On HU

Featured Archive Post: Ng Suat Tong looks at Gary Groth’s interview with Gil Kane.

Iron Man vs. Bataille.

I review an album of post-war hillbilly music.

Matthias Wivel weighs in on the debate over literariness in comics.Eddie Campbell clarifies his position in the (lengthy) comments thread.

Alex Buchet on Peanuts, as you’ve never seen it before.

Chris Gavaler looks at eugenics and the House of Slytherin.

I compared the poetry of Zen poets Basho and Ryokan.

Robert Stanley Martin provides an audio download of Pauline Kael lecturing on the auteur theory.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

I was on the Charles Adler Show talking about Persepolis and censorship in schools (in reference to my Atlantic article below.)

At the Atlantic, I talk about:

—The Client List, The Tenant of Wildfell Hall and cultural images of sexy, deviant single moms.

—debt and housework.

— Persepolis and school censorship.

—Steubenville, I Spit on Your Grave, and failures of imagination about rape.

— what Andrea Dworkin would,and would not, have liked about the new film Ginger & Rosa

— Olympus Has Fallen, which is one of the worst movies I’ve ever seen, and makes me despair for my country.

— what Rush Limbaugh got right about Beyoncé.

At Splice Today, I talk about

— how the internet ate my dream job. Whine, freelancer, whine….

—the left wing pro-war pundits and how they sucked.
 
Other Links

Jessice Luther on feminism and romance novels.

C.T. May on CPAC.

Mallory Ortberg on CNN”s coverage of Steubenville.

And then there’s the Onion on a courageous athlete who overcame raping someone.

Philip Cohen on gender segregation in the workplace.

Alex Pareene on awful local news reporting.

Ronald Reagan was a traitorous thug.
 
This Week’s Reading
I reread Persepolis, and started David Graeber’s Debt: The First 5000 Years. Also still working on LOTR with my son; we’re in the middle of the Two Towers now.
 

On HU

Featured Archive Post: Qiana Whitted on Blues Comics.

Chris Gavaler on the silence of Black Bolt and the silence of Clarence Thomas.

Peter Suderman interviews me briefly about imperialism and pop culture.

Betsy Phillips on Jake Austen and Yuval Taylor’s Darkest America, about the black tradition of blackface minstrelsy.

Michael Arthur interviews the artist Corinne Halbert about basements, lust and foxes.

I argue that Anne Bronte also liked assholes.

Vom Marlowe on Yun Kouga’s Loveless #10.

Jog on Akshay Kumar and subversive Bollywood.

Friday music sharing post featuring psychy Stones vs. grungy Stones.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

I talk about the ethics of mashups at the Center for Digital Ethics.

At the Atlantic

— I talk about Stephenie Meyer’s the Host and the invasion of the lovey-dovey body snatchers.

—I argue that Stephenie Meyer is a feminist, just like she says.

—I argue that we’re in a good place when even not very insightful political hacks like Rob Portman support gay marriage.

At Splice I discuss research suggesting that C-sections are often performed without medical reason.

And also at Splice I got to talk about my favorite Pink Floyd album.

You can now read my article on Junji Ito in Italian.
 
Other Links

David Brothers on Spider-Man turning fifty.

Chris Orr argues with me about rom coms (there’s some back and forth in comments too.)

Very satisfying takedown of Bob Woodward.

As a freelancer who writes for the Atlantic, this hurts. (HT Caro)
 
This Week’s Reading

I finished Stephenie Meyer’s The Host, read Kathryn Tanner’s “The Economy of Grace” about applying theology to economic matters, read the 1983-84 Peanuts volume.
 

On HU

Featured Archive Post: Alex Buchet on EC comics, accuracy and morality.

Reading Anna Akhmatova’s poetry as comics.

Reading Paul Celan’s poetry as not comic.

Sudee on Kieron Gillen’s phonogram and the power of britpop.

Sean Michael Robinson on why Downton Abbey isn’t very good.

Robert Jones, Jr. explains why he is no longer reading mainstream comics.

I talk about Ursula K. Le Guin’s Left Hand of Darkness and a world without imperialism.

Chris Gavaler on Robin Hood and the history of sex abuse in the Catholic Church.

Our weekly music sharing post featuring Horowitz playing Scarlatti.
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

At Slate I reviewed David Wojnarowicz, James Romberger, and Marguerite Van Cook’s amazing graphic novel 7 Miles a Second.

At the Atlantic:

—I talk about She Devil! Forgotten super femme fatale!

—I reviewed Emmylou Harris and Rodney Crowel’s new album and talked about Emmylou’s career as a collaborator.

—I argue that rom coms are crap because Hollywood sucks, not because love has won out over all in our culture.

—I picked Funeral Mist’s White Stone as a track of the day.

At Splice I talked about Destiny’s Child’s awesome Christmas album.

At Splice I talked about Chinese electronica hipsters White+

Last Saturday I got to talk a bit about Wonder Woman at a screening of a documentary about her at Chicago Filmmakers.
 
Other Links

Sharon Marcus defends cats.

Michael Nugent analyzes sexist facebook photos.

TNC on my racist city.

Sarah Carr on the hurdles poor kids face on getting into colleges.

Ashle Fetters on nicknaming your romantic prospects.

Robert Stanley Martin reviews Game Change, which he argues is unfair to Palin.

 
This Week’s Reading

Finished Ursula K. Le Guin’s Left Hand of Darkness and started Anne Bronte’s The Tenant of Wildfell Hall. Oh…I think I failed to mention that last week I read Anna Akhmatova’s poems, translated by D.M. Thomas. Also I watched the Wigs channel’s web series Blue for a review. Oh, right, and still reading the Fellowship of the Ring to my son…though almost done.

On HU

Featured Archive Post Kathryn Van Arondonk on metaness and Fringe.

Me on Ke$ha and the new man of rock (massive comments thread featuring Charles Reece.)

James Romberger interviews Tom Kaczynski.

RM Rhodes on Ted White’s year as editor of Heavy Metal in 1980.

Joy Delyria on how Captain America is real (plus fan art by my son.)

Isaac Butler on reality, torture, and Zero Dark Thirty.

music sharing post featuring Miranda Lambert’s “Me And Your Cigarettes.”
 
Utilitarians Everywhere

At Reason I’ve got a piece on public diplomacy and advertising imperialism.

This week at the Atlantic I wrote about:

—Superman, Orson Scott Card, and the KKK.

—Star Wars’ timid approach to gender.

—The awesome eco-apocalypse metal of Botanist.

—Boring parenting stories and some that are less boring.

This week at Splice Today I wrote about:

—Whatever happened to Brooke Valentine.

—Why liberals should learn to love the sequester. (It’s because we hate America.)

And as a bonus, I join the long list of people who have been trolled by Jpod.
 
Other Links

7 Miles a Second by David Wojnarowicz, James Romberger, and Marguerite Van Cook was at number 5 on the NYT best selling graphic novels list.

Dan Kois on the morality of tilting your seat in an airplane.

Mary McCarthy on how her vagina hates spin class.
 
This Week’s Reading

I reread D.M. Thomas’ “The White Hotel”, which I think I liked even more this time round. (Has anyone ever read anything else by him?) Started Ursula K. Le Guin’s Left Hand of Darkness (also a reread from long ago.)