Women as pieces of meat

First, our BabyWashington of Fisking Central brought to my attention to the Jane Moore article in The Sun,

... Jane Moore has seen a picture of Louise and Sezer, taken 'just hours before the alleged assault', and this informs her column today. In the snap, Glover is dressed up a bit like Jordan-lite, in a push-up bikini-type thing, while he appears to be whispering something into her ear.

'What has just flashed through your mind?', Moore asks. "Asking for it?" Or at the very least, "questionable attire for a young girl not wishing to attract unwanted attention?"

Then the honorable Eric of the Popinjays highlighted this delightful story of the Muslim Cleric comparing woman who do not wear the hijab to uncovered meat.

"If you take out uncovered meat and place it outside... and the cats come and eat it... whose fault is it, the cats' or the uncovered meat?" he asked.

"If she was in her room, in her home, in her hijab, no problem would have occurred," he added.

Then the ever readable Tom of Let's Be Sensible places the two a stories neatly together to create a picture that fills you with despair.

Can I just say that if such regressive attitudes regarding sexual politics disturbs you, then now is not the time to remain silent.

On Madonna

My penny's worth on her recent adoption.

Other issues aside, I keep hearing from well-meaning charity representatives that this is not the way to make a difference in Africa.

Well, maybe not. But it made a difference to baby David.

No Banns and Boycotts

Engage - call for action: Challenge the ban on Palestinian students attending Israeli universities!Support Israeli academics and Universities in their opposition to the ban!

ENGAGE agrees with opposition to the outrageous general ban on Palestinian students attending Israeli universities. “At a time when Israeli professors are rightfully opposing attempts to prevent them from teaching – just because they are Israeli – Gisha calls upon Israel not to prevent Palestinian students from studying – just because they are Palestinian. Academic freedom is universal.” (Sari Bashi, Director of Gisha): http://www.gisha.org/english/

Announcements.htm#11.10.06

Academic international exchange is a 'good' in itself and can form part of a path to peace. Engage unambiguously opposes all attempts to apply discrimination on the basis of nationality to academic interchange, whether in the form of a boycott of Israeli institutions and individuals, or in the form of a universal ban on Palestinians studying in Israel.

Israel's universities are also taking a strong stand on this issue.
http://www.huji.ac.il/cgi-bin/dovrut/
dovrut_search_eng.plmesge116116945832688760

While ongoing calls to boycott Israeli Jewish academics and institutions are a vicious attack on academic freedom, a blanket ban on Palestinian admittance to Israeli universities is also a serious attack on fundamental human rights. Israel's academic institutions have a policy of open entry to anyone who meets their academic criteria without regard to gender, religion, ethnicity or nationality. They should be allowed to continue to make their own judgements on who they admit. The Government-imposed ban should be rescinded immediately: http://www.engageonline.org.uk/blog/

article.php?id=696

Please help bring this issue to wider attention and help promote our practical suggestions for solidarity with Israeli and Palestinian academics and institutions seeking the reversal of such a policy by following the proposals recommended by Dr Paul Frosh of The Hebrew University of Jerusalem here:
http://www.engageonline.org.uk/blog/article.php?id=706
And Jon Pike @ Engage here: http://www.engageonline.org.uk/blog/
article.php?id=697

Write to Education Minister Yuli Tamir and ask her to intervene to
cancel the ban:

MK Professor Yuli Tamir
Minister of Education
Education Ministry
Jerusalem
Fax: 02-5602246, Email: http://uk.f864.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=ytamir@knesset.gov.il&YY=47782&y5beta=yes&y5beta=yes&order=

down&sort=date&pos=0&view=a&head=b

Clare Short resigns

Three years too late.

Heroin. Worth every penny.

Your Depression Level: 0%

You aren't depressed, and you probably already knew that. Like everyone else, you have ups and downs. But unlike most people, you've mastered keeping your mood stable.

Are You Depressed?

Is he havin' a laugh?

I thought he was going to make De Niro play with himself over the pen

WBA gets new manager

West Bromwich Albion f.c. have taken on a new manager in the form of Tony Mowbray, previous manager of Hibernian f.c.

Since Bryan Robson the previous manager left, the team have not lost in five games and have actually managed to score some goals away - a feat the Albion team normally pulls off when they've been playing shit and getting the manager the sack. In a few games, when they're bored of the excess of effort, I expect the usual lull in the whole not-losing thing. The players will bide their time until they're sure that the manager will be blamed for their half-arsed attempts at pretending to be professionals, then they'll go off on a shit spree.

It's the local derby with the dingles this weekend. Let's see how hard they try.

Two Go Mad In The Midlands!

Two Midlands MPs, Tom Watson and Sion Simon seem to be going on a bit of a crazy spree. Not content with sending letters to Prime Ministers asking them to resign, they're now going around filming each other washing dishes and wearing baseball caps.

Here's Tom doing the dishes and talking about who funds the Midlands industrial council. Long winter nights in the Watson household must just fly by.

And here's Sion on Sky News defending his "satire" of David Cameron. The world still awaits a defense of that haircut.

Scribbles would suggest that neither of them give up the day job. Although all these jolly japes are not gone down too well with the local electorate, they may have to.

Clare Short sent stiff letter

Well done, she won't do that again.

Apparently Clare Short, my MP, doesn't even have a constituency office. But not too worry. Her website tells me that I can come here for "information about articles I have written, or speeches I have made." And as a sort of after thought "It is also for my Ladywood constituents so that I can keep them informed of what I am doing on their behalf."

Well, I've scoured the webpage and I can find zilch, nada, absolutely nothing about her constituency. Although there's a plug for her book and an archive of speeches and articles detailing her hatred of New Labour and her thoughts on various things happening in foreign countries.

In her Links section though there is a very illuminating website - what Labour has done for Birmingham, Ladywood. Tells me everything I need to know.

125 years ago this month...

Gunfight at the O.K. Corral

Discuss...

"People have the right to wear what they like"

... is the new...

"If you've got it, flaunt it"

My condensed thoughts on the new Robin Hood series

Shot with a worn-out "edgy" style of directing that is distracting, though we are at least spared the handy-cam style. Sword scenes referencing Chinese historical epic - interesting. Dark Age women with lots of 1980's style make-up. Peripheral characters cliched beyond repair. Dialogue has potential, but keeps veering towards the stunted English beloved of 1940s films.

Don't fancy Robin Hood, but the nasty right-hand man of the sheriff has potential.

My condensed thoughts on the veil issue

Over at the Popinjays.