Disqus - Latest Comments for Libby_J

Re: Give Casual Sex a Chance

Libby_J — Thu, 11 Apr 2013 11:59:18 -0000

I temper Robert's enthusiasm with the warning that Sex at Dawn relies on a lot of questionable reasoning and cherry-picked examples ("data"). It's not necessarily wrong, but it presents the 100,000-year history of human sexuality in a manner far too simplistic to really take its conclusion 100% seriously. It's (maybe) worth a read, but not groundbreaking... unless you're specifically *looking* for a conclusion that supports a polyamorous lifestyle, in which case, have at it. The book was written for you.

I recommend reading "Ishmael" instead. It's basically the same book, but better written and presented as philosophy of history instead of science.

Re: Separating Prudence and Blame

Libby_J — Tue, 02 Apr 2013 14:04:36 -0000

I'm not sure it's a fair assumption that the feminist reaction statement of "teach men not to rape" is meant to absolve women from all considerations of their own safety. As many feminists are quick to point out, almost all women are well-aware of the risks to their safety in any given situation. We've heard it all before, and many of the rules are based on the faulty assumption that rapists are strangers who jump out from the bushes (they typically don't - in fact, read any one of the Steubenville reaction pieces from mothers of boys who just couldn't imagine THEIR child doing something like that). I don't think there's a woman out there who would council her friends to be willfully careless because, after all, sexual assault is not her responsibility. The feminist inclination to condemn victim blaming is a deservedly angry reaction to millennia of sexual violence going unpunished (or even condoned and encouraged) by civil leaders, institutions, etc. And while it's true that most of us don't leave our cars and homes unlocked, there isn't a historical precedent of accused thieves submitting lines like "well, thieves will be thieves," or "the owner didn't say no," as a reasonable and viable defense.
Anyway, the point of highlighting the perpetrators' criminal act, rather than the victims' failure to comply with the Universal Safety Rules for Women, is to push back against a lot of cultural baggage and faulty assumptions. You are correct, it's not unreasonable to warn our daughters, sisters and girlfriends about rohypnol or the dangers of excessive drinking. But it's downright irresponsible not to teach our boys about sexual boundaries and consent. This stuff should be common knowledge; defendants in a rape case should not be using "she didn't say no" as a defense in 2013.

Re: Libertarianism: Maybe Not for Social Conservatives

Libby_J — Fri, 22 Mar 2013 10:08:00 -0000

I think you've hit the mark with this one. To your third point (which resonates with Nick Gillespie's recent piece on libertarian moral judgements http://reason.com/blog/2013... ), I think that there probably is a libertarian moral code that isn't totally incompatible with social conservatism.

Rule 1: Whenever possible, try not to be a dick to others, and
Rule 2: Don't get your undies all in a bunch over some other bloke's lifestyle/behavior if it isn't harming you or others.* Gay marriage? Zealous mega-churches? Furries? Hefty working-class people slurping large soft drinks? Not undies-bunchable offenses.

*Threatening somebody's profit margins through legal means (i.e. "competition") doesn't count as "harm."

Re: DC’s LivingSocial Cronyism Experiment Already Going off the Rails

Libby_J — Thu, 29 Nov 2012 13:18:01 -0000

Good to know the mayor's office is monitoring your blog.

Re: Free Giveaway: Win One Of Two Google Nexus 7 Tablets

Libby_J — Tue, 14 Aug 2012 14:09:47 -0000

My iPad feels a little too big - would love to try the 7" tabs.

Re: Prêt-à-Louer: How to Get Your Couture by the Hour

Libby_J — Tue, 08 May 2012 20:48:41 -0000

I just did my first Rent the Runway for an event last week. It's a game-changer. My dress felt so much more high-quality than any $200, wear-once dress I've bought at a Macy's or Nordstrom.

Re: http://bigthink.com/the-moral-sciences-club/political-labels-political-identity-and-bias

Libby_J — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 16:50:39 -0000

I'm mostly in agreement with you, except that when people ask if I'm a libertarian, I don't have time to get into a pagelong dissection of my aversion to ascribing group labels to something as murky as politics and morality, so instead I just say "I'm not really a joiner."

Re: Dropbox ups free bonus space to 16GB

Libby_J — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 11:51:56 -0000

Oh, Why not. http://db.tt/qcIEFCTS

Re: Kony2012 and the dangers of Youtube fauxtivism

Libby_J — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 08:33:19 -0000

We call it "slacktivism" on this side of the pond. :)

Re: IWF - We Need Honest Conversations About Cultural Issues

Libby_J — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 13:16:09 -0000

If you look at other traditionally masculine professions that women have entered (like law enforcement, volunteer firefighting or corrections), weren't there the same concerns back then that men might have difficulty dealing with a woman's presence in tense situations? And don't the men usually adapt just fine in the long run?

Re: Some thoughts on Megaupload

Libby_J — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 12:06:24 -0000

Wasn't MegaUpload (at least partially) hosted in the US though?

Re: Don't Just Ask: Why Women Don't Negotiate - Atlantic Mobile

Libby_J — Thu, 01 Dec 2011 17:30:23 -0000

I'm in complete 100% agreement with you! I always get a little giddy when I see you devote a bit of space on your blog to issues of subtle (yet pervasive) culturally ingrained discrimination. Thanks for writing this!

Re: SOPA & Selective Memory about a Technologically Incompetent Congress

Libby_J — Thu, 17 Nov 2011 11:07:07 -0000

I blame the way the debates were framed, as well as progressives' inability to separate themselves from any part of "the government" ("we the people") that's not the Justice Department.

Neutrality was framed as "we the people" vs. the evil corporations. SOPA is framed as the poor government dupes being influenced by the RIAA vs. "we the filesharers."

Re: IWF - Heighten Risk Means Heighten Responsibility: That\'s Not Sexism

Libby_J — Thu, 20 Oct 2011 16:19:52 -0000

I did some background checking, and it looks like Merck didn't even get FDA approval to market the vaccine to men until 2009! I haven't been able to find any men's Gardasil commercials online yet, though.

Anyway, I don't mean to be a PC Cop feminist and call overt, intentional sexism on every inequity. I do think, however, that there's a softer, more covert, yet ubiquitous sexism that goes unexamined in our culture, that involves a lot of assumptions about a homogenous "male" and "female" behavior that's based more on mass-media advertising than on biology. While I wholly agree with your advice that we should each be our own personal health advocates, highly communicable diseases are a different matter. Washing your hands and sneezing into your sleeve won't prevent you from getting HPV; one need not even have a sordid past full of one-night stands to catch it. Anyway, coming back around to the sexism thing - I think there's a subtle sexism at play in the assumption that a man can't be bothered to get a vaccination that could protect his current or future girlfriends/wife from his own sexual history (particularly when the situation is framed like that). Does that make sense?

Also, Prostrate cancer awareness month is next month! I hope you like mustachioed men, because November will officially become "Movember!"

Re: The $15 Million Budget Battle That May End Outer Solar System Exploration - Alexis Madrigal - Technology - The Atlantic

Libby_J — Mon, 12 Sep 2011 14:35:55 -0000

This nerdy (and formerly little) girl would have preferred if you had given a nod to Star Trek: TNG and its less gendered language - "To boldly go where no ONE has gone before."

Re: Friday Girl Talk: Can a Professional Woman Go Curly? - Megan McArdle - Business - The Atlantic

Libby_J — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 13:57:27 -0000

Also, am I the only one who finds the phrase "no poo" annoyingly cutesy?

Re: Friday Girl Talk: Can a Professional Woman Go Curly? - Megan McArdle - Business - The Atlantic

Libby_J — Fri, 19 Aug 2011 13:54:20 -0000

"Why on earth have we defined the hair type that most Irish, Jewish, and
black women have as less professional than fine straight hair that can
be blow-dried in 10 minutes?"

Because the entire beauty industry (and the weight-loss industry) is built on promoting class-discrimination.

Ignoring what I just said, what about silicon products? Shine makes curls look less frizzy and more polished, though the build-up feels a little gross after a couple of days.

Re: Penn Jillette Thinks He’s Funny

Libby_J — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 10:24:12 -0000

That's a great pic!

Re: On the Hyphenation & Capitalization of Various Internet Terms

Libby_J — Tue, 16 Aug 2011 09:20:11 -0000

I found it! It was in Wired, it was from 2004, and it was just a decision they used for their own publications, not a rule handed down from Mount Oxford. http://www.wired.com/cultur...

Re: On the Hyphenation & Capitalization of Various Internet Terms

Libby_J — Wed, 10 Aug 2011 19:23:07 -0000

I'm pretty sure I read in Wired or TechCrunch or somewhere last year that we're going to stop capitalizing "internet."

Re: A Response to Andrew McLaughlin on Net Neutrality & “Freedom”

Libby_J — Mon, 11 Jul 2011 11:46:46 -0000

Fab article. It's often difficult to argue with the Wu/Lessig acolytes who think "You get money from X" automatically invalidates your argument. I'm frequently surprised by how many of the tech-savvy liberal-leaning crowd - generally a pretty smart cohort, right? - falls for that.

Re: Facebook’s Photo Tagging Auto-Suggestion Feature: Another Silly Privacy Moral Panic

Libby_J — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 16:37:08 -0000

Yeah, and even better, the feature doesn't work. My friend uploaded a bunch of pics from her recent trip to China, and facebook recommended that I (a blonde, white woman) be tagged in the place of some (dark-haired, asian) male live fashion model display.

Re: Privacy Solutions: How to Block Facebook’s “Like” Button And Other Social Widgets

Libby_J — Mon, 23 May 2011 11:08:15 -0000

Thanks for posting, Ryan!

Re: Event reminder: “State of Wireless Competition” (Wed., 4:00 at GMU-Arlington)

Libby_J — Tue, 17 May 2011 14:29:13 -0000

What about lurkers? Are we welcome as well? :)

Re: Picture of the Day: Blogger Who Punked Gov. Walker Mocks Campaign Rival With Fake Website - Garance Franke-Ruta and Chris Good - Politics - The Atlantic

Libby_J — Thu, 05 May 2011 14:07:59 -0000

This is actually pretty funny... although I'm put off by the "bitch.ly" link shortcuts. Did you really have to go there, Murphy? #ass