For number three I'm back way off in left field. I followed a series of links from A Blog Without a Bicycle to find: Queer Dewd. Before you click that link... be warned, it's rated 'R'.
The pictography on the blog is misleading, what with the naked men and all, however there is A LOT going on here. I only read about three posts, but this is definitely a notebook style blog. Each post I read must have been in the vicinity of 3,000 words.
The blogger, who refers to herself (I think she's a she, but I couldn't swear by it) as 'Queer Dewd' was apparently formally known as Bitch Lab. I read both of the posts that supposedly explain the name switch, but I have to admit I still don't get it.
As a feminist and women’s studies minor, this blog was fascinating, but intense. Queer Dewd uses sort of a freeform stream of consciousness angry ranting style. She is coherent, but high handed with her language at times (which is an interesting concept, as in Feminism issues of language and access to language is an issue that determines power. Think the Catholic Church using Latin to limit the flow of religious information to the lower class, requiring all religious information to come from a priest, since the bible and Mass were in Latin). You couldn't read this blog, I don't think, without already having a deep understanding of Feminism.
Queer Dewd attacks social issues from the perspective of an earthy Feminism. As any reasonably versed feminist can tell you, "feminism" was sort of a white middle class phenomenon. Even now, it focuses on a white middle class woman's perspective, often ignoring issues of race, class and sexuality as well as gender (which is different from genetic sex). Queer Dewd looks at things in a more encompassing view, taking into account issues of race, class, ability, gender perception, sexuality, and whatever else you can come up with. In other words, her interest is in the ideal of what to my mind is 'pure' feminism. The idea that equality is for everyone, but not always the same for everyone.
Queer Dewd has a real talent for words, and as some of her commenter mention, often sounds much like poetry. I think some of the highly esoteric nature of her writing adds to that feeling. Even as a well-versed feminist coming from a similar perspective as Queer Dewd, I know I will have to read what she wrote several times before I have a true comprehension of the depth and breadth of what she's saying. Honestly, it makes me feel rather shallow on one hand.
On the other hand, as I mentioned before, she is using language as barrier. I suspect she would deny this hotly, as this is a very classest thing to do. I don't feel that this is at all intentional on her part, I don't think she means to alienate others, but for how very important and universally applicable much of what she says is, I feel like the kind of people who would read it and fully or even partially understand it, are already apt to be at least in partial agreement with her. Preaching to the choir, in other words.
In a way, this brings me back to A Blog Without a Bicycle, and that bloggers discussion of feminist networking on the blogosphere. After reading Queer Dewd, I have a better grasp of what ABWaB is getting at. The community that Queer Dewd has built up around her ideals. But, both blogs bring me to the same question... what good does it talk to other feminists about feminism? Yes, there may be differences of opinion (Queer Dewd has a post about 'sex positive' vs. 'sex negative', sex positive meaning that one understands and accepts even if one may choose not to personally participate, all the bizarre aspects of human sexuality. Someone who Queer Dewd calls 'sex negative' is someone who ascribes 'good' and 'bad' sex, be it frequency of partners or that only certain power neutral sexual positions are acceptable if one is truly a feminist.) But over all, feminists are at least reading from the same book.
Isn't the audience we really need to be addressing the kind of people who are part of the "problem"? If that's the case, than this sort of esoteric networking doesn't really serve anything but ego. I'm not saying this is the case, but it's definitely something that, as a feminist blogger myself, I need to consider.
Queer Dewd is definitely a bog I will continue to read. One post is probably all anyone should try to handle in one sitting due to the extreme length (for a blog post) and the depth of the subjects often being covered. I think it's definitely a unique facet of the blogosphere.
The two posts that I read most in depth are: Why Queer Dewd? and Shame Affirmative
Sunday, February 11, 2007
Second of Three
So for number two, I am finally looking at the blog I keep saying I will look at: A Blog Without a Bicycle. This blog has particular draw for me, since it's along the lines of what I am planning to do for my class project for Weblogs & Wikis which will also be my senior project for my Women's Studies Minor.
ABWaB is... vastly different from Jews sans Borders. ABWaB has a political agenda to a degree, as it is obviously a feminist oriented blog (she says so right in the sidebar). Her subject of discussion is Feminism in the blogosphere, and the blog is part of her Master of Arts thesis. It is somewhere between a blog and a notebook. Most recently she is trying hard at making daily updates, most of which have been shorter and more off hand in nature (when I say 'off hand', I don't mean that in any negative way, simply that they are shorter and more 'immediate' feeling). Older posts, however venture more into longer 'notebook' style postings (Blood's definitions).
This blog doesn't appear to be the actual project itself, but is, instead sort of a side note to her actual thesis. It makes me very interested in her thesis itself. I'm rather intrigued by her choice of subject matter, as I find the idea a bit... esoteric? As a women's studies minor, most of what I've studied have been dealing with politics and government/religious institutions. The idea that blogging has anything to do with feminism, as anything other than a soapbox on which to stand (I say that in the fondest way possible. I <3 my soapbox!) is a bit foreign to me, and I wonder if I'm somehow missed out on some huge aspect of feminism.
The blog title in and of itself is great, referring, as mentioned in class, to the saying "A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle". I happen to love that quote. Her over all tone is sort of a friendly congenial manner, much the way I think I would write if I were casually discussing my dissertation with friends. I think this tone works well for her, and makes the blog over all rather approachable, even to someone like myself who doesn't know this woman personally. The way she writes makes me think that she would be someone I would enjoy having a conversation with.
ABWaB is... vastly different from Jews sans Borders. ABWaB has a political agenda to a degree, as it is obviously a feminist oriented blog (she says so right in the sidebar). Her subject of discussion is Feminism in the blogosphere, and the blog is part of her Master of Arts thesis. It is somewhere between a blog and a notebook. Most recently she is trying hard at making daily updates, most of which have been shorter and more off hand in nature (when I say 'off hand', I don't mean that in any negative way, simply that they are shorter and more 'immediate' feeling). Older posts, however venture more into longer 'notebook' style postings (Blood's definitions).
This blog doesn't appear to be the actual project itself, but is, instead sort of a side note to her actual thesis. It makes me very interested in her thesis itself. I'm rather intrigued by her choice of subject matter, as I find the idea a bit... esoteric? As a women's studies minor, most of what I've studied have been dealing with politics and government/religious institutions. The idea that blogging has anything to do with feminism, as anything other than a soapbox on which to stand (I say that in the fondest way possible. I <3 my soapbox!) is a bit foreign to me, and I wonder if I'm somehow missed out on some huge aspect of feminism.
The blog title in and of itself is great, referring, as mentioned in class, to the saying "A woman without a man is like a fish without a bicycle". I happen to love that quote. Her over all tone is sort of a friendly congenial manner, much the way I think I would write if I were casually discussing my dissertation with friends. I think this tone works well for her, and makes the blog over all rather approachable, even to someone like myself who doesn't know this woman personally. The way she writes makes me think that she would be someone I would enjoy having a conversation with.
Saturday, February 10, 2007
First of Three
I'm not a blog-reader by nature. I don't know why. I love to read. I think it's just the Internet format that makes it difficult. I don't have a book in my hands, and I can use my computer for all kinds of things more exciting that reading a blog, so when it came time to find three blogs that weren't fellow classmates I sorta went.... durr? Then I went to google.
The search words I used were 'Anti-Zionism blogs by Jews'. I had tried several arrangements of these words before I got to what I was looking for. The blog is titled 'Jews sans Frontiers'. You know, sort of like 'Doctors without Boarders', or so I assume.
Jews sans Borders appears to be maintained by a Jewish gentleman in the UK. He uses this blog (he has another, but I haven't looked at it) to platform a very specific political view of Anti-Zionism. Most of his entries are reposted articles out of various print and Internet news publications (linked and sited), with a few comments by himself as to his feelings on the article, suggesting that this blog is a 'Filter'. Although after reading through almost every post on the blog, I have to agree that this would be the best catchall, I feel that there is a strong element of sort of a notebook/blog-iness (as defined by Blood) to this particular blog.
Although I'd say a good 85% of what this author does is link and reprint articles from "foreign" (foreign to myself, that is, as I assume some of these are UK newspapers that people from that side of the pond have heard of) news publications and small special interest publications, he does spend a fair amount of space making comments about current events and his take on them.
I would have read this blog "cover to cover" if I had been reading for pure information and enjoyment. Obviously, I intentionally chose what subject I wanted to read on, but also it is an area of politics I've only recently started to look at more closely. The reason for my being 'sucked in' to this particular blog actually wasn't due to its readability or strong sense of voice, quite the opposite in fact.
Over all the grammar and punctuation and the physicalities of the writing are just fine. The blogger, though, seems to have little personal voice. I couldn't tell if that was intentional, that due to the highly charged nature of what he was reporting, he wanted it to seem to have as little personal biases as possible, or if maybe it's something he is so passionate about, he refrains in showing more of himself for fear of not seeming as reputable. Or it could simply be that he has no interest in having, or no ability to have, personal voice. It didn't matter, for me, to the overall blog, aside from the fact that at times I felt almost adrift in the vast volume of information. It was very disorienting at times, and I would have to scroll back up to see where I had come from, in order to ground myself again.
This sensation of disorientation may not be experienced by his general audience. In fact, I would assume it isn't. I think my own lack of grounding while reading this blog came from the fact that I was constantly trying to play catch up using context clue from within the article to fill in for information that I suspect many of his readers would already know.
Despite a lack of voice and a sense of disorientation, I found the blog deeply engaging (again, I feel that maybe part of the reason I was so engaged is due to this sense of free floating). I can't speak as to the 'truth' of what his general message is. I actually did more research on the topic to help try and give me some perspective, and find that, as within this blog itself, Anti-Zionism walks a very fine boarder between what appears to be truth and paranoid fantasy.
The blogger for Jews sans Borders (Mark) is, as I mentioned (and as far as I can tell) a Jew and an Anti-Zionist. This would seem to be a contradiction in terms to most laymen, or even most Americans in general, and I found myself wishing that he had spent at least some time on explaining why an Anti-Zionist political sentiment is in some ways MORE Jewish than a Zionist stance. He alludes to certain aspects of this, discussing the ties between anti-Semitism and Zionism and that the Jewish Zionists themselves exploited anti-Semitist sentiment to sort of give them a leg to stand on in terms of Zionism.
On the other hand, his intended audience isn't really your average Joe America... or even Joe Brit (since he's from the UK). He isn't out to educate the unwashed masses. If he is, he's missed the mark by a long shot. Someone with no perspective out side the American and even British media would be totally lost. Even having some prior knowledge of the situation I had to do some exploring of both his links, and on my own, to truly understand what he is talking about, or rather what he is showing us that others are talking about.
Mark clearly has some following, as all of his posts have at least a few comments, but I think too he draws a lot of attention based solely on his subject alone. The posts that I knew were more controversial in subject matter (how one can get more controversial than the Israel/Palestine conflict I don't know, but he does) had as many as 60+ comments. I chose not to read these comments, although I do plan to go back and do so. I think it would be very easy to get caught up in that kind of clamor, and be completely distracted from looking at the blog itself.
Over all it was a very unique experience as a 'filter' style blog, one that I think I will spend more time on in the future. It is being updated frequently, not every day, but darn close.
Some of the outside research I did for this blog were to look at specific movement of Anti-Zionist Jews. Neturei Karta is a specific organization of ultra Orthodox, or as they call themselves 'true Torah Jews'. Although they agree with Mark about the issue of Zionism (well, anti-Zionism) they have a slightly different and more religious perspective than from what I gathered of the bloggers opinion in Jews sans Borders.
Ohr Somayach is a website I had previously bookmarked before reading this blog for a different reason all together. After looking at this blog, I returned to it, to see if it had anything to say on Zionism. It did, of course, and was EXTREMELY Zionist. It did help give me perspective on Jews sans Borders though.
As I personally couldn't vouch for the authenticity of the sources and links given in JsB, I was unsure how much credit to give the overall opinion presented. Although I personally agreed with the general stance of the blog, I was concerned by what nearly constitutes paranoia and conspiracy theory. After reading some of what Ohr Somayach had to say, I feel that even if the anti-Zionist stance presented in JsB is a bit on the paranoid fringe, the mainstream view of Zionism is just as bad. So, at least everyone is equally crazy. There is something to be said for that.
The search words I used were 'Anti-Zionism blogs by Jews'. I had tried several arrangements of these words before I got to what I was looking for. The blog is titled 'Jews sans Frontiers'. You know, sort of like 'Doctors without Boarders', or so I assume.
Jews sans Borders appears to be maintained by a Jewish gentleman in the UK. He uses this blog (he has another, but I haven't looked at it) to platform a very specific political view of Anti-Zionism. Most of his entries are reposted articles out of various print and Internet news publications (linked and sited), with a few comments by himself as to his feelings on the article, suggesting that this blog is a 'Filter'. Although after reading through almost every post on the blog, I have to agree that this would be the best catchall, I feel that there is a strong element of sort of a notebook/blog-iness (as defined by Blood) to this particular blog.
Although I'd say a good 85% of what this author does is link and reprint articles from "foreign" (foreign to myself, that is, as I assume some of these are UK newspapers that people from that side of the pond have heard of) news publications and small special interest publications, he does spend a fair amount of space making comments about current events and his take on them.
I would have read this blog "cover to cover" if I had been reading for pure information and enjoyment. Obviously, I intentionally chose what subject I wanted to read on, but also it is an area of politics I've only recently started to look at more closely. The reason for my being 'sucked in' to this particular blog actually wasn't due to its readability or strong sense of voice, quite the opposite in fact.
Over all the grammar and punctuation and the physicalities of the writing are just fine. The blogger, though, seems to have little personal voice. I couldn't tell if that was intentional, that due to the highly charged nature of what he was reporting, he wanted it to seem to have as little personal biases as possible, or if maybe it's something he is so passionate about, he refrains in showing more of himself for fear of not seeming as reputable. Or it could simply be that he has no interest in having, or no ability to have, personal voice. It didn't matter, for me, to the overall blog, aside from the fact that at times I felt almost adrift in the vast volume of information. It was very disorienting at times, and I would have to scroll back up to see where I had come from, in order to ground myself again.
This sensation of disorientation may not be experienced by his general audience. In fact, I would assume it isn't. I think my own lack of grounding while reading this blog came from the fact that I was constantly trying to play catch up using context clue from within the article to fill in for information that I suspect many of his readers would already know.
Despite a lack of voice and a sense of disorientation, I found the blog deeply engaging (again, I feel that maybe part of the reason I was so engaged is due to this sense of free floating). I can't speak as to the 'truth' of what his general message is. I actually did more research on the topic to help try and give me some perspective, and find that, as within this blog itself, Anti-Zionism walks a very fine boarder between what appears to be truth and paranoid fantasy.
The blogger for Jews sans Borders (Mark) is, as I mentioned (and as far as I can tell) a Jew and an Anti-Zionist. This would seem to be a contradiction in terms to most laymen, or even most Americans in general, and I found myself wishing that he had spent at least some time on explaining why an Anti-Zionist political sentiment is in some ways MORE Jewish than a Zionist stance. He alludes to certain aspects of this, discussing the ties between anti-Semitism and Zionism and that the Jewish Zionists themselves exploited anti-Semitist sentiment to sort of give them a leg to stand on in terms of Zionism.
On the other hand, his intended audience isn't really your average Joe America... or even Joe Brit (since he's from the UK). He isn't out to educate the unwashed masses. If he is, he's missed the mark by a long shot. Someone with no perspective out side the American and even British media would be totally lost. Even having some prior knowledge of the situation I had to do some exploring of both his links, and on my own, to truly understand what he is talking about, or rather what he is showing us that others are talking about.
Mark clearly has some following, as all of his posts have at least a few comments, but I think too he draws a lot of attention based solely on his subject alone. The posts that I knew were more controversial in subject matter (how one can get more controversial than the Israel/Palestine conflict I don't know, but he does) had as many as 60+ comments. I chose not to read these comments, although I do plan to go back and do so. I think it would be very easy to get caught up in that kind of clamor, and be completely distracted from looking at the blog itself.
Over all it was a very unique experience as a 'filter' style blog, one that I think I will spend more time on in the future. It is being updated frequently, not every day, but darn close.
Some of the outside research I did for this blog were to look at specific movement of Anti-Zionist Jews. Neturei Karta is a specific organization of ultra Orthodox, or as they call themselves 'true Torah Jews'. Although they agree with Mark about the issue of Zionism (well, anti-Zionism) they have a slightly different and more religious perspective than from what I gathered of the bloggers opinion in Jews sans Borders.
Ohr Somayach is a website I had previously bookmarked before reading this blog for a different reason all together. After looking at this blog, I returned to it, to see if it had anything to say on Zionism. It did, of course, and was EXTREMELY Zionist. It did help give me perspective on Jews sans Borders though.
As I personally couldn't vouch for the authenticity of the sources and links given in JsB, I was unsure how much credit to give the overall opinion presented. Although I personally agreed with the general stance of the blog, I was concerned by what nearly constitutes paranoia and conspiracy theory. After reading some of what Ohr Somayach had to say, I feel that even if the anti-Zionist stance presented in JsB is a bit on the paranoid fringe, the mainstream view of Zionism is just as bad. So, at least everyone is equally crazy. There is something to be said for that.
Friday, February 2, 2007
Doing Real Work
In addition to this blog here, I have been working on getting another blog up and running. Like the blog my group put out for a 'notebook' blog on the Daybook, I'm actually using blogging as a medium for my thesis for women's studies. I haven't read A Blog Without a Bicycle real closely yet, but supposedly it is a 'feminist' blog. As far as I can tell it's actually a blog about what blogging is and means. I assume the idea is to bring the history of the sort of genre of blog writing back to wome and overlooked women's acheivements. I honestly don't know. I need to look more closely.
Wednesday, January 31, 2007
Killing Trees... And Getting Away With It
I went into this week with the semi-joyous realization that my class/work schedule was finally all nailed down. Up until friday of last week (The last day to add/drop I believe) I had been randomly dropping and adding classes, trying to sort out my schedule. I'm a graduating senior, with three senior projects/thesisii, and am struggling to maximize my needed credits while minimizing the effort needed per class. I write up my schedule by hand for my planner and photocopy it. I've been through two sets of printed planners since last monday.
Needless to say, my joy was short lived, and the ARHD of Maple called me just now and asked if I would switch my desk schedule at the front desk...
The good news is, it actually freed up my schedule more, as I went from having no classes all day, but working at 9pm, to having no classes all day but getting my desk shift over by 11 am.
The bad news: I have to get up at 8:30 on a day when I have no classes, and I have to go on another tree killing spree.
Needless to say, my joy was short lived, and the ARHD of Maple called me just now and asked if I would switch my desk schedule at the front desk...
The good news is, it actually freed up my schedule more, as I went from having no classes all day, but working at 9pm, to having no classes all day but getting my desk shift over by 11 am.
The bad news: I have to get up at 8:30 on a day when I have no classes, and I have to go on another tree killing spree.
Tuesday, January 30, 2007
It's 3 AM
It's three am and I'm still awake. I'm seriously unhappy about this. I have class at 8:30. That's in like, five hours. I've done nothing but watch 'That 70's Show' for like two hours. I keep thinking about going to Perkins, but it's cold, and that sounds like effort, what with the warming my car and all. So I guess I'll just keep watching 'That 70's Show'. Wow, isn't this productive!
Saturday, January 27, 2007
Oh Sure NOW it's Winter
Over the last couple months, I've become very concerned about global warming. I've rarely had to wear a winter jacket, and its Minnesota, in December/January. That's just not right! What happened to winter starting in October? Where did all the snow go? Why aren't my eyelashes freezing together when I blink? The only answer I could come up with was apocalypse via global warming. But hey, at least we'll have nice weather when we all die, right?
I am no longer worried. It's -9 F outside. That isn't counting wind-chill.
Global warming is still an issue, it still shouldn't be in the twenties in January, but winter does still exist. My relief at having winter back was short lived, though, when my car (which until tonight has run perfectly fine) stalled out twice between Target and the Maple parking lot, I suspect due to cold.
Anyone who thinks 'when hell freezes over' is an idiom which means 'never' has obviously never lived in Minnesota.
I am no longer worried. It's -9 F outside. That isn't counting wind-chill.
Global warming is still an issue, it still shouldn't be in the twenties in January, but winter does still exist. My relief at having winter back was short lived, though, when my car (which until tonight has run perfectly fine) stalled out twice between Target and the Maple parking lot, I suspect due to cold.
Anyone who thinks 'when hell freezes over' is an idiom which means 'never' has obviously never lived in Minnesota.
I Know What You Did... Last Night
Nothing quite as fun as the Saturday morning front desk shift in Maple hall. 9am, all the drunken freshmen are still sleeping off the booze. Not that I wouldn't still be asleep if I had that option. I love to sleep (seriously, who doesn't love to sleep?) and I'm generally not up before noon when I have my way, but I'm also not drunk and/or hung over. I have no pity for hangovers. I think getting shitfaced is just effing dumb.
Aaanyway. So uh, yeah, hanging out at the front desk in the deathly silence of maple hall on a Saturday morning and blogging... Every now and then, I realize what a nerd I am. Then I realize that nerds rule the universe... so no worries.
Aaanyway. So uh, yeah, hanging out at the front desk in the deathly silence of maple hall on a Saturday morning and blogging... Every now and then, I realize what a nerd I am. Then I realize that nerds rule the universe... so no worries.
Friday, January 26, 2007
In Your Facebook!
So I discovered facebook this week. I had resisted (as I always do when something's popular) for a year or two now. I finally gave in to the peer pressure of my friends back home whom I went to High School with. Grudgingly I set up my account... then I figured out what every other college student on the planet has figured out... I can find people that I never thought I'd get to talk to again! So, I've been monkeying around with that. So, a belated and somewhat grudging 'huzzah' for facebook. However, the next person I see who has pictures of how drunk they got over the weekend will receive a cyber-beating!
Thank You Grant
Thank you Grant for the title of m blog. For any of you who are wondering, it's an inside joke Between Grant and I that goes back about three years. Its better not to ask. Wow, posting under pressure. 'Post to your blog.' Dr. Morgan says. Obviously I can't preform under pressure, do they have a little blue pill for that?
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