Quick couple of links

[neadods]

So fascinated, I wanted to pass these on:

In light of the racism in Who discussion, I found linaerys's post on how her evolution into a liberal feminist has made her reassess her understanding of racism fascinating and useful. Developing a real feminist identity is what actually made me realize that there was more to fighting racism than "not seeing color." Refuting arguments telling me women and men are equal already made me think about the arguments I'd heard from Campus Life, arguments like, "When you say you're color blind, you are negating my experience" started to make sense. Someone who says that men and women are equal, that they treat them the same, is negating my experience.

Those who think that there isn't a racism problem, especially online where "nobody can see you," are cordially invited to go look at the hysteria now that a Harry Potter kink comm has equated sex between the races with sex between species. Pointing this out to the mods is apparently both offending them (for the crime of being called racist) and censoring them.

Creating Space paintings in a matter of seconds. Mind you, this is like charging $1 for hitting the machine and $1,000 for knowing *where* to hit it, but this process just fascinates me. I foresee paint-covered hands in my future.

Fic Rec: Protector by wendymr. Jackie, Rose. There's a strange man who keeps staring at her growing daughter, and Jackie's going to have it out with him...

Do Not Stand At My Grave and Weep Martha, Doctor. Nice bittersweet piece about different lives. (If you liked my "A Good Life," you'll probably like this.)

And from a locked post - I think I'm going to have to join OG. It sounds like the most entertaining crazy goes on in their forums.

ETA: to keep from spamming:

Tom's Glossary of Book Publishing Terms: ADVANCE COPY: A bound book that when opened by an editor will instantly expose an embarrassing mistake.

Comments

[iko.livejournal.com]

Racism, sexism, and classism are topics that aren't addressed properly in many, many cases. Typically, the simplest solution is sought (like "not seeing color") and that is, more often than naught, a band-aid to the problem instead of a new paradigm.

[neadods.livejournal.com]

During the whole Martha/Mickey/Racism discussion as it raged, I was quite frustrated by one poster who just brushed the whole thing off with "Well, *I* just see them as people." Er, how lovely. It's not like that changed the problem a lot of other people were seeing.

Not even a bandaid, a rather holier-than-thou version of STFU!

[avidbeader.livejournal.com]

My husband is on OG (and I am too, though I've long forgotten my password). He reads me the choice bits and I agree that there is quite a bit of entertaining crazy to be found there.

[neadods.livejournal.com]

I keep saying that I don't have time to keep up with LJ, and I really don't, but... wow, I'd love to see some of the rumored wierdness in the wild.

[xwingace]

I'm registered at the OG so that when someone (usually drakyndra points out something interesting, whether crazy or set reports) I can check it out. I hardly ever read it myself though, since there's also a lot of very tedious crazy. Every time I've got some spare moments and I start reading randomly, I get bored very quickly.

XWA

[harmonyfb.livejournal.com]

Someone who says that men and women are equal, that they treat them the same, is negating my experience.

Wow, is that totally 180 degrees from my understanding.

Just because a particular person treats men and women as equals does not in any way 'negate' or invalidate any experiences I might have had with assholes who don't treat them as equals.

Likewise, folks who are 'color blind', as they say, don't negate the ugly experiences I've had with folks who were not.

[neadods.livejournal.com]

Just because a particular person treats men and women as equals does not in any way 'negate' or invalidate any experiences I might have had with assholes who don't treat them as equals.

That's pretty much what the OP is saying in her post; one person saying "Well, I don't" erases nothing and means nothing.

[harmonyfb.livejournal.com]

one person saying "Well, I don't" erases nothing and means nothing.

See, I disagree enormously with the second half of that statement. Of course it means something! It means one less hurdle to be jumped, one more person behaving like a civilized individual. Saying that they mean 'nothing' is - frankly - negating the experiences of others (something the op is decrying, yes?)

[neadods.livejournal.com]

one more person behaving like a civilized individual

If, hopefully, they are actually acting like a civilized individual. It was my experience in the Dr. Who uber-conversation that quite a few people were essentially just saying "I'm not racist, why are you discussing this?" to shut the conversation down. So it's made me a little twitchy about the phrase.

But yes, you're right on the OP and certainly if the person in question *is* being civilized! (Because in the end, we all certainly hope we are being civilized...)

[harmonyfb.livejournal.com]

It was my experience in the Dr. Who uber-conversation that quite a few people were essentially just saying "I'm not racist, why are you discussing this?" to shut the conversation down.

Ah. That's a fish of a different scale, so to speak.

[neadods.livejournal.com]

That's a fish of a different scale, so to speak.

Exactly! "Well, I don't treat people like that" isn't really an answer to the comment, "I don't think Rusty is aware of how he's treating certain people," nor is it a reason to stop discussing what Rusty may or may not be doing.

[neadods.livejournal.com]

Another passing thought - are you following the wank discussion over the HP kinkfic prompt? Because it seems as if the mod's arguments boil down to "I'm not racist, ergo I do not do anything racist even if it seems that way to you" ... which is the kind of headspace that prompted me to say what I originally said.

Someone who honestly tries to be fair and evenhanded - YES, that is to be lauded and encouraged. However, it's so easy to claim one thing and act another.

[lagilman]

See, I disagree enormously with the second half of that statement. Of course it means something! It means one less hurdle to be jumped, one more person behaving like a civilized individual. Saying that they mean 'nothing' is - frankly - negating the experiences of others (something the op is decrying, yes?)

My feeling on it, too. If they're honest about their reactions, and not being HTT or disengenious (I spelled that wrong, didn't I?), then they've made the problem one person smaller, and gives me hope that we can eventually evolve.... and saying that their experience is pointless or useless is slapping the student for getting the right answer. IMO.

[neadods.livejournal.com]

I think it's disingenuous, but I haven't looked it up either - and it's pretty much what led me to add that codicil. "I'm not racist and I don't see what you're complaining about" was used in the "Is Rusty Racist?" conversation and it's being flung around in the "bestiality != interracial sex" conversation that's going on right now. Very, very loudly, in that the mods are just FURIOUS that they're being called racist for using "miscegenation" as a fic prompt. They aren't racist, and therefore their use of a random word out of the dictionary cannot possibly be racist either!

Which makes me wonder if it's possible to definitively say "I don't treat people that way" as opposed to "I hope I don't treat people that way."

[besideserato.livejournal.com]

Thanks for sharing linaerys's entry, I really enjoyed it and left her a note saying so. I'd heard about this racism issue from someone else's blog, but they didn't wanna get a fight started so remained relatively vague. I didn't want to seem nosy and ask straight out about it, so it's lucky I stumbled on this entry. Between you and linaerys, I figured the drama out. ;)