Alas, a Blog

1. To understand why America’s opioid epidemic keeps getting worse, just look at this map – Vox
   The existing medical treatments we have for opiod addiction aren’t available in huge swathes of the country.
2. Moira Donegan: I Started the Media Men List
   “In October, I created a Google spreadsheet called “Shitty Media Men” that collected a range of rumors and allegations of sexual misconduct, much of it violent, by men in magazines and publishing…”
3. Everyone Can Make AI-Generated Fake Porn Now – Motherboard
   What worries me about this software isn’t just the ability for people to convincingly put person x’s face on porn star y’s body, but what this will mean for the future of “fake news” – both the ability of people to create convincing fake videos, and the ability of people to convincingly claim that real videos are fake.
4. Dan Harmon’s apology for sexually harassing Megan Gatz is worth listening to, and actually helped Gatz feel relief and vindication.
5. In The Midst Of #MeToo, What Type Of Man Do You Want To Be?
6. The reaction to the Aziz Ansari allegations shows #MeToo is more measured than its critics claim.
7. Dr. Larry Nassar Sentenced to 40 to 175 Years for Sexual Abuse – The New York Times
   “The sentencing hearing itself garnered much attention for extending over several days, streamed live on the internet, to allow for what are known as victim impact statements from girls and women who he is accused of molesting over the years…. The final three of 156 victims spoke on Wednesday.”
8. Gymnastics scandal: 8 times Larry Nassar could have been stopped – NBC News
   “I told somebody,” Boyce said. “Instead of being protected, I was humiliated and told that I was the problem.”
9. Bring on the Conservative Debate for Immigration | The American Conservative
   “Many of Western civilization’s great thinkers believed in the free movement of peoples.”
10. Do We Code-Switch Our Laughter? (Yes.) – Atlas Obscura
11. Over the past 18 months, the New York Times has dedicated 21 columns and articles to the subject of conservatives’ free speech on campus, while only three covered the silencing of college liberals or leftists.
12. Where Did Animals With Tail Weapons Go? Here’s a Back Story – The New York Times
13. (75) The Actual Forgotten Working Class |Full Frontal on TBS – YouTube
    Did you know that many working class people aren’t white? If so, you know more than the media seems to.
14. BBC – Future – Do men and women really have different personalities?
    A slightly more detailed discussion of some of the research Gracchi referred to in the “Toxic Masculinity Stew” comments.
15. Vulgarity Isn’t Praxis | Noah Berlatsky on Patreon
    “The fantasy of stuffed shirt effeminate wealthy pearl clutchers opposed by virile brave cursing truth tellers is in fact a fantasy—and a dangerous one. Once you’ve convinced yourself that vulgarity is a sign of authenticity, then anyone who uses vulgarity becomes an avatar of the working class.”
16. Stop Listening to Seth Abramson’s Hack Trump-Russia Theories :: Paste
17. BITTER HARVEST – The Washington Post
    The WW2 Japanese Interment camps were motivated as much by profit as by anything else.
18. Pennsylvania’s Death Row Prisoners Argue That the Right to Execute Does Not Include the Right to…
19. State by state, here are the most binge-watched TV shows of 2017 | The Seattle Times
    The most binged watched on Netflix, anyhow. Still, it’s interesting. Several most-binged shows are ones that I hadn’t heard of, but which sound really neat (like “American Vandal”).
20. Why don’t dreamers just become legal citizens?
21. How the far right has perfected the art of deniable racism | Gary Younge | Opinion | The Guardian
22. Scott Walker Is Literally Preventing Wisconsinites From Voting | The Nation
    Scott Walker is refusing to call elections to fill empty seats in the legislature, presumably because he’s worried that Democrats could win those seats. Given Walker’s enormous prominence, the lack of Republican party opposition to Walkers anti-democracy policies should be seen as approval.
23. 12news.com | Border Patrol arrests ASU instructor who gave food, water to immigrants
    The instructor is part of “No More Deaths,” an activist group that, shortly before the arrest, released video of border patrol agents deliberately destroying water meant for migrants. He was arrested for harboring. This is just sheer evil.
24. Cow runs away from farm and spends the winter with a herd of bison – BBC News
25. Why You Shouldn’t Think for Yourself | Noah Berlatsky
26. Don’t Be Accountable to Nazis | Noah Berlatsky on Patreon

The amazing photos accompanying this Open Thread are by Andreas Hemb and Christian Vizl.

1. “The three most popular movies at theaters in the United States and Canada in 2017 — “Star Wars: The Last Jedi,” “Beauty and the Beast” and “Wonder Woman” — were each driven by female characters, something that has not happened in at least 37 years, as far back as full box office data is available.”
2. What Research Tells Us About How Women Are Treated at Work
3. Well-adjusted man with good priorities sues Iliza Shlesinger over women-only comedy show 
   “Shlesinger’s “Girls Night In” is described as “a hybrid stand up show and interactive discussion between Iliza and the women in the audience aimed at giving women a place to vent in a supportive, fun and inclusive environment.”
4. In the heart of Anti-Trump Country, voters still pine for an America better than its president | Will Bunch
5. The Partisanship of Feminism – The Atlantic
   “A liberal woman’s emergence as a serious presidential contender in 2008, and then as her party’s nominee eight years later, drove feminists of both genders toward the Democratic Party and anti-feminists of both genders toward the GOP.”
6. The Elusive Backfire Effect: Mass Attitudes’ Steadfast Factual Adherence by Thomas Wood, Ethan Porter :: SSRN
   A new study finds that citizens are more open to facts that go against their partisan preferences than some other studies have found. One possible reason for the difference, according to the paper: previous studies have used undergraduate samples rather than general population samples.
7. The past year of research has made it very clear: Trump won because of racial resentment – Vox
8. Trump’s Pick to Run 2020 Census Has Defended Racial Gerrymandering and Voter Suppression Laws – Mother Jones
9. Sarah Silverman’s response to a Twitter troll is a master class in compassion – Blog | q | CBC Radio
10. What Liberals Get Wrong About Identity Politics | New Republic
11. #NotYourModelMinority: Asian Americans in the affirmative action debate | Urban Institute
12. Justice Department inquiry renews debate over whether top colleges hold some applicants to an unfair standard — and what the data say about Asian-American applicants.
13. The Uncomfortable Truth About Affirmative Action and Asian-Americans | The New Yorker
14. Investigating Whether Affirmative Action Hurts Asians – The Atlantic
15. What the Trans Moment Has to Offer Radical Feminism – The TransAdvocate
    “For to describe accurately the class of potential and actual victims of rape would necessarily mean including people who are trans, nonbinary, gender nonconforming, intersex, and otherwise not specifically cisgender.”
16. How a Nearly Successful Slave Revolt Was Intentionally Lost to History | Smart News | Smithsonian
17. Why dolphins are deep thinkers | Science | The Guardian
    Dolphins make plans and use tools.
18. No, #MeToo Is Not a Witch Hunt – Pacific Standard
19. This might be the best map of the 2016 election you ever see – Vox
20. These are the arguments against net neutrality and why they’re wrong | TechCrunch