Kathleen Stock explains to us about immersive fiction:

Getting immersed in fiction is a familiar state for most of us. Nearly all of us do it, and some of us do it several times a day. When you dip into a novel, binge on a box-set, or even just daydream furiously about succeeding romantically or seeing your enemies fail, you’re doing it.

I did it in all my spare time (time not at school, not around grownups or for that matter children, time not doing homework) as a child. I was always “being” someone out of a book or a tv show. My way of playing was basically just to roam the countryside while “being” Mary Lennox or whoever … Read the rest

Jolly is taking the war to the phobes again.

'Black people are a danger to white women. I don't think they should get public services I take for granted. And how dare they call me out as a racist – don't they know I have free speech rights?'

— Jo Maugham (@JolyonMaugham) March 20, 2022

Maybe you think trans women shouldn't compete in women's sport. Or trans women are a danger to cis women. Or being trans is a mental illness requiring therapy. There's no link of logic between those views. If you hold all three it's a racing certainty you're a transphobe. Own it.

— Jo Maugham (@JolyonMaugham) March 20, 2022

That’s a very peculiar argument, or attempt at … Read the rest

“Natalie” Washington’s claim that Lia Thomas is only 5’8″ is not holding up very well.

https://twitter.com/FondOfBeetles/status/1505966528533041156

I'm insensed! pic.twitter.com/J7gAxfJUBL

— Modradical (@_gone_too_far) March 21, 2022

Who ya gonna believe, your lyin’ eyes or “Natalie”?… Read the rest

The Guardian Live is reporting from the Supreme Court hearing.

Senator Ted Cruz, a Republican from Texas and a presidential aspirant, is speaking now in remarks peppered with conservative talking points and grievances.

Cruz began by recounting the history of Supreme Court nominations and lamented how contentious they have become, though he notably left out the controversial and unprecedented decision by then-majority leader McConnell to deny Obama the opportunity to fill a supreme court vacancy, which infuriated Democrats and poisoned the already-poisoned well…

Echoing his Republican colleagues, he said the hearings would be different [from] the Kavanaugh hearings. “No one is going to inquire into your teenage dating habits. No one is going to ask you with mock severity,

… Read the rest

Yes I definitely want to listen to this guy explaining how it’s fine for Lia Thomas to steal women’s prizes.

"Part of the problem is concentrating on these individual examples"

Natalie Washington discusses confirmation bias and how it's often used to attack trans women in sports, like the image of swimmer Lia Thomas alongside competitors.@Transsomething | @theJeremyVine | #JeremyVine pic.twitter.com/JROCxj9sDh

— Jeremy Vine On 5 (@JeremyVineOn5) March 21, 2022

… Read the rest

Heels, again.

Women have long bemoaned the unfair and sexist norms that require many of us to wear heels at the office – from the physical discomfort of having to work in stilettos for hours, to the misogynistic tropes that get projected on to women who wear high heels, especially in male-dominated spaces.

Finally, though, there’s new research to validate those experiences. To find out how heels really affect women’s careers, University of North Carolina professor Sreedhari Desai and her team conducted a series of studies looking at how people evaluated women in a variety of work settings. These scenarios included leading a class, giving a presentation, interviewing for a job, and taking part in a negotiation, with the

… Read the rest

Trans woman says why can’t women be more ladylike god damn it?

I was sad that, yet again, JK Rowling is using her fame to campaign against trans women (“JK Rowling rounds on Starmer”, News, last week). As a trans woman myself I am angry and frustrated that the media debate has deteriorated into an argument about whether I can use a ladies’ lavatory. The argument that a public lavatory can be classed as a “safe space” is frankly bizarre.

Not if you’re a woman it isn’t, not if its comparative safety is being taken away from you.

High-profile women should stop using megaphone tactics to whip up transphobia: using words like “scared, angry and disillusioned” creates a

… Read the rest

Parents have written a new letter on the Lia Thomas question.

As parents of Ivy League swimmers, from men’s and women’s teams across the league, we have witnessed firsthand the utter abandonment of women and girls this year.

Ironically, during Women’s History Month, the subjugation of our daughters continues at the Women’s NCAA Swimming Championships when Lia Thomas, a biological male, took a lane and a podium from a deserving female swimmer on Thursday. Lia has now broken female legacy records across pools and in the Ivy League. 

We are furious and most everyone in our community is furious as well. Parents, coaches, swimmers, and rational, logical people know this is grossly unfair. Female swimmers have not consented

… Read the rest

A lot of people think this way? And that’s supposed to be a bad thing?

https://twitter.com/adamdavidson/status/1505560862316273676

It’s self-evidently shameful to say that men don’t belong in women’s sports?

https://twitter.com/adamdavidson/status/1505563406375526400

One, we don’t want to say “trans people aren’t real.” Two, we are not the equivalent of or allied with Fox News-style racists. What a horrible man.… Read the rest

I don’t know what’s going on here but…you know…soldiers are soldiers, not commanders. Maybe they just didn’t want to mow down a bunch of civilians and so backed away.

‘GO HOME’: Powerful video shows Russian military vehicles turning around and leaving as Ukrainian protesters confront them on a street in Kherson, Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/nQ8X0nrXf0

— Fox News (@FoxNews) March 20, 2022

… Read the rest

Naomi Cunningham replying to a comment at Legal Feminist last September:

So it’s ok for the diversity training to emphasise that staff mustn’t harass trans colleagues or discriminate against them. It’s very far from ok for the diversity training to assert, for example, that “trans women are women”: that’s a highly contentious claim that many people reject. Similarly, it’s ok for diversity training to emphasise that staff mustn’t harass Christian colleagues or discriminate against them. It’s not ok for training to assert that Jesus is the Risen Lord.

I will add that if diversity training does emphasize that staff mustn’t harass Christian colleagues, it should also emphasize that Christian staff mustn’t harass atheist or secularist colleagues. It should cut both … Read the rest

Russia still fighting dirty:

Ukrainian authorities have said Moscow’s forces bombed an art school in Mariupol where more than 400 people had taken shelter, amid further reports that civilians from the devastated southern city were being forcibly transported to Russia.

Days after Russian shells struck a theatre in the city also being used as a shelter, local authorities said Mariupol’s G12 art school had been destroyed while women, children and elderly people were inside. There was no immediate word on casualties.

A theater and an art school. Both full of non-combatants taking shelter. Meanwhile Russia is kidnapping Ukrainians.

As Moscow claimed on Sunday it had fired a hypersonic missile against Ukraine for the second time, the country’s human rights

… Read the rest

I would post the tweet itself but he’s deleted it.

https://twitter.com/coachblade/status/1505023302535897089

The fucking nerve of that guy. THEY aren’t going to be haunted by that photo. THEY aren’t the ones who showed horrendous sportsmanship. The one who should be haunted by the photo is Lia Thomas, fraud and cheat, but he probably won’t be.

Of course it makes sense for Rhys McKinnon aka Veronica Ivy to take this view, given his photo gallery.

… Read the rest

So now they’re closing down actual training because “transphobia.”

Great Ormond Street Hospital has been forced to cancel a top trainee doctors conference after trans activists protested that speakers would make Zoom attendees feel “unsafe”, The Telegraph can disclose.

Note the “Zoom attendees” bit – how can you feel “unsafe” at a Zoom conference?

All trainee child psychiatrist finalists from across London were due to attend the day-long video conference on March 16 on how they can support gender-questioning young people.

High-profile speakers from across the trans debate were invited by a group of trainees at the hospital to speak on panels, including major trans charities, academics and gender-critical groups.

But the programme quickly descended into chaos as trans

… Read the rest

There’s a blog post dated March 10 on the National Women’s Law Center website, titled Women in Sports: The Good, The Bad, The Sexist. It starts with The Good.

Women coaches have had a moment, too. Iconic coaches like Dawn Staley and Kim Mulkey are leading incredible women’s programs and breaking records left and right. Coaches like Katie Sowers and Jennifer King broke barriers and paved the way for the NFL to have the most female coaches in their history last year. Becky Hammon left the San Antonio Spurs to be the head coach of the WNBA Las Vegas Aces, but there were still seven women on NBA coaching staffs this season!

And so on. No complaints. But … Read the rest

The National Women’s Law Center used to be actually about women and law. No more.

Lia Thomas deserves all the celebration for her success this season, but instead is being met with nationwide misogyny and transphobia.

Lia, we need people like you. Not only as a swimmer, but to inspire women athletes—cis and trans—everywhere.https://t.co/RfynyiWYq4

— National Women's Law Center (@nwlc) March 18, 2022

I would love to know how the fuck they think Thomas can “inspire” women. Inspire women to do what? Quit sport? Stay home? Learn to smile politely while men steal their opportunities and wins and medals?

And why does he deserve “celebration for [his] success”? Why would he deserve celebration for “success” he owes to a … Read the rest

This person is an applied health scientist, with a primary focus on injury prevention and safeguarding in sport settings.

https://twitter.com/shereebekker/status/1504899936843935746

Rude. Rude way to begin. It’s not a “narrative.” That’s an insulting label.

https://twitter.com/shereebekker/status/1504899940497170442

No we don’t. She offers a few illustrations but they’re all (of course) from the few sports where size and strength don’t make a difference.

https://twitter.com/shereebekker/status/1504899944049688586

Shooting…where size and strength don’t make the difference.

https://twitter.com/shereebekker/status/1504899959098904586

Endurance and balance: size and strength not the deciders.

“Narrative” yourself.… Read the rest

More testimony:

UPDATE: the Penn teammate of Lia Thomas I spoke with sent me her thoughts on Lia’s win last night. She has given me permission to post this: https://t.co/IqKvIKQ0Gy pic.twitter.com/HCcrBU8THo

— Rich McHugh (@RichMcHugh) March 18, 2022

… Read the rest

Oh good, a statement on “transphobic abuse.” We need more of those.

Herstory Festival is a two-day celebration of women’s lives and experiences, bringing together different backgrounds, voices and experiences to support women’s rights and the historic progress made. The festival will incorporate the contributions and voices of over 400 women, and will feature the work of 17 poets, 8 musicians, 8 speakers and 30 artists.

Following online promotion of the festival, one of the artists featuring in the festival has been subjected to transphobic abuse on social media. Poet in the City has also been criticised for including this artist’s work as part of the range of perspectives that feature.

What this dishonest “statement” leaves out of course is … Read the rest

A discussion of NATO and Putin and how we got here on Fresh Air yesterday:

My guest, Mary Elise Sarotte, is the author of a book about the history of NATO in the years just before and after the collapse of the Soviet Union. It’s called “Not One Inch,” and it helps explain how NATO, Ukraine and Russia got to where they are today. It’s based in part on papers she got declassified after fighting for years to get them released. Sarotte is the Kravis professor of historical studies at the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies, and she’s a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. She’s also the author of an earlier book about the collapse

… Read the rest