'Tis the season

Its that time of year again. The National American Miss people are sending out flyers. Last year's I really didn't like, and this year's I found more issues with, after a year of paying attention to feminist blogs. Lets examine this:



First, the cover



Typical Euro-centric ideal of beauty? Check. Airbrushing? Check. "Fashionable"? Check. Vaguely pained look? Check. "Sexy" Posing? Check. Looks old enough to be the mother of the audience targeted? Why is she even on this thing?



The inside



EVEN MORE European girls? Check. Posing? Check. Now onto the highlighted stuff. That's were it gets really insidious.

• "Makeup is not allowed on our participants ages 4-12 during the event." Well, that sure didn't stop you from airbrushing their pictures, did it?


• "The National American Miss pageants are dedicated to celebrating America's greatness and encouraging its future leaders." Apparently "America's greatness" is little pretty white girls. Also: to be a leader and a girl, you must be pretty. No two ways about it.


• "You'll gain... self-confidence...You'll feel good about yourself." Yes, I'm sure it will help boost the Hispanic girl from my old hometown who also received this flyer's self-confidence that the only girls pictured on the sides are clearly European and the overweight girl down the street will feel better about herself when all the girls there are thin.


• "If not accepted into the pageant..." Way to judge a girl on her looks when she's supposed to be a "future leader".


• "The total fee for the pageant is $440." Well, my goodness, that sure explains why there's pretty much just white girls on this! You only want people with half a thousand dollars lying around! Poor people, obviously, are ugly; and unfit to associate with you until they can cut food or utilities bills to pay for this.

And the back

Finally, some token racial diversity! Posing? Check. Airbrushing? Check. Ridiculously happy smiles? Check. People who are clearly models with their perfectly white teeth and shaped eyebrows who are surely not the sort of people who would actually be at this? Check.

One last highlighted thing:
"All you'll need is:

• A prom dress or evening gown
• A suit or dress for interview
• Official production number t-shirt outfit (available on pageant weekend for a nominal charge)"

Say it with me people: Hidden Costs! So lets say you manage to scrape up half a thousand dollars to go to this thing. Now they want you to buy a prom dress! And a suit! And a t-shirt for "a nominal charge"! Turns out you need more like another $430 there!

Total cost: $870. Way to raise the bar. Now they only want you if you've got about a thousand dollars lying around! Now I know why the popular pretty girls on TV are always rich whites! They're the only ones with enough money to be official.

Congratulations, National American Miss pageants. You have now officially sent the most racist and classist bit of mail I have ever seen.

Milwaukee County Superviser John Chianelli Endorses Sexual Assaults

Supervisors call for firing of county mental health chief
Milwaukee Offers up Mentally Ill Women as Sexual Bait to Soothe Violent Male Inmates- Candidate for Governor Supports

Let me outline everything that is wrong about this.

• One, rape and sexual abuse should never be a trade-off for anything. If Milwaukee has a problem with violence in male wards, then something should be done to curb the violence such as keeping the inmates away from each other.
• Two, essentially, what they are doing is allowing things such as rape and sexual abuse in state-sponsored facilities. I fail to see how this is in any way a good idea, as both rape and sexual assualt are illegal.
• Three, they are devauling women. They are telling women that they are expendable, tools, and it does not matter if they are hurt as long as it somehow helps men.
• Four, they are showing callous disregaurd toward persons with medical conditions. I am quite sure that people with psychiatric problems are covered by the Americans With Disabilities Act. Again, this is illegal.
• Five, sexual assault and rape are simply different forms of violence than beatings, scratching, biting, and whatever else the facility was having problems with. Trading one sort of violence for another sort solves no problem, it simply reinforces the pattern and adds even more to the things be fixed later.
• Six, it would seem that they are operating off the 1950s stereotype that women are somehow more docile or more likely to quell violence by their mere prescene. This is clearly wrong, as there are 100 men born for every 104 women and the world still has problems such as war, theft, and general violence.
• Seven, whatever causes the violence in the first place will not be magically cured, it will just be redirected. Again, this solves nothing.

Send an e-mail to Candidate Scott Walker at info@scottwalker.org, and one to John Chianelli at john.chianelli@milwcnty.com.

Parade and Times Magazine

I had some Parade articles pointed out to me today. Barred from responding on the website by my lack of account, I'm talking about it here.

Article One:
"Developed World Leads on Gay Rights"

Countries that have Legal Same-Sex Marriage:

1. Canada
2. Belgium
3. Spain
4. The Netherlands
5. Norway
6. Sweden
7. South Africa
8. ...Unspecified others

Countries where homosexual acts are punishable by death:

1. Iran
2. Saudi Arabia
3. United Arab Emirates
4. Yemen
5. Mauritania
6. Parts of Nigeria and Sudan

Places where sanctions seem to be easing:

1. China
2. Singapore
3. Cuba
4. Nepal

Shouldn't America be sad that South Africa, of all people, is beating them in legalizing gay/lesbian marriages?

Article Two (An Ask Marilyn Question):

I was born in the US and have worked in countries with less wealth. Americans are the biggest complainers of all the cultures I've experienced. Any ideas why?

I have an idea.

Blame the Constituion. It's almost a legal responsiblity, certaintly a legal right, to complain loudly and publicly, as often as possible. It's called the First Amendment. Americans grow up with the proud tradition of public complaining; about taxes and wars and whatever was wrong with the government that week, ingrained in them from the time they can understand what's going on around them. America was pretty much founded on people complaining.

Complaining is an integeral part of America culture, government, and life.

-

Today, I read Times Magazine's "100 Most Influential People of the Year". Here's a selection of some you've probably never heard of (and a few you have).

• President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva (Brazil). Founding member of the Workers' Party, jailed for leading a strike. "What led him to politics in the first place?...it was when, at age 25, he watched his wife Maria die during the eighth month of her pregnancy, along with their child, because they couldn't afford decent medical care. There's a lesson for the world's billionaires: let people have good health care, and they'll cause much less trouble for you."
• Yukio Hatayoma (Japan). Formed a counter-party to the Liberal Democratic Party, broke it's "virtual monopoly on power in 2009".
• Prime Minister Salam Fayyad (Palestine). "...a passionate advocate of the Palestinian cause with a clear vision of the unequivocal, nonviolent path to statehood and peace with Israel."
• Mayor Annise Parker (Houston, Texas). "...lesbian businesswoman with three kids and a longtime partner." "...she would focus on her city's $100 million budget shortfall during her time in office."
• Bo Xilai (China). Former mayor, former governor, former commerce minister. "There [Chongqing] he launched a crackdown on organized crime that has seen more than 3,000 suspects arrested, including the former chief of police."
• Robin Li (China). CEO of Baidu, a Chinese search engine. "Even before Google created a furor by refusing to censor its search engine, Baidu has been handily whipping it in China."
• Sheik Khalifa bin Zayed al-Nahyan of Abu Dhabi, President of the United Arab Emirates. Bailed Dubai out of its real estate crash. "The prince has been a sober steward of Abu Dhabi's oil wealth and is planning for a post-oil future: the emirate aims to be a world leaser in sustainable energy."
• Neil Patrick Harris (America). Actor. "The public's perception of gay men is shifting because of this guy, and they'll be too entertained to notice."
• Lea Michele (America). Actress, singer, creator of the Liv Aid breast-self-exam device. "...as Rachel Berry on the hit TV show Glee, she is inspiring young people to get involved in musical programs in schools and encouraging communities to fund them..."
• Han Han (China). Novelist, racecar driver, blogger. "He doesn't focus on the mundane details of his daily life or celebrity gossip. Instead, he zeroes in on the ills of contemporary Chinese society, his barbed posts targeting topics from official venality to the failings of a state-produced movie about Confucious."
• Elizabeth Warren (America). Chair of the Congressional Oversight Panel, attorney, law professor. "She minds the government's purse strings." "...a thankless high-profile government position overseeing the $700 billion taxpayer bailout of the US financial industry."
• Jaron Lanier (America). Composer, preformer, computer scientist, philospher, author "You Are Not A Gadget". "...he celebrates the potential of the Internet but also laments the way its misuse can suppress the individual voice."
• Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew (Singapore). Former Minister Mentor of Singapore. "Lee inspired his polyglot population to become the intellectual and technical center of the region."
• Comissioner of Rhode Island schools Deborah Gist (Rhode Island). "When Deborah Gist became Comissioner of Rhode Island schools in 2009, she pledged to make every decision in the best interests of children- something we've heard before and rarely seen happen. Then she started doing it."
• Amartya Sen (India). Author, philospher, professor. "His notion of measuring human development is now central to the work of the UN and the World Bank."
• Justice Sonia Sotomayor (America). Supreme Court Justice. "...she would bring to the bench a deep understanding of how most people who walk down Broadway, or Main Street, live their lives."
• Mir-Hossein Mousavi (Iran). Leader of the Green Movement, 2009 Presidential Candidate. "...Mousavi, 68, and those in his Green movement understand that the revolution's broken promises must be fulfilled and that their nonviolent protests for change must be Iran's true path: governments must be formed at the ballot box, not at bullet point."
• Temple Grandin (America). Animal Scientist. "...an extraordinary source of inspiration for autisitc children, their parents- and all people." "...she has developed corrals for cattle that improve their quality of life by reducing stress."
• Nay Phone Latt (Burma). Poet, blogger, recipient of PEN/Barbara Goldsmith Freedom to Write Award. "...the voice of a generation of Burmese who are finding ways around an aging regime's desperate censorship. When the junta there cracked down on Buddist-monk-led demonstrations in 2007 and restricted press coverage, Nay Phone Latt's blog was a go-to source for international journalists. For this, he was arrested and is serving 12 years."
• Reem Al Numery (Yemen). Child bride. "When I protested, my dad gagged me and tied me up. After the wedding, I tried to kill myself twice."
• Zahra Rahnavard (Iran). Artist, educator, organizer in Iran's Green Party. "The woman Ahmadinejad fears."
• Malalai Joya (Afghanistan). Ex-Iranian Parliament member, revolutionary. "To be so lucky as to become literate in a place where girls are shrouded and denied even fresh air is close to a miracle. To start underground schools and educate girls under the noses of turbaned, self-appointed defenders of virtue and forbidders of vice is truly extraordinary. But to get a seat in parliament and refuse to be silent in the face of the Taliban and warlord zealots shows true fiber. When Malalai Joya did this, her opponets responded in the usual way: expulsion from parliament, warnings, intimidation and attempts to cut her life short."
• Will Allen (Milwaukee, America). Urban farmer. "Everybody, regardless of their economic means, should have access to the same healthy, safe, affordable food that is grown naturally."

My inspired rules. Feel free to follow them if you so choose.

Explanation for this last post.

1. If you have to think about it twice, don't do it.



2. Be mindful about your body language.



3. Act mature and exercise self-restraint.



4. Don't talk bad about people.



5. Think of others first.



6. Share Knoweldge.



7. Think of consequences.



8. Use titles, like "Sir", "Mr", "Mrs.", "Ms." and "Ma'am".



9. Never assume a "Mrs." title.



10. Success comes at a price. Remember it.



11. Attempt not to assume; first appearences aren't everything but they are useful.



12. Cultivate an image you can live with.



13. At the end of the day, all you are is all you made of yourself.



14. Play impartiality



15. Practice integrity, and to maintain it, admit when your views change and why.



16. Make sure there is good reason behind a change in thought.



17. Keep perspective.



18. Set an example.



19. Goals are little wishes. Know what you want.



20. Live by your standards.



21. Step down if you cannot do the job. Admit you cannot do it; and delegate the tasks.



22. Be flexible in changing your plans.



23. Research and admit when you do not know what you are talking about.



24. Be conscious of what you are saying.



25. Think ahead.



26. Do not say "uh", "um", or "like" excessively when speaking.



27. You can take a second to pause when you speak.



28. Connect information.



29. Do not use words you do not know the meaning of.



30. Remember your duties.



31. Keep responsibility and cupability with your actions and words.



32. Act and behave with honor.


33. Public personae can be different from private personae; but do not make them radically different.


34. Stay honest about your past.


35. Be careful with your lies.


36. Power is a means to an end of doing your duty; an ends in and of itself.


37. Know your bounds.


38. Try again.No matter how far you go, you can come back. It may just be much harder than it could have been earlier.


39. Violence can be a solution, but it is an unfavorable one.


40. "I respectfully disagree."


41. Be able to argue and anticipate the other parts of a debate.


42. Read Sun Tzu's "The Art of War" and keep it to heart.


43. Stay polite in your arguements.


44. If you must answer a question you are unprepaired for, say "No Comment" or "I polietly decline to answer your question".


45. If you cannot decide, say polite drivel.


46. Go where the smart people are going.


47. Keep intelligent people around you.


48. Keep good company.


49. Stay true to yourself.


50. Keep working.


51. Collect business cards.


52. Ask


53. Say Thank You.


54. Work on it.


55. Speak your mind.


56. Don't use social networking sites; or use sparingly.


57. Be mindful of what you say and do in public.


58. Err on the side of apology and ettiqute; as well as politeness.