I just said a silent thank you for having come of age in the era of JNCO/Kikwear/horrid rave culture clothing. Having to try and practice conscientious boner management in scene jeans? While I'm surrounded by 500 of my biggest high school crushes who are all also trying to practice conscientious boner management in…

LOVE! They made her look so badass.

Yes! And we can save their parents and caregivers the hassle of trying to police what they wear as they walk out the door, and save kids who can't afford the latest brands a little bullying (hopefully). My school did not have uniforms or a particularly harsh dress code, but I honestly cannot think of a single…

I really appreciate this comment, it connected the dots directly to one of the (many) things that makes the whole PUA culture so repulsive. A lot of these compliments aren't being offered honestly — they're a "gambit," an opening volley that women are cultured to feel obligated to return. Ugh. Thanks for connecting…

Oh, agreed. In fact I get kind of frustrated that we've been distracted by REALLY egregious morons (a la Akin) because it takes heat off the more mundane slimeballs out there. EVERYONE would benefit from a more... grounded political discourse.

You make a very good point about acknowledging the meaning that the "offending" party brings to the table — that makes a lot more sense than just saying "you're doing it wrong" since the implication there is "you're going out of your way to PURPOSELY offend with that speech."

Yeah, the writing is not clear — I took from it that Laura would be okay with it had the boys also been impacted by the dress code, but she's not explicit either way.

The article's problem isn't the dress code itself, it's how the district presents it. You are right that there should be some basic dress codes. And those basic dress codes don't need to have an explanatory rider written with the condescending, sexist attitude that "women need to dress modestly so men don't turn…

Yes! Your comment nailed this one so hard that I did a little fist-pump after I read it.

I can't really judge a hypothetical — are you implying that Republicans take more heat for similarly offensive statements than Democrats would?

These guys are feeling especially embattled because societal rules used to be ALL ABOUT making everyone else bend over backwards so the old rich white guy felt comfortable...

Eh, I think the weight of his other actions and comments on the matter have illustrated that he made an uncharacteristically bad judgment call in making that comment. I don't have the feeling that he's just been fronting this whole time and just finally let his objectifyin' ways slip out.

Good points, and I didn't mean to imply that you were giving Paisley a pass.

It blows my mind how difficult it is to get people to own up to their own privilege! I guess admitting that some people have it tougher than you do is a real blow to the ego? I imagine this is pretty strongly connected to the type of worldview that says "anyone can bootstrap up from the gutters" libertarian…

I'm glad you added a little more context with those other lyrics. I don't doubt that Paisley's a decent guy who treats people with respect. These lyrics really encapsulate one of those less immediately ugly sides of privilege where a white guy expects some sort of recognition or congratulation or confirmation for…

On one hand, I understand that Dixie could theoretically symbolize something other than racism and calcified political resentment, but I don't know that we should give these guys a pass on it. Any American saying they're unaware of the racial symbolism is either really ignorant or is trying to get away with it on…

Yes. That is more or less the tenor of the comments over on Gawker related to this. Everybody loves to show up to this conversation with their own pet definition of racism (generally nothing more than racially tinged dickery / personal prejudice) and ignore the Power-plus-Prejudice definition of institutional…

Eeesh, I got the same feeling from that comment. Extra ironic because it's not as if LL Cool J were EVER a rapper particularly respected for his use of language... yeah. The LL Cool J pick just in general reads as "this is what a middle-aged, non-rap-listener white person assumes constitutes a popular rapper."

Ewwww. I didn't even think of that — and that's WAY more insidious than just the chuckle-and-groan lyrical awkwardness.

So my stab at answering that question: I think this is where social media comes in. If reading a traditional autobiography kind of gave you an "imaginary friend" whose life and experiences you can compare your own to, then doing so with a contemporary and connected living person who has an active social media…