Westboro Baptist "Church" vs. the KKK

Riot.Jane

The Westboro scammers were up to their usual shenanigans yesterday, Memorial Day (US), at Arlington National Cemetery. The latest twist? The Knights of the Southern Cross (KKK) responded in kind.
Westboro is, for the most part, a multi-generational family affair, with 11 of the 13 people in the second generation being practicing attorneys in the law firm  Phelps Chartered, LLC. 

What amuses me about the lawyering-up of the second generation is the fact that the State of Kansas Supreme Court disbarred the clan leader Fred Phelps in 1979 because of his "has little regard for the ethics of his profession."

Very Old and Very Sexy…An Oxymoron?

Hattie RetroAge

There was a time when I would have judged that combination to be not only absurd… but totally repulsive. That’s no longer the case.

What happened to turn that around?

Here goes…

When I was about five years old, my immigrant mother took me to the Steam Baths in Brighton Beach, Brooklyn. Just a mere pre-schooler, choking in the heat, I peered up with disgust at what I perceived to be “fat, old ladies”. Then and there I decided if that’s what being a lady looks like, I’ll never grow up.

Victim-Blaming Part 2: The Reasons We Do It

In Victim-Blaming Part 1: Texas Gang Rape of a Child, we discussed the facts around the case of a gang-raped 11-year-old girl in Cleveland, TX.  We touched upon the victim-blaming of the 11-year-old victim that is occurring in the press and among the local populace, and we reminded readers of the case of Samantha Kelly, who died by suicide Nov. 8, 2010 after being terrorized by her town and schoolmates.  The Kelly case is pertinent to this discussion of victim-blame because that assault, victim-blame, and suicide occurred between the Cleveland girl's first and final assaults.

Victim-Blaming Part 1: Texas Gang-Rape of a Child

In Cleveland, Texas, 19 suspects have been charged in the sexual assault of an 11-year-old child. While heartbreaking, this is not earth-shattering news. All too often, we hear of things like this and shake our heads, and maybe some of us say a prayer for the victim.

The details of this particular case are particularly noteworthy.

This child was assaulted repeatedly over the course of six weeks in late 2010 by different individuals/groups at different times in different locations. The perpetrators ranged in age from 14 to 27. Cell-phone-recorded video and photographs were widely disseminated to non-participants.

Ode to Rubenesque Women



Het Pelsken
Sir Peter Paul Rubens

Thin is in? I disagree. I've always been an admirer of full-figured women. Thanks to the baroque artist Sir Peter Paul Rubens (example works), we now have the term "Rubenesque" to describe the type of amply-endowed women he painted. Over time, “Rubenesque” has evolved into modern terms such as full-figured or BBW (Big Beautiful Women). History or terminology lessons aside, my admiration (which borders on adoration) of Rubenesque women makes me feel like I am squarely in the minority, thanks to modern advertising. And what stuns me is how people are swayed by models (who look they actually only eat one full meal a week) because of that simple phrase "Thin is in". 


Sine Cerere 1
Sir Peter Paul Rubens

Though I am a male who will be age 50 in 2011, my admiration of full-figured women goes back as long as I can remember. An ample bosom or a full-figured curvaceous body has always set my heart racing far more than any beautiful, thin woman could. Deep down, a Rubenesque woman exudes a warmth and comfort that a firm, athletic (or fit) woman could never offer. Soft, supple hips versus sharp angular ones. A body that is full and inviting compared to a body that is hard and unyielding. Even the term "Rubenesque" sounds softer than the term "Anorexia".


25% of UK Lap-Dancers has a College Degree

An interesting video clip from BBC News recently crossed my desk.  In it, Dr. Belinda Brooks-Gordon of the Birkbeck University of London, strip club owner Peter Stringfellow, and not-present news columnist Kevin Maguire (proxied by a BBC anchor) discuss the results of a University of Leeds study that determined that 25% of UK lap dancers have a college degree and that these women are choosing this profession because they can make more money doing it than they can in more traditional college-graduate jobs.

The video is not embeddable, but you can find it here.  A 15-second commercial precedes the roughly 3.5-minute clip.

At some point I'll see if I can find the paper itself and try to find out if similar research has been done in the US.

~Riot.Jane

Introducing Joan M Bunney: Couger Advocating Change

Joan M Bunney

We recently wrote about how we met and will shortly be introducing the work of Hattie Retroage here at TJP.  When we initially contacted and introduced TJP to Hattie, we had no way of knowing that she would distribute our self-written letter of introduction to a like-minded woman and author Joan M Bunney.  Joan promptly contacted us:

Dear Jane:

I am a friend of Hattie Retro-age, and like her, choose to reverse the aging process naturally, no chemicals or toxins allowed in or on my body.

I'm also an advocate for social change and speak out on relevant issues all having to do with the children's well being. Born in 1945 I've watched this health epidemic of the body and mind happen over the decades.

I wrote a book, Sexy InYour60s, to share with others, women especially, what I've learned and applied and why I'm growing young not old; a new mindset.

I've been to your website and would love to contribute, be a part of your blog. The 'older' I get the more relevant the subject matter. The elder woman is stepping forward to share accrued wisdom that will help to make change happen.

I've attached my media bio, my Sexy In Your 60s website that holds my book and journey thus far. I am just beginning the second half of life. The ancient goddess cultures tell us the seasoned woman is in her mastery at this stage of life. My purpose is to awaken women of all ages to this truth by using myself, much as Hattie does, as a live testimonial.

About to launch a new website, AgelessCougar.com to celebrate the cougar woman rather than demean her. Like Hattie, I've been attracted to and dating younger men for a quarter century. The website in part will dissuade the naysayers and the bad press. The rewards of aging are endless. ...

Best regards,

Joan M Bunney
Author, Speaker, Advocate for Social Change
JoanBunney@hotmail.com
http://www.sexyinyour60s.com/

Joan and the admins have corresponded in more depth since receiving her initial e-mail, and we're quite pleased to introduce Joan to TJP!

We are excited to see her work and grow from her contributions. 

~Riot.Jane

Meeting Hattie RetroAge: Cougar Extroardinaire

I watched an episode of TLC series {Strange}SEX for the very first time last week.  The particular episode I saw was about "cougars", or older women who date younger men (the show defined it specifically as women aged 40+ who pursue men at least 8 years their junior).

Hattie RetroAge



In this episode, viewers get to know 73 year old Hattie RetroAge, a woman who lives, loves, laughs, and has sex freely.  She's a divorced mother who, upon her divorce in her late 40s, picked her life up from the point in her early 20s at which she married.  She posts completely accurate internet personals and receives 30-50 responses whenever she does.  w00t!



There are more men out there wanting to date older women than I thought. Since she's long past the stage of wanting a wedding ring and children, she's a great prospect to men who are avoiding that type of situation. Add to this that she was a professional dancer and has remained active and in excellent shape, and the Hattie picture becomes more clear. w00t!

In the episode I watched, we get to know Hattie, her adult son, and 33 year old Ron. By the end of the episode, Hattie and Ron will have gone on their first date together. The date seemed to go well; they seemed to hit it off, and the viewer is left with the thought that they will see each other again. w00t!

I'm normally not into "reality tv," but this series seems to be done in a documentary style that wasn't nearly as prurient as the topic matter would indicate. I realized that Hattie would make a wonderful addition to TJP, so I Googled her, found her e-mail address, and sent her an e-mail in which I praised her for being true to herself, introduced TJP, and asked her to consider reading and/or contributing.

Hattie's response arrived overnight:

It was an honor to receive your lavish praise, thank you.

It is as shocking to me as it may be for others to view a women in her 70's, without surgery or shots or hormone replacement, emerge as a sex object! To understand how this happened I reviewed my past involvements: In the 60's I wrote the first Organic Certification Form in America! So individual respendent health has been my focus for decades. Add to that my years as a dance teacher to pre-schoolers. They imparted a spirit that is implanted in my marrow. And...I love expressing love. (often referred to as sex!)

At this point I am involved in creating a paying career to carry me thorugh the next 20 years! I had been working as a healer, however my body developed fibromyalgia and arthritis, so I had to re-create a life as a writer/speaker on exquisite aging. ... The career of my choice is to be a newscaster with a regular spot to discuss issues of aging. If you have any contacts that could help me achieve this, I would be infinitely grateful.

Keep it up, dear Jane,

Hattie

hattie@hattieretroage.com
http://www.holisticallyhattie.com/
http://www.bestcruisesandtravelnow.com/ (sponsoring my THE EMPOWERED WOMAN CRUISE in January)

Hattie has already published three books available on Amazon and has agreed to contribute some of her previous and future work to TJP.  If any of you have any contacts for Hattie, please comment!

I can't wait to see Hattie's work!

~Riot.Jane

Sex vs. Gender

Family is where I stem.
Mommy was exchanged-
a mother with babies is more important than her name.
Mommy plus daddy, then came brother and others, is that what family is?

I am one of their cultural artifacts, through time I pass through ideas
Of boy vs. girl
And
Girl vs. boy…

Like a game of pong or air hockey I jockey
Myself into position…

Sex…
Top!
Bottom!
Am I still woman?

Woman vs. man
And Man vs. woman.
Which is more appropriate?

If Gary loves Harry and Sue loves June?
How is that taboo!?
Have things come too far too soon?

Time and evolution, genes are key…
Does that a gender make, one for society to take

for granted it’s what I see in the world around me.
Different people, different views,
STOP!

It is not all about me, everyone must see it is about us as we, a Union of you and I
Man vs. woman
Woman vs. man
Is that gender or sex I spy?