Links - 26th September 2018 (1)

Massachusetts Republican beats trans driver’s license bill by forcing votes on all 73 genders - "Lyons told Carr he settled on demanding recognition for 73 different “genders,” as that was the number he reached by tallying the number of custom gender options Facebook offers. Knowing that his liberal colleagues couldn’t rule any of the genders out of order without undermining the logic of transgender ideology, Lyons introduced each as a separate amendment to the bill the evening of July 31, each requiring 10 minutes of debate and three minutes to vote on."

Beer Ramen Is Now A Thing In Canada And We Don't Know How To Feel About It - "the noodles aren’t actually doused in frothy beer. Instead, the “beer” is a refreshing cold broth made from bonito flakes. And the layer of foam on top is simply a combination of egg whites and gelatin"

Welfare dependence from one generation to the next - "Although an extensive literature has documented intergenerational correlations in welfare receipt, there is little evidence on whether this relationship is causal. Do benefit schemes create a culture of dependency within families? This column finds that children of parents in the Netherlands who were pushed out of disability insurance following a reform were less likely to participate in the programme as adults. The fiscal spillovers from these intergenerational links have a sizable effect on the government’s long-term budget."

WATCH: NSW Police tell Lauren Southern she's not allowed to walk down a street with a Mosque on it: 'You're not welcome...' - "A NSW Police Inspector has told Lauren Southern not to approach a Sydney Mosque because her presence would likely cause a “breach of the peace.” When Southern asked the Inspector why her presence would cause a breach of the peace, the officer said “because it’s highly religious down there.” “Would it be me causing a breach of the peace or would it be the people there?” Southern asked."

Female Home Office staff refuse to use £36,000 gender-neutral toilets - "Women have been avoiding new £36,000 gender-neutral lavatories at the Home Office because men are leaving their cubicle doors open while they’re inside... ‘By attempting to be inclusive towards a very small number of trans-identifying people, companies and public authorities have actually made conditions significantly worse for women – as nearly everyone predicted would happen. ‘We hate to have to state the obvious, but men and women – and boys and girls – need separate, single-sex toilets. This is something women fought hard for in the past – and still fight for in parts of the developing world today.’"

German prosecutors probe Yazidi woman's claim about IS man - "German prosecutors said Saturday they are taking seriously a Yazidi refugee’s claim that she ran into her former Islamic State captor twice in Germany, but say they need more information to identify him. The case of 19-year-old Ashwaq Haji Hami made headlines this week after she was quoted telling the Iraqi-Kurdish news portal basnews that she returned to her homeland of Iraq for fear that her alleged tormentor could harm her in Germany. Several reports in foreign media suggested that German authorities were unwilling to act on the woman’s claims."

Starting a business much harder than 'entrepreneurship porn' seems - "many ambitious young Americans today would be better off working for an established company than trying to build their own business. And yet many of these young Americans are hypnotized by stories of entrepreneurs who, against the odds, made it big. Even if they're not prepared — personally or professionally — to launch a business, they forge ahead anyway... passion can mislead you into thinking you're readier to start a company than you are, or make you believe that your idea is more valuable than it is. "

Beethoven: An unlikely hero in China - ""Beethoven's story matched Chinese ideals of perseverance, and "fit into Chinese culture -- [for example] my parents always said, you have to 'chi ku' -- only if you eat bitter, you can be better"... the end of the Cultural Revolution was signaled to the country in 1977 via a live radio broadcast of a Chinese orchestra playing a Beethoven symphony."

Thailand airports open new VIP lanes for Chinese tourists, but not for visitors from HK or Taiwan - "Netizens from Hong Kong and Taiwan have actually applauded the move. “I don’t have to worry about people cutting in line or getting knocked over by suitcases anymore,” one web user celebrated. “I’ve never been more happy about not being able to use a VIP line,” commented another."

Toronto man denied subsidized housing for not being Muslim - ""The vision of this community includes providing housing for households in which at least one person is a member of Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama’at. This means if none of the individuals of your household are a member … you will be removed from the waiting list."... Gosgnach said the same provision allows other groups to do the same “including seniors, artists, aboriginal, homeless/hard-to-house, individuals with AIDS and ethnic and religious groups including Christian and individuals of Lithuanian, Macedonian, Greek, Chinese, Hungarian and German origin.”"

Utah teacher Brianne Altice defends relationship with teenage student - "A teacher who was jailed after she admitted sexual contact with three of her students has reportedly defended her relationship with one of the victims, saying she helped to improve his grades... The original complaint alleged that the school’s management was told about Altice’s inappropriate behaviour with her male students, but did not act on the information. The school has denied officials had any knowledge of what was going on."

Muslim couple denied Swiss citizenship over no handshake - "A Muslim couple have been denied Swiss citizenship after they refused to shake hands with people of the opposite sex during their interview, officials say. They confirmed the decision on Friday, further citing the couple's failure to integrate and respect gender equality. The couple, interviewed months ago, also struggled to answer questions by members of the opposite sex... "The constitution and equality between men and women prevails over bigotry," said Pierre-Antoine Hilbrand, who was part of the commission that interviewed the couple. This not the first time refused handshakes have stirred controversy in Switzerland. In 2016, a Swiss school decided to exempt two Muslim boys from shaking both male and female teachers' hands after they refused to shake hands with a female teacher. The news caused uproar and led to the family's citizenship process being suspended. In neighbouring France, an Algerian woman was denied citizenship after refusing to shake the hand of an official during her citizenship ceremony."

Sweden Muslim woman who refused handshake at job interview wins case - "A Swedish Muslim woman has won compensation after her job interview was ended when she refused a handshake. Farah Alhajeh, 24, was applying for a job as an interpreter when she declined to shake the hand of a male interviewer for religious reasons. She placed her hand over her heart in greeting instead... handshakes are traditional in Europe... The interpreting company in Ms Alhajeh's home town of Uppsala had argued that its staff were required to treat men and women equally and could not allow a staff member to refuse a handshake based on gender. But the discrimination ombudsman said she had tried to avoid upsetting anyone by placing her hand over her heart when greeting both men and women. Sweden's labour court found the company was justified in demanding equal treatment for both sexes - but not in demanding that it be in the form of a handshake only."
Looks like Switzerland is more feminist than Sweden (while de jure non-discriminatory her form of greeting was clearly motivated by not wanting to shake hands with men). Maybe the company can sue clients who don't want an interpreter who won't shake hands

Muslim job applicant who refused handshake wins discrimination case in Sweden - "if she is meeting only with women, she might shake hands, she said... In 2016, a Muslim member of the Green Party withdrew his candidacy for a seat in the party's leadership after he was publicly criticised for refusing to shake hands with women, including a television journalist who was going to interview him. "I stand for equality among people," Stefan Lofven, the prime minister, told Parliament in April 2016, according to the newspaper Svenska Dagbladet. "For me, it's the same as women and men having the same opportunities. It also means that in Sweden, we greet each other. One shakes hands with both men and women.""
Here we can see that her de jure non-discriminatory form of greeting was obviously motivated by discriminatory impulses

Angry Protesters Keep Heat On Brooklyn Nail Salon: 'Black Dollars Matter!' - "Several dozen demonstrators called on Flatbush residents to put their dollars into black-owned businesses and sign a petition to permanently shut down a nail salon where a grandmother and her two granddaughters were seen on video beaten with a broomstick and doused with acetone after a payment dispute... More than 50 protesters, most of them African-American and led by community activist Carol Branch, gathered outside the still-shuttered storefront seeking 3,000 signatures for a petition calling on Governor Andrew Cuomo to permanently shut down the business. On August 3rd, Christina Thomas, her grandmother and another relative were attacked by multiple salon workers for refusing to pay $5 for a botched eyebrow waxing... Thomas, 21, was also arrested for punching, slapping and dragging another salon worker across the floor... State Assemblywoman Diana C. Richardson, whose district includes Flatbush, went on Facebook Live on Tuesday morning and classified the altercation as a "hate crime."... A handful of demonstrators caused a brief ruckus when they stopped at another unrelated nail salon calling on those customers to leave and put their money into black-owned businesses."
It seems "anti-blackness" is expecting black people to pay for services consumed and anti-racism is about patronising businesses because of race

Why shouldn’t straight actors play gay characters? - "Who exactly are the media referring to when they refer to the LGBT community? Two stories this week confirm that, usually, they just mean a few hysterical types on Twitter. It has been reported that ‘the community’ is appalled by the casting of two actors in gay roles. The actors haven’t even learned their lines yet, but LGBT people are already supposedly ‘threatened’ and ‘upset’... Without having seen a second of the film, some seem to have decided that Whitehall will be playing an offensive caricature, and that it would be far better for a gay man to play that offensive caricature. Then it was announced that Orange is the New Black star Ruby Rose is going to play Batwoman in a new TV series. Batwoman has been a lesbian in the comics for some time. But while Rose is gay, she’s also ‘genderfluid’, leading some enraged tweeters to insist she’s not ‘gay enough’ to play the role. Others took issue with the fact Rose isn’t Jewish, as Batwoman is. Rose left Twitter this week, in response to the non-stop vitriol she received. The comments have been remarkable. People are honestly arguing that only gay people can play gay roles (that is, if they’re ‘gay enough’). But the whole point of acting is pretending to be, and empathising with, someone you are not. What’s more, demanding that LGBT roles be played by LGBT people will only ghettoise acting, making type-casting for LGBT actors more, not less, likely. After all, if a straight man can’t possibly understand what it is like to be a gay man, doesn’t that cut both ways?... There is a recent trend whereby blockbusters hype up queer characters purely for the headlines and progressive cred. Often, audiences then find out that a character isn’t even as gay as they were led to believe. Lando Calrissian (from the new Solo film) was said to be pansexual, the Yellow Power Ranger in the latest Power Ranger movie was supposed to be a lesbian. But in both cases their sexuality only ever amounted to a couple of nods and winks. Studios are now being bitten by their own identitarian PR strategy. But, in the end, most LGBT people, like most people, have far bigger things to worry about than some Hollywood casting decisions."
Of course, it is good for straight characters to be played by LGBT characters. And that LGBTs are overrrepresented in the industry

There may be some truth to the ‘gay jobs’ stereotype - "There is an unusually high concentration of gay or lesbian workers in certain occupations. For example, both gay men and lesbians and are overrepresented in psychology, law, social work, and university teaching. And there are real occupational patterns behind some popular stereotypes, from the gay flight attendant to the lesbian truck driver."
Of course, this is explained as a response to discrimination

Anne Hathaway's comments on white privilege are dividing opinion - "White people- including me, including you- must take into the marrow of our privileged bones the truth that ALL black people fear for their lives DAILY in America and have done so for GENERATIONS."
"You're wrong. I don't fear for my life every day, and it is disingenuous for you to make such statements on my behalf. However, I DO fear running out of coffee every day. That shit is terrifying. In the future, please speak for yourself only. Thanks."
"This white savior complex has got to stop guys please stop please please make it stop."
"News flash #annehathaway “ALL black” people don’t fear for their lives daily. You don’t speak for me. I don’t have a victim mentality. And stop it with the white guilt. Listen up Hollywood liberals this white v. black rhetoric has gotten old, it’s past the expiration date"

Detroit Rep. Bettie Cook Scott on Asian opponent: 'Don't vote for the ching-chong!'
Friend: "reminds me of how the only racism i ever experienced in my time in England was from a black teenager."