By now, anyone who follows politics has heard the “47 percent” gaffe of Mexican-American presidential candidate Willard M. Romney. Posted Monday afternoon by David Corn of Mother Jones, the story features Romney saying some shockingly stupid things. But one thing, one beautiful, shiny, crystalline phrase, so overwhelmed the stupid found elsewhere in the video that [...]
Everyone has gone appropriately bonkers over the commencement address delivered by English teacher David McCullough, Jr., to this year’s graduates of frou-frou Wellesley High School in Massachusetts. The Daily Beast, the Boston Globe, CNN, WashPo – it’s everyplace. Now known informally as the “You’re Not Special” speech, Mr. McCullough’s address gently reminded the graduates that they had received more from [...]
If you haven’t heard of Jesse Lee Peterson, all you need to know is that he is the crazy, sexist preacher who’s been in the media recently for his barely intelligible diatribes against women. In a now infamous video, first uploaded in March, Peterson rambles for 12 minutes about how women are destroying America, how [...]
We all love free speech — right up to the moment when it offends us. And that’s the moment that really defines a person’s commitment to a principle sacred to a free society. HBO’s Bill Maher is one of the most daring defenders of free speech, so it should come as no surprise that he [...]
Earlier this week, Phyllis Schlafly, one of the most outspoken anti-feminist women of the 20th century, told an all-male class at the Citadel in South Carolina that they should never date a feminist. “Find out if your girlfriend is a feminist before you get too far into it,” she’s quoted as saying. “Some of them [...]
Henry Rollins is a self-proclaimed “work slut.” Best known for his contributions to the punk-rock canon via his stint in the genre-defining Black Flag, Rollins brings the same legendary intensity that made his tenure in Black Flag so memorable to everything he does. (Notable examples include his writing career and his sadly defunct IFC talk [...]
Henry Rollins is a man of many rants. Google any random topic prefaced with “Henry Rollins on … ” and there’s a good chance there’s already a YouTube clip of him delivering a think piece with his usual fevered pitch that’s equal parts angry drill sergeant, your dad after you wrecked the family car, and [...]
These are heavy times for foreign policy. The Middle East has even — finally — become a major point in the Republican primaries instead of just the usual one-off about bombing the living hell out of those damned dirty Persians! But given that Rush Limbaugh and his penchant for misogyny have taken up just as [...]
Hey, hussie! Think that health insurance companies should pay for birth control? Then you’re a slut, obvs. Oh, and you’re even more of a whore if you dare speak about reproductive rights publicly. Now get back to working the street, girl — it’s go go, not cry-cry. And while you’re at it, stop thinking that [...]
You already know this: while earning your college degree was informative and pleasant enough, plenty of us head in a different direction. Or maybe the experience wasn’t so awesome or helpful, but we’re sticking, steadfast and stubborn, to what we set out for in the first place. Joshua Miller, the executive director and founder of [...]
Venezuela has been in the media lately: following the death of Hugo Chávez, his chosen successor, Nicolas Maduro, beat challenger Henrique Capriles in the current election for presidency. It was a miniscule margin of a win—about 50.7%–and as of this write-up, a contested verdict. But if you’re the average United Statesian, you are less aware [...]
