A Bag of Interesting

danceswithjoshnekus: tumblr is kind of an unhealthy environment to be in sometimes because often...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 21:03:04 -0500

tumblr is kind of an unhealthy environment to be in sometimes because often it’s so black and white

either you’re right, and you’re an amazing god worthy of praise, or you’re wrong, and you’re a horrible monster who deserves to die

i just saw a post that said that if you don’t understand how minimum wage and art commissions work, then you’re “the worst kind of garbage shit trash”. like… after a certain point it’s time to calm down

Australian university colleges have officially become terrifying

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 21:01:43 -0500

lightspeedsound:

girljanitor:

theteratophile:

echoing-artemis:

And no, this time I’m not talking about St Paul’s and its pro-rape facebook group and ongoing rape culture (although we could all stand a reminder that shit like “they can’t say no with a cock in their mouth” still exists in 2012).

But tumblr, I really need a signal boost on this one. People need to know. If I were to walk into this situation as an unsuspecting, naive fresher next year I think it would have actually broken me. Here’s the breakdown.

In March this year 33 male students of St John’s College (an accommodation complex within the University of Sydney) were implicated in the near-death of a female fresher. Despite her protests of a potentially fatal medical condition, they forced her and several other women to drink a ‘cocktail’ that included off-milk, dog food and shampoo, in addition to alcohol. She was then left alone to convulse on the floor of a corridor as her stomach ruptured. She spent three days in hospital.

Ostensibly this was “justice”: the punishment for her failure to walk down a corridor backwards, as per the College’s O-Week “rules”. It was her first day in the College.

The College rector, in an admirable attempt to take things in hand, investigated and suspended all the students. He also assigned them to community service and banned them from running for the student council - a decision that was recently overturned. Shortly afterwards, another of the rector’s decisions (to expel a student who caused property damage with a fire extinguisher) met the same fate. The students, quickly realising that the rector had very little actual power, immediately descended into anarchy.

Naming themselves “The Justice Group”, the 33 men made shirts depicting a vomiting eagle - a particularly tasteful nod to both the College’s crest and the hospitalised girl. They began to set fires, spread faeces and smash windows. Women became known as “Jets” (Just Excuse The Slags) and are snubbed by all men once a fortnight so that the men may remain ‘clean’. And should they protest to the blatant misogyny and mistreatment in anyway:

They are ostracised and subjected to horrible and vicious slander. Your door can be kicked in, your room vandalised, and your possessions stolen or strewn across the college. You will receive disgusting and intimidating notes that threaten further retaliation and demand you leave the house. You live in fear, constantly worried about tomorrow, and watching your friends disown you for fear they too will be punished.

And even worse: in retaliation for the overturned ban against running for the student council, seven of the nine available positions have now been taken by members of the original 33. These men will now be responsible for setting the College’s culture, organising events, establishing its rules, enforcing those rules and yes - initiating freshers.

Men who nearly killed a girl this year and continue to harass and threaten many more will now be in near-total control of the College for 2013.

Please pass this on. Not everyone who applies for a College necessarily googles it beforehand, and for some reason I haven’t seen this story reported on any television station. There will be women (and men) walking into this College with absolutely no idea what’s waiting for them.

Update on the situation: yesterday afternoon, Archbishop of Sydney George Pell has called for the resignation of the 6 priests who make up part of the college’s administrative council*. This is significant because

- the legislature relating specifically to this college requires 6 of the 18 members on the council be priests, and
- the council cannot meet without at least one priest in attendance

It’s understood that all six priests resigned within two hours of receiving that notice. The administration of the college has basically come to a total standstill.

For some reason, despite the fact that forcing someone to drink that mess should definitely qualify as poisoning them (and under Australian law could in this case result in a charge of attempt murder and/or assault with a deadly weapon) no criminal charges have as yet been laid against the 33 male students involved.

* some sources say 5 priests. I’m getting my info from Triple J, who actually had someone at the college while this was going on.

What in the unholy fuck

what the fuck

this is like if Lord of the Flies was about frat stars

but seriously

how the fuck is this real, australia

please explain to me how this fucking happened.

Saying “my friend” is just much easier than saying “this person I follow on tumblr” so you’re all...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 20:58:18 -0500

Saying “my friend” is just much easier than saying “this person I follow on tumblr” so you’re all my friends whether you like it or not

girlpoweruk: The most heartbreaking thing i have read “we need...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 20:56:38 -0500

girlpoweruk:

The most heartbreaking thing i have read

“we need you to be our voice to the outside world”

Girl tweets friend from gaza

deliciouskaek: feliciashanay: setfabulazerstomaximumcaptain: vandekamp: grizzzlybearcub: i know...

Wed, 14 Nov 2012 20:54:09 -0500

deliciouskaek:

feliciashanay:

setfabulazerstomaximumcaptain:

vandekamp:

grizzzlybearcub:

i know i give white people a lot of shit but u guys are really nice. like when the light turns green and there’s a white pedestrian that’s almost across the street u guys always do that jog thing. i know it’s kind of insignificant but i appreciate it white people. u and ur half jog thing.

o m g

LOLDEAD

lmao it’s back.

ahahaha

but if you’ve never had carrots dipped in hummus, YOU ARE MISSING OUT

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 15:29:51 -0500

but if you’ve never had carrots dipped in hummus, YOU ARE MISSING OUT

theuppitynegras: whitepeoplemourningromney: http://articles.phi...

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 15:28:50 -0500

theuppitynegras:

whitepeoplemourningromney:

http://articles.philly.com/2012-11-12/news/35069785_1_romney-supporters-mitt-romney-sasha-issenberg

HAHAHAHHAHAHA!

taliaitscoldoutside: Why do people always mention purple people when defending themselves from...

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 15:26:21 -0500

taliaitscoldoutside:

Why do people always mention purple people when defending themselves from being called a racist.

“WE’RE EQUAL WHETHER YOU’RE WHITE OR GAY OR PURPLE IT’S ALL FINE.”

Those purple people must’ve gotten colonized real bad because I can’t find any.

"PHOENIX — An Arizona woman, in despair at the re-election of Democratic President Barack Obama, ran..."

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 15:24:31 -0500

“PHOENIX — An Arizona woman, in despair at the re-election of Democratic President Barack Obama, ran down her husband with the family car in suburban Phoenix on Saturday because he failed to vote in the election, police said on Monday.

Holly Solomon, 28, was arrested after running over husband Daniel Solomon following a wild chase that left him pinned underneath the vehicle. Daniel Solomon, 36, was in critical condition at a local hospital, but is expected to survive, Gilbert police spokesman Sergeant Jesse Sanger said.

Police said Daniel Solomon told them his wife became angry over his “lack of voter participation” in last Tuesday’s presidential election and believed her family would face hardship as a result of Obama winning another term.”

- “Woman runs down husband because he failed to vote, letting Obama win”, National Post

“I find your lack of voter participation disturbing”

(via zuky)

sapphrikah: im-cool-like-that: The World’s Smallest Dog x OMG...

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 15:23:55 -0500

sapphrikah:

im-cool-like-that:

The World’s Smallest Dog x

OMG GIMME THIS BABY OF LOVE.

GIMME.

hounddogsrunning: Yogi and Bambi

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 15:22:34 -0500

hounddogsrunning:

Yogi and Bambi

ludwigfeurbased: “political incorrectness” is about trying to make oppressive speech sound...

Tue, 13 Nov 2012 15:22:17 -0500

ludwigfeurbased:

“political incorrectness” is about trying to make oppressive speech sound rebellious

sourcedumal: howtobeterrell: unapologetically-black: Dear religious institutions in the U.S....

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 18:33:46 -0500

sourcedumal:

howtobeterrell:

unapologetically-black:

Dear religious institutions in the U.S. (namely Christian churches),
If you wish to have a political opinion, you must first surrender your tax exempt status.

Sincerely,
Citizens for Secular Government

::Amen:: ;;Amen;;

firelordazula: omg i STILL don’t really understand what these...

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 16:36:26 -0500

firelordazula:

omg i STILL don’t really understand what these posts really mean and why is this in the ‘science’ tag

ooh, humans have a tendency to look for patterns! ooh, things superficially resemble…. other things!

mehreenkasana: theatlantic: The Places Where America’s Drones...

Mon, 12 Nov 2012 16:34:32 -0500

mehreenkasana:

theatlantic:

The Places Where America’s Drones Are Striking, Now on Instagram

Technology has countervailing effects. We can send a battle by air to a land we have never set foot in, laying previously unimaginable distance between us and our wars. But at the same time we can see on a device in our pocket a satellite picture of these places so remote. Maybe, Bridle writes, the instant connectivity of our world can be a platform not just for faster information, but for deeper empathy for people who live a world away.

See more. [Images: Dronestagram]

“… deeper empathy for people who live a world away.”

thegoddamazon: I can’t process this.

Sun, 11 Nov 2012 14:12:17 -0500

thegoddamazon:

I can’t process this.

thegoddamazon: anomaly1: VERY rarely, Disney has something...

Sun, 11 Nov 2012 14:11:06 -0500

thegoddamazon:

anomaly1:

VERY rarely, Disney has something legit to say

Sometimes I think Disney trolls us…

syrupie: fleecefoxes: imagine cole sprouse trying to order a hamburger “so many options for us,...

Sun, 11 Nov 2012 14:10:12 -0500

syrupie:

fleecefoxes:

imagine cole sprouse trying to order a hamburger

“so many options for us, the human species, to enjoy. think about our interwoven destinies. if i were to order this sandwich of meat patties without tomatoes, for example, does this affect the impovrished farmers who so tirelessly worked to, first, cultivate this fruit, then, distribute it across the americas to end up here in this restaurant. But if we do choose to include the tomatoes is this just further increasing the divide between the affluent peoples of our nation and those who, by no fault of their own, are poverty stricken.”

“so- is that yes or no to the tomatoe…?”

“Why must our decisions be based soley on this binary system of yes and no…”

"Don’t confuse my personality with my attitude. My personality is who I am. My attitude depends on..."

Sun, 11 Nov 2012 14:09:25 -0500

“Don’t confuse my personality with my attitude. My personality is who I am. My attitude depends on who you are.”

- Frank Ocean (via d-vniel)

dionthesocialist: thewhitemankilledthetruth: I’ll even just...

Sun, 11 Nov 2012 14:08:52 -0500

dionthesocialist:

thewhitemankilledthetruth:

I’ll even just make that fucking rebloggable so I never have to answer that question again.

White people, you don’t know how shitty it feels to be friends with someone, maybe even close friends with someone, and then one day out of the blue they say something so monumentally racist, you feel stupid for ever thinking they valued you as a human being. Feels bad man.