Favorites from this week

Intersexion FilmYes, yes. A forum for people to speak in their own words and be heard, and hopefully understood. "Intersex isn't uncommon, it's just unheard of." Bic For HerSome really creative people wrote some really awesome reviews about a really ridiculous pen. For women. A pen for women. Specifically, For Her."I am a huge fan of the gender binary. Without it, it's very hard to work out who to oppress.""Pray, what is a 'pen'? I do like it so, because it is so pink, but I remain ignorant as to its practical use. Father says not to ask questions because it might give me wrinkles.""It's good that BIC are finally doing something to aid the plight of women."Frida Ghitis at cnn.com: A nation's sex strike for democracyWomen withholding sex to cause political change, and it's working. The men are so distraught that they're doing what the women want. I'm really torn about this topic - it emphasizes the role that women play as sexual objects, but they're redirecting that power for political change. And, as Frida Ghitis writes, once these women start to hold power, hopefully sex will no longer be the bargaining tool. My concern is for repeat uses of withholding (or its reverse, giving) sex, where men offer it as a bargaining tool to get what they want."Again, nobody knows just how important a role the no-sex portion of the protests played. But before the year was over, the parties to the conflict signed a peace deal ending the war and laying the groundwork for democratic elections.When Liberians went to the polls, the majority voted for Johnson-Sirleaf, the first woman elected president in Africa's history.Now that is a success story, because once women hold real political power, they no longer need to resort to sex strikes and other indirect means to express their views and obtain results. In the end, it's about giving all citizens, including women, a fair say in the political process. That's the ultimate goal in the struggle for true democracy."Crosby, Stills, Nash, and Young to perform to benefit midwiferyAwesome! "CSN singer Graham Nash, whose daughter Nile works as a midwife, says of the show, "It makes me immensely proud to be able to join voices with David [Crosby] and Stephen [Stills] in support of the Midwives. Helping to bring babies safely and securely into this world has been my daughter Nile's dream since she was seven years old. Day after day she works to bring light and life to this planet and, in her own unique, loving way, change the world."Newcastle Beer CommercialSomehow they needed to point out that they weren't using a woman to sell beer, but admitting that it wasn't worth showing the face of their beermaster to sell it either?Patricia Harman novel, The Midwife of Hope River Mmmm, midwifery fiction![scribd id=99715850 key=key-tckr4svo9b51vftzd34 mode=scroll]Trailer: For a Good Time, CallSex as power. Interesting, seems like other stories have brought this up this week.