feminists, modern foot-binders, and avoiding SAD

today's trip through the Times

See what happens when those uppity femmes try to stake claims to the male arena? Demise of the species! Stay home ladies.
Neanderthal Women Joined Men in the Hunt [nytimes]

An article about an allegedly emerging practice of people with disabilities using PGD to pass those disabilities on to their children:
Wanting Babies Like Themselves, Some Parents Choose Genetic Defects [nytimes]
I would argue that this practice is analogous to Chinese foot-binding or certain Native American tribes that used straps and boards to flatten the foreheads of babies. But I like how Dr. Sanghavi drew a connection between this practice and our "increasingly globalized society where identity seems besieged and in need of aggressive preservation". I believe celebrity culture and Americans' passive acceptance of being inundated with corporate advertising will soon create a crisis of American identity and this is an early symptom -- people looking for a tribe in a stark cultural landscape.

Editorial on the "Good" War? an over-simplification in my mind ... although this does reiterate how the Iraq quagmire has occurred at the expense of Afghanistan -- but as a major boon to opium addicts the world over!
Losing the Good War [nytimes]

Winter is approaching in NYC ... my advice for powering through the winter blues? Well don't do heroin. Instead stay at home and do crossword puzzles -- or try to think up clever acronyms ... like "SAD". aww.
Getting a Grip on the Winter Blues [nytimes]

or, you could read this book of cool cartoons:
Anxiety, Illustrated [nytimes]