“Let’s say it wasn’t my heart. Not me. Just a star you didn’t know.” This quote is from one of my all-time favorite movies, Stardust. (The movie is based on the book of the same name by one of my favorite authors, Neil Gaiman, although the book and movie are quite different.) In it, Yvaine is a star,… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Society and Media
Let the FCC and Your Congressional Representatives Know that You Support Net Neutrality
For months, I’ve been harping on Net Neutrality. At least when it comes to my tech-related stuff. I’m against the idea of two-tiered Internet access. “They” say that adopting rules that allow for a two-tiered Internet wouldn’t affect the service we already have. “They” insist that it would just mean that those able to pay… Continue Reading
Founding Fathers: My Three Favorite Quotes on Government and Money
We often think of the Founding Fathers as a monolithic institution. However, they often disagreed. Indeed, John Adams and Thomas Jefferson were often at loggerheads — in spite of a friendship spanning decades. Some of our Founding Fathers did agree on some things, though. Even though they were, by and large, privileged and what we… Continue Reading
Hidden Movie Messages: What You See Says More About You than the Movie
I haven’t seen Frozen. The Boy and I will likely see it when it hits the cheap theater, since he has asked to watch it, but so far The Lego Movie and Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs 2 have been his priorities. Even though I haven’t watched Frozen, I’ve read all sorts of things… Continue Reading
Thanks, Society, for Undermining My Efforts to Keep My Son From Getting Caught Up with Traditional Gender Roles
Not too long ago, while visiting at my parents’ house, a trip to Home Depot was suggested for the sake of obtaining necessary items for a small home improvement project. Out of my son’s mouth came the words, “Home Depot is a man’s store.” This distressed me because we’re talking about a boy who sees… Continue Reading
Trying to Work Through My Problems with Patriarchy
One of the sayings I remember hearing from the way back is, “Whom the Lord calls, the Lord Qualifies.” I also remember an Institute teacher telling the class that when there are two spirits together, one must always be the leader. As I’ve thought about these teachings, it bothers me that the key here is… Continue Reading
I Will Never Understand Our Reluctance to Tax the Wealthy
This is something that I don’t get. I don’t think it’s “punishment” for success when the wealthy pay higher taxes. I’m not sure how contributing more to the general advancement of society is a punishment. Part of the issue is that the wealthy tend to live in bubbles. Bubbles from which they rarely emerge. Their… Continue Reading
Bloggers, Journalists, and the First Amendment
Ever since doing my time in journalism school, I’ve thought about the rise of new media, and what it means for the press and for journalists — especially with the decline of “traditional” journalism, particularly print. Over the last couple of weeks, my thoughts have turned with increased frequency toward this subject, since the Ninth… Continue Reading
Interesting Stats on Women and Finances
After writing my last post, I found the following on women and finances, and thought I’d put them up. It comes StatisticBrain: What I found most interesting is that only 16 percent of households are those where women don’t work at all. Continue Reading
The Gender Pay Gap is Closing, But Will Women’s Financial Situations Improve?
One of the results of the march of time is that the gender pay gap is closing. Millennial women are catching up in terms of receiving equal pay for equal work. However, the issue with the gender pay gap is that it’s not just a matter of getting equal pay for equal work. Over time,… Continue Reading