Feminism, ZIonism and Bears!* Oh My!
The first has been all over the place recently - I think I saw the same link or articles about this article about tweeted ~10 times in the past 24 hours and I'm not one of those following-everyone-on-twitter types. Basically, Ashley Judd had a puffy-face - or something? I saw the picture and she just looks like a person to me, but I'm not a face connoisseur so YMMV - and then the jerk-faces began saying she was fat, old, and looked too pretty so therefore had a bunch of plastic surgery... Again, none of this makes a lick of sense to me, but yeah, it was put out there. So Ms. Judd, who I think now gets to go onto the list of people the Bee loves, wrote an article addressing the misogynistic bullshit underlying the hoopla. Let me just say, I am seriously impressed with Ashley Judd for so many reasons not in the least for her courage to call a spade a spade, but also for the panache with which she did so.
And look! Another article addressing sexism, gaze, and cultural reactions to women's bodies! Feministe explains in simple terms why people judging women's bodies is always bad and obnoxious. On one level, this is a no brainer, but I have totally fallen into the hateful trap of judging other people's bodies even more harshly when they fit the societal ideal. Lots of bodies are good and desirable, but only some are desirable to me and honestly, my body is not going to be desirable to everyone either. Great! My desirability should have no impact on my work, my friendships, my hobbies, or any aspect of my life outside of my bedroom and the same is true for every single one of you out there. Yes, it's nice to be complemented by friends/acquaintances and I'd like to be told if I have something in my teeth or am otherwise doing something that demonstrates my social ineptitude, but really? I don't need every Tom, Dick, and Harry judging and critiquing my looks or any other woman's. Judgement, even when it's favorable, is still judgement and most folks have no right to judge me.
The last link is not something I'm digging on but definitely thinking about. Gunter Grass (author of one of my favorite books, The Tin Drum) recently wrote a very political poem regarding Israel's nuclear program, Bibi's BS with Iran, and Germany's relationship with Israel. The full text in German can be found here and the English translation, here. I've seen other translations too, but I think that one fits the best with how I would translate it if I were a professional German translator person as opposed to someone who took German for 6 years and then studied there for a summer semester.
Basically, my thoughts are multifold; 1. Bibi is a crazy person who I am beginning to truly believe is bent on the annihilation of the State of Israel - why else would he make such self-destructive choices? 2. Gunter Grass was an idiot for not saying that he served in the SS from the start - didn't he live in the 1960's/70's "The Personal Is Political" era? Waiting forever tarnished everything he ever said. Proof that secrets never help you. 3. Iran, as an autocratic state, has everything to gain from war with Israel - the government does not care if lots of civilians die, they are killing their own people now anyway and taking shit for it, might as well let the Israelis kill them and be martyrs. Furthermore, the Iranian people aren't super excited about their Islamist government, but you know what makes people super patriotic? War. Duh. OMG. 4. Germany really has no right to shake fingers at anyone, and I like that Mr. Grass understands this even though he is asking Germany to shake its finger at Israel. 5. I really, really, really hope that Israeli's get it together and vote Shas and Likud and Israel Baiteinu out because for reals ya'll, they're putting the future of Zionism and the safety of Israelis everywhere at risk by acting like fools. I think that history will remember Ariel Sharon's stroke as one of the great turning points like the assassination of Archduke Ferdinand or JFK.
*JK about the bears....
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