Miracle on 34th Street...

I really love this movie. It's progressive, y'know?

I mean, here it is, 1947, and Doris Walker is a single mom with a very respectable/important job at Macy's. She's not just a single mom, she's divorced. In 1947.

When Fred comes over, we see him helping out in the kitchen. Seriously. He's got an apron on, and he helps set the table. It's really questionable how much he was helping in that tiny kitchen, but there it is. Fred, apron, kitchen.

And not 20 years later, poor Samantha Stevens is being chewed out by her husband for not making a huge dinner in 10 minutes without magic.

I don't get it.

And I don't want to talk about the "remake". Bah. Humbug.

And, if you're curious, the Dutch song is here. That's not a translation, though. The real translation goes more like: Santa Claus, put something in my shoe, put something in my boot, thank you Santa Claus. Black Peter is, I'm told, the helper Santa has in Holland, so that's probably where "Saint Peter" comes from in their English.

Thanks strangelette.

Article about the Salvation Army

Which shows that Target isn't Ultimate Evil after all!

Okay, you know that UCC ad that was "too controversial" to be aired?

I just saw it on AMC.

That was controversial?

What the fuck? Did I see an edited version of the ad or something?

*sighs*

Another thing I just don't get.

Watching a documentary on Miracle. God I love that movie....

*shudders* I'm at the AFA's website...

Notable things...

They want me to help make the display of the 10 Commandments legal in all places, including schools and courtrooms. By that, I'm sure they mean "mandatory". I've got three things to say on this.

1. As a basis for morality in this country, the 10 commandments falls short. The first four of the ten all have to do with God (I'm your god, thou shalt have no others before me, thou shalt not make graven images or pray before them, don't take God's name in vain, rest once a week because I said so). Of the last, we've got three that are unenforceable (honor thy parents, don't covet, don't adulturate). That leaves killing, stealing, and bearing false witness. That's not much to base a moral code on, the three commandments (though some people in this country would be well advised to quit with the false witnessing thing).

2. Fuck that. The commandments are just based off of the Code of Hammurabi anyway. Let's post that everywhere, okay? Might as well do the job properly.

3. Besides, then we don't have to ask which set to use.

They also want me to help them get In God We Trust displayed in every classroom in the country. They presumably would not finish the phrase with "all others pay cash" or "and the rest of you better keep your eyes on your own tests", but I'm sure the students would think it.

Can we get the first amendment displayed in all classrooms in America, and have students recite The American's Creed instead of the Pledge? (Hey, might as well kill two birds with one stone here) That would seem a more worthy way to waste paper thing to include in the hallowed halls of learning.

Finally, they want me to pray for them. *laughs* Well, I don't believe in God, but I do care very much for their souls sanity. I hope they recover quickly.

That site is scary.

Wow.

http://www.livejournal.com/community/linguaphiles/1228149.html

*blinks*

*runs and hides*

Taken from literalgirl

Martin reiterated that civil rights is not a popularity contest.

``You don't subject minority rights to a referendum,'' Cotler told the Toronto Star over the weekend. ``That's not what we do in Canada.''

Back at the veldt...

Meanwhile, in South Africa where the Supreme Court of Appeal ruled that the current definition of marriage, excluding gays and lesbians, was unconstitutional (story), some churches are calling for the issue to be put to voters.

"The decision to legalize same-sex marriage cannot be left to the courts, as all South Africans, both now and in the future, will be affected by this decision," South African Christian Leadership Assembly (SACLA), said in a statement.

Legal experts expect the Constitutional Court, the highest in South Africa, to uphold the Supreme Court decision given past rulings in favor of gays and lesbians.

It will then be up to parliament to enact legalization to allow same-sex marriages. The government has not responded to the church call for a referendum.

South Africa? SOUTH AFRICA? Land of apartheid for an insane amount of time, and they're likely to legalize same-sex marriage while the US sits on its holier-than-thou ass?

What. The. FUCK?

And a short clip...

Some guy who deserted from the Army wants to get refugee status in Canada.

He joined up, of course, for education benefits.

I don't think he'll be successful. It's not like we're under a draft. He voluntarily chose to go into the Army, and it's his own bad luck that there happened to be a chance that he could get killed that way.

Edit: Link's not working. Should be http://premium.cnn.com/pr/video/meta/us/2004/12/11/ but it's not working a'tall. Sorry. You can find the link at CNN, anyway.

And it's link tag!

Thank you, sophiaserpentia.

The author of this essay even acknowledges that gender dysphoria is a condition that requires treatment -- but then opposes supporting the only treatment recognized by the medical community as successful. Let's keep in mind that therapy is widely recognized as ineffective as a treatement for gender dysphoria -- which is not a fact that the medical community was eager to acknowledge. (This is especially true if the theory I support -- that "gender dysphoria" is caused by exposure to abnormal hormonal levels at a key stage in fetus development -- is true. In that case, no amount of talking is going to change the fact of the way the brain is shaped.)

The relevant linky....

( And my commentary )

So, okay. There's nine exclamation points in the body of the letter, and three in the salutation, one right after the other. That's approximately one exclamation point for every two sentences. More, because there's only 19 sentences in the entire letter.

All over something that doesn't affect her in the slightest. And she calls *them* crazy?

Third language center in the brain has been found.

Linky!

Okay, no commentary here. I just thought it was interesting.