Random Politics & Religion #00

Transgender lesbian hmm I don't have enough credits in gender studies to comprehend this !

And before you say it Fone, porn doesn't count as Women's studies.

Proof of a world outside the US

What if you're studying the vocal feminist who does porn in which she likes getting abused by men to pay for her women's study classes?

Google it, it's real. A Serbian asked me to explain it the other day. I said it just goes to show you how crazy the movement has become since the days when it stood for equality.

She goes to Duke University I think.

The mother of a teenager is crying foul after her daughter was sent home from school for her unusual haircut.

Lauren Mcdowell, 13, recently got a haircut that is shaved on one side. That shaved side is also dyed brown and blonde in a leopard-print pattern, and it’s a style the UK teen had been wanting for a long time, according to her mother Yvonne Mcdowell. So when Lauren was sent home from the Forge Valley School on Wednesday, Yvonne was not happy. “As far as I’m concerned it’s a breach of my daughter’s human rights,” Yvonne told News.com.au. “No one has the right to tell someone what to do with their body. It is her body. She is my child and not theirs. She didn’t sign away her rights when she started at school.”

But the school, which requires students to wear a uniform, said the dress code policy is very clear. “This policy is communicated to parent[s] frequently and is available to download from our website,” Head teacher Dale Barrowclough told News.com.au. “The policy clearly states that extreme haircuts, including hair color, are not allowed. A pupil arrived at school with a ‘leopard skin hair color’ style. I took the decision to send the pupil home in order to remedy this breach of the school’s uniform policy.”

Yvonne said that while she supports the school’s right to impose a uniform, governing students’ haircuts goes too far. “The school says they encourage children as individuals but this is not supporting her. Lauren has a life outside of school,” Yvonne said. “I have explained to the school that I can understand its uniform policy and I totally agree with it but you cannot tell anyone how their hair should be styled. They are discriminating against her because of how she looks. She has the right to express herself in whatever way she wants as long as she is in school uniform.”

Yahoo Parenting was unable to reach Yvonne for comment.

Yvonne said her biggest concern is that her daughter’s education is being negatively affected. “She loves school. She is not a bad pupil. She works hard. What has her hair got to do with her education?” she says. “They are refusing my child an education. She was in school wanting to learn.”

Teen behavior expert Josh Shipp says it’s not surprising that a student at a uniform-requiring school would want to use her hairstyle as a form of individual expression. “Where there is restraint present, such as with school uniforms, teens will try to differentiate though whatever options available,” he tells Yahoo Parenting. “Hairstyle, shoelaces, jewelry, socks — it’s understandable. We all want to be unique and express ourselves.”

Whether or not hairstyle belongs in a school dress code is often up for debate, but Shipp says that if a family chooses a school with those rules, then they need to work within those confines. “Part of going to school is learning how to adhere to certain guidelines and boundaries,” he says. “Just like you’ll have to in college, at work, while driving, the list goes on. Within those boundaries you can be as creative and expressive as you wish. Just respect the boundaries.”

While he understands Yvonne and Lauren’s frustrations, Shipp says simply disregarding the rule isn’t going to work. Instead, he says Yvonne should use this as a teachable moment for her daughter. “Here’s the bigger life lesson: If you don’t agree with something, leverage your frustration to create change,” he says. “Maybe this whole hairstyle rule is ridiculous, but it’s the current rule, so you have to respect it. But you can leverage that frustration to try and respectfully change it by having a conversation with administrators, starting a petition or gathering letters of support.”

Not that it will be easy, he points out. “Are you guaranteed a positive result? No. Much like the real world,” he says. “But I bet you’d learn some extremely valuable lessons that would serve you well into adulthood.”

Anti-gay Kentucky clerk Kim Davis has been given plenty of dubious legal advice by her attorneys, the anti-gay fringe group Liberty Counsel. It was no surprise, then, to see Liberty Counsel founder and chairman Mathew Staver claim that “it’s really questionable” whether the Supreme Court has “any constitutional authority” to strike down same-sex marriage bans. What was surprising, however, was that Fox News host Gregg Jarrett actually criticized Staver, calling his statement “stunningly obtuse.” His guest, criminal defense attorney Sharon Liko, chimed in to note that Jarrett hadn’t quite captured the inanity of Staver’s assertion: It was, in fact, “ridiculously stupid.”

What we’re seeing here is the right’s continued realization that Davis is an absolutely atrocious mascot for the cause of religious liberty. Davis herself is an unsympathetic, martyrdom-seeking lawbreaker; her attorneys are questioning the constitutional authority of the very institution they are asking for help. That is not a winning strategy—but then, the Liberty Counsel has always seemed less concerned with winning Davis’ case than with maximizing its own fame and fortune. When even Fox News balks, it’s time to pull back on the SCOTUS-bashing.

So Caitlyn Jenner came on Ellen this week. This confuses me a bit, actually it doesn't, she's a hypocrite. She herself is a transgender lesbian. She expects people to understand her process, BUT she has a problem understanding why same-sex marriage should be a constitutional right etc...

Ellen Isn’t Impressed By Caitlyn’s Stance On Marriage Equality

she just wants to hit from the ladies tee.

That's a long way to go to shave a few strokes off your game.

thus the joke. this lesson in comedy is brought to you by ramy "damp towel" ramirez.

So a pastor outed in the Ashley Madison hack (I guess that is just Christian on Christian violence!) killed himself today.

Can we just become open to sexuality already so people don't have to kill themselves or develop social and emotional issues?

MILFORD, CT—Citing a wide range of deals customers will “never forget,” fast food chain Subway announced an exciting new promotion this week to honor and commemorate Subtember 11. “With a number of terrific discounts on special sandwiches as well as our classic footlongs, you’ll always remember where you were on Subtember 11,” Subway president Fred DeLuca told reporters, referring to Subway’s special promotion in which, for a limited time only, visitors of the restaurant’s tens of thousands of franchise locations will be able to “fly on in” and pick up two footlong subs of their choice for only $9.11. “From the Structural Steel Melt on Tower 7–Grain bread to the Twin Chowers cold cut combo with Ground Zero–Carb vinaigrette on a Let’s Whole Wheat Roll, we’ve got something for everybody this Subtember 11.” DeLuca added that the special promotion will be “first responders, first served.”

A longtime adviser to Hillary Clinton is urging her to hire outside legal counsel and look into cutting a deal over the email scandal currently dogging her presidential campaign, Ed Klein reports.

Klein said the adviser told him that Clinton needs to act quickly because, contrary to reports that the FBI probe into her use of a private email server may drag on for months, the investigation may actually wrap up by year's end.

The New York Times is reporting that Clinton received top-secret emails on her unsecured, privately maintained server she used as secretary of state. She has repeatedly said she did not send or receive classified material, though she later amended that material that was "marked" classified.

"Hillary needs counsel to let Congress, the Justice Department, the FBI, and all the authorities involved know that she's taking this very seriously," the adviser told Klein. "And she needs to get some discovery as to where the investigation is going so that she can make plans how to deal with it."

Joking about her email problem and acting as though it is a conspiracy by her political enemies is hurting her with prosecutors, the adviser said.

The adviser said he pointed out that former CIA directors David Petraeus and John Deutch each avoided criminal charges by pleading guilty to a misdemeanor for mishandling classified material. But Hillary Clinton responded that neither of them was running for president. She fears any admission of guilt would kill her chances of being elected.

The adviser told Clinton it was a chance she had to take because investigators smell "blood in the water," Klein reported.

Bryan Pagliano, a State Department IT professional hired privately by Clinton to set up her private server, has invoked his Fifth Amendment right not to testify before Congress, and Klein said Pagliano could end up being the key to forcing Clinton to make a plea deal.

Pagliano is not a member of the Clinton's inner circle and won't be as willing to fall on the sword for her as someone such as her aides Cheryl Mills or Huma Abedin, Klein told Hannity.

Klein said he expects Clinton to make a plea deal and quit the race, leaving space for Vice President Joe Biden, who is considering a run.

Though Biden has said he isn't sure he has the emotional energy to run following the death in May of his son, Beau, Klein said Obama senior adviser Valerie Jarrett is putting Biden in touch with psychotherapists in an effort to get him in the mental space to run.

"The Joe Biden previous to his son's death was a laughingstock among many, many people" because of his frequent gaffes, Klein said. "Now, suddenly there's a huge outpouring of sympathy for the guy while Hillary is going down, down, down."

each avoided criminal charges by pleading guilty to a misdemeanor

This statement is contradictory, not to mention the overall sillyness of the rest of that "article."

The US and Nato have expressed concern over reports that Russia is increasing its military presence in Syria.

Nato chief Jens Stoltenberg said if confirmed, Russia's involvement would not help to solve the conflict.

Separately on Wednesday, US Secretary of State John Kerry "reiterated" his concerns to Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov over the phone.

Russia, a key ally of Syria during its four-year civil war, says it has sent military experts but that is all.

Correspondents say that without Moscow's backing, Syrian President Bashar al-Assad may have fallen by now.
'No secret'

Unnamed US officials quoted by Reuters say Moscow has sent additional aircraft and two tank landing ships to Russia's naval base in the Syrian coastal city of Tartus, within the past day or so. They also say a small number of naval infantry forces have been deployed.

But a Russian foreign ministry spokeswoman insisted on Wednesday that this was nothing new, arguing that Moscow had been openly supplying weapons and sending military specialists to Syria for a long time.

"Russia has never made a secret of its military-technical cooperation with Syria,'' Maria Zakharova said. Syria, for its part, has denied any military build up by Russian troops on its soil.

Unnamed Lebanese officials have also told Reuters that Russian soldiers are already taking part in the fighting on the ground.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Russian embassy in Iran told Russian media that Moscow had been granted permission to fly planes over Iranian territory en route to Syria, but Iran has yet to confirm this. It follows Bulgaria's refusal to allow an unspecified number of Russian aircraft to cross over its air space.

John Kerry warned Mr Lavrov on Wednesday that if the reports were found to be true, "it could lead to greater violence". The German and French foreign ministers have also warned against a further military escalation.

The US is currently engaged in its own military air campaign against Islamic State (IS) militants in both Syria and Iraq.

US officials say Russia may be providing President Assad with greater military support because this year he has sustained substantial territorial losses, as IS militants have come to be seen as the bigger threat.

The latest developments follow reports of further setbacks for Syrian government forces, which on Wednesday lost control of a key air base in Idlib - one of the final regime position's in the north-eastern province.

Russia and the US disagree sharply on Syria. While Russia has backed the Syrian government, and provided it with arms, the US wants to see the removal of President Assad.

Syrian President Bashar al-Assad's regime has been at war with various rebel groups since 2011, in a conflict that has so far killed at least 240,000 people.