What an asshole.
I didn't even know who Ben Shapiro was until this, now I just know that he's an abusive ignorant asshole.
What an asshole.
I didn't even know who Ben Shapiro was until this, now I just know that he's an abusive ignorant asshole.
Last edited by allegro; 07-21-2015 at 10:03 AM.
This was the best diss of Shapiro ever.
Hey guys, so, it's done. I did it. I did the thing. And I am soooooore as fuck and can't really lay down and I'll be out of commission for at least a week or two but god damn it's so worth it. I mean, I can't see anything because of the bandaging that stays on for a week, but even with the swelling and layers of bandaging, I'm flatter than I ever was with the tightest binder. I can't even put into words how excited and happy I am right now. I want to thank the NIN community at large for helping me raise money. I still need more, mind you, I have a lot of paying off to do, but what you guys have all done for me is amazing.
Holy shit, congrats!!! That's amazing.
Congratulations my friend! You're an incredible person and an inspiration. My best wishes for a fast and as painless as can be recovery.
*gentle hugs*
This is so depressing.
http://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2...-south-georgia
http://journalstar.com/news/state-an...74164ae74.html
Sigh, Nebraska.
http://m.huffpost.com/us/entry/55bbc...?section=women
More press on other folks stories...
So, I came out yesterday. Like, came out came out. I made a post on Facebook, unfiltered, so everyone saw it. I was already out to close friends and family but now everyone knows- aunts, uncles, my grandmother, my cousins...everyone.
The only people that don't know are coworkers (I don't want to be out at work yet so I filtered the post so they couldn't see it) and my step dad who I'm not telling any time soon (long story but I don't anticipate that going well). Other than that I pretty much kicked the damn closet door down and jumped out.
And you know what? I got to sleep on it and this morning I'm still feeling great about it. The response has been overwhelmingly positive. My grandmother actually called me to tell me that she supports me, instead of just commenting on FB, which was nice. There are still quite a few people I haven't heard from (including all of my uncles, but maybe they just haven't seen it yet) but, you know, that's the way it goes. No one unfriended me so far so that's good. Ha ha.
I'm not even sure why I did it yesterday but for some reason I just felt the urge to. Most of these people I'm really not that close to so I honestly didn't think it would make a huge difference for me mentally but it did. I felt a huge burden lift off my shoulders. A burden I didn't even know I was carrying. I feel like this was another road block that was stopping me from moving on and deciding how I want to proceed. I think the path will be easier now.
Last edited by theruiner; 08-10-2015 at 10:34 AM.
I'm so happy for you! :::hugs:::
My friend's oldest child, now five, has identified as a girl since she was 3.5. My friend and his wife have been incredibly supportive (as I wish all parents would be), never attempted to change or influence her feelings, and today announced that their daughter, formerly Edgar, is now Esme. I love them so fucking much.
This is pretty cool.
https://twitter.com/deray/status/633784014466338816
Ugh.
The life expectancy for trans women is just 35, according to the Latin American Trans Network. The lack of job opportunities forces many into prostitution, and more than one in four trans women are HIV-positive.
I thought this was a really cool representation of trans in TV (Mr Robot): http://www.buzzfeed.com/arianelange/mr-robot-diversity
It sure beats the ham-fisted stereotyping you see in shows like Sens8 that are basically trying to sell you "diversity"
I was going to say, I thought Sense8 handled the trans aspect perfectly.
I do. It doesn't make the characters they play any different. It's the characters I was talking about.
I gave up after the first episode. Maybe it got better later, but it displayed zero subtlety or nuance. It felt almost manipulative to anyone who favors diversity, as if they were selling diversity in place of a good story. That said, the problem with stereotyping was much stronger outside of the trans character.
Some reading that demonstrates this:
The problem is that the Wachowskis are great at creating new worlds, eye-popping visuals and full-throttle action sequence. Nuanced characters and small personal moments are not their strong suit, but they’re the substance of the entire first episode, as we meet each of the eight characters.
Alas, the stories are dreadfully sincere and painfully literal. We learn that Wolfgang didn’t like his father when he literally pisses on his grave. We know that Nomi and her girlfriend are really into Gay Pride because they’re having sex with a rainbow-colored dildo. Yes, it’s that kind of show.
http://www.theguardian.com/tv-and-ra...owskis-netflix
To put it plainly: Sense8’s depiction of life in non-western countries is built out of stereotypes, and of life in non-American western countries is suffused with tourist-board clichés. The protagonist in Nairobi is a poor man whose mother has AIDS and whose life is ruled by gangs; in Mumbai we have a woman in a STEM career marrying a man she doesn’t love and engaging in Bollywood dance numbers; in Korea we have a patriarchally oppressed wealthy corporate woman who also happens to be a kickass martial artist; in Mexico City we follow a telenovela actor. London and Reykjavik are filmed using tourist locations and anonymous interiors.
Worse, the filmic clichés of each country are brought to bear on the production in each location — each organized by a different director: Nairobi is sweaty, garish, earth-toned, radiantly shabby; Mumbai is multicolored, and Hindu iconned, full of the jewelry, silks, flowers, and jubilant crowds that burst out of classic Bollywood; Seoul is clean to the point of sterility, with little patches of grass and mirrors and windows everywhere, a grey, hi-tech aesthetic; Mexico City is jewel-toned, rife with skulls, full of melodrama deliberately reminiscent of the telenovela; etc. I believe, quite literally, that the filmmakers primarily learned about these other cultures through their films, and considered that enough.
http://thenerdsofcolor.org/2015/06/1...l-imagination/
But I won't deviate beyond this as it's not the Sense8 thread. I'm just providing support to the view.
Last edited by DigitalChaos; 08-20-2015 at 03:28 PM.
I did a rewatch and a lot of things that didn't bother me the first time around really bugged me the second time. Those aside, this is the first series co-directed/written by a trans-woman. That fact alone garners my support.
I really liked that, after the first couple of episodes, they didn't really bring up the fact that Nomi was trans all that much. It was a part of who she is but not all that she is. And the scene toward the end (no spoilers here) where she's talking to Lito about being true to who she is was exceptionally well done. It left me a sobbing wreck, actually. I have to believe Lana had a lot to do with that scene (and fleshing out that character). And Jamie Clayton too, I'm sure (from a performance perspective). It felt very authentic to me.
The reviews @DigitalChaos quoted aren't in accurate, maybe they were a little stereotype, but part of that has to happen to advance the story that all 8 come together from very different background.
You should watch the whole thing. The visuals are just amazing and Noni's character actually is a computer hacker. If anything, they made her a bit more on the helpless weak woman stereotype, which I thought worked given that the Korean character... well you'll have to watch the rest. I watched this mini on the making of it and was fascinated that some of the camera work lacked editing...
I'm going to have to bring a bucket with me to this movie. For my tears.
A lot of trans people don't like when a trans character is played by a cis actor. This is usually for a few reasons. First, they feel that there are plenty of trans actors that could play the part. Second, they feel that, short of an actual trans actor, filmmakers should at least use an actor whose gender matches (i.e. a cis woman playing a trans woman and vice versa) Instead of the wrong gender (a man playing a trans woman, like here). They feel that it contributes to the idea that a trans woman is nothing more than a man in a dress or that that's the way people unfamiliar with trans issues will take it. And third, they don't like the impression that every trans person is just waiting for their bottom surgery, that that's the main goal for every trans person when that couldn't be further from the truth for a lot- and I do mean a LOT- of trans people who don't want or need bottom surgery at all.
While I do totally understand where these arguments are coming from, and agree with some of them (I certainly don't like the idea that people see trans women as men in dresses or that the goal of every trans person is to get surgery and, yes, having mors trans actors playing trans parts would be great) I still think they're missing the bigger picture here. Look, you could have gone about this movie one of two ways. You could get a trans actor to play the part but then the movie, if it could even get made without a well known actor, wouldn't have nearly as big a distribution deal and/or wouldn't be seen by nearly as many people as it would be with a well known actor as the lead. Or you could get a known actor that can put butts in seats and get that much more exposure/education because way more people will see it. To me that's more than worth the trade off.
here is an interview with BD Wong about playing White Rose.
One of the first things he says is that he felt bad about taking the job away from a trans actress.
I love bd wong. He's one of my favorites.
@theruiner I agree with you. It's like people who think Pride is too corporate and so arrange an anti-Pride in some backwater park somewhere. To me, it's better to attend Pride, have a presence out in public where people can recognise your cause, than hide somewhere. I'm not sure how realistic it is to expect to go from zero to perfection in one step
So has anybody else been watching "I Am Cait?" I have found it fascinating, not so much because of Cait but mostly because of her guests and new friends. I love Candis and Chandi and Susan.
I don't have cable, is it (legit) online anywhere? I'm sure I can find a shit stream somewhere, but I prefer to get my internet-version of cable legit if possible. If nothing else because it's usually better quality, more reliable, and shows that there is a demand for that kind of show to be made.