The Superfluous...

that too is necessary.

I woke up late today and went to unpack by way of the original 1369 Coffeehouse. I drank my cup of coffee and listened to David Bowie on the PA while reading the Glob. There was an article on the Pentagon enlisting faculty at Wellesley to investigate or structure an Office of the Victim's Advocate for the military services.

''Implementation of a self- interested Wellesley proposal could create a new job market for women's studies graduates schooled in man-hating ideology," says Elaine Donnelly, president of the conservative Center for Military Readiness, which has opposed gays in the military and women serving in combat roles.

''Sexual assault is always wrong and should be punished promptly at the local level," Donnelly said. However, a victim's advocate ''would operate as an office of male bashing that would nuclearize the war between the sexes."

Conservative activist Phyllis Schlafly has also attacked the plan in interviews and on her website.

''Wellesley is doubly bad because it is completely feminist," Schlafly said in an interview. ''The whole thing is a taxpayer-funded operation to establish the notion that men are natural batterers and women are victims and women are always right and men are always wrong."

I'm bothered that feminist ideology is getting mapped to man-hating gender-segregating finger-pointing. I would expect a Victim's Advocate to serve male assault victims as much as the females; God knows there's plenty of buggery going around to serve both genders. Sexual assault goes all ways, bastards.

Anyhow, the rest of today is unpacking and triage. I own a lot of trendy clothes, but I don't need those size 10 pants anymore. I missed Saturnalia, as is by now traditional (else I might have seen my 6.004 TA naked and that would have made class terribly awkward). Tonight are five other parties: xmal, chris, bonk, sam and ian. And more unpacking, picture-hanging and cleaning. Voo Doo is finished. The calendar will have to come out in IAP. Alicia is married. Work progresses.