He has a gift for both factual information, coupled with presenting an accurate perspective to current events as context.
He was never better than he is here:
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Areola 51 | ||||
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Showing posts with label Dancing with the Stars. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Dancing with the Stars. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
The Chaz Bono Controversy Continues--
I delight in the humor and satire of Jon Stewart.
He has a gift for both factual information, coupled with presenting an accurate perspective to current events as context.
He was never better than he is here:
He has a gift for both factual information, coupled with presenting an accurate perspective to current events as context.
He was never better than he is here:
Friday, September 23, 2011
That Chaz Jazz
Lewis Black does a great job of poking the sharp stick of humor in the eye of religious right wing hypocrisy, particularly over sexual hypocrisy. Bono - CHAZ, not the other individuals in the entertainment industry with the same last name - did quite well in the first round of dancing competition. Better than just scoring well with the judges, he wowed the crowd, and has gained the support of his competitors dancing on the show.
So, for all the stupid, intolerant and low-information bigots who got their sequined knickers in a twist over this-- here's Lewis Black to sort it out for you and provide some perspective on the conduct and character of past seasons casts.
I am a little surprised that this is considered all that suitable for children for other reasons having far more merit than the gender identity of Chaz Bono or the sexual orientation of other competitors past and present. We've had a few who's claim to fame has been primarily their sexual misadventures - like the recent prior season's Bristol Palin, who now speaks on premarital sex for a living, presumably only because she has a celebrity mom. It's not like she is particularly profound or gifted as a speaker, or that she has any unique insights that others don't also have. Bristol Palin went from a first night promise that she was going to only wear modest costumes, etc. to the final competition, where she went for the more sexually explicit, in both what she wore and in how she danced, in an effort to win.... so much for her good intentions.
But what kind of lesson is that for children, especially girls? Do we want to be promoting the position that it is acceptable to use sex, or to toss aside our morals easily? Is it desirable to promote the philosophy that girls and women have to compete with each other to be the most sexually provocative in order to succeed?
The programming is excellent in showcasing different styles of dancing, including sometimes providing an historical context for them. It encourages contestants to become comfortable in their bodies, and to become fit and graceful, and strong. They demonstrate excellent examples of how to deal with failures and misfortune and even injury with grace and character, as accidents and mistakes occur in the course of competition. I would hope in that regard that as the series season 13 progresses, that examples of this kind of character, like that exhibited by competitor J.R. Martinez, a badly scarred veteran of an IED explosion while serving in our military in Iraq that burned him over 40% of his body, might gain more equal attention from viewers with contestants with gender dysphoria, or for sexual orientation, like Carson Kressly (he is hilarious, btw).
The show could be just as entertaining if it had a little less of a leering sexual component, but it is within reasonable bounds for adults. It is less so for children as family viewing. THAT should be more of a focus for evaluating the programming as entertainment for kids, not ignorance about gender and sexual orientation.
The judges and the presenters make comments that are distinctly sexual in nature, and many of the dances are choreographed specifically for erotic content. If any of our readers have followed the international professional ball room dancing competitions, which have been carried on PBS stations in the past, this has been far less of a feature in those competitions - and not at all from the judging panels which focus much more on technical aspects exclusively. Which is good viewing for those who's appreciation for the art of Terpsichore is the reason for viewing.
| The Daily Show With Jon Stewart | Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c | |||
| Back in Black - Threats to America's Children | ||||
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Sunday, September 18, 2011
Dancing
The following is reposted from Huffington Post; as I have posted here before, what is written here about children is equally true of sexual orientation. We need to have more enlightened, more scientifically sound ideas about sex, as understood by psychology and medical sciences, but also sociology and anthropology, rather than religious or ideologically intolerant views of human sexuality.
That fundamentalist Christians and other right wing religious extremists, under the guise of loving God, would think it makes sense to issue death threats only underlines the same, if more subtle, prejudices that we should all oppose.
Gender and sexual orientation are not learned, they are not contagious. They are not facets of human beings that are as simplistic as the intolerant on the right (or occasionally, on the left or the center) would like to believe.
Rather, the younger that children are able to talk about how they feel inside, the better they handle their differences as they mature, the happier - and healthier - they are, throughout their lives.
It is every day life, and how we respond, that instills ideas and ideals in children. Sometimes it is not the lesson that is intended that is learned, but a different lesson. The lesson here can too easily be that children who do not conform will be hated, and unloved by members of their family - and God. How harsh, how harmful, how alienating is that?
The following article is by Dr. Diane Ehrensaft, whose speciality is gender and sexuality. Unlike the wacko psychiatrist, Dr. Keith Ablow over on Faux News, who has come out against Chaz Bono's sexual reassignment, and particularly his inclusion on this season's Dancing with the Stars television programming, her written position is consistent with the positions of mainstream psychology and pediatric medicine.
The right seems to thrive by presenting the views of scientists who disagree with the overwhelming mainstream, and then try to pretend to themselves that somehow proves a lack of consensus. A consensus is the overwhelming agreement, not perfect unanimity of views. At some stage of research and knowledge, there is no reasonable belief in the outliers, or in the extreme minority oppinion. It is as true of sexuality as it is true relating to climate change / global warming.
This is consistently the opposite of the anti-science demographic on the right.
We have a wondrous diversity in humanity, including our sexuality and physical appearance. We should be celebrating it, not stifling it.
All Kids Deserve to Reach for the Stars -- and Dance With Them, Too
by Diane Ehrensaft, PhD.Developmental and clinical psychologist
For many viewers of ABC's mega-hit series Dancing With the Stars, the announcement that this season's roster of contestants would include Chaz Bono, the son of Cher and the late Sonny Bono, marked a historic decision and a milestone for transgender people. To some, it made a less than welcome addition to the fall television line-up.
One viewer comment online stood out for me, given my work with gender non-conforming and transgender children and their families: "YOUR choice to bring Chaz Bono into the mix goes too far. I am not about to risk the potential for on screen dialogue about sex changes and gender confusion while my 7 and 9 year old are watching."
It is time to address and make sense of the outcry over whether "sex changes and gender confusion" are inappropriate subjects for young children. Let's talk about the real reality here -- how damaging and dangerous those comments are to the thousands of transgender and gender-nonconforming children out there who live their everyday lives among the adults who are so agitated by Chaz's participation as a dance partner.
Over the years, I have worked with so many children who, often from ages much earlier than 7, did not identify with the gender they were assigned at birth. These children are not merely boys who play with Barbies or girls who play with trucks; they insist on dressing a certain way and being referred to with the pronouns of the gender they see themselves as, which is opposite the one others think they are. They are not "acting out" or mentally ill. They are simply children who are telling us who they really are. Contrary to the viewer's concerns that her children will be damaged by being exposed to a grown-up who is just like the transgender children I work with, seeing Chaz dance with the stars provides a wonderful opportunity for all children to be able to see a transgender role model on television and open up a conversation about gender diversity and gender acceptance.
These conversations are already happening as more and more parents, families, and schools all around the country are learning to embrace and support the transgender children in their communities and beyond, even in the face of a larger world that is not so accepting.
For example, in Ohio, a 10-year-old girl named Jackie was born as Jack. For years, he was interested in his sister's things -- dolls, tutus, and playing dress-up. These interests didn't go away. And as children so often do, his peers teased him for not conforming to how boys were "supposed to" behave. After Jack began having panic attacks, his parents realized that they needed to let him live as Jackie, the girl she was, her "true gender self." Today, Jackie is far happier and far more popular, even as two of her grandparents have struggled to accept her as their granddaughter rather than grandson.
What do stories like Jackie's tell us? For the children I work with, being transgender is not a choice; it is simply an intrinsic part of who they really are as a person. Their identity does not come from imitating a transgender celebrity on TV. It comes from within, sometimes as early as the first year of life, when the children begin to reject the activities or behavior expected of them based on the gender assigned to them at birth. For their parents, it is often a shock and surprise, whenever it shows up, and it is the parents' job, along with all the rest of us, to listen carefully to what the children are telling us and learn how to help the children let their true gender selves come out.
Some would suggest that these children be forced into therapy to "cure" their condition. And often, this impulse comes from a desire to protect children from a world that can be incredibly cruel to those who don't conform. But it is anything but beneficial for children to deny their true gender -- protect it from harm, perhaps; but suppress or deny it, never.
Few of us who are not transgender can relate to the feeling that you are living in the wrong body, but that is what transgender boys and girls who have not transitioned must live through every day. The "boy" who tells us that he is actually a girl is telling us something that we would be wise to heed -- because as I have seen all too often, telling this child to suppress himself can lead to anxiety, depression and even to attempting suicide as a way out.
Transgender children, just as much as transgender adults, endure great adversity as they strive to live as the gender they are. But they are not fundamentally so different from other boys and girls. These children need support in a world that may treat them harshly for not fitting perfectly into the "boy" or "girl" gender boxes. We would all do well to recognize that, and to treat our transgender children, friends, and, yes, celebrities with a basic level of respect for their identities.
We seldom discuss these subjects with our children. But for our children's sake, we should, and Chaz Bono dancing with the stars provides the perfect opportunity, as we envision what a wonderful world it will be when all genders have equal footing on the dance floor.
That fundamentalist Christians and other right wing religious extremists, under the guise of loving God, would think it makes sense to issue death threats only underlines the same, if more subtle, prejudices that we should all oppose.
Gender and sexual orientation are not learned, they are not contagious. They are not facets of human beings that are as simplistic as the intolerant on the right (or occasionally, on the left or the center) would like to believe.
Rather, the younger that children are able to talk about how they feel inside, the better they handle their differences as they mature, the happier - and healthier - they are, throughout their lives.
It is every day life, and how we respond, that instills ideas and ideals in children. Sometimes it is not the lesson that is intended that is learned, but a different lesson. The lesson here can too easily be that children who do not conform will be hated, and unloved by members of their family - and God. How harsh, how harmful, how alienating is that?
 |
| Dr. Ehrensaft |
 |
| Dr. Ablow |
The right seems to thrive by presenting the views of scientists who disagree with the overwhelming mainstream, and then try to pretend to themselves that somehow proves a lack of consensus. A consensus is the overwhelming agreement, not perfect unanimity of views. At some stage of research and knowledge, there is no reasonable belief in the outliers, or in the extreme minority oppinion. It is as true of sexuality as it is true relating to climate change / global warming.
This is consistently the opposite of the anti-science demographic on the right.
We have a wondrous diversity in humanity, including our sexuality and physical appearance. We should be celebrating it, not stifling it.
All Kids Deserve to Reach for the Stars -- and Dance With Them, Too
by Diane Ehrensaft, PhD.Developmental and clinical psychologist
For many viewers of ABC's mega-hit series Dancing With the Stars, the announcement that this season's roster of contestants would include Chaz Bono, the son of Cher and the late Sonny Bono, marked a historic decision and a milestone for transgender people. To some, it made a less than welcome addition to the fall television line-up.
One viewer comment online stood out for me, given my work with gender non-conforming and transgender children and their families: "YOUR choice to bring Chaz Bono into the mix goes too far. I am not about to risk the potential for on screen dialogue about sex changes and gender confusion while my 7 and 9 year old are watching."
It is time to address and make sense of the outcry over whether "sex changes and gender confusion" are inappropriate subjects for young children. Let's talk about the real reality here -- how damaging and dangerous those comments are to the thousands of transgender and gender-nonconforming children out there who live their everyday lives among the adults who are so agitated by Chaz's participation as a dance partner.
Over the years, I have worked with so many children who, often from ages much earlier than 7, did not identify with the gender they were assigned at birth. These children are not merely boys who play with Barbies or girls who play with trucks; they insist on dressing a certain way and being referred to with the pronouns of the gender they see themselves as, which is opposite the one others think they are. They are not "acting out" or mentally ill. They are simply children who are telling us who they really are. Contrary to the viewer's concerns that her children will be damaged by being exposed to a grown-up who is just like the transgender children I work with, seeing Chaz dance with the stars provides a wonderful opportunity for all children to be able to see a transgender role model on television and open up a conversation about gender diversity and gender acceptance.
These conversations are already happening as more and more parents, families, and schools all around the country are learning to embrace and support the transgender children in their communities and beyond, even in the face of a larger world that is not so accepting.
For example, in Ohio, a 10-year-old girl named Jackie was born as Jack. For years, he was interested in his sister's things -- dolls, tutus, and playing dress-up. These interests didn't go away. And as children so often do, his peers teased him for not conforming to how boys were "supposed to" behave. After Jack began having panic attacks, his parents realized that they needed to let him live as Jackie, the girl she was, her "true gender self." Today, Jackie is far happier and far more popular, even as two of her grandparents have struggled to accept her as their granddaughter rather than grandson.
What do stories like Jackie's tell us? For the children I work with, being transgender is not a choice; it is simply an intrinsic part of who they really are as a person. Their identity does not come from imitating a transgender celebrity on TV. It comes from within, sometimes as early as the first year of life, when the children begin to reject the activities or behavior expected of them based on the gender assigned to them at birth. For their parents, it is often a shock and surprise, whenever it shows up, and it is the parents' job, along with all the rest of us, to listen carefully to what the children are telling us and learn how to help the children let their true gender selves come out.
Some would suggest that these children be forced into therapy to "cure" their condition. And often, this impulse comes from a desire to protect children from a world that can be incredibly cruel to those who don't conform. But it is anything but beneficial for children to deny their true gender -- protect it from harm, perhaps; but suppress or deny it, never.
Few of us who are not transgender can relate to the feeling that you are living in the wrong body, but that is what transgender boys and girls who have not transitioned must live through every day. The "boy" who tells us that he is actually a girl is telling us something that we would be wise to heed -- because as I have seen all too often, telling this child to suppress himself can lead to anxiety, depression and even to attempting suicide as a way out.
Transgender children, just as much as transgender adults, endure great adversity as they strive to live as the gender they are. But they are not fundamentally so different from other boys and girls. These children need support in a world that may treat them harshly for not fitting perfectly into the "boy" or "girl" gender boxes. We would all do well to recognize that, and to treat our transgender children, friends, and, yes, celebrities with a basic level of respect for their identities.
We seldom discuss these subjects with our children. But for our children's sake, we should, and Chaz Bono dancing with the stars provides the perfect opportunity, as we envision what a wonderful world it will be when all genders have equal footing on the dance floor.
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