Feminist Monday, December 5th

image from the Washington Post

"But you can help me!" he said. "There may be a way to destroy the dragon, d'you see, or at least we can help people, channel things to mitigate the worst of it, somehow find a meeting point--"
Vimes's blow cught Wonse on the cheek and spun him around.
"The dragon's here," he snapped. "You can't channel it or persuade it or negotiate with it. There's no truce with dragons. You brought it here and we're stuck with it, you bastard." -- Guards! Guards! by Terry Pratchett

I'm always amazed at how topical Pratchett is. I shouldn't be by now, but I am. Anyway, I came upon that passage the other day and can't help but feel it fits perfectly. Let's carry on, then, shall we?

Call for Action: Today's is from my friend Will Alexander. 
"Hope and despair are not locked in a zero-sum game. Tolkien tried to sort out a way of moving through the world with hopelessness but without despair. Denethor despaired. He glimpsed the future, accepted fate as fixed, & set himself on fire like a gentleman. Aragorn marched--not because the scruffy king of splendid perma-stubble had hope, but because he avoided despair. Despair is certainty. Despair is the illusion that the future is already set. 
The future is not set. We know this, because physics. Heisenberg poured uncertainty all over that deterministic nonsense. The cat in the ballot box is still alive and dead, both at once. So do everything you can to tip the balance into a better timeline. Example: Support the recount. #AudittheVote Drumpf is fighting it. Hard. He fears the recount. So defend it. Michigan's Attorney General is trying to block the recount in every way he can. Here is his phone number: 517-373-1110 Here is another one: 313-456-0240 Here is his twitter handle: @SchuetteOnDuty Take a moment to express your displeasure. Inquire of Jason Chaffetz, Chairman of the Congressional Oversight Committee, why he won't investigate Drumpf's obvious conflicts of interest:
DC office: (202) 225-7751 UT office: (801) 851-2500 Twitter: @jasoninthehouse
If you know any electors, please play them some Hamilton. Do this regardless of whether or not you allow yourself to hope that any of it will work. Do it to avoid despair. Don't go peering into any palantirs. 
March.

Today's video:

And now...links.

Entertainment/Literary: From The Guardian, Divided times: how literature teaches us to understand 'the other'. I'm of the opinion that literature is more important than most people think because it teaches us how to think for ourselves. It expands our consciousness. And if you don't read, you're only living a half-life. You're a sleepwalker. It's very difficult to be aware without experiencing the thoughts and ideals of others. If you only live cooped up in your own brain, you've nothing with which to stretch your mind. I keep thinking of the film Arrival and the NPR story about the man without a language. There's a connection between empathy and reading literature. In addition, since there's a connection between empathy and exposure to literature, what happens when that literature is focused solely on one gender or race? It's a question I have. Moana’s Box Office Win Proves Disney’s Progressive Age Is Paying Off in Huge Ways. It's past time to stop excusing lazy writing with the notion that it's somehow more profitable. It isn't. Historically Authentic Sexism in Fantasy. Let’s Unpack That. And Jim Hines is still running that fundraiser for Transgender Michigan. Go. Check it out. Bid on something!

General: First, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's thoughtful piece NOW IS THE TIME TO TALK ABOUT WHAT WE ARE ACTUALLY TALKING ABOUT. From the article: "Now is the time to burn false equivalencies forever. Pretending that both sides of an issue are equal when they are not is not “balanced” journalism; it is a fairy tale—and, unlike most fairy tales, a disingenuous one." I very much agree, and if that doesn't make sense you need to understand and read about the Overton Window. Also, Christiane Amanpour Drops Truth Bomb On Trump Era Press: 'I Believe In Being Truthful, Not Neutral'. Next, Gender Bias: Fact or Fiction? And a story from a part of the world with the highest percentage of child brides:  Inside the Lives of Georgia's Child Brides. Improving Rural Women's High Cancer Risk Under Trump Won't Be Easy. File this next one under "Holy Crap, Texas!": Texas to implement rules requiring burial or cremation of fetal remains.