What I learned in Istanbul - Fashion

A Lot!
I've been many times to Istanbul, nut this time, I made a point of REALLY looking around - Not at the sights, but at the people.

FEMALES:

The women practice natural beauty - much like my discoveries in Paris. They are stylish and chic, dress with sophistication and in a classic manner. 

They seem to invest in key pieces, quality over price and wear what suits them. 

They eat sensibly, exercise and look after themselves. 

And the hair... Long, luscious and natural.

When I returned to my hometown of Reading I suddenly felt I had been dropped into a 'fashion disaster zone'. 

I won't start mumbling about my personal views, instead I'll leave you with this:

Vivienne Westwood criticises Britain’s bad dress sense

Queen of fashion Dame Vivienne Westwood is known for making bold statements - and this time she has some strong words for the British public.

Dame Vivienne slated Britain’s sense of style, saying “people have never looked so ugly” when it comes to fashion.

 Westwood said ‘conformist’ shoppers and cheap clothes have given society a ‘generic look’.

Dame Vivienne blamed the rise of cheap “disposable” clothes for curbing individuality and added that the only well dressed women are usually in their 70s, because they know how to choose investment pieces.

 The 70-year-old told reporters: “Everybody looks like clones and the only people you notice are my age. I don’t notice anybody unless they look great, and every now and again they do, and they are usually 70.”

Courtesy of Yahoo  http://uk.lifestyle.yahoo.com/vivienne-westwood-criticises-britain%E2%80%99s-bad-dress-sense.html

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Romney Caught on Tape Speaking about Welfare Recipients

OOPS! Mitt Romney Caught on Tape Speaking about Welfare Recipients

How on earth do these guys get into the positions of power in the first place?

ISTANBUL - SOME PHOTOS

IS THERE SUCH A THING AS GAY TRANSPHOBIA?

My personal view of whether there is a bias towards transgendered people among the gay/lesbian community is a definite 'yes!' - but from individuals.

However, as to whether the bias is widespread, rooted deep within the community is questionable. 

Personally, I became aware of possible bias from the gay / lesbian community when I hosted a 'trans' event within a gay pub in Reading. It was during this event, the interactions I witnessed started me wondering whether, what I experienced was a one off prejudice, by one or two people, or a general bias towards transgendered people by the gay community.


I do not believe it is wide spread. But below are some articles outlining a different view. 

A discussion on this topic would be most welcome.

Transgender community face hate speech from Lesbian and Gay people.

Transphobia is not something that just happens because of heteronormativity. As we gradually make our way through the end of the first decade of the 21st century this much becomes clear; homonormativity is just as virulent as its sibling. A scenario between two South African activists -one a transsexual man and the other, a lesbian- during which the lesbian activist said, “once born a woman you will die a woman” and admits to saying so is typical of transphobic slur. The difference here is she admitted to casting the aspersion. Usually you are met with a barrage of denials which is symptomatic of bully cultures. The problem we face now is whether we like it or not, this is happing in our communities.

BDSM women's spaces and transphobia

When bending gender around can be described as a fetish, and you combine that with a sizeable population of transmen and transwomen in a smallish subculture, the results can be explosive, confusing and often pretty offensive.

Of all the arguments I've seen pan out in the BDSM community, the debates over where transwomen are 'allowed' to be and what they represent are often the longest and most heated.

We've had the argument over the personal ads, whether transwomen should have to put themselves in a separate category from other women so men don't have to look at their profiles. We've argued at great length about the London Ladies' Munch, who took a democratic decision to only allow physically transitioned transwomen in. I get what they were trying to do (which I'll explain later..) and think the move was well-intentioned, but it resulted in a lot of people using the contention over exactly what constituted 'fully transitioned' to have a grand transphobic rant. We've also had an argument about women's toilets at clubs and who should be allowed in them, which resulted in the same.

Neil A. Armstrong - 1930 - 2012 RIP

Neil A. Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon, was born in Wapakoneta, Ohio, on August 5, 1930. He began his NASA career in Ohio.

After serving as a naval aviator from 1949 to 1952, Armstrong joined the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA) in 1955. His first assignment was with the NACA Lewis Research Center (now NASA Glenn) in Cleveland. Over the next 17 years, he was an engineer, test pilot, astronaut and administrator for NACA and its successor agency, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

As a research pilot at NASA's Flight Research Center, Edwards, Calif., he was a project pilot on many pioneering high speed aircraft, including the well known, 4000-mph X-15. He has flown over 200 different models of aircraft, including jets, rockets, helicopters and gliders.

Armstrong transferred to astronaut status in 1962. He was assigned as command pilot for the Gemini 8 mission. Gemini 8 was launched on March 16, 1966, and Armstrong performed the first successful docking of two vehicles in space.

As spacecraft commander for Apollo 11, the first manned lunar landing mission, Armstrong gained the distinction of being the first man to land a craft on the moon and first to step on its surface.

Armstrong subsequently held the position of Deputy Associate Administrator for Aeronautics, NASA Headquarters, Washington, D.C. In this position, he was responsible for the coordination and management of overall NASA research and technology work related to aeronautics.

He was Professor of Aerospace Engineering at the University of Cincinnati between 1971-1979. During the years 1982-1992, Armstrong was chairman of Computing Technologies for Aviation, Inc., Charlottesville, Va.

He received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Aeronautical Engineering from Purdue University and a Master of Science in Aerospace Engineering from the University of Southern California. He holds honorary doctorates from a number of universities.

I believe that the Good Lord gave us a finite number of heartbeats and I'm damned if I'm going to use up mine running up and down a street.

~ Neil Armstrong 

Armstrong is a Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test Pilots and the Royal Aeronautical Society; Honorary Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and the International Astronautics Federation.

He is a member of the National Academy of Engineering and the Academy of the Kingdom of Morocco. He served as a member of the National Commission on Space (1985-1986), as Vice-Chairman of the Presidential Commission on the Space Shuttle Challenger Accident (1986), and as Chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee for the Peace Corps (1971-1973).

Armstrong has been decorated by 17 countries. He is the recipient of many special honors, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom; the Congressional Space Medal of Honor; the Explorers Club Medal; the Robert H. Goddard Memorial Trophy; the NASA Distinguished Service Medal; the Harmon International Aviation Trophy; the Royal Geographic Society's Gold Medal; the Federation Aeronautique Internationale's Gold Space Medal; the American Astronautical Society Flight Achievement Award; the Robert J. Collier Trophy; the AIAA Astronautics Award; the Octave Chanute Award; and the John J. Montgomery Award.

"This is one small step for a man, one giant leap for mankind."