Lashings of Afternoon Linkspam

Posted by Lashings of Ginger Beer Time

Sorry - kaberett is critically incapable of finding cheerful news at the moment, it turns out. On the plus side, lots to read this week...

Let's start out with "equal marriage": Zoe provides a trans-focussed critique at Complicity, while Meg Barker writes about opportunities opened up and shut down from a bi perspective. In international news that might well make you weep [content note: terminal illness], when DOMA was struck down in the USA, John Arthur and Jim Obergefell flew from Ohio to Maryland to get married. A federal judge has now ordered Ohio officials to recognise the marriage.

In disability and sickness news, we've got an analysis of DWP's slating of ATOS, the company responsible for carrying out the appalling Work Capability Assessments. Black Girl Dangerous writes that disease is not a metaphor - a cutting critique of ableist language. And from the history corner, let's take Suicide Is Not Beautiful, from Nursing Clio [content notes: specifics of individual suicides].

Lots has been happening in terms of politics this week - and one of the things we've seen most talked about is porn blocking. [CONTENT NOTES FOR THIS PARAGRAPH: child sexual abuse; rape and rape culture.] A CSA survivor gives their perspective on this proposal - with a lot of excellent onward links for further reading. Dave I/O covers the technical side of things in an article entitled the proposed UK porn filter is a threat, not a safeguard. The Open Rights Group has even more technical details, garnered from discussions with ISPs asked to implement this technology. There is a direct.gov.uk petition asking the government to drop these plans.

More: fees for employment tribunals begin - up to £1200 in cases of unfair dismissal. To be paid by the complainant. And the police are set to get sweeping new powers of dispersal.

[Content note: racism; Trayvon Martin case] postbourgie takes a look at black youth culture: In the Face of Respectability.

Turning to Zoe at Complicity again, let's have a critique of the Twitter abuse button - it's designed to be abused.

And finally, let's turn to some slightly less horrifying conversations:

• In psychology news, they finally tested the Prisoner's Dilemma -- and the results are "not what you would expect"
• Is Gender-Flipping the Most Important Meme Ever?
• Gender discrimination to be removed from Medicare (USA) -- specifically, trans and intersex people will no longer have to disclose their gender/history in order to access treatment.
• The Lithuanian Supreme Court makes a binding decision in favour of Baltic Pride. (If you need a safer space to discuss Russia, please feel encouraged to use comments here.)

What have you been reading, writing, or thinking this week?