Create a Pandora station called “They Might Be Giants – Children’s Songs”. Wait for “Rainbow Connection” by Kermit to come on while you are snuggling with your children in pre-bed cuddles. Try to sing the song while looking at your children. Watch time literally speed up as you gaze upon their faces. Feel the bitch slap of father time stealing your babies from you. Hide all of this from them. Wait until they go to bed and then cry into your pillow.
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I am Heidi Anderson, a foxy feminist atheist skeptic woman and mom with a hard-core science fetish!
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In a completely unexpected turn of events, I completed the fundraising campaign early and Will Phillips and his family will be able to come to DragonCon!!! In fact, due to raising the money quicker than I expected, I am cutting off the bidding for lunch with Dr. Aubrey de Grey and will instead pay for he and the Phillips family to have lunch together! Thanks to everyone who helped, and here is a great pic of Will getting ready!  Will Phillips Gets Ready for Dragon Con Thanks to the incredible generosity of SO many donors, I only have So, if you want to help get Will and his family to DragonCon in Atlanta THIS Labor Day for his birthday, PLEASE help me by donating below! Click on the photo to be taken to Paypal :) In over three days, we have managed to raise $500 of the $3,000 needed to bring LGBT activist Will Phillips and his family to Atlanta this Labor Day for the nerd herd that is DragonCon! I will continue to talk, tweet, blog, and FB about this until I have raised the money, and there is no stopping me when I have a goal in mind. So thanks to all of you who donated to support the boy who supports marriage equality! To those of you who have not yet donated, you can do so here:
Will and his parents have been celebrated and honored at not only the GLAAD Media Awards, but also by GLSEN, GetEQUAL, and most recently, as the Grand Marshal for Northwest Arkansas Pride. However, they have also had tremendous amounts of hate directed at them, including people claiming that his parents are “harming him” by raising him to be speak his mind and stand up for what is right. I have been extremely lucky to become friends with Laura and Jay Phillips, and even had the opportunity to interview Jay and Will for the Podcast Beyond Belief earlier in June. During this interview, I spoke with Jay and Will about their love of Star Trek, and geekiness in general. I told them about DragonCon, one of the largest pop culture conventions in the world, held in Atlanta every Labor Day weekend. I mentioned DragonCon to Laura again, and she explained that it would indeed be something that Will would go crazy for, and that his birthday was even in September, but that with all of their travel they would have to look at it for another year. Despite what people may think about “fame” and TV appearances, the Phillips are just like most of us, regular people struggling to get by. And then I had an idea. Surely, other people would join with me in thanking Will for taking a stand, and providing inspiration to people of ALL ages. Surely, we could raise enough to get his family to Atlanta for DragonCon, and show them how much we appreciate the gift they have given us, the gift of a future with Will Phillips in it! So, if you want to help get Will and his family to DragonCon in Atlanta THIS Labor Day for his birthday, PLEASE help me by donating below! I have already booked their lodging, and will guarantee that I will do whatever it takes to get enough money to make this happen, even if it means filling in gaps myself. For donors who will be at DragonCon, I am sure we can convince Will to come to a birthday party on-site :) I know for a fact that he and his family like cake and pie! For more information on Will’s story, I have provided links below. Will’s first TV appearance, with his father Jay Phillips, on CNN in 2009. Will’s Award Acceptance Speech at the GLAAD Media Awards in March 2010, which ends with the Vulcan Salute, “Live Long and Prosper” Will’s GetEqual Pledge Thank you for helping to give back to this little boy, who has given us so much hope for the next generation. This past Sunday, my son Hollis and I, and eventually the youngest Max, joined Derek and Swoopy on Skepticality to talk about Santa. Hilarity ensues.
SO I was called a concern troll and a spammer for posting my opinions about the sexism/anti-vaxxer/skeptic brouhaha on Respectful Insolence yesterday. I had to look up what those meant, as I have not studied the rule book on internet posting as deeply as many others have. Why do I get the idea that much of the internet is composed of old D&D people who love their rule books? Anyway, I was called a spammer because I posted on more than one site at once about the same thing. I am apparently the world’s laziest spammer. Today two sites, tomorrow THREE! Before you know it, the all of Al Gore’s creation will be MINE!!!A concern troll is someone who derails an argument with concern for the other side. Actually, I was trying to put the pro-vaccination movement BACK on track to what it needs to be about, science and vaccines. So here is my last comment, because I seem to be a masochist and had to get back in it. Which is kind of weird, because submissive yes, masochistic no and those . . . Never mind, we are not talking about sex, we are talking about vaccines! Orac, you are right. It did look like I said you specifically called her Chris, I did read the blog entry, and all the comments. And you and I The reason I posted on this site, as well as Skepchick (you said there When people who are neither skeptics nor anti-vaxx search for I am confused as to why I would be labeled a spammer or concern troll, And when ANYONE, anti-vaxxer or skeptic, uses sexist and misogynistic My mistake is clearly that I have chosen the wrong forum to discuss But please, do not discount my sincerity at wanting to increase the
via www.npr.org Very interesting NPR story on corporal punishment. The spankers seem to have a hard time understanding that the representative from Sweden is not saying that you should not discipline your children. She is stating that you have to draw a line between violence and non-violence with children. She then makes the point that the child is an individual also deserving of human rights, and we would not allow this behavior towards other individuals.
via jezebel.com Once again, the spanking issue :) I for one, would love to see a spanking ban in the United States, much as we have a ban on hitting adults. Day One "Mom?" "What" "What if Max and I didn't exist? Would that make you sad?" "Yes, Hollis very sad." "Oh" Day Two "Mom?" "Yes, Hollis" "Maybe Max and I don't exist" "Hollis, I was there at the delivery. I am certain you exist." "But what if you are dreaming, and Max and I are not real?" Day Three In a taunting tone . . . "You are dreaming, Max and I aren't real, you are dreaming, Max and I aren't real" Lead chips are not that bad of thing for young children to eat. I wonder if it is too late. On a Skepchick, a skeptical blog that I frequent, there was a question posed about spanking children. Was it ok to do so? What does it teach children? Is it an effective tool in the arsenal of parenting? And here is was response: I believe that it is never acceptable to hit a child. My job as a parent is to raise my child to be an independent person and thinker. That said, it is not ok for one person to hit another when they disagree. I was spanked occasionally as a child, and yelled at as well. I understand the urge to do so to my own children, but triumphing over my instincts is one of the things that got me into skepticism in the first place. Even for skeptical parents, intuition is NOT a basis for making decisions. Rational thought, and critical thinking are. Children are people, albeit much smaller. It is not ok to hurt other people unless it is in self-defense, bottom line. When your child goes into the "real" world, they will not be allowed to hit the people they disagree with, nor will they have someone there to "whack" them when they make a mistake. The purpose of parenting is to raise children who can make decisions in a critical manner with rational thought. Violence as a behavior modification system is neither rational nor ethical. I truly believe that people spank because it makes you feel good to hit something that pisses you off, bottom line. Now before many of my friends anf family who spank jump on my ass, I do not think that people who spank are wrong, evil, or abusing their children. But I do think its wrong, and I think that it does not work. My children are no better or worse behaved than children who are spanked. In fact, here is what the research say about spanking: From the AMERICAN ACADEMY OF PEDIATRICS, Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health, Guidance for Effective Discipline (stolen from Skepchick's Elyse):
Now consensual, sexual spanking between two or more adults? Bring it on!
As most of you probably already know, Mattel has revamped Dora the Explorer. And the result, above, is basically Dora the Bratz Doll. Even sites marketed to smart women always bring up that you can be smart AND pretty. Really, I can? Thank you! Now how about you let me not justify my existence by being f*ckable at all costs! Not that this brings up any issues in me or anything. |
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In 2009, Will Phillips, showed more courage at age 10 than many adults do their whole lives. After being raised to believe in the inherent worth of each person by his parents, Laura and Jay Phillips, in the small town of West Fork, Arkansas, Will put his values into practice when he refused to stand for the Pledge of Allegiance until gays could marry; or in his words, until “there truly is liberty and justice for all!”