Jezebel

Ellen & Portia Tell Oprah About The Importance Of Gay Marriage [Yep They're Gay]

Tracie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 20:00:00 -0500

Today, Ellen DeGeneres and her wife Portia DeRossi were on Oprah for their first-ever interview as a married couple. They opened up about falling in love, the difficulty of coming out, and why legal marriage for same-sex couples is crucial.

In this clip, Portia explains when she knew she was in love with Ellen, and why she was reticent to come out of the closet.

Here, the couple discusses how their lives and well-being have been positively affected by coming out of the closet, and how their love for each other overcame Portia's fear of public rejection concerning her sexual orientation.

Don't Speak [Snap Judgment]

Anna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:50:00 -0500

[New York, November 9. Image via Flynet]

Bad News For Jan Morrow. [Swingin']

Sadie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:40:00 -0500

According to the NYT, the bachelor pad is a recession casualty. [NYT]

J.Lo Sues Ex Over Sex Movie; Lindsay's Assistant Worries She'll Kill Herself [Dirt Bag (After Dark)]

Margaret — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:30:00 -0500

Jennifer Lopez is suing her ex-husband Ojani Noa for $10 million and demanding he stop production of the film How I Married Jennifer Lopez, which includes video of the couple in "sexual situations" on their honeymoon.

A judge has granted a temporary restraining order blocking distribution of the film until the next hearing, which is scheduled for tomorrow. [Reuters, AP]
Michael Lohan has released another taped phone call. This one is between Michael and Lindsay Lohan's former assistant, Jenni Muro, who says she thinks Lindsay may hurt herself. Muro says she wants to quit because, "I am trying to save your daughter's life every day," but, "I don't want it on my watch either" if she does kill herself. She also calls Lindsay's relationship with Samantha Ronson "unhealthy" and "an addiction." [Radar Online]
Jenni Muro says she's planning on sending Michael Lohan a cease and desist letter for secretly taping their conversations. She calls his behavior "way beyond low." [TMZ]
The Consumer Product Safety Commission says Jon Gosselin should have never let his five-year-olds on his ATV because, "Children under 6 should never be on an ATV — either as a driver or a passenger... Children are involved in about one-third of all ATV-related deaths and hospital emergency room injuries." [Radar Online]
Jon Gosselin is counter suing TLC for $5 million. [Radar Online]
Justin Timberlake's lawyer was furious in court today that a judge is demanded JT testify in court if he wants his restraining order against alleged stalker Marty Singer made permanent. He says Justin is currently filming a movie and can't miss a day to appear in court. [TMZ]
The judge granted Justin Timberlake a permanent restraining order after his lawyer submitted a written declaration from Justin. [TMZ]
In the video at the link, stripper Nicole Forrester is shown taking the polygraph test, which supposedly found she's telling the truth about sleeping with Josh Duhamel. She says, "I honestly didn't know he was married... I said, 'Are you Fergie's husband?' He was like, 'Don't ask me any personal questions. You know what you know so let's just drop it.'" [Radar Online]
Fergie and Josh Duhamel spent the weekend apart because she was working in the U.K., so clearly their marriage is on the rocks. [Us]
Jermaine Dupri and Janet Jackson are back together and there are rumors that they're planning a wedding, but he says, "They've been saying that for years and you don't see a ring on my finger... I guess it just sounds good to have that rumor this time of the year or something." [People]
Just so you know, Jackie Jackson say's Dr. Arnie Klein's admission that Michael Jackson liked to pee in cups in front of other people is not true. [TMZ]
Michael Jackson's former doctors are feuding. Dr. Steven Hoefflin says Dr. Arnold Klein, "knew Michael was a narcotic addict yet he repeatedly injected him, probably with others in his office assisting him, 51 times over three months with a minimum of 100mg of Demerol and charged him a large amount of money." [TMZ]
Madonna is heading to Rio to visit the city's slums. State Governor Sergio Cabral says, "She will get to know some social projects; she is enchanted with Rio and wants to help." [Reuters]
The manager of Guy Richie's London pub The Punch Bowl is asking Richie's celebrity friends to sign a petition to keep the bar open to fight local residents who say the bar is too noisy. [Daily Express]
In her new book Carrie Prejean accuses Miss California USA director Keith Lewis of pushing her to get a boob job and says he ran his hands all over her body and examined her breasts while she was standing in Shanna Moakler's living room in a bikini in front of other pageant judges. [Radar Online]
Oksana Grigorieva says Mel Gibson is a "very hands-on" father to their newborn daughter. "He has been very dtoing and nurturing," she says. [People]
Paris Hilton is threatening to sue a New Zealand company for advertising empty billboard space by posting her picture with the word "vacant" stamped across it. [Daily Express]
Russell Brand is selling his London home and you can check out pictures of the interior here: [London Brick Work]
Ashee Simpson will play Roxie Hart in the Broadway production of Chicago for six weeks starting in December. She has already played the role in London. [People]
John Travolta says that, since his son Jett's death, "We've been working very hard every day as a family to heal... We have our own way of doing it, and it has been helping." Kelly Preston says the family has been receiving an "outpouring of love from, really, worldwide. It's been our friends, our family, our church. We partake in spiritual counseling pretty much daily." [ET]
Rihanna made a surprise appearance last night at Jay-Z's concert at UCLA. Watch it here: [Perez Hilton]
Kristen Stewart says since she started filming of New Moon Taylor Lautner has, "Literally become a different person. He's just grown up. He's so confident and the nicest guy that I've ever met. I know that I'm using this grammatically incorrect but he's the funnest guy I've ever hung out with. So he's great. I'm so proud of him." [People]
Taylor Lautner was asked if it's weird to date Taylor Swift because they have the same name. "It gets confusing definitely," he said. "And it's weird calling somebody your name." [Extra]
Backstage at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 25th Anniversary Concert Art Garfunkel asked for a tissue. A staffer said they were running late but could stop in a bathroom. "He literally stopped walking and refused to go another step until he got a tissue," a source said. "He was behaving like such a child. He was very agitated and angry. And this is a guy who's been busted for marijuana possession! Shouldn't he be calmer?" He was offered a paper towel but threw it back yelling, "I said a tissue!" [Radar Online]
Ryan Seacrest's alleged stalker, Chidi Uzomah, sent the campus of Cal State Dominquez Hills into a panic last year when he walked around in camouflage holding a dummy rifle after ROTC training. [TMZ]
The Disney Channel has ordered a second season of Jonas, the Jonas Brother's show. [Hollywood Reporter]
Kate Winslet has been nominated for a European Film Award for The Reader. [Daily Express]
When asked if the rumors that she's starring in Resident Evil: Afterlife are true Eva Mendes said, "God, no! No, no, no! Never!" [Daily Express]
Though it was assumed that Joe Halderman would try to make a plea agreement in the David Letterman extortion case, his lawyer said, "there's nothing in the pipeline other than preparing a case for trial." [N.Y. Observer]
Tiffani Theissen and her husband, Brady Smith, are expecting their first baby in May. [People]
Maksim Chmerkovskiy has already been voted off DWTS, but he advises, "Mya needs to step it up because she has been a frontrunner the whole time and now she's kind of ‘pfft.'" [People]
Lamar Odom was in a car accident in 2007 and offered the victim a settlement, but she refused and has filed a lawsuit against him. [TMZ]
A judge has ruled that Warren Beatty can go ahead with his lawsuit against the Tribune Co over the right to the Dick Tracy comic strip. [Reuters]
Mario Lopez introduced his girlfriend Courtney Mazza to his mom at a recent dinner in San Diego. "Everyone was laughing and having a good time," says an eyewitness. "There was never an awkward moment." [Star]
W editor Kevin West said during her cover shoot Demi Moore, "was like a newlywed in love, talking about how wonderful [Ashton] was and how much the relationship meant to her. She basically said when they met it was love at first sight." [W]
Jennie Garth says her character won't break up Debbie and Harry Wilson on 90210. "I'm not a big fan of that storyline," she said. "It's just bizarre and weird. I don't think it's going to go anywhere. I'm not going to let Kelly be a homewrecker, so there's no place for it to really go." [E!]
Leighton Meester says she's never been intimidated by fashion. "My mother always had a great sense of style. I always looked up to her. Ever since [Gossip Girl] I can differentiate between the character and myself. It gave me a launching point to develop my own sense of style," she says. [W]
Peter Andre is still mad at Jordan for revealing that she had an abortion during their marriage. "Pete has always been passionately anti-abortion and Jordan knows that," says a source. "It's terrible she feels the need to talk about this so publicly. It drags up a whole lot of emotions for Pete when he just wants to move on. Pete keeps thinking about those lost children." [News Of The World]
Sophia Loren says of working with Daniel Day-Lewis on Nine, "Daniel is incredible. He is hypnotic, magical, beautiful and brilliant; but he is also very scary. Every time I did a scene with him he was so deep and so real that it was almost intimidating." [Daily Express]
Last night's third-season finale of Mad Men drew 2.32 million viewers, making it the most watched finale in the show's history. [Media Week]
In an interview with John Slattery and Talia Balsam, who are married in real life and divorced on Mad Men, Slattery says it's different working with your spouse because, "You don't have to create a history – we did that scene where I have a heart attack, she comes in and I mean I fell apart because you're pretending to have a heart attack, it's supposed to be scary, you conjure up whatever it is that's going to get you to that place, then Talia walks in and if someone who wasn't Talia walked in playing my wife, it probably wouldn't have been as emotional." [If Magazine]
Jon Hamm says, "A lot of people, especially this season, are very frustrated and angry with Don and his choices and his decisions. But something to understand about the guy is he's significantly damaged... I do think he loves his family very much. I think he's hard time expressing — or at least maintaining — that and still be true to himself. It's a difficult line to walk. What I enjoy about him as an actor is walking that line. And that's what makes it difficult to watch as a viewer. You're by turns transfixed and repulsed by this guy." [AMC]

Weighty Matters [No Shit Studies]

Intern Katy — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:20:00 -0500

A recent study found that young women no longer want an hourglass figure, but instead aspire to a more "tubular" body shape. While women desire ever-smaller hips, the ideal waist size has increased from the 1950s. (Don't go there!) [IrishTimes]

Their Number One Fan [Snap Judgment]

Anna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:10:00 -0500

[Seattle, November 8. Image via Getty]

SEATTLE - NOVEMBER 08: A Seattle Seahawks fan watches the game against the Detroit Lions on November 8, 2009 at Qwest Field in Seattle, Washington. The Seahawks defeated the Lions 32-20. (Photo by Otto Greule Jr/Getty Images)

Kirstie Alley's Weight Loss Goal Is Awfully Ambitious [Tweet Beat]

Tracie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 19:00:00 -0500

Today in Tweet Beat, Kirstie Alley is still hung up on publicly losing weight, Holly Madison learns a lesson, and Kathy Najimy learns to spin fire.

A Leg Up [Snap Judgment]

Anna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:50:00 -0500

[Los Angeles, November 9. Image via Flynet]

Ex-Pageant Queen Wants To Leave Sex Rehab To Get Her Extensions Done [Let's Talk About Sex]

Tracie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:40:00 -0500

On last night's episode, a hostile Kari Ann Peniche—of McSteamy sex-tape infamy—insisted on leaving treatment "for an hour or two" to run errands, like getting extensions. Dr. Drew felt that drugs were the real cause for her behavior.

Although they are only three days into treatment, Kari Ann has spent the entire time in bed. She repeatedly denied any drug use, but Dr. Drew wasn't so convinced. He felt that her moodiness and fatigue were signs of withdrawal, and that she invented a laundry list of excuses—literally, one of the errands she wanted to run was to do her laundry—to leave rehab for the day to find her stash and use. She called her manager and told him that she wanted to leave the show/facility for good, despite his pleas. (He'd be out of his 10% if she did.)

The Lipstick Index [Makeup 4Ever]

Sadie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:30:00 -0500

Sometimes you just can't top a British headline for phrasing: "make-up sales rise as women aim to look their best in recession" really says it all. [Telegraph]

Lara Stone, Rehab, & The Problem Of Idiotic Celebrity Profiles [Maghag]

Jenna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:20:00 -0500

Fact: most celebrity profiles are boring. Fact: Lara Stone — the "curvy," "old" Dutch supermodel — is interesting. In this battle between medium and subject, who shall prevail? Clearly the one who's prepared to talk about alcoholism and breasts.

The thing about models is that they are rarely the subjects of long, investigative, detailed magazine profiles, leavened with biographical information about their parents' backgrounds and whatever psychological tells the writer can seize upon during his or her reporting. Models are mostly seen in pictures. They're there to entertain our projections, and that's easiest done mute. It's celebrities who are endlessly, redundantly storied, profiled over and over again until such mundanities as what Leighton likes to eat for lunch and the fact that Angelina has a pilot's license have been entirely too thoroughly plumbed for metaphoric depth. The glimpse-of-fame profile is an essential part of the celebrity-sartorial complex, but the problems with it are manifold. As the celebrity profiles proliferate, the pool of unreported information that might actually be interesting or affecting to a wide audience shrinks. The pool of under-covered celebrities — who are (of course) pretty and (nearly always) white and (duh) thin enough to fit sample sizes in the standard lavish photo shoot — dwindles, too, until we're stuck reading about the Deep Thoughts of reality TV stars and teenagers ad nauseam. And as women's magazines' reliance on Big Cover Stars to anchor their issues grows, the conditions imposed by the army of protective flacks — writer approval, preset no-go topics, limitations on access — become more byzantine. (Hence why Elle spiked even this pretty tame profile of Jennifer Lopez at the request of her reps. Hence why you'll never read about the night Charlize Theron's mom shot and killed her dad while 15-year-old Charlize watched in a women's magazine. You will instead be told that she's really pretty, and much too polite to be thought of as having opinions, or as Vogue puts it, "far be it from her to ruin a perfectly nice luncheon trying to prove that she's a serious person.") Models get talked about as images but don't tend to get covered as people. Celebrities talk all too much, but far be it from them to say anything interesting.

So into this morass of diminishing returns steps Lara Stone, and it is just so weird to read a story that starts off in the standard mawkish key of celebrity profile writing — obligatory meaningless quote from Mario Testino; repetitive physical description along the lines of "naked Venus...austere, Flemish face...Her breasts are so perfect even I found it hard not to stare at them"; entirely too much attention paid to what she is wearing — before switching codes entirely.

What's the longest she has stayed in one place in the past two years, asks Vogue's Vassi Chamberlain, after Stone confesses she has spent seven days at a stretch, max, in her London apartment since moving to the city six months ago.

She answers without hesitating: "Four weeks." Was that on holiday? "No. That was to rehab." ... "I am a complete alcoholic," she says. "It used to be so easy to tell someone, 'Get me a bottle of vodka,' and they'd run and get it."

Okay then! Consider our expectations raised.

In the story — which you cannot read at British Vogue's website, but which people have taken the time to scan here and here — Stone goes on to make various statements which aren't "bold" or "interesting," with all the self-consciousness those imply, so much as they are just affectingly real. She doesn't sound like she's talking from a well-rehearsed script when pressed about controversial industry practices, as can the otherwise clever Lily Cole. Cole recently claimed in the Times of London, "I saw eating problems more at my school than in that industry. I do get that there is an aesthetic — it changes generation by generation. There's always been an ideal, from the Fifties or the Eighties," which is an ingenious dodge of the size-zero question and a very disingenuous thing to say. Stone, who despite her 34"-24"-35" measurements is sometimes considered one of the larger straight-size models, calls herself "fat" and says, "If I could have the discipline to be super-skinny, I would be. I think of dieting, then I eat pizza. I'm a woman, and every woman wants to be skinnier. Unfortunately." Cole, testy: "I think drugs are taken all over the world. And I've never really experienced it." Stone, realistic: "I never really wanted to be that model on drugs, the sort who gives head for a line of coke."

Stone isn't interested in running interference for an industry that treated her with standard disinterest for the better part of a decade before she, at the improbable age of 23, started to enjoy breakout success. As a teenager in Paris, she lived in an Elite model apartment with up to seven other girls. She was not a sensation. "We did 15 castings a day, visiting the same people over and over again. They'd make bitchy comments about us in French, thinking we didn't understand." (Sounds...familiar.) Stone also worked in Japan, where her agency measured her weekly, instructed her never to smile, and contracted her to do up to three shoots a day. Models who got pimples were sent back. Not that Stone is dewy-eyed about model solidarity: she pushed a girl who wouldn't get out of her way at the Jaeger show this season. "I kept saying, 'Excuse me, excuse me, excuse me,' because I had to get to the catwalk, but she just kept posing. So I pushed her. It was only a few stairs." It's not easy to imagine Kate Bosworth confessing to something so human.

"Men don't like me," reports Stone. For all her much-vaunted "curves", she says, "I haven't been on a date in six months." She last dated an investment banker in New York; the end of the relationship coincided with her stint in rehab and her move to London. "I've just started a club with a girlfriend," she reports, "called the We Hate Men But We Can't Be Gay Club."

I Hate Women's Magazine Profiles But Can't Stop Reading Them.

Ones like this are pretty all right, though.

British Vogue [Official Site]
Stone Age [The Fashion Spot]
Charlize Theron At Home On The Range [Vogue]
Time Out: Lily Cole [Times of London]
Behind The Glow [Daily Beast]

Earlier:French Vogue All Lara Stone, All The Time
The 5 Great Lies of Women's Magazines

The Heavy Lifting [Snap Judgment]

Anna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:10:00 -0500

[New Delhi, November 9. Image via Getty]

An Indian woman carries rocks during restoration work at the Sher Shah Gate complex in New Delhi on November 9, 2009 ahead of the 2010 Commonwealth Games. The Archaeological Survey of India is restoring the protected monuments to make the Indian capital more presentable to foreign tourists and athletes coming next year. The four-yearly Commonwealth Games, featuring 71 teams from Commonwealth countries, are due to be held in the Indian capital October 3-14, 2010. AFP PHOTO/ MANAN VATSYAYANA (Photo credit should read MANAN VATSYAYANA/AFP/Getty Images)

Democrat Or Republican, Political Women Have a Tough Road To Walk [Power Skirts]

LatoyaPeterson — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 18:00:00 -0500

As Meghan McCain writes, "to be a powerful woman in politics is to be controversial."

McCain muses on political women in the public eye, noting:

Through it all, the example both Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin set is so admirable. I respect any woman who will go out there and run for office. Maybe it's a cliché, but no matter how many differences I may have with a woman politically, there is still a sense of kinship I feel for a woman in politics.

But having seen female candidates attacked on the right and the left, why would any woman my age ever feel inspired to run for office? What kind of example has the media set for my generation of women? I struggle with this. I don't have ambitions to run for office-I have already done enough campaigning for one lifetime-but I already have a pretty good idea of what it would feel like. I have often wondered how the media would react if it were my brother writing these columns and speaking out on behalf of moderate Republicans. I can pretty much bet that his weight wouldn't have been an issue.

Very true, and it speaks to the grueling arena of politics that becomes doubly treacherous for women. While the GOP's women silencing tactics may be a bit more overt, neither party does a good job in supporting women in positions of power, or throwing its party might behind women aspiring to elected office. While the Obama administration fights the image of being a separate but mostly equal boys club, the Republicans are battling their own image crisis. In addition to shouting down women's groups, the party is currently having trouble retaining women who are interested in leadership positions.

It wasn't always this way. When Pryce was first elected in 1992, Republicans had recruited so many female candidates that then-Conference Chairman Jerry Lewis of California ordered up posters featuring their several dozen smiling faces.

But there are just 17 Republican women in the House today.

And with less than a year to go before the 2010 midterm elections, Republicans have enlisted just 13 more to challenge Democratic incumbents. Even if all of them won, Republicans would have at most 30 women in the House - about half the number Democrats now have.

Part of the issue is that the hard line stance of the party faithful alienates moderate women who lean Republican, but who also may support things like gay marriage and the right to choose. Dede Scozzafava found herself in the crosshairs of conservatives who felt that her views were too liberal to represent Republicans. Olympia Snowe has also found herself targeted because of her failure to defer to the rank and file. Still, political analysts believe that the only women that are considered acceptable by top officials are also completely in line with right wing ideology that many moderate women voters find them "repulsive:"

In the days after Scozzafava's departure, House GOP leaders took pains to emphasize the contributions of their female members, allowing Rep. Virginia Foxx (R-N.C.) and others to kick off a series of floor speeches against the Democrats' health care proposals.

But Foxx and the best-known female Republican in the House - Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann - are firmly ensconced in the party's right wing, and Foxx proved it with her opening salvo on health care: "I believe we have more to fear from the potential of that bill passing than we do from any terrorist right now in any country."

Bachmann, who trumpeted the "death panel" argument and has accused President Barack Obama of trying to turn the country into a socialist state, is a particularly big draw with conservatives, who flocked by the thousands to her rally at the U.S. Capitol Thursday.

Still, even if one manages to rise to national prominence, they are still subject to far more media scrutiny than their male counterparts in government.

And, considering how this dance has played out time and time again, it's clear that unless we make some major shifts on how prevalent sexism is in our media and politics, both parties are doomed to repeat this same destructive cycle.

Hillary And Sarah's Common Theme [The Daily Beast]
The GOP's Women Problem [Politico]

Earlier: Is White House Sports Culture Detrimental To Women's Advancement?

Off The Cuff [Snap Judgment]

Anna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:50:00 -0500

[New York, November 8. Image via Flynet]

Sex Sounds: How Loud Is Too Loud? [A Little Night Music]

Anna N. — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:40:00 -0500

A UK couple were given a "noise abatement notice" for having sex so loudly that they disturbed not only neighbors but people passing on the street. But the woman argues that she deserves ''respect for her private and family life."

It's hard to read the details of Caroline and Steve Cartwright's case, reported in the Telegraph, without giggling a little bit. Their sex noises apparently drowned out neighbors' televisions, and aural witnesses described them as "unnatural" and ''murder." The sounds were apparently so disruptive that the city installed a decibel-meter in the Cartwrights' home, which found that the couple reached 47 decibels (a suggestion that neighbors may be overreacting: 47 decibels is actually below the level of normal conversation, according to several charts). Cartwright and her husband were banned from "shouting, screaming or vocalisation at such a level as to be a statutory nuisance." They were convicted of violating the ban, and now Caroline Cartwright is appealing — she says that her sex life deserves respect, and that a sexual psychologist will testify that she can't help making noise. So is she right?

Well, folks, I Googled "women's sex vocalization" so you don't have to (though if you'd like to know what a) rats, b) mice and c) brunettes sound like while engaged in intercourse, by all means go ahead), and I came up with a book called The Male Sexual Machine, by Kenneth Purvis. The book's overview makes the specious claim that "the practice of gynecology has brought millions of women to a greater understanding of their own sexual health, its male counterpart, andrology, remains largely an unexplored field" (sounds a little like a certain Onion article), but it does offer some semi-intriguing evolutionary explanations for women's sex sounds. Apparently a woman's moans speed a man's ejaculation, possibly improving the odds of simultaneous orgasm and thus of conception. And somewhat more upsettingly, female moaning may have evolved to attract more male partners to the area, back in monkey-times when most sex was group sex. All of Purvis's arguments seem like they deserve a pretty big grain of salt, but it is possible that women's sex noises have a biological basis. And while most of us can keep them in check when we're, say, staying at our parents' houses, there's an element of the involuntary in the sex moan, and it's not hard to believe that some people might have trouble stifling it.

So should they be obligated to try? For my part, I've never really been all that bothered by loud sex. I lived for a while in a part of a co-op affectionately known as the Sex Hallway, and later shared an apartment with a woman who had a really distinctive — and frequent — keening fuck-moan. In both cases I at first found it a little hard to look people in the eye after I'd just heard them boning, but I got over that pretty quickly and generally found their vocal antics harmless. My years of communal living have taught me that I'd much rather hear people fucking than fighting. That said, I get why one might not want to live near people whose sex-sounds carried across the street — not everyone wants to imagine their neighbors going at it. The question is, do we have the right to demand a sex-free airspace? Or does Caroline Cartwright deserve to moan her heart out, since her cries are, after all, far from "unnatural?"

Image via Telegraph.

Woman Claims Order Banning Her From Noisy Sex Is Breach Of Human Rights [Telegraph]

Big Bird On 40 Years Of Sesame Street Scandals [Sweeping Clouds Away]

Margaret — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:30:00 -0500

In a Q&A with New York Times readers, Big Bird reveals why Mexican Big Bird is green, denies Cookie Monster is now "Veggie Monster," and declares, "Snuffy's my best friend, he was never imaginary!" [NY Times.]

Company Offers Tour Of FLDS Enclave • Bigoted Churchgoers Protest Outside Obama Girls' School [Leftovers]

Intern Katy — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:20:00 -0500

• Several residents of Colorado City, Arizona, have started offering a bus tour called "The Polygamy Experience" for $69.95. While the FLDS is unwelcoming to the outside public, some members of a rival sect have voiced their approval. •

• A 35-year-old woman from Japan is believed to have drugged and murdered five men over the past few years. Police believe that she was deeply in debt, which may have been the motivation behind the killings. • A study from Indiana University has found that using lube makes sex better for women (well, duh). Both water and silicone-based lubricants were found to reduce the risk of vaginal tearing and genital pain. • Stroller manufacturer Maclaren has announced a recall of one million strollers - all strollers sold since 1999 - after twelve children had to have fingers amputated from being caught in the hinges. • Canadian researchers report that women with "denser" breasts are at a higher risk of seeing breast cancer return. They examined over 300 breast cancer patients, and organized them into low density, intermediate, and high. The women with high density breasts were much more likely to have cancer return within five years. • Women taking medication for depression are more likely to give birth prematurely, according to a recent study. Another finding showed that without medication use, women who displayed elevated symptoms of depression during pregnancy were no more likely to give birth preterm than their healthy peers. • On Saturday, hundreds of women in South Africa donned their bikinis and paraded through the streets of Johannesburg. The day-long event raised money for breast cancer research while breaking the world record for largest bikini parade. • Over the past five years, UK-based charity Childline has seen a significant rise (132% since 2004) in the number of calls received regarding sexual abuse by women. However, they do not believe that more women becoming abusers, but rather that more boys have tended to call the helpline. "Many would find it shocking that any woman - let alone a mother - can sexually assault a child. But they do," said Sue Minto, head of Childline. • Sad news: The natural birth center at NYC's Bellevue Hospital has closed. The birth center was one of the only of its kind to cater to mostly poor, immigrant women on Medicaid, but it was apparently shut down in September due to budget constraints. • Relatives of Janice Webb, a Cleveland woman who has been missing since June, say that they have not given up hope that Webb is alive, despite fears that she may be among Anthony Sowell's unidentified victims. • On Sunday dozens of Muslim women gathered in Fremont, California to discuss hijabs. Many of them report facing hostility and prejudice: "There's a lot of covert discrimination out there," said one of the organizers. • A senior Burmese diplomat has announced the possible release of pro-democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi has been under house arrest for the majority of the past two decades, but her supporters at home and abroad hope that she will be free in time for next year's election. • Research on rabbit penises indicates that artificial penis tissue could one day be grown to help men with diseased or damaged penises, or simply those who want bigger dicks. Reassuringly, a writeup of the study notes that "if the scientists do try and help people with this research, naturally they will not use rabbit cells with men." • The pro-rape Facebook group organized by the University of Sydney's St. Paul's college is apparently not an aberration: one student wrote to the Sydney Morning Herald that ''St Paul's boys are notorious for their sexist behaviour, referring to women as 'holes' and some of the co-ed colleges have 'don't speak to women days.'' • Scott Roeder has confessed to the murder of abortion provider Dr. George Tiller, and plans to use a "necessity defense," arguing that the murder was "justified to protect the lives of unborn children." • A 23-year-old Kansas City man has been arrested for marrying a 14-year-old girl in a Muslim ceremony — under Missouri state law, he would have needed a judge's order to do so. • Members from the Westboro Baptist Church have been protesting outside the Sidwell Friends School, where Sasha and Malia Obama are enrolled as students. Protesters carried signs with anti-gay, anti-abortion, and anti-Obama slogans. •

Ready For Take-Off [Snap Judgment]

Anna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:10:00 -0500

[Atlanta, November 8. Image via Getty]

ATLANTA - NOVEMBER 08: An Atlanta Falcons cheerleader performs during the game against the Washington Redskins at Georgia Dome on November 8, 2009 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)

Lilly's Kids: What's Christmas Without Reinforcing Gender Stereotypes? [Today In Catalogs]

Dodai — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 17:00:00 -0500

There are many lessons to be learned in the Lilly's Kids Holiday catalog, with stuff for kids ages 2 and up! For instance: Some toys/jobs are for girls, while other toys/jobs are for boys.

Car repair? That's for boys. That look on his face says: "I'm thinking about overcharging you."

Cooking and cleaning? That's for girls. The young lady on the left might also be discovering that a frying pan can double as a weapon, but that's for advanced users.

Grilling? That's for boys. Even though cooking on a stove is for girls, if you cook with fire, you're following our ancestor, Homo Erectus. Early Man, not Early Woman!

Playing with your food is something both girls and boys can do; although only girls work at McDonald's.

Related: When I was four, I loved McDonald's intensely and thought it was a burger and shake heaven on earth. So when a teacher asked me — the only black kid in my pre-k class — what I wanted to do when I grew up, I said "work at McDonald's." My mom witnessed this interaction and, I think, almost died of disappointment.

Being a pretty princess, wearing make-up and jewelry? That's for girls.

And just because you're a princess doesn't mean you shouldn't bake, make toast or blend a smoothie. Duh. That's what girls do.

A plush pet condo, for girls ages 2 and up. Because it's never too early to be a crazy cat lady!

Something all girls look forward to: Graduating from a baking princess to a Queen Of Clean. Maybe someday she'll be in one of those sad mop commercials Sarah Haskins is always making fun of.

Don't tell Danica Patrick, but car racing is for boys. Falling in love is for girls.

Sports are for boys.

Except soccer. Girls can play soccer. And whatever that other thing is.

OMG progress: Girls can be doctors! Or star in primetime medical dramas!

But boys can be paleontologists, truckers, law enforcement officials or doctors.

Lilly's Kids [Official Site]

Earlier: All previous catalog posts

Shiny As A Penny [Snap Judgment]

Dodai — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:50:00 -0500

[Los Angeles, November 8. Image via INFDaily.]

"She's Not A Troublemaker. She Is Gay." [Clothes Calls]

Sadie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:40:00 -0500

That's the mother of Ceara Sturgis, she of the no-tux-in-the-yearbook. As gender identity becomes an issue in schools, the New York Times can't help but wonder: whither dress codes?

We all understand why dress codes exist: lack of distraction, safety, sometimes even to discourage conspicuous economic disparities. To show that school is serious business. Some schools ban gender-bending dress as a means of discouraging harrassment, which however suspect it may seem, at least is rooted in tragedy. (As the Times reminds us, "safety is a critical concern. In February 2008, Lawrence King, an eighth-grader from Oxnard, Calif., who occasionally wore high-heeled boots and makeup, was shot to death in class by another student.")

And then there's what happened at Morehouse last month. As Fox explains,

Recently Morehouse College, an all-male black private university in Atlanta, released its "Appropriate Attire Policy" that banned do-rags, caps, hoods and sunglasses in class and "decorative orthodontic appliances." But it also specified the following — "No wearing of clothing associated with women's garb (dresses, tops, tunics, purses, pumps, etc.) on the Morehouse campus or at college-sponsored events."..."The image of a strong black man needs to be upheld," Cameron Thomas-Shah, student government co-chief of staff, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution . "And if anyone sees this policy as something that is restrictive then maybe Morehouse is not the place for you."

Dicta like this - and, to an extent, the highly-publicized Ceara Sturgis Tuxedogate - are obviously somewhat arbitrary. As long as the clothing is neither dangerous nor out of bounds (ie, the same length and neckline rules would, one suppo, nor one the ACLU is disinclined to pursue. Should a boy dress like a drag queen for class? Well, neither should a girl - that does qualify as "distracting." An administration might argue that cross-dressing was, by its nature, distracting. I'd say, maybe for the first week. But then you get used to it. High school may be rigid, but young people are also flexible and, as we have read time and again, far more liberal-minded about issues of sexual identity than any prior generation. However insubordinate kids might be, they still ultimately take their cues from an administration - and can tell when something's arbitrary or unfair. Lawrence King, after all, was not shot because of the way he dressed, but because of the ignorance, fear and hatred of his attackers. (And, by the way, we're guessing Chinos wouldn't have guaranteed a blissful school existence.) It may be harder for a school to address this than the clothes - but surely it's also a crucial part of an education.

School Dress Codes Homophobic? [Fox]
Can a Boy Wear a Skirt to School? [NY Times]

Reader Roundup [Commenter Quips]

Dodai — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:30:00 -0500

The best comments of the day. And the worst.

Best Comment Of The Day, in response to A Little Pick-Me-Up: "I know you're tired, but keep up the barbie toe." • Best Comment Of The Day, in response to On Style Experts: "I am anxiously awaiting my Spanx brand socks. For shapelier ankles." • Best Comment Of The Day, in response to Prejean Says She Regrets Defiling "Temple" With Topless Pics: "You should see the domes on my basilica." • Worst Comment Of The Day, in response to Small Miracles: "I'm sorry, but EEEWWW!" And: "I am all for allowing people to make there own decisions. But at some point, you have to acknowledge that this is a selfish decision. She wants to have babies. I understand...I want a baby too. But I can't afford a baby, so guess what? I practice 2 forms of birth control. If you can't take care of your children, you shouldn't be having them. Contrary to popular song lyrics, it takes more than love to make the world go 'round." You say: "This is sort of like saying, 'I'm all for the reproductive choice of others, except when I'm not.' And not to be rude, but what do her choices have to do with your choices? She & her husband knew the risks and determined that they were up to them. They sound happy. This is an amazing story in the sense that even when human bodies aren't normative, they can accomplish amazing things, but I don't see why we should be criticizing her choices when we wouldn't stand for such criticism under other circumstances."

Reminder: Best and Worst comment nominations (please email the comment and the timestamp link to the left of the comment) should be sent to Hortense at commenters@jezebel.com.

Meetups? Use the meetup tag page!

[Image via Oh! My God! I Miss You]

Keeping Up With The Kardashians : Khloe Getting Married [Sibling Rivalry]

Tracie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:20:00 -0500

Last night's two-hour-long season premiere featured the planning and execution of Khloe Kardashian and Lamar Odom's wedding. Khloe's sister Kim seemed to take the news of the engagement the hardest, mostly because she was sad she wasn't getting married.

Khloe's mom Kris took on the planning of the event and, in the process, tried to influence Khloe to opt for a color scheme that was more flattering to herself; decided that the meal would be steak (which Khloe doesn't eat); and dominated the wedding registry with her own selections, including silverware priced at $750 per setting, which, Khloe pointed out, her friends would never be able to afford.

Bruce Jenner, Khloe's stepdad, wasn't very enthusiastic about the engagement when he first learned about it (on the evening news), but came around eventually. He gave a really touching toast at the rehearsal dinner, and teared up when discussing the promise he made to Khloe's late father.

Kim managed to get over herself and decided that she was going to support Khloe, but there still seemed to be a bit of tension there.

All was forgiven, though, when Khloe basically handed the bouquet toss to Kim.

All Along The Watchtower [Snap Judgment]

Anna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:10:00 -0500

[Berlin, November 8. Image via Getty]

BERLIN - NOVEMBER 09: A visitor photographs over the edge of a still-existing section of the Berlin Wall into the so-called 'death strip,' where East German border guards had the order to shoot anyone attempting to flee into West Berlin, at the Bernauer Strasse memorial on the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Wall on November 9, 2009 in Berlin, Germany. The city of Berlin is celebrating the 20th anniversary of the fall of the Wall, which led to the end of communist rule in East Germany and later on the reunification of East and West Germany, with a spectacular event at the Brandenburg Gate and the participation of international leaders. (Photo by Sean Gallup/Getty Images)

Pro-Choice Dems Vow To Kill Stupak Amendment [Roe Vs. World]

Anna N. — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 16:00:00 -0500

As disturbing as the trade-in of abortion rights for healthcare reform is, it now looks like House Democrats won't let abortion coverage go down without a fight.

Greg Sargent reports at least 41 pro-choice Democrats have signed a letter to Nancy Pelosi stating the following:

As Members of Congress we believe that women should have access to a full range of reproductive health care. Health care reform must not be misused as an opportunity to restrict women's access to reproductive health services.

The Stupak-Pitts amendment to H.R. 3962, The Affordable Healthcare for America Act, represents an unprecedented and unacceptable restriction on women's ability to access the full range of reproductive health services to which they are lawfully entitled. We will not vote for a conference report that contains language that restricts women's right to choose any further than current law.

For those of you who (like me, initially) are confused about how this extremely complicated and at times disheartening process works, what happens now is that the Senate needs to pass its own version of the healthcare bill, and then the two houses of Congress must hash out a single version in conference committee. That version needs to be approved by the House and Senate — and 41 House Dems say they won't vote for it unless what Latoya aptly calls the Stupid-Shits Amendment, which would prohibit women who receive government subsidies from buying abortion coverage even with their own money, is removed. As Sargent points out, their language is "unequivocal, with no wiggle room." And Debbie Wasserman-Schultz (video above) pledges that the Stupak Amendment will be gone from the bill when it comes back from committee. Sargent says it will be difficult for the letter's signatories to back away from their position now. He explains,

It will be much tougher for pro-choice Dems to cave and support the bill with Stupak than it was for House progressives to cave and back the bill despite its lack of a robust public option.

Here's why: Because the public option had initially been written off for dead, the version liberals did secure allowed them to claim they had won something. By contrast, Stupak is a significant step backward for advocates of abortion rights and women's health issues. So it will be much tougher for pro-choice House Dems to back a final bill with Stupak in the end.

According to Stephanie Condon of CBS, Pelosi can only afford to lose 40 Democratic votes if she wants the health-care bill to pass, so the 41 signatories to the letter constitute a serious threat. Will that threat be enough to convince the conference committee to soften its line on abortion? Will the 41 Democrats actually kill a healthcare reform bill that would — again, as Latoya pointed out — do many good things, if it fails in this one key area? If Stupak stays in, and the Dems cave, would Obama even sign a bill with such severe abortion restrictions? White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs was vague on this point, saying only that "I am not going to become a negotiator on Capitol Hill from the podium" and "We will wait to see what health care reform brings." His failure to denounce the amendment does make it seem like Obama might compromise on abortion to push healthcare reform through. The fate of the final bill is still so uncertain, however, that it's hard to begin the upsetting calculus of whether the compromise would be worth it. Only one thing's for sure — as Sargent says, "This will intensify."

Obtained: In Letter To Pelosi, 41 House Dems Pledge To Vote Against Bill With Anti-Abortion Amendment [The Plum Line]
Wasserman-Schultz: We Will Kill Stupak Amendment [The Plum Line]
Health Care Progress Report: November 9 [CBS]
White House Not Opposing Stupak Amendment [Politico]

Earlier: Reproductive Rights Left Behind After Health Care Bill Passes House

The Sparkle Vamp Is A Man With Many Layers [Snap Judgment]

Dodai — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:50:00 -0500

[Los Angeles, November 8. Image via Bauer-Griffin.]

French Women Don't Get It, Or Why Do We Resent Mireille Guiliano? [Mais Non]

Sadie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:40:00 -0500

Yesterday, a very nice friend and I were in a bookstore and caught sight of Mireille Guiliano's latest, Women, Work & The Art of Savoir Faire: Business Sense & Sensibility. "I've decided I hate her," said my normally mild-mannered friend:

She was not the first whom I've heard express sentiments to this effect. Now, it must be said that the "Guiliano Backlash" is a purely anecdotal phenomenon: while there have been occasional snippy pieces, they're nothing to the millions of readers who made French Women Don't Get Fat an international phenomenon, will probably see the movie (if only to see how the hell to adapt a diet book into a rom-com), and have snapped up the sequels with enthusiasm, probably with a laboriously-draped scarf around their necks and a bowl of leek water in their hands.

Personally, I have no beef with FWDGF. Would I do the leek-soup weekend? Mais non. But her basic message of moderation and eating for pleasure is wholesome and common-sensical, and nothing that hasn't been sold - in less chic sheep's clothing - for decades. I liked the recipes I tried and, while the sequel was completely gratuitous, found it innocuous. The latest volume follows much the same pattern: common sense stuff, wrapped in "French secrets" and "savoir-faire" and with a hefty dose of the same take-care-of-yourself quality-of-life ethos that powered the first two.

All that said, I get the resentment - to a degree. There are legit issues people always bring up: she's rumored to be a difficult boss. The leek soup diet is dangerous and medically unsound. French women do, in fact, get fat. It's still the same old skinny-is-God. And her whole shtick is Americanized Frenchness sold to an American sensibility. I'm not disagreeing - and her attitude towards the overweight, in interviews, often seems to border on downright disdainful (albeit not MeMe-calibur) - but sometimes these arguments have the character of the sort of justification people seize upon to explain a wholly irrational dislike of a movie star (and hey, we've all done it - I know I was gratified to learn about a TV chef apparently maltreating her assistants because it justified my totally irrational gut dislike of her antics.) There are plenty of reasons to dislike her work rationally - but it's not the rational dislike that interests me.

I wrote some friends to get specifics on the dislike. "Smug" and "superior" were constants. "Inflexibility" was another. "For all her pose of self-help, she comes across as judgmental and makes me feel inadequate," wrote one. "It's the same old 'have-it-all' and be sexy too!' shtick they peddled 20 years ago." Another disliked the adulation of her fan-base. "They ask her where she gets her hair cut etc. on her web site, and there's no acknowledgment that this is a very wealthy, privileged woman living a rareified life - with, by the way, no kids to mess up the orchids or the trips to Paris."

I have my own theories, and it's that she plays on the idea of solidarity amongst women - just-between-us advice and I've-been-there collusion - while in fact speaking from aspirational and superior heights. She has none of Oprah's weight struggles or even Martha's financial imbroglios - she's too strong-willed for either. And as such she courts our resentment, much as Stewart did pre-Camp-Cupcake. She's for women, by women - but how much does she like and respect her readership? That, and she's a successful businesswoman - who's still built her rep on weight-loss. Had it just been this, third book, it would be one thing - but in some ways it does feel like she's playing both sides of the coin, making women both her victims and her protagonists, and "empowering" us strictly on her own, thin terms.

But those are just theories. In the end, as I said, my own views are more moderate: as long as people are going to buy weight-loss books - and they are - I'd as soon it was this as Atkins. And the third book, in a vacuum, is (despite its femme-speciifc girliness) not a bad thing for a young girl to read. (Again, most of it is the same as what you'll get in any "business for dummies" text, plus snacks and walks.) But when smart, engaged women whom I respect feel this strongly, I take note - and try to give self-styled role models a second going-over.

THE SUBTLE ART OF SAVOIR FAIRE [Daily Express]
New York's Worst Bosses: Mireille Guiliano [Gawker]
Mireille Guiliano: Why French Women Don't Get Fired [Time]

AIDS Leading Cause Of Death For Women Worldwide [Sobering Statistics]

Anna N. — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:30:00 -0500

According to a new study by the World Health Organization, AIDS is the leading cause of death and disease in women 15 to 44 around the world. Also upsetting: maternal mortality accounts for 15% of adult female deaths. [AP]

Dakota Fanning: Just A Normal Teen With Custom Designer Boots [Mag Hag]

Dodai — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:20:00 -0500

Dakota Fanning is on the cover of the December/January issue of Teen Vogue, and inside she wears designer clothes and looks nothing like the little kid from Uptown Girls. She's a teenager now! But she's normal. Typical, even. For instance:

Sure, she's playing a vampire in New Moon, but just like any other 15-year-old, she says:

"I read all four Twilight books in one week. It's such a phenomenon, and I wanted to be able to say that I was a part of it."

Unlike some other Hollywood kids, Dakota isn't home schooled or tutored. She goes to high school, where she's a varsity cheerleader:

"I started there in the ninth grade, and they were pretty receptive to me right away. I really wanted a home base, because I feel like no matter how old people are, they remember homecoming. They remember their senior prom. And I really wanted that."

Plus, even though she plays wild child Cherie Currie in The Runaways — and sings a few tracks — she doesn't feel the need to act out:

"I get my rebellion out through my movies. I'm boring in that way. I enjoy having a normal life."

Sure, the onetime Marc Jacobs model first posed for Teen Vogue when she was 12. And after the photo shoot, she took a pair of custom-made kid-size Marc Jacobs combat boots:

"I still have them! I've had to have them stretched, but I will do anything it takes to squeeze into those shoes."

But even that is totally normal (boring!) teenage behavior.

Dakota Fanning: New Moon's New Vamp, Dakota Fanning Teen Vogue Cover Shoot Photos, Dakota Fanning's Fashion Timeline [Teen Vogue]

Girls Rule [Snap Judgment' ]

Anna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:10:00 -0500

[Arcadia, California; November 7. Image via Getty]

Fans of the horse Zenyatta before the five million-dollar Breeders' Cup Classic race which she won at the Santa Anita racetrack in Arcadia on November 7, 2009. The Breeders' Cup features 14 races worth 25.5 million-dollars over two days and is capped by the five million-dollar Classic. AFP PHOTO/Mark RALSTON (Photo credit should read MARK RALSTON/AFP/Getty Images)

Emma Thompson's Name To Be Removed From Polanski Petition This Week [The Fugitive]

Irin — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 15:00:00 -0500

Emma Thompson was on The View today to talk about her admirable work fighting sex trafficking. Strangely, the ladies didn't ask her about another case of sexual exploitation—the one Roman Polanski perpetrated and Thompson initially appeared to endorse.

Thompson, you see, disappointed many of her fans earlier this fall when she signed a petition — along with a host of other boldface names, including Salman Rushdie, Natalie Portman, and Diane Von Furstenburg — demanding that Polanski be freed on charges relating to his rape of a 13-year-old girl in 1977.

Luckily, Caitlin Hayward-Tapp was nowhere near as abstemious as the View ladies: last week, the 19-year-old Exeter University student gutsily convinced Thompson to remove her name from the petition demanding Polanski's freeing. But as of this morning, Thompson's name was still on the petition, which is hosted on the website of French public intellectual Bernard Henri-Levy.

After we contacted her a few hours ago, Ms. Thompson's publicist told us that her client "...requested that her name be removed when she said she would. We have asked for confirmation from them but have not yet received it."

We also asked Mr. Henri-Levy's camp for an update, and Liliane Lazar, a former French professor who worked with him on the petition, responded, saying that Thompson's name will be removed Wednesday. As for why it would take several days to remove a line from a posting on a webpage, Ms. Lazar has yet to say.

Earlier: Emma Thompson To Remove Name From Polanski Petition?
Letters From Hollywood: Roman Polanski's Rape Of Child No Big Thing

Nothing's Gonna Touch You In These Golden Years [Snap Judgment]

Dodai — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:50:00 -0500

[New York, November 8. Image via Bauer-Griffin.]

Health Care Reform Still Affixing Blame To Fat [Fat!So?]

LatoyaPeterson — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:40:00 -0500

The battle over weight discrimination has hit Capitol Hill, with fat acceptance activists like Marilyn Wann (pictured) and Lynn McAfee facing off with insurance lobbyists and lawmakers. Specifically targeted? The health care industry's policy of denying coverage based on weight.

Reports the Times:

[Wann's] has been an oft-repeated message this summer and fall by members of the "fat pride" community, given that the nation is in the midst of a debate about health care. That debate has, sometimes awkwardly, focused its attention on the growing population of overweight and obese Americans with unambiguous overtones: fat people should lose weight, for the good of us all.

Heavier Americans are pushing back now with newfound vigor in the policy debate, lobbying legislators and trying to move public opinion to recognize their point of view: that thin does not necessarily equal fit, and that people can be healthy at any size.

It's kind of thrilling that the concept of HAES (Health at Every Size) actually got covered in the New York Times. However, much of the article revolves around the basic arguments for and against fat acceptance, and only devotes a slim paragraph to some of the political ramifications involved with these types of size based mandates:

Extra weight brings with it an increased risk of chronic disease, medical experts say, and heavier people tend to have medical costs that are substantially higher than their leaner counterparts. As a result, Congress is considering proposals in the effort to overhaul health care that would make it easier for employers to use financial rewards or penalties to promote healthy behavior by employees, like weight loss.

That says clusterfuck all over it. So now my employer gets to help police my weight? Nice. I mean, it would be cool to have my gym memberships and yoga class passes comped, but I'm not sure how they would measure progress. Are they going to start calling studios to see if I attended class twice that week? Or tie my performance evaluation or benefits package to the number on the scale?

Japan started a nationwide health program back in 2008, with the dramatic imposition of government recommended limits on weight:

Under a national law that came into effect two months ago, companies and local governments must now measure the waistlines of Japanese people between the ages of 40 and 74 as part of their annual checkups. That represents more than 56 million waistlines, or about 44 percent of the entire population.

Those exceeding government limits - 33.5 inches for men and 35.4 inches for women, which are identical to thresholds established in 2005 for Japan by the International Diabetes Federation as an easy guideline for identifying health risks - and having a weight-related ailment will be given dieting guidance if after three months they do not lose weight. If necessary, those people will be steered toward further re-education after six more months.

To reach its goals of shrinking the overweight population by 10 percent over the next four years and 25 percent over the next seven years, the government will impose financial penalties on companies and local governments that fail to meet specific targets. The country's Ministry of Health argues that the campaign will keep the spread of diseases like diabetes and strokes in check.

Think about the ramifications of these ideas for a moment. I've already felt some of this personally, when my former insurer sent me a letter, notifying me that I was over the maximum acceptable BMI for my height and weight, and, as a result they were raising my premiums by $45 a month. They did all this before they consulted my primary care physician about my blood pressure (which is on the low end of normal), my exercise routine (adopted under recommendation of said physician) or asking for her prognosis (that I have a clean bill of health, and have always been on the higher end of the acceptable BMI.) When I sent letters about this, I was informed that they would reconsider after my weight levels dropped and I provided proof from my physician. Thinking of how this type of corporate/bureaucratic override of a doctor's assessment could be applied on a wider scale is frightening. Regardless of patients' actual health, they can be charged a higher premium for being over a pre-determined average. And if they can charge higher premiums for weight without any proof of impact on a patient's health, what's next?

Heavier Americans Push Back on Health Debate [NY Times]
Health at Every Size [Wikipedia]
Japan, Seeking Trim Waists, Measures Millions [NY Times]

George Clooney Would Be Dead Right Now… [Ad Libs]

Dodai — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:30:00 -0500

…If it weren't for The Archangel John Malkovich and a Nespresso coffee maker. At least, that's the gist of this commercial. [AdFreak]

Domestic Violence Survivors Speak Out On "The Rihanna Effect" [Clips]

Margaret — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:20:00 -0500

Today on GMA abuse survivors reacted to Diane Sawyer's Rihanna interview. "She's acknowledging being beaten," said one woman, "It makes me so angry when people think about abuse as an isolated incident. It's a pattern of behavior." Clip at left.

Lima Scenes [Snap Judgment]

Anna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:10:00 -0500

[Lima, November 8. Image via Getty]

Activists protest against bullfighting during the inauguration of the Senor de los Milagros Bullfighting Fair in Lima on November 8, 2009. The banner reads 'No tradition before reason'. AFP PHOTO/MARCO GARRO (Photo credit should read MARCO GARRO/AFP/Getty Images)

The Challenges Of Raising Kids Vegetarian [Veggie Tales]

Anna N. — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 14:00:00 -0500

Today's LA Times brings up an interesting issue (and one that Jonathan Safran Foer will surely face at some point): how do you raise kids vegetarian without making mealtime a battle?

Of course, food is often a touchy subject even in non-vegetarian homes. My desire to eat nothing but plain chicken and bagels throughout my childhood caused plenty of bitter fights, and contributed to my parents' early fear that my vegetarianism was just another form of pickiness. In retrospect, I'm not sure why I hated all foods with flavor so much, but I do know that kids start searching at a relatively young age for ways to exercise their own autonomy, and food choice is one of these ways. So should the children of vegetarians get to choose to eat meat?

Emily Sohn of the LA Times addresses several issues surrounding this question, including health. It's a common misconception that growing kids need meat to survive. I remember a sort of legend that made the rounds in college about a student who tried to raise her toddler vegan; all the kid's teeth fell out, and had to be replaced with metal ones. The metal is, I think, a dead giveaway that this story was bullshit (although I'd kind of like to get a look at little Johnny Steelfangs), but it's true that vegetarian and especially vegan diets for kids require a few tweaks. As Sohn says, small children may need calorie-rich foods like peanut butter because a vegetarian diet can otherwise fill them up without giving them enough energy. And breastfeeding vegan moms may need a B12 supplement. But horror stories aside, a meat-free diet shouldn't do kids physical harm.

Then there's the psychological angle. As Sohn points out, "school-age children in particular can become anxious when anything about them is different from their peers, including what they eat for lunch." This actually seems like an opportunity for educating kids about differences — after all, children are always going to stick out in some way, and if parents can teach them to stand up for what's in their lunchboxes, they may be better at standing up for what's in their heads.

What seems more difficult to negotiate is a kid's desire to separate herself from her parents — including their dietary restrictions. Of course, many parents exercise some control over what their kids eat, and in some religions, dietary rules have been passed down for millennia. But, as Sohn notes, "resentment can build up if foods are forbidden completely." And at some point, kids are going to have the opportunity to try a hamburger. Parents can tell their children why they believe vegetarianism is important, and they can make only vegetarian foods at home. But when it comes to the big, bad, omnivorous world, probably the best they can do is teach them to make informed choices and not to let anyone else think for them — including mom and dad.

Don't Make Food A Conflict For A Vegetarian Child [LA Times]
Nutritional Guidelines For Vegetarian Children [LA Times]

A New York State Of Mind [Snap Judgment]

Dodai — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:50:00 -0500

[Venice, CA; November 8. Image via Flynet.]

"We Will Not Go Gently Into That Good Night" [Hellraisers]

Anna — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:40:00 -0500

That's NARAL's Nancy Keenan, appearing on MSNBC a few minutes ago. [NARAL]

"Are There Cat Gentlemen, Too?" [The Cat People]

Sadie — Mon, 09 Nov 2009 13:30:00 -0500

Lately, cat ladies have been in the news, prompting legislation, a documentary, and a new inquiry from Slate's "Explainer": "What's the deal with cat ladies?" And why are they always, well, ladies?

Slate, which ran its initial inquiry in 2005, was prompted to revisit the subject by the passage of the new Dudley, Massachusetts law that prohibits residents from owning more than three cats - which was prompted in turn by the out of control cat population of a resident C.L. Of course, one could argue that no self-respecting cat lady (or, for that matter, mere cat fancier) is going to heed any such injunction - either through obliviousness (the stereotypical cat lady isn't exactly glued to local news) or on animal-loving principle. So one wonders how effective such a law might prove.

Of course, as Slate's Daniel Engber points out, most of those whom we consider "cat ladies" are not mere animal-lovers, but those whose compulsion to collect and shelter has led to neglect, and often squalor - circumstances of which the perpetrators seen unaware. People toss the term around, but there's a difference between a woman with cats and someone who's a clinical animal hoarder.

Animal hoarding has also been viewed as an addiction, like compulsive gambling or alcoholism, or as a form of dementia. Though hoarders are usually quite old, many recall a history of neglect or abuse by their parents. Obsessive-compulsive disorder provides another psychiatric model; about a quarter of OCD patients exhibit object-hoarding behavior. No one knows why women are more susceptible than men. One member of the Hoarding of Animals Research Consortium points out that women are also more likely to become veterinarians and less likely to perform acts of animal cruelty.

As the sympathetic new documentary Cat Ladies explains the phenomenon,"It's not the number of cats that defines someone as a 'cat lady', but rather their attachment, or non-attachment, to human beings. They create a world with their cats in which they are accepted and in control - a world where they ultimately have value." Of course, even from the preview, there seem to be a number of different types represented - and not everyone's motivations seem just the same. That's why legislation seems problematic; there are people who can take in a lot of animals and give them good lives. And then there's hoarding, which is a real concern for the Humane Society and the ASPCA.

And while it's clearly a phenomenon more common to women - no one knows why - it's obvious that the tendency has been conflated with witch mythology in ways we don't even question. You don't need to watch the Cat People movies (although you should, because they're fantastic) to know that felines have evil historical associations - and have often been regarded as the familiars of the sort of lone woman who was an easy target in Salem. Take this (which mythology I've long heard, but can't verify or cite to my satisfaction, so take it as lore)

A very early record of the linking together of witches and cats concerns the ceremony of Cat Wednesday which took place in the city of Metz in Northern France. This involved hundreds of cats being burnt alive in the belief that they were witches in disguise. Papal might was brought down upon witches and cats in the 13th century when horrible acts of atrocity were carried out on humans and felines. Black cats in particular were believed to be agents of the devil, especially if owned by an elderly woman.

Clearly, our cultural aversion goes deeper than we know. Of course, when it comes to the Rat Ladies - well, that's another matter. And another documentary.

What's The Deal With "Cat Ladies"? [Slate]

Cat Ladies Documentary

Hot Docs 2009 Trailers: CAT LADIES [YouTube]
Behind Closed Doors: The Horrors of Animal Hoarding [Humane Society]
Witches And Cats [Best-Cat]