Friday, February 29, 2008

Down the Drain

"It was draining," said Toby Blaine Dixon after being acquitted following a 3 day trial in the sexual assault of a minor. Here we have a case where a 14 year old girl was sexually assaulted while she was intoxicated and due to lack of witnesses and perhaps her demographic, her assaulter walks away 'tired'. Although the judge was pretty sure Dixon was guilty, and that the girls is credible, she is unreliable. Not only that, but:

She had a tear, bruising and abrasions to her vagina, injuries that suggested -- though not conclusively -- that she had been sexually assaulted, according to a doctor's testimony.
How can tearing, bruising, and abrasions to a vagina not be conclusive of sexual assault? Well what a fucking relief for Toby - it must have been so HARD! You know, good thing his penis wasn't torn, cut and bruised or he might have been really fatigued by the trial.

Wednesday, February 27, 2008

Arrest

Wendy Hewko's murderer has been arrested.
May her family and friends now find some peace.

myfree[?]implants


My thanks to Himbly for the link to this hideous site out of San Diego: My Free Implants. Too good to be true? Not so much... all you have to do is whore yourself out to a benefactor!

Ladies:
Have you ever wanted bigger breasts? But couldn't afford the expensive costs of surgery?
Here is your opportunity to earn Free Breast Implants!
Free Saline Implants
Breast Augmentation
Free Silicone Implants
'Gummy Bear' Implants
Free Boob Job


Gents:
Help the girl of YOUR dreams, get the body of her dreams. Develop a connection with a girl of your choice and help her earn Free Breast Implants!
Interact with Real Girls
Receive Custom Photos
Send Ladies Donations
Receive Custom Videos
Chat with Girls Online

Wow. So all for FREE, all the ladies have to do is send "custom photos" ("These pictures are one of the key components towards achieving your goals."), "custom videos" and "more!" More?

On the FAQ page of the site, one question is, "Do I have to pose naked?"

Response:
"Not at all. The content of the pictures you post is entirely up to you. Some ladies choose to reward donors with sexy photos, and the range of "sexy photos" varies greatly from person to person."

How long does it take to get implants?
The time frame all depends on your level of participation. The more time and effort you are willing to put in, the more quickly you will be able to get your implants. MyFreeImplants is not simply a picture site; it is a community with members who interact and actively participate on a regular basis. Because of this the time frame is different for each and every person.

Sick.

Tuesday, February 26, 2008

Smudget Shmoooes.


As usual, the conservatives turn their back on working-class, low income families and high five the rich corporations:

All indications in the run-up to budget day pointed to the NDP and Bloc Québécois opposing the budget, and the party leaders did little to dispel that Tuesday.

"This is a budget that clearly fails the working families of Canada," NDP Leader Jack Layton said.

"You simply have to note that the large corporations are getting six times as much of a tax subsidy as we see in spending for programs and for the needs of Canadians.

"In fact, individual taxpayers are going to have to pay 12 per cent more of the cost of government, while corporations will pay 14 per cent less."

Mr. Layton called the Conservative budget approach to setting funding priorities "completely unfair."

"There is nothing here to train the doctors that families need," Mr. Layton said.

"There is nothing to help deal with prescription drug costs that are really tough on families now. There's nothing for affordable housing. It is not a budget that New Democrats can support."

Mechanics of a Face Lift


Via Boing Boing, Blogger at Modern Mechanixs found this advertisement for a face lift mask from 1933:

A NEW facial harness now on the market lays claim to the ability to improve milady’s beauty. How the device is worn is illustrated in the photo at the left. Sagging chins are lifted and unbecoming wrinkles are smoothed out around the lips, cheeks and forehead, manufacturers claim. It is worn overnight, removed in morning.
Times haven't changed; we see the same propoganda but with knives and a "doctor" working the magic.

Monday, February 18, 2008

Out of Town

Hi lilith attack readers! Sorry no blogging lately, I am enjoying sunny skies in Mexico. Talk at you later next week!!!!!!!!!
LA

Friday, February 15, 2008

Dildo Court Decision!

It has been decided in court that Texas' ban on Sex Toys violates the 14th Amendment of the Constitution, the right to Privacy.

Phil Harvey, president of Adam & Eve Inc., said the 5th Circuit Court's decision was a big step forward. He said his business plans to expand to sell in stores and at home parties, something company consultants had been fearful to do because of the Texas law.

"I think it's wonderful, but it does seem to me that since Texas was one of three states in the country _ along with Mississippi and Alabama _ that continued to outlaw the sale of sex toys and vibrators, that it was probably past time," Harvey said Wednesday.
Past time is right... for a legal pastime!

Thursday, February 14, 2008

Battle Cry - URGENT ACTION NEEDED

Baby Steps to attempt the Re-Criminilization of Abortion in Canada Taking Place on February 29, 2008From the BreadnRoses Forum:

Now, hard on the heels of that [the 20th Anniversary of the Morgentaler decision], we've got to roll up our sleeves again. But this time is no celebration. This is dead serious.

Birth Pangs covered the 'Unborn Victims of Violence' bill here and here.

This is a private member's bill that has already had some debate and is scheduled for more on February 29, Sadie Hawkins Day, the day women are allowed to ask men to marry them, dance with them, and/or respect their human rights. A vote on it is expected on March 5.

While pretending to 'protect' pregnant women, what this bill really is is a backdoor attempt to create 'personhood' rights for fetuses -- a necessary first step in re-criminalizing abortion.

Private member's bill, you say? Pish. They never go anywhere.

Think again. The Bloc and the NDP intend to whip their members to vote against it. The Cons, well, they're hopeless. But the Libs do NOT intend to whip their members. And we know how very squishy some Libs are when it comes to women's rights.

In other words, fans of freedom, this stinking piece of fetus-fetishist crap may well pass.
PLEASE SEND A MESSAGE TO DION.

Skinny Bitch

Brilliant Interviews by Anna Maria Tremonti on CBC's The Current re: Skinny Bitch, the extreme Vegan diet book.

C-Love on V-Day



Via Rawstory:

Conservative bloggers put on their 'Offended' hats Thursday when actress Jane Fonda quoted a crass word for the female anatomy from a monologue she is set to perform on the subject.
Cunt. Cunt. Cunt. Cunt. Cunt. Cunt. Cunt. Cunt. Cunt. Cunt. Cunt. Cunt.

Wednesday, February 13, 2008

Flower & Power


In 2000 I spent 3 months in Western Europe, mostly Holland, exploring my heritage and sitting quietly on canals and at church doors breating in my ancestors' air and trying to make sense of love:

The Garden of Love
I went to the Garden of Love,
And saw what I never had seen:
A chapel was built in the midst,
Where I used to play on the green.

And the gates of this chapel were shut,
And "Thou shalt not" writ over the door;
So I turned to the Garden of Love,
That so many sweet flowers bore,

And I saw it was filled with graves,
And tombstones where flowers should be;
And priests in black gowns were walking their rounds,
And binding with briers my joys and desires.
-William Blake
On one day, in plus 42 degree heat and 95 percent humidity blowing in off the North Sea, I visited the Aalsmeer flower auction, the primary distributing warehouse supplier of flowers for the world (250 football fields large). Walking for miles, it seemed, along the catwalk above the trolleys and forklifsts, the armoma of every type of flower you can possibly imagine wafted up to me in the steel garden. I saw the commodity of flowers in the auction rooms while flowers on carts were rolled across a room on tracks with currencies flashing and distributors and bidders waving arms like Windmills. It was all quite extraordinary and surreal.

As I learn this morning, though, not all this flower business is sweetly aromatic and magical:
"Recent research," he points out, "shows that flowers flown from Africa can use less energy than those produced in Europe, because they are not grown in heated greenhouses… This is about social justice and making it easier for African people to make a decent living."

But making a decent living can be tough. Last year, a report from the charity War on Want highlighted the human cost of the flowers we import. Many workers in Colombia and Kenya earn less than half a living wage. Miscarriages, birth defects and other health problems associated with toxic chemicals are rising fast.

Then there is the ecological damage. Lake Naivasha, on whose banks many of Kenya's large plantations are sited, is now severely polluted, and water levels have dropped dramatically. Attempts are being made to rectify matters, but it seems that someone always ends up paying the price for our cheap flowers.
No more gushing over petals. The gardens don't only have tombstones and monks, but there are trolls lurking there. You can read the entire article here.

Into the Bedroom

Underage Sex on Thursday will be heavily policed this Valentine's Day in Thailand:

Despite its reputation for prostitution, mostly Buddhist Thailand is a fairly conservative country where public hand-holding or kissing are rare and alleged promiscuity among young people, especially girls, is a cause of moral panic.
Come Valentine's Day and I can't help but think about my first real smooch; I can still feel that wet french kiss from my grade 8 beau on Valentine's Day. I actually swooned (yeah - knees gave out) while wiping the slobber from my chin. Godde he was sloppy.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Monday, February 11, 2008

In Pursuit of an Oligarch

The Globe and Mail today prints an interesting report on Russian women chasing oligarchs for financial stability:

It's a tempting aspiration for starry-eyed young women. Russia's moneyed-men set don't shy from spending lavishly. They drop thousands of dollars a night at Moscow's most exclusive nightclubs, like Diaghilev Project, where, until it burned down Thursday afternoon, a VIP booth started at $10,000. They take private jets to vacation spots in the Alps and the south of France. Squiring beautiful women is chief among their pursuits.
Sounds familiar to me. Reminds me of lots of the puck bunnies in town; drooling after the Flames and frequenting the clubs the hockey stars party at in pursuit of lots of bucks. The surpising part of this article, though, in in the description of classes designed to teach young women how to "conquer" an oligarch:
Mr. Radovsky, 42, said the key for women wanting to attract powerful men is to act powerless.

A gifted sterva, Mr. Radovsky explains to his rapt students, is someone who can control men. There are a handful of roles men prefer in women, he said - sexy, playful, haughty. But tonight he's teaching the benefits of behaving like a servile child.

"Act like a four-year-old girl," he says, pacing the studio. "Your mother probably told you if you want something to get it yourself," he explains. "Get that out of your head. You have to be a funny bunny when he comes home from work with his paycheque."

One by one the women practise their Lolita acts. Holding two oranges, Mr. Radovsky asks one student to beg for them. "It's so elementary. If you act like a baby, the man will treat you like a little baby and want to give you everything."

She kneels at Mr. Radovsky's feet, looks up and asks for the orange. He replies that he doesn't have any. The women is stumped.

"If the guys says 'No,' just keep asking. You have to be confident in your role as a baby."

Exasperated, Mr. Radovsky calls in his wife, a 23-year-old former model. She throws herself at her husband's knees and begins to cry. Mr. Radovsky turns the oranges over and she trots out of the room in her high heels.

Mr. Radovsky said his schools are designed to empower women.
Oh I get it!!! Acting Powerless is empowering! It all makes sense, now. The article doesn't offer an effective rhetort when it cites the objection to these behaviour and conquering courses from a woman who writes novels about the rich and powerful and is herself married to a power monger. Jane Armstrong could have concluded her article with a real pow had she referenced a woman with a lion's voice against such oligarch oggling and the growth of feminism in Russia. The only nod to women's advancement is a tiny paragraph mid-story:
But some critics fear the Russian craze to marry up is sending the wrong message to women, who are starting to make real gains in Russia's expanding middle class.
Clearly there's an important motive for dialogue on Social structure and justice, here, when there does happen to be an abundance of women seeking men purely for day to day wealth in spite of living under an abusive husband.

I Love Naomi Wolf!



Monday Mid-Afternoon Chuckle.

Friday, February 8, 2008

Mad World


This story has a bit of a Donnie Darko element, doesn't it? Toilet water Ice Missile? Gross:

Marian was shaken by the crash but was relieved to have escaped injury, her husband said.

"It was pretty traumatic, talking to her friend and suddenly it feels like the roof explodes. She was pretty shook up," he said.

"She's fine. A cup of coffee helped. And lots of attention."
Lots of attention? What a strange thing to say after a very strange incident.

Thursday, February 7, 2008

No Pain No Gain... In Bed?

Not my fortune cookie... high heels are always a pain on my back and shins. I don't believe a word of this:
High Heels May Improve Sex Life

She said her study of 66 women under 50 found that those who held their foot at a 15 degree angle to the ground - the equivalent of a two inch heel - had as good posture as those who wore flat shoes, and crucially showed less electrical activity in their pelvic muscles.
This may be the most bogus "evidence" for a study's conclusion I've ever read!

Again, check out these digrams for an explanation of why high heels can be so bad.

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Vulval Altar



I read an article this past weekend in Russ Kick's "Everything You Know About God is Wrong" about a certain series of carvings on the columns of the Papal Altar in St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican, written by Kristan Lawson, and I just can't get the images out of my head. On the columns of the base of the high altar are carvings by Bernini, supposedly of the Pope Urban VIII's coat of arms. The strange and wonderful thing about the series, though, is that the carvings are a series of swelling vulvas with explicit detail of a woman's genitals. Take a look at the image and in addition to the woman's face you'll see ovaries, fallopian tubes, the uterus, and detailed outer/inner labia and even a clitoral hood.

Following a brief Google search, I can find few references to these particular carvings at the base of the baldacchino. As such, the notes they do get are brief. The majority explanation is simply that they are the coat of arms of the Barberini (Pope Urban VIII) family; and sometimes the explanations expand to explain that Pope Urban VIII commissioned the carvings in thanks that his favourite niece survived a life-threatening labour and birth of a child. Certainly, the carvings do depict a progression of labour with a swelling womb. But when I look at this Pope's Coat of Arms,


and compare it with the carving,


I can't help but note the graphic sexual transformation of the "coat of arms" and suppose that there is a deeper signification. And as Lawson points out, the baldacchino in St. Peter's Basilica may be the most holy of holy sites in the Catholic world. It is built atop the head of the Christian church: St. Peter's tomb. The Pope alone is permitted to mount it. And at the base of the columns; the very supporting columns that make up the high altar; are a series of not coats of arms, but vulvas holding it all up.


On the most holy of places in the Catholic world, I can't believe that these images are simply a tip of the hap of a pope to his niece. I don't understand why, with the bee being a symbol of immortality and resurrection, there isn't mass speculation that perhaps the carvings signify Mary's pregnancy with Christ. Why would the column's supporting bases be something so simple as a difficult labour of a relative? For a religion that venerates the mother mary why would the Vatican triviolize these exquisite carvings on the Pope's High Altar?
I nor Kristan Lawson can offer concluding answers or evidence for why Bernini's vulval carvings [click here for more images] lie at the base of the baldacchino. I've never been to Rome but should I find myself there I will be taking a close look at these magnificent carvings and taking special note of the lack of reference material regarding the images on the very base of the massive baldacchino.

Tuesday, February 5, 2008

Another Assault


I know this path well having lived in Bridgeland, walking to and from work along the river. On Friday a woman was attacked and assaulted by the Langevin Bridge by a man the police are saying had sexual motivations. A passerby, though, heard the cries and hollared out that someone was being assaulted. The attacker fled upon the comotion by the passerby and the woman he was punching was able to run to a business and call the police. The problem I have with the police's press release is here:

Police believe this attempted assault was sexually-motivated.
"Attempted assault? Wha!? Attempted? Excuse me, but a man snuck up on her, put his hand over her mouth, draged her under a bridge, threw her to the ground, and proceded to hit her. This is an assault, not an attempted assault. I'm relieved to know that the woman he attacked does not require medical attention although I hope she will be able to find courage to deal with this assault and peace to walk after sundown. She is in my thoughts.

Monday, February 4, 2008

Divine Sexism


I read Men are From Mars Women are From Venus in High School and found it, to be frank, full of shit. John Gray's got a new book out, Why Mars and Venus Colide, and it's about stress. In this article in the Globe and Mail, Gray explains that marriage stress is increasing because women are entering the work force. Apparently women just can't quite cope the way men can. Solution: The Salon, compliments of your man!!

A woman may thrive in the workplace but she needs to go elsewhere to get her fix of stress-reducing oxytocin, he explains. She needs to go get her hair done, have a manicure, hug a baby or grow some vegetables in a garden, among other choices.

Her partner can help. "The following list of suggestions will give men some ideas of how they can promote oxytocin production in their partners," he writes. "If he does one or two of these things, he'll see a change in his partner right away." The actions include "notice her new blouse," "hug her when you get up" and "take her apple or berry picking."
Now here's an implicit warning: Don't question what "Dr." Gray has to say; God tells him what to write. How depressing to think that one of the world's best "gender" self-help books is written by a sexist crazy person who hears voices in his head.

Eve-Teasing

There's sites like Hollaback, and then there's the prospect of true punishment for cat calling harassing assholes:

NEW DELHI: The National Commission for Women (NCW) has suggested making harassment of women, including eve-teasing, non-bailable offences. Also, those who are witness to such attacks and do not come to the rescue of the victim should be made liable to prosecution.
As pointed out last week by Justice is a Woman with a Sword, seems that in Canada even police officers get away with harassing while in uniform. We give the finger and we get called a bitch, cunt, whore, etc. and as once suggested to me, that my daddy never taught me to accept a compliment. Pushaw. What can we say? I've used "suck my dick" (in english and portuguese) and it's responded to with "Please!" I've recently been working on my blow a kiss but it turns into the bird... and the struggle continues to get my power back when it's taken from me with embarassing hollars and leers. What works for you? Do share...

Friday, February 1, 2008

Queer and Dear

I'll declare right now I'm terrible at drawing, coloring, painting, and tracing. But there's one thing I love drawing, though, and that's robots; espcially sad ones. It's such a lovely contradiction to have robots full of emotion and experience. Sentient Developments pointed me this afternoon to a book review about a queer robot at playschool:

Heteronormativity in Preschool Robotics

One of my duties as uncle is the reading of bedtime stories. Sometimes I'm amazed by the content. Håkan Bråkan och roboten Rex by Sören Olsson, Anders Jacobsson and Eva Linden is an interesting take on queer robotics as male capitulation in the kindergarten matriarchy.

The basic story is about Håkan who has a cool killer robot toy he wants to bring to his preschool. But the rules are strict: no toy weapons, no toys relating to war or violence in any form. Håkan of course disobeys, trying to sneak his dear robot under the radar or claim it is not a warlike machine (despite the nuclear death rays and the "Freeze, or I will shoot!" voice). In a series of scenes depicting the unreliability of friends, the manipulative power of the teacher, girl peer pressure and Håkan's desperate attempts to avoid cooties Rex the killer robot ends up Brandon the love robot and finally just Rex the comic relief robot. It is a powerful portrait of how some men experience the total loss of their power to define the meaning of their gender to hegemonic political correctness.

Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of the book is the deeply entrenched gender stereotypes of the preschool. While the kids are individually quite themselves, as groups they organize into marriage and romance obsessed girls and the violence and adventure obsessed boys. I actually felt while reading it to my niece that it would have been more refreshing to break these stereotypes than to reinforce them. The transformations (or rather, emasculation) of Rex only underscores this: Rex may end up a rather queer robot, but that is only allowed by the preschool microsociety because it becomes funny and unthreatening - the nice gay guy. In the end the matriarchy stands unchallenged, tolerant heteronormativity still remains and Håkan has learned to trust and love Big Mother.
I so wish I could read this book and see more of the robot illustrations. It is troubling that the Sandberg criticizes the gender stereotypes in the book yet reinforces sexuality stereo types when lumping Rex into the stereotype that a) male power = war and agression ; b) love and humour = gay.

Sexy in Silver

Here's an interesting article in American Sexuality Magazine [via Alternet] by Anne Kreamer. She discusses her experience and promotion of being naturally grey and has dismissed the use of hair dyes. I'd be interested in reading her book as the article only briefly touches on her public experience and highlights the reaction of men to her silver locks. I would like to know the public's reaction to her on a more intimate level. As my colleague has expressed to me, when a woman turns 50 she often feels that she has become invisible, undervalued, and under appreciated both sexually and intellectually. How has Ms. Kreamer's grey hair affected her close relationships with family and friends? I admire her for going and growing grey. Although not yet a concern I am a sucker for hair color and am currently a dark brunette pretender. I know it's bad for my hair. I know it is expensive. But I keep doing it for a change of mirror scenery. My mother is struggling with the upkeep of her hair color, often musing that she should go and grow grey. Perhaps we could both reconsider our mane priorities and have a hair challenge to challenge the notion that our natural characteristics just aren't good enough!