PETTYBONE

PETTYBONE
Pettybone is the voice of the voiceless.
Pettybone is the voice of the oppressed.
The sound of the revolt for all those that they were told they're useless
for all those who lost their youth in the process
for all the kids that believe in their dreams but the fucked up system cut their wings
for all those living in the poverty on the edge with sanity
for all the vagabondes and homeless
for all the women who fight for freedom and respect
for al the immigrants trying to make their way through the london streets
for all the sisters and brothers in need
for all the truth seekers...
the Truth is that the change is possible
because Another world is possible...

THINGS WE DIG







 















One of my local heros talking about being gay, buddhist, living in a spiritual community, life and pain. Great speaker and poet.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nh8rmJGtGSA






REFLECTING ON PAST MISTAKES AND THIS COMES TO MY MIND...


 Taken from Thomas Hanna's book on Somatics. 


" Youth has strength, but it does not have skill, which, in the long run, is the most potent strength. Youth has speed, but it doesn not have efficiency, which, in the long run, is the only effective way of attaining goals. Youth is quick, but it is not delibarate, and deliberation is the only way to make correct decisions. Youth has energy and intelligence, but it does not have the judgement necessary to make the best use of that energy and intelligence. Measured judgement, in the end, is the only guarantor of intelligent behavior. Youth has the beauty of genetic endowement, but it does not have the beauty of real achievement. Youth has the glow of promise, but it doesn't have the radiance of accomplishment. Youth is the time of seeding and cultivation, but it is not a time of fruiting and harvest. Youth is a state of ignorance and innocence, but it is not a state of knowledge and wisdom. Youth is a state of emptiness awaiting fullness, a state of possibility awaiting actualization, a state of beginning awaiting trescedence."




Know your tradition!
Great documentaries:


The story of american folk music:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gfPBCO6voE


The story of country music:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ebwX_mZ0Kak




GEMMA RAY!!!!!!!




http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S35H9gX7tjE




































Some cool music I dig because there's never enough of good music and because it's hard to find something real nowadays:
Jimmy Rodgers- this guy was Woodie Gurthrie contemporary and his songs are beautiful
Melvins- Stag-no comment, it's a classic record I wish I had written!
Michael Nyman - english minimalist
Gallon Drunk- Bear Me Away-groovy as fuck
Santo and Johnny- absolutely compulsary for all smitten folks
Keny Arkana - l'equisse vol.2 - new Keny Arkana record, hard and honest
Black Angels - Jim Morrison meets Joy Division, perfect
Dan Sartain- Lives - love that guy
 and more is coming! stay tuned.


the new Obits record:
http://www.myspace.com/obitsband
They write such a great songs that makes me hate them + Rick's voice always sound so cool.




IT' S THE END OF THE WORLD AS WE KNOW IT AND I FEEL FINE
www.submedia.tv


SOFT FOCUS with IAN SVENONIUS, the rock'n'roll philosopher
http://www.vbs.tv/en-gb/search?commit=Search&key=soft+focus


PALESTINIAN PRODUCTS+PALESTINIAN OLIVE OIL in SAINSBURY's
http://coalitionofwomen.org/home/english


http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/foodanddrinknews/5795355/Fair-trade-organic-Palestinian-olive-oil-ticks-all-the-boxes.html


COALITION OF WOMEN FOR PEACE
http://coalitionofwomen.org/home/english


I AM A SEX ADDICT!
This is really amazing and totally original movie!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OWMzxqy3QVI&feature=related


OUR HIT PARADE
This shit is so funny (fanny)!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xWO4JnP2T40&feature=&p=6FDD6DCF89AD031C&index=0&playnext=1




BIG SEXY NOISE
a musical project of Lydia Lunch and the guys from Gallon drunk. The record is great! very groovy and mean lyrics. perfect.


PROPHET
new movie by Jacques Audiard
it's gonna be a cult in a few years time!


JO BRAND
she's well funny!


THE BIRTH of PORTLAND's DIY CULTURE
haven't seen it yet but should be good. Here's the trailer!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IoLEg6QxE1o


MINUTEMEN DOCUMENTARY
We can jam econo


so inspiring.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyDRNxb38V8&feature=related






WOMEN AT THE CUTTING EDGE

Saturday 30 October 11am-5pm
The Arbour, 100 Shandy Street, London, E1 4ST (tubes: Mile End or Stepney Green)

Open to people of all genders.

On 20 October the ConDem government's "Spending Review" will detail enormous cuts in public services. We are already feeling the impact of earlier cuts many effected by Labour; nurseries and libraries are closing, jobs are being lost. As the government "austerity drive" steps up, the reality is that cuts will hit the lives of all but the wealthiest. In many cases women will be hit the hardest with recent reports estimating that women will suffer 72% of the tax and benefit cuts.

Whether you're a feminist, an activist, a trade unionist, someone affected by the cuts, or involved in fighting the cuts in your college, community or workplace, or just interested in how the landscape of the welfare state is changing, Feminist Fightback invites you to join a day of discussions and networking. We want to put these cuts in a political context, link up, and share ideas and skills as we plan to fight them together.

Participatory workshops on:

* What's going on? Mapping cuts and campaigns
* Who do the cuts affect? Why are cuts a feminist issue?
* What does it mean? Demystifying the "economics of the crisis"
* What do we want? Fighting within and against the state

For more information on the day (including more detailed information about workshops) please see www.feministfightback.org.uk , email feminist.fightback@gmail.com or call Laura on 07971 842 027.

Free creche available: please email feminist.fightback@gmail.com to confirm a place
 









SOUFFRAGETTES
Although the suffragettes did some important things for their cause, even sacrificing their lives for the right to vote, it is important however, to recognise that they were not the be all and end all of feminism. In fact, their politics were very narrow and middle /upper class as well as being completely conformist. The following article points out the important differences between the suffragette views and those of more radical thinkers of the time and shows that to achieve true freedom, we should not fight for 'the right to vote' but to bring down this capitalist system completely!




















Following on from Exploring anarcha-feminism, the second in a series looking at anarchism as it relates to feminism, gender equality, and patriarchy.
In her 1897 essay, The Status of Women, Past, Present and Future, American feminist Susan B Anthony proclaimed that “suffrage is the pivotal right.” This meant, in essence, that “there never will be complete equality until women themselves help to make laws and elect lawmakers.” British suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst went further in the speechFreedom or Death, declaring the movement for suffrage “the subject of revolution and civil war” and the “hardest of all fights” which, in victory, would make it “easier for women all over the world to win their fight when their time comes.”
Now, that fight has largely been won. Of countries which have parliamentary democracy, the United Arab Emirates, in 2006, and the Falkland Islands, in 2009, were the latest to grant women the vote. Only in Saudi Arabia and the Vaticando women remain without the right to vote. In the former, the issue of voting is but one minor element of a brutal system of sexual apartheid enforced by political and religious leaders.
The question is what difference has the right to vote made in the countries where it has been won, and what difference can it make in the countries where it remains out of reach? For anarcha-feminists, the answer is “not much.” In broader terms, anarchists are critical of voting and the electoral process because it serves as a distraction, funneling energy away from more effective activities such as organising, picketing, and direct action. This is because, although in itself voting requires no effort, it comes with the baggage of a myth that marking an “x” on a piece of paper can affect change. People can vote and assuage themselves of guilt for not partaking in any further action with the conviction that they have done all that they need to. More than that, political campaigns which encourage people to vote in one direction or another (or at all) require a huge amount of energy and resources which could be put to better use.
In the feminist movement, and the campaign for gender equality, this critique is given considerable weight by the legacy of the suffragettes. Not only did it draw energy and resources from much more vital issues but, in its relentless propaganda focus on how “pivotal” suffrage is, it has helped cement the untruth that stifles the feminist movement today: that the battle for equality has been won.
Emma Goldman is considered one of the founders of the anarcha-feminist movement. Unlike many feminists of the time who threw their lot in with the campaign for women’s suffrage, she was scornful of it. In her essay, Woman Suffrage, she wrote;
Our modern fetich is universal suffrage. Those who have not yet achieved that goal fight bloody revolutions to obtain it, and those who have enjoyed its reign bring heavy sacrifice to the altar of this omnipotent deity. Woe to the heretic who dare question that divinity!
Woman, even more than man, is a fetich worshipper, and though her idols may change, she is ever on her knees, ever holding up her hands, ever blind to the fact that her god has feet of clay. Thus woman has been the greatest supporter of all deities from time immemorial. Thus, too, she has had to pay the price that only gods can exact,–her freedom, her heart’s blood, her very life.
She then goes on to list the fetishes and idols which woman worships though they do untold damage to her. Particularly perceptive is her comment on women and war;
The insatiable monster, war, robs woman of all that is dear and precious to her. It exacts her brothers, lovers, sons, and in return gives her a life of loneliness and despair. Yet the greatest supporter and worshiper of war is woman. She it is who instills the love of conquest and power into her children; she it is who whispers the glories of war into the ears of her little ones, and who rocks her baby to sleep with the tunes of trumpets and the noise of guns. It is woman, too, who crowns the victor on his return from the battlefield. Yes, it is woman who pays the highest price to that insatiable monster, war.
Pankhurst, of course, persuaded her Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU) to halt all militant suffrage activities until fighting on the European mainland ended. In exchange for the release of all WSPU prisoners, she and her fellow suffragettes urged men to enlist in the fight against the “German Peril.” As her daughter Christabel wrote, “This was national militancy. As Suffragists we could not be pacifists at any price.” This at the time that, alongside Alexander Berkman, organised the No Conscription League which declared that “we oppose conscription because we are internationalists, antimilitarists, and opposed to all wars waged by capitalistic governments.” She was arrested for her organising efforts, charged with conspiracy to “induce persons not to register” under the Espionage Act, and released from jail in 1919 only to be deported to Russian during the Wilsonian Red Scare.
It was true, then, that the suffragettes were amongst those who surrendered to the altar of war and patriotism. But for Goldman the critique went beyond that. “It may be said that because woman recognizes the awful toll she is made to pay to the Church, State, and the home, she wants suffrage to set herself free.” However, whilst this “may be true of the few; the majority of suffragists repudiate utterly such blasphemy.” Quite the opposite, “they insist always that it is woman suffrage which will make her a better Christian and homekeeper, a staunch citizen of the State” and so “suffrage is only a means of strengthening the omnipotence of the very Gods that woman has served from time immemorial.”
Not only was this true at the time of Goldman and Pankhurst, but it remains true today. With suffrage won, the issue may be seen as one of the past. But as long as it remains fetishised as the “pivotal right,” the fact that the struggle is far from over remains largely unrecognised.
The legacy of suffrage
Goldman’s view on womens’ struggle was not one that ended in the equity of circumstances with men in the present. She would accept nothing less than equality within the framework of full and genuine equality. As she wrote, “I demand the independence of woman, her right to support herself; to live for herself; to love whomever she pleases, or as many as she pleases. I demand freedom for both sexes, freedom of action, freedom in love and freedom in motherhood.” This offers us the basic principle for a practical anarchist assessment of the suffrage movement. Has it brought about any such freedom?
In the West, there is a signficant degree of this freedom. Women are no longer frowned upon or scorned by society for not fulfilling the traditional roles of wife, mother, and home-maker. Monogamy and marriage are no longer enforced by law. Overall, there is greater freedom from traditional patriarchy and social convention. However, one could credibly argue that this has been the result not of suffragism but of the broader feminist movements that took off particularly in the 1960s. Further, the shortcomings of such equality within a statist and class-based society suggest that Goldman’s vision is far from realised. Especially in the recent resurgence of the unattainable ultra-feminine ideal for women (and, conversely, hyper-masculinity for men), a topic I will return to.
Also worth noting is that the ability of women to elect and be elected culminated, in Britain, with the rise to power ofMargaret Thatcher. Though her anti-working class politics and repressive implementation of them were, of course, nothing to do with her gender, her reign demonstrates amply the fact that, as voting cannot accomplish significant positive change, equity in voting will do nothing to alter that fact. Quite clearly, the idea that “suffrage is the pivotal right” from which all freedom and equality comes is a fallacy, as having “women themselves help to make laws and elect lawmakers” has no more effect on the political system than men do.
But, if this is to be more than a purely academic exercise, what can be gained from this?
The answer to that is experience. History is an invaluable lesson, if only we are willing to learn it. In the case of feminism, it tells us that womens’ liberation, channelled through the medium of suffrage and electoralism, becomes a satire of itself steeped in reaction.
Emmeline Pankhurst called a halt to the struggle for equality in the name of a bloody and futile war. Feminism and militancy gave way to nationalism and cooperation with the sate. A bitter anti-Communism led her to declare her allegiance to the British Empire, saying, ”some talk about the Empire and Imperialism as if it were something to decry and something to be ashamed of. [I]t is a great thing to be the inheritors of an Empire like ours … great in territory, great in potential wealth. … If we can only realise and use that potential wealth we can destroy thereby poverty, we can remove and destroy ignorance….” Such a declaration made her later membership of the Conservative Party unsurprising.
We can see a similar tendency towards reaction and diversionary politics in modern feminist activities. One particularly vivid recent example was Global Women’s Strike calling attention to the fact that International Women’s Day 2003 “Justice for Women, Women’s Aid, Eaves Housing for Women, POLLY and Lilith will be picketing Spearmint Rhino, a lap-dancing club,” whilst “the US and UK governments defy the majority of people in the world and get ready to kill and displace millions in Iraq, mainly women and children.” The sex industry and the role it plays towards women in society is, of course, a whole other debate. However, the lesson offered by the differences between Goldman and Pankhurst highlights the differences between the mainstream feminist movement, watching as the rights of women stagnate and begin to slide backwards, and anarcha-feminism, ever calling for a more radical perspective.
What remains is to learn that lesson and to act upon it.
http://propertyistheft.wordpress.com/2010/03/07/sex-and-suffrage/



TRASH KIT and GRASS WIDOW UK TOUR

If you like The Raincoats, you will dig it.
don't miss their UK tour!
http://www.myspace.com/trashkit


WOMEN'S IN AUDIO
for all the nerdy girls that are interested in sound and recording, knob twisting...

www.womensaudiomission.org
http://www.pinknoises.com/

THE GITS

I'm always surprised how many people never heard of this band. They were awesome! Mia Zapata had one of the most beautiful voice in punk ever! She is dearly missed. Viva Mia Zapata!


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mia_Zapata

KAREN FINLEY
" I'm hurt, abused. I slice me.
I burn me. I hit me. I want this body to die. I want to be old and undesired.
I want my body back -
                          society, culture and history
                          media, entertainment and art
I'm more than a hole
But you hate us because we can have babies and you can't.
I'm more than a hole
But you envy us because we have children who
love us unconditionally.
I'm more than a set of tits
But if I don't have the right size for you
I'm never enough for you
So, we make implants and surgery just for you.
We create a woman that never existed.
It's survival of the female species.
And I'm more than a pair of legs
But if they don't do more than walk
I'm a dog.
if I nurse my babies and my tits sag
And I'm told you won't desire me
You can't be a mother and a whore
No one loves a smart woman
I'm more than a piece of ass,  a good fuck and lay
For the woman-our society only relates and values
you for your desirability.
The Woman is Private Property."


"Men's clothes need to be eroticized.
I want to see men's nipples. I want to see men photographed so we can see the tips  of their nipples, hard and erect, on the cover of magazine. I want little see-through panels across their chests.
I want clothing that draws attention to a man's scrotum. I want testicles dressed in nice, wooly caps. I want the hot, hairy ball look. I want high-heeled oxfords and Nikes so the butt goes up in the air, so I can grab booty. I want to smell booty.
I want to see the penis in a constant state of erection-and I want that interpreted by fashion NOW. And if that means banana or salami appliques sewn on the crotch, or the wiener actually taken out of the confines of the trouser and dressed in haute couture, I'm ready for it!
In the same way that women's suits have shoulder pads, giving the feeling of big-shouldered male power, men should wear falsies sewn into their work shirts to give the illusion of nurturing, adaptability and the right to be humiliated."

LIANNA'S CAKES

www.heavymetalbakery.blogspot.com


 INTERVIEW WITH BRYONY

www.conspiracyofwomen-cow.blogspot.com



RAG
This is possibly the best anarcha-feminist zine around! Check out the blog and grab the zine if you get chance.

http://ragdublin.blogspot.com/



FEMINISM AWARENESS NIGHT AT POGO
Monday 26 July, 19.30
WHERE?
Pogo Cafe
76a Clarence Rd, E5 8HB
Places: hackney


Feminism Awareness Night

A special event with films and discussion including The Price of Pleasure and a short documentary, Why Women? More information to follow.

See you there girl fucking friends!



I've been trying figure this out for a while. It happened to me that my male friends have sexist comments sometimes and then they pretend to be " just joking". I always wonder what's beyond this behaviour? Probably they are just kidding me but I cannot shake off the feeling that they are serious. Most of the time, I think they are unaware of being sexist because it takes the time, one's energy, self-awereness and analysis of one's behaviour and privilege. and how easy is to say (or proclaim yourself) something but do nothing that proves the statement? So I decided to post this. This man got guts, man!


Hannah Cann Interviews Jon Waters for York Uni Women's Society Zine

Jon Waters set up the London Profeminist Men’s Group 2 years ago and they’ve been meeting every 2 weeks ever since.

Why Pro-Feminist?

“Well, we discuss it now and again... Not everyone agrees with the name. Some think that we should be called an ‘anti-sexist men’s group’. There’s the idea that we don’t want to colonize a term for a movement set up by women for the liberation of women, and that calling ourselves male feminists or something similar would suggest we don’t understand and aren’t sensitive to the issues. However, plenty of feminists argue that feminism is for all people who want equality, and that men ought to call themselves feminists as they are fighting the same fight as female feminists. I think we’re happy calling ourselves pro-feminists and helping to define what exactly that term means by simply existing under that title!

How do you think Feminism has affected the lives of men?

Feminism definitely has affected the lives of men... in loads of ways. It has forced men in some circumstances to treat women better, or as equals. In certain areas the level of sexism has been reduced a lot...It’s changed attitudes. It was a bit different for my mum and her generation...It was fine for her not to wear dresses and skirts, and ride a motorbike [laughs]. For me growing up, I got to see a much wider range of gender roles. And in some ways, it’s [Feminism] made it more acceptable for men to talk about their emotions more; which has a bit of a backlash because the ‘macho’ thing still weighs heavily on men and boys. But it’s easier than it was for men to be “in touch with their feminine side”, because Feminism’s changed gender roles. Men also benefit from reduced violence to women. Women are their sisters, mums, lovers. Men aren’t purely selfish individuals [laughs]...and obviously they don’t want the women they love to be the victims of violence.

Why do you think it has taken Feminism to promote certain improvements in men’s lives, such as better attitudes towards fatherhood?

I think it’s fantastic that we are starting to see a lot more men pushing buggies down the road, and there’s more talk about equal paternity leave.
I don’t think there’s an a priori reason why it needed to be a women’s movement. It’s conceivable that it could have been groups of men fighting for their rights to care for their own kids more. However, I think that men are not generally socialised to be particularly caring, to be blunt! [laughs]. It’s often not high on a man’s list of priorities to be a loving father, but rather a breadwinner and procreator. Being a good dad is in the list of “what a perfect man ought to do”, but particularly in the world of work, which is often male-dominated, there’s a lot of resistance to men taking time off work to look after kids. The more macho the work place, the harder it is.
Generally I think it’s a great example of an area where feminists have led the way, and men’s groups can take on the challenge of fighting for men to do more childcare in the home and outside it. As a men’s group we have run several crèches at feminist conferences, and I’m a part of another mixed gender group that focuses on the issue of improving access to activism for parents and carers as well as their kids.

What advice would you give to men who want to take more proactive steps in or for Feminism?

In certain circumstances it might be easier for men to get involved in feminism [than women], because it’s unusual. In some groups men might be welcomed almost as a hero! Similarly, in terms of talking about feminism, people have a lot of preconceptions about feminist women. They switch off, because they think “here we go...” as if they already know what she thinks. With a guy, people are often more intrigued. *Pauses* sorry, what was the question again?!! Oh yeah…
I suppose in a university context there are usually gender courses, and there are loads of academic books and “Brief Introductions to Feminism” out there. I would recommend a website calledhttp://www.xyonline.net/, which has tons of stuff written by pro-feminist men about their lives and their activism. It’s also good to know you’re not the only man in the world who cares! Obviously, if you’re in London, come to the Pro-Feminist Men’s Group [laughs] or check out our blog at londonprofeministmensgroup.blogspot.com/.
If you’re in York, go to Women’s Committee, or any groups that open doors to men. You also need to be receptive to the issues, and be sensitive about why some groups don’t want men, or at least not all the time. It’s important for men to come to terms with the importance of women only spaces. If you don’t get that, it’s easy to think it’s sexist to exclude men, which is what you’re fighting against! You can end up getting a bit stuck. If you find a group that says it doesn’t allow men at meetings, for example, ask them why and listen carefully guys! It’s really not that hard to understand, honest!
If possible, find other men who are interested in feminism. Best by far is to meet face-to-face with other men, but online communities can be a decent substitute if you can’t find anyone. A common theme in the men’s group is that we’ve all had a friend, lover or ex-lover who’s a strong feminist woman and has influenced us, our lives and behaviour. Ideally there’d be enough pro-feminist men out there that it didn’t always have to fall on women to “convert men” but learning lots from feminist friends is generally a great way to start out if you’re interested in gender issues.

What sort of feedback do you get from men and women? Does it vary from men to women?

Personally, I am not a very good advocate for the group. I don’t tend to put the group out there. It’s quite a cowardly approach I suppose. I tend to only tell people I think will be positive about it!
When I’m brave enough to tell men about the group it often feels like I’ve just said I’m part of a Jewish Pro-Nazi group. They get a “does not compute” face. ‘Consternation’ would be a good word for it! It’s a difficult job explaining what we do. We don’t have a narrow focus you can sum up in a few words, which makes it hard to talk about sometimes. Generally speaking, women are more interested and sometimes almost congratulatory. Some say they want their boyfriends to go along!

Why is it important for men to think about feminist issues today?

I think a lot of men want to live in a more equal and fair society, and don’t want to see women getting paid less on average, having to deal with loads more domestic violence than men, and generally having less power and privilege than men in most situations. Feminism also gives men the tools to radically alter the gender roles that cause them so much damage, even whilst they confer privilege on them. Boys are taught to become “real men” and face all sorts of bullying if they don’t conform. Changing masculinity and the expectations we have of what “being a real man” means would give men more freedom to be themselves and to express their feelings, hopefully leading to less pent up anger, depression, suicide and violence. A radically different masculinity would mean not having to live in fear of other men’s violence and fear of being seen as weak or not having all the answers all the time. Ultimately, men should get involved in feminist politics because FHM – Feminism Helps Men!
Jon Waters recommends http://www.xyonline.net/ and Slow Motion – changing masculinities, changing men by Lynne Segal to learn more about the male role in feminism. Contact him directly atlondonprofeministmensgroup@gmail.com.


PRETTY IN PUNK - GIRLS GENDER RESISTANCE IN A BOYS SUBCULTURE

Pretty in Punk is a book written by fellow punkrock girl Lauraine Leblanc. The whole book is an analysis of a gender resistance in the male-dominated subculture such as punk. It consists of interviews with punkrock girls, social methodology, research, analysis and the entire book is well written and very original.I got my copy from the gender library in Prague but I am sure you can get it cheap from ebay or biblio.com.

I remember when me and my friendwere discussing our self-esteem. We came to the conclusion that the girls/women tend to have a lower self-esteem than boys/men and that also explains lower female participations in the subculture. I found a great passage in a book that explains this phenomenon . It's long but read it through because it makes you realise how fucked up the process of socialization really is.
FEMININITY GAME
"Punk girls are subjected to the same kind of pressures that most Western women encounter, forced to play no-win game of femininity. In order to win, women have to strive to reach an impossible ideal: the wide-ranging attributes and expectations of femininity, which include behavioral and physical attributes of gentility, passivity, beauty, domesticity etc........
...... The goals of the game, the attributes of femininity, are specifically constructed to contrast with those of masculinity. Whereas men ought to be agressive, women ought to be passive, whereas men ought to be strong and direct, women ought to be subtle, coy, weak, timid and so on. This part of the game, otherwise called the social construction of gender, not only considers femininity and masculinity as opposites, but as hierarchically related. Not only are masculinity and femininity diametrically opposed, but masculinity is set above femininity. This is not to say that traditionally feminine characteristics such as caring and nurturing are in fact inferior to traditionally masculine characteristics. However, because traditionally masculine characterisitics are valued highly, and because feminity is constructed as masculinity's opposite (ostensibly, one cannot be both rational and emotional), femininity is deemed inferior. Thus, she who ultimately triumphs in the feminity game has succeeded in stripping herself of many human qualities, she has made herself less than she could have been.
.....Code of Goodness:
BE ATTRACTIVE: A woman is as good as she looks.
BE A LADY: A good woman stays in control.
BE UNSELFISH AND OF SERVICE: A good woman lives to give.
MAKE RELATIONSHIPS WORK: A good woman loves first.
BE COMPETENT WITHOUT COMPLAINT: A good woman does it all and never looks overwhelmed.
This "Code of Goodness" not only presents the rules which women must follow, but (not coincidentally) also describes many of the aspects of socialization which researchers consider to be responsible for the lowering girls self-esteem in early adolescence. These rules teach girls to be concerned primarly with beauty and relationships, to set aside ambition, intelligence, self-efficacy, and independence. Girls and women are judged on a daily basis according to these standards. Futhermore, it is not merely the case that others judge us, but because women internalize these standards, we become our own harshest critics. The failure to live up to these standards can create an inner dialogue of self-recrimination and self-doubt, in which even women who achieve success in other areas of life can still castigate themselves for their failures to be pretty or loved. Although failure to live up to the expactations of femininity can have devastating effects on girls' and women's self-esteem, so can success in attaining them. A "winner" of the femininity game has effectively stripped herself of valued human characteristics in adopting an undervalued indentity. It should come as no surprise, then, that many women and girls who strive to win the game at all costs suffer from higher rates of depression and eating disorders and lower self-esteem that do boys and men".

solution: try to regognize this fucked up socialization in your life and don't let the gender get in your way.don't play the game or make up your own rules. do what you wanna do. don't listen to anyone and if someone bothers you can just tell'em to fuck off!!!



 http://youtu.be/yWMz9XBhLQg

Feminist punk band Pussy Riot take revolt to the Kremlin

Anonymous band with provocative anti-Putin lyrics – who have become a symbol of Russian youth's discontent – are preparing for their next surprise performance
Russian all-girl punk group Pussy Riot
Members of Pussy Riot perform on a platform in front of St Basil's Cathedral in Red Square, Moscow. Photograph: Anna Artemeva/AFP/Getty Images
Eight women stood in a line opposite the Kremlin, neon balaclavas hiding their faces, fists pounding the air in rugged defiance. Before police carted them off, the members of Pussy Riot managed to shout their way through a minute-long punk anthem: "Revolt in Russia – the charisma of protest / Revolt in Russia, Putin's got scared!"
Formed days after Vladimir Putin's announcement in September that he intended to return to the presidency, Pussy Riot have become the latest symbol of young Russian discontent.
"A lot of us couldn't sleep after this announcement," said "Tyurya", one of the founding members of a punk collective that has grown, since October, to roughly 30 people, including crew. "So we decided, damn it, we need to do something. We always went to protests and things, but it seemed to us we needed to do something more."
The mid-January performance on Red Square, brazen in its choice of location and lyrics, catapulted the all-female punk band into the pantheon of Russia's increasingly creative protest movement.
Pussy Riot are sworn to anonymity, hence the colourful balaclavas members use to hide their faces, even when giving interviews. "It shows we can be anybody," says a band member who goes by the name Garadzha, wearing a hot-pink ski mask and matching stockings.
They decline to reveal the smallest details, aiming to maintain total secrecy. They will say only that most of the band members met at the small protests held by Russia's once-feebled opposition, from monthly illegal demonstrations calling for the right to assembly to banned gay pride marches. Their average age is 25. They are hardcore feminists. Most studied the humanities in university. They won't detail their day jobs.
What united them in October was the feeling that something had to change in the country and in its culture of protest, which, until tens of thousands took to the streets after contested parliamentary elections in December, had had hardly any effect on the political discourse.
"We understood that to achieve change, including in the sphere of women's rights, it's not enough to go to Putin and ask for it," said Garadzha. "This is a rotten, broken system."
Her bandmate Tyurya said: "The culture of protest needs to develop. We have one form, but we need many different kinds."
The band began writing songs with lyrics such as: "Egyptian air is good for the lungs / Do Tahrir on Red Square!" and performing on trams and in the metro. Videos of the flash gigs began spreading across the internet. When the protest leader Alexey Navalny was jailed for 15 days after his arrest during Russia's first post-election protest on 5 December, three members of Pussy Riot took to the roof of the jail where he was being held, setting off red flares as they sang "Death to prison / Freedom to protest!"
The fear of arrest long ago left the band members, steeped in the tradition of illegal protest. "We have experience with it, we've been detained at protests before," said Tyurya. "It's not scary – you're surrounded by good, normal people, those who protest against Putin."
All eight women were detained during the Kremlin performance, questioned and released. Most got off with administrative fines rather than the 15-day jail sentences often doled out to those who stage illegal protests.
"The revolution should be done by women," said Garazhda. "For now, they don't beat or jail us as much."
"There's a deep tradition in Russia of gender and revolution – we've had amazing women revolutionaries."
The band is getting ready for its next performance, something that usually takes a month to pull together. Its members don't discuss plans on the telephone or give away details, out of fear that the security services will disrupt the project. Is what they do art or politics? "For us it's one and the same."
They won't be wearing their radical outfits when attending Moscow's next big protest on Saturday, as the opposition hopes to build on the momentum of two major protests in December that brought tens of thousands to the streets of the Russian capital. But like all good punks, the band wants to see the protest movement develop beyond legal boundaries.
"Putin and his team are behaving so rudely, and the people aren't ready to react in the same way – they want all these protests to be sanctioned," said Tyurya. "But that's what's needed when you're fighting an illegitimate government. They're basically occupiers, they don't have the right to be here – why should things be agreed with them?"
That was a sentiment that began to arise among some of Moscow's protesters in late January, when negotiations between organisers and the mayor's office dragged on as authorities sought – and ultimately failed – to push the demonstration to Moscow's outskirts. Protesters will march on Saturday towards Bolotnaya Square, across from the Kremlin. Tens of thousands are expected, despite a temperature of -20C.
Putin is still widely expected to win the presidential election on 4 March and remains the country's most popular politician, something his critics attribute to the state's monopoly on television and access to politics. Liberal politicians are regularly denied the right to register parties, and the candidacy of Grigory Yavlinsky, the leader of the liberal Yabloko party, was declared invalid last week.
Yet analysts say Putin's ability to govern unchallenged will be severely hampered by the negative reaction to his return. It has not only rocked the Russian elite, but led to a renewal of spirit in Russia's creative classes. Satirical programmes find no place on state-run television but have blossomed on the internet. Moscow theatres are staging overtly anti-regime plays. And Pussy Riot, who cite riot grrrl pioneers Bikini Kill and cult heroes Sonic Youth as inspiration, continue to perform.
"We wanted to create a new form of protest – maybe not such a huge one, but we compensate for that with the bright, provocative and illegal nature of our performances," Tyurya said.
Like Russia's tens of thousands of protesters, the band members don't know how the authorities will react next time. "After Red Square, they took us roughly, got even angrier than usual," Tyurya said. "The phrase 'Putin's got scared' – it was a real slap in their faces."