Friday Links (diabetic mice edition)

It's Friday! The final Friday in May already. Yeesh! I'm not quite ready for the year to be half over. It's also nearly June, and my annual project of creating the perfect Pride Playlist for my iPhone is not going quite as well as it ought, in part because of a weird issue that has popped up with a small number of tracks in my library which has resulted in me filing very complicated trouble tickets with Apple. But the real problem is that I can't quite figure out what mood to go for this year. This might be one of the years where I make two lists with very different, uh, textures.

Meanwhile, here are links to some of the interesting things I read on the web this week, sorted into various topic areas.

Links of the Week

The Wonderful and Terrible Habit of Buying Too Many Boo.

WINNING, LOSING, AND PARTICIPATING: SHUT UP ABOUT THE TROPHY.

And other news:

The Bible is #2 on This List of the Best Books Ever. Guess What’s #1?

Peter Thiel, Gawker, and Freedom of Speech. "I, for one, don’t dispute Peter Thiel’s right to back Hogan’s case. I simply think he’s an asshole for doing it, and a coward for having attempted to do it in secret."

On Peter Thiel and Gawker. "The notion that Thiel or any one percenter could wage a war of attrition against a media outlet with the intent of destroying it for slights real or perceived should be horrifying to anyone who believes that freedom of the press is a necessary condition for an open society..."

No Road is Big Enough for a Beyoncé Concert.

Five Years Later, Harold Camping’s Followers Are Still Predicting the End of the World.

This Week in Tech

One Week without iTunes: the Results.

This week in Health

What You Need to Know About 'Smiling Depression'.

Gluten-free ≠ healthier.

This Week in Diversity

ON STEVE ROGERS #1, ANTISEMITISM, AND PUBLICITY STUNTS. " I am not angry because omg how dare you ruin Steve Rogers forever. I am angry because how dare you use eleven million deaths as clickbait."

Good People Often Stay Closeted. Good People Sometimes Stay Silent.

‘Normal America’ Is Not A Small Town Of White People. Demographics and other fun facts.

NSFW: Sexing the wheelchair (Part 2) - Disabled clients and the saviour complex.

This Week in Inappropriate Machismo

This Black Mom Perfectly Nails What's Wrong With Dads Posing in Prom Pictures With Guns.

This week in awful news

Man in Mississippi jail 11 years without trial.

News for queers and our allies:

LGBTI kids are now protected from conversion therapy in Vermont.

Give Captain America a Boyfriend: The Campaigns to Make Disney’s Big Franchises More Gay-Friendly.

Picking Clothes Is Never Easy, Especially for Gender-Nonconformers.

Science!

Thousands of bees chased this car for 2 days looking for their queen.

Scientist who wants to ‘regenerate’ 20 brain-dead patients deluged with warnings of a zombie apocalpyse.

The Long History Behind the Reburial of ‘Kennewick Man’.

What will happen when Mount Rainier erupts?.

Scientists find cure for type 2 diabetes in rodents, don’t know how it works.

A survey of more than 216,000 adolescents from all 50 states indicates the number of teens with marijuana-related problems is declining. Similarly, the rates of marijuana use by young people are falling despite the fact more US states are legalizing or decriminalizing marijuana use and the number of adults using the drug has increased.

This bizarre sea monster shows how strange life gets after an apocalypse.

A controversial theory may explain the real reason humans have allergies.

Raccoon hands are nature's most wonderful and terrifying appendages.

Science Fiction, Fantasy and Speculation!

Sad Puppies Review Books: Mike Mulligan and His Steam Shovel.

Satirical erotica author Chuck Tingle's massive troll of conservative sci-fi fans, explained. Right-wing sci-fi writers tried to delegitimize the Hugo Awards by nominating a writer no one took seriously. Here's how he took them all by surprise.

How a Game of Thrones hashtag sparked a debate over ownership, linguistics, and cultural appropriation.

This week in Writing

AUTHOR ROSANNE PARRY ON THE BENEFITS OF READING LEVELS.

What’s Wrong With Inkitt’s “Publishing Contest” – A Partial List.

Ask the Agent: what are your thoughts on a white girl (for example) writing a "diverse" story from the POV of a character of color?

This Week in History

Ronald Reagan’s legacy of poverty and death.

This Week in Fighting Back in the Culture War:

How Do You Solve the Problem of Gendered Bathrooms? This Capitol Hill Brewery May Have an Answer.

Screaming Christian in Target Store is Confronted by Customer, Then Escorted Out By Security.

Culture war news:

Honest Error or Homophobic Humiliation? What Really Happened to the Gay Men's Chorus at Petco Park?

Archdale (NC) Officials End Jersey Sponsorship Program After Businesses Put Bible Verses on Shirts.

The bathroom issue has turned 2016 into a very important election for LGBTQ rights.

LGBT divide grows as 11 states sue feds over transgender bathroom rule.

I’m trans and I want to stop talking about toilets.

Tennessee Activist’s Documentary Will Draw a Line Directly from Church Sermons to Anti-LGBT Laws.

Church Funding Anti-Trans Attack Tells Evangelicals "It Ain't Over".

Too gay for TV? Get used to it, honey.

2 Church Pastors Among 32 Arrested in Sting Operation Offering Sex With Teens.

This week in Politics:

I’m Voting For The Democrat In November Because I’m Not A Human Tire Fire.

EXPOSED: Trump Fans Divide Democrats By Posing As Sanders And Hillary Supporters Online.

One Of The Most Aggressive Gerrymanders In The Country Just Lost In The Supreme Court.

If You’re A Woman Or A Minority, America Was Never Great.

Calm Down: House Republicans Didn’t Just Challenge President Obama on Federal LGBT Discrimination.

Farewells:

Alan Young dies at 96; star of TV's 'Mister Ed'.

Things I wrote:

Weekend Update 5/21/2016: Ringtone Rhapsody and Beyond.

Farewell to Camden County.

A cup, a cup, and a cup….

Out of Body Vacations – more of why I love sf/f.

Videos!

Frankmusik - Turnin':



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Justs - Heartbeat (Latvia) 2016 Eurovision Song Contest:



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Friday Links (harvest mouse edition)

It's Friday! And despite being a shorter week than usual because I was on vacation Monday, I am really worn out and glad the weekend is almost here!

Meanwhile, here are links to some of the interesting things I read on the web this week, sorted into various topic areas.

Link of the Week

This SuperHero Movie By A Nigerian Teen Was Shot Using A Blackberry Bold 5. And it's awesome! Go look at his YouTube Channel!

This week in privacy

How many times have I said with enough metadata you can rule the world? Scientists show telephone metadata can reveal surprisingly sensitive personal information.

And other news:

Why Are Strippers More Heavily Vetted Than Uber Drivers

Meet the meticulously hand-crafted replica of Boston’s streetcar system—and the man who made it.

CAPITAL CRIMES, PART 1 : SHOUT, SHOUT, LET IT ALL OUT: GLENN FLEISHMAN ON THE TYPOGRAPHIC HISTORY OF USING ALL-CAPS TO DENOTE SHOUTING.

Transgender Mafia Don Murdered in Naples. But it's not what you think!

The war on cops is a myth: FBI Confirms 2015 Was One Of The Safest Years Ever For Cops.

This Week in Diversity

Protect And Serve: The Detectives Of Blaxploitation.

“But They’re Ours”— John Jennings Talks about Black Superheroes.

Racism is the bogeyman.

This week in Evil People

This one worried me when it first came up. Now the idiot has admitted he was lying. On top of that, though he claims to be a pastor of a gay-friendly church, he doesn't seem to actually be associated with any church at all: Gay Pastor Who Sued Whole Foods for Writing Slur on His Cake Finally Admits He Made It All Up.

News for queers and our allies:

Coming Out on Instagram.

I Went to a Eurovision Sex Party.

Jesus, Friend of Sinners…Except Not You.

A Remarkable Life: One 95-Year-Old Shares Her Hope For Fellow Trans People.

Mariah Carey Remixes LGBTQ Acronym To Accept GLAAD Award.

A Major Branch Of The U.S. Military Will Now Be Led By An Openly Gay Man.

Majority of Older Americans Now Support Gay Marriage, Poll Finds.

The Plot Thickens In The Gay Pride Dispute Between Alaska & Delta.

Science!

Rare harvest mice return to Hampshire village where they were first discovered.

Journey of shuttle fuel tank to California saves four people in Pacific.

Scientists may have figured out how the world's tallest animal got its long neck.

Why psychedelics could be a new class of antidepressant.

Evidence of gargantuan asteroid strike unearthed in Australia.

SCIENTISTS HAVE DEVELOPED AN ALGORITHM THAT CAN DETECT SEIZURES UP TO 20 MINUTES IN ADVANCE.

Dog sex cancer's global march mapped in DNA.

There Are Whales Alive Today Who Were Born Before Moby Dick Was Written.

Giant tsunamis washed over ancient Mars.

Killer Nile crocodiles in Florida? Experts say it's possible.

Do women really go for ‘bad boys’? Here’s the science that settles the question.

What Science Says About the Bathroom Debate.

Hubble just captured one of the coolest photos of Mars ever taken.

Geology Is Breaking Apart Over When the Americas Came Together.

Science Fiction, Fantasy and Speculation!

Podcast: How to Win Games and Beat People

The 2015 Nebula Awards, the Bram Stoker Awards, the Eurovision Song Contest… and a bit about football.

The Many Faces Of “Rocky Horror’s” Dr. Frank-N-Furter, From Tim Curry To Laverne Cox.

Author Spotlight: Alyssa Wong.

Reviewer compares the DC movie with the gay porn parody, and you will probably not be surprised at the outcome: Batman v Superman vs Batman v Superman: A Gay Porn Parody.

This week in Writing

Keep your story promise: Establish theme early and stick with it..

PHOTOS: Lost Original “Rocky Horror” Polaroids Were Discovered In NYC Subway.

This Week in History

34 Vintage Ads That Prove The Good Old Days Weren't So Good.

Culture war news:

A Conservative Christian Politician Left the Porn Tabs Open on Screenshots He Posted to Facebook.

WHAT IS THE “VITO RUSSO TEST” AND WHY DOES IT MATTER TO LGBT FILM?

PORN-AGAIN CHRISTIANS: WHAT HAPPENS WHEN A BIBLICAL LITERALIST LAUNCHES A SEX SITE?

Atoning For Daughter’s Satanic T-Shirt, Arizona Dad Sacrifices the Family Dog To God.

After Azealia Banks’ antigay rant and Twitter ban, Bette Midler acts important question.

Christian High School Says It Has the Right to Expel You if You Have a Gay Sibling at Home.

House Passes Defense Bill Allowing Discrimination Against LGBT Workers.

Gay Mormons, reparative therapy, and the safe spaces of conservative religion.

This week in Other Politics:

Donald Trump Is Not Expanding the GOP.

Donald Trump Refuses to Reveal His Tax Rate: 'It's None of Your Business'.

How Donald Trump Is Already Surrounding Himself With Fervent Homophobes.

House Dems Outraged After GOPers Switch Votes To Defeat LGBT Measure.

Sanders Camp Flirts with Going Full "Burn It Down".

Transgender Candidate Danni Askini Drops Out of State House Race. I was very sad last week to get the email from Danni saying she was dropping out of the race. But since she’s doing so to work on the fight against the anti-trans initiative headed for our ballot, I can’t fault her.

This Week in Misogyny

Until I was a man, I had no idea how good men had it at work.

Men Are Sabotaging The Online Reviews Of TV Shows Aimed At Women.

Farewells:

Comic book artist Darwyn Cooke dies at 53.

Morley Safer dies at 84: A reluctant voice on camera, he changed television news.

Things I wrote:

Weekend Update 5/14/2016: Molester going to prison.

Anti-trans bigot demonstrates that bullies are cowards… (duh!).

Who is excluding who, now?

Robots Aren’t People, Are They? – more of why I love sf/f.

Videos!

San Cisco - Fred Astaire:



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This insane and hilarious flashback to the 80s popped up on more than one spot this week and I couldn't resist posting: BOY TOWN GANG - Can't Take My Eyes Off You:



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We The Brave - Kiss:



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Friday Links (queer subtext is so yesterday edition)

It's Friday! And I'm on vacation! We're running off to EverfreeNW where we will hang out with pony fans. I'm also running back to Seattle with friends midway through the weekend to see a teenager of our acquaintance perform in a production of the Mystery of Edwin Drood.

Meanwhile, here are links to some of the interesting things I read on the web this week, sorted into various topic areas.

Link of the Week

This man was told his gay brother went missing by his Christian parents, decades later he found him. You might find yourself crying...

And other news:

Raccoon causes 38,000 Seattle customers to lose power. Our house was one of the places that lost power in the wee small hours. Also my husband's workplace, where he said he spent more than half the next day getting systems back up and running. The report claims that one of the raccoons survived.

The day we discovered our parents were Russian spies.

I accidentally hired an Orthodox rabbi for my father’s funeral — and he was great.

Report: “Seattle’s School Libraries: a Stark Example of Rich and Poor”.

Who is the 'Ivory Queen'?

This Week in Tech

No, Apple Music is not deleting tracks off your hard drive — unless you tell it to.

Podcast: Apple Music doesn't just delete files willy-nilly, but it's way too easy to delete them by mistake.

This week in Health

Dissociation is scary. Dissociation is safety.

News for queers and our allies:

Florida’s oldest high school just crowned its first same-sex couple as prom king and queen.

A 4-year-old boy with a doll inspired hundreds of parents to share their sons’ fabulous taste in toys.

Queer Subtext in The Little Mermaid, From Hans Christian Andersen’s Original to Disney’s Adaptation.

The line in Loretta Lynch's defense of transgender rights that made everyone cry.

Science!

Correcting errors is now anti-religious bigotry?

Scientists reconstruct baffling 250-million-year-old aquatic reptile with a strange hammerhead mouth.

John Oliver Explains Why There Are So Many B.S. Scientific Studies.

This Might Be the Weirdest Thing That's Ever Happened to Earth's Atmosphere.

Gene therapy stops rare childhood brain disease.

First report of all the world’s plants finds 1 in 5 species facing extinction.

New plant species discovered in 2015 - in pictures.

Zombie crabs: Barnacle infects king crab populations.

It’s not about to blow, but magma is moving under Mount St. Helens.

Suffocating the Ocean: Oxygen-depleted oceans have preceded many mass extinctions in Earth’s past.

Science Fiction, Fantasy and Speculation!

DARKWING DUCK #1 REVIEW.

Reading Harry Potter books makes children MENTALLY ILL says headmaster who warns letting them become ‘addicted’ to fantasy novels is as bad as feeding them 'heaps of sugar'. Of course, since he defines a vivid imagination as mental illness, you realize what a nutjob he is...

This week in Writing

Fanfiction and the “Damned Mob of Scribbling Women”.

This Week in History

Meet the costume-wearing Irish priest who saved thousands of Romans from the Nazis.

Culture war news:

Arkansas Judge Resigns After Thousands of Photos Found on His Computer Reveal He Paddled Nude Male Defendants in Exchance for Leniency.

I've been trying to avoid linking to Huffington Post because I think a multi-billion dollar company should pay its writers, but sometimes I can't find the same post anywhere else: The Truth About Homophobia In The Black Community.

Alabama Chief Justice Faces Removal From Bench Over Same-Sex Marriage Stance.

Someone called Steve Austin a SJW… Then this happened. We need more social justice ass-kickers like Steve, obviously!

Methodist Ministers Come Out to Protest Church’s Stance on Queer Issues.

Poll: 6-in-10 oppose bills like the North Carolina transgender bathroom law.

Eurovision reverses flag policy after banning ‘political’ waving of rainbow flag.

Chris Wallace crushes NC gov.: ‘Let it go… there’s no case of transgender people molesting girls’.

North Carolina's transgender bathroom bill is on flimsy legal ground. Scrap it now.

As U.S. Attitudes Change, Some Evangelicals Dig In; Others Adapt.

North Carolina's 'bathroom bill' battle embarrasses residents on both sides.

This Week in the Clown Car

Think Pieces About MEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE And How I Could Possibly Be Wrong About Trump.

This week in Other Politics:

The media myth of the working-class Reagan Democrats.

TRANSGENDER RIGHTS AND THE END OF THE NEW SOUTH.

Alabama drag queen is suspended chief justice’s worst nightmare.

This Week in Feminism

Break the period taboo: my name is Lindy West and I bleed.

Things I wrote:

Weekend Update 05/07/2016: Religious callings, good and bad.

Reading in public.

A World Full of Sisters – more of why I love sf/f.

Videos!

2010 Election: Part Two | Full Frontal with Samantha Bee | TBS:



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Nathan Sykes - Give It Up ft. G-Eazy:



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Secret Weapons - Something New:



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Pet Shop Boys - 'Twenty-something' (Official Video):



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Friday Links (bathroom patrol edition)

I am happy that it is Friday. I mean, really, really happy that it's Friday. I almost didn't do this post this week. I have been tired and stressed out all week. And I felt things had turned so negative the last half of last month, that I scrapped most of my blogging plans for this week, and found more uplifting things to post about. Instead of skipping this week's links altogether, I decided to leave a couple of the usual topic areas out. Let's see if you can guess which!

Meanwhile, here are links to some of the interesting things I read on the web this week, sorted into various topic areas.

Link of the Week

One Top Taxpayer Moved, and New Jersey Shuddered.

Happy News!

The stinging comedy of Samantha Bee’s “Full Frontal”.

This week in privacy

State Employees Upset About Freedom Foundation's Requests For Their Birth Dates.

This Week in Diversity

GLAAD study shows LGBT representation in Hollywood is getting worse, not better.

See Which Major Studios Had No LGBT Characters in 2015 Movies.

On April 21, the writers room for the television show Saving Hope created and signed a pledge to the LGBTQ community in response to the ongoing criticism of writers’ propensity to kill off LGBTQ characters on television.

The Chances Of LGBT Characters In Future Marvel Movies, According To The Russo Brothers.

News for queers and our allies:

Colton Haynes gets honest about life after Arrow: The actor opens up about his career, his health, and why he didn't come out of the closet sooner.

Danny DeVito’s Perfect Goodbye: On His Gay Love Story and North Carolina’s HB2.

Gay teens go to prom and melt the internet’s ice cold heart.

Top 10 landmarks in gay and lesbian literature.

Study: There really are a lot of gay people on Twitter and Instagram.

The Gender Ternary: Understanding Transmisogyny.

Science!

'No differences' between children of same-sex and opposite-sex parents.

Army Corps Decides Kennewick Man Should Be Turned Over To Tribes.

A Galaxy Hidden in Plain Sight.

After ‘The Biggest Loser,’ Their Bodies Fought to Regain Weight.

Scientists show how we start stereotyping the moment we see a face.

Scientists map brain’s ‘thesaurus’ to help decode inner thoughts.

This newly-found 'Manx comet' is missing its tail. Why?.

Dinosaurs May Have Slept Like We Do, Researchers Say.

NATIVE AMERICAN TRIBE GETS FEDERAL FUNDS TO FLEE RISING SEAS.

It's Raining All Over The Universe.

Science Fiction, Fantasy and Speculation!

Feminism, astronauts, and riding sidesaddle: Talking to Dreamsnake's Vonda McIntyre.

io9 Was Founded on the Idea That Science Fiction Belongs to Everyone.

Queers Take Over Fantastic Stories of the Imagination. Kickstarter for a cool publication.

A BRIEF ANALYSIS OF THE LOCUS RECOMMENDED READING LIST, 2011-2015.

The Makers of Game of Thrones Shouldn’t Apologize for Lying. They Should Lie Better.

All Good Things… SF Signal Announces It is Shutting Down.

Fandom issue of the week

Analysis of Slate Voting for the 2016 Hugos.

A Response to John C. Wright.

Oh No, the Puppies Are Back for the 2016 Hugo Awards—and As Angry As Ever.

Chuck Tingle counter-trolls the Gamergaters who nominated his erotica for a Hugo Award.

Hugo awards shortlist dominated by rightwing campaign.

This Week in Fighting Back in the Culture War:

The Return of Youth Pastor Watch.

3 Ways Marijuana Legalization Can Curb the Black Market.

California School Will Now Let This Lesbian Couple Be Prom Royalty - The principal reversed his previous decision (after ACLU threatens lawsuit) and everyone is thrilled.

Culture war news:

Priest On Fox News: It’s Hard To Trust Atheists Because They Don’t Fear Eternal Damnation. I almost wanted to make a new category, "Idiotic things Dominionists say" for this one. The sad thing is, that they don't understand that if the only reason you don't do stuff is fear of punishment, that means you're the one without any morals.

Montana newspaper exposes hilarious ‘facts’ on display at creationist museum.

Why Have I Never Heard a Sermon on Domestic Violence?

Latinos and Democrats hide in safe houses as right-wing sheriff uses mob rule to take over Texas town.

New Jehovah’s Witness Cartoon Targets Young Children With Vile Anti-Gay Message.

Christian Group Admits To Sending Men Into Women’s Bathrooms To Scare You Into Hating Trans People.

This Video of Police Ejecting a Lesbian Without ID from a Women's Bathroom Is Going Viral.

The imaginary predator in America's transgender bathroom war.

Blogger fired after police chief sent cops to retaliate for exposing his gay-bashing daughter.

Watch a South Carolina School Board Meeting Erupt Into “Jesus Loves Me” After an Attendee Speaks Up for Transgender Rights.

Transgender Woman Killed in Wichita.

Cops Arrest High Schooler on 69 Counts of Indecent Exposure for Dumb Prank.

Conference Will Arrange Child Marriages For Christian Homeschoolers. "In short, according to the teachings, the girl is not expected to consent to the marriage, and really has no right to object." Um, excuse me? In what way is this not human trafficking?

Church Tracks Down Former Member, Threatens “Action” If She Doesn’t Divorce Her Wife.

Feds Publish Records On Schools Allowed To Discriminate Against LGBT Students.

Judge Rules Gay Sex Stings Carried Out by Long Beach Police Are Discriminatory.

Things I wrote:

What’s wrong with some encouragement every now and then?

Not all illness is visible.

A rose, some memories, and a goofy grin.

Adventure awaits: more of why I love sf/f.

Videos!

Inside a 6ft Air Balloon - 4K - The Slow Mo Guys:



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Tyler Glenn - Trash:



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JOHN KASICH "GOP DROPOUT" - A Randy Rainbow Song Parody:



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