The Reading List, 9/8/2015

I share a lot of links on Twitter and Facebook that I don’t blog about because I don’t have much to add. The reading list is a periodic feature where I share those links with my blog audience too. Of course, you’re still welcome to follow me on Twitter.

  • “The reality of Ashley Madison, just like the reality of everything else about sex, was different from the image carved out during advertising strategy sessions. It’s appalling that so many people whose public identities are founded on being skeptical of the default expectations of sexuality and gender dumped that much-vaunted skepticism as soon as they saw a chance to score points on Josh Duggar or whatever other symbol of mainstream sexuality they discerned in that great Rorschach blot of data.” Read more.
  • “None of this is going down because Americans are anti-choice or opposed to the basic tenets of reproductive justice. A majority of Americans support abortion rights and oppose closing abortion clinics. A majority of Americans believe LGBT people are entitled to start families just like anyone else. A majority of Americans support the ACA’s birth control benefit.” Read more.
  • “The convenient thing about choosing your political stances based on what you believe is right is that it doesn’t really matter to me if social justice work is full of assholes. (I mean, it does, but not for the sake of this particular argument.) There are assholes everywhere.” Read more.
  • “…I also don’t think most people know what to do when they see this happening. I hardly expect 15 or so people in the vicinity approved—several were women my age. To that end, here are some things that might have helped me either feel less trapped or bring the catcalling and following to end.” Read more.
  • “Puckett said the higher wages did not cause Punch to increase prices. He also said it “has had a big impact culturally in the company.” He said that retention of employees is up, which helps them save money on hiring and training. He estimates the average worker in the front — cashiers and waiters who are often students — work about three years, while the kitchen workers average five years of employment, which is very high for this transitory industry.” Read more.
  • “For the second debate on 16 September in California, CNN is asking $200,000 (£130,000), 40 times its normal rate, for a 30-second prime-time spot. TV advertising strategists say it is hard to quantify Trump’s value to the media, or the value of non-stop free media attention to Trump’s commanding lead over the Republican field, but CNN’s ad price is a good indicator.” Read more.
  • “Johnson says when she told her U.S. History Professor Maury Wiseman that she disagreed with his assessment that Native Americans did not face Genocide – the professor said she was hijacking his class, and that she was accusing him of bigotry and racism. The professor then dismissed the class early, apologized for Johnson’s disruptions and told her she was disenrolled at the end of the class on Friday.” Read more.
  • “Here is where I get really conflicted: I think that churches should provide that space for doubters, but I don’t trust them to handle it right. And I doubt I’m the only one who feels that way.” Read more.
  • “There’s a plan in place here—the trouble is, I can’t start executing it until I’ve left Berlin, and right now I can’t afford to do that. A year ago, when I was in monetary meltdown below the bottom of my overdraft, people who read this blog came to my aid, and as a result of projects they hired me to carry out—as a translator, editor, graphic designer—I haven’t been in the red since.” Read more.
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The Reading List, 9/8/2015
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