Obsidian Wings

Any excuse for a party?

by JanieM

Recent topic of conversation: various generations of my family and their love of Lego. My sister said my niece had had “pink Lego” as a child, and that her (my niece’s) five-year-old son plays with them now, among many other Lego sets that he owns.

The mention of “pink” for girls led me to observe that when my own kids were born, I was bemused (okay, dismayed) to realize that the world, or at least US popular culture, had not moved an inch in a direction I would have considered forward, and was still obsessed with pink baby clothes for girls and blue for boys.

The fact that large swaths of US popular culture have, yet another generation later, moved not only not forward, but quite a bit backward, is signaled by the fact even the death toll from explosions at gender reveal parties hasn’t convinced people that gender reveal parties are the most idiotic idea since square wheels.

Actually, it’s even worse than I thought when I set out to write this frivolity. I had remembered reading about a death from shrapnel at a gender reveal party fairly recently, but Newsweek says there have been four deaths at these shindigs just this year.

The New World

by JanieM

In all kinds of ways, this year hasn’t been as hard for me as it has been for a lot of people. Unlike more than three million people worldwide, including almost 600,000 Americans, I’m still alive. I never got COVID-19. No one close to me got it either – everyone I know has been very, very careful, even the ones who have had to be out in the world more or less as usual.

I’m retired, so I didn’t lose my job. My son has done most of my grocery shopping, for which I’m profoundly grateful. I’m an introvert bordering on hermitdom at the best of times, so the isolation hasn’t been as hard on me as it has been for people who thrive on socializing.

Starting late last March, I made sure to get in the car and take a drive out into the countryside every week or so. I watched spring turn into summer, summer into fall into winter, and here we are again: it’s spring, and we’re in the middle of another wave of COVID infections. In a few days it will be a year since my mom died, and we still haven’t been able to gather to mourn and remember her together.

The trial

by liberal japonicus

[The jury is going into deliberations, so am opening this now]

Not sure about this, but via LGM, this link gives a detailed day by day description of the Chauvin trial

https://www.startribune.com/what-happened-today-in-the-derek-chauvin-trial/600031856/

Some other reporting suggests that a lot of people are following the trial, which is being televised live. Perhaps people want to discuss this so I will try something different. I'll open the comments after the trial finishes and try to lay down some ground rules. Right now, I'm thinking that discussion needs to be referenced so folks can see where someone is getting their information rather than 'oh, I read somewhere that...'. Not sure how long the trial will be going on, but when it finishes and the verdict is returned, maybe we can talk about this.

Hype

by wj

Last night, the Ingenuity helicopter made history by taking off and flying on Mars. Several more flights are planned before it's done. I think this is really great. However.

It is being referred to as a “Wright brothers moment.” But I don’t think it actually is. What made the Wright brothers’ flight significant was that it was a) heavier than air, b) powered, and c) carried a man. Prior efforts, by various people, had achieved any two -- but not all three together. And Perseverance, amazing as it is, isn’t capable of carrying a man – or even anything like that mass. Why over-hype it? It's fabulous enough on its own.

Open thread.

Trans discussion

by liberal japonicus

Some questions about trans rights and existence came up. I approach this topic hesitantly. I sometimes deal with younger people who come to Japan and I have met a few who are gender-fluid. When my daughter had to return because of Covid, she did her classes for the last term on zoom and I overheard the first class where everyone was introducing themselves and giving their pronouns. Definitely feeling my years. And my life experiences in this realm are miniscule, so I want to be cautious about stating anything.

I linked to these two pages that talk about the situation in Japan.

https://www.hrw.org/report/2019/03/19/really-high-hurdle/japans-abusive-transgender-legal-recognition-process

https://www.hrw.org/news/2019/03/19/interview-invisible-struggle-japans-transgender-population

Seeing Japan's approach reminds me of part of Philip K. Dick's quasi-autobiographical novel VALIS where the main character Horselover Fat (a pseudonym of Philip Dick) ends up in a mental institution and meets with a therapist who resolves (temporarily) some of his issues.

They—note the “they"—paid Dr. Stone to figure out what had destroyed the patient entering the ward. In each case a bullet had been fired at him, somewhere, at some time, in his life. The bullet entered him and the pain began to spread out. Insidiously, the pain filled him up until he split in half, right down the middle. The task of the staff, and even of the other patients, was to put the person back together but this could not be done so long as the bullet remained. All that lesser therapists did was note the person split into two pieces and begin the job of patching him back into a unity; but they failed to find and remove the bullet. The fatal bullet fired at the person was the basis of Freud's original attack on the psychologically injured person; Freud had understood: he called it a trauma. Later on, everyone got tired of searching for the fatal bullet; it took too long. Too much had to be learned about the patient. Dr. Stone had a paranormal talent, like his paranormal Bach remedies which were a palpable hoax, a pretext to listen to the patient. Rum with a flower dipped in it—nothing more, but a sharp mind hearing what the patient said.

There are an infinite number of bullets that can be shot at a person, and when you are the target, like a trans person is, each bullet has to be identified and removed. So while Japan has a family register which can 'verify' a person's gender and that gender can be changed, the two articles points to all the difficulties that are faced when a trans person goes to do that. In the US, where there is no central record that a person can appeal to in order to record and identify their gender, they face other 'bullets' that have to be identified and dealt with.

I've also been watching the rifts in feminism grow in dealing with issues of trans rights and recognition. Here's two articles about the situation in the UK that discuss the problems
https://lux-magazine.com/article/the-road-to-terfdom/
https://xtramagazine.com/power/transphobia-britain-terf-uk-media-193828

These point to one dynamic, but I know this can be a two way street. Recently, someone I got to know who is gender fluid was saying that on a board that was discussing which worked better as an descriptor, woman or female, they said that it didn't bother them, it was only when it was used as a noun that was overly broad (Like 'Females obsess over makeup') and prefaced that by saying they were AFAB (Assigned Female At Birth) because they don't currently identify as female. This had several people pile on with TERF accusations. Baffled, it finally became clear that they were attacking because they translated identifying as AFAB as ""I'm AFAB, so I get to have an opinion as a biological female, and trans women don't get to have an opinion because they're not real women." It finally got cleared up, but several of the harassers insisted that my friend should have been upfront with their gender identity, but my friend is of the opinion (corectly I think) that gender identity is not really someone else's business. Of course, the inability to admit a mistake is probably at the heart of a lot of this, but I share this story to note that it is not necessarily one side that behaves badly, it is people who behave badly.

The problem with the US take on trans rights, it seems to me, is that it is being weaponized in the service of Republicans looking for something to juice them up.
https://people.com/politics/texas-mom-emotional-testimony-about-her-transgender-son-at-hearing/
https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/mar/23/anti-trans-bills-us-transgender-youth-sports

But it may bite them on the ass.
https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/new-poll-shows-americans-overwhelmingly-oppose-anti-transgender-laws

Strangely enough, as I was writing this, this article popped up in my feed
http://www.bbc.com/travel/story/20210411-asias-isle-of-five-separate-genders There are also the Native American Twospirit (the old term berdache is considered offensive) and kathoey in Thailand, which, surprisingly to me, given their relative acceptance, are completely outside of the legal framework
Legal recognition of kathoeys and transgender people is nonexistent in Thailand: even if a transgender person has had genital reassignment surgery, they are not allowed to change their legal sex.

To try and wrap this up, in the comments Marty astutely points to Lazarus Long's desire for transhuman experiences (Time enough for love), with one of those being the possibility of being a female (and he skips that to go date his mom, something I've always thought might be the inspiration for Ian Frazier's essay Dating Your Mom).

I certainly loved the character of Lazarus Long, but it wasn't until I got older that I realized how crafty Heinlein was in constructing those voices. First of all, Heinlein seems to put all of his ideas into the character of Lazarus. How can you argue with 1000 years of lived experience? But (and this is where it gets really tricksy) the narrator of the story is Lazarus' grandson who can take LL down a notch, so when LL talks about 'inadequate men into fake females', Heinlein gets to have his cake and eat it too. Here's the section where the computer Minerva is offering the possibility of being female to Lazarus.

“Lazarus, you could become female.”

I do not think I have ever seen the Senior quite so startled (So was I, but the statement was not aimed at me.)

He went on slowly, “Minerva, I’m not sure what you mean. Surgeons have been turning inadequate males into fake females for more than two thousand years — and females into fake males almost as long. I’m not attracted by such stunts. For good — or bad — I am male. I suppose that every human has wondered how it would feel to be the other sex. But all the plastic surgery and hormone treatments possible won’t do it — those monsters don’t reproduce.”

“I am not speaking of monsters, Lazarus. A true change in sex.”

“Mmm— You remind me of a tale I had almost forgotten. Not sure it’s true. About a man, oh, must have been around 2000 A.D. Couldn’t be much later because things went to pieces not long after. Supposed to have had his brain moved into a female body. Killed him, of course. Alien tissue re­jection.”

“Lazarus, this would not involve that hazard; it would be done with your own clone.”

“Not bloody likely. Keep talking."
[...]
“Lazarus — ”

“Yes, Minerva?”

“The published literature makes one option both certain and safe. This method can be used to create your twin sister — identical rather than fraternal, save for sex. A host mother is indicated, with no forcing to maturity, since the brain would be allowed to develop normally. Would this meet your standards of newness and interest? To watch yourself grow up as a woman? ‘Lazuli Long,' you might name her — your female other self.”

One wonders what Heinlein would have made of how things are now. Brave new world.

Your interesting word open thread

by liberal japonicus

When I first arrived at my posting in France to be a teaching assistant at a lycée, I was put in a residence facility with several other assistants and after a week or so, one of the British assistants said after a long day 'my god, I am knackered'. This Grauniad article reminded me of that and has me assume that being knackered (exhausted, totally shot) has to do with the job of the knacker.

Feel free to set me straight and add your own words that surprised, charmed or shocked you.

Weekend Musings: The Ugly American and Reality

by wj

Way back when I was still in grammar school, a book came out called The Ugly American. It was about what was wrong with the American diplomatic corps –- specifically, but not exclusively, in Southeast Asia. Essentially, we had ambassadors who were typically out-of-office politicians or big donors. They were ignorant of the local language, and of the local culture. So they were arrogant and obnoxious (“diplomatic”? Never!) and all around counterproductive.

By the time I was in college, and at a point where I might have paid any attention to the subject, “Ugly American” was a standard expression for all that was wrong with our diplomatic corps. Plus the negative impression that Americans generally, especially as tourists, had on our image abroad.

Over time, partly due to that book, our diplomatic corps got more professional and more effective. Yes, big donors still got ambassadorships in London and Paris and Rome. But in less glittery locations, we actually had people who knew the local scene and did well. Plus we had the Peace Corps – which (although I didn’t realize it at the time) was based, pretty obviously, on the examples in the book of how to do it right.

Until, of course, this last 4 years. When our State Department got hollowed out and our diplomatic corps got trashed. Not least because we not only went back to the approach of the 1950s, we seem to have deliberately selected for Ambassadors who were as obnoxious as possible. (Our Ambassador to Germany being the most visible, but far from the only, case.) And now, we have to rebuild all over again. Well, at least we know how, having done it before. (In addition to the State Department, other departments are in equally bad shape, or course. Also thanks to appointments by the previous guy.)

What I find fascinating is this. I just only read the book this past week. The "Ugly American" of the title turns out to NOT be one of the horror stories. (It's his visage that's ugly, not his behavior.) Rather, he is one of the folks on the ground (with no official position) doing things right, and highly regarded by the locals as a result. One can only assume that the people who made so much use of the phrase in the 1960s and 1970s had never actually read the book either. How many other popular culture memes are, in fact, the direct opposite of what they originally meant?

The urge to make a buck

by liberal japonicus

I played golf, but was never very good, but for a time, followed it. And I love reading about sports, especially as it intersects with society, so was pretty familiar with the story of Lee Elder. So this story was quite interesting to me. We have some golfers as well as some who are aware of the social contours of apartheid, so the fact that it is Gary Player's son may also be of interest. I know that Gary Player, similar to almost every white South African athlete, got his share of flak and his wikipedia page has a section on his views about apartheid. So it's one of those plot twists that it is Player's son flogging golf balls behind Lee Elder. Connecting it to my previous comment about functionalism and formalism, I could see some saying what is the big deal, the fact that Lee Elder's celebrity was recognized means that people would want to attach their products, so what is the problem. On the other hand, it seems to me that a lot of these sorts of social ills are supported by that urge to make money so functionally, it is racism.

The good ole days

by liberal japonicus

I share a page from MIT peofessor's website that I ended up at because 1) all of the academics in the crowd might enjoy it and 2)Hartmut can probably find something to add.

After Reisig’s death, Ritschl was without a doctor father. But Meier took the high road and took him under his wings. He even said that if Ritschl could get his doctorate and his habilitation before the fall of 1829, he would get him a job as a lecturer (Privatdozent). But this meant that Ritschl had to get two pieces of written work done by the fall. So, he did what every good student would do: procrastinate. In the end, a heroic effort got everything done just in time:

he spent three days, with a total of nine hours sleep, shaping the emendations into a coherent dissertation. He then paid for three typesetters to work through two nights to get the dissertation printed on time – the printer probably had other obligations for the normal day hours. “This was the thing composed, set, printed, and bound at night – a true work of the the night.” But it was done. He did the theses the night before the disputation. After two hours sleep, he appeared at the public disputation at 10:00 a.m. I do not know if any of Meier’s seminar students tried to annihilate Ritschl. But, by 3:00 p.m., 11 July, after five days labor with little sleep, a new doctor of philosophy existed.

Your procrastination stories here.

Sometimes the shit comes down so heavy I feel like I should wear a hat.

by liberal japonicus

Well, the pushback against the restrictive voting laws in Georgia and Texas is happening. A couple of links, please add your own.
Georgia

https://www.npr.org/2021/04/01/983450176/based-on-a-lie-georgia-voting-law-faces-wave-of-corporate-backlash
https://www.cbsnews.com/news/georgia-voting-law-coca-cola-ups-home-depot-voter-rights-ups-delta-for-the-people-act/
https://www.ajc.com/politics/georgia-state-legislature/election-laws-how-georgia-stacks-up/KYO7CBZFVFAC5HFUT4XHZURKWI/

Texas
https://talkingpointsmemo.com/news/texas-voting-rights
https://www.cnbc.com/2021/04/03/georgia-texas-gop-election-laws-us-companies-face-pressure-to-oppose.html

I enjoyed Josh Marshall's take on it (normally behind a paywall, but the share is supposed to allow you to view it. In case you can't a few grafs)

This disjuncture between consumer America and future America on the one hand and the American political system – both everyone getting a vote and architecture of the system itself – is perhaps the defining tension or dynamic in American life today.

Of course, corporate America’s deepest needs remain access to the levers of state power and finding ideological allies interested in killing regulations and keeping taxes as low as possible. Indeed, beyond this, as we saw in the early years of the Trump administration even the most trendsetting corporations rooted in the country’s most liberal enclaves still want to get close to power. Remember those awkward but smiley moments of Trump convening the CEOs of all the country’s tech giants around one table in 2017.

So we shouldn’t expect corporate America to become Democrats’ best friends. Because they’re clearly not. And in any case, as I noted above, it’s not really right vs left in any case. But this disjuncture remains a central if not the central tension point across the entirety of American politics today.

Bonus points for identifying the source for the quote!