I first encountered it growing up in Australia in 1998 (ahh I’m old!), when I went to a Lutheran high school age 13 - “you’re not Christian, you’re Catholic” was basically a daily thing. I moved to the US in 2006 and I heard it from day one there, too... only the Americans seemed to find it much harder to accept…

But vocational training for low-paying careers in the US is often more expensive than going to a four-year university... in Australia we have so many pathways to vocational education, from (paid) apprenticeships to cheap government-subsidized TAFE (technical and further education) courses... cheap…

Depends how you implement it. By far the majority of immigration to Australia is still family-reunification based, but next is merit-based. *But* we put out a very specific list of skilled occupations every year (or second year? Not 100% sure on that) where we have a significant shortage of qualified workers in the…

Me too. I love when someone cherry-picks a verse (usually homophobic, sexist or to further a racist agenda), insists the entire Bible is “god-breathed” and therefore every word is the word of God... and I can quote five other verses that directly contradict what they quoted. Often people tell me I’m making my verses…

Doesn’t surprise me. I’m a non-believer but grew up vaguely Catholic and went to a Catholic elementary school. Religious studies was all about critically reading the Bible, seeing all the contradictions, never cherry-picking... there is an “intellectual Catholic” tradition, my school followed it, and I was very much…

Americans pay so little tax! I’m Australian-American and recently moved back home to Australia after 10 years in the US. Now which do I like better... incredible universal health care (including dental and optical and maternity - even your first 3-5 rounds of IVF if needed! - and post-partum support in your home for…

“Convenience” is particularly so vicious and wrong a word, too. I had my very wanted baby after surviving a hyperemesis gravidarum pregnancy. It is not just “extreme morning sickness” if you follow the royals (Kate has had it with every pregnancy, which is why you don’t see her for months at a time... she’s lying on…

Congratulations on your pea with a tail! I also loved the science of pregnancy. When my son was born I couldn’t believe my body had made something with tiny fingernails and eyelashes... I may have been on another planet after a 16-hour natural labor with no drugs, but I remember telling everyone “he has fingernails!…

I know you’re supposed to burst into tears at the sound/sight of the heartbeat because it’s so beautiful and everything but... my reaction was “well, that’s good.” I knew I was pregnant and I was already happy, the heartbeat was just another reassurance that the pregnancy was okay.

I encountered some forced-birthers outside my local grocery store while I was with my then one-year-old son. One lady went to hand me a flyer and I said “no thank you, I’m pro-choice.” She started yelling that my “poor baby” would “know one day that you don’t value his life!” and I just smiled politely and said “No,…

My son was conceived in Havana. I’m so happy he can now run for President as a proud Cuban-American! (We seemed to have a few last time around... but wait, they were all Republicans. Damn.)

Brilliant. And I love that they all did it and the organizers obviously supported their action - it wouldn’t have been so powerful if any one (or more) of them said “I want to win, so I’m giving my measurements As is expected.”

I have not been surprised by this, but I lived in Hollywood for a decade and I’ve worked with a lot of powerful men in other arenas. I also have “that face” (and a reputation for always keeping secrets secret) so people feel they can tell me all their troubles, so... I’ve heard a lot of people’s troubles.

I’m a 32-year-old woman. Two women have confessed to me they made false accusations - one was in a nasty custody battle and accused the ex of molestation, one had consensual sex with an “undesirable” guy in high school and then changed the story to “he raped me” because she got flack for hooking up with a loser (she…

I hate Spacey for all the reasons and I’m thrilled to be out of “Hollywood” after 10 years very much consumed by “the industry” (I stayed out of actually working in it because literally everyone else there in my life was in it, and that’s just not good for your sanity) but I thought the same thing about everyone…

It’s like when Mariah Carey and other assorted stars talk about bathing in champagne. All I can think is “instant yeast infection” and I’ve never even had one #luckyladyparts. I certainly don’t think “ooh, luxurious!”

I think you’re too much scrolling down for enough people to love this, but please know that I love this.

That statement was great. One. Single. Sentence.

It’s like Kate Moss. Sometimes she speaks now, but for the first decade or so of her career... she had a very (what’s a nice euphemism?) “humble” accent, and her agent told her never to speak because it would destroy any association between Kate Moss and luxury. Now she can pass as posh, so she’s allowed to speak...…

Good god. When someone says “thanks” when you hand them crazy religious material, it’s not a real “thanks.” It’s a “please go away now.”