| Permalink Archive for September, 2006
Ph-what?
September 14, 2006 | 
Sex
One of the other CyDy staffers sent me a link to a Babeland blog article about phthalates being banned in sex toys. Supposedly this is all over the news, though I haven’t heard a word of it - clearly I need to edit the custom fields in my personalized Google News page!
I’m not sure there’s a whole lot to get one’s panties in a bunch over just yet. Apparently there’s no actual ban - environmental group Greenpeace has asked the European union to ban sex toys containing phthalates. Additionally, a Danish research group discovered that women who are pregnant or breastfeeding should not use phthalate-containing sex toys for more than an hour a day.
So what does this mean for us? Well, if you’re in the U.S., not much of anything, since Greenpeace is talking to the EU here. If you’re not pregnant or breastfeeding, you’re probably okay to use a rubber toy more than an hour a day, although it may cause skin irritation according to Babeland. But really, silicone is best anyway, so if you get toys that are entirely silicone (and not silicone-rubber, since the rubber is what contains the phthalates) you should be fine.
By the way - if you are wondering, like I was, what the heck is a phthalate and how do I say that word? - check out the definition and pronunciation here. Does anybody else think it sounds like the nice lady is saying fellate?!
Death of the Tomboy
September 8, 2006 | Pop Culture
For the record, I am not a lipstick lesbian. I’m not even a Chapstick lesbian. I don’t wear makeup hardly ever. I have long hair and I wear dresses, but I don’t consider myself a lipstick lesbian. That said, AfterEllen has an article about the death of the tomboy and the rise of the lipstick lesbian in mainstream media. [via queerty]
Sisters
September 6, 2006 | Around the World, News Reports
An interesting twist from Great Britain: Sisters demand same-sex couple rights. Two elderly sisters are taking the British government to the European Court of Human Rights, saying that they are being discriminated against because they are single. They’ve been trying since 1976 to get inheritance law changed, because as of now if either of them dies the other will have to pay taxes.
My instinctive response is “no way” - benefits like these are for married/domestic partnerships, not just anybody. It’s unfortunate, but that’s the way it is. If the sisters get what they want, the whole of inheritance law can basically be written off because relatives will just say to the court that they deserve the same thing. Unless a system is established to prove a symbiotic relationship (call it co-dependent if you will), I don’t think this is going to fly.
