’s Eve! (I’m going to my favorite wine bar for a ridiculous eight course dinner thing. Yum.)
Enjoy the feminist goodness above and I’ll bring you posts as often as I can–considering I’ll be on a plane back to New York for much of the day. And if anyone has any favorite feminist graffiti–point us to them in comments please! They’re my current obsession.
Pic from mhug.

I hope everyone enjoyed their holiday season and are looking forward to a fun new year. And New Year’s Eve! (I’m going to my favorite wine bar for a ridiculous eight course dinner ...
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