Before I Die

Social Pressure as a Power for Good

YOU are beautiful! People who meet you know.

This is not me. It's not even her. But it's some truth.

Boy Makes Good Using His Imagination

Do Nothing!

Tolerance is not a Weakness

This is one of the ads going up in the DC area to try to raise people's awareness of the meaning of Jihad to moderate Muslims. "Religious struggle" and "holy war" are not equivalent ideals. I like this one...

...but I'm not sure most people will get it. What it's saying is that there is a stereotype that a woman wearing a hijab is living under oppression, but that really she is not being weak, she is being modest, and it's something she chooses to do in order to be more virtuous, to become a better person. To me, it's a bit like a woman who chooses for religious reasons to shave her head or wear it very close-cut (like a Buddhist nun). The idea is to force people to see the person, not her adornments. It is also an outward sign of submission to God. I just kinda wish the ad had said "Modestry is a strength", instead of "Modestry is not a weakness."

This commentator explains it well, I think, although I simultaneously get an Ick! feeling from her knee-jerk soul-searcing about how it could somehow be her fault that a sleazy ignorant guy on the bus thought it was OK to quiz her about whether she's available while she's wearing a hijab.

No, sweetie, it is not your fault that sleazy ignorant guys are legion.

Hey! Legion of Sleazy Ignorant Guys: a woman wearing a hijab is signalling that she is asserting her right to be viewed in a non-sexual way, so NO, she does not want to talk to you about dating or how pretty you think she is.

(cheez whiz!)

I thought this would be a good opportunity to look at the viewpoints of some young women who wear the hijab.

This young lady is a convert to Islam. In Texas. From her perspective it has partly cost her her career. I think she explains the concept of jihad well, that it is a test of her faith. As a convert to Islam, she is also grappling with the change in her identity, both internally and as viewed by the community in Dallas, Texas. For her, the whole issue is more complicated than just signalling that she claims her right to be seen as a person rather than a sexual object. There are employment issues, prejudices, and what seems to go the deepest for her, her example to younger girls. The video is long-ish at 13 minutes, but I think well worth the watch for an honest look at someone struggling with these forces.


This lady in England addresses what she sees as the common misunderstandings about hijab:


Another set of women discussing misunderstandings about wearing the hijab:

The Stakes: Domestic Violence from the Inside

Movies: Teaching Boys to be Men Using the Bechdel Test

Critical Thinking about Cheese Sandwiches

"When the headlines rolled, what happened is the marketers came calling."


("Neuroflapdoodle" is my favorite, too, Molly.)

Critical Thinking About Reporting

Markham Nolan on TED:

"...God-willing, we shall return..."

"Let's Rewrite the Narrative Together"

(TMI: Leamur thinks Jamil Abu-Wardeh is one of the most beautiful men she's ever seen.) That's totally beside the point. The point is, he reminds us of needed truths in a funny way. Enjoy.


More recent fun from the Axis of Evil:

Sea Aum

Happy New Year!

Movement and Pose in Space and Sound and Silence...and in Competition...and at Weddings...and on TV...

"Dancing about Sculture" from the Barber Institute of Fine Arts at the University of Birmingham. (England, not Alabama)


The University fo Birmingham took 1st place at the 2011 Bhangra Showdown:


So I'm watching this and thinking "What fun! I wanna do that!" Sure enough, the Good Indian Girl is here to help:

"We've all been in that situation. You're at the wedding, the reception, and the hip hop starts giving way to some Bollywood and Bhangra and you're not quite sure how to dance to it." [ohyeah, happens all the time, I hate that! ;) ]

And if you're really good, you can get from Atlanta, Georgia, all the way to compete on Indian television. (which is as bad as American football for all the junk they paste over the screen while you're trying to watch. :/ )

More Cool Sculpture

The Evolution of Artistic Innovation

Gratitude

Realization (this guy has an amazing story):


Dance:


Vision:

"The only appropriate response is gratefulness."

A berautiful and timely meditation by Louis Schwartzburg: