The Retroactive Table of Contents : February 10 – February 17

Headline of the Week: Turns Out the South Really Is Bats**t Crazy

In separate posts, Mark and Pat reported respectively on a school district in North Carolina forcing McNuggets on children and a law in Virginia dictating that doctors were legally required to stick a camera inside a woman’s hoo-hoo before allowing a first trimester abortion. Each had discovered what looked to be evidence that the story was bogus, yet each ended up being shockingly true.  Nice going, North Carolina and Virginia.

(And may I add a personal kudos to both for correcting their posts. Very un-intertubes of them.)

New Bright Shiny Object of the Week: When Religious Beliefs and Women’s Rights Collide!

The big story of the week on the League and elsewhere was the politicking between the right and left stemming from Obama’s attempt at contraception compromise.

Burt kicked it off by looking at the mess through the eyes of the Constitution, initially declaring the compromise illegal; after further debate, though, he walked that back a bit.

Will started off on the fence but used arguments here and elsewhere to find in favor of compromise.  He then considered the issue of access as it pertains to controversial women’s healthcare issues.

Erik pointed out that despite what some might say, contraception is in fact connected to a woman’s actual health, and pointed us to a poll by Leaguer Jack Gillis which for me at least was a fine antidote to all of the vitriol.

Tom used Pew polling numbers to argue that none of it ain’t no thing.

Old Bright Shiny Object of the Week: “You Call That Art? My Kid Could Have Done That!”

Last week’s ongoing discussion on art continued, eventually morphing into a discussion on arts and politics.

For Tom & Mrs. TVD, judging art is similar to judging a diving competition.

David had a great essay about the difficulty of being an artist and stepping in front of an audience that is closer to your subject matter than you are, and what it means to be an artist and choose to step away from your medium.

Riffing off of an American Times post by Erik, J.L. asked if there was any such thing as conservative art.

I said that there was, but that conservatives refuse to embrace it.

Pat went one step further and suggested that much of what I had to say about conservative vs. liberal art could be said for people and their politics.

In her very front page posting (yay!), Rose looked at reactions to Downtown Abbey and suggested that art doesn’t need to correspond to our worldview to be meaningful.  (It was a great point, but I still refuse to see Atlas Shrugged II.)

Rufus, meanwhile, did us all one better and wrote a post that combined the high art of Zola and the pulpy low art of noire femme fatales.

Philosophy, Economics & Government

Tim asked those that claim positive rights to explain themselves.

Nob asks us to look at austerity economics in Europe.  (Quick!  Before it all collapses!)  He also looked at incentives for financial markets, and how they may not be incentivizing all the right things.

Murali had a President’s Day Week Sale, where you could buy three posts – Nozick, Rebellion Ethics and Liberalism – for the price of one.

 Culture, Personal Essay & Miscellaneous  

Eric happily noted that cutting-edge behemoth Forbes has finally entered the 21st century with its new comments section.

David’s coolest midlife crisis ever reached yet another milestone.

Mike introduced us to a pothead that could totally kick your ass.

Erik wondered what the hell James Poulos was thinking when we asked what women are for.

Jason pointed us toward some clarification restating more thorough explanation walking back on that very topic.

Burt took a look at the bizarre week that was, and suggested we all chill.  How should we chill, you say?  Burt’s glad you asked.  He lists a number of awesomely fun activities you can do when in Vegas at League Fest 2012.

You should really go.