Gretchen Apparently October 9th is National Pro Life Cupcake Day. Did you know? It’s a day when pastries become political…poor pastries. Pressed into service on behalf of highly controversial issue which doesn’t have, so far as I can tell, any direct connection to wax paper wrappers and frosting. But, one might ask, how is this joyous … Read more
David Brooks has an interesting essay in the New York Times called The Limits of Empathy. In it he discusses the wealth of research published lately on how empathy works as a psychological response, and makes a case that it can’t and shouldn’t be considered the true foundation for morality. This is because the reaction … Read more
That the band R.E.M.’s break-up and Troy Davis’ highly controversial state mandated execution would have taken place on the same day is probably an interesting coincidence to no one but me. You see, it was at an R.E.M. concert during their “Monster” tour back in 1994 that I, as a high school student, first lifted a finger … Read more
Cross-posted from State of Formation. That the band R.E.M.’s break-up and Troy Davis’ highly controversial state mandated execution would have taken place on the same day is probably an interesting coincidence to no one but me. You see, it was at an R.E.M. concert during their “Monster” tour back in 1994 that I, as a high school student, first … Read more
Rush Limbaugh takes yet another poke at Michelle Obama for being fat. A commenter on Dispatches called Nemo writes This meme on the right that Michelle Obama is overweight is utterly bizarre to me. A glance at her should serve to debunk it. I can’t see another explanation for its persistence than racism — they … Read more
Cross-posted from State of Formation. The title of this post might sound a little obvious to many who have concluded already that Santorum is a bigot for his anti-gay sentiments. But I think it’s important to take a look at why he was wrong, specifically, when he said this in an interview with Piers Morgan: I think just because … Read more
The title of this post might sound a little obvious to most who might read it– Rick Santorum, wrong? Perish the thought! But I think it’s important to take a look at why he was wrong, specifically, when he said this in an interview with Piers Morgan: I think just because we disagree on public … Read more
What’s the point of having a dealbreaker list that you share with the world? I’m mulling this question over in my head after my blogroll linked to a post called “Dealbreakers” on Big Think. It was inspired by a post with the same name at Pandagon, which was in turn loosely based on 1) a … Read more
So Warren Jeffs is apparently in a coma. After receiving a life sentence for sexually assaulting underage FLDS followers, he has refused to eat or drink in prison and now, three weeks into that sentence, is in “critical but stable” condition. I reiterate my belief that criminals sentenced to life in prison should be able … Read more
Salon has an interview with Dan Savage titled “The evolution of Dan Savage” which is a pretty good read if you’re not very familiar with the progression of his career, and includes an interesting (to me) bit about his motivation for starting the It Gets Better Project: One of the things that was a wake-up … Read more