5 Little Words

If I had the means, I'd say these 5 little words.

I'd say them as often as possible, to people who needed to hear them and would value them the most.

I'd say them to people who are:
passionate,
intelligent,
talented,
creative,
innovative,
visionary,
driven,
daring,
kind and
sincere.

I'd say them freely and without a sense of obligation.

I'd feel good about saying them.

I wouldn't expect anything in return for saying them, knowing these words wouldn't be taken for granted.

I'd wish others said these words more often.

I'd know that by saying these words, I was doing my part to enrichen and strengthen - not only my community - but society at large.

I'd say these words to bolster necessary social structures that are already strained to their limit or to create ones that don't even exist.

I'd say these words to prevent good people from falling through the cracks.

I'd hope that these words would be passed on from one beneficiary to another.

What are these words?

How

much

do

you

need...?

?

?

?

But that's just me.
_________________________________________________

You're Hired

Prom king zombie costume

What NOT to Write in Your Cover Letter
A word to the wise - the following email incorporates everything you should not tell a potential future employer. Hopefully, everyone can learn from this person's mistakes! [...]

The Five People You Meet in [the] Hamptons
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NEW POSTS
Samantha Harris
Deranged Dowager
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Fucking Hypocrite

SWAT Team Raids House, Shoots Dog Over 'Small Amount of Marijuana'
COMMENTS
Thank god they got rid of it. Kids in the house?
Thank god.

That's horse shit to expose children to that stuff.

"WTF what are you guys doing?" ---They are busting you for being an illegal drug user. Now sit down and take your PWN.

If you don't want to be harassed, don't break the law. Doesn't matter if YOU don't feel pot is illegal. Your country has determined it is, don't agree? Don't live there, or take it up with the courts/congressmen/etc.

missdelite: You don't have any vices, do you? And you don't know anyone close to you who does, right? And obviously, you've never been harassed by law enforcement officers or handed an unfair verdict in court or known someone who has, is this true?

How else to explain your blind faith in the judiciary process and your inability to see an abuse of power when it's right there before you? Just because someone - who believe me, has no vested interest in your wellbeing - makes a ruling, you believe they're doing it to protect your interests.

Bwahahaha! How precious! What kind of glass muthaf@kn house do you live in, anyway??

I'm willing to bet my left butt cheek you're married or related to one of the guys who helped come up with or who actively enforces these Draconian drug laws, and he's holed up in a seedy motel room in Amsterdam right now snorting coke out of a hooker's gash.

How lucky do you feel, you fucking hypocrite?

missdelite: And you know what's funny? Law enforcement wastes precious time, money and resources on these small-time crooks while the kingpins roam free and unmolested.

As long as police chiefs can hold press conferences boasting about their number of arrests, and politicians can line their pockets with more money from taxpayers to fight the "War on Drugs", eveybody's happy.

But what about the kid OD'ed in a derelict warehouse, lying in a pool of vomit and excrement with a needle stuck in his/her arm? Are they just collateral damage from whom everyone else profits?
________________________________________________

TRAILERS
Blow
American Gangster
Scarface
Goodfellas
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LINK
Resolved: Inmates Make Tough Debaters
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Cash is Trash

Picasso Sells for Record $106.5 Million
COMMENTS
Even in terms of rich people economics this makes no sense to me. I love Picasso, don't get me wrong, but in todays buyers market I could probably buy a small island, a Gulfstream jet to transport me, and finance my supervillain-esque island compound for that price.

reply: Cash is trash.

Art can be sold overseas, is easily transported, and is untraceable. You can also claim it as assets on a balance sheet.

It's a better investment than something as louche as bouillon.

Art is always valuable as a vehicle for money laundering. Not that I think there's anything wrong with that from an ethical standpoint, it's just that's what it's for.

But in this case, when cubism goes out of fashion eventually, what's a billionaire to do? New art crazes are always happening, but they ain't making any more islands (if Dubai's real estate collapse goes as expected. Just bide your time...).

reply: Eh, eventually, the art market will fall apart, as it always does.

Buyers pick it up for "legacy" and to pad their egos. You're a pretty big pimp among rich people if you have a Picasso. How rich you are stops mattering so much at a certain point.

That's when you start buying art, bankrolling "grassroots" political machines, producing art, running philanthropies, etc.

When cubism stops being cool, you donate the paintings to a prominent museum.

It may also be a symptom of the stimulus boom. The smart money will dump cash when inflation is coming without many prospects for alternative investments.

I mean, it's a pretty fucking sweet deal when you can use ZIRP to buy Picassos for nothing. I'd do that deal many times over.

When political risk is high, it's also a great time to dump your cash reserves into easily smuggled assets.

Remind me to hire you as my accountant and general financial adviser when I attain my empire. You seem like you'd keep a cool head and manage to get me a sweet deal when the revolution overthrows my totalitarian regime. In all seriousness though, your perspective on art as an investment for the super-rich is really intriguing and has educated me as to why these people think a Picasso may be worth 0.1Bn dollars. It makes total sense in the same way that any other stable alternative to cash does.

reply: Accounting, you'd have to find someone else. General financial advisor, sure.

But I'd loooooove to have a Canadian work visa, at least for a time. Canada is the atheist Saudi Arabia with plenty of mines to boot.

A lot to love about the culture, at least.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sotheby's Preview Work of Tamara de Lempicka
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Who Were They?

Harvard Law Student Starts Racist Email War, Will Clerk for Cow Porn Judge This Summer
COMMENTS
I'm not sure what the normal reaction to dissent here on Gawker is (as my silly name indicates, I spend most of my time on Deadspin). At the risk of being assailed with the sort of profanity-laced anger that this story has generated, I must say that I don't share in the rather broad view of what constitutes "racism" among the majority of commenters here.

The mere suggestion that it is possible that intelligence - however one might define it in this instance - is not distributed precisely equally among all racial groups does not, in and of itself, constitute racism in my opinion. So long as one does not extend that conclusion to any sort of moral or legal judgment that implicates the group, I don't see it as bigotry. Speaking personally, I avoid judgments about any group, and stick to individuals. Quaint as that notion is. But I digress . . .

Put another way - the refusal to keep an open mind that the results of some hypothetical (perhaps impossible) scientific experiment may run counter to one's pre-existing ideological tenets seems troubling. Blind adherence to those principles, no matter how benevolent they may be, could potentially compromise the acquisition of any truth that does not mesh with them precisely.

What's frightening is that it seems like, if many of the commenters had their way, this person would be barred from ever holding a job of any kind. Others upped the ante by expanding the target. The legal profession as a whole was deemed suspect, as entry into law school was evidence of either deficiency in the hard sciences, or poor moral character.

I would humbly suggest only this: That by taking so strident a posture, one seems less open-minded than the very people they're attempting to condemn.

missdelite: "The mere suggestion that it is possible that intelligence - however one might define it in this instance - is not distributed precisely equally among all racial groups does not, in and of itself, constitute racism in my opinion."

It may not constitute racism, but it does constitute lazy thinking.

I'm going to assume that we're referring to book smarts as opposed to street smarts, because the former is measurable by test scores while the latter can't be quantified into a neat, chart-ready statistic.

I define "book smarts" as intellectual training that prepares an individual for employment in a field that requires higher learning. If you want to look at test scores and make a correlation between race and intelligence, you first have to examine who has access to what academic prepatory tools and why certain groups have access in higher numbers than others.

Who goes to the best schools? Who can afford the best tutors? Who gets preferential treatment in classrooms? Who can afford tuition to an Ivy League institution? Whose father fraternizes with high ranking CEOs who can guarantee his recently graduated son/daughter an interview?

Once you've answered these questions, the next logical step is to ask "Why?", which inevitably leads to an examination of Western history.

The fact is, you simply can't draw any conclusions about the relationship between race and intelligence in contemporary society without looking at the history of conquest and subjugation, slavery, privilege (be it earned or robbed) and social exclusion.

This is why I called the suggestion you mentioned above "lazy thinking", because it's just too easy to blame one group's lack of progress on some hypothetical defect they were supposedly born with as opposed to a burden they were saddled with the moment they fell out of the womb. It conveniently ignores social structures that've been in place for hundreds of years and continue to benefit certain groups over others to this very day, in an attempt for that group to justify living off the fruits of other people's labour.

And yes, it's the same lazy thinking that leads to moral and legal judgments that implicate entire swathes of people deemed intellectually inferior. After all, how can one group justify punishing and limiting the personal freedoms of another group if they don't see themselves as intellectually superior? What, exactly, gives a group the right to act as judge and jury over another?

I can only attribute your lazy thinking to a certain comfort level derived from reaping the benefits sowed by past generations. It would do you well to acknowledge the sins and triumphs of your ancestors that afforded you a place of privilege in society. Maybe when you've understood what your family's been through, you'll get a clue as to what other families have not. Just be grateful your family's records have (most likely) survived hundreds of years. Mine - on the other hand - were lost the day my ancestors were either herded onto merchant and slave ships or slaughtered by conquistodors who "discovered" them on their native soil.

Who were my great grandparents? Honey, I don't know. Do you think my family's lack of connection to prosperous institutions over a multitude of generations has impacted my progress as a citizen today? Most definitely "Yes".

Oh, and guess what? My intelligence and genes have nothing to do with it.
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NEW POST
Racial Profiling
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Noble Deed

More Than 20 People Passed as Homeless New York Man Bled to Death
COMMENTS
Sorry, but this woman deserves the brunt of the blame here. After getting her ass saved by this guy, she couldn't dial 911 and tell them she was just mugged at knife-point at X corner and get a patrol car to take a look around? Not only is this poor guy dead, but this douche is still on the streets looking for his next victim. (not that they would've necessarily caught him but Jesus, you never know...and at least there's an alert out for other potential victims.) Then again, maybe she didn't want to waste her cell phone minutes. Or have her green card status checked...?

missdelite: A person can jump to a lot of conclusions based on the scant evidence we've been given about this incident, but only an ass would say "this woman deserves the brunt of the blame here". Seriously dude, what are you smoking? Do you really think she gave a fuck about her cell phone minutes after having been robbed at knifepoint?

Obviously, you've never been attacked or traumatized a day in your life, in which case bully for you. I hereby sentence you to 40 days community service at a rape crisis centre to get your empathy back.

Or go punch a kitten, if that's what you're in to.

What am I smoking? What are you smoking? Do you really think I believe she's worried about her cell phone minutes? Sarcasm. Sarcasm. As for being assaulted or traumatized by an assault, yes I've been a victim of it in good ol' NYC, and the only decent thing to do in this instance (assuming the woman herself isn't also stabbed and dead somwhere) is to report this immediately for other women and the community.

missdelite: Sarcasm FAIL.

How wonderful that you're able to function with a level head moments after having been attacked. Of course, all victims are just like you, or else something must be wrong with them.

And this: we don't know for certain she didn't call 911. Maybe she did and the police took their damn time as is often the case. I certainly wouldn't blame her if she didn't, as it's also possible she collapsed at the nearest establishment from shock. Why don't you call all the area ERs and find out whether they got a call for a disheveled woman passed out on the floor of a McDonalds or Starbucks before chastising her for not having done her civic duty?

PS - I don't smoke, but I sure as hell know when it's being blown up my ass.

I hope that if we're ever confronted by a similar situation in the future, that if I come to YOUR aid and get stabbed, that you'll just go lie down in a Macdonald's or Starbucks all disheveled by the trauma. Like Mr. Tale-Yax, I look forward to bleeding out on the sidewalk because YOU were so traumatized. Heh heh, that's rich.

missdelite: What's rich is that you can't conceive for one second how a victim could possibly be in no position to help out another victim just because they were rescued. Somehow, my "collapsed/passed out" became your "just go lie down", as if the attacked woman casually stopped by the nearest establishment to enjoy a moment of rest between sips of coffee, as opposed to actually being caught up in the throes of trauma. How callous of her to ignore his chivalrous act! Why the hell did he even bother if she was going to walk away, huh?

Cause that's what decent people do. They intervene when they see a crime being committed, without looking for anything in return. Unfortunately, this man was a victim of cause-and-effect and he didn't anticipate being stabbed. If there's anyone who should be blamed here, it's the goddamned criminal who probably walked away with 40 bucks and a tube of lipstick.

At least Mr. Tale-Yax died having done something noble. Lord knows, there's no dignity in living on the street, where a guy can get knifed for his shoes and the sidewalk is likely the only place where he can lie down and not catch a serious case of head lice.

I take back my suggestion for you to go work at a rape crisis centre. I thought it might help you get your empathy back, but I see you had none to begin with. And if you see me being attacked, don't bother intervening. The guilt of not having returned the favour would surely kill me.
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Only YOU

"Why Women Find Their Parents Unpleasant"
COMMENT
missdelite: That 7.2% accounts for men who love their mother so much no other woman can compare.

As for myself, I hate being around website administrators who - after 2+ years - don't feel I have anything of value to add to their site. I don't take it personally, but I think it's a crying shame when women don't support other women who challenge the status quo. Maybe if I peppered my comments with more super, oooh, totes, haz and squeee, I'd have a star by now, but that's not who I am and there's nothing wrong with that.

My comments have been promoted here more times than I can count, but I'm tired of seeing them show up in the grey in the first place. It's insulting to my intelligence that my presence here is given less consideration than Lindsay "Can't See Straight" Lohan and Kim "Toilet Bowl" Kardashian.

"Female Empowerment", my ass.

If there's one good thing to come out of me abandoning my Jezebel account, it's that I'll no longer have to look at my comment page dressed in that nauseating baby blue and pink colour scheme. It looks like a fucking nursery in here...oh wait.

I'm going to leave you all with one last thought: Only YOU hold the key to your own cage.

Later, Jezebishes
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Privilege

The ol' Ivory Tower

The New York Post Explained in One Cropped Photo
COMMENTS
Maybe I'm dense. I don't get why having this woman cropped out of the photo is scandalous. Is she somebody we should recognize? Was she mentioned in the article? How does leaving her in the photo add value - or, how has removing her decreased the value of the photo?

[...]

missdelite: People want stories, not the truth, which brings me back to that godawful photo. The Post published a version that was palatable to their audience, because they're in the business of reinforcing racial stereotypes that some people find comforting and familiar. It's their niche, which they exploit to great success. You claim you're not a Post reader, but your lack of understanding of the issue makes me wonder how different you really are from them.

I acknowledge that someone over the age of 10 can be blissfully unaware of racial bias in the media without actually sporting a Klan hood, but it's depressing to see how resistant you are to questioning your lack of insight into the matter when it's brought to your attention. You will never see how egregious it is for a major media publication to willfully ignore a segment of the population based on nothing other than skin tone, and I've grown tired of trying to point it out to you.

I don't know if it's the stubbornness of your age, the privilege of your position or a combo of the two, but any way you slice it, it stinks.
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Write a Review

How to Make an Ugly Girl Pretty Flask

RATING
***** 5 Stars Excellent

I WOULD RECOMMEND THIS PRODUCT TO A FRIEND
Yes

REVIEWER NICKNAME
GFEgirl

REVIEW TITLE
Awesome gift!

REVIEW
I bought this flask as a parting gift for my ex-husband who used to beat the crap out of me. He loved it! Next, I'd like to suggest a "How to Make the Two-Timing Fucker Pay Alimony" ashtray to throw at his car window. I'll take a dozen!

ADD IMAGES TO YOUR REVIEW
ADD A CAPTION: This flask will make him huge!

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ADD A CAPTION: Jackasses Unite!

LOCATION
Reality
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One Strike

Chris Rock Mocks Letterman Over Marriage, Intern Sex Scandal
COMMENTS
Dave got his due - and if his wife is sticking around then that's their business. But it appears that around 1 in five married partners of either sex cheats. After browsing the internet, the statistics seem show (statistics are fickle, but you gotta start somewhere) that between 20% and 25% of married men cheat and between 15% and 19% of married women cheat, with the trends being that amongst men there is a downward trend and amongst women there is an upward trend. So, the "cheating gap" appears to be closing. What i think is missing from the discussion is that there are different degrees of cheating. While no one condones Dave's behaviour, it just feels like it's a lot less repulsive than Jesse James. Men and women who cheat because of some emotional distress in their marriage, for example the kind who find one lover who makes them feel in love again, is one thing - there isn't the arrogance there, just a lot of pain on all sides, and most of those cheaters probably did not set out with the intention of cheating. The ones who cheat just because they are horny and think they can get away with it, or feel entitled because they have lots of money or fame, is another thing - that's just plain arrogant, and betrays a complete absence love or consideration for their partner. Neither is to be condoned, but it seems like one should carry more condemnation that the other. [...]

Here's my point - A good person can make a bad choice and still be a good person, as long as they can see their mistake for what it is and try to make ammends and learn. But an asshole would only feel bad because they got caught, not because the had any remorse for what they did. And I feel like it's important to recognize the difference, otherwise people who make mistakes may be less inclined to care if they feel like it doesn't make any difference. Everyone makes mistakes, and our ability to forgive is what keeps people from continuing to make those mistakes - If you forgive someone, that person is more likely to feel an obligation to respect that act and become a better person. Granted, it doesn't always work out that way and we've all been burned, I'm sure, but I feel it's important as a society to try and recognize who is worth forgiving and who isn't. So to me, Dave's cheating is different -it doesn't seem to be borne out of pure selfishness, arrogance and thoughtlessness, but Jesse's does. Now, I am certainly willing to admit I could be wrong on both accounts, but for now I'm inclined to forgive Dave.

missdelite: No, sorry - James and Letterman are in the same boat. Neither one understands the concept of monogamy, both of them decided hurting their partner (both physically* and mentally) was worth the risk and both of them would have continued in the same vein if a third party hadn't exposed them. You do realize Letterman made it a habit of hooking up with young, attractive interns both before and after he was married, right? In fact, he hired them specifically for that reason. This isn't a man who made one "mistake" and learned from it. This is a self-entitled a-hole who used his position as a celebrity to get laid by women who'd never otherwise have given him a second glance if he were an accountant or mortician.

There's a long road to travel between feeling unhappy in a relationship and then coming to the conclusion that it's ok to philander. Cheating doesn't happen by accident. You don't just fall into another woman's vagina. It takes effort to gather contact info, make arrangements to meet and then continue to meet until the guilt kicks in, or the money runs out or you get caught. All the while, time passes and you convince yourself you have the right to do it and somehow manage to look your partner in the eye and lie about where you've been and what you've been up to over and over again. Don't you get the magnitude of this betrayal? How it makes a mockery of everything your relationship stands for? All of these steps aren't "mistakes". They're conscious acts a cheater feels justified in making. Let's face it, if there were no way in hell a cheater had a home to come back to should he be caught, he'd put more effort into working things out or get a divorce without having to cheat at all. But basically, cheating is a way to have your cake and eat it too. If relationships were governed by the "One Strike and You're Out" rule, then the concept of monogamy would be fully realized and not just some "pie-in-the-sky" notion we're taught to aspire to. End of story.

*Who knows if Letterman wore protection during any of his affairs; James most certainly didn't, according to his f-buddy McGee.
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+Christian Bale vs. Tiger Woods (vid)
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A Billion Miles

Sometimes, the only way to avoid a toxic relationship is to switch time zones...
...by car...

...train...

...or plane...

...and even in the rain.

We Hope You'll Make it on Your Own, Kids. But We Doubt it.
COMMENTS
Can't pay for your kids college? Just do what my parents did. Don't save a dime for your kids education, and when a great aunt takes pity on your kid and sets up a trust fund to fund his education, make sure you get appointed as the trustee so you can steal the money to set up a new business. When your kid finds out about the theft, promise him that the new business will pay for his college and grad school. Then all you have to do is forge your kid's signature and have him unknowingly take on a huge pile of student loans to finance his college education while you get rich off your new business. Make sure to laugh when he brings up your promise to pay for grad school. He will only discover the loans after he gets into law school and makes his own financial aide application, and by that time the statute of limitations will have expired for your fraud and breach of trustee responsibilities. And be sure to act shocked and confused when your firstborn no longer speaks to you.

missdelite: Whoa, there's a special place in the Evil Parents Hall of Fame for those two. People will try to guilt-trip you into forgiving them cause they're your "parents", but shared DNA doesn't give anyone the right to fuck you over. Here's hoping you move on with your dignity intact and a billion miles between you and them. Physical distance doesn't erase past pain but it sure as hell helps you to face a future without their meddling ways. Works for me, anyway.
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Male Duty

Why did Jesse James marry Sandra Bullock?

Devil on the left, angel on the right?

Jesse James found her irresistable.

Model Behaviour: On Jesse James, Tiger Woods and Sex with "Trashy Girls"
COMMENTS
The real story is, why does a man marry someone that is completely opposite of what turns him on?

I suspect-- and that's all this is, a supposition-- that there's cultural pressure involved. A lot of us men (and Woods and James are no exceptions) get the double standard programmed into them that "Trashy girls" are fine for a good time but you must marry a "Good Girl". It almost always bites you in the ass when you realize that the woman you married just isn't doing it for you but you stay married to keep up the social obligations of Being married. The cheating is just a logical extension of trying to be someone you're not.

missdelite: The social pressure you allude to comes from the family's motivation to carry on its bloodline and name. Offspring learn from an early age that family comes first and it's up to them to continue the legacy. Lower class families feel the pressure to progress up the social ladder by "marrying up", and upper class families strive to hang on to what they have by marrying within their class. "Good girls" are marriage material because they fit within the family structure - which explains why men tend to marry women who look like their sister or a younger version of their mother - or because they represent a step up the social ladder, like Elin Nordgren. "Bad girls" are sexually available because they're conveniently delegated to a world beyond familial boundaries, where there's no chance of them upsetting its harmony (or so men think).

For reasons I've yet to grasp, many men equate their sexual needs and true, barn-burning passion with something that's "bad" and not to be pursued within the home with their wife. Granted, some men have perverse sexual leanings that most women don't understand or indulge, but others have simpler needs and look to another woman as an escape. Question is: an escape from what? Routine? The challenges of aging in a youth-oriented society? Personal failures? All of the above?

Acknowledging these factors makes me wonder where "love" fits into the equation. What do men perceive as love when it comes to choosing a life partner, considering that he's encouraged to seek her within a very select, well-defined group? What happens when a "Romeo and Juliet"-type situation occurs? Is he threatened with banishment from family gatherings if he chooses outside of his peer group? Is the threat of being ostracized enough to make him reconsider his choice? It strikes me as curious that even now, in 2010, men still (for the most part) conform to familial/social dictates in matters of romance and marriage. If love is blind, then why do potential partners conform to a set physical type?

Or is marriage just an arrangement to please a man's parents, and adultery is a way to please himself?

Sandra Bullock's Advice to Elin Nordegren: "I Would Have Kept Hitting!"
_________________________________________________

Gawker: I Quit

COMMENT
Testing..

So, the avatar only shows up now when my comment's promoted? Interesting.

Hey Gawker, grow some stones and disable my account. It's bad enough I've been denied a star after commenting here for 2+ years. It's not like I'm some incoherent, high school dropout with nothing relevant to say - or is that the point?

You know what? Fuck you.

Gawker is mediocre at best. The only time things heat up around here, is when real people fuck up in a BIG WAY, like Tiger Woods or Balloon Boy or those Jersey Shore freaks. So why don't you go out there and stir up some shit before you put everyone to sleep?

And just in case you didn't get it the first time: Fuck. You.
--------------------------------------------
UPDATE
[4:23pm]
Aannd..the avatar's back. Oh well, they should've given me a fucking star a long fucking time ago. It was insulting. They might scramble the comment, which is why I put it here. They'll probably disable the account too, but does it really matter? It's not like they ever wanted me around anyway.

At least here, my comments show up in the black, which is where they fucking belong.

missdelite's AWESOME comments on Gawker / Jezebel

UPDATE
[03.20.10]
Gawker's new EIC, Remy Stern, gave me a star. Yeah, you heard right. Ha! I guess sometimes it pays to kick up a fuss, although I certainly didn't do it with the intention of being rewarded. No, I was genuinely ticked off the other day and right now, I'm still basking in the glow of my verbal bird-flipping. Besides, it feels like I've burned a bridge and I'm not sure what I'm going to do next with my shiny little privilege. I won't stop having opinions, but I don't want to feel censured either. Has Stern put the proverbial loaded gun in the hands of a slightly reckless user? We'll see. But not right now, cause there hasn't been a new post up on that site since Friday @ 7:25pm. Where'd they all go? Oh god, I've broken Gawker already!
___________________________________________________

Fuck Fashion

Sizing Up the Fashion Industry
"I can open up any magazine or pick any show and tell you what girls are taking Adderall, how many girls are taking Vicodin, how many girls are throwing up, how many girls are carrying flasks," he said. "Girls are really resorting to incredibly dangerous things."
_________________________________________________

NEW POST
Runway: Spring 2010
Jak & Jil - blog
_________________________________________________

Hey, it's Missdelite here. I feel I need to qualify the title of this post. When I say "Fuck Fashion", I refer to an industry that supports the phenomenon of the ever-shrinking model - not the creation, manufacture and enjoyment of beautiful clothes. Yes, there's a definite body conscious / sportswear trend in the spring looks this year, but a woman with curves can rock the shit out of them if she's confident and fit. In fact, I think a healthier woman would look better in the clothes I feature than the emaciated models you see wearing them. Unfortunately, fashion designers, editors and buyers shy away from body fat / muscle on female models as some sort of sick projection of their own weaknesses. Have you seen some of these people? Their expanding waistlines could no more fit into designer clothes than their egos through a standard-sized doorway. No wonder they get herded into tents!

I'm Not a Whore

She's such a fucking disaster.

Last week, I spent time with a guy who really pissed me off cause he was so damned pushy. Just in case you're wondering, yes, it's different for "civilians" when it comes to being with an escort in a non-client capacity. I wanted to take things slow and get to know him better. He wanted to shove his tongue down my throat from the get-go.

True, I wasn't physically attracted to him, but he seemed pleasant enough from the outset and hinted at having connections to important people. I thought maybe this guy could help me get out of "the life" and onto something better. Sex was an option, if not a guarantee.

But he turned me off. He oozed sleaze and his cloying personality made me want to drown myself in bleach. The more I thought about him, the less I liked him, which is why I cancelled tonight's dinner plans. You see, even though I'm willing to be with someone in exchange for a shot at self-advancement, I'm not willing to spend time with someone I can't stand. Even if I don't have two nickels to rub together, I just can't do it.

Anyone with a modicum of self respect knows there's a line they can't cross. They know that if they do, they won't be able to sleep at night, or wake up in the morning not feeling dirty. They also know they won't be able look people in the eye when they talk to them or get rid of that knot in the pit of their stomach that tells them things aren't quite right.

I'm not saying whorish acts are irredeemable. People make mistakes and do things they regret; shit happens. But that's how we learn where our boundaries lie and what not to do the next time an opportunity with a hefty price tag comes along. We either negotiate a fair price or walk away. That's called integrity.

A whore, on the other hand, gets down on all fours and sucks like they've never sucked before - be it for a bump of coke or a job promotion. They feel no regret cause they believe they're not worth any better. Their motto? Anything. Anytime. Anywhere. Whores do things that turn other people's stomach with nary a backward glance. They sully everything they touch and anyone who has anything to do with them looks guilty by association. They've no dignity, self respect or class. Ethically, whores are the bottom feeders of society, although ironically, many of them occupy lofty, coveted social positions. What does it say about us that we promote people like this? Are we all whores, after all?

Well, I'm not.
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Holier Than Thou

Homophobic Remarks Slam Gay MP's Christmas Card
It has all the hallmarks of a politician's glossy Christmas card.

Pastoral setting? Check.

Doe-eyed golden retriever? Check.

Handsome couple dressed in smart casual? Check.

Same-sex couple?

That was too much for "a handful of bigots" who objected to Scott Brison's holiday greeting card depicting him and spouse Maxime St. Pierre, according to the Nova Scotia Liberal MP.

"The overwhelming response has been very positive," Brison said from Windsor, N.S. "There's always a very, very tiny minority of bigots. It's their problem, it's not my problem."

At least one news website had to shut down its comments section running under a story about the card. The Globe and Mail web editor said the section was shut down because of "hateful and homophobic remarks." [...]

Matt Mills, editorial director of the gay news group Pink Triangle Press, said it's a mistake to block homophobes.

"Gay and lesbian people do know that homophobia exists and is expressed all the time," he said.

"Our approach is that shutting down comments when there are homophobic remarks that come out really just drives that homophobia underground and out of the public eye. It is an exercise, in some ways, in denial. And I don't think that's constructive ... We can't fight it if we can't see it." [...]

'Bigots' React to Brison's Christmas Card
COMMENT
edrick169 writes:
"I have every RIGHT to voice those opinions in a respectful manner without being called or labeled a "bigot" or "homophobic".
----------------------------------------
Almost right, but not. You do enjoy the right to express your opinion respectfully. And those who disagree enjoy the same right to respond.

You can't claim the right to free speech only to deny that for others. "Bigot" and "homophobic" are acceptable terms in English parlance. And if it is the opinion of others that you are a bigot and a homophobe, then it is simply that .. their opinion.

Sorry to rain on your parade, but these rights are universal and guaranteed by the Charter.

Canadian Lawmaker Scott Brison and His Brokeback Christmas Card
COMMENTS
It looks like the ending to one of those mood alteration med ads…. lol I LIKE IT

Scott Brison is my MP in Nova Scotia. Although it's wonderful that he was elected to Parliament as an openly gay man, I can tell you I didn't vote for him. His support of free trade between Canada and Columbia, and his previous support of two tiered health care (although where he stands now, I don't know [because he didn't respond to my letter]) are things I can't look past.
Cute photo though.

Does it weird anyone else out how much they look like brothers?…

I really do not get how this is a Christmas card. Where's the snow, reindeer, santa etc… I think you missed the boat Scott.
Happy Holidays
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Our Mayor?

I've never been one to simply tinker with the edges when what's required is bold action.

Toronto Centre MPP George Smitherman, aka "Furious George", promising to shake things up before he even takes the mayor's chair. Bully pulpit, or just bully? [NOW Magazine - 11/12/09]

'Furious George' Smitherman Was the Premier's Enforcer
THEY made the oddest of couples, the beanpole Dalton McGuinty and bearish George Smitherman.

The Ontario premier grew up a socially conservative, impeccably polite Irish Catholic from the Ottawa suburbs – probably convinced into adulthood he didn't even know any homosexuals.

The man who would become his unlikely political lieutenant was an out-and-then-some gay man, a hockey-playing, Whitney Houston-loving brawler who never went to college, started in politics as a lowly driver, confessed while in cabinet to a fondness for party drugs, and rose to become the second most powerful politician in the province. [...]

Smitherman Denies eHealth Influenced Mayoral Run
GEORGE Smitherman is brushing aside suggestions that he is running for the Toronto mayoralty in order to sidestep some of the political muck generated by the eHealth scandal.

Smitherman stepped down from his high-profile role as Energy and Infrastructure Minister on Monday to announce he will take a run at becoming mayor of Toronto in next November's municipal election.

Mayor David Miller announced in September that he wouldn't be seeking re-election in fall 2010.

Smitherman, who was the province's health minister before he took up the energy portfolio in June 2008, has come under fire as a result of the eHealth boondoggle, in which nearly $1 billion in taxpayers' money was spent over the past decade in a failed bid to create an electronic health record system. [...]

COMMENTS
Bend over Toronto - Smitherman wants to hit you baby one more time...
Remember his health care tax? And where are those thousands of new nurses that this tax was suppossed to pay for - did you forget that election promise? They only made it in two elections, so maybe it does not count like every other promise liberals make.

He’s a grade 12 graduate who worked in a camera store and he’s trashed every portfolio he’s had in the Ontario government.

I would really like to see Rob Ford run for Mayor - I think he is honest and tries to spend our money in the best possible way and to get the biggest bang for the buck. No spending on "favourites" like what we're used to being done.

I fail to see why people vote for a guy whose greatest accomplishments outside of politics are opening an unsuccessful photofinishing shop and overcoming cocaine addiction...My grandfather, a true man of the land, referred to people like them as having "bankers hands". He told me that if a man's hands are strong, rough, and calloused, you can probably trust him. If not, be wary. Those are timeless words of wisdom as far as I'm concerned.

George Smitherman Steps Down to Run for Mayor
"I AM a son of this city. It is where I was born, where I was raised. It’s a city that has been a source of great pride and a place where I’ve devoted a great deal of my energy trying to help build a stronger community. Toronto has had an amazing history, of which we should all be proud. I believe it can have an even brighter future." [...]

COMMENTS
Yes, the man who got the ball rolling on the E-Health Consultant scandal, and is now forcing giant windmills on communities throughout Ontario wants to step back and fix Toronto.

Just what Toronto needs in this time of fiscal mismanagement, an army of consultants wasting millions of dollars to force Torontonians to accept the latest left-wing pap. If we thought David Miller was arrogant and tin-earred, well George Smitherman will take both to a new level, and every taxpayer in Toronto, and Ontario will suffer for it.

As for the voters of Toronto Centre showing their faith in George, I would suggest that a fire hydrant would win the riding if it ran under the Liberal banner. At least the hydrant would provide a useful service to the riding after the election.

We certainly do not need Smitherman. We have lived through the disaster of one blowhard the last 6 years and do not need another thin skinned bully. The other question is why he is not resigning immediately from his seat. He is now in a conflict of interest raising money and running for Mayor yet sitting in the Provincial Legislature.

Smitherman represents all that is BAD in politics. He bounces from ministry to ministry accomplishing NOTHING. Let's not forget he has responsibility for Ontario's e-health spending scandal. He is a waste of time and money.

This is a man who thinks it's OK to spend Ontario taxpayers' money on sex-change surgery, while people with cancer wait over two months for treatment.
Sickening.

March 2010
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10 Dirty Little Restaurant Secrets
There's a reason most restaurants keep the kitchen doors closed -- and it's not just because it's so hot back there.

It can be tough for restaurateurs to turn a profit and Slashfood has uncovered some of the ultra-dirty deeds even the best restaurants commit in order to pinch pennies.

Read on for 10 true stories about the subtle, sneaky and sometimes downright disgusting ways restaurants cheat to save a buck -- and how you might be paying the price.

10. Using Cabbage in Place of Seaweed
9. Deep-Frying Everything
8. Substituting Top-Shelf Alcohol with Generic Booze
7. Topping Pitchers of Beer with Seltzer Water
6. Refilling Pricey Bottled Waters with Tap
5. Recycling Baskets of Chips
4. Serving Rotten Meat
3. Using Fake Creamer
2. Serving Caffeinated Coffee as Decaf
1. Souping Up Big Ticket Items

COMMENTS
Old Shrimp! No problem , worked somewhere that asked me to soak in bleach to take the nasty smell out of it and then serve it , told them I would'nt. Asked for my paycheck and cut my ties before someone died.

My son worked at a Mexican Restaurant,where they used Red Cloth Napkins. One day he opened up a new bundle to roll up his silverware for the dinner crowd. When he opened up the bundle, roaches started to crawl out. This grossed him out and reported it to his supervisor. His supervisor told him to use them anyway. GROSS!!! Needless to say, I now ask for paper napkins anytime I see cloth napkins on the tables.

I have worked in the industry for many years and in most cases I have not seen anything gross or disgusting..but it does happen..grill cooks licking their fingers before touching the meat for doneness, food picked up off the floor and served, TEA urn spouts that are never cleaned and full of mold and other gross stuff..BEWARE ICE TEA DRINKERS. Cheap cuts of meat sold as expensive ones and once I saw a line cook stick his finger up his BUTT and rub it all over the steak to be served to the owner of the establishment...that was the grossest thing I have ever seen.

I worked in restaurants -- mostly 'fine dining' -- and had an interesting range of experiences, mostly depending on the chef. If a kitchen was run by an upstanding, demanding and interested chef, fewer oddities happened to get served. In one instance, I remember doing a $1000/plate fundraiser where we were supposed to be serving pheasant. When the chef presented me with the meat to trim down, I said: "Looks like chicken to me..." Granted they were very nice capons...

Food cost drives some potentially fatal errors in food prep. If you have allergies...watchout. A regular practice in several of the restaurants I worked in was to feed cocktail shrimp trimmings into the lobster salad. If you happen to be someone with a shrimp allergy you may end up with a bit of a surprise.

That is the tip of the iceberg. More unusual errors can slip by when inexperienced personnel are part of the action.

Knowing what I know never deters me from eating out, but I am careful about what I choose. And while I rarely send something back (once in my life) I can clearly define the issues.

I recently quit a famous New York restaurant owned by a famous Boston chef where I was a server because it was absolutely disgusting in their penny pinching ways and just down right unsanitary practices. First of all I had to fight with the cooking staff to maintain some semblance of respect for people paying big money to eat there. I caught one cook dropping an item on the floor, plating it and expecting me to then serve it. When I told him he actually had to remake the dish, he got indignant and defensive. I might as well as tied a target on my back from there on in.

Most of the time the dishwashers who were on another floor didn't seem to care about replenishing the cups, silverware and glassware so we had to wash those items by hand in the back sink with hand soap. And yes, one fryolator for EVERYTHING. there is a constant bug problem that they just didn't take seriously. The night staff would routinely leave food items like foccacia and pastries out or hidden in little hiding places for themselves and forget about them. Result? Infestation. That's just the tip of the iceberg.

When I have leftovers at restaurants, I pour catsup, hot sauce and salt and pepper over everything. My son (who is in the restaurant business) is very fussy about his kitchen. NOTHING is recycled and if a server is found guilty of any of these "tricks" they are immediately let go.

i worked in the resturant buisness for many years..if you want to eat food from a clean kitchen..STAY HOME..never send your food back to the kitchen because it is not cooked properly..cooks and chefs get very annoyed..theres no telling what will happen to that steak..if you don't want to share your salad with the person before you ..BRING YOUR OWN...my best advice is to buy a steak and a head of lettuce and stay home and cook it yourself

Watch the guy who cleans up the tables at the authentic Mexican restaurants. He is taught to not only reuse the chips, but to put the unused salsa back into the pot, also. I asked the manager when I saw this happen. "The spices in the salsa kill the germs so don't worry. Every Mexican restaurant does this." I checked around town, and it was true. Sometimes they have a bucket on the floor in which they dump the used salsa, but it ends up back on the tables. No more salsa for me unless I either make it from home or buy it from a sealed jar.

This was a common bar trick some bartenders and managers would do. It would save the bartenders extra work and the bar manager money on produce. Under the sink where the glasswasher is there is a basket the glasses are dumped in to remove straws, fruit, etc. At some establishment the fruit would be picked out, rinsed under cold water and reused as a garnish. Just be carefull to check for lipstick and chewing gum.

I spent a good portion of my life working in places that had bad roach problems. I found one in my salad once and in chicken wings ...I eat at home most of the time. If I go out and see any filth ...I'm gone. Bojangles in the south ....dirty as hell.!!!

Twice (in different restaurants) I have been witness to reusing food. In one family-owned restaurant, when the tables were cleared, if there were any unused rolls we were told to put them back in the roll bin to be used by the next customer. What if these were dropped on the floor or played with by a child? When the boss wasn't looking we threw them out. At a Shoney's, one waitress dropped a bowl of melon balls on the floor of the prep area. The manager told her to pick them up, wash them off and put them on the buffet or she would lose her job. That's when I quit. Within a year, they went out of business.

OK, that's it. I am never eating out ever again. I did not know about the "well done" steak trick, BUT it has to explain my experience with City Range in Greenville, SC. I ate there only twice (stupid me, I gave them a second chance), and ordered a well done porterhouse steak both times. Both times it tasted rancid. It was awful. The first time when I told the waitress, she brushed me off. Second time it happened I just decided never to eat there again. And I haven't, and I won't. I also tell everyone of my experience there. They may have saved money serving me rancid cuts of meat, but they lost way more money via future customers, because I always tell people of my experience there.

I worked at a restaurant that served rotisserie chicken. The chicken came in cases of multiple whole chickens. When we didn't use the chicken and they would start smelling bad I would tell the owner the chicken was spoiled and that it was smelling really bad. He would have the cook wash the chicken saying it was just the juice the chicken was sitting in that smelled bad. When we would use the chicken the customers would ask if we were cooking it different because it did not taste the same. The owner would tell them he was trying some new spices.

Went into a well know chicken place many years ago, close to closing and when the worker came through the door to the kitchen, I could see a couple fornicating on the counter in the kitchen. When the clerk asked me what I wanted, I told him I would have some of what the other guy was having. I left without buying any chicken.

10 More Dirty Restaurant Tricks
In September, Slashfood wrote about "10 Dirty Little Restaurant Secrets", those ways that restaurants cut corners to save a few dimes. Boy did you readers weigh in. We've culled 10 of the best reader-submitted restaurant tricks from the 468 comments left on the post.

Read on for Slashfood readers' horror stories -- from nibbled-upon entrees to doctored veal cutlets.

10. Reusing Leftovers
9. The Chef's Special Is the Easiest, Cheapest Dish to Prepare
8. The Waitstaff Nibbles on Your Entree Before It's Served to You
7. The Bartender Puts All the Booze in the Straw of Your Watered-Down Drink
6. Fish Bits Substituted for Shrimp
5. Marrying Half-Drunken Bottles of Wine
4. Passing Pork Off as Veal
3. Stale Hot Dogs Reborn as Corn Dogs
2. Combining Quality Ingredients With Subpar Ones
1. Your Regular Coffee Is Actually Decaf

COMMENTS
I have owned a local restaurant for 25 years....my staff would be fired if I ever caught them eating off customers plates or as we call it "bus buckets" dining....

Bosses who deny the above comments are usually the most guilty. They get away with it because the American public has become ignorant of food, drink, and service. Put out a large portion at what seems to be a fair price, and a 48 oz. soda, and most Americans think they have eaten well. We can thank the chains and their idea that management means cost cutting. Restauranteurs used to think quality of product was tied to their reputation, and so strived for high performance. But in the last 30 years more great restaurants have disappeared, even in NYC. Chains serving frozen portion controlled food have popped up like weeds.

I can maybe understand the drinks and the straw. BUT!!! if i ever caught someone messing with my food. I would wait for them out side and XXXX them. So go ahead and take the chance, maybe we're watching you also. Never can tell can you? believe me I wouldn't hesitate to XXXX you or your type.

The most disgusting thing I've ever heard of in a restaurant was a few friends of my son, all working for a very large chain pizza restaurant, claiming that when they received a ticket for delivery, for someone in our town they didn't like, they would "punch down the dough" with their penises. Slapping the dough down that way. The manager was always stoned (was actually selling pot to the kids) and was only semi-conscious most the time and supposedly never noticed as she was in the front and they were in the back unsupervised for the most part. I told the kids off, and have never eaten there or ordered from a pizza place again. There is no doubt in my mind they were telling the truth as I overheard part of it and then demanded to know what on earth they were talking about. I also called the home office and reported the activity and the manager. Nothing was done.

NEVER, EVER, Use the condiments! I used to work at a steakhouse (yes, a major chain) where we were only "allowed" 4 clean towels per night--for over 50 tables! At the end of the evening it was someones job to clean all the A-1, ketchup bottles, ect. They had us wipe the lip of the bottle, inside and out with those dirty towels (I preferred to call the towels "botulism swabs"). Yes, we had to wipe INSIDE the lip of the bottle and the caps with those towels...the same towels that had cleaned every table all night long......

Never order or eat any kind of appetizers, like salsa, bread etc. leftovers are all sent back and dumped in big bowls or cans. think of all the germs you are getting from other people, not to mention the cans are NEVER washed, they just keep adding and reusing.

Being a lifetime restaurant worker who has worked at every level of the business, I hate when companies like AOL put these articles on their main page. Sure, there are some bad restaurant owners out there who have done shady things and workers in those restaurants who are guilty. However, there are millions of people who don't deserve to suffer because people read articles like this and believe everything they see on the internet. There are bad apples in every kind of business, restaurants don't deserve to be singled out like this. The very large majority of restaurant are honestly run businesses and are struggling enough in this economy that they don't need this bad publicity.

I work part time in a local IHOP. NEVER EVER are left overs used for anything! All plates are dumped into the trash, no matter what is on them! The cooks and servers are clean and wash their hands 10 times an hour! Our wiping rags are soaked in a bleach water mixture. NONE of these horrid things happen there or I would NOT work there!

I worked at a popular "DONUT" and coffee chain in Naperville, IL - still to this day, I cannot eat donuts or donut holes...And worst of all, the bucket that we used to mop the floor - was also used to fill the frozen orange drinks and the frozen coffee drinks. Once a customer complained that her frozen coffee drink tasted like bleach. She was right! I DID NOT KNOW ABOUT THIS!!! I QUIT IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE COMPANY GOT FLACK FOR IT.
So - there are dozens and dozens of ways that restaurants save bottom on their bottom line!

I've worked at two different Applebee's chains, and I assure you that while we've resorted to a few frozen entrees, Applebee's is the CLEANEST and MOST SANITARY restaurant I've ever worked at. Red Lobster, on the other hand, does not wash their silverware, only soaks it in cold water, then has a special silverware person to wipe it down and roll it.

What is it you think owners do when they discover that the meat or fish was never refrigerated the night before? Or when the food is delivered in a defrosted condition? Do you think they throw it out?
These are the same people who corrupt your daughters, fire on whim, and cheat their purveyors, taxes (many a place has closed for failure to pay state tax) and employees. People who deliberately hire illegal staff so they can underpay them, and screw many other employees. Get another job? Many employees need a job that will allow them to go to school or watch their children. To suggest otherwise is being a heartless bast**d. These owners are notorious for keeping three sets of books, one for taxes, one for possible sale, and one for the truth. AS an industry, it is frought with deceit, corruption, theft, and illegal behavior that would never be permitted in any other business. When was the last time you heard of a restaurant CEO going to prison or being fined for their outrageous behavior? It certainly isn't because they are good guys.
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Speak Up

["Bad Breath"__Getty.com via Yahoo.com homepage]

SEE the image above? Today it was associated with a Yahoo.com homepage article on bad breath. Talk about inappropriate. In fact, I was so irked by it, I just had to register a complaint. Not because I believe it'll make a difference in how the Yahoo art / graphics department deals with racial profiling (the sceptic in me says it won't), but because if I don't say something, my head will explode. Sometimes, speaking up can be an emotional release, a way to express frustration, even when there's no way in hell it'll lead to positive action. Still, who knows, maybe someone at Yahoo - or Getty for that matter - will see where they've erred, and remove the pic, but I highly doubt it. If certain basic notions about race are so ingrained that a person can approve a picture like that without thinking twice, well then I hardly think a complaint or two is going to change their mind about it. No, I believe my complaint will be dismissed as "taking things too seriously", or illicit the "what's the big deal, it's just a picture" response, but at least I'll feel better having done something about it. It may not matter to them, but it'll matter to me. (As for the photographer, well, he or she is a lost cause.)

I hereby present the Yahoo.com feedback form I filled out. Behold, it's a thing of beauty...

RE: "Five Foods That Fix Bad Breath"

The picture associated with the article is RACIST. The black woman's mouth is covered by a white woman's hand. COME THE FUCK ON. Don't white people get bad breath? I've met MANY who do. Are black people inherently stinky? NO, they are not. It's bad enough that you used a black woman's face to symbolize the bad breath issue, but to have it covered by a white hand? That just takes the cake.

This is the 21st century and somebody at Yahoo needs basic training in race relations.

SHAME ON YOU.

And THANK YOU for listening.
-------------------------------------------
Some people left comments beneath the article, reminding me once again why I love the Internet:

Quick question: Why does the picture of the person with bad breath have to be black? That is a racist picture.

The image used in this article is inappropriate-- a white hand covering a black face. This is totally unacceptable. Images like this are perceived to be racist and if so, that is the intention of the editorial staff. Who is responsible for this content? Perhaps the Ontario Anti-Racism Secretariat should be made aware of the liberties taking by Rogers Communications?

I agree that the picture seems racist. If you had used Black and Black or White and White it should not offend anyone.

The photo is very racist. I've seen racist images on Yahoo before but nothing like this. The pic they used for this item crossed the line and I sent in feedback to complain. Shame on you Yahoo! You should know better!!

ummm that picture is super racist... a white woman's hand covering a black person's mouth... i'm sure it was not on purpose but that's in very poor taste

Mar, call me old fashioned but I still believe that impressions matter. As a psychologist, I can confidently infer that whoever put the picture up is subconsciously racist (well aren't we all). I suggest impression management on the internet to avoid getting people offended. The people in the display photo should have been the same race. I rest my case.

And then there's this gem from freddy_6909:

SEE THIS IS THE PROBLEM WITH RACISM!: I saw a few comments nagging the picture, I am white and i didnt even freaking notice that it was a black person and white hand. If you black people would just shut the hell up and stop b*tching about racism, we would hardly even see things as racist. Pointing out racism just makes it more noticable, and thus, more public. If something doesnt appear racist to 90% of the population, then it probably isnt very racist, and thus, stop drawing attention to it and just read the damn article.

Of course, I had to respond:

Hey freddy_6909,
Your head's stuck so far up there I'm surprised you managed to read the article.

Bwah! Stay tuned, this might get interesting...or freddy_6909 might get distracted by porn and never come back. Who knows? It's the fucking Internet, for chrissakes.

Ok, take a deep breath...

@ Mar and freddy_6909: What you two are adressing is not so much an issue for those who say that there is racism, but rather an issue for those who say there is not. When people start to believe that there is no such thing as racism, it makes indicators of racism (such as the advertising picture for this article) far less noticeable to conscious thought and therefore critique. In turn, this makes the messages being portrayed, as you both pointed out, a normal part of non-racist life. While I can appreciate that these images do not influence you to hate people of varying hues, there is something else which I think is being missed. Even if the images do not persuade people into thought processes of hatred, what they do in the long run through repeated exposure is persuade people that others who fall into varying group categories demonstrate particular qualities or characteristics; in essence they help people to build stereotypes. While the stereotypes being built in today's common media are certainly not as directly negative as the discourses of hatred and seperation present 100 years ago (which I should mention still exist, though to a lesser extent), they still serve as a basis of discrimination for many. This is very much characteristic of the types of racism many people suffer from today. Part of combating this is actually recognizing and pointing out the messages of racism (be them minor or extreme) which do exist, thereby allowing the public an awareness of the subject and consequently an ability to challenge it.

Word.

["Hand Over Mouth"__Getty.com via Yahoo.com]

Fixed.

Whaddyaknow?? Someone did listen and changed the homepage picture.

Ha! I think I believe in Santa Claus now - and just in time for Christmas, too.

Power to the people!!!
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LINK
The Twelve Most Annoying Facebookers
Facebook, for better or worse, is like being at a big party with all your friends, family, acquaintances and co-workers.

There are lots of fun, interesting people you're happy to talk to when they stroll up. Then there are the other people, the ones who make you cringe when you see them coming. This article is about those people.
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Create a one-of-a-kind Momentum music video to send your friends this holiday season.
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NORMAL NORMAN by missdelite
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