Jessica Valenti on the Today Show

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Jessica Valenti appears on the Today Show. Valenti explains how abstinence-only education has been a policy failure. Valenti explains how the virginity Purity Myth does not teach women that they are more than their bodies. Valenti does not urge young women to rush into sex. She also supports abstinence as part of comprehensive sex education. Valenti makes it clear abstinence-only sex ed is a health policy failure.

Jessica Valenti Disses Trolls

I love this video. Every blogger has stupid trolls. I have talked with feminist bloggers that experienced online harassment. Good for Jessica Valenti for making fun on these clowns.

One of Valenti's online haters made a rebuttal video. This British man uses strawman arguments and claims that Western women shouldn't complain because women in the Middle East face greater oppression. He only uses the suffering of Middle Eastern women in attempt to silent feminists, such as Valenti. In the second video he claims men are more oppressed than women. Would that be in the Middle East.

I wasn't aware I oppressed by women. I also don't spend my time making negative videos about Jessica Valenti and then getting publicly mocked by her. That is because I don't hate women and suffer from self-loathing. Anyone that gets humiliated by the internet's most popular feminist blogger and comes back for more is a glutton for punishment.

Quote of the Day 2

"Parker says there is a "mental health crisis on American campuses." Disease, thy name is fucking. To prove that young women are all going crazy with the cock, Parker quotes Miriam Grossman, yet another hack, I mean "expert," on the supposed hook-up culture on campuses."

Jessica Valenti, on the silly op-ed by Kathleen Parker. The latter quotes a study by the Ethics and Policy Center. The group is a Christian Right group disguised as a think tank.

Founded in 1976, the Ethics and Public Policy Center is Washington, D.C.'s premier institute dedicated to applying the Judeo-Christian moral tradition to critical issues of public policy.

Conservative columnists are predictible with their use of sources. I would for once like to see them quote a real scientific study.

Ann Althouse Blogs About Breast (No Surprise There)

Good God. Ann Althouse is writing about breasts, again. This time a post about Hillary Clinton's cleavage.

Are you going to say that we ought to be giving attention to the content of that speech and not to the presentation of the woman who would be President?

Althouse then provides a link to images of Hillary's assets. How is that for consistency? I don't want to hear Althouse protest the next time someone brings up her mean-spirited attack on Jessica Valenti. I can't believe this woman is a law professor.

How Blogging Gets Sidetracked

Jill has come to the defense of Jessica Valenti and her book Full Frontal Feminism. I don't know all the details of the feminist blogging controversy with the book. I did leave this comment.

The debate about the book seems to take away from feminism as a way to make the lives of women better. Equal rights, pay, sexual respect in the workplace. etc. I haven't read Jessica Valenti's book. (I can't find it in a bookstore in Tampa.) My fellow blogger Litbrit was to review it.

Jill made an interesting remark in the post.

Jessica is also criticized for ignoring issues of non-white, non-middle-class women — and when I read those criticisms, I have to wonder if the commenters have read the book. Because Jessica recognizes the racism within the feminist movement.

My response.

Many of these women Jill mentioned will not have the opportunity to go to college. They won't read Virginia Woolf. They will wait tables and work two jobs to support their children. How can their lives be made better is a question not asked enough.

These women need health care, grants for schooling, daycare, transportation to work, quality housing and a laundry list of other things. Do these women even relate to feminism? It's hard to imagine grad school feminism arguments are something they would care about. They are living check to check. It has no bearing on their day to day lives.

Telling women about empowerment is one thing. Putting empowerment within their reach is what needs to be done. I'm not schooled in feminist theory. I don't claim to have the answers. We often lose (sight) of why we started blogging to begin with. We should be trying to make a positive impact on people's lives.

It is interesting how the inside-blogging-stuff distracts the left from making change. I'm as guilty of it as anyone else. We should take pause as progressives and ask ourselves why we started blogging to begin with.

Ann Althouse's Meltdown On BloggerheadsTV

Ann Althouse feels she is viciously attacked over crudely remarking on Jessica Valenti's breasts and comparing her to Monica Lewinsky. She goes off on Garance Franke-Ruta on BloggingheadsTV.

Franke-Ruta: I’m not really aware of anything until this whole Jessica Valenti breast controversy, um ... so, I know that there was some grudges and hostility that came out of that ...

Althouse: Well, um ...

Franke-Ruta: I mean, that's the blogosphere. It's a tough place. Apparently, it's an extremely tough place. You know, one of the best things I --

Althouse: I'm not complaining about the fact that I have to be tough and fight back, because I will, I will stand my ground, I don't accept your -- [crosstalk] -- wait a minute, wait a minute [pointing] -- I don't accept your saying the Jessica Valenti breast controversy. I consider that an insult. -- You know, I'm on the verge of hanging up with you for bringing it up that way.

Here is what Althouse wrote about Jessica.

I wanted to elevate a discussion from the comments section of a post from Wednesday, you know the one with the photo of the Daou-wrangled bloggers posing in front of Bill Clinton? The first commenter, Goesh, picks up on my prompt -- "Let's just array these bloggers... randomly" -- and wisecracks: "Who is the Intern directly in front of him with the black hair?"

Althouse has a bizzare idea of elevating a discussion. Titling a post "Let's Take a Closer Look at Those Breasts" certainly is not aiming for a civil discussion.

Let's not forget how she went after women that have been harrassed on AutoAdmit.

Too beautiful to appear in public? Too hot to be hired? Come on! What rational employer would deny you a job because idiots chatted about you on line in a way that made if obvious that the only thing you did was look good?

One of those people that have been harrassed on the site is Jill of Feministe. Althouse has a serious hatred for attractive women. Then she hates being called on it. Somehow we should feel sorry for her for picking online fights and then crying wolf. Sorry Ann, but you make a shrill martyr.

Shakes and Ezra Klein have more.

Jessica Valenti responds:

Yeah, her character was assassinated. Excuse me while I cry a fucking river.

I couldn't have said it better.

Hat tip to Crooks and Liars.

Update: Ann Althouse writes about her BloggingheadsTV performance.

ANOTHER UPDATE: So a huge swarm of lefty bloggers in unison declared me to be an absolute witch for getting angry for one minute when Garance -- the woman who began the dialogue by owning up to the technique of "seeming like you don't know what you're doing" -- sprung a touchy old subject on me. What does it all mean? I think either: 1. ordinary human emotion frightens bloggers out of their wits or 2. the lefty bloggers are demonstrating my point that they are vicious and nasty. Of course, I think it's #2. I really find it too hard to believe that they are so numb or robotic that anger seems bizarre and insane. I could be wrong, but I think that's terribly sad. Or are you thinking: Ooh! Sadness! How crazy! No, no, you guys are just boring politicos -- still ready to do anything to defend your man Bill Clinton and to say whatever you must to deny that he set feminism at least 20 years.

I don't feel the need to protect Bill Clinton. He is a married man. He engaged in a sexual relationship with someone that wasn't his wife. He lied under oath about it and was went through an inpeachment trial in the Senate.

What is wrong was Althouse making a cheap shot about another female blogger's breasts. If she was a man she would be accused of making a sexist statement.