Link Treats

This batch of links isn’t quite as heavy, at least in my mind. I hope you find something of interest.

Lessons sports teach you: Perfection is the enemy of excellence
Sam B. at Fit, Feminist, and (almost) Fifty shares her thoughts on the problems of perfectionism.

Trayvon Martin, The East, and the Consequences of Inaction
My inner seven-year-old is a lot like the Belle Jar’s. It’s part of why I’m so cranky all the time.

OMG, like there are totally things called Valley Bees!
I’m so sure, Bug Girl!

Angry Young Woman
A poem from Wordlander. It’s awesome.

To Succeed, Fail Boldly
The Weekly Sift offers some words of hope.

Link Treats

It’s Wednesday, it’s still humid as hell (plus more rain. Yay?), but I have links for you. Kind of heavy, but I try to end on an up note. Enjoy!

 

My New Convention Harassment Policy
This is a little dusty now, but still good to know. John Scalzi on what he requires from any con he might attend. Oh, and if you want to co-sign, like I and over 900 other folks have, you can do that here.

 

If My Vagina Shot Bullets Could I Conceal It From Rick Perry and John Kasich
Margaret and Helen on the latest crush of forced birth, anti-woman legislation that’s happening in Texas and Ohio. And, well, everywhere. It’s North Carolina taking the lead this week.

 

Hell Yeah: Texas Woman Lays Into Legislators at Abortion Bill Hearing
But women are fighting back, like Sarah Slamen. Watch her rock over at Jezebel.

 

This Court Sucks
The Weekly Sift on what’s wrong with the Supreme Court

 

Life Lessons from Mystery Science Theater 3000
My favorite tv show (yes, even more than anything Whedon’s done). Leah Schnelbach at Tor shares a bit of what she learned from the show. #8 might be my favorite, but they’re all good.

 

Dr. Forrester detaches the Satellite of Love from Deep 13. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

 

Weekly Linkroll

Another Sunday. No ice yesterday or today, so I’m calling the weekend a win, just on that count. Yesterday, in fact, was wonderful with good friends and music! I’ll talk more about that in tomorrow’s post, though.

Today, as usual (for the most part), it’s time to share links with all y’all.

Girl Gamer Tells Guy to Shove His ‘Fake Geek Girl’ Crap In the Most Epic Way Imaginable
Well played, Ms. Johnston, well played. *applause* (from The Mary Sue)

Federal Appeals Court Explains Why Rubber Fetuses And High Schools Don’t Mix
Ian Millhiser at Think Progress on an anti-choice student group’s attempt to spread their message at their Roswell, NM high school. It doesn’t go well.

Why the mantis shrimp is my new favorite animal
The Oatmeal on the most amazing (and scary) shrimp you will have ever heard of. Blood-soaked rainbows!

What Major World Cities Look Like at Night, Minus the Light Pollution
The Smithsonian’s blog looks at French photographer Thierry Cohen‘s attempt to give cities back the night sky. Beautiful work.

How the ‘System of Beauty’ Hurts Female Politicians
Garance Franke-Ruta at The Atlantic discusses a new study that finds that media coverage of a woman can effect voters’ opinions of her negatively, even if the coverage is positive. Questions on the study itself, as well. Interesting.

Cruel and Unusual Punishment: The Shame of Three Strikes Laws
Matt Taibbi at The Rolling Stone takes on how horrible and stupid three strikes laws are. I remember when California’s law passed. I voted against it because I thought it was insane to take sentencing discretion out of the hands of judges. In prison for the rest of your life for a pair of socks, is that just?

The Best Bad Chart You Could Hope For
The folks at Skepchick have been doing Bad Chart Thursdays since January, bad charts being those graphs that people come up with to justify whatever bogus argument they’re trying to make. Up until this one, the Skepchicks have been creating their own mocking versions. This is a real one and it is awesome!

Weekly Linkroll

Another Sunday is well under way. Happy St. Patrick’s Day to everyone who’s into that. I’m still processing the verdict in the Steubenville rape case and wondering at the insanity of the news coverage of it all. Those poor rapists and their ruined lives. The pity party going on for them is just outrageous.

Well, you know what? If you don’t rape people, you don’t ruin your life. Pretty simple. Maybe try that the next time the option presents itself.

Anyway, let’s see what else happened on the internet this week.

R-E-S-P-E-C-T
Artist Lee Moyer discusses sexism in cover art, prompted by questions from Jim Hines. An interesting read.

Pope Francis Vs. Black Francis
Well, the Catholic Church has a new pope who took the name Francis. It was only a matter of time. Thanks, Mother Jones, for doing it first.

The Rhetorical Power of Pig Pain
Shakesville’s super takedown of Richard Dawkins’ assholish tweeting about abortion this week. FYI: fetal pain is a myth. This guy is supposed to be a scientist?

Sir Patrick Stewart: ‘Violence Against Women Is Learned’
Patrick Stewart talks personally about domestic violence for Amnesty International. Wonderful and heartwrenching.

The Art Of Asking: For Writers And Storytellers
Chuck Wendig at Terrible Minds ponders AFP’s amazing TED talk. What does it mean for writers?

Dad hacks Donkey Kong for his daughter; Pauline now saves Mario
Ars Technica on the latest Donkey Kong hack. I heard about this on NPR earlier this week. Neat!

Happy St. Urho’s Day, 2013
I like this idea for a holiday better than St. Patrick’s Day, really. Bug Girl’s Blog gives us the lowdown.

What if “it” REALLY were an inside job, not a terrorist attack?
Teacherken over at Daily Kos has the inside scoop. The truth seems pretty clear.

Weekly Linkroll

So, there’s a football game this evening. My feelings about football have become so mixed over the last few years. So many problems with the sport on so many levels.

But my favorite city’s team is playing tonight, so I’m kind of excited.

Charles Street, Baltimore, looking north

Not only that, but my second favorite city’s team is also playing.

Coit Tower and neighborhood, San Francisco, also looking north

If the 49ers were playing anyone other than Baltimore, I’d be rooting for them. Sorry, guys.

But it hasn’t been all football this week. Here are some links for you that I hope you enjoy.

Twenty Great Writers on the Art of Revision
Emily Temple shares some super quotes on writing and revision. I’m especially fond of what Raymond Chandler had to say.

Finishing School – Book the First: Etiquette & Espionage (trailer)
This is seriously impressive book trailer. Can’t wait to actually read the book.

Girl comes out to parents with help of a cake
Awesome coming out story.

Pro-choice on Amtrak: The time I told a group of anti-choice teenagers about my abortion
Michelle Kinsey Bruns on Feministing talks about sharing her story of abortion with a train car full of anti-choice teenagers. Powerful stuff.

Is Twitter a better predictor of the flu than Google and the CDC? Researcher says, yes
Interesting Medcity News article on tracking the spread of this year’s flu season.

Think Women Haven’t Been in Combat Situations Already? The History of Crossdressing Soldiers
Women in the U.S. military will finally be able to fill combat positions, officially. But it’s not like they haven’t fought before. The National Journal looks at a few women who crossdressed their way into battle.

Interplanetary Cessna
xkcd’s What If column takes on the question, “What would happen if you tried to fly a normal Earth airplane above different Solar System bodies?” Venus is a terrible place.

And to finish up… a fun parody tune from Beauty for Ashes.

Weekend Linkroll

Another Sunday has rolled around. The last not-frigid day for a while. We’ll be reaching highs of 5 degrees by Wednesday up here. Yes, climate change is to blame. Joy.

So, while I can still feel my fingers, I have links to share.

Food and Wine Thursdays: Wine Aromas
I’ve mentioned my dislike of gatekeepers, right? The Satellite Show has the same opinion when it comes to wine.

The Mystery of the Third Step
Ellis Nelson ponders George Mallory’s attempt to climb Mt. Everest. Did he get there before Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzin Norgay? Maybe!

Six Words Can’t Possible Contain Her
An interesting exercise from A Thousand Shades of Gray. “What is next? Anything is possible.”

$150k Goal: Interview with Amber Benson: Authorship, Indie Film, and Erotica
Patrick Rothfuss interviews Amber Benson. Fun things happen.

The Morgenthaler Decision
Twenty-five years of real legal abortion in Canada, and the sky didn’t fall! Interesting website. Especially the page discussing the benefits of decriminalizing abortion and the harm anti-abortion laws can cause. Happy anniversary, Dr. Morgentaler!

New report shows how the principle of “personhood” is already criminalizing pregnancy in the US
However, here in the U.S., we’re still missing the boat and women are being treated as criminals for it. Thanks to Feministing for the link.

But let’s finish this week on a positive note…

In Which I, John Scalzi, Sing a Lost Bob Dylan Song For Jay Lake
Scalzi does a surprisingly good Bob Dylan, and this “lost” Dylan song is classic.