About six weeks ago Thea wrote about the “I am not a plastic bag” fiasco here in England, where a cotton designer bag made in China was marketed as an eco-friendly alternative to plastic shopping bags, much to the chagrin of environmentalists, as the bag was made in pretty rank conditions and then flown here on greenhouse gas spewing planes.

I’d like to bring something to your attention:

This, my friends, is made of recycled plastic bags. I saw this at an art exhibition where a kickass friend of mine - a very secular and cool Turkish girl who does industrial design - was exhibiting a radio she had built. This bag caught my attention, and I thought it was brilliant. The designer had also fashioned shoes, notebooks and wallets out of recycled plastic bags.

I was more impressed by the recycled gear than anything else I saw at the exhibition (save for my friend’s bare circuit radio of course).

Two months later I met the designer of the recycled bag: Lusea Warner was a friend of a friend, it turned out. And we got along like a house on fire instantly - as confident, progressive, conscious women tend to.

This is her website. She’s fresh out of school and is just starting to take off with her designs. I look forward to seeing where she goes.

My sincerest apologies for blogging so little over the past three months. Various work obligations, and the frivolity of summer, have distracted me from all things Shameless for a little bit. But that doesn’t mean Shameless doesn’t still mean the world to me. Much like a dear friend you might go a year without seeing, it doesn’t change how much you love them or how much you connect.

I’m happy though to say that there is less clutter in my brain and my schedule now, and I have a lot of things to write about (starting right now).

It’s good to be back. Missed you guys - you sure wrote some wicked threads over the summer. Being inspired by people who are younger than me is always uplifting.

OK, so we already knew that Spock was cool (although I’m more into Star Wars myself - but I got respect for Vulcans). But Leonard Nimoy has just rocketed up the coolness-scale by like a zillion points.

Nimoy - an established and respected photographer - has been photographing plus size women in the nude for the past eight years.

You can see twelve of his other nude portraits (and much of his other photography) here, and a wonderful piece about his photography here.

Celebrating full-figured women has become one of Nimoy’s passions:

The average American woman, according to articles Ive read, weighs 25 percent more than the models who are showing the clothes they are being sold, Mr. Nimoy said, his breathing slightly labored by allergies and a mild case of emphysema. So, most women will not be able to look like those models. But theyre being presented with clothes, cosmetics, surgery, diet pills, diet programs, therapy, with the idea that they can aspire to look like those people. Its a big, big industry. Billions of dollars. And the cruelest part of it is that these women are being told, You dont look right. ”

Mr. Nimoy…admits that before he began this project, it had never occurred to him that beauty might be culture driven, that a fat body in Africa is treated quite differently from one in the United States. In some cultures their weight is a sign of affluence: their husbands can afford to feed them well, he noted.

Or, as you might put it: live long and prosper, ladies.

PS: Sorry for blogging so little lately - deadlines and my grandmother’s hospitalization have soaked up all my energy for the past month.

Thank you to Anna for telling us about Women on Waves - thank god they are out there.

Already I can think of one woman (or, girl, rather) who could use their help: a 17-year-old in Ireland is unable to get an abortion in her own country, and the Irish government has denied her wish to travel to England for an abortion. And, as the girl is in the care of the state due to her financial status, they have denied her the right to travel. Anywhere. Period.

Ireland is renowned for being pretty backwards - they only legalized divorce in 1995 - so this hardly comes as a surprise.

But what makes this case so reprehensible is that the girl - known only as Miss D - is pregnant with a baby that has a fatal brain abnormality: doctors say it will live at most, a few days, although more likely, just a few hours. Nothing can be done to prevent its death - and forcing her to carry it to term will only increase her suffering.

In Ireland, abortions are only permitted if the life of the mother is threatened (including cases where suicide is a possibility). And they mean it - in 1992 a 14-year-old - who had been raped - was denied an abortion, and then only allowed to travel abroad because she was considered at risk for suicide. A few other teenagers since then have been allowed to travel to England for abortions, but they are the rare, rare exceptions to an archaic rule.

This whole debacle is almost sure to result in a constitutional show-down in the courts that will see Ireland’s abortion laws, if not relaxed, possibly clarified. But only possibly.

…I am literally at a loss for words. I cannot think of anything to say that expresses my rage, disgust, and sadness for the young women of that nation, and worldwide who find themselves in such horrible predicaments.

Canada deserves some credit: not only are abortions fully legal and accessible, with no questions asked or sticky legal loopholes, they are free. So teenagers like Miss D, without the $500 necessary to pay for one, should never find themselves in her desperate situation.

So in an effort to increase tourism to one of China’s less well-known districts, local officials have announced that in “two years, a ‘female-dominated town’ will be built up here to promote ‘feminine culture.’”

What sort of “feminine culture” will the town be promoting, you ask?

“Love whip” will be a feature of the scenic spot according to the program. In this area, a “Female Court” composed of “judges” and “captains” will be set up. Male tourists visiting here will be “whipped” by female tourists if, for example, they can’t remember their sweethearts’ eating habits quickly or the brand of her cosmetics.

The “Female Court” will sentence the man to suffer from the “whip.” The female tourist will then discipline the man with a specially made long whip. The theory is that man can only feel soft power through this kind of tender punishment.

According to the program, cautions like “Women are never wrong, men must not refuse women’s requests” will be clearly written on the door lintel of the “female-dominated town.” If male tourists break the rules, the “bailiff” will read them out loud and make them kneel on washing boards or wash dishes for the restaurants in the form of playing games.

Tong Jiuying, Party branch secretary of Xinmin Village, is also the future bailiff. “We just want tourists to enjoy this ‘feminism game’ after visiting Dazu Rock Carvings which is on the world heritage list,” she said on April 3.

Being whipped for not remembering what kind of make-up your girlfriend wears, or being forced to wash dishes (how emasculating!), are “feminism games?” My word. I think, however, that the use of the word “feminism” in this case was just a matter of poor translation, because earlier in the press release you find this statement:

“The essence of the ‘female-dominated town’ is entertainment showing ‘feminine culture,’ and it has no relationship with the feminism in real life.”

No kidding, this has nothing to do with “feminism in real life.” Feminism is about one thing: equality. Let’s just hope naive tourists don’t walk away thinking otherwise - although, let’s face it: some will.

So the US might be slowly eroding the reproductive rights of women, but across the fence, Mexico City lawmakers have legalized abortion during the first 12 weeks of pregnancy.

No doubt the story won’t end here - I’m sure the city’s abortion clinics will find themselves besieged by irate protesters, and no doubt the law will be challenged in court.

But it’s a start, and an important one. Now women will have access to safe and legal treatment, no questions asked, with none of that “only in cases of rape or where the life of the mother is threatened” ballyhoo.

I haven’t noticed much mention of the topic in the Canadian media - but over here in England you see news stories on eating disorders and the fashion industry almost daily. There is a movement afoot here to ban size zero models from catwalks (that’s US size zero, equivalent to a size four in the UK system).

Not simply because the glorification of excessive thinness no doubt contributes to the prevalence of eating disorders among young women. But also because in the past year several size zero models actually died as a result of their low weight (and not because of a drug overdose or any of the other afflictions of the fashionable), most notably Ana Carolina Reston.

I think we can all agree that a size zero ban would be in order (especially considering that models are usually about 5 foot 7 inches or taller). But one recent development in the public debate sure had me scratching my head: British MPs are considering a bill that would give 16 and 17 year old anorexics the right to refuse treatment. Currently their parents have the legal authority to force them into hospitalization and (if necessary) forced feeding.

(more inside…)

Have you guys seen this garbage?

A new law may be passed in South Carolina requiring that women seeking abortions be forced to view an ultrasound image of their developing fetus, clearly with the intention of making her feel guilty for her decision and turning her away from it. (With of course the oh-so-American addition of “except in cases of rape or incest.”)

According to this MSNBC news piece,

‘The bills sponsor, Rep. Greg Delleney, a Republican, said the measure would save lives and a lifetime of regret for some women. She can determine for herself whether she is carrying an unborn child deserving of protection or whether its just an inconvenient, unnecessary part of her body and an abortion fits her circumstances at that time, Delleney told NBC affiliate WIS-TV of Columbia.’

Correction. The woman has already determined for herself what to do. It’s called the right to choose, jerk.

So we’ve had a lot of fun in the past debating the merits of pink tasers, pepper spray, and a good old fashioned kick in the balls as rape deterrents.

Now a South African inventor, Sonette Ehlers, has given us another way to exact revenge upon our assaulters: Rapex, the toothed condom.

It’s a bit like a female condom - except the inside is lined with 25 sharp spikes that latch onto any penis that attempts penetration. Not only will it hurt the rapist probably worse than anything he’s ever felt in his life - he won’t be able to get it off without an embarrassing (and incriminating) visit to the hospital. And better yet, it should only cost around 20 cents.

According to this South African news piece:

“The United Nations says South Africa has the world’s highest per capita rate of reported rapes - 119 per 100,000 people. Analysts say the total, including unreported rapes, could be nine times higher.

Ms Ehlers sees her invention as particularly attractive to poorer black women, because they often walk long distances through unsafe areas to and from work. She foresees women inserting the device as part of a daily security routine.”

Already the device has drawn criticism. First, because it doesn’t stop the rapist from hurting you in any other way (and will most certainly make him angrier and more violent). And second, for putting the onus on women to prevent rape (as opposed to society at large, and men in particular).

The first criticism is valid.

But my response to the second? PSHT. Please. The onus has been on women to protect themselves for a hundred thousand years, and things show little sign of changing. Why wait for the world to change when you can walk around with an iron maiden between your legs?