Another exciting sign that some of the priest-infested parts of Europe are breaking out in a big way – Spain has passed a dramatic equality law that will force political parties to ensure 40% of candidates are women, demands business take steps toward gender equality, and provides real provision for paternal leave at birth, has passed in the parliament.
Worth noting at this point that the current Spanish cabinet is 50% female – as opposed to the British, ahhh, not very many…
It might have a slightly dismissive title “decorative arts”, it might be focused on the domestic and small scale, but at least a new museum in Paris introduces a great range of female characters, and gives them what should be a permanent place on the tourist trail. I’ve provided what is probably an overly detailed account on My Paris Your Paris.
And my favourite single woman, well a Parisien courtesan, of course, Valtesse de La Bigne. This was her bed, tailor-made, of course:
Well, you do want to make your workplace just so…
You’d hardly think it possible, but a new species of great cat has been identified – the Bornean clouded leopard (Neofelis diardi). Of course you can guess the final lines of the story – numbers are thought to be small, and he species endangered. Sigh.
And an introduced species is facing an equally bleak future – camels, although not native to Australia (and less harmful than the hard-hooved sheep, goats and cattle that tear up the ancient soils) are said to be causing ecological chaos (when they aren’t dying of thirst in the drought), and culls are planned. Or worse…
The plan will examine the economic opportunities presented by the camels, including making them into pet food and building up exports. Australia does not have a licensed camel abattoir, but it exports live camels to South-east Asia, where they are slaughtered for their meat.
These are feral — ie wild — camels. The kind of stress they must undergo during live export doesn’t bear thinking about.
Iranian women are bravely continuing their struggle to express their anger and frustration, despite a government crackdown.
Demonstrators Sunday carried signs pointing to articles in the Iranian Constitution that guarantee the right to peaceful protest. Activists said the arrests were made to preempt another gathering they had planned for Thursday. “They are afraid of the women’s movement, because there are some links between them and journalists, nongovernmental organizations, and they cooperate with [foreign] NGOs,” says Isa Saharkhiz, a former editor and reformist.
Over on Comment is Free I’ve a piece about Saturday’s Sheffield feminist conference – its thesis that if there ever was a period of conflict between feminist generations, it seems to have passed, and this age of young feminists is more aware of issues of race and class than perhaps were their foremothers.
How institutional arrangements create greenhouse gases: a jet flies, empty, between London and Cardiff six days a week, so an airline can keep a slot at Heathrow.
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