Tuesday, March 13, 2007

Toygers, and Coulter, and new foods, oh my!

Teeny Tigers! Toygers are a new breed of cat that looks like a tiger. They are super-cutie, even though I don't like cats ( I do, however, love kittens). CJ says that I should watch out, because it might eat my (at this point imaginary) dog.

Sorry for going out of order, but my "Coulter" part of this post is longer than any other, so I figured that I'd save it for last. At any rate, I'm a regular McSweeney's reader (even though I hated A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius) and just discovered this feature: reviews of new foods! It reminds me of the time that my elder brother went to a foreign country and kept a blog (before there really were blogs) of all the weird drinks that he consumed. Granted, at one point my baby brother bet my older brother that there was a food that he (the elder) wouldn't eat, and in the quest to prove this ate orange peel, coffee beans, and tin foil. Point being, there is not much that my elder brother won't try at least once, and find something positive to say about.

Last, but not least, is Ann Coulter. Besides sharing a name, Ann and I have little in common. However, when Slate chose to pitch this series of cartoons on their front page, I may have changed my mind a little bit. Not about her being a whole bowl full of crazy (she is), but about her characterization. In one cartoon, she is writing a vitriolic polemic while attatched to an IV bag of ice. In several others she is dressed as a witch. All of this makes me wonder how her gender informs the discourse about her. She is often portrayed wearing a small, tight dress and heels, or in situations that reference her sexuality. Granted, she is a (somewhat?) attractive, slender, blonde woman, and one who definitely wears sexy clothing; but how often do we talk about what color ties Rush Limbaugh wears, or his shoe choice?

I don't use the word b*tch, mostly because I feel that it is often used to describe women who are ambitious, agressive, or successful, by men who are uncomfortable with this "unfeminine" behavior. While I might agree that Ann Coulter is a total whackjob, one that has verbal diarrhea, and a total paucity of objective morality, I wouldn't call her a b*tch, just like I wouldn't call Pat Robertson a b*st*rd.

So, basically, News Media, you should point out the holes in Ann Coulter's arguements, not her stockings.

9 comments:

harley said...

NB: Annie's stance on A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius is not representative of the views of this blog. Whereas Annie dislikes the book, I loved it, and Jewbiquitous remains neutral, is it is inanimate (like Switzerland, but with 80% less fascist gold).

Anonymous said...

Ann Coulter is a delicate flower, how dare you question it...check out her work here.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARY9ka2o2J4

(LOL, from DailyKos)

Anonymous said...

phew: i was about to stop reading this blog until I saw Harley's disclaimer about the blog's opinion on A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius.

that book got me through freshman year...

Annie said...

TR- fat is one thing, so let me use another example, no one talks about Pat Robertson's tight little ass. It was the allegations of frigidity, and bitchiness that I was focusing on, rather than only the sexualization.

Harley- whatever. I just couldn't get through it.

Suze- all, you are so correct, if by "delicate flower" you mean "c*nt."

DaGirl- I am glad that the book helped you get through freshman year, and I can see how it would be helpful, I just had a different associative network.

The Pedant said...

I'm totally with your characterization of the discourse on Coulter there.

Honestly, it seems that a lot of political discourse goes back to what we hoped were discredited racial and gender stereotypes. And this is true for both sides.

Look at what people say about John Edwards and Hillary Clinton. Or Condolezza Rice and Clarence Thomas. It's as if being so far removed from one's own beliefs allows one to say things that would be otherwise intolerable in civilized society.

Sherbs said...

Does no one else find it odd that Annie's big brother ate TIN FOIL!? I heard he doesn't like stewed tomatos. And he still enjoys mixing up odd, odd drinks...

And, no cat will ever kick the ass of a dog. Ever.

And I personally love political cartoons. I actually have a scrap book I started when I was in high school based mostly around funny political cartoons. My favorite was from 1996, and it had Bill Clinton with a big, silly chin, Bob Dole with many wrinkles, and Ross Perot (remember him?) with HUGE ears. I used to keep it by my desk in my room, and I'd laugh so hard each time.

It even brings me a little giggle thinking of it right now.

And yes, Ann Coulter is crazy.

Anonymous said...

Annie,

1) What is the difference between a "cunt" and a "c*nt"?

2) "A Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius" is such a good book!

TR

Anonymous said...

Annie-

You are wrong. fat is one thing, so let me use another example, no one talks about Pat Robertson's tight little ass. It was the allegations of frigidity, and bitchiness that I was focusing on, rather than only the sexualization.

Being fat is characterized in this society as bad. It is made fun of endlessly and the exact opposite is seen as desirable. As a larger dude, I know that being called fat is painful and degrading. It is also focusing on something that many folks can't control. While I know Ms. Coulter can't control being a female, she can control being an intolerable individual.

Annie said...

Pedant- thanks for backing me up, but you probably have to.

Sherbs- it was my baby brother who ate the tin foil. Just FYI. Big brother then argued that tin foil does not constitute a food as it has no nutritional value. No, this is not a joke.

TR- to each his own, and as for not fully writing out curse words, I don't swear so much, but it is hard to make my point understood in writing without referring to the word itself. This is my concession to keeping the blog under the NC-17 rating.

LJ- We aren't arguing the degree of hurt that an insult can cause, but rather how image, gender, race, sexuality, etc plays into the discourse of politics. As fat as Rush Limbaugh is, that is not a gendered commentary, were Ann Coulter to be fat, I can only assume that the discussion around her would suggest that she remains single because of it, and not out of choice, etc etc. Derogatory names are awful, but it seems absurd that leftists, while criticising Coulter, use gendered language and stances that their own beliefs would not support in any other context.