Posts made by Ganymede

@Tinuviel

Kind of, yes.

@Ominous

“We don’t know what Cincinnatians are trying to be, but Nick Lachey hails from there.”

— Daytonian.

It means that if an employer takes an adverse action against you based on your sexual orientation or gender identity you have a federal cause of action.

If an employer doesn’t hire you because you’re gay, you can sue. If an employer fires you because you’re a lesbian, you can sue. If an employer refuses to promote you because you are transgender, you can sue.

That’s a layman’s version.

@L-B-Heuschkel said in Diversity Representation in MU*ing:

I ask because I was genuinely surprised to be told by some Americans that being a POC isn't only a matter of appearance but also of country of origin.

It depends, I think. Most people can tell that I'm Asian, but few people realize that I'm of Chinese descent. And then, when they find out, I'm Canadian and not Paul Kariya, well --

@Macha said in RL things I love:

I second that. ... fucking go, Gorsuch?

I wasn't too surprised that Gorsuch wrote it. He's a textualist, but a pragmatist, and the writing was on the wall. The instant the Sixth Circuit applied Title VII to sexual orientation discrimination claims, the game was over.

"An individual’s homosexuality or transgender status is not relevant to employment decisions ... . That’s because it is impossible to discriminate against a person for being homosexual or transgender without discriminating against that individual based on sex.
. . .

“We agree that homosexuality and transgender status are distinct concepts from sex ... . But, as we’ve seen, discrimination based on homosexuality or transgender status necessarily entails discrimination based on sex; the first cannot happen without the second.”

This so beautifully sums up what I have been thinking since I wrote a damn paper in law school on the topic. You cannot discriminate based on sexual orientation or gender identity without discriminating based on sex. And it all comes down to the premise beyond Title VII's sex discrimination prohibition: that part of a person's identity has nothing to do with whether they can or cannot successfully carry out a job's duties and obligations.

In an opinion written by Justice Gorsuch, the Supreme Court of the United States officially extends protections under Title VII to LGBTQ+ plaintiffs. Joined by the four "liberal" justices and Chief Justice Roberts.

@RightMeow said in Real World Peeves, Disgruntlement, and Irks.:

When you have to buy pretty much everything for a household because you are starting over.

I hope everything's all right.

I have a whack-load of shit I don't mind giving away.

@Tinuviel

Goddamned Sweyn and Canute.

@insomniac7809 said in Diversity Representation in MU*ing:

The short version is, these days we're all white, but back when we really weren't. The diaspora communities in the United States have formed their own unique identities over the last century or so over waves of immigration, even if the communities of European descent are becoming less of a distinct identifier as the cultural identity is absorbed into generically "white." Which, yes, often means that celebration of whatever heritage just turns into a drinking holiday in ethnic drag.

Well, you have to find culture that you can hold onto when you haven't any of your own.

This was filmed not far from where I live, and is the best 27 minutes and 20 seconds I have spent all month.

@surreality said in Diversity Representation in MU*ing:

But, yeah, I don't disagree that 'it was pretty' is the most likely reason most people go with -- it's just not everyone's reason.

I know. That's why I wrote the scene as I did. This is probably how it would have gone between us.

Ganymede: You know what you have on?
Surreality: Sure do. It's a cheongsam, also known as a qipao.
Ganymede: Why did you get it?
Surreality: Well, it looks nice, but I appreciate what the women are doing in China these days wearing them, so I wanted to make a statement in support of them.
Ganymede: Super. Now show me your kitties.

@surreality said in Diversity Representation in MU*ing:

I may be in a weird -- ok, no, I know I'm in a weird position on this particular issue, but there's an innate problem, mainly: there's no way to make 'I know the history of this garment/item' as visible as the item itself. Many people won't know, but there are folks who do.

I'm just going to use you for illustrative purposes, then.

Ganymede: You know what you have on?
Surreality: No clue.
Ganymede: Why did you get it?
Surreality: It looked pretty?
Ganymede: Okay, well, that's a cheongsam, also known as a qipao. Back when my parents lived in China, around the time of the Cultural Revolution, women who wore that were arrested for dissidence and never seen again.
Surreality: That's awful.
Ganymede: Yeah. It was really shitty. The Communists thought it was too bourgeousie, and put people to death for that. It was also a way to keep women in check, who were often outspoken activists against the rise of communist totalitarianism. Like, imagine if you were wearing Lululemon or Victoria's Secret stuff one day, and then you get picked up by a bunch of gun-toting psychopaths, driven to a camp, and then shot in the head for political reasons.
Surreality: ... so, I shouldn't wear it.
Ganymede: No, I just want you to be aware of it's history. Women in the 80s and 90s brought it back when China started to become more capitalist. It was a sort of counter-revolutionary thing for them. The Chinese government had just opened up, and it could not risk losing status in the eyes of American interests, so it tolerated the movement knowing full well that women were once again being disobedient.
Surreality: ... so I should wear it?
Ganymede: That depends. Now that you are aware of what it means, would you be upset if I told you to take it off?
Surreality: No.
Ganymede: Great! Now, show me your kitties.

As for the teen that wore it to prom, she defended her choice because she thought it did not constitute cultural appropriation and that it was pretty. Where the conversation gets exasperating is where people say things like "well, how was she to know?" and "she's just a kid!", to which I say "there's a fucking thing kids use called wikipedia so you can learn about your clothing's history and the Three Kingdoms and shit without much difficulty, c'mon".

And when people say "well people in China are okay with it", that's when I say "people in China didn't have to flee China for their ideals or witness their friends disappear for wearing that outfit, like my mother who had to spend 2 years separated from her family because her parents could only afford to take 2 of their 3 kids to Canada with them, so they left her behind with other relatives in Singapore with no fucking contact whatsoever."

That's why the situation is exasperating.

Also, more kitty therapy:

@surreality

That’s okay. I know you aren’t trying to be hurtful, and I don’t find the issue hurtful.

I just get exasperated by it.

Just don’t fucking wear something without appreciating why it is culturally significant.

And when you understand that, please understand why some people, in this case Chinese ex-pats or their children, would not want you to wear it.

@surreality said in Diversity Representation in MU*ing:

This is a good example re: the furor over clothing.

This is, and it is something I'd rather not re-visit.

This is how you water down the horrific mental-health system in some parts of the country.

Well, not really.

@JinShei said in Diversity Representation in MU*ing:

It is annoying because the profession already battles against the handmaiden issue. Because we actually have trouble with people seeing beyond the trope.

I'm pretty well known in my area, so no one makes the mistake of thinking I'm anything but a lawyer. My associates have not been so lucky, having been mistaken for court reporters and paralegals despite being dressed up a stereotypical lawyer.

Like, this one time I went with one of them to a deposition, and opposing counsel said something like "wow, Ganymede, you sure know how to find a good paralegal."

To which I responded, "I know, Gary, but this is Sarah, she's my associate, and she's the one that will be handling the deposition today and the remainder of the proceedings; I'm just here for comic relief."

The look on that guy's face, lol.

Misogyny will follow no matter how you're dressed.

This right here.

@Auspice

@GreenFlashlight said in Diversity Representation in MU*ing:

I just don't lose any sleep over it because on the list of problems I face due to my orientation, being badly represented by a few intellectually uncurious weirdos playing make-believe on a dying medium is just about the least serious threat imaginable.

And this is why I shudder when I see any East Asian PCs.

@AeriaNyx said in RL Sads:

I just found out my cat, Cricket, has cancer.

I know this sounds awful, but this isn't bad news.

I say this because I didn't know what was wrong with my kitty before we had to make the decision to put him down. He had two massive tumors in his stomach that made it painful, if not impossible, to eat. For months we watched him vomit up food he desperately wanted because he couldn't keep it in. We watched him wither away in sheer ignorance. When we found out why he was so sick, I felt so guilty and hurt that I cried in front of my kids.

I keep a photo of my cat on my phone. When people ask me why I don't have my kids' photos, I usually tell them, to their horror, how it reminds me to listen to my kids when they say they are hurt or not feeling well. I know that if my cat could have talked, he would have told me how it hurt to eat. Instead, that damn lovebug kept struggling to get up on the bed and nuzzle with us, and we were too damned stupid to realize what he was trying to say.

At least you know, and can help your loved one live the best life possible; I feel like I condemned my cat to months of torture.

You have my condolences and the bestest of wishes.