Just came back from A-Camp aka the best weekend eveeeeeeeeeer.
So many feelings, so little time. My facebook dashboard is exploding in pictures and memories from so many people and it's making me sad.
All I can say is - if what some Christians say is true, and all queer people will go to hell, then hell probably feels like A-Camp and that isn't necessarily a bad thing.
I legit feel like I'm in a movie. You know, those feel-good Christmas movies where kids find out that their father is really Santa Claus or whatever.
Meet ARIANE FRIEDRICH, a 28 year old German high jumper with a wicked tattoo of a tiger on her lower back. She is a record holder, German champion and world medallist. She placed 7th in her event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics and is expected to medal in the 2012 London Olympics. Outside of high jumping, she is in training to become a police officer.
The thing is, Ariane Friedrich has an online admirer. Seems pretty harmless, right? I mean, athletes have fans. The London Olympics is just around the corner, everyone's getting anxious. Out of Friedrich's many fans and supporters, one of them has been sending her sexually explicit photographs and invitations over Facebook. Recently, she published the name of her cyberstalker along with his e-mail address on her Facebook wall.
Think Lisbeth Salander. Of course, this is not nearly as bad as tattooing "I am a rapist and sadistic pig" on someone's stomach.
Or is it?
A lot of controversy has arisen as to whether Friedrich is within lawful rights to post the name of the man on the Internet for everyone to see. Names of stalkers do not appear in German media. Also, there is the off-chance possibility that her stalker was using someone else's address and information (in which case he would have had to hack someone else's account, or create another identity).
It's a fine line to draw. On the surface, she may have broken German law, she may have taken it to the extreme, she may have breached her stalker's right to privacy.
But on the other hand, you gotta admit that the stalker's right to privacy is irrelevant now that he has made himself known to her on the Internet. Also, what she did was fucking bad-ass awesome, something that will bring more awareness to sexual assault and sexual harassment against women, and even touch on issues such as cyber-bullying. Many people who are victims of sexual harassment don't often come forth, but this girl has, and you really just have to give her a standing ovation for that.
This is her response to the criticisms she has received for publishing her stalker's name and email:
"Dear followers,I have read through the comments of my last post very carefully. It is, of course, a major step to publish such an outrageous message to the public, but it is not the first time I have received private messages like this, although it is the first one from this person…The removal of anonymity is a means to clarify. Think of all the children, young people and adults who are secretly harassed by perverts and don’t know what to do or how to defend themselves. Should we not go forward as a good example and demonstrate strength?"
THERE IS SO MUCH TRUTH IN THIS STATEMENT OMMMMGGGG.
Let this be a reminder to all people who have sexually harassed a girl or do not think sexual harassment is a big deal. That girl you're making inappropriate and unwelcome sexual advances at? Yeah, her? She can ruin your life forever.
So, the debate continues. Was she right to publish her stalker's name, someone who was sexually harassing her? Or was she breaching rights to privacy? There may not be a right answer to this, but it's interesting to mull over.
All I know is, Lisbeth Salander would have definitely approved.
Today, I came across the most abhorrent article I have read in a long time:
OK.
So I don't really watch NFL football, and I don't really know Tim Tebow, except for the fact that I know people who know him....but that aside, I frankly don't really care. I heard that he prays in the middle of games and has Bible verses written on his face - but to be honest, I've been going to church for so long that stuff like that doesn't even phase me. I know that he's a football player who gets lucky sometimes, and that he became a huge star because of it. Other than that, I'm pretty much MEH when it comes to anything football, so I don't really have an opinion when it comes to him either.
But the way that this AshleyMadison website is using him is pissing me right off.
This is what is wrong with American media, and western culture in general. THEY ARE SO FUCKING OBSESSED WITH THE CONCEPT OF VIRGINITY AND SEX.
And yes, I call virginity a concept. Yes, I am one of those annoying weirdos who thinks that virginity is a social construct. It's a test by which we judge a woman's purity and a man's masculinity.
Everyone is obsessed with a woman's virginity because we are a society that sees women as objects owned by men. Women are to remain virgins until marriage because they belong to their husband and their husband only. Their worth (and marriages were once business transactions) is therefore in their virginity, which is defined by an intact membrane. Remember people, an INTACT MEMBRANE is the source of a woman's worth. THIS IS WHAT WE ARE OBSESSED OVER.
Everyone is obsessed with a man's virginity because we are a society that sees men as pursuers whose power lies in their sex. Men are expected to want to sleep around constantly with multiple partners - because remember, evolution dictated it that way. If men are not sleeping around, or if they are virgins, then they are not taking control of their masculinity. They are being feeble, they are not owning up to their identity. In other words, ALL MEN MUST BE HAVING SEX ALL THE TIME. Or else they are not real men.
I am one of those who thinks that sex is sex is sex. Your body is your body is your body. In other words, I don't fucking care what you do. You can be a virgin, you can not. You can call it virginity, you can not. It doesn't really matter. I have no business judging you on what you do. Everyone has a choice, and who am I - who are all of us, to make that choice for an individual?
I think the American media's obsession with Tim Tebow's sex life is completely inappropriate, disgusting and disrespectful. He is a grown man, he can make whatever decisions he wants to make. You can call him a slave to his own religion, you can call him gay, you can call him a joke. But what it all comes down to is an individual living his life the way he wants to. And who are we to say that he's deprived? Or that he's not living life to the fullest? Or that he's not taking good enough advantage of his fame and money?
No matter what you think of Tim Tebow, HE IS HIS OWN PERSON AND HE CAN ENJOY HIS OWN LIFE WITHOUT YOUR HELP, THANK YOU VERY MUCH.
Good Lord, we are living in an increasingly secular society that looks down on religious people that push their religion on others. Yet, this secular society is doing just that to Tim Tebow - pushing their views on him as if he needs to see the light that is groupies and girlfriends and lots and lots of lapdances.
Think about it though, what's wrong about a professional male athlete (or anyone, for that matter) choosing to abstain from sex? Does it kill animals? Does it cause earthquakes? Does it really affect any of us in a negative way?
The answer is, quite simply, no.
So why is it that the American media is turning it into the biggest deal in the world? Are we that deprived of news stories? Of entertainment? Do we need to make fun of somebody else's choices because we're too pathetic to intellectually stimulate ourselves in other ways?
It may not have been the best idea for Tim Tebow to announce his abstinence to the world, and people might say that he brought it on himself. But really, famous people talk about their sex lives all the time to the media, and they're not publicly shunned, so why should he be? Why do we need to talk about Tebow as if we are somehow above him? Sure, he's not the best football player, but technically, he's still a better player than most of us. He's in a career that he enjoys, and he does charity work. Most of all, he's a human being and we are all human beings so the answer is no, none of us are better than he is.
I personally think that there's something significant about going against the status quo, of saying yeah, I do what I want when I want and fuck you all. I don't care for football but I admire that aspect of him.
I think that the American media needs to realize that there is more to this world than sex, and to get over it. It's been around since the dawn of life, it's really not that revolutionary. Sure, it's an awesome subject to talk about it in general, but when it comes down to talking about it in relation to an individual's lifestyle, it's just creepy and pervy to me.
So, America, please just give it up. It wasn't funny in the beginning, and it isn't funny now. Be more creative with your news stories.
AshleyMadison, you can take that $1 million and shove it up your ass. Or better yet, use it to feed an entire third world country. God knows that would go to much better use than getting Tim Tebow laid.
You know what's worse than watching your hockey team lose a playoff series?
Watching them cry.
Then crying myself.
I love those boys and always will.
So ok, it's been over 40 years. And ok, we've been so close so many times yet so far. And ok, it is very frustrating. And ok, sometimes you just want to pull your hair out and kick some furniture and jump on another bandwagon.
Just so you can feel what it's like to win.
Winning brings people together. It fuels pride and synthesizes identity.
But commitment to a sport isn't about winning. It's about loving your team even when they do lose. It's about believing they can win even when they don't.
This is why I can't ever not love them, and why it breaks me every time something like this happens. This is why I'm already counting down the days until next season. This is why, win or lose, I can't wait to see them play again.
OK, so you guys know the current "Shit....Says" meme phenomenon seeping through youtube culture right now. Don't know what I'm talking about? Here are a couple examples:
And my personal favourite:
Anyway, I hung out with some real idiots yesterday and they inspired me to do my own version.
So here it is.
SHIT STRAIGHT GUYS SAY
(WHEN THEY ARE DRUNK)
"I've got big guns, check them out."
"Mine are bigger than his."
"SHOTS!!!"
"Ew, baseball."
"Ew, the Maple Leafs."
"Ew, bourbon."
"SHOTS!!!"
"Engaged women at their bachelorette parties are bulls-eye targets for easy sex."
"Natalie Portman is a beautiful woman."
"SHOTS!!!"
"Guys are physically stronger than girls."
"Really, guys are physically stronger than girls."
"I won't argue feminist issues with girls."
"SHOTS!!!"
"If she's willing, then technically it's not my fault."
"If I push her, and she's willing, then it's technically not my fault."
"If she wants it, I can't exactly say no."
"SHOTS!!!"
"Would you rather date a guy who covers up his baldness or a guy who shaves his head and owns his baldness?"
"I'm totally going to be bald in the next seven to ten years."
"SHOTS!!!"
"As long as she takes a shower after fucking him, I am totally ok with fucking my best friend's girlfriend."
"And that is so not homoerotic."
"You just...weed out the yard before you sow your seed, you know?"
"SHOTS!!!"
"The way the media portray Luongo...it's a whole load of fuckery."
"Jonathan Toews? God, Jonathan Toews. I would make sweet love to that man."
"SHOTS!!!"
Now, don't get me wrong. I like straight guys, I really do. They're cute and funny and they're a real ego booster because their stupid antics make me feel a lot more evolved and a lot more intellectual than I actually am. In case you were wondering, I am not exaggerating any of the quotes above. The people I hang out with actually talk like this. And their drunk talk is pretty much their normal talk because we seem to be drunk together all the time. Sometimes, I facepalm so much in their presence that I just look like I'm passed out on the table.
My goal for this month is to drink less. The moment that thought appeared in my head though, this other part of my brain was all "MOTHERFUCKIN' BOLLOCKS."
This is a review of Hey Ocean!'s upcoming album, IS.
I don't normally write music reviews, but sometimes, I come across music from a band that is so underrated, yet so good, that I can't help but share it in the hopes that others will understand my level of insanity for this band.
In this post, I am crazy in love with Hey Ocean! (the exclamation mark is a part of the band name, not to diminish the fact that I am also very enthusiastic when it comes to them).
I have known of Hey Ocean! for a couple years now. They were Vancouver's songbirds, much loved and incredibly popular amongst the city's quirky music scene and its hippie fanbase. But my first real encounter with them and their music was in the summer of 2011, when they were in the lineup at Live At Squamish, the annual music festival that takes place north of Vancouver.
They were the band with the blow-up whale.
Nothing screams Vancouver like a blow-up whale.
Their brand of summer beach music was enticing and alluring. It suited the sun that shone high up in the blue sky that day. I remember watching them and thinking that they were like the Canuck west coast version of The Beach Boys.
I found out later that they were the Canadian musicians who used to play songs on Costa Rican beaches, which explains their brand of exotic - music that feels foreign yet at the same time feels like home.
Ashleigh Ball was the girl on fire. She was everywhere at that festival. I remember seeing her hopping through the crowd to join The Zolas on-stage, where Zachary Gray introduced her as his high school sweetheart. I remember watching Shad (one of the best live performers I had ever seen), yell out her name because he needed her for a song. She's a multi-instrumentalist with a voice so light and expressive it could dance on water.
I could have fallen asleep to this trio's music. I almost did. The grass at Squamish is incredibly lush and green. Surrounded by mountains, you want to do nothing but sleep to beautiful music.
Hey Ocean! currently has two studio albums: 2006's Stop Looking Like Music and 2008's It's Easier To Be Somebody Else. IS is slated for release this year, and the four year wait has definitely been worth it.
This is not going to be a traditional review. The best way to describe Hey Ocean!'s IS? It's like a soundtrack to a romantic story set in Vancouver. So I'm going to take a little poetic license with this next track-by-track review and use their band name as inspiration.
1. If I Were A Ship
Hey Vancouver, let's go out to Jericho Beach on a bright day, and watch the vessels move across English Bay.
2. Make A New Dance Up
Hey Vancouver, let's dance a flash mob at Robson Square in front of unexpected tourists.
3. Big Blue Wave
Hey Vancouver, Point Atkinson lighthouse is for lovers.
4. Islands
Hey Vancouver, the Strait of Georgia awaits you.
5. Jolene
Hey Vancouver, sometimes I forget how beautiful you are.
6. New Love
Hey Vancouver, you're a well of pent up loneliness.
7. Bicycle
Hey Vancouver, let's utilize those bike lanes and be romantic for a day, eh?
8. Change
Hey Vancouver, spring has arrived, stop raining on the candy flowers.
9. Steady
Hey Vancouver, your white lights at night look like new stars.
10. I Am A Heart
Hey Vancouver, the glassy blue sky reflects you.
11. (For)give
Hey Vancouver, why so silent?
12. Give
Hey Vancouver, I shouldn't be afraid to love her.
13. The Last Mistake
Hey Vancouver, don't let me down.
Something that cannot be ignored of this album is the vocals. Hey Ocean! is definitely one of those bands with the vocal and instrumental capabilities that make them a lot more fun to watch and listen to live than on a recording. However, the production on this album does not at all diminish their organic sound. It is very raw, something that complements the honesty of the songs. Ball, Vertesi and Beckingham's voices are absolutely wonderful. Some standout tracks are Ball on "New Love," Vertesi on "Jolene" and Beckingham on "Steady." They have the ability to convey a wide range of emotion in their voices and at the same time make it seem effortless, flowing perfectly with the music while not trying to outdo the beautiful melodies that they accompany.
Whether they meant for IS to be a concept album or not, it definitely comes across as one. Love as a unifying theme surrounded by references to the mountains and the skies and the ocean. That's what Vancouver feels like to us who live here, and I love that it's being reflected in the music that comes from this city.
As a little bonus, here is Ashleigh, David and David performing "Jolene" in an acoustic session. It's one of the most heartfelt performances I have ever seen.
Actually, this is more of a letter than an ode. Odes are supposed to be somewhat written in praise of its subject. I don't really feel like praising anybody at the moment, so I'll just call this a letter.
Ahem.
Dear Canuck haters,
I understand your hatred for us. Trust me, as a Canuck fan, sometimes I hate myself too. Canuck fans are crazy, they are ruthless, they are obsessive, they are unsympathetic, they are proud. The riots that happened last year may not have helped our image. I understand that it is easy to point the finger at us, and call us people of skewed priorities. Yet it's easy to forget that human nature is human nature, and that riots happen everywhere, in every sport. Don't hold us to higher regard. It was shameful what happened and it's true, we're no better than the rest of you.
I understand your hatred for our team. Some of our guys can be real dicks and divers and drama queens. They act tough, they intimidate, they trash talk. They're doing exactly what every other athlete on the ice is doing. Whoever said hockey was a kind sport? And if you expect it to be, and you're surprised that our guys are douchebags, then frankly my dear, you haven't watched enough hockey. We're also a team consisting of some of the best players in the NHL, maybe some of the best players who've ever played. I understand that it can be a little much. It's hard to like guys who are not only dicks, but talented dicks. If that doesn't steal your thunder, then you would be a robot. So embrace that anger, embrace that competitiveness, it's what makes you human.
So Canuck haters, what I want to say is that even though I do not agree with all of your views, I do understand where you're coming from. Why? Because I am one of you. I'm not a Canuck hater, but I'm a hater in other regards. For example, I'll forever resent the Chicago Blackhawks for ruining the Fratellis' "Chelsea Dagger" for me.
What I don't understand about Canuck-hating culture, however, is this:
There are several things wrong with this.
First of all, winning or not winning the Stanley Cup does not in any way diminish the kind of talent that the Sedin twins possess. They are still two of the best players the NHL has ever seen, something that is evident when you look at their stats as well as when you see them play. Therefore, wearing a shirt like this makes you seem like an overly emotional hockey fan who does not actually know anything about hockey. You're so keen on putting them down because they don't play for your team that you don't realize that their level of play and sportsmanship is actually worthy of a lot of respect.
Second of all, 2 Girls 1 Cup is the kind of viral video that 12 year olds and Stewie and Brian are watching. Nowhere in there is there a witty, clever joke.
Third of all - and this can't be ignored - this T-shirt is incredibly sexist. Why, you may ask? Its use of the feminine, in the words "sisters" and "girls", to indicate weakness and failure. We live in a society surrounded by a culture that views femininity as the furthest thing from what anyone would want to strive for. The reasoning being the popular belief that girls are incapable, that girls will never live up to boys, that girls are passive, that girls are weak, that girls are sexual objects, that girls are not valued. If you don't believe me, then think a little harder to elementary school.
"You throw like a girl."
"You're a sissy."
"You're a pussy."
"Don't cry."
"You're just like a girl."
"Don't be a girl."
"Be a real man."
It's normal for us to hear things like this, which is why so many people wouldn't even notice that something like this T-shirt is sexist. Hell, we live in a world that is sexist and misogynist. Who is to blame us for thinking that these things are ok? We were raised to believe that these things are ok. It would feel natural to just look at a T-shirt like this one and think, "Oh, it's just making fun of the Sedins." But this is a bigger issue. I don't like to be dubbed the person with no sense of humour, but seriously, SERIOUSLY. To be born the gender that society deems of lower class and weaker state was bound to make me a little pissed off at the situation that we as human beings are in. Our language is sexist in that insults directed towards men are often in relation to how close they come to being like 'women.' To be a woman is the ultimate insult, because our society turned femininity into something negative and undesirable. It's fine when girls are masculine, because it means they're tough, they're cool, they can take it. But for a guy to be feminine? It's something to be discouraged, because a feminine guy is all of the above: a sissy, a pussy or, God forbid, a homosexual. All negative in our eyes.
I think it's about time we turned our language around, so that being a girl isn't an insult, so that being a girl is something that is desired, something that we can be proud of. At the same time, being feminine shouldn't take away from a man's masculinity, as the T-shirt is trying to imply. Real men are real men, period. I'm not going to fucking measure their testosterone v.s. estrogen levels, or rate their level of 'masculinity' on their grunting capabilities or their collection of romantic comedies on DVD. I'm not going to call hockey players women just because they don't have a Stanley Cup. For one thing, being a woman and winning a Stanley Cup don't really have any correlation. Unfortunately, women don't play in the NHL, so at the moment, it is technically impossible for a biologically born female to win a Stanley Cup. It is not a question of strength and talent that a woman lacks, it is simply the fact that the NHL is currently a man-only zone. So really, the insult on the T-shirt doesn't actually work as an insult at all.
So the next time someone wears that shirt, tell them "Yes, if they were sisters and girls, they would not win a Stanley Cup. Are you discreetly hinting at the injustice in the gender restricted National Hockey League? What if the Sedins had been born girls? Their talents would have never been known as well as they are now. If they were girls, they would have never made it to the NHL. What does that say about how we judge athletic ability in boys and girls? What does that say about the amount of opportunities we offer boys and girls at the professional level?"
And watch the T-shirt wearer give you a confused look, that you later respond to by congratulating them on their enlightened feminist perspectives. If they still look confused, ask them to take off the shirt because clearly, they didn't intend to say that at all when they decided to put that thing on.
Being feminine and being a girl is not shameful. Being a feminine man or a man who acknowledges his feminine side does not make the man any less a man. You are who you are, and our sexist, binary language shouldn't try to stop us from being so.
So Canuck haters, I welcome your hate. Just don't be sexist about it. I know that sports is full of misogyny, but I think it's about time we grew up and grew out of that. Also, from what I've seen, it's been American hockey fans wearing this T-shirt. I wonder how many of them know about their national women's hockey team, one of the most impressive hockey teams in the world with some of the hardest, fastest, toughest players I've ever seen on the ice. I don't know what it is about female hockey players, but I find them more terrifying than male hockey players. This has nothing to do with gender, and I'm not suggesting that female hockey players are tougher than male hockey players. I think it has more to do with the style of play itself. In women's hockey, there is no body checking. For some reason, this makes the game that much more risky. So, when the women are angry, you know they're genuinely angry. And when they hit someone or body check someone, they're doing it with the knowledge that they will be penalized, and the fact that they're doing it anyway makes them ultimately dangerous. They're in a zone of reckless play that is somehow more genuine than the male equivalent of the sport, where body checking and hits happen constantly without any kind of emotional front.
Anyway, the point I wanted to make as a conclusion to this piece is that the USA national women's hockey team has its own set of twins:
22-year old Jocelyne Lamoureux and Monique Lamoureux-Kolls, often cited as the Sedin twins of women's hockey. They complement each other, their playing styles are near identical and when they are on, they're pretty unstoppable.
I look back at the T-shirt and I really think it could act as a protest shirt. Just replace Sedin with Lamoureux. Why is it that the Lamoureux sisters won't ever win the Stanley Cup or something equal to it, something that is just as valued? Can we turn that around? There's a question to ponder on.
GRANOLA (n., adj. - not the breakfast food): a hippie or a person who lives an organic or environmentally conscious lifestyle, characterized by practices such as growing their own food, making their own clothes, creating their own art, raising their own animals, doing their own drugs, etc.
Example:
ME (after waking up for school): I want to go back to sleep. MOM: Well, it's Monday morning. ME: So? MOM: Get the fuck to school. ME: Ok, ok, let me just make my granola. WHERE'S THE FUCKING MILK??
Shit, that's wrong.
Ok, another example:
ME: Man, I'm starved. STRANGER: I have a bit of my lunch left. Would you like some? ME: No, don't worry about it. I'll pick something up on the way home. STRANGER: Here, I've got a granola bar. Go ahead, take it. ME: Gee, mister, thanks!!!
Shit, I have to practice this particular one a little more. Either that, or I'm just really hungry. Anyway, you get the idea.
You can thank my friends for this word of the day. They used this word to describe the faculty associate of one of the modules in our department, and how they simply could not stand the idea of being in her module because she is such a 'granola.' I honestly do not know how someone being a granola could affect the way they teach you, but whatever.
I tried to act disinterested and nonchalant, because to tell the truth, I have the biggest crush on her (none of my said friends know this). I don't normally find teachers or professors attractive, but when I first saw her, holy shit, I dropped my books and in my head ran the words THAT IS NOT A FUCKING TEACHER, THAT IS NOT A FUCKING TEACHER, THAT IS NOT A FUCKING TEACHER.
I was really tempted to switch modules and join all the other granolas, even though I myself am not a granola. I didn't care - I would shear sheep, raise chickens, eat raw snowpeas, drink hemp milk and become an anarchist for her.
Unfortunately, it would take more than the desire to shear sheep to get into her module. It would take making the application deadline on time, and seeing as semester had already started, I was about 4 months late. Also, she is a professor in her late forties/early fifties, so even if I did get into her module, it wouldn't change the fact that I am a student 30 years younger than she is.
It probably wasn't meant to be, oh well.
I know this is going to sound cheesy, but sometimes, she walks into our classroom and it's the highlight of my day.
That is a quotation from Don Winslow's thriller, Savages, which has recently been adapted into a movie by 3-time Academy Award winner Oliver Stone, to be released July 6th, 2012.
As is indicated in the tag to this post, I've decided to start a segment on queer cinema. Because God knows there's too much heteronormative, mononormative film out there, with plotlines such as:
1. Boy meets girl.
2. Boy is in trouble.
3. Boy rides in fancy cars.
4. Boy sleeps with girl.
5. Boy shoots some people.
6. Girl gets kidnapped.
6. Boy shoots some more people.
7. Boy wins.
OK, so I basically just summarized a typical Jason Statham movie, but you get the idea.
Savages does follow this action-type plotline as well, but the queerness of it comes in the polyamorous nature of its three central characters. The film takes place in Orange County, and follows Ben (Aaron Johnson) and Chon (Taylor Kitsch), best friends who share a pot-growing business worth millions. Their territory becomes challenged by the Mexican Baja cartel, headed by Elena (Salma Hayek) and her accomplice, Lado (Benicio del Toro), who demand that the entrepreneurs sell their drugs through them. Facing resistance from the Americans, the cartel decide to kidnap Ben and Chon's lover, Ophelia "O" (Blake Lively) and hold her for ransom. This sets off a chain of events that sees Ben and Chon going after the cartel. In other words, the shit hits the roof and we get guns, explosions and all the good stuff we expect to see in action movies.
The film was written by its author, Don Winslow, along with Shane Salerno and Oliver Stone. It also stars Emile Hirsch, John Travolta and Uma Thurman.
Feel free to read some of the comments being posted by youtube users. Words like 'slut' and 'whore' get thrown around a lot, as well as calling out the male protagonists for not being 'real men.' It seems that the concept surrounding polyamory is still very foreign to people. Cheating is very familiar - people cheat in real life, people cheat in the movies. When it comes to adultery, we are quick to call women sluts and whores, men pigs and players. It's a human behaviour that is naturally accepted. Yet the concept of open relationships, where all members involved are aware of one another, care and love one another, is somehow sinful and 'unnatural' human behaviour, so to speak. Adultery is OK because it is masked under monogamous disposition, yet polyamory is not OK because it is purposefully so.
It is ironic because we live in a western society that often excuses adultery (ie. the belief that men, by evolution, cannot be monogamous therefore cheating is 'expected'), yet this society also cannot accept polyamory as a healthy relationship orientation. If you're a woman in a polyamorous relationship with one man that you share with other women, then you have somehow been manipulated into it. If you're a woman in a polyamorous relationship with other men, then you are a slut. On the other hand, if you're a man in a polyamorous relationship with many women, then you are a pimp. If you're a man in a polyamorous relationship with a woman that you share with other men, then you are spineless because you won't stake claim and ownership over your woman.
Because relationships, obviously, are all about staking territory belonging to you and you only. Yes, that may work for some people. But it does not work for everyone, and to believe that it does is an ignorant assumption.
It will be interesting to hear how this film is taken by the general public when it is eventually released. It already seems to be generating negative attention from people who believe it to be an unrealistic and unbelievable film. Not because of its blatant glorification of gang violence and drug war, but because of its representation of a polyamorous love story. I would like to think that the misrepresentations in the film come from the former and not the latter.
Polyamory is sometimes an identity, other times a choice. It is very real, and I think it is very important that we eliminate the belief that it is rooted in manipulation and sexual perversion. Yes, it is often linked to negative social realities, such as those associated with the FLDS church, in which children are forced into polygamous marriages. Despite the fact that this religion does define itself by the orientation, polyamory is not defined by this kind of religious corruption. Polyamory amongst consenting people is entirely acceptable, much in the same way that monogamy amongst consenting people is entirely acceptable. As long as they are not breaking any laws, people have the right to live the way they want with whomever they want, loving however many people they want.
I didn't mean to use this movie as an excuse to rant about political correctedness regarding polyamory, but yeah, I kind of meant to.
This is a list that you probably will not find anywhere in the world, which is why I decided to compile it. Also, I was bored. Also, I was listening to music, and became quirkily inspired. Is that a word, quirkily? (It probably isn't)
Anyway, I was listening to some local music, and I began to thinking that the musically-inclined guys of Vancouver don't get enough love. So here it is, a list of Vancouver's 15 sexiest male musicians ie. a shameless excuse to look at photographs of dudes from your neighbourhood.
So you can stop watching Rebecca Black's "Friday" video wishing that your Friday was a little more fun fun fun. Your wishing days are over - I just made your night a little sexier. You're welcome.
15. DAN MANGAN
the west coast poet.
14. JASPER SLOAN YIP
the sleek hipster.
13. DANIEL WESLEY
the harmonious aphrodisiac.
12. JOSEPH BLOOD (OF BEND SINISTER)
the metrosexual string playa.
11/10. ANDREW HUCULIAK & CAYNE MCKENZIE (OF WE ARE THE CITY)
the boys that you *hope are legal.
(*Disclaimer: I am still unsure on the state of their ages. So if you come across one of them, please take precautions. **Thank you).
(**Although, when you think about it, they are at least technically legal in at least a couple provinces, so really, it depends on how you ***define it).
(***Let's just make this easier for all of us and assume that they are legal).
9. AIDAN KNIGHT
the sentimental soul.
8/7. TOM DOBRZANSKI & ZACHARY GRAY (OF THE ZOLAS)
the expert underwear picker-uppers.
6/5. DAVID VERTESI & DAVID BECKINGHAM (of HEY OCEAN!)
the pretty boys in the rain.
4. TYLER BANCROFT (OF SAID THE WHALE)
*HNGGHHHH.
(*translates to: Tyler Bancroft is so hot I would give up girls for him. Maybe).
3. EDO VAN BREEMEN (OF BRASSTRONAUT)
the ivory philosopher.
2. VINCE VACCARO
#*/%@$>?#$@^/$&<#/?@&>?$%&^#$*@!!!!!
(censored due to its blatant objectification and undressing of Vince Vaccaro).
....and #1 is......
..........................
(drumroll please)
..........................
1. RYAN GULDEMOND (OF MOTHER MOTHER)
the innovative frontman.
You may ask yourself now, how is it that we're able to make them so good here?
The answer is in the water, the mountains, and the weed.
