The tragic irony of feminists trashing each other

Is sisterhood sacred or soul-crushing?

Within the feminist movement, the answer is less clear than one might hope. Trashing each other and exclusion have been hallmarks since the movement began, and each generation of feminist activists seems to suffer the same in-fighting. But contrary to simplistic ideas about catty, back-stabbing women, feminists don't fight each other because women are uniquely competitive or cruel. Though we care about the movement, it happens because we've internalized a narrative of scarcity: we act as though we're fighting for crumbs.

In her recent New Yorker article about the life of the feminist pioneer Shulamith Firestone, Susan Faludi details how the Women's Liberation Movement of the 1960s and 70s fractured. She quotes a line from Ti-Grace Atkinson's resignation from a New York feminist group:

Sisterhood is powerful. It kills. Mostly sisters.

It seems that no one walked away unscathed, and today, little has changed. Online feminism faces many of the same challenges our foremothers faced: not enough support, too much attention for the dominant groups, vicious internal attacks, and bitter frustration and disillusionment. The same dynamics of "trashing" that Jo Freeman wrote about in 1976 are alive today. Trashing, she says, is not about opposition or critique:

"It is not done to expose disagreements or resolve differences. It is done to disparage and destroy."

That dynamic is, of course, not unique to feminism. Is there any social movement that hasn't had splits, arguments and active dissent?

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http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/2013/may/02/feminism-trashing-shulamith-firestone

Robbie Rogers trains with LA Galaxy after coming out and quitting soccer

Robbie Rogers, the US international who quit soccer after revealing that he is gay, is back in training with the Los Angeles Galaxy.

In a breakthrough week for US sports, with basketball player Jason Collins having come out as the first openly gay player in one of the four traditional major American professional sports leagues, Rogers trained with the Galaxy, two months after announcing that he was gay and saying he was "stepping away" from the game.

The former international, 25, was released by Leeds United in January, after a loan spell at Stevenage, and in February said he was leaving the game that had "hid his secret". But on Tuesday he trained with the Galaxy, whose coach, Bruce Arena, said it was "open-ended" as to what his future with the club might hold. The Chicago Fire hold Rogers' Major League Soccer rights, meaning the Galaxy would need to work out a trade in order to sign him.

"He looked a lot sharper than I thought he would today, given the fact he's been away from the game for a while" Arena told the Galaxy's website. "The timing I guess is good. I think our league is a progressive league. Our league is a league comprised of all different races, colours and creeds, and to be accepting of a gay athlete I don't think is anything that's difficult for our league.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/football/2013/may/01/robbie-rogers-gay-footballer-la-galaxy

Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signs bill banning destruction of guns surrendered at buyback events

PHOENIX — Arizona cities and counties that hold community gun buyback events will have to sell the surrendered weapons instead of destroying them under a bill Gov. Jan Brewer signed into law Monday.

The bill was championed by Republicans in the GOP-controlled Legislature who argued that municipalities were skirting a 2010 law that was tightened last year and requires police to sell seized weapons to federally licensed dealers. They argued that destroying property turned over to the government is a waste of taxpayer resources.

Democrats who argued against the bill said it usurps local control and goes against the wishes of people who turn over their unwanted weapons to keep them out of the hands of children or thieves.

Buybacks are popular among some police and elected officials who either pay cash or hand out gift cards in exchange for weapons. Tucson and other Arizona communities destroyed weapons from the events, arguing that because the guns were voluntarily surrendered, the laws concerning weapons seized by authorities didn’t apply....

...The governor’s office said it received nearly 2,000 letters, emails or phone calls about the bill, with only 25 opposed. One of the letters in support was from the National Rifle Association, which argued that selling seized or forfeited guns “would maintain their value, and their sale to the public would help recover public funds.” The NRA letter said the bill doesn’t prevent a private group from holding an event and destroying the weapons.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/arizona-gov-jan-brewer-signs-bill-banning-destruction-of-guns-surrendered-at-buyback-events/2013/04/29/d929b892-b13f-11e2-9fb1-62de9581c946_story.html

So in that case why even have buybacks?

Why NBA center Jason Collins is coming out now

I'm a 34-year-old NBA center. I'm black. And I'm gay.

I didn't set out to be the first openly gay athlete playing in a major American team sport. But since I am, I'm happy to start the conversation. I wish I wasn't the kid in the classroom raising his hand and saying, "I'm different." If I had my way, someone else would have already done this. Nobody has, which is why I'm raising my hand.

My journey of self-discovery and self-acknowledgement began in my hometown of Los Angeles and has taken me through two state high school championships, the NCAA Final Four and the Elite Eight, and nine playoffs in 12 NBA seasons.

I've played for six pro teams and have appeared in two NBA Finals. Ever heard of a parlor game called Three Degrees of Jason Collins? If you're in the league, and I haven't been your teammate, I surely have been one of your teammates' teammates. Or one of your teammates' teammates' teammates.

Now I'm a free agent, literally and figuratively. I've reached that enviable state in life in which I can do pretty much what I want. And what I want is to continue to play basketball. I still love the game, and I still have something to offer. My coaches and teammates recognize that. At the same time, I want to be genuine and authentic and truthful....

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/magazine/news/20130429/jason-collins-gay-nba-player/

Holy fuckin' damn -- Is this Rana Plaza illustration accurate??

Foreign professionals on business trip savagely beaten in Germany

r.i.p. Pat Summerall

NFL broadcaster, local icon Pat Summerall dies at age 82

Source: Dallas Morning News

Employing a signature succinct staccato style that was brief and to the point, Pat Summerall grew into the pre-eminent network NFL voice for a generation of television viewers. Summerall has died at age 82.

He worked a record 16 Super Bowls on network television, the first five as an analyst. He worked for CBS from 1961 to 1993. He moved with the NFL from CBS to Fox in 1994. He retired after the 2002 season.

Summerall worked his final Super Bowl in February 2002. It was his eighth alongside analyst John Madden. They worked together at CBS and Fox for 21 seasons. Their work at Super Bowl XVI in 1982 remains the highest-rated sports program of all-time, with more than 49 percent of the nation tuned in.

Summerall was a regular-season Sunday staple in most Dallas-Fort Worth homes during the 1990s. He and Madden were regularly assigned to the NFL's No. 1 television attraction, the Cowboys. Not a bad deal for Summerall, who lived barely 20 minutes away from Texas Stadium in Southlake, with his second wife, Cheri.

Read more: http://www.dallasnews.com/sports/dallas-cowboys/headlines/20130416-nfl-broadcaster-local-icon-pat-summerall-dies-at-age-82.ece

Eating the hottest curry in UK - Gordon Ramsay

Teacher Romany Blythe outed as creator of 'The Witch Is Dead Party' Facebook group

This shocking graffiti was today spotted in central London as the drama teacher behind one of the vile Thatcher 'death parties' today compared Britain's greatest post-war prime minister to Hitler.

Romany Blythe, 45, who helps troubled children at schools in Brighton, East Sussex, has created a web page called: ‘The witch is dead' and encouraged thousands to 'p***' on the Iron Lady's grave.

After being confronted about her actions, an unrepentant Ms Blyth has described herself as 'the voice of reason', adding: 'they danced in the streets when Hitler died too'.

Her comments came as the graffiti, which reads 'Burn in Hell Maggie', was spotted in the 'Graffiti Tunnel' of Leake Street in Lambeth, central London, also known as the 'Banksy Tunnel'.

Hatred: 45-year-old drama teacher Romany Blythe, who works with troubled children, asked followers: 'Who wants to p*** on her grave?'

Ms Blythe, 45, said: 'People say you shouldn't speak ill of the dead - but it depends who the dead person is. We just don't want to whitewash what happened when she was Prime Minister.

'In normal circumstances celebrating someone's death would be irresponsible,' she told the Brighton Argus. 'But we are generation X, upset people that left school to find hopelessness and despair.

'She was a despot. They danced in the streets when Hitler died too. Mrs Thatcher was friends with Pinochet. She chose her friends very wisely.'

On the day of former prime minister Baroness Thatcher's death Ms Blythe wrote on her Facebook page: 'So the old bag has copped it finally! Party in the square tomorrow then!'

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2307367/Margaret-Thatcher-death-party-teacher-Romany-Blythe-unrepentant-revealed-NHS-breast-implants.html?ITO=1490&ns_mchannel=rss&ns_campaign=1490