Petition to Wal-Mart about Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition and other magazines that sex-negative people object to

Through Morality in Media I learned of this petition asking Wal-Mart to require their suppliers to cover up magazines with "ANY nudity OR sexually explicit language on the cover". The petitioner, Angie Smethers, started the petition because she was upset when her daughter saw the 2008 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition cover, shown.

Smethers believes that children need to be "protected" from images like this (without explaining why).

I, on the other hand, believe that children need to be protected from harmful ideas like that the body is shameful and must be hidden. What kind of message is this mother giving her daughter, when she indicates that while males routinely wear topless swimsuits, it is a terrible thing for a woman to do the same thing?

Wal-Mart is so huge that if they were to develop a policy requiring magazines to censor their covers to satisfy people who are unhappy and frightened about sex and nudity, it could well result in many magazines being censored--magazines are unlikely to produce a separate uncut edition for other retailers.

So please, take a minute to sign my petition asking Wal-Mart to continue selling law-abiding magazines such as Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition rather than censoring them.

Sexpelled: No Intercourse Allowed (Expelled parody)

Good news, bad news on Noellee Mowatt case

Here's the latest on the Noellee Mowatt case. I wrote earlier about Mowatt's plight: after calling the police because her boyfriend was abusing her, she was jailed, while 9 months pregnant, to make sure she would show up at his trial to testify against him.

The good news: she appeared in court today and testified, which means that she was released from jail (on bail though--why? Who is the criminal here?)

The bad news: she recanted her earlier report of his abuse. This is common in domestic violence cases. Hopefully the courts understand that this does not prove Christopher Harbin is innocent, but given the inept handling of Noellee Mowatt's case so far, I am not optimistic.

Earlier, as she reported that "she was punched, kicked in the side, strangled, had her lips squeezed together hard when she tried to speak, and was 'chopped' in the foot when Harbin swung a knife at her to back up a threat but accidentally sliced her big toe." She also reported that he masturbated in front of her despite knowing that it upset her and was verbally abusive.

I hope that Mowatt's birth goes well and that she and her baby find a safe living situation.

A personal letter to me from Peter Popoff!

A few months ago, I filled out a form on Peter Popoff's website for a free "book", Prosperity Thinking (really a booklet).. Since then he has been my most frequent correspondent, sending me "personal" letters at least once a week, sometimes more. I've decided to post my "personal letters" here from now on, for the benefit of the other people who are no doubt getting exactly the same "personal" letters from Peter Popoff. Since he has sent a few little gifts in the past, when I saw this envelope I thought there might be a paper angel inside, but no, there was just... I'll reveal it later, he wanted me to read all of his letter before looking at the special envelope inside with the gift.

Here's his letter— you may have received one just like it. (Click to see larger version). Note the bright green faux handwriting... I've blurred out my personal information.

He writes, "I've never written you a letter like this before..." Really? I guess he's forgotten all the other letters he's sent me for the last few months...

He says God has a plan to solve my money problems, but to get this money I must be obedient to God, and "Obedience to God will involve sacrifice." I wonder what that could be? Could it be, oh, I don't know, sending money to Peter Popoff, just like he's asked in every other letter?

At the top of page 2, he writes, "You cannot deny that this letter contains things about you personally." Well, actually, the only personal information in the letter is my name, address, and that I am having unspecified money problems, all information he got from the form I filled out to order his free booklet. Which seems pretty strange since he is supposedly praying for me personally and getting visions from God about my situation.

Unfortunately he apparently is taking in a lot of people with these "personal letters". Peter Popoff Ministries raked in $23 million in 2005, according to Charity Navigator--Popoff himself got a salary of $628K, his wife Elizabeth made $203K, and his son Nickolas took in $182K.

On page 3, he finally reveals what was "terrifying" about the vision he had. The world is ending! But I will be "surrounded by a hedge of divine protection" IF I "enter into this 'endtime covenant' in the next 90 days." In other words, there's not much time left to think about it, I need to send him money soon or I'll be vulnerable to the "wars..., plagues and rivers of blood and insects". Of course my money problems won't matter then (though he claims that he "through faith... [has] found the money [I] need"), and certainly the donation he's asking for will be irrelevant when the endtime comes, while his divine protection won't be.

Here on the last page of the letter, he harps on and on about how I must be obedient and have faith. The miracle money that will bring me a glorious future (even though the world is ending?) and make me rich is "only for those who can give in strict obedience and faith". I'm guessing this is not just to guilttrip those who are having doubts about sending their money to this con-artist, but also to give him an out—if someone doesn't get their miracle money, he can claim it was because they did not have enough faith.

He usually includes a smaller envelope with something special inside which we are not supposed to open until we read his whole long letter (four pages, legal size). I suppose that opening this envelope without reading the whole long letter could be another excuse for the miracle money not coming. Inside the envelope are "Special Holy Instructions for Miracle New Millennium Money!" He wants me to burn some incense he's sent to me and mail him the ashes so he can "fast and pray in sackcloth and ashes... for miracle money for you!"

Now we get to the main point of this mailing: to get my miracle money, I have to send money to Peter Popoff. Not only that, but my offering will be rejected if it's not enough. "If the offering is rejected... there can be no harvest."

How much do I have to give? "Too many times people respond when they receive a ministry letter from me by just sending anything." I have give enough that it is a sacrifice to me. "If the gift you give to God does not move you... how can it move God?" (So now Peter Popoff is God?) In other words, give 'til it hurts (he suggests $50--i.e. perhaps a weeks grocery money for some person in dire financial need. I wonder how many poor people are going with out food to support this jerk's lavish salary?)

And here's the form I'm supposed to send back to him. (I occasionally do send the forms back, though never with any money.) He reassures me that "this is not a work of man... but it is the work of the Holy Spirit." (God sends form letters?) "I have not been called by God to take money from you..." (so why is he trying to do so?) "but ... to help get miracle money to you." How reassuring.

He warns me that "during the next few moments, satan [sic] is going to try to convince you that this is not of God... or that I'm only trying to get your money." Gee, why would we think that? It must be Satan's work.

And another guilt trip—my offering of sacrifice is to benefit not just me but also my "loved ones".

Not only does he want $50 now, but he wants me to pledge $1000, or $500, or $100. That makes $50 look almost reasonable.

On the back of the form, he asks for information about my debt (perhaps to insert in future form letters?) and testimonials. The lady at the bottom won a lottery of $7.2 million after sending $7 to Peter Popoff, and asks for "wisdom and insight as to what I should do with all this money." I'm sure that Peter Popoff will have a suggestion for her...

McKenzie Seeds for an invasive species available at Valu-Mart

Today, I foolishly succumbed to temptation to buy some seeds for a pretty-looking plant I was unfamiliar with as I was shopping at Valu-Mart.

It turns out that Everlasting Pea (Lathyrus latifolius) is an invasive species here in Ontario, according to Evergreen.

I was shocked that a supposedly reputable company like McKenzie Seeds would sell an invasive species. I've already sent them a complaint; if you are concerned about invasive species too, you can contact customerservice@mckenzieseeds.com.

Free Noellee Mowatt

Noellee Mowatt, 19, is due to give birth to her second child April 15. In December, she called police to report that her boyfriend, Christopher Harbin, was abusing her. What does our so-called "justice" system do?

They put her in jail.

Mowatt, who is not charged with anything, is being held in a jail cell at Vanier Centre for Women in Milton, to make sure that she shows up to testify at her boyfriend's trial. According to her lawyer, Lydia Riva, "She's contracted the flu since she's been in jail. She already had to seek medical attention. [...] She's obviously stressed out and concerned about her pregnancy. She's afraid to have her baby in custody."

Why is this poor woman, who obviously has enough stress in her life already between raising two young children and coping with an abusive boyfriend, being victimized by the justice system, which should be protecting her?

If Noellee Mowatt was 30, and married, would she be treated so appallingly badly in these circumstances?

More confused thinking about veganism and honey

Here's another person who identifies as vegan, but would be willing to make an exception for honey (though she hasn't yet). Laura, a university student writing for Taste Better argues that "...bees feel pretty much nothing..." and organic and small-scale beekeeping "isn't really exploitation", and besides "there really is no way... to live without harming others..."

But do bees really feel nothing? Their nervous system is a lot simpler than ours, which leads many to assume that they don't feel as much as we do. But there is no way for us to ever know what it is like perceiving the world from an apian perspective. However, even with such a simple nervous system, bees can communicate with each other in a surprisingly sophisticated way. As vegans, I think we should give bees the benefit of the doubt, just as we do with other invertebrates such as lobsters.

Laura's line of reasoning that organic/small scale beekeeping isn't so bad, and we can't live without harming others, could also be used to justify organic/small scale farming, etc. etc. and often is, though normally by omnivores. In the future, are we going to see omnivores calling themselves "vegan" because they consume only certain animals (fish, invertebrates), or because they "know" that their meat was raised "ethically"?

The misuse of "vegetarian" to include fish and chicken eaters already causes a lot of aggravation to people who really are vegetarian--years ago during a hospital stay, I was served "vegetarian" meals that included large amounts of nasty-smelling dead tuna fish. Now "vegan" is being misused. Already some "vegan" restaurants are serving honey, meaning that even in should-be vegan establishments, vegans have to go through the tedious questions about ingredients.

Go ahead and eat what you want, but if you're eating animal products like honey, please call yourself something other than vegan.