Bestiality porn has been banned in the Netherlands, where until recently, it was legal:
Sex with animals had been legal in the Netherlands, as long as it could be proven the animals were not injured.
& How did they know that? Did they ask?
F. Scott in Drag
Really, it’s F. Scott Fitzgerald, which makes me wonder how Zelda looked in a suit.
(Thanks to Courtney.)
Phonies.
Apparently Caulfield was still alive to write Salinger’s obit:
“There will never be another voice like his.” Which is exactly the lousy kind of goddamn thing that people say, because really it could mean lots of things, or nothing at all even, and it’s just a perfect example of why you should never tell anybody anything.
Goddamn if The Onion didn’t nail it exactly, even if, I”m sure, a million crumby people thought of it with them.
US Tax Court Rules GID Expenses Deductible
In a long-awaited decision, a fractured (8-5-3) Tax Court today ruled in O’Donnabhain v. Commissioner, 134 T.C. No. 4 (Feb. 2, 2010), that male-to-female gender reassignment surgery qualifies as a deductible medical expense under § 213, reversing the IRS’s position in Chief Counsel Advice 200603025. The 8-judge majority held that:
- TP’s gender identity disorder is a “disease” within the meaning of § 213(d)(1)(A) & (9)(B).
- TP’s hormone therapy and sex reassignment surgery were for the treatment of disease within the meaning of § 213(d)(1)(A) & (9)(B), and thus not “cosmetic surgery” excluded from the definition of deductible “medical care” by § 213(d)(9)(A).
- TP’s breast augmentation surgery was directed at improving her appearance did not meaningfully promote the proper function of her body or treat disease within the meaning of § 213(d)(9)(B), and thus was “cosmetic surgery” excluded from the definition of deductible “medical care” by § 213(d)(9)(A).
Judge Gale wrote the 69-page majority opinion, joined by Judges Cohen, Colvin. Marvel, Morrison, Paris, Thornton, and Wherry. Judge Halperin (12 pages), Judge Holmes (joined by Judge Goeke) (23 pages), and Judge Goeke (joined by Judge Holmes) (6 pages) wrote separate concurring opinions. Judge Foley (joined by Judges Gustafson, Kroupa, Vasquez, and Wells) (8 pages) and Judge Gustafson (joined by Judges Foley, Kroupa, Vasquez, and Wells) (21 pages) wrote separate opinions concurring in part and dissenting in part.
Amazing news. GLAD is having a community conference call with the attorneys who worked on the case, and NCTE is supporting the call. For more info on how to participate, check after the break.
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Two Tune Tuesday: The Other Grammys
We’ve all heard the Lady Gaga to death by now, no? Even if “Bad Romance” did spawn one of the best names of an FB group, it’s time for some of the other cool stuff that was nominated or won Grammys last night:
NYC Carry
This guy’s trip – being carried entirely by volunteers from one end of Manhattan to the other – is no surprise to me. Eh, homesick: I hate it. But keep up the good work, NYers. I am kinda curious what neighborhood he got through fastest (& my guess is the Upper West Side, full of guilty liberals). For the record: I would have said yes.
17-B-HSD
Whenever I read an article like this one, after I stop being annoyed by the use of the old “hermaphrodite” term – especially when they entirely fail to mention that intersex took its place a long while back – I always have one question: what is with the desire to “fix” something like this condition? While the experience for the individuals in question is no doubt perplexing, does it have to be stigmatized, too?
I’m thinking of an alternate, holistic way of how we might deal with genders like these:
- come up with a term for “girls who grow up to be men”
- create a coming-of-age ritual, something akin to Quinceañera or Confirmation or Bat Mitzvah, or even some secular version
- establish bureaucratic protocols for the individuals in question
- instead of copping a “wow, nature can really fuck up” attitude, try a “what amazing natural variation is possible” instead.
- stop repeating the bullshit about how they need “complicated sex change surgery to live normal lives”
That is, recognize them as a gender, acknowledge that all paths to adulthood are not the same, that penises are swell but not everything, & let them get on with their lives.
Cooter Couture
Saturday is a good day to talk about vaginas, no? AlterNet seems to think so, with this lovely article about all the stuff the health & beauty industry thinks is wrong with yours, & how they can fix it: with surgery, bleach, dye, douches, deodorant, & mints. Yes, mints. They did forget one recent beauty aid, however:
Problem: Your vagina is plain.
Solution: Vajazzle.
Really, folks, you can get your beaver bejeweled now with tiny crystals to make it glitter like a disco ball.
That’s pretty much 7 quick paths to a yeast infection. None of these procedures is ever encouraged by anyone with a legitimate medical degree, and most of them can cause serious harm. Regular bathing & cotton panties may seem so old-fashioned, but it’s still what the best-kept vaginas are wearing.
(h/t to Diane for the vajazzling)
Nepal
I’ve always wanted to see Nepal, and it seems now I’ve got an additional reason to go:
The traditionally conservative country’s Supreme Court ruled in 2007 that “lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual and intersex are natural persons irrespective of their masculine and feminine gender and they have the right to exercise their rights and live an independent life in society.” Nepali homosexuals are afforded all of the same rights as their heterosexual counterparts, and Nepal has even offered a “third sex” option for its national ID cards. Gay and gay-friendly clubs now abound in Kathmandu and the Blue Diamond Society keeps the gay, lesbian, and transgendered community appraised of relevant information with a brightly-colored and cheerful website.
(thanks to Cris for the link)
Double Whammy: Zinn & Salinger
The world has gotten significantly less smart in the past two days: first we lost the people’s historian, Howard Zinn, whose books educated so many of us as to the real legacy of American Populism.
I can’t come up with anything better to do than dig the heels of my hands into my eyes and sit, fully dressed, in a bathroom stall, with my own grief. You remember the scene: it’s from Franny & Zoey.
Let me say right here & now that I don’t care if he wrote or what he wrote since he’s been in exile. It’s not like there have been any American authors that even touch his four books’ worth of genius.