Excuse me, but does Alex know you're turning his column into a tabloid trashcan while he's gone? Why the hell is this on here? WHAT THE HELL BUSINESS IS THIS OF ANYBODY'S??

Christ, I'm sick of supposedly "serious" people being obsessed by the private LEGAL NON-CRIMINAL doings of adults. Get your minds out of the gutter, already!

If you're judging the question by what you see on blogs, then you're making the same mistake that so many people on the internet make. The web attracts people who want to speak their opinions in an anonymous forum, where they can say what they want without the consequences of face-to-face encounters. (Certainly that's one of the purposes it serves for me.) But that means that you're also going to see a lot of opinions that are marginal, or extreme, or colored by that anonymity, i.e., venting, ranting, and the kind of all-around bitching that society frowns upon in face-to-face situations. The upshot is that you're forming a view of an entire sector based on reading a small segment of opinions. Not a realistic analysis, that.

The proportion of "man-hating" or bitter or unhappy feminists online is naturally going to be much higher than in the actual real world, because that's one of the things the internet is for, at least as it is used today. The feminists who are pretty happy with their lives, don't have the kind of bitter attitudes the trolls here are so fond of crowing about, or are actively engaged in real feminist work (as opposed to just typing about feminism in the internet echo chamber) generally don't spend their time bitching online about how awful the world is. If you want to see the real face of feminism, shut off the computer and go talk to some real women. Your view of the category will change; that is, if your expectations haven't been colored by what you've seen online, which is certainly a possibility.

You and your staff certainly seem to have been doing a great deal of judging on this issue, Joan. It's far too late to try stuffing the slavering tabloid genie back in the bottle now.

You sound like a horrendous bitch, all right. Glad we cleared that up.

Not really my problem though, since I've never understood the affinity for sports that so many people seem to have. To me, physical activity is something to do, not watch. I could never see what enjoyment might be had in sitting on one's ass while somebody else has the fun. Pointless.

What is it with you guys and your "oh we MUST talk about" whatever stupid MSM-drivne horseshit is dominating the airwaves this week? Salon pretends to be so with-it and above the sordid fray, yet you slaver over these non-issues with the same bloodthirsty glee as every other Perez Hilton wanna-be.

If you want to trumpet your lack of imagination and integrity, then do so honestly. Cut out the sanctimonious breast-beating, because nobody's buying it.

This is what I don't get: when people protest the use of an offensive word by a character, when the whole point of him using the word is to show that he's an asshole. What, are we supposed to pretend that there aren't people in the world who use words like that? Are movies supposed to take place in some candy-colored paradise where nobody is a racist, or bigoted, or cruel, or mean-spirited? What in the world kind of pasty, uninteresting slop will we end up with if every word and gesture must be vetted by the organizations of professional complainers that lurk around every corner these days, waiting to pounce on any unsuspecting passerby?

Whenever people complain about things like this, all I can think of is the whiny little customer in Clerks: "I don't think an apology is sufficient. You've HIGHLY OFFENDED me!"

I disagree. Things like simple memorization, addition and subtraction, etc. are not "lower functions" but basic mental activities that, far from taking energy away from "higher" functions, create the foundation for the ability to perform more complicated tasks. Sure your calculater can add more quickly. But you have to be able to add yourself in order to do more complicated equations. Something similar is people who scoff at supposed "grammar nazis". Well, basic grammar is important - if you can't construct a correct sentence, how are you going to craft a coherent paragraph, or essay, or book?

I think we've gotten far more addicted to "convenience" than is at all good for us. For every convenience, we give up a freedom, an ability, an independent function. The easier things get, the dumber, less able and and less self-sufficient we get. Eventually we'll end up with machines doing everything, mental and physical, for us. What's to indicate we're human then?

You're wasting your breath. Broadsheet writers want to have their cake and eat it too. They supposedly want to be respected as "journalists", but at the same time they want to write breezy gossip pieces and lip-flappery in the style of teen-mag "OMG-SO-serious!" pieces. That way, when female bloggers get dissed, they can whine about how they aren't taken seriously.

Childish, but there you are.

P.S. Another voice for THIS IS NEWS?? I've known about Julia Child's spy career for, oh, thirty years or so. But again, another indication of the narcissistic nature of this column. They can't be bothered to do basic research, and thus embarrass themselves on a regular basis. Places like this give feminism a bad name. Feh.

Good gods! You mean there are venues where MEN can look at WOMEN? Where they can read their "vital stats"? Where they can see them - *gasp* - PARTIALLY CLOTHED??

HORRORS!!!

Next thing you know, they'll start publishing these pictures! In print! And, and... SELLING them! On STREET CORNERS!!

They must be stopped!!

*eyeroll*