Web of Influence - Blogging blogs and the bloggers who blog them

Missouri Elects First Lesbian Senator

Sat, 09 Sep 2006 13:09:00 -0400

Yes, the state that just banned gay marriage last August elected a lesbian senator yesterday.

Jolie Justus, now a senator in KC, MO is the first elected (out) lesbian in the Missouri State Senate.

And thanks to the hard work of PROMO Missouri, 11 out of 14 LGBT-endorsed senators also succeeded in their primaries.

I'm proud to say my state is back on the ballpark in terms of Gender equality - even if the Cardinals' standings don't match LGBT successes.

Missouri to Require Promotion of Opposite Sex "Monogamy" in School and Social Curricula

Wed, 03 May 2006 22:07:19 -0400

MO House Act 1075 would require schools to promote monogamous, heterosexual relationships as part of the general sexual education curriculum.

This act will censor Missouri youth against contraceptives and sexual eccentricities and may lead to increased bigotry against same-sex couples.

We will see how the MO congress votes.

Missouri to Pass Law Declaring US "Christian Nation"?

Tue, 14 Mar 2006 15:55:46 -0500

Yes, that's right, HCR13, a bill currently being considered for passage in the Missouri House and Senate, would declare the United States a "Christian Nation." The enormous public outrcry to the legislature after its release will probably prohibit the bill from passing in the MO congress, but another bill, HJR39, is currently working its way through the system, and would "place on the ballot a Constitutional amendment which allows voluntary [and government-condoned] prayer in a public place" (Margaret Donelly, MO Rep).

Kanzi vs. Lilly the Cat: A Knock 'Em Down Blog about Language

Wed, 22 Feb 2006 16:55:28 -0500

I'm reading an encyclopedia entry about apes Koko, Panzee, Panbanisha, Kanzi, Washoe, and Nim Chimpsky.

All of these apes have learned approximately 150-300 words/lexigrams/signs. Several hundred non-human primates have been taught or attempted to teach basic signs, but could only learn 10-20, rendering the above-mentioned outliers.

Animal Language Acquisition (ALA) is criticized by cognitive linguists. They hold that language is an evolved trait, and that animals capable of language would have already evolved it as a means of communication. Most animals are not vocal, and therefore would use signing (or some form of gestulation) instead of oral speech; this is why Washoe was more prolific than most apes before her - she was taught ASL for communication as opposed to verbal speech.

News on the Clayton/Hillcrest/Aberdeen/MISSOURI Front

Fri, 17 Feb 2006 06:32:23 -0500

A smaller house on the far East side of Aberdeen Place (my home street), recently sold for about $850,000.

This is surprising because A) houses on Aberdeen two years ago were selling for $300-$400k (Saint Louis has a much lower cost of living) and those prices were considered HIGH at the time. Run-down fixer uppers on and around South Grand Blvd. (where I live now) could sell for as low as $3k a couple years ago; now they are selling for $300-$400k. and B) the house that sold for approximately $850k was not located IN THE GOOD SCHOOL DISTRIC OF CLAYTON, but the city of Saint Louis, a "bad" school distric (Roosevelt High School is the public high school allotted to this house, THE WORST SCHOOL IN METRO SAINT LOUIS).

Boys Only

Fri, 27 Jan 2006 10:48:15 -0500

I recently saw a news broadcast about a all boys elementary school. Going to an all womens college, I understand many of the reasons that girls like a single sex education, but I was really surprised at the evidence in this broadcast.

They brought up the fact that girls are much more ready to learn in first grade than boys are. Since the girls are ready, the teaching goes much more quickly since, to the teacher, it seems as if at least half of the class is understanding-the female half at least. These boys only schools slow down and make sure that their young men understand the material. Since boys are also much more active than girls, much if the teaching is hands on and interactive, so as to keep the boys' attention. More recess breaks are allowed also in order to allow the youngsters to run off all that male energy they have.

Koufax Awards

Mon, 23 Jan 2006 20:24:10 -0500

So there's been a little blogging here and I continue to blog in other places, but I just wanted to alert everyone to the Koufax Awards. These are blog awards in various categories and one of our highlighted blogs, Barely Legal is up for an award in the category "Most Deserving of Wider Recognition." And, um, yours truly, is nominated in that same category.

Chapters 1, 2 and 3

Sun, 15 Jan 2006 22:36:58 -0500

The first few of chapters of Beauty Fades, Dumb is Forever talk about how women consistently defer to men. I agree with everything Judge Judy has to say on this topic. Women do allow men to step up and take credit for many of their ideas. The stereotype that girls should be shy and demure around men definitely has an impact on them. I often see some of my best friends who are absolute geniuses turn into dingbats the moment they are around boys. Who says that girls can't be strong minded and assertive?

Judge Hatchet's Book Club

Wed, 04 Jan 2006 12:23:33 -0500

Well, it has been a while everyone. I think that after leaving Bryn Mawr to go home for the holidays, everyone has felt a little over worked. I know I did, hence the reason there has been no blogging activity since before finals week. Now that everything has settled down, I have begun to get back into the routine of things.

I was going through some of my books the other day in search of something to read at the gym and ran across Judge Judy's Beauty Fades, Dumb is Forever: The making of a happy Woman. I read this book when I was about 13 years old. At the time, I was convinced that Judge Judy was God herself. Who says God can't be a woman? This book truly confirms that belief. Every young woman should read this book. At the beginning of high school, and then maybe again in college, and probably after college before marriage, and then maybe again after marriage. I just started rereading it, and am finding it just as good a read as the first time.

Just Give Up: There’s No Point in Resisting Popular Culture Any More

Thu, 15 Dec 2005 05:23:32 -0500

Cultural resistance is a broad term describing specifically how individuals or groups attempt to change society. The reason it is a broad term is because cultural resistance could come in almost any form. As long as the possible process in which the action could change the current norm in society is clear, it can be considered to be cultural resistance.

This can include the way a person dresses, the way he or she talks, the music he or she makes, and it can even scale up to riotous behaviors like the questionable actions of Project Mayhem in “Fight Club.” Project Mayhem burned apartments and exploded buildings in the name of cultural resistance.

Political Correctness- Out of Control

Wed, 14 Dec 2005 19:56:32 -0500

I was just watching a bit of television, when an ad played, wishing me a "Merry Happy Chrismahannakwanzaakah." I found an article stating that in Britain, displays in three districts would now be called "winter lights" while in a fourth area, locals would be invited to enjoy the "celebrity lights." I do believe the world has gone quite mad with political correctness. What's next, renaming Charles Dickens's classic "A Holiday Carol"? "Frosty the Snowman" being renamed as "Frosty the Snowperson of An Indistinguishable Gender"? (The blog site A Small Victory carries a full list of renamed songs for your personal amusement.)

Abusing our bodies to feed our minds

Tue, 13 Dec 2005 22:24:50 -0500

It is the end of the semester and the work is piling up. The workload for most college students is unbearable. Three fifteen-page papers, three finals and two in-class presentations are on the agenda for this week alone. Not to mention finishing up that other essay due from two weeks ago that you needed an extension on. You are scheduled for twelve hours to work in the dining hall this week. The holiday season is upon us and you haven't finished your Christmas cards. Not to mention gathering all the presents you are expected to give. There is a month-long break coming up and your room needs to be ready for it. There are dust bunnies the size of Godzilla that are about to eat your month's worth of dirty laundry that still need to be done. You haven't packed a single sock and your mother is calling about trip arrangements. If it hasn't happened already, the dreaded all-nighter is coming for you!

Indian Stereotypes

Mon, 12 Dec 2005 16:57:40 -0500

I have grown up knowing that non-Indians have certain stereotypes for Indians. As a first generation child in the US, I’ve gotten the best of both worlds. I was thinking about some of the most common stereotypes and how some of them are actually true. However, it bothers me to know that some people think these stereotypes hold true for all Indians.

Many are taking stereotypes to their advantage in media. A few years ago, a low budget movie came out called American Desi. Desi is a slang word for being Indian. It is about American born Indian college students who have a rough time in college when they meet students actually from India. These American raised kids feel embarrassed to be Indian because of the stereotypes they have to face. They are cultured enough to know that they are Indian but don’t have any respect for their heritage. Some of these include Indian people majoring in engineering, science, or math because these three fields of study are the most common. Another time of feeling humiliated when seeing an Indian professor eat typical Indian food in the dining hall. This article summarizes the situation these students were in. After this movie, several others came out that similarly made the same point of how difficult it is to be cultured as an Indian and an American.

Bad Karma?

Sun, 11 Dec 2005 22:52:33 -0500

Most of us are not thinking about marriage until we graduate from school. Actually most college students across the U.S and western cultures do not expect people to get married till they are in their 20s. What if fate from our family was decided for us before reaching an appropriate age to marry? In Pakistan, three sisters named Abda, Amna and Sajda Khan, all around 18 years old are being forced to marry into their family’s enemy. “Vani is a tribal custom in which blood feuds are settled with forced marriages.” These girls are going to be mistreated and basically treated as slaves. Read this article.

Speaking Native Language - Grounds for Suspension?

Fri, 09 Dec 2005 20:46:59 -0500

When were you first exposed to a foreign language? Was it at home, or school? Does it offend you when people speak a language you don't understand in your presence? Today, Hispanics are the fastest growing (and largest) minority group in America. Given places like my neighborhood, The South Bronx, this is clearly a fact. I remember feeling like the odd girl out whenever my Spanish speaking classmates would utter their native language, leaving me without any clue of as to what they were talking about. My teachers always appreciated their presence in class, as they offered a lot more to our Spanish classes. They'd never consider suspending them for doing what we have the privelge of doing every time we open our mouths - speaking in our native language.