With white-on-white crime, you don't hear white people supporting the perpetrator out of same-race sympathy.

And if a white celebrity/athlete was accused of the animal mistreatment that Vick allegedly did, then the same (white?) groups - PETA & other animal-rights supporters - would be out there calling for his/her white dog-killing head on a platter.

I always thought this was interesting as well: the majority of black women polled supported OJ Simpson, even when they were informed that Simpson had not only beat his second (white) wife, but had also beat/abused his first (black) wife.

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My point/question (as a person who is neither black nor white) comes back to this: does blindly giving allegiance to black celebrities who are charged with crimes (regardless of the situation, guilt, etc.) - as a response to slavery & racism - ultimately help or hurt the black community?

And has anyone in the community ever dared to ask this?

Let me get this straight:

1.) In your opinion: The only people who should be allowed to model in various states of undress MUST NOT ONLY be over age 18, but also must "look" over age 18 (according to YOUR arbitrary evaluation)?

So then Scarlett Johannson, Topher Grace, Elijah Wood, Alessandra Ambrosio and many other actors & models - who are actually adults but can easily pass for 16 year-olds - are photographed in, say, in semi-nude states -- then this is all automatically child porn??!?!

I am 29. When I am clean shaven, I'm so 16-ish I could get carded for frickin' cigarettes. If I post a photo of my shaven/babyfaced self in swim trunks on the Net, am I posting kiddie porn (and should therefore be arrested)?!?!?

2.) Why exactly is the 18th birthday automatically the Mason-Dixon line for child porn versus legitimate photo, anyway?

Is a picture of, I dunno, Kristin Kreuk in a bikini at age 17 years, 364 days perverted child porn while a picture of her 3 days later a legitimate photo of a woman?

At 17, I had many male and female friends - kids who ran cross country, etc. - who were about as thin as the girl in the photo. They were skinny, of course - but not anorexic or unhealthy.

So do you believe that there should be a minimum BMI for models? And what should that index value be?

Should the only people allowed to model have love handles and double chins so as to not alarm the rest of us...or make us feel oh so bad about ourselves?

So you are saying we just need to offer "better alternatives" to the religious psychopaths who believe in/justify honor killing?

Sure. At the same time, why don't we just offer "better alternatives" to pedophile Catholic priests who have an undeniable "passion" for molesting their young altar boys?

And "better alternatives" for the fundie Mormon dad that, from his religion, has this huge passion for marrying and impregnating 12-year old girls?

Or "better alternatives" to the Ghanan man who has a cultural passion and so demands that his young daughters' genitals be mutilated?

***************

Your wonderfully idealist approach simply would not work. What do you believe counts as an ACCEPTABLE "better alternative" to honor killing that you think would placate them, anyway?

He can punch his daughter's face in and lash her back several times - but not kill her?

He can throw boiling water on her, brand her with the mark that says "Whore" and banish her from the village - but not kill her?

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There is only one way to deal with psychopathic actions such as murdering your own child out of passion/love for your religion - the punitive way.

As in : you commit an honor killing, you go to jail for life. (Or the death sentence).

If this approach was feasible to be enforced in Pakistan etc., I think there would magically be a whole lot less Muslim dads practicing and justifying honor killing.

Life is precious - and it is more important than Religious Passion. To surrender to the opposite argument is to fail your fellow human beings.

Too bad you and the other relativists out there are so blind to this...

**sighhh**

Virtually ALL of my female friends (as well as myself and many male pals) - mid-to-late 20's, educated working professionals, different races/backgrounds, some married, some single, some somewhere in between - enjoy cooking.

Many of them find it actually calming instead of stressful...indeed, it is a way to unwind after work. Furthermore, they enjoy the challenges that creating good food brings - as well as the opportunities for innovation (adding a little onion here or citrus zest there) and creativity.

Finally, for all of us (male and female) in my circle, cooking great food at home ends up usually being a cheaper and tastier proposition than dining out. And no - none of us have "designer"-level kitchens or appliances; in place of Calphalon & Sub-Zero, we use basic pans from Target and our landlord's appliances...whatever was on sale at Lowe's =).

My point is that it is ridiculous for feminists to make sweeping generalizations like the "mushroom stuffing" comment. There are liberated women out there who actively choose to include/welcome the kitchen and cooking as part of their space and lives respectively - and they are no less empowered or feminist because of it. Quite the opposite, actually!