Despite never having been there, I've always held a fondness to Canada. Even during all the drama of this year's Olympics, the Canadian Institute of Diversity and Inclusion, which is dedicated to encouraging diversity in the workplace, decided to make this ad that only made me like the country even more. It features two luge sledders in morph suits doing... Well, you'll see what they're doing. Not only is the 33 second video hilarious, but it admittedly has a good point. Sorry, Russia.
Also, Facebook and other social media users are being encouraged to "Keep the Games Gay" by changing their profile pictures to the image below. Who thought that luge would be the key to supporting LGBT people in Russia?
And here's a little hint at what my next post will be about with this magical mystery photo:
Oh, whoops. That's my cat. I meant this one:
Thanks for reading! Please like, share, and comment!
The Sochi Olympic Games has been full of drama so far, and the games haven't even begun (and no, I'm not talking about Lindsey Vonn's knee).
I'll be happy to help keep you guys up to date on that from a world-improving standpoint.
Today, I'll talk about the Russian anti-gay law. For those a little uncertain on exactly what it means, the law passed in 2013 bans "propaganda of non-traditional sexual relations" that could be accessible to minors, effectively making it illegal to spread gay rights material or even suggest that same-sex relationships are equal to heterosexual ones. The law has caused outrage worldwide, and even the legendary Sir Elton John called out the country for this "vicious homophobia" on his official website, saying that "Whatever the intention of Russia’s homosexuality and pedophilia propaganda laws, I am absolutely clear from my own personal experience that it is proving deeply dangerous to the LGBT community and deeply divisive to Russian society." Here's a quick excerpt from his complete statement.
"The people I met in Moscow – gay men and lesbians in their 20′s, 30′s and 40′s - told me stories about receiving threats from vigilante groups who would ‘cure’ them of homosexuality by dousing them with urine or beating them up. One young man was stalked outside a gay club by someone posing as a taxi driver who tried to garrote him with a guitar string because he was a 'sodomite'. Everyone shared stories of verbal and physical abuse – at work, in bars and restaurants or in the street – since the legislation came into force last June. And, some of the vital work providing HIV prevention information to the gay community has been labelled 'homosexual propaganda' and shut down."
However, it's not just bad news today- many countries, people, and companies have echoed Elton's sentiments. Here are a list of who is speaking up, and how.
AT&T- the company was one of the first Olympic sponsors to officially object to the law.
The USA- among the official U.S. delegation to the games are gay former Olympians Caitlin Cahow and Brian Boitano, an apparent move to show disapproval of Russia's policy.
Google- you've probably noticed Google's new Google Doodle (above left). Along with the quote from the Olympic Charter shown beneath it, makes Google's stance on the Russian anti-gay law quite clear."The practice of sport is a human right. Every individual must have the possibility of practicing sport, without discrimination of any kind and in the Olympic spirit, which requires mutual understanding with a spirit of friendship, solidarity and fair play."
Human rights activists worldwide- protesters are speaking up across the globe for the right of LGBT people to live in peace and equality.
That's all for today, guys- stay in the Olympic spirit as the games begin, and don't miss the opening ceremony tonight!
-Fox
Sources: The Official Site of Elton John, NBC News, the Guardian, Philadelphia Daily News
"Do what you love, love what you do." It's a common quotation now, and generally considered a pretty positive and inspirational thing to say. For my February Food for Thought, I decided to write about this. (See? February. Valentine's Day. Love. Do what you love. It goes togeth- oh, never mind.)
Anyway, I first decided to write about it when I came across this article at Slate.com (courtesy of my mom. Thank you, mom. You make really good pancakes.) It's a little depressing, but an interesting opinion. For those readers who are lazy like me, I'll sum the article up with a quotation.
"Superficially, DWYL is an uplifting piece of advice, urging us to ponder what it is we most enjoy doing and then turn that activity into a wage-generating enterprise. But why should our pleasure be for profit? And who is the audience for this dictum?
DWYL is a secret handshake of the privileged and a worldview that disguises its elitism as noble self-betterment. According to this way of thinking, labor is not something one does for compensation but is an act of love. If profit doesn’t happen to follow, presumably it is because the worker’s passion and determination were insufficient. Its real achievement is making workers believe their labor serves the self and not the marketplace."
Well. That's depressing. I can't say I agree with this rather pessimistic view on following your passions. Actually, I rather disagree. The article does have a point- in our society, the work of many is often unappreciated or assumed to be the work of one person- but I believe that DWYL isn't the cause of that. I don't think DWYL really about "disguising elitism as noble self-betterment", nor is that what it was originally intended to be. In my mind, DWYL represents that happiness doesn't directly correlate with money, and that if you keep working hard, making good choices, and following your passions, you're one step closer to happiness. In summary, it seems like DWYL is representing one ingredient to the "recipe to happiness", as opposed to representing the entire thing. Doing what you love is important to success, but there are other factors.
I also found this contrasting opinion from John Green (go nerdfighters!) on writing (though his words apply to other forms of creating too) in the digital age. The opinions don't directly contradict, but definitely contrast overall. Here's the link.
Again, for my lazy readers, an excerpt:
"Every single day, I get emails from aspiring writers asking my advice on how to become a writer, and here is the only advice I can give: Don't make stuff because you want to make money- it will never make you enough money. And don't make stuff because you want to get famous- because you will never feel famous enough. Make gifts for people- and work hard on making those gifts in the hope that those people will notice and like the gifts.
Maybe they will notice how hard you worked, and maybe they won't- and if they don't notice, I know it's frustrating. But ultimately that doesn't change anything- because your responsibility is not to the people you're making the gift for, but to the gift itself."
What do you think? Who's right, and who's less right? Please post in the comments!
Oh, and I couldn't find another royalty free picture that was related to my post, so here's a picture of a fluffy bunny.
It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a clothing company in possession of a good fortune, must airbrush their models. I'm sorry for that pride and prejudice reference, but I'm more sorry that you don't get it. Still, it's true- almost every clothing company Photoshops their models beyond recognition. Even though you probably already knew that models are airbrushed that way, here's a short time-lapse video showing just how drastic the changes are.
Now that you know just how crazy the modeling business can be, I've got a less depressing snippet of the media for you: ads released by Aerie, American Eagle's sister store for lingerie, that feature models who have not been airbrushed at all. This is a really bold move on their part- I mean, when was the last time that you saw an underwear ad that didn't feature a stick thin, roll-less, belly-less, flawless skinned model? It's probably been a while. Here are some of the ads from "Aerie Real" ad campaign.
Here's one featuring a gorgeous young lady who has a belly. Up until the age of twelve, I was under the impression that unless a woman is overweight, she has a completely flat stomach. So you can imagine my distress when I hit puberty at ten and gained a few (normal) pounds, and I wasn't a skinny prepubescent kid anymore. And I was lucky- I didn't develop anorexia or bulimia like other young girls who suddenly feel like now that they're older, they aren't skinny enough.
Here we have a model whose tattoo is front and center, even though they're usually photoshopped out in underwear ads.
A model who looks... Well... Real. Aerie, you have hit the nail right on the head. And on a side note, that is really cute underwear.
*sarcastic voice* is that- gasp! Cellulite??? *falls out of chair* *gets back up again to make sure that precious laptop is still running*
And finally...
Thank you, Aerie. Thank you because your models are real people who haven't been edited and airbrushed until they literally look like plastic dolls, like the woman in the video at the beginning of this post. Thank you because unlike other ads, this one doesn't demean people who don't feel good enough because of our society's false standards of beauty. Thank you because your brand, which is aimed at girls 15-21 years old- girls in high school and college- is one step closer to helping young women understand that they're always gorgeous, and that they shouldn't let anyone tell them otherwise. I don't mean for this post to be a promo ad for your company, but you deserve a serious congratulations for this awesome ad campaign. Good job.
So, you know those superstores/supermarkets/big-box stores that sell everything from produce to appliances to their own cheap clothing lines? Chances are, you probably have one near your house. They're everywhere in America and other first world countries now, and few people buy the basic necessities anywhere else. It's cheap, it's low-priced, and did I mention that it's affordable? I can't deny the convenience of shopping at supermarkets, but there's one thing that I definitely hate having to buy there: toys.
Maybe it's my baby cousin's birthday and I'm shopping for a present, so shopping cart at the ready, I head towards the toy section. The instant I get there, something stands out. There are two toy aisles- and they're very clearly divided. There's the pink section full of Barbie dolls, princess tiaras, etc, all underneath a pink sign that says "Girls". Then there's the blue section, where there are action figures, foam swords, and a big sign that says "Boys." There's such a clear barrier, a line that you're not supposed to cross. It's feminine OR masculine, Pink vs. Blue. Why does it have to be that way? Sure, the majority of boys and girls probably enjoy the toys in the boy and girl sections most, respectively, but why limit them both to only girly and only manly? The most well rounded people usually know how to keep a good balance of each, and by making the two sections exclusive, stores only support our Pink vs. Blue society. Not only is it not healthy to promote this to small children, it's unfair. So next time you're around a younger friend or family member, just remember not to help promote the sexist attitudes that start to affect small children the minute they learn to speak.
I couldn't find any royalty free images that were relevant to this post, so here's a picture of my dog a few days after he was born. You're welcome.
Hey, readers. I thought I'd try starting something new on the World Improvement Project- a monthly "Food for Thought" post. Today I'll try addressing something that I think everyone has thought about in their deeper, more philosophical moments: the meaning of life. I won't profess to have the one answer to this really big question... However, I will give you a little something to think about. Imagine your epitaph. Don't imagine what it would say if you lived on for sixty more years and accomplished all your life goals. Imagine what it would say if you died this very instant. If you're very young, probably not too much, but if you're older, there might be some more. Maybe not. Just be realistic. What kinds of stuff would it say? Now imagine another epitaph- one that's been written after you've died well into your old age and completed all your goals. What's this one say? Is it different than the first epitaph? Me being the geek I am, I made a Venn diagram of mine. Except... I'm way too lazy to actually draw one, take a picture, and upload it, and I'm definitely too lazy to scour the internet for a good Venn diagram generator. I've looked before, and trust me, none of them work.
Epitaph One
Pretty much nothing (I'm one of those young people who still needs to do something with their life)
Overlap
Was a beloved daughter and sister (hopefully, haha)
Loved writing and wrote all the time
Mastered the art of tea-making
Epitaph Two
Succeeded in reducing discrimination and violence
Traveled the world
Performed in a professional musical theatre production
Wrote and published a book
Yeah... I'm a little disappointed in myself, too. I feel so prioritized now, though! I should probably be writing. Or holding a rally. Or getting a passport. Or auditioning for a show. Or the more immediate issue, cooking dinner. Eh... I'll finish this post first.
So, have you listed the contents of your epitaphs yet? Hopefully, there's a lot of overlap between the two. If not, you're at least more prioritized than me.
Now I just have one more request for the epitaph experiment: list all the things, from both epitaphs, that improve the world in one way or another. How many are there? How many do you want to have?
If you liked what I have decided to call "the Epitaph Experiment", please, like and reshare this post or let me know in the comments! If I get enough positive feedback, I'll continue my monthly Food for Thought posts. Hopefully this food for thought was chewy enough to get you to click that button. Just remember- without supporters, there is no World Improvement Project.
I'd like to note that according to an article at BBC News that can be read here, the death of John Clews was a manslaughter, not a murder. Still, the gang violence that took his life serves as a reminder of how the different are often seen as less- and how we often lose so many people that way, whether they are lost to conformity or to the hate they get from those who refuse to accept them. Hate crime isn't something to be taken lightly.
PICTURE FROM BBC NEWS
From change.org: (The petition can be viewed and signed here)
"In 2006, Bromsgrove resident John Clews, known to locals as "Doctor Who", died after an altercation with local youths in the town centre. His death shocked the town and stands as a reminder of how those who are different or eccentric can be ostracised and victimised.
A statue in memory of John will remind us all that we should cherish our differences - after all, what do they matter, as long as we remember to be nice to each other?
It will also show than when awful things happen as a result of human behaviour, that there is no need to respond in kind, and instead we can come together and make something positive out of what has happened.
RIP John Clews." Thank you to my friend Shaun for bringing this story to my attention.
