Archive for December 19, 2012

December 19th, 2012

Recommended Reading #129: Questioning the System(s), Pt. III



      “do we really want to protect ‘our’ children?” by Jen Cross (Non-sex-related, Youth, U.S. Public Policy, Media) 12/18/12

I have not commented on the recent events in Connecticut because I simply don’t feel they are for me to comment on. I am heartbroken by the tragedy, and to say I wish every bit of the best for all affected doesn’t seem to begin to do justice to how I feel—but I wish that all the time, for everybody. What we have become aware via media happened in Connecticut is a horrifying, harsh tragedy…and tragedies occur all over the world all the time. That’s not meant to undermine the gravity of or reverence for any of it. Basically, I just agree with what I interpret in this piece. It may sound blunt, but I don’t understand why the media needs to feed a frenzy for the whole nation to foam at the mouth to hear about and talk about this kind of thing, as though we forget that every day sees children starving to death, killed by warfare, and affected by violence all over the planet. :(

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      “Marriage is Broken. Here’s How to Fix It.” by Amanda Hess (Sex and Culture, U.S. Public Policy, Sociology) 11/6/12

I don’t personally feel very much of an investment in the social institution that is marriage, but I do see the significance with which society seems to imbue it as having important implications. As such, I find this an interesting article. I wholly agree (and have stated so many times) with Bryce Covert’s assessment, as well as Zak Stone’s. The parental rights issues Steven Horwitz and Joanna Schroeder allude to seem to me things we must be examining now, and the alternative ideas I interpret Nona Willis Aronowitz and Ann Friedman as offering strike me as well worth considering. Alyssa Royce’s and Hugo Schwyzer’s perspectives resonate particularly strongly with me as conscious and articulate offerings that are extrapolative beyond the immediate issue of marriage into how we perceive and function in relationship in general, as well as the contextualization of relationship with government and education.

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      “Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Sext?” by Sabrina Maddeaux (Youth, Sex and Culture, Gender Socialization, Slut-Shaming) 11/15/12

I simply find this fabulous and spot-on.

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Recommended Reading posted every Wednesday