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Designer Spotlight: Freedom of Choice

FabSugar — Fri, 16 May 2008 16:00:22 PDT

Nathan Menashe's premium jean line, dubbed Freedom of Choice, is quite literally a rainbow of denim encompassing fun colors such as pink, green, periwinkle, white, and blue. The LA-produced denim collection was inspired by Nathan's love for rock and roll and consisted of a ton of different hues, cuts, and finishes. These sleek and funky designs are definitely geared toward the unabashed, modern woman like me!

Make sure to sign up for our fabulous Blue Jeans Giveaway, which ends this Sunday!

To see more from the Freedom of Choice collection,

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Five Ways Feminism Helps Men

The Good Men Project — Fri, 04 May 2012 04:00:30 PDT

We're happy to present this story from one of our favorite sites, The Good Men Project. Today, Justin Cascio names five ways feminism helps men.

Can’t think of a single reason why men should support feminism? Here are five.

Gives us equal partners. For men who have women in their lives as co-parents, lovers, wives, partners, clients, and associates, it means that our partners in these relationships have equal power.

Why Don’t Women Like Nice Guys?

Provides a model for consciously changing gender roles. Women have changed what it means to be a woman. Even women who don’t call themselves feminists have had their ideas of themselves shaped by feminism. Women who imagine themselves pursuing a career, or even imagine themselves having choices of whether and when to become a wife or a mother, owe their freedom to choose to feminist thought. As men, we have had our lives changed just as helplessly as the women have. We have the same power, as men, to consciously shape what we think a man should be, and how to live up to the standards we create. Feminism taught us it can happen.
Provokes us to consider the many identities that yoke us, sometimes in competing directions. Through feminist dialogue and consciousness raising, women began to realize that their identities as wives, mothers, daughters, and sisters were colored by their other identities: as human beings, citizens, workers, artisans, people of color, people with disabilities, queer people . . . the list of identities goes on, and the ways they overlap filter our experiences and to some degree determine who we are. Men are as subject to these double and triple yokes that tell us what we should be doing or caring about.
Encourages us to speak in our own voices. Betty Friedan identified a problem without a name, and began a conversation that hasn’t stopped. There are problems that men have that don’t have names, because we are not encouraged to talk with one another about our lives in the same ways, and because we want our stories to fit into the patterns that already exist: to make sense of them. By having the courage to talk about our experience, even when it doesn’t match our ideas of what a man does or feels, we can begin to learn what our common experiences are, and to name them.
Makes us all more free. Unless all of us are free, none of us are free. As long as women still feel the pulls of gender roles, men are forced by the laws of physics into an equal and opposing position. And as long as anyone in our world is subject to limitations because of an identity like those we construct around sex and gender, race and ethnicity, and our deeply held beliefs and loyalties, then any of us is subject to being limited for who and what we are, or for what we believe in.

The Hunger Games and 13 Other Frequently Challenged Sci-Fi Books

Kelly Schwarze — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 15:14:16 PDT

This month the American Library Association updated its list of frequently challenged books for the 2011 year, and one wildly popular novel is making its way up the rankings of this infamous list. The Hunger Games trilogy by Suzanne Collins, which first appeared at number five of Top 10 Most Frequently Challenged Books in 2010, is now third on the list for attempts to remove its contents from school curriculum and library bookshelves. The complaints against the books include text that is anti-ethnic and anti-family, insensitivity, offensive language, occult scenes, and violence.

Despite First Amendment protection, banning or attempting to challenge books has a long history, with many cases even making it to the US Supreme Court. As the American Library Association explains: "books usually are challenged with the best intentions-to protect others, frequently children, from difficult ideas and information." Science fiction and fantasy books often contain these themes that some find questionable, whether it's alien life forms, magical powers, or mystical worlds. In honor of Banned Books week, we're rounding up the most challenged science fiction and fantasy books according to the ALA. Browse the list below!

Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling - The stories of the wizarding world are seen by challengers to have occult and violent themes.
Twilight series by Stephanie Meyer - Its movie stars may provoke pandemonium, but critics of the book say it's too sexually explicit.
His Dark Materials series by Philip Pullman - The series beginning with The Golden Compass is often decried for its anti-religious viewpoints.
The Giver by Lois Lowry - Despite the book's message of freedom of choice, criticisms are made for the fictional dystopia's bleak family outlook.
Brave New World by Aldous Huxley - Offensive language, racism, and insensitivity are often cited in challenges to the future dystopian novel.
Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury - The tale of a future world where the printed word is banned and systemically burned was criticized for offensive language.
A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle - Children's search through space and time for their vanished father is often challenged for the inclusion of supposed witches.

Follow the break for more challenged books of the last 20 years.

8 Reasons You Need a Roth IRA Now

Kiplinger — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 14:50:27 PDT

Be savvy about your retirement. Kiplinger gives eight compelling reasons for getting a Roth IRA account now.

Smart young savers know to participate in their companies' 401(k)s as soon as they join the workforce to benefit from as many years of saving and compounding as possible (see Why You Need a 401(k) Right Away). But really smart young savers - including all of you who read Starting Out, obviously - should know to save via a Roth IRA, too.

In fact, the Roth IRA is such an important retirement investment tool that it now has its own holiday. On March 27, Jeff Rose, financial planner and GoodFinancialCents.com blogger, hosted an online event, the Roth IRA Movement, which he plans to make an annual celebration. He rallied 145 other personal-finance writers to spread the good word about the star savings account and inspire rookie investors to open their own accounts. "Overall, the turnout was awesome," says Rose. "Several people have already e-mailed me and said that someone they know opened a Roth IRA because of reading a post about it."

Here are some of our favorite lessons to take away from the inaugural Roth IRA Movement:

1. You can open a Roth no matter how young you are, as long as you have earned income. Peter Anderson points out in his Roth IRA Movement contribution, 10 Reasons Why I Love the Roth IRA (And Why You Should Too): "There isn't an age limit to have a Roth IRA, so even your children can have one!" They can, that is, as soon as they make money working, whether it be babysitting, lawn mowing, working retail or whatever.

And it's super-easy to open a Roth through your bank. Or you can try one of Kiplinger's favorite online brokers. TD Ameritrade requires no minimum initial investment and charges no maintenance fees. For your application, you'll just need your Social Security number, your employer's name and address, your checking or savings account number and bank routing number (if you want to fund the Roth IRA electronically), and your beneficiary's address and Social Security number.

Read on for more.

What We Need to Talk About When We Talk About Sex and Feminism

The Good Men Project — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 08:00:00 PDT

We're happy to present this story from one of our favorite sites, The Good Men Project. Lisa Solod, who came of age during the sexual revolution, explores what feminism means to this generation.

My mother married my father because, she told me in a rare moment of candor, she wanted to have sex with him. She was 25 and tired of pre-sex fumbling and stolen kisses. My father was, of course, far more experienced, having been in the Pacific Theater during World War II; far less discreet about his former life (and life in general) he told his daughters inappropriate tales of the women he had met on shore leave. One I particularly remember had her front teeth filed into points. Well into their marriage, each of them managed to be unfaithful and they finally separated (but not because of infidelity) after twenty years of marriage. Yet, for another dozen years or so they would hook up here and there, travel together, and, of course have sex. In a further revelation, my mother told me that the sex was the best part of her relationship with my father.

I came of age at the tail end but the real beginning of the sexual revolution (1971-1974). At that point, sexual liberation was inextricably tied to the rise of feminism. Having sex like men, i.e., without attachment, was part of our freedom. But too many of us got hurt. We hadn’t yet factored in the biology of mating and how really hard it was to have that much sex without any real commitment. Most of the women I know who grew up during those years had far more sexual encounters than they were ever willing to reveal to their husbands. Those of us who divorced then dived back into the sexual market with the same abandon. I am not sure we were all the wiser. I hear STDs are on the rise in the over 50 group, which doesn’t surprise me. We all were pretty practiced in birth control but we took it into our own hands, with the pill and the diaphragm. This was pre-AIDS. Barrier methods were not our methods of choice then. They are not, apparently, our method now, either.

Should a Man Stand Up For His Woman?

But those of us who grew up in the trenches of the sexual revolution know that feminism was about far more than women having the kind of meaningless sex with men that men had been having with us for eons. Feminism, which is still being parsed in the media as well as our own homes, still being debated and discussed and accepted and dismissed, was about being able to control (to the extent that anyone can) our work lives, our love lives, our lives as a whole. It was about being able to have a career, being paid equally well for that career, and making our own decisions about marriage and childbirth without having to merely capitulate to what society had set out for us. I, for one, was happy not to have to marry to have sex. I was thrilled to be able to go to college and think about a career without worrying that it might make me unmarriageable. I was ecstatic about the notion that I could make decisions for myself.

All those ideas I passed along to my daughter. But, of course, she had no need to wrestle with those notions as the women in my generation had. She lived in a society where (she thought) feminism was taken for granted. Women her age did not talk about marriage, either as an option or something to reject. They saw it as fact that women could do anything.

Read the rest of the story below.

How I Gained 30 Pounds in College (and Then Lost It)

Jenny Sugar — Thu, 08 Mar 2012 03:08:40 PST

In college, I was no stranger to the "Freshman 15." In fact, all that newfound freedom to eat whatever and whenever combined with the all-you-can-eat dining hall and late-night pizza runs made it the "Freshman 30." Now that I've been at a healthy weight for a while, I can look back on all the mistakes I made. I'm sharing these mistakes now in the hopes that I can help someone else avoid the sadness and insecurity that comes with weight gain.

Good-bye, Home-Cooked Meals
With no one to cook me healthy, balanced meals, or tell me to eat my broccoli and not a brownie sundae for dinner, I quickly made my own - unhealthy - meal decisions. This included ordering take-out, devouring junk food, and eating way more food than I did when home.

Is That Cookie Vegan?
My school population was 90 percent hippie, and I was already a vegetarian, so it's no surprise that becoming vegan was my next move. I didn't miss milk or eggs at all. Why miss it when there's decadent vegan ice cream, dairy-free cheese, and even a pizza place downtown serving vegan pizza? I was a total junk-food vegan and must have gained 10 pounds on vegan cookies alone. The late-night candy runs for Swedish fish didn't help either.

No, I Don't Need a Bowl - I'll Eat Out of the Bag
Chips, cookies, crackers, cereal; I ate a lot of my snacks with no plates or bowls because I was too lazy to do the dishes, which often meant polishing the entire package in one sitting.

Carrot Cake Counts as a Vegetable
I may have been vegan, but I hardly ate vegetables, unless you count tomato sauce on pizza, carrot cake, and greasy french fries. My diet was based around these four food groups: pasta, bagels, cereal, and cookies. Come to think of it, I hardly ate fruit either since it wasn't that easy to find on campus (or rather, not that appealing).

Continue reading to see the other reasons I gained weight, and more importantly, how I lost it.

Healthy Fast Food Choices For Kids on the Go

LilSugar — Mon, 20 Feb 2012 03:15:07 PST

Gone are the days when McDonald's and Burger King were the only fast-food options for families looking for lunch on the run. Now parents have a plenty of choices when striving to feed kids quickly, without sacrificing quality and nutrition in the process.

But beware of hidden pitfalls, like seemingly healthy meals that are actually loaded with fat and calories or lacking all nutritional value. We break down what's best to buy and what to skip to keep little ones' engines fueled.

Cosi
California, Connecticut, Washington DC, Delaware, Illinois, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia, Wisconsin
A parent favorite for its signature flatbread and wide variety of sandwiches, soups, and salads, Cosi also offers a special kids menu. While it's fairly basic, appealing offerings include a gooey grilled ham and cheese, PB&J, and a turkey sandwich. There are also pizza and dessert options.
What to Pick
The low-cal turkey sandwich with a side of carrots is your best bet, but any of the sandwiches stay within a reasonably healthy and well-balanced nutritional range.
What to Skip
With a whopping 777 calories and 50 grams of fat, the Mississippi Mud Pie is an unnecessary indulgence for kids and parents alike. If they're craving something sweet, opt instead for a raisin oatmeal cookie - it's big enough to share.

Three more healthy fast options.

Bringing Home the Troops: 7 Reasons to Date a Military Man

YourTango — Mon, 24 Oct 2011 04:00:57 PDT

We're happy to present this excerpt from one of our favorite sites, YourTango.

Obama is bringing the troops home from Iraq, and it's a single woman's perfect opportunity to snag a man in uniform. So, dust off your patriotic heels and show our men in service just how much you appreciate their sacrifices.

Even though dating someone in the military can be incredibly challenging on many different levels, there are numerous reasons why a man in the service could be your ideal beau:

Conviction.
Nothing says sexy more than someone who is putting his life on the line to protect your freedoms and rights. Joining the military is a choice; by serving his country, you know he has strong ideals and is willing to fight for them.
He is in great physical shape.
Let's not pretend that the fact he's probably in the best shape of his life doesn't turn you on. The rigorous training he is committed to is part of his daily routine, and you get to reap the benefits of his occupation's strict physical and dietary habits. We'll salute to that.
Potential for love letters.
Since your relationship will probably be long-distance at certain points and for long periods of time, communication becomes quintessential. This means lots of emails, chats, phone conversations, and snail mail. The possibility of epic literary confessions of love is immense.
Independence and co-dependence.
Since he is often in unfamiliar environments, you know that he can take care of himself. He is trained to survive hostile circumstances and protect his fellow soldiers, so he knows what it takes to work as a team. He knows how to work together for a common goal, but he can also assess a difficult situation and figure out a solution on his own. This can translate well for relationships. After all, love can be a battlefield too.

To see three more reasons, check out YourTango: Bringing Home The Troops: 7 Reasons To Date A Military Man

Written by Lisa Thong for YourTango.

Comcast Introduces Network Cable Channel Packages

Kelly Schwarze — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 12:12:05 PDT

Fresh off speculation that cable companies may begin to offer à la carte channel subscription options, Comcast has started to offer a new package program called MyTV Choice.

Currently on trial in Charleston, SC, as well as parts of Connecticut, Massachusetts, and Vermont, the MyTV Choice starts with a base package called Get Started, which is $25 for 50 channels or Get Started Plus for $45 and includes ESPN. If desired, four optional channel theme packages are available to add-on for an additional $10 a month. The theme packs are offered as kids, news and information, entertainment and lifestyle, and movies.

Hopefully this is the start of cable network freedom.

Miramax Adds More Streaming Video Options to Facebook

Kelly Schwarze — Mon, 22 Aug 2011 11:23:57 PDT

Good news for those wishing to stream movies online: Hollywood movie studio Miramax joins the streaming media crowd with the launch of a Facebook app called Miramax eXperience. For $3, rent any of the available movies, like Pulp Fiction and Kill Bill (in addition to previously mentioned Doctor Who episodes) for commercial free viewing on Facebook, iPad, and GoogleTV.

Miramax's foray into Facebook video streaming is just one addition to the many streaming options consumers can choose from for their entertainment needs, including the following:

Netflix - With access via gaming consoles, TVs, iPhones, and Android smartphones in addition to computers, the popular classic doesn't seem to be going anywhere despite the competition and controversial new pricing structure.
Hulu Plus - The $8 monthly subscription fee for Hulu Plus allows access to the most current episodes of TV shows and has an even larger catalog of movies available than its free Hulu counterpart. Available via iOS, Android, select gaming consoles, Samsung TVs, and computer systems.
VUDU by Walmart - The service is accessible through the VUDU page on Walmart's website or from VUDU-enabled devices like certain HDTVs, Blu-ray players, or PlayStation 3. Customers do not sign up for a subscription, but rather pay per film viewing. Rentals begin at $3, with new releases starting at $4 and higher for HD-quality streams; many movies can be purchased for unlimited viewing for $15.
Blockbuster Total Access - Pricing models give customers the option to rent DVDs for home delivery with a subscription plan for $10 or $15, choose to rent DVD without subscriptions, or stream films online on demand.

For those who love the freedom of choice, check out more streaming options after the break.