Ahh, to be comfortable with anger! "Hate is the purest human emotion." The goal has changed but the passion must be just as intense.

For all the trouble over race in the presidential campaigns recently, does anyone know if any mainstream media outlets covered the Hillary ads that made Obama look "blacker"? If you don't see what's being talked abut, this .gif should help.

Amen Sistah!

Here's an amazing theologian, Rob Bell, who does these awesome videos taking a new look at old Christian values. They're really awesome and most can be found on youtube. Here's one on anger that has really inspired me to channel and hone anger in an awesome productive way.
Check 'em out! (it's in 2 parts)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=JQmVOENhz14
http://youtube.com/watch?v=3WJZWrhYllM&feature=related

And how can we have a frank, honest, nuanced discussion of race in America without a few loony conspiracy theories? Why, that's no fun at all.

I agree that a discussion on race that is passionate and fervent is long overdue. However, we shouldn't be too quick to just accept quackery as a 'profound dialog on race'. As liberals, we should support open dialog, and free speech of any kind. But you won't find me lining up behind Matthew Hale and The World Church of the Creator just because he's 'engaging in race dialog'. The dialog needs to occur, but if it is spouting idealogical falsehoods and is ill-informed, we should also not be afraid to call it out as falsehood, which in this case, some (not all) of it is.

Great video, Courtney. Extremely well put.

I have my own. Fuck you to the catholic church for making my family wait until next week to hold a funeral for my grandmother because she happened to pass away right before Easter.

I suppose I should be more specific and only FU the church in her town.

You know, the one she's been going to for 50 years and donated who knows how much money to.

I'm sorry to hear about your grandmother, Liza. I had the same thing happen with my grandfather back in 2000. He died on Wednesday of Holy Week, but the church wouldn't hold the funeral until the Monday after Easter. I will say though, that your first FU was probably more justified, since the priest involved has no choice (although if he was an ass about it, fuck him). Why the Church tries to justify this, I don't know, because the Gospels are pretty clear about Jesus not being a fan of this sort of nonsense.

Thanks DRC. I don't actually know if he was an ass or if he was apologetic, my dad and uncle have been arranging everything.

But when my other grandmother passed in 1996 a different church (also catholic) didn't want to allow her ashes brought in because they didn't believe in cremation, and that priest WAS an ass about it.

Apparently the idea that the family or the deceased might have specific wishes only matters if the align with the church's wishes or plans.

OK, we should probably get back to feminism.

Lacquerware, also known as shikki, is a highly developed art in Japan. Obtained from the sap of the lacquer tree, lacquer (urush/) is used not only for decoration, but also for waterproofing and protect­ing wooden objects against rnoths and decay. Creating shikki is a laborious process in which 20 to 30 coats of various kinds of lacquer are applied onto a prepared wooden surface by hand. Each layer is left to dry in a moist, warm place for about a week before the next coat can be applied. The product is then polished with charcoal to enhance its luster and translucence.

Wajima City, the location of the Nakamuro house, has been famous for producing refined lac­querware for at least 500 years. Situated at the northern end of the Noto Peninsula facing the Japan Sea, Wajima was once a major port. The chiefs of lacquerware producers, called nushi, traveled from there by boat to trade with wealthy merchants and farmers around the country. In the golden age of the lacquer industry, lacquer guilds exchanged information about customers, helped improve tech­niques through friendly rivalries, and cultivated the nushi culture. The Nakamuro house was built by the head of one such guild in the days gone by, and has recently been restored by a modern nushi. Katsuro Nakamuro, the current owner of the house.

Nakamuro is the president of Wajimaya Honten, a long-established lacquerware company. When he found this house in 1988, it was over about 80 years old and was in a dilapidated state, having stood empty for years. Nakamuro felt that this house had a special historic aura, and was inspired to fulfill his dream of rebuilding nushi culture through renewing this house. He commissioned architect Shinji Takagi, who was born and lives in Wajima and is well versed in the use of regional material such as wood and lacquer, to help with his ambitious undertaking.

This elegant yet utilitarian building was originally built to serve as a guest house, a residence and a workplace, complete with an inner garden and a storehouse (kvra), and a perimeter wall with a lacquered frame. Close inspection of the house revealed that its floors, ceilings, walls, verandas, posts and fixtures had all been lacquered using different techniques. Nakamuro set himself a challenge—the repaired and refurnished house had to exceed the original in terms of quality. During the renovation, new ideas were also incorporated, such as those in the design of lighting fixtures and a well. Elaborately carved and beautifully lacquered, the ornamental nail covers (kugikakushi) and door catches (h/fate), as well as the decorative sliding doors added to the house are beautiful works of art in their own right.

With the renovations complete, this house once again represents the best of lacquer-based nushi culture. Nakamuro hopes that it will play an important role in passing on local culture and traditions to future generations.