Link Farm #5

This is why Social Security is so important by Brian from Incertus

this post explains in simple, stark terms why social security cannot be privatized. if people can withdraw their retirement savings from private accounts, they will do so even at great penalty. the reason we have social security is to provide a minimal level of support for people who reach old age with no savings, either through bad luck or bad decisions.

if you believe we shouldn't 'subsidize bad decisions', then you might as well own the consequences -- the elderly who were foolish with their money in their youth will be begging and dying in the streets without programs like social security. private charity will not solve this problem.

communitistic conservatisim by skippy from skippy the bush kangaroo

conservatives aren't actually against affirmative action and socialism!

Sexism in All Shapes and Forms - Africa Edition by SocProf from The Global Sociology Blog

SocProf shows why instituting religious law doesn't solve social problems. it just gives religious authorities power to persecute people by focusing on 'moral' issues instead. this post also addresses the horrific sexual abuse women face in war-torn regions around the world, though i'm not convinced that sexual violence as a tool of war is a new phenomenon.

Yet another way the soldiers in the field get screwed over by BlueGirl from Blue Girl, Red State

the armed services would not be able to meet their recruiting numbers without female enlistees. womens' interest in joining the military has dropped significantly because of the absence of family-friendly policies that accommodate women's needs surrounding pregnancy and childbirth.

Midnight in America...Waiting for the Other Shoe...And Considering Obama Among the Wreckage.... by Melina from Brilliant at Breakfast

change is a scary concept for most people. one reason that Obama unsettles a lot of people is that he talks a lot about change. Melina points out that settling for the familiar is what brought us to the critical juncture our country faces today.

We've Been Tagged!

ThePoliticalCat just bestowed this award on WFD. we are now required to pick ten other excellent bloggers in return. here are my ten nominations:

Quench Zine

this blog was the first one that came to mind when i was mulling over my choices. quench is erudite, thought-provoking, funny and challenging. this blog covers LGBT issues, women's issues, poverty issues, race issues and manages to be the best-dressed and most entertaining at any party. you _have_ to add this one to your blogroll.

Persephone's Box

i visit Sage's blog several times a week and i'm always delighted when there's a new post. i admire anyone who can share difficult and painful stories with such candor and eloquence. this is one of the most unique feminist blogs out there.

B12 Solipsism

this blog is a brainy, arty blog with beautiful photographs and interesting commentary on politics, science, culture and art. and beautiful photographs. lots of beautiful photographs.

The Global Sociology Blog

this blog is a relatively new discovery. i found it because the author wrote a great article about our expanding surveillance society at Daily Kos. the author, who is a sociology professor at a midwestern community college, writes meaty posts about globalization, human rights, gender, class stratification and other important topics in the field of sociology. if you're like me and you like to read long, sourced, researched material about the human condition with a liberal viewpoint, this is a great blog for you.

Orcinus

this blog is an old favorite of mine that i discovered several years ago. it was there that i learned what fascism actually is. David and Sara write long and engaging articles about neo-nazi groups, authoritarianism, religious fundamentalism and their relevance to current political events.

Fetch Me My Axe

this is a great feminist blog that i added to our blogroll about a year ago. it covers LGBT issues, sexism, racism and disabilism. i have found some great links there over the past year, including Screw Bronze!.

skippy the bush kangaroo and jon swift

skippy and jon were the bloggers who inspired so many smaller blogs to band together and help raise each other's profiles after Blogroll Amnesty Day. they threw open their own blogrolls to the little blogs who wanted to exchange links and urged all of us to be active in promoting each other's work.

Rubber Hose

this blog has been on the blogroll here at WFD for some time. i first discovered it when upyernoz linked this post by emily0. this is an eclectic blog with posts about international politics, international culture, american politics and law.

Kusala

Joe has been a reader and commenter at WFD for a while. his blog covers a gamut of topics, one of them being the challenge of living with HIV. he also writes about politics, movies, food and life as a gay man and has a habit of posting nice photos, including many beautiful images of food.

My Left Wing

this blog is a good place to enjoy lefty dialogue and it is possible to discuss topics that are likely to result in banning at Daily Kos. it's far friendlier to a strong feminist point of view than some of the large liberal blogs, and the people who write there represent a diverse cross-section of liberals who don't necessarily tow the Democratic party line.

Link Farm #4

ah hell, why wait a week to do another one?

Appreciation to supporters by Rebecca from School For The Girls

i found this truly amazing new blog (and added it to the WFD blogroll) via ThePoliticalCat. in short, School For The Girls is written by Rebecca Alitsi, a young woman from Kenya. in the posts on the front page, she has already covered the following topics: the current violence over the Kenyan elections, disability issues, friendship and the education of women in Kenya. in this post, she asks for donations to help cover the school fees for two female students. please go and give help if you can. i'm currently trying to find out how to send money to the bank account listed in the blog's sidebar, so that i can do my part to help these young women achieve their dreams.

Distorting Michelle Obama by dnA from Jack and Jill Politics

Jack and Jill Politics is another new addition to the blogroll. this is the blog where i discovered La Chola, one of the blogs featured in yesterday's link farm. i discovered Jack and Jill Politics through Maat's Feather, a blog run by Shanikka, one of my favorite commenters at My Left Wing. this post breaks down yet another example of our stupid and mendacious political discourse. the target of attack by the doughy pantloads of political pomp is Michelle Obama who can't say that she's proud of the US without being attacked as a narcissist. irony died today.

My New Hero… by MarvalusOne from Opinionated Black Woman

i found this blog through Maat's Feather and it is also a new addition to the blogroll. this post links a _great_ video of a young Obama supporter who has his facts down cold when questioned about his reasons for supporting Obama. like MarvalusOne says, this shows why it is important to know your facts. i would add that is especially important to know them before you open your mouth in front of a video camera. the Obama campaign should hire him.

kabando wa kabando by upyernoz from Rubber Hose

Rubber Hose has been on the WFD blogroll for some time now. i meant to link this after it was posted, but like most things in my life, i put it off, then i got busy and then time flew. in this post, upyernoz shares the story of his personal relationship with kabando wa kabando, a kenyan politician who is close to kabaki, the man who narrowly won the presidential election. damn, but the internet sure makes the world seem like a smaller place. i'm also astounded by how worldly and well-traveled upyernoz is.

Link Farm #3

this is sorely overdue. i vowed last year after blogroll amnesty day that i would do this weekly and promptly broke that vow. it's sort of hard to blog regularly when holding down a full-time job and taking upper level computer science courses. i'm hoping that since i am enrolled in only one course that i can spend more time blogging and reading other people's blogs. here is this week's offering:

Disability Rights: Why it is YOUR problem by Elizabeth McClung from Screw Bronze!

i should have added Screw Bronze! to my blogroll a long time ago. i have rectified this oversight. i found her blog via Fetch me my axe, another fine blog on the WFD blogroll. this post explains why disability rights are important for everyone. all people could potentially become disabled and face humiliating and cruel discrimination, even at the hands of people who are supposedly devoted to fighting for their rights.

What academic freedom means to me by Lesboprof from Lesboprof

this post covers the problems with bland, opaque and generic non-discrimination policies at many academic institutions. Lesboprof doesn't think they truly foster academic freedom because they don't clearly protect her statements in the classroom that draw on her own experiences as a lesbian. she wants to be able to discuss LGBT issues as they pertain to her profession and research without fear of discrimination. this is another blog i found through Fetch me my axe.

40 days of contemplation: day four by La Chola from La Chola

this powerful post from another new addition to the blogroll explores the need for forgiveness and love when people do the most unthinkable things. La Chola has been told that she is naive for thinking that love must be a component of the struggle against violence. she uses the example of Hector Black to illustrate why. Hector's daughter was murdered by an intruder she surprised in her home. at first, consumed by rage and hatred, Hector arrived at compassion and understanding when he learned about the sad and tragic childhood of the man who murdered his daughter.