Well hi, ducklings.
Yes, ’tis I, your long lost internet big sister. Alive, well, and neglectful.
I’m well overdue for my the second part of my latest diatribe, but honestly, I was surprised by the depths of my anger and disappointment at the BYU and Mormon communities in getting that first part out. So I had to talk about it in therapy…for two weeks in a row. And then it was time to focus on the intricacies of international travel in a global pandemic and planning my best friend’s bachelorette party from an ocean away whilst also in the midst of said pandemic. Then the actual travel and a week’s worth of wedding events.
Long story short, I got busy.
Perhaps there will be a proper recap of the trip and wedding but in summary it was fabulous and I needed a break more than I realized. Travel is by far what I’ve missed the most in the last two years, and a solid week away did both Jeff and I a world of good.
But we’re back and spooky season is upon us, so it felt like it was time to return your regularly scheduled programme with a bundle of catch up reading. Missed you, kittens!
This is some excellent and fascinating reporting!
Misogyny is hurting men and killing women.
“Masquerade! Paper faces on parade; masquerade; hide your face so the world will never find you…”
Hoo boy this is a complicated one. But whatever your status on porn and sex work per se, OnlyFans was rare in that it was a platform on which sex workers could control their own content, their own interactions with customers and patrons, be paid for their work without inconsistent middlemen, and significantly minimize their personal risk. So…in other words…after rising to prominence and value off the back of sex worker, OF has decided to abandon sex work to be more appealing to investors…which is likely to devalue their platform product in the first place by ripping up their business model, AND make sex workers less safe. Great job, guys, did Tumblr teach you nothing? Don’t get me wrong, there is PLENTY to consider here and the dangers of sex work and exploitation are real; I’m under no illusions. But I’m not convinced that the solution to any of those problems is to prioritize the squeamishness of bankers over the autonomy of workers. EDITED TO ADD: lol.
“The past isn’t history; it isn’t even past.”
We told you we wanted LeVar Burton, but you didn’t listen and now look where we are.
Brilliant, brilliant health news.
It’s truly amazing how hard you have to work to avoid the conclusion that if you want people to have more children, you need to make children and families more viable for more people. If people can’t afford it, it’s not “essential,” it’ turned into a luxury. The very people who scream the loudest about gender roles, reproductive rates, demographics (usually spurred by some level of shameful, racist nonsense), and the important of families and almost inevitably the same people who oppose any kind of policy or practice which would make it more feasible for more people to enlarge their families. Anyway, here’s a piece on why flexible work is better for women/families.
I’m obsessed with this story.
Oh I bet it’s diving them. Don’t care. We have a moral obligation to accept them.
This hit me right in the feels.
Mentally, I’m this little guy.
Mormonism is going through it right now, you guys, and I honestly think we’re at a watershed moment.
AND also…
Speaking of Mormons, MLMs!
The kids are alright. I mean…the world is on fire, but the kids are alright and the only reason for not yeeting all hope right out the window.
Bizarrely mesmerizing piece.
Working on a theory that the erosion of other, healthier forms of community and institutions is leading to a rise in “cultish” behavior and practices all around, including social media.
But I thought the biracial American woman who stole the ginger prince was The Bad One? Mind blown. (/sarcasm)
You don’t say! (//////sarcasm)
Humor through the ages is such a complicated subject and it seldom translates through language, idiom, slang, and more. Obviously I found this article on the topic of Roman humor fascinating.
If only there were a franchise about how this could go…
The cookbook…world? Community? I have no idea how to group such a niche publishing group and its stans, but there was a scandal and it’s worth reading about.
Casual reminder: this is not a game.
Small Dog Syndrome 