Misogyny and Sexism in the News

[EnderD_503]

Originally Posted by Kobi

I agree with you. We seem to share a common paradigm. Your words are my words. Your thoughts are my thoughts. Except when they arent. Sometimes, I see things differently when my values, morals, paradigm and life conflict in ways I dont expect. I have to adjust, adapt, make choices, change perspectives etc.

There is a distinct difference, it seems, between theory and real life. Lots of things work in theory. They dont always work in real life or maybe they dont work in quite the way we expect or maybe they work in various ways for ways people at various times. Is confusing stuff.

The "choice" I was referring to involves individual perspective which may be unknown or just plain foreign to me. Take any act as an example. I might see it as sexist and misogynistic. Someone else might see the partiarchy lurking in it but feel the act was an adaptation to conditions. Someone else might not even acknowledge the patriarchy paradigm, thus they see an act as what is expected or their role in life period and they are very comfortable with that. Someone else might see the patriarchy but their behavior is more geared to exploiting the exploitation for their own benefit. Someone else might see something totally different. Thats diversity.

Wish it was simplier but it isnt. The mere fact something is observed will change its properties. That is scientific fact. Funny thing this life can be.

You also said - "Where they might have more options to make choices that aren't framed around the ingrained need to focus those choices on the desires of cissexed hetero men."

We are of the same thinking and paradigm yet I dont limit my perspective to "the desires of cissexed hetero men". To me, it is much broader. It is the appearance or even just the suggestion of masculinity. Social programming runs deep, and there are perks and privileges all along the spectum of real and perceived masculinity.

Being a woman, this never occured to me until I began playing around with how best to word my id so I didnt have to keep explaining it. When I used butch or lesbutchian, I was treated differently. People related to me differently. They flirted with me differently. They "honored" my butchness in ways that were unfamiliar and uncomfortable to me because I am not male id. If I addressed something female i.e. pms, what I said could be miscontrued as a sexist comment rather than a shared female experience - because I wasnt seen as a female. It was a very weird yet enlightening kind of experience.

Of course, now, I just use lesbian and woman. Again, I am treated differently albeit in more familiar and comfortable ways. I am also mistaken for a femme more and this is ok cuz at least I am being seen as a female. And, I dont get as many perks and privileges as I used to. On the other hand, I dont get the feeling people are checking out my crotch anymore either.

Social programming works both ways tho. A femme can say something to me and I dont think twice about it. A male id person can say the exact same thing using the exact words and I want to smack him/hym upside the head. Tricky stuff this programming.

The older I get, the more I appreciate how life teaches us some interesting lessons. It is a journey of creativity not a destination. We are works in progress not a final product. In a lot of ways, it seems to me like we are making it up as we go. Sometimes we do good. Sometimes we dont. Sometimes we do good by accident not intent. Sometimes good intent turns into a unforseen fiasco.

I used to have a lot of answers. Now I have a lot more questions cuz nothing and no one is ever as simple as I would like it or them to be. The older I get, the clearer this becomes.

As far as the bolded text, I'm not sure I entirely agree. While spectrums of masculinity or "suggestions" of masculinity might mean something in the queer world, I don't think it means much in the cis, hetero world. When women are told to run around the media in short skirts and wet clothes as a marketing tool, it's not with the "masculine spectrum" in mind. It's not with butches in mind, masculine women or masculine lesbians in mind, not with masculine transmen who are attracted to woman identities in mind, not with masculine gay men in mind, not with bisexuals or pansexuals in mind. It's for the benefit of cissexed heterosexual men. They are 100% the target audience. It's to catch their attention on something capitalism wants them to consume. The world outside queer communities is still heavily reliant on the binary, and in that world there is really only one official masculinity (hence why we discuss it so damned much in queer communities ), and that is the masculinity of hetero cismen.

That's not me saying that varying perspectives on and responses to masculinity and masculine identities in the queer/trans or lgbtq communities is not valid. It totally is, and I think everyone needs to be aware of the way others might react to them, the way an environment can be made to feel safe or not, inclusive or not. And not only with regards to masculine identities. I think awareness and sensitivity is, more and more, becoming a huge part of those communities. In the rest of the world...not so much.

As far as choice. Yes, again, everyone has the choice and that can be turned into "nothing is right or wrong." But to me, if you have one specific group of people consistently dominating other groups of people throughout human history and dictating acceptable behaviours, practices and ideas and punishing those who don't fall in line...then at some point it's time to think "well gee, I wonder why that is."

The same thing today, there's a reason why the world is still cis, hetero male dominated and why women are consistently put on display and told that's their only real purpose in life.

I agree with you, though, that obviously everyone reacts differently. I was trying to get at that in my first post in response to Jo, but it didn't quite come out well. That's why I'm not a fan of the blame game. Do I think women need to open their eyes and become more aware that this isn't "just the way things are"? Yes! But do I think that not being able to break through a person's upbringing and what's been hammered into them since birth is a reason to blame them? No. Ultimately, society is the problem, and this incessant media and social broken record that claims that feminism has "succeeded enough" and that women can go "back" to being "empowered" through being objectified at every turn.

Obviously it's complicated, and I don't really aim for "theories," so much as trying to work with others to make what ever small changes can be made. But this whole problem is so soaked in to every portion of society. From criminalization, to education, to the workplace, to media geared towards young people, to health care, to personal relationships. I think all you can do is really narrow down the areas of society that have the biggest chance of affecting the way youth grow up in society. So education, health care, the prison system (which should be largely abolished, imo). And hopefully with a change in respect in younger generations, the media will eventually follow. But I don't think its every going to be those with the most power to bring about change that challenge norms..which means we have a long way to go before the media or entertainment industry ever changes with their "Real House Wives of whatever" and reality tv shows telling 8 year olds that they need to dress like Kim Kardashian and be just like her. Fuck, I was looking at this site on infant and toddler "beauty pageants" and nearly vomited. But that's what this shit amounts to, plus a kid that has to grow up thinking that's their only value in the world.

[Kobi]

Ender, I am thinking we are talking the same thing just from a different perspective.

You referenced how the media caters to a certain target audience when it objectifies women. Agreed.

I broadened the topic to how social programming goes so freakin deep that it cuts across the gender/sexual orientation spectrum.

You would think by this point in history we would have a better handle on things. You would also think after 100 years, the freakin ERA would have passed. In 2012, you wouldnt think the GOP and its religious affiliates, including its female members, would be attacking the basic rights of women with such vengence.

I hear you. I agree with you. Very complex, interdependent, interrelated caca poo. (Forgive me, I am still buzzed from the lemon Pledge.)

[DMW]

First, i have to admit that i did not read the article, i only read the post.
I should have been more careful.

Secondly,I totally agree that if the women are being used as some tool in a negative and disrespectul way...that it is wrong...and that people should ban the park.

Hopefully, i will get more time and energy to respond more of what has been posted. And read the article before commenting. I am not a troll. But, that is ok if i receive that reputation here. Might just keep me out of trouble.

[DMW]

After thinking more on the subject,...i definately don't approve of the spraying of the women. The splashing of the women. I personally, would not go to the park just for that reason. Period.

Upon further analysis, i realize that, it really isn't ok to offer discounts to women just to get them to wear miniskirts. The idea that it would attract some people to go to the park, just for that reason alone,kinda grosses me out actually.

My mind didn't go there.
I understand why there is a reason to be upset about it.
It is like the innocence of the world is lost.
It also makes me realize that i should be way more careful with what i post
because what i post could be taken at face value when people don't know me here.

In addition, there was sarcasm in my original statement.
I think... well hell, if they are going to do that... then the women should rise up and make the park offer them a free pass. I realize that i don't condone what the theme park is doing after reading and really thinking about it. Especially, when i put the two together. miniskirts and spraying.
I suppose there is a part of me that was arguing for them too.
Like, what? america is any better.

Also, i am not sayin this to placate anyone here on this site. I believe my mind has changed because i don't like the idea that it is a theme park. I don't go to hooters for the same reason.

what was written here, by the admin, has me thinking...

To answer your question, it *is* misogyny to treat women as "things" rather than people. That goes for marketing tools, non-consensual class-targeted ploys for "free" stuff, and any situation that puts a woman in a position of having her body used to "lure" people to a theme park.

I wonder how this could be non-consensual? the marketing is because it is out there to the public.
However, The women don't have to wear the miniskirts.
Also, the woman do not have to put themselves in that position to be used.


Ultimately, it was the Admins post that got to me...
The idea of women's bodies being used as a tool to increase sales.
Just like hooters. There is no innocence in that really.


I appreciate the post and i learned.

[JustJo]

Originally Posted by Toughy

And then there is the other big can of worms about male genital circumcision/mutilation. This originated as a religious practice and became the norm (a non-religious practice) in the US. It is automatically done to all baby boys before they go home.....parents are not asked unless something has changed in hospitals. It is now being justified as necessary for health reasons.

Not sure if it's everywhere, but when I had my son almost 15 years ago in upstate New York, it was not automatic and had to be requested if parents wanted a circumcision performed.

[JustJo]

Originally Posted by Kobi

Jo, Ender, you both raise some interesting points. Is tricky stuff with no easy answers.

Feminism, misogyny, sexism, exploitation, objectification are not one size fits all in every situation kind of thing. The definitions, interpretations, perspectives, are as individual as our queer ids can be.

In one way it is frustrating to see the same institutional patriarchial crap as alive and well today as it was in 1973 when Shirley Chisholm said...the emotional, sexual, and psychological stereotyping of females begins when the doctor says, 'It's a girl'."

In another way, we as women have choices now that we didnt have way back then. We have a right to these choices as well as the implications and consequences of them.

The most difficult for me to deal with is the sometimes fine line between what are manifestations of internalized patriarchal bullshit versus what is deliberate, calculated, informed individual choice.

The second most difficult is having the negative stuff being done to women, out there, whether it be in the media, in the workplace, in relationships, in economics, in parenting etc. being replicated within our own community. That just really bites.

I dont have any answers. I just never expected to be dealing with the same stuff and more in my 50's as I did in my 20's. It is discouraging and aggravating and tiring to have to address this over and over and over again.

Sorry for the delay as I've been out playing rather than reading.

Kobi, what I put in red is what really strikes me.

Yes, I want women to be empowered to be whoever they are, present themselves however they want to, celebrate their sexuality....whatever the heck they want.

And....I struggle with this as I look around the world, and think...how much of this is a particular woman presenting herself the way she wants to, and how much is what she feels is expected of her? How much is a woman celebrating, displaying, flaunting, *fill in the blank* her own sexuality, and how much of it is playing into the misogynistic notion that a woman is valued based on appearance, and someone else's version of what that appearance should be?

At the risk of offending, we just came from a day at Disney....during which I turned to Snack and said "I'm glad I don't have a daughter." Not because I value males more....but because I would be at a complete loss as to how to proceed, and what to even think. At that moment, we were in line behind a group of girls, probably ages 14 - 17, mayyyybbbeeeee 18 but I doubt it....all in t-shirts tied up under their breasts, sides slit to show their lacey bras, "shorts" that barely qualified for the name, pierced belly buttons with dangling rhinestones....

Let me be clear....I don't object to any of this when it's an adult woman, and her own choice.

It kills me though to think of what's going on in the heads of these girls, and what standard they are measuring themselves against.

I look at my son, of the same age, who doesn't give a thought (I guarantee you) to his weight, what he's wearing, or how he looks. He is left free to concentrate on his own interests, his school work, his dreams....

I guess I'm at a complete loss. Maybe it's age....I know a lot has changed in my head after turning 50 and spending some time in reflection after my mother's passing. I just feel like we're losing ground....and that the people most commonly fostering the growth of misogyny, here in the US at least, are female.

[Kobi]

LONDON – The two historic athletes who became the first women to ever represent Saudi Arabia in the Olympic Games have been snubbed by their nation's media and subjected to a campaign of hate.

Sarah Attar ran the 800 meters on the Olympic Stadium track and Wojdan Shaherkani competed in judo earlier in the Games after the Saudi government relented its strict stance on women competing following international pressure.

Attar finished last in her heat and Shaherkani lost her opening bout with both gaining huge worldwide attention. However, back in Saudi Arabia, the approach was very different.

"We were the only newspaper to write about it," said Hahled Al-Maeena, editor of the English language publication Saudi Gazette, in a telephone conversation with Yahoo! Sports. "I believe these girls are heroines and we should celebrate as a nation. Unfortunately, other people do not agree."

A sinister Twitter campaign under the hashtag "prostitutes of the Olympics" originated in Saudi Arabia and was used to aim sexist vitriol at the competitors.

The father of judoka Shaherkani was so incensed that he contacted the country's interior minister to demand action against those who had insulted his daughter. Under Saudi law, punishment for insulting a woman's honor and integrity can be up to 100 lashes.

Attar and Shaherkani were late additions to the Saudi team and did not qualify but were admitted into their events in London under an International Olympic Committee development regulation that seeks to encourage less-established sporting nations.

Even though the women were forced to walk behind their male counterparts at the Opening Ceremony, their presence was seen as a step in the right direction for women's rights in a country where females are still denied many of what would be considered basic human rights in other nations.

However, there is skepticism about the true motives of the decision to allow Attar, a Saudi-American who studies at Pepperdine University, and Shaherkani to compete.

"They allowed them to compete for only one reason," Al-Maeena said. "If you don't send women, then in the future your country will not be allowed to participate [in the Olympics]. It was a wonderful thing to see the girls participate and it made many people proud, but there was also a motive for it.

"I am a believer in a free press, but there was some filthy language used about them and it was sad to see."

The Saudi Gazette received criticism from extremists for hailing the two athletes for their achievements. Meanwhile, every Arabic-language newspaper carried wide-scale coverage of the bronze medal won by the Saudi equestrian showjumping team led by royal member Prince Abdullah al Saud.

Attar and Shaherkani did not talk to reporters after their Olympic competitions. It is hoped that their participation can pave the way for more athletes from countries such as Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Brunei, the only three nations to not send any women athletes to Beijing four years ago. All three had female competitors in these Games.

However, there are still cultural restrictions in place in Saudi Arabia that stand in the way of female athletic progress. Al-Maeena's daughter Lina founded a women's basketball team that has traveled to neighboring Jordan to compete, but the squad has been met with heavy criticism.

"It is not easy as a woman who wants to play sport," said Lina Al-Maeena, who petitioned the IOC to allow her basketball team to represent Saudi Arabia in London but was rejected.

"The extremists said we were not acting as a woman should, that we were wrong and immoral and disrespectful. We just want to play the sport we love and empower other women to compete and play and be athletic. The extremists have their own view and it is very difficult to change their mind."

Saudi Arabia's national Olympic committee representative did not respond Friday to requests for comment and to speak to Attar and Shaherkani.

http://ca.sports.yahoo.com/news/olym...haherkani.html

[Gemme]

..."Stand aside. We're men; we do this."



Oh, sorry. I know that THIS is MY job. I didn't know it was yours too.

[Soon]

http://www.everydaysexism.com/

The Everyday Sexism Project exists to catalogue instances of sexism experienced by women on a day to day basis. They might be serious or minor, outrageously offensive or so niggling and normalised that you don’t even feel able to protest. Say as much or as little as you like, use your real name or a pseudonym – it’s up to you. By sharing your story you’re showing the world that sexism does exist, it is faced by women everyday and it is a valid problem to discuss. If you prefer to e-mail me at laura@everydaysexism.com I can upload your story for you instead.

[Kobi]

Originally Posted by Soon

http://www.everydaysexism.com/

The Everyday Sexism Project exists to catalogue instances of sexism experienced by women on a day to day basis. They might be serious or minor, outrageously offensive or so niggling and normalised that you don’t even feel able to protest. Say as much or as little as you like, use your real name or a pseudonym – it’s up to you. By sharing your story you’re showing the world that sexism does exist, it is faced by women everyday and it is a valid problem to discuss. If you prefer to e-mail me at laura@everydaysexism.com I can upload your story for you instead.

Thank you for posting this.

Some forms of sexism have become so commonplace, we tend to forget what they really are and what they represent.

Benevolent sexism is rarely acknowledged. There is an entry on that website where a woman gets on a plane and the nearest masculine person decides it is his right or duty to help her with her carryon bag even tho she didnt ask for help. That is an example of benevolent sexism.

[Novelafemme]

Lately, I've found myself seriously disheartened at the misogyny in our culture, at the way our culture invalidates the stories and the experiences of women, and at the way sexism and violence against women is talked about either as a thing of the past or an inevitable part of life. It is not a thing of the past and it is not inevitable. We as a culture are constantly making choices that demean and denigrate women, that place us in harms way, that tell us we are "less than."

This is an important essay: http://therumpus.net/2012/08/explicit-violence/

[Kobi]

The following women are not attractive to Donald Trump: Angelina Jolie ("She's been with so many guys"), Cher ("bad plastic surgery"), Rosie O'Donnell ("big, fat pig"), and now, Arianna Huffington.

On Wednesday, Trump used his Twitter account to call the internet powerhouse "unattractive both inside and out." He went on to attack her marriage, which ended in an amicable divorce.

"I fully understand why her former husband left her for a man-he made a good decision," Trump added in less than 140 characters.

It's not the first time he's publicly judged a successful female media figure by her looks and intimate life, and it probably won't be the last.

Trump's world seems to be divided into three categories. Women he finds attractive. Women he doesn't find attractive. And Men. It's not so different from a Miss USA pageant, only "contestants" like Huffington don't ask to be entered.

It's unclear what exactly prompted Trump's alarmingly inappropriate personal attack. His rep told the Washington Post it stems from her largely op-ed driven publication's "massive and consistently inaccurate reporting on Mr. Trump."

Huffington smartly refused to take the bait and refrained from responding, possibly avoiding another drawn out Trump vs. Barbara Walters feud.

In the past, both male and female columnists at major media outlets have labeled Trump "a sexist dinosaur," with "a legacy of unapologetically gleeful misogyny." These days nobody's wasting words trying to prove that point, when Trump seems to do the job all on his own. Here are some of the gems from the mouth of a modern day caveman:

"All of the women on The Apprentice flirted with me - consciously or unconsciously. That's to be expected."
-From his book How to Get Rich.

"So when he had plenty of money, she liked him…But then after that, not as good, right?"
-In response to an Access Hollywood interview question on Anne Hathaway's split from her jailed ex-boyfriend.

"I'll send one of my friends to pick up her girlfriend and I think it would be very easy."
-On Rosie O'Donnell and his own mysteriously beguiling friends, as reported by The New York Daily News.

"She does have a very nice figure . . . if [she] weren't my daughter, perhaps I'd be dating her."
-On his daughter, Ivanka, during a interview on the The View.

"You look very good, Aubrey, I have to say, Do you mind if I say? Is that sexist?"
-On Aubrey O'Day's boardroom appearance during an episode of The Apprentice.

"Maybe [women] don't know him. Maybe they don't get what is going on."
-On Obama's popularity with women voters, in a recent Fox News interview.

"The early victories by women on The Apprentice were to a very large extent dependent on their sex appeal."
-On women's success on The Apprentice, from How to Get Rich.

"I believe we're all equal except women still have to try harder and they know it. They will do what they have to do to get the job done and will not necessarily be demure about it."
-More on women's success, from How to Get Rich.

"Often times when I was sleeping with one of the top women in the world I would say to myself, thinking about me as a boy from Queens, 'can you believe what I am getting?'"
-On former romantic partners, from Think Big: Make it Happen in Business and Life.

"Beauty and elegance, whether in a woman, a building, or a work of art is not just superficial or something pretty to see."
-On inanimate objects and women, from Trump 101: The Way to Success

"You know, it doesn't really matter what [the media] write as long as you've got a young and beautiful piece of [expletive]."
-On media zen and women's body parts, from a 1991 Esquire interview.


http://shine.yahoo.com/work-money/do...192600474.html

[Martina]

Not misogyny or sexism but someone protecting his son from it and other miseries.

Dad Wears Dress in Solidarity with Dress-Loving Son

A German father said that he sometimes wears skirts to support his son, who also prefers to wear skirts and dresses.

Nils Pickert and his family moved from West Berlin to a more traditional village in southern Germany, Gawker reports. After Pickert's son expressed worries that other kids at school would mock him for wearing dresses, his father decided to also don a dress in solidarity.

"I didn't want to talk my son into not wearing dresses and skirts," he said. "He didn't make friends in doing that in Berlin already and after a lot of contemplation I had only one option left: To broaden my shoulders for my little buddy and dress in a skirt myself."

[Soon]

Campaigners in Egypt say the problem of sexual harassment is reaching epidemic proportions, with a rise in such incidents over the past three months. For many Egyptian women, sexual harassment - which sometimes turns into violent mob-style attacks - is a daily fact of life, reports the BBC's Bethany Bell in Cairo.

[Kobi]

A Boston University task force has concluded that the men’s hockey team is detached from the general campus and that a “culture of sexual entitlement” exists among some players, a mindset the college says contributed to two alleged sexual assaults on campus during the past season.

In unusually blunt fashion, the panel found that the university, from administrators to the coaching staff, did not adequately oversee the team, allowing the culture to flourish.

Oversight of the players was too often left to the coaching staff, the panel concluded, instead of university administrators. “The coaches became their own keepers,” Morrison said. “These should be university issues.”

-------------


This report can be read Here

I cant decide if this report is unique in the way it is addressing systemic issues or if it is more of the same.

While there is recognition of "entitlement" on a sports teams, of how coaches are not the best supervisors of their players behavior, and how the culture of sports coupled with alcohol and sex can be problematic, it really side steps the misogyny and sexism behind the entire thing.

[Kobi]

Street harassment is one of the most pervasive forms of gender-based violence and one of the least legislated against. Comments from “You’d look good on me” to groping, flashing and assault are a daily, global reality for women and LGBTQ individuals. But it is rarely reported, and it’s culturally accepted as ‘the price you pay’ for being a woman or for being gay. At Hollaback!, we don’t buy it.

We believe that everyone has a right to feel safe and confident without being objectified. Sexual harassment is a gateway crime that creates a cultural environment that makes gender-based violence OK. There exists a clear legal framework to reproach sexual harassment and abuse in the home and at work, but when it comes to the streets—all bets are off. This gap isn’t because street harassment hurts any less, it’s because there hasn’t been a solution. Until now. The explosion of mobile technology has given us an unprecedented opportunity to end street harassment—and with it, the opportunity to take on one of the final new frontiers for women’s rights around the world.

By collecting women and LGBTQ folks’ stories and pictures in a safe and share-able way with our very own mobile phone applications, Hollaback! is creating a crowd-sourced initiative to end street harassment. Hollaback! breaks the silence that has perpetuated sexual violence internationally, asserts that any and all gender-based violence is unacceptable, and creates a world where we have an option—and, more importantly—a response.

At the core of our model lies the belief that movements start with people telling their stories – and they succeed with people taking action. Before the Internet age, there was only one mic, one podium, one speaker. But now, thanks to the proliferation of blogging and social media, it is no longer the loudest, wealthiest and most powerful who rule the airwaves: anyone with access to their local library’s internet portal can have a voice. At Hollaback!, we leverage technology to bring voice to an issue that historically has been silenced, and to build leadership within this movement to break the silence.

Break the silence: We work with women, girls, and LGBTQ individuals to document in words and pictures, and to literally indicate on a map, where they experienced harassment in public spaces. Doing this provides a forum for individuals to share their experiences and brings attention to this long-ignored issue.

Inspire international leadership: Much of Hollaback!’s power lies in its scalability. To scale effectively, we train young women and LGBTQ leaders throughout the world to use their skills to build a grassroots movement focused on ending street harassment. We train in the application of technology as we also work to ensure that their actions are strategic and high-impact.

Shift public opinion: Our broad-based campaign is designed to reach the public at large by inspiring individuals to take action. We provide educational workshops to schools, universities, and community groups, and engage citizens through traditional and social media.

Engage elected officials: We present collected and mapped data to elected officials and policymakers in areas experiencing high incidences of street harassment and will engage legislators to work with our trained leaders to address street harassment in their communities.


http://www.ihollaback.org/about/

[Martina]

Malala's classmate: 'Every girl in Swat is Malala. We will educate ourselves. We will win. They can't defeat us.'

First Libyan and now Pakistani regular folks are out in the streets calling for a stop to terrorist attacks in their countries. Heartening

[Kobi]

SAN FRANCISCO - School administrators and parents are wrestling with how to respond to news that some male high school athletes created a statistics-based fantasy league that awarded points when girls the boys "drafted" were rumoured to have engaged in sexual activity.

Parents at Piedmont High School were notified of the league's existence in a letter and email Friday.

Varsity athletes used the online competition, modeled after fantasy leagues common in major league sports, as a bonding activity for the last five or six years, Principal Rich Kitchens said in the letter.

"Male students earn points for documented engagement in sexual activities with female students," he wrote.

Most of the female students who were drafted into the league weren't aware of the competition, he added.

Officials at the San Francisco Bay area suburban school learned about the game during an assembly on date rape earlier this month. Administrators interviewed students, parents and staff members, but weren't able to identify any participants in the competition, which students referred to as a "Fantasy Slut League," Kitchens said.

http://news.yahoo.com/calif-high-sch...010058522.html

[Kobi]

NEW ALBANY, Ind. (AP) — Indiana Republican Senate candidate Richard Mourdock said Tuesday when a woman becomes pregnant during a rape, "that's something God intended."

Mourdock, who's been locked in one of the country's most watched Senate races, was asked during the final minutes of a debate with Democratic challenger Rep. Joe Donnelly whether abortion should be allowed in cases of rape or incest.

"I struggled with it myself for a long time, but I came to realize that life is that gift from God. And, I think, even when life begins in that horrible situation of rape, that it is something that God intended to happen," Mourdock said.

Mourdock became the second GOP Senate candidate to find himself on the defensive over comments about rape and pregnancy. Missouri Senate candidate Rep. Todd Akin said during a television interview in August that women's bodies have ways of preventing pregnancy in cases of what he called "legitimate rape." Since his comment, Akin has repeatedly apologized but has refused to leave his race despite calls to do so by leaders of his own party, from GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney on down.

It was not immediately clear what affect Mourdock's comments might have during the final two weeks before the Nov. 6 election. But they could prove problematic. Romney distanced himself from Mourdock on Tuesday night — a day after a television ad featuring the former Massachusetts governor supporting the GOP Senate candidate began airing in Indiana.

http://news.yahoo.com/mourdock-god-r...GFnZQ--;_ylv=3

[Greyson]

Originally Posted by Kobi

SAN FRANCISCO - School administrators and parents are wrestling with how to respond to news that some male high school athletes created a statistics-based fantasy league that awarded points when girls the boys "drafted" were rumoured to have engaged in sexual activity.

Parents at Piedmont High School were notified of the league's existence in a letter and email Friday.

Varsity athletes used the online competition, modeled after fantasy leagues common in major league sports, as a bonding activity for the last five or six years, Principal Rich Kitchens said in the letter.

"Male students earn points for documented engagement in sexual activities with female students," he wrote.

Most of the female students who were drafted into the league weren't aware of the competition, he added.

Officials at the San Francisco Bay area suburban school learned about the game during an assembly on date rape earlier this month. Administrators interviewed students, parents and staff members, but weren't able to identify any participants in the competition, which students referred to as a "Fantasy Slut League," Kitchens said.

http://news.yahoo.com/calif-high-sch...010058522.html

I was very disturbed when I first read about this in the local news here in the SF Bay Area. The school is in Piedmont. Piedmont is in the East Bay and it is an upper middle class community. It is the same city that the recent assasinated Ambassador to Libya was raised in. Most of these teens come from a very privileged background. I shutter to think of what these young men may grow up to be.

The City I live in now shares a Fire Chief with the City of Piedmont. The city where we live has a public school system where the students do well academically and is very similar to the Piedmont public school system. Apparently money cannot buy humanity, civility or an expectation of decency for young women, girls.