"What incredible grace..." written by Janelle on estrip.org

Category: news

10/18/07 01:07 - 59ºF - ID#41701

What incredible grace...

that a woman who had been sexually abused as a child would run a trailer park and allow released sex offenders to live there while they get their act together, yet still draw a tough line that she expects that they'll toe the line or go back to jail!

Permalink: What_incredible_grace_.html
Words: 58
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: human rights

10/17/07 08:29 - 59ºF - ID#41682

Yahoo in China

Has anyone been following this situation with Yahoo in China?

What do you think? Does Yahoo have no responsibiity for the actions of the Chinese government? Were they simply following the laws of the land? Should US companies do business in China if they are subject to the Chinese government in a way that makes them complicit with a human rights violation?

metalpeter writes at 05:31:37 10/17/07 - Comment #26489: First of all I kinda remember this same idea when Google and Yahoo both decided to operate in China. I don't think my thoughts from then have really changed. If yahoo wants to operate in China then they have to follow the laws and the culture of china. The company has a choice it can say we don't agree with there ideas and take the money anyways or take the moral high ground and not do Busines there. This would be true of any country not just in china. What makes no sense to me is why does Yahoo say anything to congress they have no say of what they do in another country and how they follow that other countires laws.

I myself think that Yahoo shouldn't be in china. I'm not sure where they would get there internet from but I'm sure some company could be formed inside the country and they would work with the government. It is to bad that some gorilla internet company couldn't form that was independent of the government, but it would might just get shut down and everyone would be jailed for life.

janelle writes at 03:58:18 10/17/07 - Comment #26486: <smacks self in head>, of course, (e:James), that's the true crux of the argument!

james writes at 03:55:25 10/17/07 - Comment #26485: This very detailed and expansive discussion is great everyone. But I think you are all missing one very important fact, without which all your arguments have no footing:

tacos are awesome.

ajay writes at 03:34:37 10/17/07 - Comment #26481: [ Again: all of this is personal opinion ]

You guys misunderstood me.

I'm not saying that "everyone is bad, so it's OK".
I'm trying to point out the parallels: that even the USG does the same thing that ChiComs are accused of; and that US companies like ATT, Verizon, etc. are doing exactly what Yahoo is alleged to have done.

Basically it boils down to this: A government agency comes to a communications company and says "We believe Citizen X committed a crime and revealed state secrets/is planning an attack. We need his phone records/email records." What should the company do? Defy the subpoena (and the law of the land) and get its officers sent to jail

It is not as if Yahoo is volunteering this information; they are responding to valid, legal requests for information from a local law-enforcement agency.

I brought up WalMart/ToysRus because the simple fact is: if these companies did not bankroll the ChiComs, then that government wouldn't have the balls to give the world the finger (while fisting Tibet).

joshua writes at 02:26:37 10/17/07 - Comment #26468: Its efficient, and passing the buck is a politician's best friend.

janelle writes at 01:44:01 10/17/07 - Comment #26459: (e:zobar):
"Mu [the question is wrong]. Why are governments relying so heavily on private industry to carry out their official functions in the first place?"

Because it's efficient. Why have experts on the internet/extracting information from the internet when an industry already exists that can accomplish it? It's just good business sense to not re-invent the wheel. It's a positive thing when the government can ask the internet agencies to assist with tracking down purveyors of child porn websites, but a negative thing of course when the government is illegally spying on individuals.

janelle writes at 01:37:59 10/17/07 - Comment #26456: I definitely feel a little disgust at the Olympics in China. To make it worse, China is stepping up a quiet campaign to drive missionaries out of the country before the Olympics. The Olympics attracts a large number of evangelists and China wants to make sure that there are no missionaries in the country to provide home base for missionaries coming into the country from around the world to share the faith.

and yeah, (e:jason), we dug ourselves a hole giving China such a financial hold over us from multiple angles. It put ourselves in a weak position.

jason writes at 01:31:12 10/17/07 - Comment #26452: The China situation is very delicate. They could easily just dump all of the US Dollars they have, which would mean very tough economic consequences for us. That's why we (and, more severely, the rest of the world) act like wimps.

Now, if you guys can come up with some really great ideas on how to give China the finger right now, while simultaneously re-supplying our stores with replacements for the millions of products made in China, then I'm all ears.

They abuse human rights, they pollute the planet, and what do they get for punishment? The Olympics. It's a mad world.

joshua writes at 12:50:38 10/17/07 - Comment #26449: Yahoo shareholders rejected in June the notion of adopting a policy that would oppose censorship on the internet.

:::link:::

We've always known why, but unfortunately they have taken further steps to help the Chinese government jail people. Yahoo is no longer considered a leader with respect to the ethos of the Internet, to be kind about it.

I find the idea that Yahoo didn't know a crime was committed to be incredibly naive and hard to believe. Forget about Gitmo for a second - nothing that the US government, or other companies in the US for that matter, have done can excuse or otherwise justify what Yahoo did. Bringing up Wal-Mart and Toys R Us is merely a distraction meant to muddy up the waters. I sincerely hope that this is not the way Yahoo PR intends on handling it, because they will get slaughtered in the press if they do so.

Nobody is excusing the telecoms. Why should Yahoo be excused? My God, they directly helped to jail a political dissident by literally handing over private data! Then, Yahoo mislead Congress about it.

Suggesting that somehow American consumers are at fault for human rights abuses in China is contrived. That is a bizarre notion. Whats next - we all have to scale back, or possibly even pay more, for things in order to prevent foreign governments that we can't control from abusing their own people? Shit, China has done that all on their own for 50 years without the big bad capitalists helping them out.

jim writes at 10:47:58 10/17/07 - Comment #26434: There is pressure on everyone you named to change their ways, ajay, people protest against Gitmo, the US Government, and Yahoo, together and separately. I don't shop at Walmart, lots of people don't because of just what you mentioned. It is possible to criticize Yahoo for its decisions without first invoking a litany against everyone else - you can't talk about everything at once and still be coherent.

Also, if the US Government jumped off a cliff would Yahoo jump off too? :)

ajay writes at 10:16:17 10/17/07 - Comment #26432: [ I'm speaking in my private capacity here ]

How are Yahoo's actions any different from these :::link::: and why is the White House asking for retroactive immunity for the telecom companies :::link::: ?

Talking about "human rights", have you looked at Gitmo recently? And how many people in this country have been locked up (or sent abroad for "rendition") because of the telecom companies' cooperation?

Why is it OK to blame Yahoo for this, and then turn around and patronize companies like WalMart and Toys R Us, which almost exclusively peddle "Made in China" goods? If noone bought Chinese goods, the government there wouldn't have the money to crack down on its citizens, right? Then why aren't we, the American consumers, also responsible for the HR violations in China?

Here's the short version of the story: the company got a subpoena. It had no idea of the crime committed; JUST LIKE IT IS IN THE U.S.!

zobar writes at 10:05:02 10/17/07 - Comment #26431: Should American companies provide foreign governments information they demand to spy on their citizens?

Should American companies be complicit in our own government's efforts to spy on its citizens?

Mu [the question is wrong]. Why are governments relying so heavily on private industry to carry out their official functions in the first place?

- Z

janelle writes at 09:50:14 10/17/07 - Comment #26430: I think my ultimate conclusion is the same as you, (e:Joshua) and (e:museumchick). If they are complicit in human rights violations because they have to follow the laws of the land, then they probably should not be operating in that country.

I'm guessing they have already made ethical compromises (by Western World standards) regarding censorship in order to operate in China.

joshua writes at 09:42:02 10/17/07 - Comment #26429: Yahoo are in a difficult position - they have to follow Chinese directions or they will not be able to do business in the country. They simply should not do what they are doing - I don't think the business is worth the atrocious publicity that providing private e-mails to the Chinese version of the Stasi brings.

museumchick writes at 09:18:06 10/17/07 - Comment #26424: I hadn't been following what was going on, so I'm really glad you linked to that article.

I think that Yahoo shares some responsibility for what happened. In my opinion, they didn't have to turn over the documents. Maybe many other people would do the same if put in that situation... but I still don't believe that makes it okay.

If I were a US company, I would be very hesitant to do business in China. They have a horrible record of human rights violations, and I wouldn't want to support that. But that can probably be said of a lot of countries, so I'm not sure where I would stand if I was in that position.

Permalink: Yahoo_in_China.html
Words: 71
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: life

10/14/07 12:16 - 53ºF - ID#41633

Celebration, come on!

<walks out on stage and stands on soapbox>

I lost 5lbs after being conscious about my eating habits and getting back on the exercise machine. I'd like to share this accomplishment with friends because I worked hard.

But do I? Nope. Not even with my closest of girlfriends. Because most people make disparaging comments about me losing weight...you're so skinny, you could use a little weight on you, whatever...

Well, ya know what....It's my body and I get to have control over it. And I have a preferred weight where I look my best and feel my best. I would love to tell people that I gained 10 lbs after college and loved those ten lbs that went straight to my hips and ass and made me look smoking hot in those hip huggers. But it's hard when they're so busy judging me.

But now I put on another 10lbs, I don't feel as good about how I look, my pants are horribly tight, I'm in between sizes right now, and don't care to replace my wardrobe. So, I'm trying to lose those 10lbs and I refuse to be apologetic about it, because it's my body.

And you know what else I get tired of? The nasty remarks people make towards me when I turn down candy or only drink diet soda. It's your own damn assumption that I don't do those things to avoid weight gain. I'm actually quite careful about sugar because I'm unbelievably prone to cavities and I'd like to keep my teeth for as long as I can. So shove it!

<steps off soab box, bows and exits>

james writes at 10:40:05 10/14/07 - Comment #26226: Rock on Ms. Janelle ^_^

fellyconnelly writes at 10:18:05 10/14/07 - Comment #26220: here here!
one of my store locations is next to a hostess outlet store, and i swear the people who work there want nothing else but to eat sugary cake all day! and they wonder why you won't accept any!

i tell everybody that its really more about that funny thing called 'health' - you are not meant to have that crap shoved down your throats! and that is why i chose to eat salads and wraps rather than the cheeseburgers and fries that they get.

but yes it is also about the desire to reverse to the time when i could fit into those jeans that i refuse to throw away. don't tell anybody though!

congrats to you for your healthy habits!

tinypliny writes at 01:32:01 10/14/07 - Comment #26210: /*claps lustily*/

Did you know that teeth were so prized in the 17/18th centuries that grave robbers preferentially dug out the bodies of the young and the able, not because they had coprophilia, but because they wanted the un-rotted teeth of the deceased.

The basic reason behind the creation of the tooth fairy was the preservation of one's teeth for one's afterlife. Because, apparently, every myth pointed to the fact that dentists never made it to heaven. As a result, you needed to have unrotten preserved teeth to get on with chewy life in heaven.

At one point in the past, people kept a complete tooth-set made of cedar wood so that they could replace all the cavity-ridden teeth with the wood ones as soon as they could seek treatment from one of the rare traveling teeth-doctors.

With such a complex history and evolution of teeth-paranoia among the human race, I am constantly surprised at how people totally neglect teeth care and hygiene. Sugar is perhaps the No.1 enemy of tooth-health. Not brushing long enough or at all ranks pretty high among causes for lost teeth. Sticky food residue contributes to a BIG chunk of cavities

\m/ Rock on Janelle. \m/
Teeth-hygiene is indeed the new godliness. :)

Permalink: Celebration_come_on_.html
Words: 277
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: sims

10/13/07 11:03 - 48ºF - ID#41625

The Seduction of Joey Johnson

I'm too the point in my career as a medical surgeon that I can't progress without some support from a spouse. So I set aside a day to seduce my long time boyfriend Joey Johnson.

I was a little bit nervous when I invited him over as I had been dabbling in a relationship with Drew Ludwig. But all was forgiven with a passionate kiss at the door:

We started out with some light conversation.
He likes cloudy Days

Oh, good! I like rainy days...this might work!

I can't propose to him on an empty stomach so I whipped up a turkey dinner for the two of us:

I like sailboats

Oh, shoot, not Joey. He hates sailboats, they don't pollute enough!

Oh, yeah, well, um, I like cars...they pollute a lot!

Moving onto pinball. I need to show Joey that living herw is full of pinball fun!

I sneak downstairs to change into a little special something to move in for the kill!

I nervously chatter about clothing accessories to relieve the tension of the moment.

Okay, time to test the waters with an intimate hug.

Good, good... moving in for a fiery kiss...oh, no a setback!

Shoot, I'm committed now. Suck it up and propose!

No, no! I did everything right...why doesn't he love me???

Permalink: The_Seduction_of_Joey_Johnson.html
Words: 249
Location: Buffalo , NY

10/11/07 11:35 - 52ºF - ID#41606

Plant Lamp

The most fucking awesome lamp in the universe...is in MY house.
It's a plant lamp. The lamp rod is inside of a large plastic basin that holds lots of soil into which three cute little house plants are planted.

Hold onto your seats, this is the exciting part.....

To turn the lamp on and off, you don't use a typical on and off lamp switch. Oh, no my friends. You gently touch one of the leaves of the plant to turn it on and again to turn it off!

Science is an awesome thing!

Permalink: Plant_Lamp.html
Words: 95
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: family

10/11/07 09:08 - 49ºF - ID#41589

Divorce and the Holidays

As many of you have read on this blog, my parents are in the process of divorcing. Yesterday was their first court hearing. Although I haven't heard the outcome, I'm pretty sure that by Thanksgiving or Christmas, the parents will not be sharing the same roof anymore. So I will be transitioning into that weird situation of how to handle the holidays. I think they'll both be living in the same town, so that will help. I'll be in IL with them for Thanksgiving and doing Xmas here in Buffalo. My plan for Xmas is to invite everyone (brother and both parents and grandmother) in the family to celebrate here and let them decide who wants to come.

Any advice from those with experience in juggling divorced parents and holidays?

Permalink: Divorce_and_the_Holidays.html
Words: 130
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: sims

10/09/07 10:48 - 63ºF - ID#41567

Sims Update

My sim was in a bit of a rut.
Work, study, work socialize, work, study, work, socialize.

So she treated herself to a pool now that she makes the big bucks as a specialist:

Yeah, I look that good in a bikini in real life too.

She also acquired a lover to shake things up:

It's just a matter of time before she seduces Joey Johnson into marriage.

Permalink: Sims_Update.html
Words: 72
Location: Buffalo , NY

10/07/07 02:09 - 65ºF - ID#41534

The parable of the Greedy Sim...

... in the Gospel of Janelle

Drew wanted the good life right away and bought a big mansion with no money to fill it....

He had no money left to buy a smoke detector or buy books to learn how to cook, so....

Despite his best efforts...

But greed has now led to....

Now, Janelle who started modestly, studied hard, and saved her money, is living the big life....

Permalink: The_parable_of_the_Greedy_Sim_.html
Words: 78
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: sims

10/06/07 04:59 - 78ºF - ID#41521

The Sims

I've had some time on my hand so I've reinstalled the ole Sims game. I take pride in starting from scratch and not using the money cheat code.

Here's my modest new dwellings:

And here I am:

I'm in the medical career and I just got a promotion to intern. It's been hard to do all the socializing and studying I need to be a resident.

Not much interesting now, but I have three potential boyfriends lined up that I'm courting. More on that later, peeps....

Permalink: The_Sims.html
Words: 90
Location: Buffalo , NY

Category: television

10/04/07 07:46 - 75ºF - ID#41496

Gotta give props to....

America's Next Top Model.

I started watching it out of curiousity. Why was this a competition? Don't you just take a tall, pretty woman and take pictures and voila, she's a model?

It turns out that it takes some serious skills to be a high fashion model. You really have to be in tune with your body and comfortable with your body. You have to engage in the scenario. You have to express the designers purpose behind the outfit, but do it with your style. You're bringing your personality to the photograph, so you need to know who you are and be confident in it. You have to be willing to go outside of your personal comfort zone and trying something new that might make you feel scared or vulnerable.

The other cool thing about Top Model is that Tyra in the past few seasons has emphasized having plus sized models. Now, I have to admit, the plus sized contestants on the show don't seem very plus sized to me, but it's still a positive step forward for an industry where people starve themselves for years to stay the right size. Oh, and there's also a contestant on the show right now with Asperger's syndrome which is way cool.

There have been plenty of women on the show who appear to me to be unattractive or average attractiveness, or have acne or have cellulite and you see them transformed into this blemish free product. So you see that they aren't naturally the way they appear in the photographs. I think it helps chip away at the idea that women could look like these models if they just exercise more or diet more or get liposuction or whatever because these models don't naturally look the way they do in photographs. You understand that it's an image and not a reality. They get there with make up people; hair people and wardrobe people.

All that being said, there is still plenty to critique the modeling industry on and plenty that concerns me, but it's still been a pleasant surprise that the show has challenged my views on what modeling is and who a model is.

drew writes at 11:12:37 10/06/07 - Comment #25846: Oh yeah, and without 5 years of de-sensitatization, you'd never be ready for this stuff.

tinypliny writes at 01:42:06 10/06/07 - Comment #25834: For some strange reason, this makes me glad I gave up TV about half a decade back.

lauren writes at 11:01:35 10/05/07 - Comment #25797: Oh jeez Janelle..you touched on one of my most favorite-ist shows ever! Hehe...I watched and entire season in one sitting once on accident :) Of course...part of me wants to vomit with rage and the other part of me is endlessly fascinated. But I agree with you...a lot of the women aren't exactly gorgeous, but they don't have to be, they just have to take good pictures, and there is some talent involved with that. What I don't like is when they walk into the judging booth and Tyra tells this one or that one to take off her shoes or her earrings because they don't look like a model.
Also...I dunno if you saw this one, but they did one where they were supposed to be dead...murdered by another model. That was disgusting and I am sorry I am rambling in your comments but the fact that we can find a supposedly dead woman's body sexy is outrageous. The end.

museumchick writes at 10:10:08 10/05/07 - Comment #25794: It actually is a better show than I thought it would be. Something that I was also impressed by from the earlier seasons was when they had they had a contestant with lupus who ended up winning. It was inspiring to a lot of my friends who have the disease, because we often feel unattractive from the effects of it on our bodies. We thought it was cool to see her succeed as a model, and then do campaigns for the Lupus Foundation of America.

fellyconnelly writes at 11:05:09 10/04/07 - Comment #25782: tyra banks is a beast.
THE Beast even.
also she is starting to look like RuPaul.
I cannot watch that show based upon her alone.
Sad really..

Permalink: Gotta_give_props_to_.html
Words: 368
Location: Buffalo , NY