A Podcast, A Newsletter, & A Book Rec

Three quick things.

It’s a gloomy Monday here in New Jersey and I have no original writing for you. I do, however, have three delightful reading/listening recommendations!

A Podcast:

I’m today’s guest on Idealistically, a podcast from climate activist Tolmeia Gregory where “activists, artists, influencers, scientists and more are asked what they would idealistically want, in an ideal world, to inspire more people to start creating radical visions of the future.”

My ideal world includes nudist hot springs (trust me), makeup as creative self-expression (rather than conformist self-rejection), and a vision of beauty that celebrates our humanity (instead of our dehumanization). It does not include slugging with fossil fuel byproducts.

A Newsletter:

Every week, the newsletter Embedded (one of my personal faves) quizzes “a ‘very online’ person for their essential guide to what’s good on the internet,” and last week, that person was me! You can read the interview — about my fear of Meta Face, my love of old CSI reruns, and that time I got canceled for bad-mouthing manicures — here.

A Book:

HYSTERICAL, Elissa Bassist’s just-released memoir, is about medical mysteries and misogyny and unmuting your voice in “a culture that doesn’t listen to women” and it is SO GOOD. (It’s also much funnier than the subject matter suggests.)

OK, Fine, One More Thing…

Last Monday, I published an investigation that I’m really proud of and passionate about: The Beauty Brands Backing Abortion Bans, a deep dive into how the beauty industry is financially supporting the politicians behind a six-week national abortion ban bill.

If I can be honest to the point of being cringe here… I was kind of surprised that this one didn’t Get Big?? I spent weeks investigating this story, and truly thought that exposing THE MAKERS OF BOTOX (among others) for donating TENS OF THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS to ANTI-ABORTION POLITICIANS seeking to revoke our right to BODILY AUTONOMY and REPRODUCTIVE FREEDOM while marketing their products and procedures as EMPOWERING FEMINIST CHOICES would make more of a splash. Like… this is a big deal! This is where the money we spend on benzoyl peroxide and Botox is going! To politicians sponsoring a six-week national abortion ban with no exceptions for rape or incest! To people who seek to strip us of our (actual) autonomy, dignity, personhood, and equality — maybe even our lives — through criminalized abortion and government-mandated birth!

If you haven’t read it yet, you can read it here. And if you’re so inclined, share it on social media or with your friends, family, colleagues, acquaintances.

On that note, would you be interested in a “Part Two: What To Do About It”-type post? Maybe something like this, that provides some simple action steps for holding these brands accountable? And explains why/how holding these brands accountable matters on every level — individual, communal, political? LeT mE kNoW iN tHe CoMmEnTs ;)