The Periodic Table's Younger, Sexier, Sibling Thread...

[Mr Danksworth]

Zinnia Jones has found her way to my blog: http://athmorality.blogspot.com/2013/01 ... adley.html

She's a special one, isn't she? I just waded through about 1500 comments of people telling her how absolutley retarded her actions are. So completely oblivious to the obvious. One doesn't do 'media' if one is a witness in a case. I thought it was common knowledge, but I guess Zinny is the acception to the rule. Silly, dizzy bint.

[Notung]

Cheers Pitchguest, I didn't notice before. I signed the petition and promoted it on Twitter. I'll try to get a blog post out about it today.

[Mr Danksworth]

Why's she doing this? She could be truly naive, or truly stupid. She could be doing it out of self-interest, whether she's narcisisstically seeking attention or greedily seeking income (blog hits, or as someone somewhere suggested, maybe thinking about trying for a book deal). Or she could be trying to sabotage the defense, though it's not clear why she'd do that, nor does the content of what she has said seem to fit with that.

She might be trying to sabotage her own participation in the trial. Poisoning herself as a witness so that she doesn't have to go.

[Sheogorath]

Why's she doing this? She could be truly naive, or truly stupid. She could be doing it out of self-interest, whether she's narcisisstically seeking attention or greedily seeking income (blog hits, or as someone somewhere suggested, maybe thinking about trying for a book deal). Or she could be trying to sabotage the defense, though it's not clear why she'd do that, nor does the content of what she has said seem to fit with that.

Some survival instinct tells me I don't want to have an in-depth knowledge of why she would do such a thing. That merely having the framework in my mind that would allow me to understand it is a risky proposition.

[Sheogorath]

Come to think of it, I felt that way looking at everything that eventually led me here.

[Skep tickle]

Why's she doing this? She could be truly naive, or truly stupid. She could be doing it out of self-interest, whether she's narcisisstically seeking attention or greedily seeking income (blog hits, or as someone somewhere suggested, maybe thinking about trying for a book deal). Or she could be trying to sabotage the defense, though it's not clear why she'd do that, nor does the content of what she has said seem to fit with that.

She might be trying to sabotage her own participation in the trial. Poisoning herself as a witness so that she doesn't have to go.

Yeah, that one crossed my mind also. Again, no hint of that in what I've heard from her, but that doesn't prove anything.

After reading a bit more about what her supporters are saying in the Pharyngula thread (Xanthe being prominent among them), including several who point out "but she's been blogging about this for years now and has been on youtube since 2004" (or whenever) "so there's really nothing new here & obviously therefore it's FINE", I'm leaning towards the issue being a warped filter in the output stream between brain and the internet. And a severe constriction, perhaps related, in the input of common sense to the brain.

Some survival instinct tells me I don't want to have an in-depth knowledge of why she would do such a thing. That merely having the framework in my mind that would allow me to understand it is a risky proposition.

:lol: good point!

[Skep tickle]

Cheers Pitchguest, I didn't notice before. I signed the petition and promoted it on Twitter. I'll try to get a blog post out about it today.

Excellent. Thanks.

[Tkmlac]

Zinnia Jones has found her way to my blog: http://athmorality.blogspot.com/2013/01 ... adley.html

If I had anything to log in I would have written

ZINNIA ARE YOU FUCKING RETARDED!!!!!!?!?!?!?!?!??!

So I suppose that's probably for the best that I didn't.

I changed the settings to allow anyone to comment and I turned off moderation. Have at it.

[mordacious1]

Tkmlac

I, too, have an irrational hatred. There's a news anchor on kcra Sacramento named Gulstan Dart. He's always bugged me for his slipping in commentary on stories in stupid ways, but one night he ended a segment about tattoos one night with "Tat's the story," and I just about lost it, it was so stupid. Every time I see him onscreen, I yell, "shut up Gulstan Dart!" I have an unfalsifiable hypothesis that some brains are hardwired to hate certain personality traits. I can't really explain my animosity toward him in any rational way.

He's not as annoying as that Dirk Verdoorn guy (or as he is called in our house, Dork VerDork) who does the weather. Now that he's cut his hair and started going to the Hair Club for Nerds, he's not as stupid looking (no I take that back, he still looks ridiculous). I just can't stand listening to the man, he's like fingernails on a chalkboard. So I tend to watch the local CBS station.

[comslave]

Zinnia Jones has found her way to my blog: http://athmorality.blogspot.com/2013/01 ... adley.html

If I had anything to log in I would have written

ZINNIA ARE YOU FUCKING RETARDED!!!!!!?!?!?!?!?!??!

So I suppose that's probably for the best that I didn't.

I changed the settings to allow anyone to comment and I turned off moderation. Have at it.

So let me get this straight: Another FTB'r is doing something of legal consequence without retaining or directly consulting with a lawyer. I guess jail time is a badge of honor for that crowd. :lol:

[Skep tickle]

Sad news for me. Someone I once sent a few emails back and forth to committed suicide. Twelve years ago, when I was first learning about web development at photo.net, there was this 14 year old kid. Intelligent. Sweet. Brilliant really. Talking to us old farts.

That kid developed the RSS spec that powers our feed readers, and went on to help found reddit.

A year or so ago, he wanted to free the academic papers of JSTOR and he placed a computer of his own in a closet at MIT so that he could automatically download papers. This was seen as a major computer intrusion and the DOD went after him in a big way, even though the authorities at JSTOR and MIT didn't want to press charges.

He killed himself at the age of 26.

I honestly don't know what the relationship of the DOD charges was to his suicide, but I know that in the occasions I have had run ins with court and authorities, over much more minor issues, it has always been terribly stressful.

Anyway, his family has my very best wishes, and Aaron, may you rest in peace.

Tribute site, set up by his family: http://rememberaaronsw.tumblr.com/

[Lurkion]

My post on the zinnia retardedness.

http://unsolicitedcomment.wordpress.com ... hts-sleep/

[rayshul]

Zinnia Jones has found her way to my blog: http://athmorality.blogspot.com/2013/01 ... adley.html

If I had anything to log in I would have written

ZINNIA ARE YOU FUCKING RETARDED!!!!!!?!?!?!?!?!??!

So I suppose that's probably for the best that I didn't.

I changed the settings to allow anyone to comment and I turned off moderation. Have at it.

Well, the only thing I would post would be

ZINNIA ARE YOU FUCKING RETARDED!!!!!!?!?!?!?!?!??!

which I don't think would be constructive or helpful to the issue. The whole thing is just... so righteously fucked up I have no nice words. You know that feeling? When there's literally nothing you can do but scream ARHRHGHGHGHGHGGHG HGHGHGHGHG GJDKJSFS in all caps.

[Skep tickle]

My post on the zinnia retardedness.

http://unsolicitedcomment.wordpress.com ... hts-sleep/

I followed your link to your site (good post)*, then the link to elevatorgate's site, then saw that EG has also posted Abbie's email to Jen:
http://elevatorgate.wordpress.com/2013/ ... re-cancer/

*though since you claim to be a lawyer and also claim to have heard of reddit, you obviously must be lying ;)

[Skep tickle]

My post on the zinnia retardedness.

http://unsolicitedcomment.wordpress.com ... hts-sleep/

I followed your link to your site (good post)*, then the link to elevatorgate's site, then saw that EG has also posted Abbie's email to Jen:
http://elevatorgate.wordpress.com/2013/ ... re-cancer/

*though since you claim to be a lawyer and also claim to have heard of reddit, you obviously must be lying ;)

And, Elevatorgate is tweeting the link to your post (at your site), most recently directing it @RichardDawkins

[Michael K Gray]

Operation Smile

At $2,000 Operation Slime is too much of a round figure for my liking.
I have adjusted it in my 3rd donation to appear more random.

[rayshul]

Of course, rocko, as a lawyer you could probably solve this little Zinnia twist on Tkmlac's blog - just prove your lawyerhood (fuck knows how you do that) and then explain the situation.

[Michael K Gray]

I'd heard it here, but didm't think much about it, but, yeah, Misspelling Physiofucke is posting "Moby Dicke". Pigfucker can't even leave the book alone, but he has to insert his particular fetish into that too. Is this some kind of mental thing, or is he just a poser, or a douchebag, or both? I'm going with all three myself, but...eh.

It was a left-handed lesbian white whale, and should really be called Moby Dyke.

[Richard Dworkins]

Regarding Zinnia Jones, I think it important to remember that it doesn't really matter if Bradley Manning is found guilty and executed. What is really important is that Zinnia Jones manages to get some publicity out of it.

If you're reading this Jones old boy, you should be ashamed of yourself pathological travesty!

[Michael K Gray]

I need adoring fans who blindly do what I ask!

Simples:
Become an Ass Prof @ U of M.

[Steersman]

FWIW, my recent comment on Taslima’s post on the question, “Are men more or less the same everywhere?” Which illustrates some amusing sexist stereotyping by several of "The Horde". In passing, I think part of the problem, as suggested by Tkmlac’s own blog post, is in not defining the scope of the question which seems to encompass both genetic and societal factors, as well as different statistical populations with varying degrees of overlap. In any case:

[spoiler]jackiepaper said (#35):

Steersman, the fact is that rape is more of a “guy thing”. That is not a sexist statement, it is a fact. The stats don’t lie. Even in cases where the victim is male, the perpetrator is very likely to be male as well. Rapists are overwhelmingly likely to be men. No one here has suggested that there is an innate flaw in maleness that makes them more likely to rape.

Greg – “males are testosterone-damaged females” – Laden would appear to disagree with you on that latter point. But I wasn’t disputing that “rape is more of a guy thing” or that it “is not a sexist statement” – it was a shot at those FfTBs who were claiming that Michael Shermer had made a sexist statement by asserting that “[atheism] is more of a guy thing” – which is also a fact; “the stats don’t lie”. (1)

Although I will concede that I may have been using the word “stereotype” somewhat incorrectly as the definition (2) – “A conventional, formulaic, and oversimplified conception, opinion, or image” – suggests that the problem with them is that people frequently use the characteristics of some segment of a population to judge all of it.

What people at FTBs have pointed out over and over again is that the toxic patriarchy we all live in is to blame. We seek change in culture by changing minds. It just so happens that the minds that most need changing, in this case, are the minds of men.

Have you, or any other members in the “sisterhood of the oppressed” ever managed to capture a “toxic patriarchy”? Seems to me that you’re blaming an abstraction which, in itself, constitutes the “sin” of reification as well as looking rather much like feminist dogma. That there are some rather sexist and problematic attitudes floating about, I’ll readily concede, but my impression is that that is hardly a one-way street. For instance, your own “the minds that most need changing … are the minds of men” looks like it qualifies as a rather egregious example of sexist stereotyping. Likewise with this comment from another woman, in the context of a discussion on schrödinger’s rapist (3):

Because you [a second woman] can empathically put yourself in somebody else’s place in those situations. And it’s a perspective that men are lacking with regards to women.

Fairly categorical – the implication being all men as there were no qualifiers such as some. And, I would say, fairly typical of many similar conversations that I’ve seen in the last while.

Oddly enough, it is the raving anti-feminists who continue to assert that somehow, women are responsible for stopping rape because men cannot be expected not to rape.

Citations required. And even if you managed somehow to find a few who might argue that rape is an evolutionary adaptation of some sort for some segment of the population – maybe a consequence or characteristic of the 2% of our genotype that comes from the Neanderthal line – I very much doubt that you would find many who would argue that that is a “good thing” – the same way that cannibalism happens but is hardly touted as a beneficial or desirable social behaviour pattern.

See, this is how sexism hurts everyone and feminism helps everyone. Men do need to change.

Apart from the stereotypical thinking implicit in “men do need to change”, I’ll agree that sexism exists and manifests itself in some rather problematic and egregious ways in society that we all need to address. However, your “feminism helps everyone” – like Ophelia Benson’s rather decidedly risible “connecting the word ‘virulent’ with the word ‘feminism’ is misogyny” – is, in itself, another egregious case of stereotypical thinking because they both fail to recognize the very problematic dimensions of feminism and whitewashes them away by asserting that feminism is defined only by the better aspects and consequences of it. To alleviate some of your rather profound ignorance in that regard you might want to read a book by several female professors – Daphne Patai and Noretta Koertge – titled Professing Feminism: Education and Indoctrination in Women’s Studies (4).

We need a culture that does not protect rapists and blame their victims.

You’re really on a roll with stereotypical thinking, aren’t you? I’ll readily concede, at least for the sake of argument although I’ll dispute the extent, that some portions of our culture “protects rapists and blames their victims”, but that hardly justifies suggesting much less concluding that that applies to the entire culture – the fact that there were some 54,000 males in prison (5) for the crime of rape would disabuse most rational and skeptical people of that view.

P.S. Pro-tip: Generally a good idea to respond directly underneath the comment you’re responding to or provide the post number.

P.P.S. Yes, that was me on Man Boobz, although I’ll dispute the “sexist douches” – which you assert with no evidence – particularly as I could, with as much if not more evidence, charge you with being a jackbooted feminazi and a Valerie Solanas clone ….

(1) “http://slymepit.com/phpbb/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=73&p=37616#p37585”;
(2) “http://www.thefreedictionary.com/stereotype”;
(3) “http://freethoughtblogs.com/almostdiamonds/2012/09/27/schroedingers-female-rapist/#comment-124010”;
(4) “
(5) “http://bjs.ojp.usdoj.gov/content/pub/pdf/p08.pdf”[/spoiler]

[KiwiInOz]

Why's she doing this? She could be truly naive, or truly stupid. She could be doing it out of self-interest, whether she's narcisisstically seeking attention or greedily seeking income (blog hits, or as someone somewhere suggested, maybe thinking about trying for a book deal). Or she could be trying to sabotage the defense, though it's not clear why she'd do that, nor does the content of what she has said seem to fit with that.

She might be trying to sabotage her own participation in the trial. Poisoning herself as a witness so that she doesn't have to go.

My suspicion is that there is something very calculated about what she has done. Qui bono?

[sacha]

Board Tag: The quote mine

that is very good.

I like "in for a penny..." as well.

[Skep tickle]

Meanwhile, over at Atheism+ forum in the Fluevogs for Success? thread, hyperdeath (site admin) suggests a banner ad http://atheismplus.com/forums/viewtopic ... =25#p62899:

Greta demands more shoes! Give your money now!
Donate to Dress For Success and help disadvantaged women find jobs and gain independence.

but then comes back 10 hrs later with this update:

I've sent her an email.

Edited to add:

She thinks it's unsuitable.

Does anyone have any more suggestions?

oolon, who seems to have found a niche there, saves the day with this:

Atheists, prove you have a sole! Follow Greta's example and buy some quality shoes...
Donate to dress for success and help disadvantaged women find jobs and gain independence.

[rayshul]

There's really no way they can spin this to make Greta their mascot. I mean, they might as well use Imelda Marcos.

This is embarrassing *her*, and her actions, by comparing them to a charity. I've no doubt she'd like them to bloody quit it.

[rayshul]

SOME RICH BITCH LIKES SHOES AND SHIT SO LIKE
GIVE EXPENSIVE SHOES TO POOR PEOPLE
BECAUSE SHE SURE AS FUCK DIDNT

New tag line? Anyone?

[Lurkion]

Of course, rocko, as a lawyer you could probably solve this little Zinnia twist on Tkmlac's blog - just prove your lawyerhood (fuck knows how you do that) and then explain the situation.

Yeah. I'm not going to do that. Proving it would obviously require me disclosing my IRL identity.

If I didn't try it that way, she'd just say "You're just claiming that you know this because you're a lawyer".

Particularly when these people are very willing to doxx people and try to contact their employers without unfounded claims of harassment and threats, I have no interest in creating IRL problems for myself because they're attention-whores.

[rayshul]

By the way, planned to say this earlier about what people said about large salaries for non-profit organisations directors and business managers. I think before you say - oh this person is getting too much money - try and work out what you think they'd get if they were working for a corporate organisation.

You generally get the kind of employees you pay for (YMMV, obvs) and super successful business managers and directors would make a whole lot more dosh if they worked at a corporate place. The salaries they're making are proabbly a massive paycut from what they're worth.

[Skep tickle]

Of course, rocko, as a lawyer you could probably solve this little Zinnia twist on Tkmlac's blog - just prove your lawyerhood (fuck knows how you do that) and then explain the situation.

Yeah. I'm not going to do that. Proving it would obviously require me disclosing my IRL identity.

If I didn't try it that way, she'd just say "You're just claiming that you know this because you're a lawyer".

Particularly when these people are very willing to doxx people and try to contact their employers without unfounded claims of harassment and threats, I have no interest in creating IRL problems for myself because they're attention-whores.

And, anyway, Zinnia will be hearing from Manning's lawyers IRL soon enough.

[Skep tickle]

SOME RICH BITCH LIKES SHOES AND SHIT SO LIKE
GIVE EXPENSIVE SHOES TO POOR PEOPLE
BECAUSE SHE SURE AS FUCK DIDNT

New tag line? Anyone?

*snort*

[Michael K Gray]

By the way, planned to say this earlier about what people said about large salaries for non-profit organisations directors and business managers. I think before you say - oh this person is getting too much money - try and work out what you think they'd get if they were working for a corporate organisation.

You generally get the kind of employees you pay for (YMMV, obvs) and super successful business managers and directors would make a whole lot more dosh if they worked at a corporate place. The salaries they're making are proabbly a massive paycut from what they're worth.

Yeah.
They could be good enuf to work for Enron, or Northern Rock Bank. (Spit)

[AnonymousCowherd]

Why's she doing this? She could be truly naive, or truly stupid. She could be doing it out of self-interest, whether she's narcisisstically seeking attention or greedily seeking income (blog hits, or as someone somewhere suggested, maybe thinking about trying for a book deal). Or she could be trying to sabotage the defense, though it's not clear why she'd do that, nor does the content of what she has said seem to fit with that.

She might be trying to sabotage her own participation in the trial. Poisoning herself as a witness so that she doesn't have to go.

She may just have bitten off more than she can chew and is just trying to bluster to reassure herself. Given that she is making a big deal of how her prior (written) statements are a significant factor in the evidence she may give, the prosecution may just go for big time discovery on her whole output for the last x years, including the "back channel" correspondence. She might even drag in the rest of the FfTB's, or at least PZ and Ed, if only to give statements about what she may have said to them.

Still, IANAL, so none of that could possibly happen.

They may just decide she's important enought to be worth the hassle. And that might hurt even more.

[AnonymousCowherd]

oolon, who seems to have found a niche there, saves the day with didn't quite say this:

Atheiplusts, You. Are. Sole! Follow Greta's example and buy some quality shoes for yourself...
Dress for success and help disadvantaged women, starting with yourself, find jobs and gain independence by having something showy to bitchslap your friends with.

FTFY, colon.

[cunt]

http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/ ... ent-534532

Caine, Fleur du mal +

12 January 2013 at 4:05 pm (UTC -6)

I just heard from Edward Gemmer about Adam’s petition:

" I can’t sign that. The issue is that atheists are rude and disrespectful to each other on the internet. Atheists on Pharyngula are just as guilty as anyone else, which you allude to. The petition is just another excuse for one group to see their actions as fine and demonizing the same actions of people with whom they disagree. It is amazing the amount of hostility that has erupted between groups that for the most part agree on all the basic issues. I imagine this is why Protestants and Catholics battled for so long. Sigh…"

Man, it was nice to ban him from my blog.

Caine, happy that somebody finally read her blog.

[sacha]

What does she do that requires lots of walking and/or standing for long periods of time? I'm on my feet for four to six hours at a stretch when I'm teaching gross anatomy; fortunately, I can wear scrubs, and so my New Balance cross-training shoes (bought at a discount) work perfectly. My clinician colleagues often have to walk a lot in the course of a day, and might have to stand for long periods as well, and usually need to wear dressier shoes (unless they're surgeons working in the OR). I don't think Greta's speaking gigs require prolonged standing or extensive walking, so fashion appears to be the primary consideration.

I've stayed out of this discussion because I thought the answer was obvious by looking at the shoes. I've realised that after about 30 years of working where I am walking or standing the entire time, what is obvious to me, is not to everyone.

Fashion is the only consideration. No one who stands or walks for long periods of time on a regular basis would ever consider shoes that look like this:

hideous.png

(166.16 KiB) Downloaded 150 times

http://www.fluevog.com/code/?p=1&view=d ... ourID=2758

"inspiration from the Victoria era" (because they had such comfortable shoes back then)

"A super pointy-toed, buckled tea-strap loafer" (When I think of comfort, I think of super pointy-toed shoes, especially with a heel which combined with gravity, forces your toes into the point.)

Since there seems to be a debate on whether or not these shoes provide comfort and support for extended standing and or walking, I'll add to the ridiculous commentary, and show evidence that they do not:

The area where the strap, buckle, and cut outs are, is the place that should be helping to steady and support the arch of one's foot in order to reduce the pressure from the weight, and make standing and walking more comfortable.
T-straps with buckles do not move with one's feet, so they will eventually cause friction, which will lead to chafing and blisters. They certainly are not holding the foot in place to reduce the stress on the arch, and obviously nor are the cut-outs, which means one's feet slide around and there is extra pressure and fatigue on the foot because it has to compensate in order to balance.

The part of the shoe closest to a person's center of symmetry is known as the medial, and the opposite, away from their center of symmetry, is known as the lateral. This can be in reference to either the outsole or the vamp. Most shoes have shoelaces on the upper, connecting the medial and lateral parts after one puts their shoes on and aiding in keeping their shoes on their feet.

There is no mention of lower arch support, which is a raised padded area directly under the arch. If the description does not mention it, the shoes do not have it.

Soles can be simple — a single material in a single layer — or they can be complex, with multiple structures or layers and materials. When various layers are used, soles may consist of an insole, midsole, and an outsole.

The insole is the interior bottom of a shoe, which sits directly beneath the foot under the footbed (also known as sock liner). The purpose of insole is to attach to the lasting margin of the upper, which is wrapped around the last during the closing of the shoe during the lasting operation. Insoles are usually made of cellulosic paper board or synthetic non woven insole board. Many shoes have removable and replaceable footbeds. Extra cushioning is often added for comfort (to control the shape, moisture, or smell of the shoe) or health reasons (to help deal with defects in the natural shape of the foot or positioning of the foot during standing or walking).

The outsole is the layer in direct contact with the ground. Dress shoes often have leather or resin rubber outsoles; casual or work-oriented shoes have outsoles made of natural rubber or a synthetic material like Polyurethane. The outsole may comprise a single piece, or may be an assembly of separate pieces of different materials. Often the heel of the sole has a rubber plate for durability and traction, while the front is leather for style...

The layer in between the outsole and the insole that is typically there for shock absorption. Some types of shoes, like running shoes, have another material for shock absorption, usually beneath the heel of the foot, where one puts the most pressure down. Different companies use different materials for the midsoles of their shoes. Some shoes may not have a midsole at all.

The area that is subjected to the most pressure when wearing any shoe with a heel, is the ball of one's foot. Even a small amount of platform between that area and the ground will reduce the effects of gravity cause by the incline. These shoes have none. Also shoes made for walking, focus on providing cushioning under the ball of the foot.

Don't be fooled by the words "rubber sole plate" in the description.

most modern shoes have soles made from natural rubber

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shoe

and finally

The Basics for Selecting Walking Shoes:

1) Look for a low, supportive heel that rounds (or bevels) in. A thick heel or one that flairs out will cause your foot to slap down rather than roll. This slows down forward momentum and increases the occurrence of sore shins.

2) A walker's foot hits heel first and then rolls gradually from heel-to-toe. So, you will need a flexible sole and more bend in the toe than a runner. You should be able to twist and bend the toe area.

3) Next, look for a shoe that is light weight and breathable. The last thing you want is the clunky heavy leather walking shoe.

4) The most important thing of course is a shoe that fits properly. Be sure your foot has enough room in the toe box. There should be a thumbnails width (or about a half inch) between your toes and the end of the shoe. The shoe should be wide enough in the toe that your toes can move freely. Your heel should not slip, and the shoe should not pinch or bind, especially across the arch or ball of your foot.

http://www.thewalkingsite.com/shoes.html

[Dilurk]

I hadn't heard of Block Saturday (as opposed to Follow Friday) for twitter, but I guess it is a thing in the FTB universe.
...
Anyone who would block Sharon Hill because they disagree on some things is a coward.
We can all think of examples of people who are trolls or spammers who may get blocked because of repeated unwanted tweets. But this pre-emptive blocking is bullshit. I challenge anyone to find a tweet or FB post that Sharon has made to warrant a blocking.

I was on that list last week. Fuck 'em. Don't want their company anyway.

I suspect this might be an attempt to get twitter accounts suspended and possibly terminated. I have watched twitter arguments carried out with theists who seemingly get involved in discussions with atheists ending up with the atheist suspended. Twitter counts the number of times a user gets blocked in some interval of time, and all it takes is for a number of theists to turn around and block you to end up with you suspended. They game the system. I would suspect this aratina person to be trying to game the system as well by organising mass block campaigns against people they want to shut up. In other words we now have atheists who are really religious nutbars masquerading as atheists; they are using the same silencing techniques and believe in dogma.

[sacha]

Speaking of the far left having the same problems as the atheists, the Socialist Worker Party in the UK is getting slammed by feminists.

http://www.newstatesman.com/laurie-penn ... about-left

Laurie Penny is the Rebecca Watson of the British Left... not as bad as Watson though. Penny is notable for asking WHAT ABOUT TEH MENZ sometimes and seeming like she does actually mean it - even if it does come across as being unbelievably naiive on occasion.

Don't get me started on Laurie Penny - her and Watson were twins conjoined at the skull, and when they were separated at birth, they each got half of the brain they shared:

You come to expect it, as a woman writer, particularly if you're political. You come to expect the vitriol, the insults, the death threats. After a while, the emails and tweets and comments containing graphic fantasies of how and where and with what kitchen implements certain pseudonymous people would like to rape you cease to be shocking, and become merely a daily or weekly annoyance, something to phone your girlfriends about, seeking safety in hollow laughter...

Many commentators, wondering aloud where all the strong female voices are, close their eyes to how normal this sort of threat has become. Most mornings, when I go to check my email, Twitter and Facebook accounts, I have to sift through threats of violence, public speculations about my sexual preference and the odour and capacity of my genitals, and attempts to write off challenging ideas with the declaration that, since I and my friends are so very unattractive, anything we have to say must be irrelevant...
After one particular round of rape threats, including the suggestion that, for criticising neoliberal economic policymaking, I should be made to fellate a row of bankers at knifepoint, I was informed that people were searching for my home address. I could go on.

I'd like to say that none of this bothered me – to be one of those women who are strong enough to brush off the abuse, which is always the advice given by people who don't believe bullies and bigots can be fought. Sometimes I feel that speaking about the strength it takes just to turn on the computer, or how I've been afraid to leave my house, is an admission of weakness. Fear that it's somehow your fault for not being strong enough is, of course, what allows abusers to continue to abuse.

I believe the time for silence is over. If we want to build a truly fair and vibrant community of political debate and social exchange, online and offline, it's not enough to ignore harassment of women, LGBT people or people of colour who dare to have opinions. Free speech means being free to use technology and participate in public life without fear of abuse – and if the only people who can do so are white, straight men, the internet is not as free as we'd like to believe.

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/com ... 56946.html

[EdgePenguin]

Speaking of the far left having the same problems as the atheists, the Socialist Worker Party in the UK is getting slammed by feminists.

http://www.newstatesman.com/laurie-penn ... about-left

Laurie Penny is the Rebecca Watson of the British Left... not as bad as Watson though. Penny is notable for asking WHAT ABOUT TEH MENZ sometimes and seeming like she does actually mean it - even if it does come across as being unbelievably naiive on occasion.

Don't get me started on Laurie Penny - her and Watson were twins conjoined at the skull, and when they were separated at birth, they each got half of the brain they shared:

You come to expect it, as a woman writer, particularly if you're political. You come to expect the vitriol, the insults, the death threats. After a while, the emails and tweets and comments containing graphic fantasies of how and where and with what kitchen implements certain pseudonymous people would like to rape you cease to be shocking, and become merely a daily or weekly annoyance, something to phone your girlfriends about, seeking safety in hollow laughter...

Many commentators, wondering aloud where all the strong female voices are, close their eyes to how normal this sort of threat has become. Most mornings, when I go to check my email, Twitter and Facebook accounts, I have to sift through threats of violence, public speculations about my sexual preference and the odour and capacity of my genitals, and attempts to write off challenging ideas with the declaration that, since I and my friends are so very unattractive, anything we have to say must be irrelevant...
After one particular round of rape threats, including the suggestion that, for criticising neoliberal economic policymaking, I should be made to fellate a row of bankers at knifepoint, I was informed that people were searching for my home address. I could go on.

I'd like to say that none of this bothered me – to be one of those women who are strong enough to brush off the abuse, which is always the advice given by people who don't believe bullies and bigots can be fought. Sometimes I feel that speaking about the strength it takes just to turn on the computer, or how I've been afraid to leave my house, is an admission of weakness. Fear that it's somehow your fault for not being strong enough is, of course, what allows abusers to continue to abuse.

I believe the time for silence is over. If we want to build a truly fair and vibrant community of political debate and social exchange, online and offline, it's not enough to ignore harassment of women, LGBT people or people of colour who dare to have opinions. Free speech means being free to use technology and participate in public life without fear of abuse – and if the only people who can do so are white, straight men, the internet is not as free as we'd like to believe.

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/com ... 56946.html

In other words "Free speech means me and my friends being able to shut someone up if they cross our subjectively drawn line of decency"

[AnonymousCowherd]

Hammers literally cost less than ten pounds.

More than you'd get for QPR.

[EdgePenguin]

[youtube]gjrLXS4iXIU[/youtube]

I think this video is bullshit. Europe in general has far greater support for women's healthcare and for maternity leave, and this dose not make women 'unemployable' at all.

[Gumby]

A journalist, Erika Jarvis, published a not entirely hostile interview of Paul Elam, publisher/editor of A Voice for Men at the Toronto Standard.

A few days later, the interview has been memory holed along with any other mention of Jarvis at the Toronto Standard.

Because feminists can't stand saying anything remotely fair and balanced about evil MRAs.

http://www.avoiceformen.com/feminism/fe ... ka-jarvis/

A perfect comment from the comment thread of that article:

Misogyny: The radical notion that a man could possibly hate a woman anywhere near as much as other women already do.

[HoneyWagon]

http://www.regretsy.com/2012/12/19/update-2/

http://static.regretsy.com/files/2012/12/dream.jpg

[codelette]

SOME RICH BITCH LIKES SHOES AND SHIT SO LIKE
GIVE EXPENSIVE SHOES TO POOR PEOPLE
BECAUSE SHE SURE AS FUCK DIDNT

New tag line? Anyone?

And new song?
[youtube]wCF3ywukQYA[/youtube]

[Gumby]

I hadn't heard of Block Saturday (as opposed to Follow Friday) for twitter, but I guess it is a thing in the FTB universe.
Found out about it tonight because one person listed here was blocked on twitter and FB by a prominent "skeptic" (Un-named, so I only think I know who it is)
https://twitter.com/aratina/status/290297125273735168
http://i.imgur.com/gTca3.png

Anyone who would block Sharon Hill because they disagree on some things is a coward.
We can all think of examples of people who are trolls or spammers who may get blocked because of repeated unwanted tweets. But this pre-emptive blocking is bullshit. I challenge anyone to find a tweet or FB post that Sharon has made to warrant a blocking.

I hardly ever even tweet anymore, so I was amused to see that Aratina had included me in another one of her "Block Saturday" tweets. My crime? I had a Twitter exchange with some uncritical moron about the total lack of evidence for the claims of misogyny and harrassment that FtB/Skepchick use to perpetuate their agenda. I posted that exchange here, and I never once tweeted at Aratina (although I did use the #FTBullies and #atheismplus hashtags).

What a bunch of sniveling censorial cowards. :lol:

[sacha]

[spoiler]

Edward Gemmer introduced us to his awesomeness here:

http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/ ... ent-523205


Here, EG was accused of being an MRA, before he even knew what an MRA was:

http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/ ... ent-523269

He was funny here:

http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/ ... ent-523962

and great here:

http://freethoughtblogs.com/pharyngula/ ... ent-523989


He is funny throughout the entire comment thread, so you're just gonna have to read it to see!

Every time they tried to be mean he'd say something like 'BURN' or 'ZING"

He had me in stitches

And the best thing is, none of them understood the humour, they took everything at face value and assumed that he was a horrible misogynist in real life. Just goes to show how out of contact with reality the FTB people really are.

[/spoiler]

screencaps, please

[sacha]

Way behind on my reading at this point, some shit came up yesterday. Anyway, for those of you following along at home, there was a bit of a problem with the recording. Since the challenge was made by cunt, I sent him a PM about it and it's up to him at this point if he wants to call it good enough or if I'll be recording a new one. Just in case anyone was thinking I'm backing out.

The part where I make fun of him for realizing he was being an idiot and it's pretty easy to drive a normal nail with a screwdriver, so he went on the internet to look up what the largest size of nails is came out alright, though.

I want to see someone use his White Cock of Authority penis for this instead of a screwdriver.

[AnonymousCowherd]

My condolences to Aaron Swartz's family.

Frankly, the treament of him (so far as I can tell it from newspaper reports) was ridiculously over the top.

In a small way, the actions of even petty ideologues like the FfTB's reflect those of the current crop of kleptocrats and their willing lickspittles in Government in trying to control information and, with that, prevent public examination of their grab for status, or power, or just plain cash.

The US is certainly not alone in going down the "silence dissent, cover your arse, protect your mates" path, though its progress along it makes it easier for place like Oz to follow suit. With all this technology to dispense information, you'd think getting it "out there" would get easier to do, not harder, but given the treatment of Manning you begin to wonder if something like The Pentagon Papers would see daylight now. With the persecution of people like Swartz, it surely becomes a bit harder each day for someone to step up and say "this is not right, and people should know about it". There certainly doesn't seem to be a queue to thank them for their trouble.

[AbsurdWalls]

A journalist, Erika Jarvis, published a not entirely hostile interview of Paul Elam, publisher/editor of A Voice for Men at the Toronto Standard.

A few days later, the interview has been memory holed along with any other mention of Jarvis at the Toronto Standard.

Because feminists can't stand saying anything remotely fair and balanced about evil MRAs.

http://www.avoiceformen.com/feminism/fe ... ka-jarvis/

N.B. A Voice For Men is blocked on the UK O2 mobile network as adult content, does it contain any?

[Gumby]

I suspect this might be an attempt to get twitter accounts suspended and possibly terminated. I have watched twitter arguments carried out with theists who seemingly get involved in discussions with atheists ending up with the atheist suspended. Twitter counts the number of times a user gets blocked in some interval of time, and all it takes is for a number of theists to turn around and block you to end up with you suspended. They game the system. I would suspect this aratina person to be trying to game the system as well by organising mass block campaigns against people they want to shut up. In other words we now have atheists who are really religious nutbars masquerading as atheists; they are using the same silencing techniques and believe in dogma.

Hadn't thought of the "suspension" angle. Your explanation makes sense, and it fits in with the fundie mindset of FtB. If what you say is what is actually what is going on, then all I can say is it partly makes me laugh that Aratina is assigning so much importance to the nonsense-fest that is Twitter, and partly makes me sick because of the lengths these assholes will go to to silence people who won't drink their Kool-Aid.

[Gumby]

If what you say is what is actually what is going on,

:lol:

NEED MOAR COFFEE

[AbsurdWalls]

Zinnia Jones has found her way to my blog: http://athmorality.blogspot.com/2013/01 ... adley.html

She seems really skeptical about the existence of lawyers other than the handful she has interacted with professionally. It's a childish attitude. Before I went to university lawyers and doctors and other people with professions such as those were a bit magic to me. They have a special status in society. Now I know a whole bunch of professional people that I was studying alongside I would expect there to be loads of them on Reddit. I mean, some of the ones I know are Redditors.

[AbsurdWalls]

Speaking of the far left having the same problems as the atheists, the Socialist Worker Party in the UK is getting slammed by feminists.

http://www.newstatesman.com/laurie-penn ... about-left

Laurie Penny is the Rebecca Watson of the British Left... not as bad as Watson though. Penny is notable for asking WHAT ABOUT TEH MENZ sometimes and seeming like she does actually mean it - even if it does come across as being unbelievably naiive on occasion.

Don't get me started on Laurie Penny - her and Watson were twins conjoined at the skull, and when they were separated at birth, they each got half of the brain they shared:

You come to expect it, as a woman writer, particularly if you're political. You come to expect the vitriol, the insults, the death threats. After a while, the emails and tweets and comments containing graphic fantasies of how and where and with what kitchen implements certain pseudonymous people would like to rape you cease to be shocking, and become merely a daily or weekly annoyance, something to phone your girlfriends about, seeking safety in hollow laughter...

Many commentators, wondering aloud where all the strong female voices are, close their eyes to how normal this sort of threat has become. Most mornings, when I go to check my email, Twitter and Facebook accounts, I have to sift through threats of violence, public speculations about my sexual preference and the odour and capacity of my genitals, and attempts to write off challenging ideas with the declaration that, since I and my friends are so very unattractive, anything we have to say must be irrelevant...
After one particular round of rape threats, including the suggestion that, for criticising neoliberal economic policymaking, I should be made to fellate a row of bankers at knifepoint, I was informed that people were searching for my home address. I could go on.

I'd like to say that none of this bothered me – to be one of those women who are strong enough to brush off the abuse, which is always the advice given by people who don't believe bullies and bigots can be fought. Sometimes I feel that speaking about the strength it takes just to turn on the computer, or how I've been afraid to leave my house, is an admission of weakness. Fear that it's somehow your fault for not being strong enough is, of course, what allows abusers to continue to abuse.

I believe the time for silence is over. If we want to build a truly fair and vibrant community of political debate and social exchange, online and offline, it's not enough to ignore harassment of women, LGBT people or people of colour who dare to have opinions. Free speech means being free to use technology and participate in public life without fear of abuse – and if the only people who can do so are white, straight men, the internet is not as free as we'd like to believe.

http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/com ... 56946.html

I disagree with Penny on... well most of the issues, despite probably being near her on the political compass. Unlike Watson however, I have no doubt that she actually does receive that level of verbal/written abuse. I doubt any of it is a credible real-life threat, but at least Penny has published the correspondences that she refers to. The difference between Penny and Watson that makes Penny's account more believable is that there actually is an organised ideological group that opposes Penny for her political views. To people on he British right she is the embodiment of everything they hate about the left. Watson's account is that people, who share her views on most other things, hate her because she's a woman.

[windy]

The reason I think most of FTB is the pits. Maryam Namazie is, as of right now, engaging actively to get two young men released in Iran who've been imprisoned and sentenced to death for "emnity against god" and "corruption on earth".

Not a single pingback on the other blogs. Stephanie Zvan's latest vomit is writing about the importance of Adam Lee's petition, but neglects to mention the other one.

Yes, that's a demonstration of priorities if I ever saw one. However, not to be all hyperskeptical, but when I went to look for more information about the actual case in Iran, I found some conflicting information. For example, here it says that the charges are involvement in a murder and membership in an opposition party:

http://www.iranhumanrights.org/2011/03/moradi-appeals/

That naturally doesn't make forced confessions and executions any less horrible, but since the sentence was given and the petition created in 2011, why is there suddenly a "twitterstorm" about it two years later? Maybe there has been a new development (and Namazie would have access to original sources) but still, I can't find any mention of that letter she is referring to on the International Committee against Execution homepage. And their Facebook page refers back to Namazie's FtB post! Something doesn't add up here.

[Jan Steen]

Zinnia Jones has found her way to my blog: http://athmorality.blogspot.com/2013/01 ... adley.html

She seems really skeptical about the existence of lawyers other than the handful she has interacted with professionally. It's a childish attitude. Before I went to university lawyers and doctors and other people with professions such as those were a bit magic to me. They have a special status in society. Now I know a whole bunch of professional people that I was studying alongside I would expect there to be loads of them on Reddit. I mean, some of the ones I know are Redditors.

You don't have to be a lawyer to grasp that it can't possibly be in a defendant's interest if a witness talks about the case in public before the trial. Zinnia's hyperscepticism is just a smoke screen.

[BarnOwl]

I've stayed out of this discussion because I thought the answer was obvious by looking at the shoes. I've realised that after about 30 years of working where I am walking or standing the entire time, what is obvious to me, is not to everyone.

Fashion is the only consideration. No one who stands or walks for long periods of time on a regular basis would ever consider shoes that look like this

The area that is subjected to the most pressure when wearing any shoe with a heel, is the ball of one's foot. Even a small amount of platform between that area and the ground will reduce the effects of gravity cause by the incline. These shoes have none. Also shoes made for walking, focus on providing cushioning under the ball of the foot.

Comfort and support should be the primary considerations for anyone who spends a significant amount of time walking and standing while working every day (you'd think that FtB SJWs would understand "comfort and support"). If I could wear lightweight hiking boots or cushioned ankle boots for work every day, I would do so. Most of the year, though, it's too warm here to do so, and that breathability component is critical. I can't wear sandals if I'm working in the lab (EH&S policy), though I've found huaraches with arch support and a cushioned footbed that were great for walking. I have flat arches and I'm an over-pronater, so arch support in my shoes is a necessity.

Another consideration that should show up on the SJW radar (but apparently does not) is where the shoes are made and under what conditions. The UK company Hotter started selling their shoes in the US about two years ago, and theirs have become my favorite shoes for work. Not super-fashionable like the Fluevogs, but extremely comfortable and well-made by adults in the UK in a safe/healthy work environment, not by young children in a developing country where the work environment may be very unsafe/unhealthy and poorly monitored. Hotter USA has frequent sales, with prices less than half of those for most Fluevogs.

[BarnOwl]

You don't have to be a lawyer to grasp that it can't possibly be in a defendant's interest if a witness talks about the case in public before the trial. Zinnia's hyperscepticism is just a smoke screen.

Zinnia is exhibiting the classic FtB response to disagreement and to being demonstrably just plain fucking wrong: dig a deeper trench, and hunker down in a mire of smugness and righteous indignation.

Perhaps Mykeru can lend her an entrenching tool.

[Lurkion]

You don't have to be a lawyer to grasp that it can't possibly be in a defendant's interest if a witness talks about the case in public before the trial. Zinnia's hyperscepticism is just a smoke screen.

Zinnia is exhibiting the classic FtB response to disagreement and to being demonstrably just plain fucking wrong: dig a deeper trench, and hunker down in a mire of smugness and righteous indignation.

Perhaps Mykeru can lend her an entrenching tool.

I thought this was a good response on reddit:

"There's really nothing I can say at this point that isn't already known publicly."

So what you're saying is that this AMA contributes nothing whatsoever of value? Nice.

[Gumby]

Oh Noes!

http://i225.photobucket.com/albums/dd24 ... b0ed2d.jpg

Another fantasy destroyed. Oh well, at least I'll save money on Kleenex and Jergens Lotion.

[Tigzy]

I disagree with Penny on... well most of the issues, despite probably being near her on the political compass. Unlike Watson however, I have no doubt that she actually does receive that level of verbal/written abuse. I doubt any of it is a credible real-life threat, but at least Penny has published the correspondences that she refers to. The difference between Penny and Watson that makes Penny's account more believable is that there actually is an organised ideological group that opposes Penny for her political views. To people on he British right she is the embodiment of everything they hate about the left. Watson's account is that people, who share her views on most other things, hate her because she's a woman.

Well I'm on the British left, and 'Penny Red' is everything I hate about the left, too:

We wear name cards and nibble at salted peanuts, and talk to a lot of important people who write about politics for a living. We listen to a genteel debate, sitting down a little stiffly because our legs are covered in baton bruises from the scuffles in Trafalgar Square and Piccadilly. We walk home by the river, smoking.

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/tobyy ... -satirist/

Typical sixth-form socialist.

Anyways, it's been posted here before, but I think it deserves another airing - David Starkey giving 'Trafalgar Square Warrior' Laurie Penny a massive on-stage smackdown:
[spoiler][youtube]oj9dA6E3fJw[/youtube][/spoiler]

[sacha]

Unless your wife or girlfriend is a nymphomaniac you do not have the right to screw her whenever you wish just because you have a hard on - that thinking belongs in the Dark Ages - and I am not suggesting this has never happened to me, because like most men it has, but if the lady says no, then you have to accept that - end of

*smirk*

The way I see it. If you own a dog, unless you are falling down sick, there is no excuse for not taking it out for a walk every day.

Same thing with a man sacha and sex IMO. Any man who owns a dog man sacha has to understand that part of the deal is taking fucking the dog man sacha regularly.

The dog needs the walk, and it is generally better for the both of you that you do.

*smirk*