Via eccentricyoruba, this reading of The Avengers as a geek culture/industry commentary is marvelous: An Unbiased Review of the Marvel “Avengers” Movie. Won't exactly agree with it -and the writer acknowledges that may be reading too much/giving the movie a lot of credit-, but still a fascinating interpretation. Don't miss the part about Loki's motivation.

Have they intentionally created a movie which is more satisfying to think about than to actually watch? If not, is the helf-heartedness of Loki’s fake plan just bad writing? After the immensely subtle critique of gender in Norse culture which we took from the Thor film, we cannot assume pure clumsiness on the part of the planning team. Right?

[...]

Thus my conclusion: Marvel’s Avengers Assemble film is an elaborate commentary on the reduced funding the Space Program received in the last budget cycle, viewed through evolution of nerd culture, specifically the increasing frequency with which the “commercialized nerd” has appeared in mainstream popular media (from advertising to Big Bang Theory). The film’s creators are arguing that, even as society is embracing and cultivating the commercialized nerd who helps the economy and supplies the consumerist status quo with toys and technological solutions, that public nerd-love is concealing the fact that society and the government are stifling and rejecting the revolutionary nerd who still aims at Mars and beyond. The little boy who dreams of living in the future is being tricked into thinking the World of Tomorrow is merely the World of Today with more toys, and if he escapes that propaganda then he finds himself an enemy of the present, while his adversaries are armed with weapons built by his fellow nerds. If Earth or the Asgardians had cared enough to try to rebuild Bifrost and continue contact (i.e. if the Space Program had more public support), Loki might have put his genius at the service of such ambitious races, instead of having to become their enemy. By failing to realize the cultural importance of First Contact (read the comparative lack of discussion of the retirement of the Space Shuttle), Stark and Banner’s ignorance proves the revolutionary is truly alone (we must look to privately-funded space travel?). That it is ultimately not Stark but Banner (the nerd who fears his own power) who defeats Loki suggests that the writers think the biggest obstacle is the nervous and comparatively conservative baby boomer generation of ex-comics readers, who dabbled in sci-fi as kids but gave it up on reaching adulthood, and can tolerate Stark’s playful goading but not Loki’s attempts to use science to achieve real change.

Also, honey, "the boy," "he"? You should check your demography most often.

Cannot get better than Lucy Liu as Watson. It doesn't.

Have any of you read Witchcraft Works by Mizunagi Ryuu? Heck, let me rephrase it, have you ever read a manga like that?

I think you should. Read it now, I mean.

She is stoic, cool, and the most popular girl at school. He is the awkward, unpopular and shy "regular boy." She is way taller also. He has never talked to her until the day she saves him from supernatural forces and declares he is her princess and her mission is to protect him. I know you have read shoujo like this a thousand times before. Just never with those gender pronouns.

( Spoilers are... AWESOME )

I have no idea how this will go, but man.

Bogota appoints first transgender public official.

The department in which she is taking up her position is described as responsible for the development and implementation of social policies which guarantee citizens of Bogota "the ability to exercise their rights, in conditions of equality."

[...]

In the interview Piñero -- who has 13 years experience of managing public resources at district and national levels -- also outlined her priorities as newly-appointed director. They include addressing the needs of children and the elderly in the city, and setting up control points within the department to prevent corruption.

No. 6 and its always pretty AWESOME talk about power imbalances/inequalities in relationships and. Privilege:

( Spoilers for direct quotation of the novel. Talk between Nezumi and Shion. )

Bolding mine. My goodness, I love Nezumi.

It's crossedwires's fault for bringing this out of my memory.

Tim Bayliss and Frank Pembleton from Homicide: Life on the Street, people (also this is a scene from the movie, which I never watched; it has a lot of BIG spoilers, I didn't care.):

But WHY isn't Mawaru Penguindrum finished?

Okay, granted. I have only watched the first episode, but OMG. The. The. IKUHARANESS. It kills me.

So I'm sad I'm going to agonize for episodes.

( Episode 1 spoilers. Are Ikuhara. )

I'm so. So. Excited. While I ignore my uber urgent priorities.

People. You have to look at this. Gorgeous Gus fan art is gorgeous.

Well, these people know how to sell.

Homoerotic, Interracial Priests selling Ice Cream. Happy…

Salivation is the right word there.

dingsi has has an amazing linkspam.

With amazing, amazing post: The Phalloclitoris: Anatomy and Ideology.

We all begin life with genitals that have four basic external elements. At the top is the part numbered 1 on my drawing: the sensitive end of the phalloclitoris, which can differentiate into the head of the penis or clitoris. In the center is structure 2: an inset membrane that can widen or can seal as the fetus develops. It will form the urethra, and the vagina, if any. Around it is structure 3, which is capable of differentiation into either a phallic shaft, or clitoral body and labia minora. And at the outside is the fourth part, the labioscrotal swellings, which can develop into labia majora or a scrotum.

There is a lot of variation in how each of the four basic parts of the genitalia develop from person to person in all of us. For example, we acknowledge with a lot of rib-elbowing the variation in penile size. Variation in the size and shape of genitalia, and in other parts of the body, is part of human diversity. Surgeons are well aware that livers and lungs and blood vessels vary a lot between individuals, and may look quite different from an iconic anatomical diagram. But we rarely care about having an unusually shaped liver. The shape of genitals, however, is given huge cultural weight, because we pin our commitment to dyadic gender roles on them. We look at the shape of a newborn's genitalia and project a future of dresses and diets and talking about emotions, or sports and strength and getting under the hood of a car. We do know that people are complicated. Most of us want to be more than walking gender stereotypes. Still, we understand people through the lens of dyadic gender difference, and intersex people call that into question. When we see a baby born with intermediate genitalia, and can't project a future for them based on our well-known gender narratives, people in our society--including doctors--freak out.

---

Have this parrot:

Yo querer... ilustración. *___*

Thanks to sha_chan for this!

Nepal Adds "Third Gender" To Census.

AWESOME.

So have some fic:

starlady wrote Ran/Gingetsu (spoilery as hell, of course)!: Sanctuary. &hearts

And not for Yuletide (I think); wonderful, wonderful murderinghours wrote Oruha/Yuuko: Built of Music and Blood. Ajshajksaksgags. Lovely, hot and lovely.

La Justicia falló a favor de la identidad.

El juez porteño Guillermo Scheibler ordenó que una persona reciba un nuevo DNI y una nueva partida de nacimiento con la identidad de género elegida, sin la necesidad de someterse a una operación de reasignación sexual. "La identidad sexual de las personas excede ampliamente lo biológico", aseguró el magistrado e instó a la aprobación de una norma legislativa que facilite el trámite.

via ithiliana:

PRIVILEGE DENYING DUDE IS BACK. YEAAAAAH.

gudbuytjane shared this amazing video about this 7 year old girl who speaks amazingly about being trans.

Forward.

[...] Still, compared to the world in which I was a 7 year old (which was indeed quite brutal), to know I live in a world where this 7 year old can be this in touch with who they are feels like progress, and something to be glad about.

Thank so much, kaitou_marina for reccing me Hana no Kishi. (By the way, I completely distrust that Baka Updates summary. I'm just starting this manga, but I really don't think "she" is the correct pronoun for Ran.)

( Spoilering reactions go here. )

Thank you so much to the anon who gave me 40 DW points. I'm going to try the 1 month paid account. But soon, when I'm really going to enjoy it. (This is the last week of classes, yaaaay!)

Seriously, this is amazing!

Pero estas son cosas que siempre te alegran, así que pese a que todo el mundo ya lo sepa: Felicidades, Chile, por el excelente trabajo.