Good Morning!

Baheejah, Vida, Fatima, et al: It has been some time since the subject of Islam has been broached on my blog. I look forward to the day when western men will refuse to do business with a country whose men follow not a religion, but a cult that terrorizes, rapes, tortures, and murders their women. Considering how long it took us to elect a female president, I’m not counting on that happening any time soon. But hey, who knows what a female president can do. We haven’t had one yet so I’m not putting any limits on her.

Fatima: I am not sure if this is you (I’m assuming it is), who posted this comment back in 2011. Whether this is you or not, I decided to repost it again because it is an excellent, well articulated write that deserves another round of blog time.

Islam is accepted in the modern world all over the planet because those men who practice it have OIL. That is how allah is truly spelt by westerners. This talk of respecting a “religion” they know is an evil cult designed to keep women as sexual slaves is just a western man’s way of looking the other way at this evil while he does business with the enslavers for their OIL.

This article Michelle as (sic) boldly presented, clearly shows that islam is a cult designed to control females with terror in the name of a religion. For if their god allah says it is alright to beat us, then who has the right to question their god, allah, that is the claim these evil men are making and daring the rest of the world to object to under penalty of a fatwā of violence issued against them.

Of course islamic men will fight and die to keep the right to own women, just as America’s confederate fought and died to keep the right to own slaves. That does not mean it is a religion, just as it does not make any claim America’s southerns make that it was about “independence and self determination” true. Neither does the fact that over a billion people “worship” islam. At least half of those do it without their consent because they are captives of that cult. The other half are the captors.

Of course your pope would accept this abomination as a legitimate religion. It has only been a short time since catholicism has been forced to withdraw their doctrine which allowed their male worshipers to own their women. That doctrine still lingers as men under the pretext of being “devout” continue to attempt to use their “scripture’s” proclamations to control the bodies of western women.

So what does it boil down to? Alycedale, and you Michelle speak the truth when you say “men.” All over the world men use religion to force women into situations they could not do with logic.

So, yes, Zen Lill#7, marriage is but the telling to other men. “I have branded this cattle and it is mine.” If you trespass I have a legal means of suing you. We as females are but cattle to muslim men to be herded on their ranch called “family.” until we are selected out to be sold as sexual pleasures to the buyer.

The rest of the world accepts these “marriages” as binding legal contracts giving the owners the right to do as they see fit with that cattle. American white men are all too familiar with this type of ownership of human beings. They enjoyed the same recognition of the right to own another human being for centuries and continued it after the “emancipation” of those human being for another 2 and a half centuries. Your very election today is mostly the white males in your country refusing to give up their privileged status obtained from their illegal slavery of OTWs, and the use of “religion” to regulate the actions and control the bodies of their females.

We study and learn about the dangers of accepting your SCOTUS as a body independent of cultural and economic influence when it rules. Your 7-2, Dred Scott decision in 1857 which held that a slave did not become free when taken into a free state is not unlike saying a woman does not become free of the slavery of islam when she is taken into America.

Both decisions rest on the incredibly disgusting position that slavery of another human being is not the issue. The only issue was then and is now is whether that enslaved human being could assert his/her freedom in a state/country that did not accept the disgusting position.

So the western world does not consider the incredibly disgusting position that slavery of females is up for discussion by this “religion,” only whether that slave should be beaten when a mufti asserts under islamic law that she can. Incredibly disgusting!

Thank you Michelle for exposing this cult for what it is. Islamic men will declare that you are blaspheming a “religion” of a billion people. Please do not waver. Enslavers declaring a right because they have forced at least half of their constituency to be a part of it under penalty of death if they leave it or speak negatively of it, is without merit.

For certain if the penalty of death was lifted islam would be a cult of only men. It would go the way of your catholicism. Something else would be formed. Today women would be free to accept islam without the constrictions for females. Many of your offshoots of catholicism practice christianity that does not make a female the sexual slave of men.

There is NO redeeming value of islam as long as it is used to be vehicle for the enslavement and control of females under the pretext allah said so. No God would enslave half its people under the other half. That is just BS which benefits the lust of men.

*****

My love to you and all my sisters. May you all be safe. ❤️

While we’re on the subject of Islam, I found this write from Daily Kos:

I should have a right to choose…what I wear.

I have been following the French #burkiniban news on twitter and other stories about women being kicked off of airplanes and it gets more and more alarming for me personally — I often wear a headwrap – and now feel that I am pressured to not wear one when traveling.

France’s burkini ban is a dangerous move for feminism

A full-body wetsuit garment for Muslim women is at the centre of a controversy in France, and the debate is raising difficult questions about feminism, Islamophobia and the country’s values.  At least six towns on the Mediterranean coast have banned the burkini — a swimsuit that covers the torso, limbs and head — and three more are threatening to do the same. The mayor of Cannes, David Lisnard, who was the first to forbid the beachwear on the basis that it disrespected “good morals and secularism” and posed a threat to public order, called the burkini “the uniform of extremist Islamism.” 

Women who break the law face a fine of €38 (£33; $42) and several Muslim women have already been penalised. France’s secular political establishment was united in backing the measure, but failed short of bringing it to a national level. Prime Minister Manuel Valls said in an interview published Wednesday in the La Provence newspaper the burkini reflects a worldview based on “the enslavement of women … That is not compatible with the values of France.” Many Muslim women regard the ban as sexist, Islamophobic and — most of all — counterproductive for the purpose of assimilating Muslims in the country. 

“It’s a blatant violation of women’s rights — the right for women to decide what to wear and their freedom of movement,” Rim-Sarah Alouane, a religious freedom expert at the University of Toulouse and a Muslim raised in France, told Mashable. “Women are not even asked for their opinion: They’re dictated to by male officials what they can wear on the beach.”

On Al Jazeera’s “Inside Story – French ‘burkini’ ban: secularism or security?” host Folly Bah Thibault discusses the issue with her guests — Jacques Myard – French Member of Parliament and member of the opposition Republicans party, Yasser Louati – Human Rights and Civil Liberties Activist and former head of International Relations for the Collective Against Islamophobia in France, and Anne Giudicelli – Security Analyst, and founder of the security risk consultancy firm, Terrorisc.

I agree with this French feminist – women are damned for what we wear – whether bare or not bare.

The hypocrisy about French secularism is patently obvious. Catholic religious garb is not banned.

Nor are wet-suits:

Air travel for women who are wearing a head scarves becomes more problematic, as self-styled vigilantes “report” on them for suspicious activity.

Three British Muslim siblings were left traumatised after being escorted off a plane in London and interrogated on the tarmac as armed police kept watch, after fellow passengers accused them of being members of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group.

Sakina Dharas, 24, her sister Maryam, 19, and their brother Ali, 21, were on board EasyJet flight EZY3249 from London’s Stansted Airport to the Italian city of Naples on August 17.

Sakina told Al Jazeera on Tuesday that as the plane was about to take off, a crew member ordered the siblings off the aircraft and escorted them down the staircase to the tarmac, where they were met by armed police and an MI5 agent who questioned them for one hour.

Earlier, two passengers – also travelling to Naples – had told authorities that the siblings had been looking at a mobile phone screen that showed either Arabic text or the words “praise be to Allah”, Sakina said.

“A passenger on your flight has claimed that you three are members of ISIS,” the MI5 agent said to the siblings, according to Sakina, a clinical pharmacist.

This story in the Guardian about the woman on the beach being forced to take off some of her clothing, by police is distressing.

Photographs have emerged of armed French police confronting a woman on a beach and making her remove some of her clothing as part of a controversial ban on the burkini. Authorities in several French towns have implemented bans on the burkini, which covers the body and head, citing concerns about religious clothing in the wake of recent terrorist killings in the country. The images of police confronting the woman in Nice on Tuesday show at least four police officers standing over a woman who was resting on the shore at the town’s Promenade des Anglais, the scene of last month’s Bastille Day lorry attack.

After they arrive, she appears to remove a blue long-sleeved tunic, although one of the officers appears to take notes or issue an on-the-spot fine.The photographs emerged as a mother of two also told on Tuesday how she had been fined on the beach in nearby Cannes wearing leggings, a tunic and a headscarf.Her ticket, seen by French news agency AFP, read that she was not wearing “an outfit respecting good morals and secularism”.

Meanwhile, here in the U.S., I’m looking forward to the Headwrap Expo, which is going to be taking place in September in Dearborn, Michigan, which will include interfaith panel discussions between Sikhs, Muslims, Christians, Jews, Rastafarians, and other spiritual communities who incorporate some type of covering.

There is an interesting side-note to this issue — as a result of the controversy, global Burkini sales are up. The designer of the burkini says that 40% of her sales go to non-Muslim women.

I believe women should have a right to choose. They should not be forced to wear hijab in certain countries, nor should they be forced to wear bikinis, or other Euro-style swim-wear or street dress in others.

*****

Readers: I know you have something to say here. Flap your lips…It’s Friday.

Blog me. 

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2016

“Though she be but little, she be fierce.” – William Shakespeare Midsummer Night’s Dream 

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Good morning!

Well, it picked up a bit didn’t it? Here I thought perhaps everyone was out kissing instead of blogging. But I see you were doing both. :) Loved the history and interesting stats too. It just shows us how much kissing means to all of us that it’s so worth studying.

Since all the talk is about lips, it seemed only natural to blog about something delicious that passes through them.

I LOVE avocados. I eat them regularly. I try to buy local/organic as much as possible but I have to admit I am one who has bought them from Mexico too. But now I know better.

From Think Progress:

Your Guacamole Is Hurting Mexican Forests

Eating avocados has been linked with better diet quality and nutrition for years, well now it seems a surging love for this fruit is driving deforestation in Mexico.

Avocados grow best in the same climate and altitude as the pine and oyamel fir forests in Michoacan, a state that produces 88 percent of Mexico’s avocados. The Associated Press reported Tuesday avocado demand is driving local growers to slash and burn forest to plant avocados, a crop that has enjoyed exponential prices in recent months.

The U.S. is a major importer of Mexican avocados. And over the past several months, demand across the country has increased as some major national avocado growers in California have experienced heat waves that have hurt local production. In a time of increasing trade between the two countries, U.S. consumption is likely boosting prices and encouraging Mexican growers to expand into new territories.

“Even where they aren’t visibly cutting down forest, there are avocados growing underneath [the pine boughs], and sooner or later they’ll cut down the pines completely,” Mario Tapia Vargas, researcher at Mexico’s National Institute for Forestry, Farming and Fisheries Research, told the Associated Press.

Encroachment has already reached natural reserves for Monarch butterflies, a severely endangered species that spends its winters in Michoacan before it migrates to as far north as Canada. In the past few years, the numbers of Monarch butterflies that migrate across the United States have dropped to all-time lows. What’s more, oyamel forest is Mexico’s most endangered ecosystem. Just about 2 percent of the original oyamel forest remains.

Transforming forest into avocado orchards also puts Michoacan water resources at risk. Avocados are water-intensive fruits that when massively produced can demand more water than a natural dense forest. Growing a pound of avocados in Mexico needs nearly 32 gallons of water, Mother Jones reported.

“Beyond the displacement of forests and the effects on water retention, the high use of agricultural chemicals, and the large volumes of wood needed to pack and ship avocados are other factors that could have negative effects on the area’s environment, and the well-being of its inhabitants,” Greenpeace said in a statement.

According to government data, avocado land use is making Michoacan lose some 1,200 acres of forest a year. (One acre is roughly the size of a football field.) But the effects of deforestation go beyond Mexico’s borders. Losing forests exacerbates climate change because trees function as carbon sinks that withhold CO2 from the atmosphere.

A Monarch butterfly sits on a branch at the Sierra Chincua Sanctuary, in the mountains of Mexico’s Michoacan state. High avocado prices in 2016 have fueled deforestation in Michoacan state, where farmers cut down pines to clear the way for more avocado trees. Michoacan’s forests contain much of the wintering grounds of the monarch butterfly. CREDIT: AP Photo/ Marco Ugarte.

But the Mexican government is taking action. Last month, federal police in Morelia, the Michoacan state capital, detained a dozen people, seized avocado plants, and vehicles used to switch a deforested area into an orchard.

The federal government also invested about $500,000 six years ago in a program that pays rural communities in Michoacan to conserve water-capturing forests like the ones now under threat. But in a state that has been battered with drug violence and poverty rates of nearly 60 percent for years, conservation programs may be insufficient given the need.

“Avocado farming is very attractive, because of the prices being the way they are,” Tapia Vargas said.

U.S. avocado consumption is likely playing role in Michoacan deforestation. Over the last year, avocado prices skyrocketed in the United States, according to the Haas Avocado Board, pointing to a clear spike in demand. One Haas avocado — the type of avocado Michoacan grows — cost $1.50 on average in July. That’s 50 cents more than same time last year.

The U.S. is a net importer of Mexican avocados. In fact, Mexico supplied most of the avocados the U.S. imported last year. This comes as trade deals like NAFTA allow avocados from approved orchards in Mexico to be distributed around the country.

Meanwhile, recent record-breaking high temperatures in California burned some of the state’s avocado production, and may have also harmed next year’s crop. California, already struggling with drought, is by far the largest avocado producer in the country. If California can’t supply the market, the U.S. might have to rely more on Mexican avocados to fulfill the growing demand that a recent study attributed to millennials, the nation’s largest living generation.

The connection between climate change and avocados is not new. Companies like Chipotle, which thrives on millennial consumers, have already included climate change-triggered avocado shortages in their business plans. In 2014, the company told investors climate change could force prices for raw produce like avocado to jump, pushing their guacamole off the menu. ClimateProgress broke the story and prompted many headlines and an assurance from Chipotle that the disclosure of climate risk was a “non-issue.” Yet two years later, with higher prices and drought conditions forcing avocado supply shifts, Chipotle’s risk disclosures may still prove prudent.

So while avocados are good for the body, and extra guacamole on a burrito is always great, it seems that there is such thing as having too much guac.

*****

Readers: Something to think about.

Happy Saturday! xxxxx

Blog me!

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2016

“Though she be but little, she be fierce.” – William Shakespeare Midsummer Night’s Dream 

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Good Monday morning!

There is so much to blog about when it comes to the Olympics. I made a brief comment about this controversial topic a few days ago. I heard the “booing” toward Yulia Efimova, coming from the audience as she and our American Olympic swimmer Lilly King went head to head for the gold.

The “booing” saddened me because as we all know there are always two sides to a story.  So I did a little research as I think it is only fair to bring up the other side. This write caught my eye.

From The Wash Po:

In vilifying Russian swimmer Yulia Efimova, Americans are splashing murky waters

Russian swimmer Yulia Efimova is at the center of Russia’s doping scandal. Here’s what you need to know about her. (Monica Akhtar/The Washington Post)

RIO DE JANEIRO — Feels good, doesn’t it, to slap water in the face of the rest of the world and go all jingoist? Lilly King kept America strong and pure when she sent a blast of chlorine into the eyes of that Russian criminal mastermind Yulia Efimova and prevented her from melting the earth’s core. Or something like that, right? But there is a disquieting aspect to the narrative going here at the Olympics. It’s not a moment of perfect American moral clarity.

King, 19, is a swaggeringly great swimmer, but the rivalry between her and 24-year-old Efimova in the breaststroke is hardly a simple matter of a clean swimmer prevailing over “drug cheating,” as King put it. The facts of Efimova’s case aren’t nearly so clear cut despite the self-righteous Cold War shunning of her. It’s worth looking a little more closely at the human face of Efimova and maybe even standing in her place for a minute. As she suggested tearfully the other night, “You can just try and understand me, like if you switch you and I.”

[‘I’m not this sweet little girl’: Lilly King, doping sheriff, won’t back down]

For starters, Efimova doesn’t live in Russia; she lives in Los Angeles, where she has trained with Southern Cal Coach Dave Salo since she was 19. He says via email, “She is a sweet kid and not the monster she is being branded.” She was born in the war-torn Chechen capital of Grozny and raised in the Russian swim-club system in Volgodonsk, but in 2011, her coaches feared she was wearied by the grind of the Russian program, so they asked Salo to take her on.

Efimova has two offenses for performance-enhancing on her record, and let’s take a closer look at them. One day in 2013 she went to a local GNC in L.A. and bought a nutritional supplement. Her English was poor, and she didn’t check the contents, which included the banned hormone DHEA. Efimova’s offense was deemed unintentional, and the normal two-year suspension was reduced to 16 months.

No American would do such a thing, right? Actually, as NBC correspondent Alan Abrahamson has pointed out, Efimova’s case was very similar to that of Jessica Hardy, banned for ingesting a tainted supplement in 2008 only to win two medals at London 2012. No one splashed water in Hardy’s face or refused to shake her hand.

Salo has coached American champions from Amanda Beard and Rebecca Soni to Aaron Peirsol and Jason Lezak, and he estimates that “90 percent plus” of all international athletes consume some sort of supplement, though he tries to discourage it.

“I lost the battle a long time ago with regards to athletes believing that they need something” for recovery, etc., he said.

Efimova is deemed a chronic cheat here mainly because of her second offense: testing positive for the heart medication meldonium in the midst of the crisis over the exposure of state-sponsored doping in Russia. Meldonium was in broad use by Eastern European athletes legally until WADA prohibited it in January 2016. This spring, WADA declined to ban more than 200 athletes who tested positive for meldonium after January, including Efimova, because it’s unclear how long it takes to clear the system. It’s quite possible that she obeyed the WADA ban but the medication remained in her system anyhow.

Efimova tried to explain these circumstances in her Olympic post-race news conference as King refused to look at her. Here was Efimova’s account of herself, and you can accept it or not.

“I have once when I made mistakes, and I have been banned for 16 months,” she said. “For second time, it’s not my mistakes. Like, I don’t know why actually I need to explain everybody or not. . . . Like if WADA say, like, tomorrow, stop like yogurt or nicotine or, I don’t know, protein, that every athlete use, and they say tomorrow now it’s on banned list. And you stop. But this is stay [in] your body like six months, and doping control is coming, like, after two months, tested you, and you’re positive. This is your fault?”

Salo has qualms about the inclusion in Rio of Efimova and other Russian swimmers who tested positive and has even indefinitely suspended all international swimmers from his Trojan program. But he does not believe in demonizing them for the systemic practices they were reared with in their federations.

“They are unsuspecting pawns in government or federation directives,” he said. “Yulia is a nice woman with too much talent to need performance enhancing supplementation.”

He believes she took meldonium on the advice of her doctor and observes that Eastern Europeans believe heavy training is bad for the system.

“Apparently most of Eastern European athletes think they have to protect their hearts because training is contraindicated,” he said.

Regardless of what anyone thinks of Efimova, it’s hard to see how the American censoriousness against her — or any individual athlete — is a solution to state-sponsored doping. And it’s just begging for anti-American backlash. King is just 19, and you would never want to curb her outspokenness or competitiveness. But it’s worth suggesting to her that a lot of beloved American athletes take supplements and use medical assistance not on the banned list. It’s also worth suggesting that she’s never walked a mile in the shoes of someone born in Grozny in 1992.

“Usually in the Olympic Games, all wars stopping,” Efimova said.

Just before Efimova left Los Angeles for Rio, she saw Salo. Her status had been in question for days and her training in chaos as the International Olympic Committee debated and defaulted on the status of Russian athletes.

“At the last minute they said she would be swimming,” Salo says. “I told her it was going to be hard and that she would not be well received. So be prepared for the hardest racing of her life.”

It’s safe to say the racing was not the hard part.

♀ 🏊🏼♀

Readers: What are your thoughts?

Blog me.

As usual, see you tomorrow.

✌🏽&❤️

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2016

“Though she be but little, she be fierce.” – William Shakespeare Midsummer Night’s Dream 

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Good morning!

It’s been an interesting and exciting week watching the Olympics.

I’m also noticing a few “trends”  - Ok, let’s just call it what it is: “Sexism” – out there when it comes to the comments and remarks made about women and their Olympic successes. Olympic swimmer Katinka Hosszu broke the world record in the 400-meter individual medley, and the NBC commentator Dan Hicks makes a comment that Hosszu’s husband/coach, Shane Tusup “is the man responsible.” Really? I remember watching the competition and it seems she won it all by herself.

A few days ago I broached the topic on objectifying women in the Olympics by the media paying more attention to a woman’s appearance than her athletic prowess. Now we’re seeing how women’s successes are undermined, and how they are recognized as a supporting role when they are in reality, the star of the show.

It seems I’m not alone in the “noticing.”

Here’s the write from the Huff Po:

Women, Media Bias And The Olympics

Readers: Let’s recognize the accomplishments our siSTARS are making and give them the kudos they deserve.

Thoughts? The forum is open. Blog me. 

🌟♀🌟

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2016

“Though she be but little, she be fierce.” – William Shakespeare Midsummer Night’s Dream 

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"

Good Morning!

Wow! What an evening last night!

Hands down Simone Biles is the best gymnast we have ever seen. Incredible all around but I must say her floor routine was flawless. I’ve never seen a gymnast reach such incredible heights and make it look so effortless. Simply amazing.

I’m not much of a swimmer, but girl…I so appreciate someone who can, and this girl Simone Manuel stroked it with the best of them and came out a winner. Girls like her no longer need to feel alone in their struggles when they have Manuel to look up too.

Congratulations to them both – So proud of these young girls. What an inspiration they will be to girls like themselves. 

I know that many of you probably watched their successes and read the good news, but I’m a girl, and in the spirit of supporting my siSTARS there is nothing better to post this morning than to share their successes with you here.

From the Huff Po:

Simone Manuel Makes Swimming History In Women’s 100-Meter Freestyle

Simone Manuel celebrates on the podium during the medal ceremony for the Women’s 100m Freestyle Final.

Simone Manuel became the first African-American woman to medal in an individual Olympic swimming event on Thursday after setting an Olympics record in the women’s 100-meter freestyle.

In a rare occurrence, Manuel, 20, tied with Canadian Penny Oleksiak, 16. Both finished the race in 52.70 seconds, an Olympics record. Swede Sarah Sjostrom finished third.

Oleksiak’s win is also historic. Born in June 2000, she is the first person to win an individual Olympic gold who has only been alive in this century, The Guardian noted. Manuel and Oleksiakged hug in the pool after tying for gold.

An emotional Manuel spoke about her feat moments after exiting the pool, saying the gold medal was “for all the people after me … who believe they can’t do it.”

“It means a lot, this medal is not just for me. This is for a whole bunch of people who have come before me, and have been an inspiration to me,” Manuel told NBC. “It’s for all the people after me who can’t — who believe they can’t do it. And I just want to be an inspiration to others, that you can do it.”

Manuel picked up a silver medal earlier this week with her teammates in the women’s 4×100-meter freestyle relay.

USA Swimming notes that Manuel has been active in the organization’s governance, serving as an athlete representative on a diversity and inclusion committee.

Manuel said in an article posted on the USA Swimming website in February that there wasn’t a great amount of diversity in the pool when she began swimming, until athletes like Cullen Jones and Maritza Correia McClendon made the U.S. Olympic team. She said she sees her role as a female swimmer of color as important for future athletes.

“When I was younger, I didn’t want to be called the black swimmer, or the African-American swimmer, because I was doing what everyone else was doing, so I didn’t see a difference. But I do realize that who I am and what I am doing does carry some weight and can show people that if I can do, they can do it too. And I didn’t really think of anyone relating to the trials and tribulations I went through until people started looking up to me, and I realized others have felt or are feeling alone, too …

A lot of people go through a lot more than I did to lead the way, and I got a lot of support from parents and coaches during those hard times. But that’s what makes it mean more as the sport moves forward and the diversity increases, so other kids don’t have to keep feeling that way ever again.”

Thursday night was yet another epic one for Team USA, as Michael Phelps snagged a history-making 22nd gold in the 200-meter individual medley, and Ryan Murphy won his second gold medal in the 200-meter backstroke.

Simone Manuel, Penny Oleksiak and Sarah Sjostrom with their medals for the 100 meter freestyle.

*****

Simone Biles Isn’t The Next Anyone, She’s ‘The First Simone Biles’

The gymnast is in a league of her own.

Simone Biles signals to the crowd after winning the gold medal in the women’s individual all around final on Thursday.

The breakout star of the U.S. gymnastics team shrugged off comparisons to other Olympic legends after winning the gold medal in the women’s individual all-around on Thursday.

Simone Biles, who at age 19 has been called the best gymnast of all time, won the event in Rio de Janeiro by a massive margin spanning more than two points, ahead of fellow American Aly Raisman.

Perhaps in reference to a slew of sexist commentary at the 2016 Summer Olympics, Biles succinctly noted her legendary feats were an accomplishment all her own and in no way comparable to those of celebrated male athletes.

“I’m not the next Usain Bolt or Michael Phelps,” she told Sporting News after accepting her second gold medal. “I’m the first Simone Biles.”

Her performance on Thursday began with an uncharacteristically shaky start that left her trailing Russian Aliya Mustafina after the vault and bars. But by the end of the third event, the beam rotation, Biles held a commanding lead of more than 1.5 points. She sealed it with an impressive floor routine.

Biles’ celebratory comments come on the heels of several high-profile sexist headlines to emerge in Brazil. An NBC commentator this week compared one of the three-time world champion’s uneven bars routines to that of a man’s.

Other women’s accomplishments have been linked to their husbands and coaches, or celebrated because of their age or recent pregnancies.

While Biles has already made Olympic history, there’s still a lot of medals to be won. The gymnast is still favored to take home a few more golds in three individual events later this week. Viewers can expect to see absurd levels of difficulty and routines packed with skill-after-skill many of her peers won’t even attempt in competition.

As her teammate Raisman said, “Simone’s just in her own league. Whoever gets second place, that’s the winner.”

*****

Readers: Running a bit late as I has already prepared another post for this morning but after last night I had to switch it up. :) On a side note: Yes, I read the write about the racist headline by the Mercury news too regarding Manuel’s Olympic win, (Ugh! All I will say is it was racist and insensitive) but today, I myself, chose to focus the write on the positive. Of course, as usual, all comments are welcomed.

Happy Friday! You know what to do.

Blog me. 

Lastly, greed over a great story is surfacing from my “loyal”(?) readers. With all this back and forth about who owns what, that appears on my blog, let me reiterate that all material posted on my blog becomes the sole property of my blog. If you want to reserve any proprietary rights don’t post it to my blog. I will prominently display this caveat on my blog from now on to remind those who may have forgotten this notice.

Gratefully your blog host,

michelle

Aka BABE: We all know what this means by now :)

If you love my blog and my writes, please make a donation via PayPal, credit card, or e-check, please click the “Donate” button below. (Please only donations from those readers within the United States. – International readers please see my “Donate” page)

Or if you would like to send a check via snail mail, please make checks payable to “Michelle Moquin”, and send to:

Michelle Moquin PO Box 29235 San Francisco, Ca. 94129

Thank you for your loyal support!

All content on this site are property of Michelle Moquin © copyright 2008-2016

“Though she be but little, she be fierce.” – William Shakespeare Midsummer Night’s Dream 

" Politics, god, Life, News, Music, Family, Personal, Travel, Random, Photography, Religion, Aliens, Art, Entertainment, Food, Books, Thoughts, Media, Culture, Love, Sex, Poetry, Prose, Friends, Technology, Humor, Health, Writing, Events, Movies, Sports, Video, Christianity, Atheist, Blogging, History, Work, Education, Business, Fashion, Barack Obama, People, Internet, Relationships, Faith, Photos, Videos, Hillary Clinton, School, Reviews, God, TV, Philosophy, Fun, Science, Environment, Design, The Page, Rants, Pictures, Church, Blog, Nature, Marketing, Television, Democrats, Parenting, Miscellaneous, Current Events, Film, Spirituality, Obama, Musings, Home, Human Rights, Society, Comedy, Me, Random Thoughts, Research, Government, Election 2008, Baseball, Opinion, Recipes, Children, Iraq, Funny, Women, Economics, America, Misc, Commentary, John McCain, Reflections, All, Celebrities, Inspiration, Lifestyle, Theology, Linux, Kids, Games, World, India, Literature, China, Ramblings, Fitness, Money, Review, War, Articles, Economy, Journal, Quotes, NBA, Crime, Anime, Islam, 2008, Stories, Prayer, Diary, Jesus, Buddha, Muslim, Israel, Europe, Links, Marriage, Fiction, American Idol, Software, Leadership, Pop culture, Rants, Video Games, Republicans, Updates, Political, Football, Healing, Blogs, Shopping, USA, Class, Matrix, Course, Work, Web 2.0, My Life, Psychology, Gay, Happiness, Advertising, Field Hockey, Hip-hop, sex, fucking, ass, Soccer, sox"