This is one of the funniest Onion articles I've ever read. And so sadly on the mark!
"New Anti Abortion Pill Kills Mother, Leaves Fetus Alive".
Well done, Onion, well done.

Women’s ENews (a fabulous website for lady-centered news) featured an article about women taking pictures of their harassers with cell phones and cameras then posting them on blogs to out the leering jackasses they encounter daily. This gives women a sense of power in the situation: they take charge by turning around and taking the picture, thus confronting their aggressor (to see this in action, read a recent entry from Twisty on I Blame The Patriarchy). Men don’t understand how even a single comment supports the entire aura of fear that constantly surrounds us. Hopefully, becoming the object might give some men pause before they decide to do it again. In general, I like this concept, though I think extreme caution should be exercised, particularly, as the article notes, when women are alone or in a potentially dangerous areas…which, in turn, kind of makes the whole idea a lot less powerful. You can fight back, but only if there are a lot of other people around, thus reminding you of your very powerlessness. Women have to make the choice between taking a stance and getting raped, it seems. Great. I was momentarily uplifted, but am sad once again.

I was reading this article today on Alternet about Target being no better than Walmart when it comes to union-busting activities, refusing to pay a living wage and using part-time so that they don’t have to pay for healthcare. I always suspected this was true but sometimes I like to put my hand over my ears and say over and over, “I’m not listening I’m not listening I’m not listening.” I’ve done that quite a bit in general lately because if I didn’t, I wouldn’t be alive. There is interesting commentary at the end of the article, much of it expressing frustration with the greater system that makes stores like Target possible. Big box retailers are just a part of a greater problem – consumer culture. It goes beyond the ridiculous circle of we have to go to Target because that’s what we can afford and then we’re just supporting the very system that underpays us in the first place argument. It’s our unquenchable need for *stuff* to define and placate ourselves – myself included. What’s worse is that while being conscious of my own consumerism, I still engage in it. Because my family is about to cut back to one income for a few months, I’ve been thinking of all the things we purchase that we don’t need and I’m hoping that living on a very fixed salary with absolutely no room for anything extraneous will be a good lesson in What Not To Buy.