Melissa Harris-Perry describes herself as “cis” (via “MSNBC Talks To And About Trans People For An Hour, Doesn’t F*ck It Up” on autostraddle)
Source: erosum
Higher social class predicts increased unethical behavior
Paul K. Piffa, Daniel M. Stancatoa, Stéphane Côtéb, Rodolfo Mendoza-Dentona, Dacher Keltnera
Seven studies using experimental and naturalistic methods reveal that upper-class individuals behave more unethically than lower-class individuals. In studies 1 and 2, upper-class individuals were more likely to break the law while driving, relative to lower-class individuals. In follow-up laboratory studies, upper-class individuals were more likely to exhibit unethical decision-making tendencies (study 3), take valued goods from others (study 4), lie in a negotiation (study 5), cheat to increase their chances of winning a prize (study 6), and endorse unethical behavior at work (study 7) than were lower-class individuals. Mediator and moderator data demonstrated that upper-class individuals’ unethical tendencies are accounted for, in part, by their more favorable attitudes toward greed.
“Ethics is subjective” anyway.
(via maozedongisnotcool)
Source: pnas.org
Think about the strangeness of today’s situation. Thirty, forty years ago, we were still debating about what the future will be: communist, fascist, capitalist, whatever. Today, nobody even debates these issues. We all silently accept global capitalism is here to stay. On the other hand, we are obsessed with cosmic catastrophes: the whole life on earth disintegrating, because of some virus, because of an asteroid hitting the earth, and so on. So the paradox is, that it’s much easier to imagine the end of all life on earth than a much more modest radical change in capitalism.
Americans Deserve a Presidential Science Debate
Numerous candidates have developed a pattern of embracing various antiscience positions from the denial of climate change to the assertion that stem cell research is “killing children,” in order to create controversy and reinvigorate sagging poll numbers. This is presumably based on the candidates’ belief that evangelical voters are antiscience.
This sort of brinksmanship with reason is not only dangerous for science - it is dangerous for democracy itself. The United States was founded on the principle that each individual could rationally ascertain the truth of things for him or herself, and therefore a government of, by and for the people would be more just and more effective than a government by the authoritarian edicts of a King or Pope. That means a government whose decisions are based on the best available evidence.
Source: azspot
Contraceptive Coverage Lowers Taxes
Social conservatives say you can’t put a price tag on human life, but are they aware that curbing reproductive rights for women translates to higher taxes? According to the nonprofit National Campaign to Prevent Teen and Unplanned Pregnancy, contraceptive use saves nearly $19 billion in annual medical costs and reduces abortion rates. “There’s a simple math in place: more unintended pregnancies mean more public costs,” said the campaign’s chief program officer. “Especially for the deficit hawks, it is a pennywise-pound-foolish strategy.” A report from the nonprofit found that employers who offer birth-control coverage end up saving more money than those who don’t.
(via absurdreasoning)
Source: liberal-lad
Congressman Bobby Rush dons a hoodie in support of Trayvon Martin, violating House dress code.
(via hueymcfly)
Source: politicsgifs
College Republicans discuss whether the poor should be allowed to vote
Reasons why college republicans should not exist. At all.
Al Jazeera is your only source on the Middle East and North Africa? Let me help you. Take a seat.
Ever since a member of the Qatari royal family took charge of the network, coverage was getting a bit weird. Don’t get me wrong, Al Jazeera can do some fantastic coverage on various matters in the region, such as the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. They also did an amazing job in the initial coverage on the Egyptian revolution. It’s all good. The Stream is also a great show, but only gets 30 minutes a day, which sucks.
Anyways, it’s been getting shady. Especially when they canceled the showing of a documentary on Morocco’s pro-democracy movement for no apparent reason. That was the last straw for me.
So! Here’s a list of English sources on the Middle East and North Africa. Most of them are just publications.
- Jadaliyya: Amazing analysis from the top scholars and academics in every field pertaining to the Middle East and North Africa. Politics, culture, religion, gender studies—you name it. You can’t really be studying MENA politics without having read something from here.
- Al Akhbar: The English version of one of the most prominent newspapers in Lebanon. They cover all things in the region though. Mostly newsy, but there are quality op-ed pieces and weekly blogposts from prominent voices.
- Tunisia Live: They launched after the Tunisian Revolution and cover all things Tunisia. They also occasionally post pieces pertaining to other parts of the region, namely North Africa.
- Arabist: Yes, this is a blog, but an amazing blog. Even if all you’re checking out is the weekly link roundup, that’s enough news to keep you updated. Most of the posts are on Egypt, but there is a sprinkle of other countries.
- Magharebia: Okay, they’re funded by AFRICOM, yes. But they are one of the few sites that consistently publishes content on the Greater Maghreb (Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Tunisia, and the Western Sahara). It’s basic coverage, but if you come across a story that intrigues you, just do some more research.
- Ahram Online: The English version of the “first newspaper in the Middle East.” It’s based in Egypt and provides coverage throughout the region.
This is a very basic list, and I’ll probably add to it. Though, with these alone, I’m confident you’ll stay informed and up to date on the ever-changing stories and situations in the Middle East and North Africa. All of the above sources are based from the region and/or have writers and editors based or are from the region.
Source: sharquaouia
U.S. sees lifetime cost of F-35 fighter at $1.45 trillion
There is no austerity or spending limit when you wanna rule the world by force. Austerity and other such things are only for those who have to be ruled over.
Source: reuters.com
The lesson of history is that tough times often reward the desperate and dangerous, from angry demagogues to anarchists and nationalists, from seething mobs to expansionist empires. Our world is poised on the edge of perhaps the most important 12 months for more than half a century. If our leaders provide the right leadership, then we may, perhaps, muddle through towards slow growth and gradual recovery. But if the European elite continue to inflict needless hardship on their people; if the markets continue to erode faith in the euro; and if Western politicians waste their time in petty bickering, then we could easily slip further towards discontent and disaster. The experience of 1932 provides a desperately valuable lesson. As a result of the decisions taken in those 12 short months, millions of people later lost their lives.
“I believe that the modern surface parking lot is ripe for transformation. Few of us spend much time thinking about parking beyond availability and convenience. But parking lots are, in fact, much more than spots to temporarily store cars: they are public spaces that have major impacts on the design of our cities and suburbs, on the natural environment and on the rhythms of daily life. We need to redefine what we mean by ‘parking lot’ to include something that not only allows a driver to park his car, but also offers a variety of other public uses, mitigates its effect on the environment and gives greater consideration to aesthetics and architectural context.
It’s estimated that there are three nonresidential parking spaces for every car in the United States. That adds up to almost 800 million parking spaces, covering about 4,360 square miles — an area larger than Puerto Rico. In some cities, like Orlando and Los Angeles, parking lots are estimated to cover at least one-third of the land area, making them one of the most salient landscape features of the built world.
Such coverage comes with environmental costs. The large, impervious surfaces of parking lots increase storm-water runoff, which damages watersheds. The exposed pavement increases the heat-island effect, by which urban regions are made warmer than surrounding rural areas. Since cars are immobile 95 percent of the time, you could plausibly argue that a Prius and a Hummer have much the same environmental impact: both occupy the same 9-by-18-foot rectangle of paved space.
A better parking lot might be covered with solar canopies so that it could produce energy while lowering heat. Or perhaps it would be surfaced with a permeable material like porous asphalt and planted with trees in rows like an apple orchard, so that it could sequester carbon and clean contaminated runoff.”
Source: kateoplis
There is an expectation that we can talk about sins but no one must be identified as a sinner: newspapers love to describe words or deeds as “racially charged” even in those cases when it would be more honest to say “racist”; we agree that there is rampant misogyny, but misogynists are nowhere to be found; homophobia is a problem but no one is homophobic. One cumulative effect of this policed language is that when someone dares to point out something as obvious as white privilege, it is seen as unduly provocative. Marginalized voices in America have fewer and fewer avenues to speak plainly about what they suffer; the effect of this enforced civility is that those voices are falsified or blocked entirely from the discourse.
Source: thepoliticalnotebook
Here are some 