SHORT TAKES ON THE DRIFTING WRECKAGE – AT 11:55 P.M. ET: 

BOND, JAMES BOND –  There's a new academic journal available.  I'm not kidding.  From
JamesBondStudies:   The International Journal of James Bond Studies is an academic peer-reviewed journal dedicated to publishing interdisciplinary scholarship on all aspects of Ian Fleming’s James Bond franchise.   The journal aims to develop contemporary critical readings of Ian Fleming’s James Bond across literary, filmic, and cultural history, and offers broader criticism of the popular appeal of Fleming’s creation and its relation to the spy genre.  That is an actual quote from the Journal's website.  I want to see "Feminist and Misogynist Interpretations of the Bond Girls, from an LGBTQ perspective."  Someone write it, quick.

OUR GREAT NATIONAL STRESS IS SOLVED – FROM USA TODAY:   President Trump’s election and the political cacophony that followed are driving waves of people to yoga and meditation, seeking a respite from the roller-coaster ride but also trying to recharge and build energy for a political pushback.  Yoga and mediation coaches say they are seeing increased enrollment and fewer dropouts from the annual "New Year's resolution" wave of signups. Part of this is stress relief — the American Psychological Association reports that stress nationwide is on the rise for the first time in 10 years.
But part of it is also meditation as resistance: Liberals see yoga as a place to reflect and recharge batteries for the political fights outside.  Well, I guess it keeps liberals out of trouble for 45 minutes.  A great contribution.

THE MAYOR OF PARIS GETS IT RIGHT – FROM AFP:  Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo on Sunday called for a black feminist festival in the French capital to be banned, saying it was "prohibited to white people."  The first edition of the Nyansapo Festival, due to run from July 28 to 30 at a cultural centre in Paris, bills itself as "an event rooted in blackfeminism, activism, and on (a) European scale."  Four-fifths of the festival area will be set aside as a "non-mixed" space "for black women," according to its website in French.  Another space will be a "non-mixed" area "for black people" regardless of gender. Another space would be "open to all."  The English version of the site does not use the word "non-mixed," but "reserved."  Hidalgo, a Socialist, said on Twitter that she firmly condemned the organisation "of this event, 'prohibited to white people'."  "I am asking for this festival to be banned," Hidalgo said, adding she also reserved the right "to prosecute the organisers for discrimination."  Smartest thing a socialist has done in years.

May 29, 2017