A picture of Bush laughing with attractive, shirtless, colorfully dressed men in Ghana:
Does anyone know anything about whether the Bush administration has been good for Ghana?
Found at TMZ under the headline "African Men Like Bush."
The Power Of The Photo-Op
'Cause Rape Is Funny
This bit appears on the Maxim magazine website. It uses rape, and women's apparent attraction to men who look like rapists, in order to be humorous. I think it's particularly interesting that it includes a jab at a Republican (or is it just "the establishment"?). If they are obviously leftist/anti-establishment, are we to believe that they must be good guys, therefore this use of rape for comedic value is okay? Or is this just another manifestation of the equal opportunity insult comedy found in products like South Park and Knocked Up? There is a lot going on here and I'm pretty sure I have yet to fully grasp it. Any thoughts?
Virginia Slims Ads: Commodifying Freedom
"Back then, you didn't look through your closet for something to wear. You wore your closet. You've come a long way, baby."
Find your voice with Virginia Slims.
This is a Virginia Slims ad from 1978. The picture above is of a woman hanging laundry out to dry and the text says, "Back then, every man gave his wife at least one day a week out of the house. You've come a long way, baby."
I'm using this when I talk about the commodification of the women's movement and how freedom has been turned into something you buy. I also like the vague "back then," used to make now seem so much better in every way.
Who Gets To Decide What Counts As A Name?
Fascinating example of both social construction and state control:
Sweden fines parents for naming their child Brfxxccxxmnpcccclllmmnprxvclmnckssqlbb11116.
Described on boing boing by Cory Doctorow, originally here.
Crap, that wasn't an image at all. I'm not sorry.
Comics For Contraception
The image below is the cover of a comic book designed to teach adults about birth control (it seems to have been published in 1956 and again in 1962). Find it all online here.
Found here via copyranter.
A Long Way Since Comstock
New York City Department of Health thinks we should all get some... and they don't mean condoms, if you know what I mean (wink, wink).
In case you don't believe me, check out the commercial.
Found at copyranter.
Maps And Perceptions Of The World
When I was in grade school, I remember having one of my first sociological "aha moments" during geography. We were starting a unit on Latin and South American countries and each of us had to draw a map showing the countries and capitals to show how much we already knew. We all had those school issued atlases of the world, but we had to draw the map of Latin and South America without using the atlas.
What I ended up with was similar to most kids at my table-- a huge United States with a skinny little piece of land under it, just barely larger than Florida and then a larger piece of land under that about the size of Alaska. As elementary school kids in Maine we obviously knew very little about anything south of say, Washington D.C. and this was reflected in the little pieces of land we drew. I opened up my atlas and looked at how large Latin and South America really were and was shocked. It was nearly as large as Africa, and certainly larger than the the U.S.
How things are measured makes all the difference and cartography (map making) has a fascinating history in colonial empires and imperialism (charting "unknown" far off lands filled with "savages" etc.). So when SWS member Jeanne Flavin sent me a link to the ODT Maps website I had to share some of them here.
Let's start with a pretty "typical" North America-centered map of the world--
Now how about this equal area ODT map?
© www.ODTmaps.com
And how about an actual equal area Pacific-centered map from ODT?
© www.ODTmaps.com
And how about this South-up map, challenging North-South perceptions (how do we know which end of the world is "up" anyway-- who decides that?).
© www.ODTmaps.com
And my favorite-- the population map.
There are more maps and resources for the classroom on the ODT website. Thanks Jeanne!
Another Screaming Kid For Birth Control
A commercial, this one French, to go with our most recent condom ads.
This was a tip from an Anonymous commenter. Thanks!
Some Graphs of Trends in Cosmetic Surgery
Growth in specific surgeries over the past 10 years
Most common surgeries by sex
General trend in cosmetic procedures over time
Most common procedures overall
All of these come from http://www.surgery.org/.
Request
If anyone can find one, I'd love to see a table that shows change in the number of diagnostic categories included in the DSM over time.
Fear Mongering And Objectification...
...for a good cause, of course.
Part of this campaign.
A comparison of these with some of the other more and less objectifying PSAs might be an interesting class exercise.
an Urban Dictionary look at campaign politics
These aren't images... but I think they're interesting enough in terms of race, gender and sexuality to count. And they'd make for a great class discussion on the power of words and names and how they are re/defined in ways that perpetuate stereotypes and inequality.
I'm not sure if I want to thank Gwen for turning me on to the Urban Dictionary. I think I was better off not knowing what the kids are saying these days.
So, here is some of the Hillary Clinton-related slang. And there is more that was actually too replusive for my slightly-prudish self to publish here.
hillary:
1. Describes a bull form of lesbian. The manly one of the couple.hillaryus: Hillary Clinton... a chick... president of the U.S.? Hillary + U.S. = hilarious.Did you she that lesbian? What a hillary! She got bigger balls than Bill.2. pulling a "Hillary"....when a woman lets her man, or baby's daddy, do whatever the fuck he wants, specifically when they are married...if not, what the fuck she cares. ie. a weak womanThat lady pulled a Hillary, and now she's screaming at him for it.
"It'll be hillaryus if Hillary's the president."Hillareeza Clinton: The version of presidential wannabe Hillary Clinton when she is speaking to a black audience.
Hillary Clinton "In America I believe it is important that we reconsider the health care issues of our time"Hillary Clit'on: Bill's private nickname for the 21st century's Eleanor Roosevelt.
Hillareeza Clinton "In America, all y'alls need health benefits and shit, no what I'm sayin? That's what I'm talking about,, hollaah"
Bill: Hey Hillary Clit'on, wanna make another Chelsea?
Hillary: Why don't you go find Monica? I've got some campaigning to do!
And for Barack Obama:
1. Obama:
1. A zealous cry of political victory over one's contemporary political adversary.2. obama: A unit for measuring awesome.
2. To win the spoils in a bureaucratically oriented competition; victory over one's campaign competitor.
3."To 0wn", "to win", "to be the victor", "to brag about one's sexual exploits", "to claim victory" (especially in the area of sexual gratification)
I Obama'd yo mama last night!
OBAMA!!!
I just decreased my carbon footprint! My awesome level just went up a few obamas.3. Obama: Synonymous with Hope and a Belief that Change is Possible. Being also unwilling to stoop to attacks from other candidates.
This is an Obama moment: Our community is jumping out of its skins to go turn out voters this election.4. An Obama: Someone who can pass for a black person, but in fact is only a small part black and not even a descendant of african american slaves. These fakes are usually the ones who expect and even seek out special treatment because of their self declared "race".
orI tried to find some interesting slang for the republicans (I didn't want to make them feel left out) but I couldn't find anything...
Someone who white people befriend or vote for to seem less racist, only to prove it instead.
"Damn, Cletus, what the fuck is powder doing here? I thought this was a black only church!"
"Nope, thats not powder, its Senator Barrack Obama", said Cletus
or
"Yeah she invited me to her work party to make it look like she is not racist, I feel like a fuckin Obama!"
Cosmetic Surgery Ads
Here's an ad for breast implants:
Clearly in this situation the solution is to get breast implants, not a new date.
The company's website is here.
This ad encourages women to be envious of "perfect" women and to compare themselves unfavorably:
Try plastic surgery if your eating disorder doesn't do the job:
Here's an older ad for nose jobs, from the 1980s:
The center is still in business, but I think a different doctor is in charge now.
Cartier Ad: How Far [Into Debt] Would You Go for Love?
Proving your love = spending a lot of money. I found this in the New Yorker.
Children Are A Screaming Burden
I don't have kids, but I am made to understand that childen both are and aren't a screaming burden. In any case, these ads draw on the idea that kids are a drag, instead of a blessing. This points to contemporary contestation over the meaning of children and their role in our lives, in addition to historical change in the relationship between adults and children (i.e., this compared to the pre-industrial role of children as family labor).
A Quick Lesson In Production And Consumption
Click here for a 20-minute video by Annie Leonard called The Story of Stuff. It it, using animation, she explains how "[f]rom its extraction through sale, use and disposal, all the stuff in our lives affects communities at home and abroad."
Men's Bodies Are Allowed To Grow Up
Just try to imagine this advice aimed at a woman:
How I dream for the day that I, as a woman, get permission to buy a bigger shirt and forget about it.
I Love My Roomba, But...
This commercial affirms the notion that only women can be expected to do housework because children and husbands are absolutely useless.
I find the wife's acceptance of her husbands ass-ish behavior (still her "best friend") particularly disheartening.
More Sexualized Burqa-Clad Women
These are what I found when I was trying to find more information about the Lil' Kim-in-a-burqa photo I posted earlier. These were tagged "burqa nudes" and I found them here. Sigh.
Note: I know these women aren't actually wearing burqas, and that a veil across the face most definitely isn't a burqa, that's just what the person who put them up on flirkr labeled them as.
Also, this photoshopped image of Scarlett Johannson was found here.
Lil' Kim in a Sexualized Burqa
This image was on the cover of the January 2003 issue of One World magazine, a music magazine founded by hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons. Lil' Kim is quoted in the article saying "Fuck Afghanistan."
I found this photo here. It creeps me out.
Website Lets You Create Tailored Maps to Display Data about U.S.
Here is a link to a government website where you can create a map to show all kinds of basic demographic, environmental, and other information--crime rates (broken down by several types of crime), race/ethnicity, poverty rates, median income, climate information, Superfund sites, toxic waste facilities, agricultural information, and so on. I especially enjoyed looking at how many tornadoes there were in Oklahoma.
Penis Of Knowledge
Don't ask me how I came across this picture of this plaque posted outside of a middle school in Brooklyn:
Found at Panic the Mendelini.
Advertisers Are Us
The newest way to use women's bodies in advertising:
Thanks to Ioanna for the tip!
Find more about this here.
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