Links - 1st March 2017

'Feminist' Snow-Plowing System Brings Stockholm to a Standstill - "A new system, suggested by progressive politicians in the Swedish city, tore up tried and tested snow plow routes and diverted them to areas said to be used more by women. But the inevitable consequence was that other spaces – like main roads – were clogged up for longer, and it became impossible to get around. Public transport failed, traffic piled up and injuries requiring a hospital visit reportedly spiked. The disaster struck despite a $270,000 increase in this year’s snow removal budget meant to help the new system succeed. The “gender equal” strategy came in last year after politicians in the Swedish Green Party argued that the old way of clearing major roads in central areas favours men, who are more likely to work in the city, and get there by car... Indeed, almost a week later buses are still struggling to run, and some 1,700 public transport passengers are planning to sue. Progressive politicians have gone on the defensive, with the MP who suggested it claiming that the snow plows hadn’t executed the “gender-equal” plan properly. Despite efforts to defend it, the plan has become a laughing stock. Even liberal publications like Stockholm’s Dagens Nyheter published this mocking listicle of “9 alternatives to feminist snow removal”, including Satanic snow removal (“melt the snow with burning crosses”) and Neoliberal snow removal (“the invisible hand of the market will move it”)."

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BBC Radio 4 - In Our Time, Harriet Martineau - "[On Malthus] Sexual restraint and delayed marriage is the answer to that problem... he certainly does not support birth control and neither does Martineau... the attraction for Martineau is it's another one fo those fixed laws governing the universe that has been revealed by Malthus's enquiry. And she seizes on it with alacrity, really. But the problem with it of course is that it appears to punish the poor for their poverty. Where Malthus sees himself as benevolent and Martineau sees herself as benevolent, to her critics, this is denying the poor man the blessing of a family life and it flies in the face of Biblical injunction, you know God's message to Noah to go forth and multiply and replenish the earth, so it flies in the face of that...
This idea of slavery as deforming... not just the character but deforming the character of the person tyranising over the slave"

Tataouine, town in Tunisia that inspired Star Wars, becomes Isis waypoint – reports - "The town’s name inspired George Lucas for the name of Luke Skywalker’s home planet of Tatooine, and die-hard fans often make pilgrimages to the sets elsewhere in the country. But the town has reportedly become increasingly unsafe, as it is a waypoint for Isis fighters travelling to and from training bases in Libya, 60 miles to the east"
Tataouine is not a planet on the Outer Rim

Germany's Phantom Serial Killer: A DNA Blunder - TIME - "The murderer dubbed the Phantom of Heilbronn had been baffling German investigators for two years. The criminal was a rarity, a female serial killer, and a very busy one: police had linked DNA evidence from 40 crimes — including the infamous homicide of a policewoman in the southern German town of Heilbronn — to the same woman... This raised suspicions that the DNA found at all the Phantom's crime scenes might be traced to a single innocent factory worker, probably employed to package the swabs...Stefan König of the Berlin Association of Lawyers says the case of the phantom Phantom illustrates the risks of basing an investigation solely on DNA evidence. "DNA analysis is a perfect tool for identifying traces," he says. "What we need to avoid is the assumption that the producer of the traces is automatically the culprit. Judges tend to be so blinded by the shiny, seemingly perfect evidence of DNA traces that they sometimes ignore the whole picture. DNA evidence on a crime scene says nothing about how it got there. There is good reason for not permitting convictions on the basis of DNA circumstantial evidence alone.""

The Independent - Man convicted of rape for taking off condom during sex - "The landmark decision by the Criminal Court in Lausanne, Switzerland, determined that having sex without a condom constituted rape if the use of one was expected."
Comments: "Every time a woman says she's on the pill but not, every time a woman says she's on a safe day, every time she says she's "clean" should be met with the same treatment if it can be proven."
"the guy told the girl that his .. is big and she agreed . They went on and started having sex, the she realised he has a micro ... is this a rape too?"

The Difference Between Bluetooth 3.0, 4.0, 4.1, & 4.2 Explained

Doctors admonish us to leave earwax alone. Why won’t anyone listen? - “When you put it on the inside of your ear and move it around, it feels nice, it becomes a sensual thing. You become like a drug addict, a cigarette smoker”

Swiss town denies passport to vegan anti-cowbell campaigner 'for being annoying' - "In Switzerland, local residents have a say in a person’s passport application. Ms Holten’s first attempt at naturalisation was made in 2015, when she was approved by local authorities but rejected by 144 out of 206 residents in a vote... Tanja Suter, the president of the local Swiss People’s Party, claimed Ms Holten has a “big mouth” and residents had not wanted to give her the gift of citizenship “if she annoys us and doesn’t respect our traditions”."

Muslim girls must swim with boys in Switzerland, European court rules after parents refuse classes - "A panel of seven judges found that freedom of religion had been “interfered with” but that the move was legitimised by the aim of “social integration”... the move was legitimate as it was “seeking to protect foreign pupils from any form of social exclusion”. “The Court observed that school played a special role in the process of social integration, and one that was all the more decisive where pupils of foreign origin were concerned,” a statement said. “The children’s interest in a full education, thus facilitating their successful social integration according to local customs and mores, prevailed over the parents’ wish to have their children exempted from mixed swimming lessons”... the claimants had refused offers by local authorities for their daughters to wear “burkinis” for the lessons and ensure they changed with no boys present... Germany's highest court made a similar ruling in December"

Switzerland: Muslim students must shake teacher's hand - "A controversial exemption from the tradition had been granted for two teenage brothers whose interpretation of the Koran meant they were unwilling to touch a member of the opposite sex... Some Swiss Muslim groups said there was no religious justification for refusing to shake a female teacher's hand and urged the Swiss not to give in to extremist demands. But one Islamic organisation said a handshake between men and women was prohibited. The family's citizenship process was halted and the migration office in Basel said it was seeking more information about the circumstances under which the boys' father's asylum request was approved... The boys told Swiss media (in German) that "nobody could make them" shake hands with a woman, and that they "could not just delete their culture as if it were a hard drive"."

The Battle Of Marignano: The Reason For (Almost) 500 Years Of Swiss Neutrality - "[There was] an immediate peace with the French with long-term implications. The treaty had an “Eternal Peace” clause saying that neither France nor Switzerland would ever fight the other, and they would never ally with the other’s enemies"

Why I decided to give up my life in London and become a goat in Switzerland - "'Also the goats didn't seem to like me very much, sometimes I thought they were really going to try and attack me. And they have particularly dangerous horns. 'But I later realised that they were just letting me know there was a hierarchy, and I should know my place.' Thwaites said: 'The best moment was when one of the goats suddenly decided she was going to be my friend, and she just followed me everywhere... as he was not keen on meat he decided against becoming a dog. Thwaites said the idea of 'being an elephant had appealed' but then he realised they 'seem to have the same problems we do - they get sad, they get upset and they can even suffer from post-traumatic stress. That was exactly the sort of thing I was trying to get away from'... He applied for a university grant to study goat psychology... 'I could then strap this bag to my torso and spit chewed up grass into one opening and suck the cultured microbes and volatile fatty acids out another opening like a milkshake, so I can digest them in my true stomach and live off grass in the Alps like a goat,' he said. 'I learned something important, and that is that even goats have a hard life and need to fight for their existence. Every day was tough, and that is something that just is part of being alive."

People having sex with horses is on the rise in Switzerland

Swiss makes Muslims cross over billboard ads - "Alluding to its logo, taken from Switzerland’s national flag, the slogan says in German, “Kreuz ist Trumpf”, literally, the “cross is trumps”, or the “cross is a plus”. The words are used in a billboard campaign, launched within the country last month, that highlights the white cross on the back of one of its planes. Muslims in Switzerland have responded negatively to the advertising, which they believe promotes Christianity over other religions."

Hong Kong outrage over Chinese subtitle switch - "Hong Kong officials received more than 10,000 complaints in three days after a popular TV programme began subtitling output in the Chinese characters associated with mainland China. Hong Kong uses traditional Chinese script as opposed to the mainland's simplified characters. The broadcaster, TVB, defended the move, saying Hong Kong is an international city... violence erupted in the city's working-class neighbourhood of Mong Kok when authorities tried to clear illegal food hawkers, who are seen as an integral part of local culture."

Swiss railway launches special trains for Chinese tourists following complaints of rude behavior - "Inside these special trains, the toilets will reportedly be cleaned more often and signs will be posted "showing how to use them correctly.""

Sexual assistants - the stigma of helping disabled Swiss - "Arnould has been giving disabled people in Switzerland the right to a little tenderness and sexual attention. But for many, his work as a professional "sexual assistant" treads a thin line between a caring profession and prostitution... Sexual assistants can also be found in the Netherlands, Germany and Denmark but in other countries, such as France, the job does not yet have a proper legal status. French disabled rights groups have repeatedly raised the issue in the last year, urging official recognition for sex assistants and, significantly, state funding for their services... Although prostitutes do receive disabled clients, sexual assistants are better viewed by "parents and heads of institutions", according to Diserens at the charity SEHP. The reason, she said, is that handicapped clients may need "more time and contact" than they get with prostitutes who can be rather "troubled" by certain disabilities. Using a recognised sexual assistant removes the awkwardness of the situation for both parties, and often for the family too, noted Arnould. "Is it acceptable that the mother of a young man with Downs syndrome has to help him masturbate every week?" he asked."

Why are female CEOs and senators disproportionately blond? Blame sexism. - "people are better able to stomach a female leader if they perceive her to be gentler, less demanding, and weaker-willed than her dark- or gray-haired peers—aligns with earlier research on black men in positions of power. A study published in 2009 found that black male Fortune 500 CEOs were more likely to have baby-faced traits (a round face, large forehead, and smaller nose) than their peer CEOs, while a previous study showed that white men are less likely to make it to top spots in business if they had those traits. Researchers posited that people felt more comfortable with a black man in charge if he had a “disarming,” “nonthreatening” appearance. White men seem to be the only ones who can’t look or act too threatening for their positions of power, probably because we’re used to seeing them there"

Blondes might actually be smarter than those with other hair colors - "Researchers looked at the IQs of 10,878 Americans and found that white women who claim that their natural hair color is blonde have an average IQ score that is slightly above the average IQ of brunettes, redheads and those with black hair"

Dying Hair Blonde Makes Women Feel Sexier, More Confident, Study Finds - "A Tresemmé survey of 3,000 women has found that three-quarters of women who dyed their hair blonde felt sexier and more glamorous afterward, the Daily Mail reports. The bottle blondes also enjoyed a boost in confidence and a "better outlook" on life, suggesting that it wasn't just their locks that were lightened. Going back to brown, however, appears to be less joyous. Four out of 10 natural brunettes confessed to regretting going back to their roots after dabbling with the light side."

Germans must ban ALCOHOL to prevent further sex attacks and help migrants integrate - "Germany needs to ban alcohol if it wants to prevent further sexual violence and to help North African migrants integrate into society, a Muslim pressure group has claimed. Commenting on the Cologne sex-attack controversy, MuslimStern, which has 20,000 followers on Facebook, said its mission was to 'highlight the way the media was using the incidents to promote racism against minorities'. The group complained that the female victims had brought the unwanted attention to themselves by dressing in a manner that North African men were not accustomed to... Cologne's Muslim preacher Imam Sami Abu-Yusuf, who blamed women wearing perfume for the fact they were assaulted over the New Year, went on to justify it by saying that alcohol had taken away the restrictions of 'men from North Africa'. He also added that the sex attackers were 'from North Africa', unlike Salafists like himself who are mostly from India and the Middle East"

Rapes By Migrants in German Swimming Pools are Surging, Police Quietly Admit - "German police have quietly conceded that the influx of Middle Eastern and African migrants into the country has led to a spike in grisly rapes at public swimming pools. Officers in the nation – under strain from some 1 million new arrivals welcomed in by Chancellor Angela Merkel – warned of the surge in a private briefing. But the message was leaked to German tabloid Bild"

Mocked for its laughable definition of 'sexual coercion,' university yanks policy from website - "If you told someone at Clark University last month that you’d have sex with someone else if they didn’t have sex with you, that person could initiate a sexual assault proceeding against you... The “sexual offenses policy,” last updated Oct. 3, still appears to allow students to bring complaints if their sex-deprived partners say they will get sex from someone else... The Foundation for Individual Rights in Education says Clark’s allegedly outdated policy is far from alone among universities"

At the University of Oregon, no more free speech for professors on subjects such as race, religion, sexual orientation - "Now when you hear “harassment,” you might think of, say, targeted insults, or perhaps sexual extortion. But “harassment” has become a vastly broader term than that: Simply wearing a costume that offends people based on race is, according to the university, “harassment”... the university’s position makes clear that even isolated statements are punishable. Here, after all, there was one professor wearing one costume. Yet because that led other people to criticize (or defend) the costume, the professor’s one-time speech was labeled “harassment” and treated as being punishable."

You can be fined for not calling people ‘ze’ or ‘hir,’ if that’s the pronoun they demand that you use - "So people can basically force us — on pain of massive legal liability — to say what they want us to say, whether or not we want to endorse the political message associated with that term, and whether or not we think it’s a lie... We can’t be required to even display a license plate that says “Live Free or Die” on our car, if we object to the message; that’s what the court held in Wooley v. Maynard (1978). But New York is requiring people to actually say words that convey a message of approval of the view that gender is a matter of self-perception rather than anatomy, and that, as to “ze,” were deliberately created to convey that a message... what if some people insist that their title is “Milord,” or “Your Holiness”?"
Breitbart covered this story and lots of people were dismissing it. But Eugene Volokh is not so easily ignored