Paula Deen’s lovechild with that God-awful Duck Dynasty dad is reportedly furious after footage of a racist man berating an elderly Black woman went viral this week. Among the many things he will likely get away with shouting: “I will carry on as far as I can with this ugly black bastard,” and then threatened to …
No one knows who smuggled Symphony No. 7 out of Russia. But in an inspired flourish Dmitri Shostakovitch wrote it, start to finish, as the Nazis invaded Leningrad. The siege lasted almost 900 days and wiped out some 600,000 residents – almost a third of the pre-war population. Shostakovitch’s composition runs almost 80 minutes long …
The only podcast I listen to with eager dedication is Writing Excuses. Hosted by a merry band of mostly science fiction and fantasy authors with frequent guest authors, their craftsmanship and tutelage also includes book-of-the-week reading recommendations. Author Mary Robinette-Kowal challenged herself for a year to only read non-American authors. Her co-host, author Dan Wells …
Are you an American* watching fútbol in Mexico? Wishing you were watching football instead? Perhaps procuring a little bit of Spanish slang will help you experience some of the excitement that defines this sport worldwide. It’s easy! You don’t have to lie to your wife and fly to a match in another country in order …
It’s true, not all heroes wear capes. And not all linguists use their powers, or their white male privilege, for good. But then there’s Jackson Katz. Right out of the gate he cites feminist linguist Julia Penelope. I didn’t even know there was such a thing nor had I heard of her. But his TED talks …
When white people hear the words privilege or privileged they almost always react negatively to the implication that they have not earned what they have or where they are in life. In a highly meritocratic society ‘privileged’ can only be taken as an insult meaning that you didn’t work hard. That you’re spoiled. Yet we …
A weary nation is grateful to Matt Damon. After the spoiled scion of Ivy League American elitism showcased his even temperament, bipartisan level-headedness and respect for the Supreme Court by throwing sneering tearful tantrums for the duration of the Senate Judiciary hearing, Matt Damon helped us laugh at what we weren’t totally sure we had …
I’m not saying that Chris Janson is the Brett Kavanaugh of country music. But non-consensual sex is NOT a rite of passage. It is not an inevitable mistake boys can’t help but make as they come of age. Non-consual sex is a crime whether you remember committing it or not, whether the victim was drunk …
There’s a scene from that Aaron Sorkin show* that everyone loved. With Bill Pullman? I never saw it but have seen it discussed with an almost nostalgic reverence, like our own favorite childhood memories. This clip is posted with great aplomb, and frequency, on my newsfeed. A middle-aged white man sits center stage at what …
Despite varied invitations, shall we say, there are only three sets of circumstances where I would get into a car with a male stranger at night. I am horribly injured and my death is imminent if I don’t take the risk that you will actually drive me to the hospital You’re Billy Ocean and I’m …