Punk-Ass Book Jockey

Found via happydork, the article Deeply Embarrassed White People Talk Awkwardly About Race by Jen Graves [The Stranger] is a great discussion of anti-racism, and the work ahead. I recommend it!

Congratulations, USA! Jesus, it's about time.

So, most of the stuff in the HuffPost slideshow of The Most Inappropriate Obama Products On The Market was disturbing. (And I knew it would be. Why did I click? Also, not linking -- I assume you all know how to go find the Huffington Post.)

However, this made me laugh and laugh.

Bringing sexy Barack, indeed. *

Maine, freaking COME ON.

(51.8% Yes, 48.2% No, 68% of polls reporting, margin of about 14K)

Today, The Huffington Post published their pick for the sixteen sweetest photos of the Obamas.

It makes me happy that they hug each other as much as they do. Yay, hugging!

I find it really annoying that Al Franken's "don't support the rapists" amendment is causing such a kerfuffle.

I think this one's pretty straightforward. Companies who condone rape, try to sweep it under the carpet, and refuse treatment to their employees who have been raped are behaving criminally. The government shouldn't be working with criminals or helping them to make a profit.

Franken's amendment should be writ into law, like, a hundred years ago. Since that isn't possible, I'll take "now" instead.

If you're a US citizen, please consider contacting Sen. Dan Inouye (Democratic Senator from Hawai'i) and telling him how you feel. Here's his official website. I've heard that faxes and snail-mail correspondence is more likely (than email) to be paid attention to -- you could always do all three things.

You guys know about the birther "controversy," right? Some Americans, unwilling to admit that they're being dumb racist assholes, have launched a conspiracy theory that says that Barack Obama wasn't born in America, and therefore isn't legally permitted to serve as the president of the USA. The existing documentation (his birth certificate; a newspaper announcement of his birth; witnesses) aren't enough to deter them. (Another asshole tried to take it to court, and the case was dismissed, but unfortunately it was dismissed for reasons other than the plaintiff was crazy.)

ANYWAY. The birthers are constituents, and some of the politicians who represent them are Republicans, and Republican senators and representatives aren't willing to piss off any part of their dwindling support base.

All of which leads to the following video, in which a reporter from the Huffington Post goes to Washington, talks to Republican senators, and asks them "do you believe Barack Obama was born in the United States?," at which point most of the senators literally run away.

GRATE LOLZ, guys.

I don't know about you guys, but the Sheppard Fairey/ Mannie Garcia hoopla is starting to sound awfully analogous to, y'know, us.

[In case you don't know what I'm talking about, Sheppard Fairey is the artist who created the iconic red beige & blue poster of Barack Obama used extensively during the campaign. The original is now in a museum. Fairey used a photograph by AP photographer Mannie Garcia as a reference image. Now AP is suing him, claiming he was "stealing" Garcia's work, and that Fairey didn't create a work of original, significant value. And by-the-by -- although not actually I think all that important to this case, since it's pretty obvious that there is something special about that poster -- Fairey has -- I think? -- never been paid for his image.]

The case is in court right now. Fairey posted about it on BoingBoing today. (Article includes an image of Fairey's painting.)

I wish he had something like an OTW to help him out, but he seems to have a BoingBoing, which is pretty good, too. And he's got thousands of people like me pissed off on his behalf, which should also be worth something.

Found over @ Pundit Kitchen.