gaelick » This and That

Important information regarding France

click here — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 15:45:31 +0000

Zut alors! It’s all about France v Ireland this weekend in the women’s and men’s rugby.

So, in the spirit of helpfulness and usefulness -- and in case you missed our updates on Facebook and Twitter (from your abode under a rock) -- here’s all you will need to know if you’re taking the horse to France for the rugby (or at any time really, let’s be honest):

Key French phrases: Part 1 (How to fake French)

www.youtube.com/watch?v=edYHlnhxyOI

Où est le centre Georges Pompidou?

Tomorrow’s women’s game against France takes place in Pau. Or as French northerners call it: T’Pau. I think someone should inform Carol Decker.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=PSh6SQd8UrI

Key French phrases: Part 2 (Lessons from Bubble -- at the 6 minute mark)

This is the one. No, this, this is the one..

And here’s one possible way to pass the time when you’re not at the game. (Or when you’re at the game, who’s to say?):

Écoutez bien! I weel say zees only wance.

Finally, then, you can put all that you have learned into practice! If you have men’s rugby-overload and you’re dying to find out how Ireland’s women fare when they face off against France, Monsieur Pierre Guillet and amis will be broadcasting live on Sud Radio from Hameau Stadium in Pau.

The game starts at the now earlier time of 2:30pm.

A Suppa Earl Gae

click here — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 12:24:30 +0000

It’s a gloomy, rainy Monday. Are you in any kind of mood for work? Hell no! So here’s a round-up of some of the headlines that caught our eye over the past day or so. Enjoy.

News-y

The UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki Moon, urged African countries to entrench civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights to boost stability and development in the continent. He cited discrimination based on sexual orientation or gender identity as one of the injustices that has been ignored or even sanctioned by many States for too long.

He told leaders:

This has prompted some governments to treat people as second-class citizens, or even criminals. Confronting this discrimination is a challenge. But we must live up to the ideals of the Universal Declaration [of Human Rights].

And he called for greater representation of women in parliaments across Africa, which he said currently stands 20 per cent on average, as well as speaking about young people in African nations:

We must ensure that women are fully represented in decision-making bodies, including in Egypt and Tunisia, where they played a role” in the recent pro-democracy protests.

And we must restore hope and a better future for youth in Africa. Unemployment and poverty feed chronic instability and create tensions. I intend to appoint a special representative for youth, who will open dialogue with young people and lead our efforts.

South Africa’s Times Live reports that the men convicted of the murder of Zoliswa Nkonyana are due to be sentenced later this week.

Nkonyana (19) was stabbed and stoned to death outside a shebeen in Khayelitsha, Cape Town, on 4th February, 2006.

The trial of the men has been beset by repeated delays in the nation where violence against women, and in particular the persecution of lesbian women, is endemic.

In other news, and without a hint of irony, an African Christian cleric has urged that “tradition and history” in England be preserved.

The Archbishop of York, John Sentamu, told The Telegraph that “Marriage is a relationship between a man and a woman,” and “[Marriage] is set in tradition and history and you can’t just [change it] overnight, no matter how powerful you are.”

Speaking of Biblical texts and “tradition”, those very same foundations framed arguments employed by those seeking to preserve the system of slavery and the slave trade in 19th century Britain and “anti-miscegenation” laws in the 20th century US.

Blogger Blabbeando brings has tweeted the news that Cuba’s Communist Party “has officially adopted platform to end discrimination based on sexual orientation and gender identity”. Far from being a bastion of human rights vindication, it will be interesting to see who this “official” move by the Cuban authorities plays out.

Meanwhile, Pinksixty News reports that Jamaican gay rights activist Maurice Tomlinson has fled his country after the police said they couldn’t guarantee his safety. Following reports of his marriage in Toronto to his Canadian partner, increased death threats made it impossible for him to remain.

On the good news front, lesbians feature in good-parents-shocker!

Q News brings us the latest from the National Longitudinal Lesbian Family Study.

The Study began in 1986, and the latest findings examines the situation of about 80 teenagers parented by lesbian couples. The young people were matched on gender, age, parental education, and ethnic background with adolescents in heterosexual-parent families. The children were interviewed at age 10 and again at age 17 with queries about their activities, social lives, feelings of anxiety or depression, and behaviour.

The authors found that children raised by lesbian mothers – whether partnered or single – scored very similarly to children raised by heterosexual parents on measures of development and social behaviour. They also discovered that children in lesbian homes scored higher than those in straight families on some psychological measures of self-esteem and confidence; did better academically and were less likely to have behavioural problems, such as rule-breaking and aggression

Take that, Professor Patricia Casey!

“Quality of Life of Adolescents Raised from Birth by Lesbian Mothers” is published in the Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics.

Sport-y

On Wednesday, the Six Nations rugby fest was officially launched in London. It may have been easily missed (thank you, mainstream media) but the women’s captains were there as well as the men’s captains, and there’s even photographic evidence to prove it!

Here’s the skippers namecheck: Fiona Coughlan (Ireland); Sara Barattin (Italy); Katie McLean (England); Susie Brown (Scotland); Rachel Taylor (Wales); Nathalie Amiel (France).

(IRFU / TheScore)

Across the pond, the USA was victorious over Canada with four goals to nil in the CONCACAF Olympic qualifying final, securing the States qualification for this year’s tournament in London. Abby Wambach and Alex Morgan secured their country’s win with two goals each.

Fluff-y

In celebrity-ville, at last night’s Screen Actors Guild Awards, Emma Stone and Emily Blunt were looking a-fecking-mazing.

* swoon *

Irishers may not be too familiar with the phrase “No homo” – so here’s an intro from Current TV’s Bryan Safi to get you up to speed:

Now, Chescaleigh – she of “Shit white girls say to black girls” fame – brings you the ultimate how-to in finally ridding us of the rotten phrase. Behold!

On SOPA Ireland

click here — Fri, 27 Jan 2012 13:01:13 +0000

You may have heard about #sopaireland: more info here.

If you haven’t read beaut.ie’s post about it, then off you go: Just Say No: 7 reasons to raise your voice against SOPA Ireland.

It’s a succinct, understandable round-up of all you need to know.

Once you’ve read it, sign the petition.

(And if you thought SOPA Ireland was bad, brace yourselves for ACTA. Not to mention Twitter’s decision to aid and abet repressive regimes.)

You have to wonder whether the opinions of those who actually create artistic works, those for whom intellectual property law is supposed to benefit – musicians, artists, writers – have been taken into account? Rather than just record companies. Why is the Minister of State, Seán Sherlock, not canvassing those views?

There has been a worrying lack of transparency regarding this issue in general. Wasn’t one of the huge problems of the last government the secrecy, the lobbying, the greasy palms, the quiet words with ministers?

The promised “full debate” in Dáil Éireann changes nothing: it’s still a Ministerial Order that he intends to sign, same wording, same everything.

In a fitting nugget of irony, there have been allegations that Sherlock’s own website was taken down “for maintenance” to remove images which – can you guess? – are copyrighted. Apparently so. Let he who is without copyright infringement sign the first Ministerial Order.

I’ve heard Seán Sherlock say “the net must innovate”. He seems to be missing the point entirely: the net has innovated; it is the record companies which refuse to change and keep up with these innovations.

Record companies – and anyone who thinks like them – need to face up to a simple truth: they must adapt or die.

Further reading & information:

There’s something Queer around here

tabula rasa — Fri, 20 Jan 2012 08:18:40 +0000

Gaelick’s stalwart, tabula rasa, and newbie, Sinéad, put their heads together to ponder the language we use to self-describe. Here are the results!

“Queer” means a lot of different things to a lot of different people.

To people like my grandmother, it means odd or strange, and she’ll often tell me that there’s a “Quare change in the weather”. To others it’s just seen as a pejorative term, which has been used to abuse them. To an ever-growing number of people, however, it’s the way they express their identity, and is the umbrella term which can be used to cover a whole host of different sexualities and gender expressions.

The best definition for “queer” as we will use it here actually comes from Wikipedia, which is:

Queer is an umbrella term for sexual minorities that are not heterosexual, heteronormative, or gender-binary. In the context of Western identity politics the term also acts as a label setting queer-identifying people apart from discourse, ideologies, and lifestyles that typify mainstream LGBT communities as being oppressive or assimilationist.

I’ll be the first to admit that up until very recently, I shied away from using the word “queer”. To me, it was what was shouted across the street while people were hurling abuse at me, it was what LGBT people were called when they were being beaten up. In short, it was always negative.

But the more I thought about it, the more important the term became. As we all know, gender isn’t a binary. There isn’t just male and female, there is both and everything in between (and outside of) these binaries. People who represent the larger spectrum of human sexuality and gender expression may not fit into the sometimes “rigidly” defined terms of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender. And there needs to be a term for people to use, to identify with, and to unite under.

Sinéad had a different experience from me regarding the Q:

For me, being queer is pretty much the most defining characteristic I have, but because of that, it is also the least noticeable. I pretty much live my life as a political statement, and that kind of behaviour is normalised very quickly.

I never associated the word with anything negative as a child, but I think that has less to do with society and more to do with how many Enid Blyton books I used to read. When I grew up and exploded out of the closet, I did so as a lesbian, but it was apparent that that was not strictly true from day one. It took me until very recently to identify as the Q that I clearly am, but that I didn’t have the vocabulary to express previously.

Saying that, I also think that identifying as Q is something we grow into. I don’t mean that identifying as LGBT is a transitory stage; I mean that, for me at least, it was an identity I could latch on to.

“LGBT” was a thing I could relate to; that accepted me; that I fit into. It provided for me the space to grow into who I am, who I always was but didn’t know it. That space is essential. Adding Q to the acronym is also essential. The idea of identifying as “other”- what an idea that would have been to a teenaged me!

And I don’t think I’m the only one. Sexuality and gender are things that develop as we grow, one way or the other or both, I think, just like everything else about us, they change as we age. Nobody dies the same person they were when they were born. And Q is a nice, simple way of expressing that idea.

For me, queer means, “Let’s just go with this, see what happens. It’s OK.” It gives me the freedom to experiment with who I am, and I love that freedom. I love being Q.

We asked our friends on Facebook yesterday to message us if they felt more comfortable self-identifying under the Q as opposed to other letters of the LGBT acronym. The response was huge. And I have to say, I learned a lot.

Many people have their own definitions for their sexuality, which ranged from pansexual to “Futagirl” (which they went on to explain as a “Feminine external expression of an internally andogenous nature”) and everything in between.

I asked a couple of people to to expand on what they meant when they said “pansexual” and both answers were pretty much identical:

Well pan is when there’s no gender consideration. Unlike bi, which is both male and female, being pansexual means that a person doesn’t have to have a definite gender to be attractive because it’s not part of the thinking process.

I then asked one of these pansexual identified people why they felt that the Q best applied to them rather than anything else, and was told:

I think it’s because “bi” feels a bit limiting […] I mean, I fall for people and although in practice I do tend towards women, in reality their gender isn’t really an issue for me. So male/female/neither/both/whatever, as long as they’re comfortable with their identity, it’s not an issue for me, so queer feels a bit more accurate.

People have many different reasons for using Q to identify themselves. For some people, it is political:

Queer for me is a political label. It tells people that I am interested in the issues of our whole community and not just (for example) in trans issues. Also, as somebody who lived as a lesbian for 10 years, is very camp, and have also been living as transgender and then transexual for the last 5 years, I don’t feel as though one label accurately reflects the total of my experience withint he community.

I also feel that if you say “queer” it tends to invite more questions about your personal journey and experience than a label like trans or lesbian as people hear that and make their own narratives and assumptions.”

For others, the Q is about not having to fit into any defined ‘boxes’:

I identify as queer because it feels very free to me. “Lesbian” always seemed not quite right as a label for me, I never felt like I fit in that mold. I like the radical nature of “queer”, and the almost aggressive nature of it. For me identifying as Q means I don’t have to fit any stereotype or gender role, which is awesome!”

Indeed, not having to fit into any particular mould is the reason most people I spoke to prefer to use the Q. Ariel Silvera told me that:

When I first came out, I used the word “queer” more often to refer to myself. I was basing that usage on understandings I gained from a lot of reading on trans and queer issues and experiences, as well as from my experiences travelling to queer communities in the UK and Germany.

She went on to say:

I did then, and still do now, see “queer” as a place of possibility and a place of flexibility. A place where my sexuality and my gender can be articulated in myriad ways, without being limited to a particular identity.

In other words, it feels like it is something which, growing from LGBT, has the potential of limitless genders and sexualities.

Others all responded in a similar vein:

In some situations it’s better than “gay” or “lesbian”, in other situations it’s easier just to say “I’m gay” and no one looks at you funny. I like queer for it’s lack of specificity: It tells you I fall outside the hetronormative without giving very personal details. (If you say “lesbian” sooo many guys in my age group instantly think “porn”.)

I like that “queer” says I have something in common with people who are trans, poly, gay, bi, anything-a-bit-less-usual because I think it’s important that there is an element of togetherness in LGBTQ, and the Q gives an umbrella we can all stand under even if we don’t have lots of the specifics in common we can still stick up for one another.

I find myself attracted to people’s personalities, who they are, rather than their gender.

I find women, men, trans men, trans women, drag queens, drag kings and all kinds of genders attractive. If I describe myself as “bi”, people - straight and gay – seem to be really keen to push me one way or another. If I had a euro for every time I’m asked, “Which do you prefer, men or women?” I’d be rich.

Being queer for me is about being attracted to anyone of any gender if I feel a chemistry with them. I’m really happy to be queer. I’d be sad to not be able to feel attraction for someone because of their gender. Not being attracted to someone because they were perceived as female would for me be as arbitrary as not being attracted to someone because their name started with a vowel.

The appeal of the term queer is it’s versatility. It can be molded to suit the sexuality of the individual, and as a result has none of the difficult connotations of other sexuality discourse.

I call myself queer because I identify most closely with the term “lesbian” both politically and sexually, but find myself in a very happy relationship with a cis male. […] Using the term “queer” means taking back my sexuality and defining it for myself without the pressure of trying to slot into a sexuality that I didn’t actually feel.

Queer fits more of my identity than LGB or T. For me it is considerably wider than the others, which only cover sexual orientation and gender identity. For me Queer represents a wider rejection of heteronormativity. It is about deciding for myself when I want to be poly or mono (or indeed whether one of those is an identity for me), what my kink orientation is, what my relationship with my gender is, who I fancy, who I fuck, how I fuck. It gives me more space to move along continuum of sexuality and gender without being fixed within the confines of boxes that don’t entirely describe me. It’s also political. For me queer is politically lefty, and that fits too!

I like to use queer rather than gay because people throw the word gay around so much in a negative sense…by saying things like “OMG my leggings are so gay.” I also like it because it can be used by everyone who feels they fit into the LGBT- it’s less limiting and I think it helps people stop constantly labelling themselves.

I liked that idea – whether I am with a woman or a man I am queer – their gender identity doesn’t change who I am. Queer feels like an identity I can have forever, it’s mine and not contingent on someone else’s genitals.

For others, they use the term queer as they subvert gender norms. One person explained that for them:

“[...] Q suits me best due to my own personal identity. Some days I feel I identify more as male and bind my breasts and dress more masculine. I’m not trans, and don’t suffer any body dysphoria so I feel “queer” best describes me.

Maybe in a world where dressing masculine wasnt such an oddity I wouldn’t need the queer label but.. it is.

CanuckJacq further expanded along this line with:

“Lesbian” seems so specific. It’s just never felt right. And “gay”, that’s not quite right either. My answer to gender is usually “no”, that means I’m not trans or cis, just somewhere in-between. I don’t like the label “bi” because I believe there are more than two genders, and I’m picky like that.

But “queer” is comfortable for me. Like, I belong in the LGBT community, somewhere in between the Ls the Gs the Bs and the Ts; but where might depend on the day. And it’s nice to not feel restricted.

A recurring theme in many of the answers centred upon the area of bisexuality and how at times that term was too limiting for people due to the implied binary, as well as the problem of other LGT or heterosexual people disenfranchising those who labelled themselves as “bi”, by insisting on imposing a sexuality on them based on the gender of their partner.

Lou told me:

“Bisexuality” implies an equal interest in both sexes, which I simply don’t have. I struggled hugely with my sexuality, and found it extremely difficult to find anyone whose sexual experience was similar to mine. It was quite an isolating experience and created a situation where I lacked agency within both the straight and gay communities.

Amiee expanded on this point, except in her case people were disputing her right to identify as queer:

There are those within the community who feel Bs, Qs and quite often Ts as well, don’t belong in “their” spaces. Like any community the whole idea of “inclusiveness” doesn’t always work out so well in practice – we have to work on that.

I was recently told, by a gay man, at my own Thanksgiving party, that if I was seeing a man I couldn’t claim to be queer. I have also been asked by a straight friend why, if I am not in a lesbian relationship, I don’t drop the whole queer thing because it might make people uncomfortable.

It seems a lot of people shared my initial misgivings about the word, due to the implied negativity, and the feeling that we haven’t yet achieved full reclamation of the term. Others weren’t sure about giving up the identity they had originally used for themselves:

I had REAL issues with the use of the word queer when I first arrived at Uni as, like you say, I had only heard it in a pejorative way before then and didn’t feel ready to reclaim the word.

I felt that I was being told to by predominantly white middle-class individuals who had recently come out and, as somebody who had been out since the age of 12 and relatively isolated, I had a real history with the word being used as an abusive insult. Also, I thought to myself, “I like my label and the security of knowing where I fit in the world. ‘Lesbian’ seems to describe me and so why should I give up that hard won label in order to sit under an umbrella term?”

Initially, I didn’t want to use Q. I wanted to be able to function within a sexual sphere in which my sexuality could be considered “normal”. I wanted to be able to be part of a community and not struggle with complex sexual feelings alone. Most importantly I wanted to be able to discuss my experiences and not worry that peoples eyes would glaze over at the mention of “queer”.

I think for political purposes Lesbian is a stronger identity and would use it more.

Throughout the responses, it became to clear to me that in the Irish context, queer is definitely still a term that people are struggling with. Ariel Silvera summed this up nicely:

In the Irish context, there’s the issue that “queer” has not been reappropriated here to the same extent. It is not the same for a German person to use “queer”, a word which is used routinely in Ireland as a beat to stick LGBTQ people with. I have heard from many of my Irish friends that due to the trauma associated with people using the word queer to bully, harass, threaten and enact physical violence on them, it is impossible for them to ever reclaim it.

Others share this experience, and responded with:

I think a lot of the community find it too confrontational or too political. I remember when Queer Spraoi events were on, people saying they didn’t want to go because the name wasn’t nice.

I have encountered many LGBT people who view “queer” as a very negative word, and I can see why they would feel that way. It was used against us for a very long time. But for me I feel like we have re-appropriated it for ourselves. I guess that is a personal thing. I know I have huge problems with the word Faggot, whereas a lot of LGBTQ people I know use it all the time.

I have frequently come across instances where people feel the word isn’t appropriate to describe them and are quite hostile to its appropriation either as an individual or within the wider framework of the LGBT community.

Since Dublin LGBTQ Pride became a Ltd. non-profit company in 2006, the Q has been there. (I couldn’t find more info on whether it had the Q prior to then, so if anyone reading knows, let me know!) This is hugely positive, as for many members of our community, including the Q gives visibility.

For me, it’s a bit like saying please at the end of a request. I know that ‘LGBT’ is intended to include everyone but it does so rather specifically. Adding the Q, to me, is a bit like saying ‘and everyone else no matter how you identify, come join the party’. It’s polite but I don’t feel excluded if it’s not there.

I know several lesbians and bisexuals who feel that the male influence that is associated with the word gay takes from what they identify with. By adding the letter Q, some of the people who are under the LGBT umberella an optional identity that will allow them to just live their lives in alternative setting that is not solely concerned with the gender that they choose to have sex with.

For something such as pride where we are extending acceptance to all of the community i think the Q is very important because as with everything some people just slip through the cracks and its good to have a safety net so no one is left out.

I think having the Q sends a message that you don’t have to declare, you don’t have to be sure, you don’t have to be definitely/just/only LGBT. Q gives breathing space to people.

It is extremely important to me. Extremely important. Queers are invisible, we have no agency whatsoever and we need to be acknowledged and accepted. I’m tired of having to constantly explain myself and “queer” has excused me from that. For me, it is vital.

Writing this piece, we spoke to a lot of people. Like, a lot. So many more than we thought we would be speaking to.

Not only were there more technicoloursuperqueers than we thought, but every one of them was so open about it, so proud of the Q. And yet, quite a lot of them reported originally feeling negative about the word. In fact, quite a lot of LGBT people seem to associate Queer with being insulted.

Why is that? Why are these fantastic, special, totally unique and proud of it people not all over the place? Well, what I discovered is that they are. Out there, Queering up the mainstream, and the gaystream, and they are doing it without causing much of a fuss at all.

The word Queer has been reclaimed by individuals, what needs to happen now is for it to be reclaimed by the community. You may even identify as Q yourself, but you aren’t sure about it. Maybe you are positive in your identity, who knows? The biggest lesson writing this gave us is that you know what, it doesn’t really matter. We are here, we are Queer, and people are getting used to it.

“Work It” and the need for LGB activism on T issues

tabula rasa — Thu, 12 Jan 2012 09:44:21 +0000

This week, I lost quite a bit of faith in the LGBT student movement. What started off as a link left on a wall of a Facebook group, turned into a week-long debate that has left me somewhat disillusioned and if I’m honest, a little bit heartbroken.

The basic premise of the series is that, due to the recession, two men have to present and pass as women in order to gain employment because ZOMG IT’S A “MANCESSION” LOOK WE’RE SO HILARIOUS. They actually use the term “mancession” and blame the fact that they don’t have jobs on women… In the show, they are told that the pharmaceutical company will only hire women, as the doctors want to “nail” them more. (I really wish I was making this up, believe me.)

On account of how offensive and damaging the show could be to the general public’s perception of trans* people, the Gay & Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation (GLAAD) urged a boycott and took out a full page ad in Daily Variety condemning the show. In a statement, the Acting President of GLAAD Mike Thompson said:

This show could contribute to the high levels of job discrimination that transgender Americans face and will give license for people to mock and ridicule those whose gender expression might not fit with what society considers the norm

and that

The media should use this as an opportunity to address the huge number of inaccurate or offensive images of transgender people in news and entertainment today. [http://www.glaad.org/workit]

This is all the more poignant when you go on to read in the same statement that currently in the US, members of the trans* community can be legally fired in 34 states, that 97% of self-identified transgender people reported being harassed or abused at work and 26% reported losing their jobs simply because they are transgender. In Ireland, things aren’t much better. Research from Mayock et al (2009) found that out of 46 trans* identified respondents, over 80% had been verbally insulted, and over 39% had someone threaten to ‘out’ them. The 2009 NLGF Burning Issues Survey found trans* identified respondents stated ‘Equal rights at work’ as their top issue of concern. Harassment and discrimination both in and outside of the workplace is the simple every-day reality faced by trans* people the world over; yet ABC has chosen to make a complete mockery out of this oppression.

The debate began when someone posted a link to an article condemning Work It, adding a comment saying how offensive the show was. On a page that is full of self-identified LGBT Activists, you would naturally assume that most members of the group would be outraged by the mere existence of such a show. Disappointingly, this was far from the case. The first few comments were people basically saying “Ah sure, stereotypes are hilarious, it’s only a bit of fun, people shouldn’t be so sensitive”. I bit my tongue and waited, as I was curious to see where the conversation would go.

I looked at the thread in disbelief for a couple of hours, as comment after comment defended the show and thought Work It was not offensive to trans* people, because it’s only “two guys pretending to be women”. Some group members trudged up comparisons with films and programmes of eras past, justifying that if something like this was funny before than it is harmless now. Others even implied that Work It might even be a platform from which to inform the public about trans* issues sensitively. I found it interesting that the conversation on this activists’ forum page focused more on a debate over if Work It was indeed offensive, rather than a discussion of how it offends, or the best way for us, as LGBT Activists, to take action.

This image sums up perfectly why we shouldn’t need a group to prove to us why something is offensive or oppresive:

Thankfully, the voice of reason soon appeared in the form of Sinead Dolan (author of this post ). After trying and failing to get the others to understand why this show was dangerous to the trans* cause through a serious of well reasoned posts, she came out with this statement, which I think summed up this issue in a brilliant and succinct manner:

This show is about men actually living their lives as women, which is a totally different thing. They are going to be using the same techniques that trans people spend literally their whole lives trying to perfect, and make them into The Biggest Joke. Imagine if you were trans, and had spent years working on the makeup, and the walk, and the voice, and the way you move, literally every tiny thing your body does is a learned skill, a way to make the world see you as you see yourself. Now imagine that ABC has taken all those tiny things that are so, so important to you, to your actual survival, and is using them as the butt of every joke in one of it’s sitcoms. That’s not only offensive, it’s wildly irresponsible.

And that right there is really the crux of the issue in my opinion. Whether intentionally or not (and that’s really not the point here) ABC has created and written a show that is essentially taking the piss out of some people’s actual lives.

To the people who watch the show who are thinking “ah sure it’s grand, it’s only a bit of fun cos stereotypes are hilarious” – well, they’re not. Being the butt of someone’s jokes is never funny, particularly when it is compounded by oppression and discrimination in a similar vein in
your daily life. And the people who think that it’s all ok because the show is “only” making a mockery of drag queens/cross-dressers, well guess what? IT’S STILL NOT OK! Drag kings and queens, cross-dressers and transvestites, as well as people who identify as transsexual, transgender, genderqueer or any other variety of gender identity or expression, are all part of the trans* umbrella and the wider LGBT rainbow. We are all part of the same community, and no one individual’s reality is less than another.

Last night, I forced myself to watch Work It. Sitting through an episode was like an endurance sport, and I honestly wanted to weep by the end of it. I quickly realised how this programme relies on sexism, racism and homophobia alongside its transphobia in order to get cheap laughs at the expense of those of us with marginalised identities. Less than one minute into it, there was a rape joke. The protagonist of the piece apparently regularly compares a prostate exam to the pinball scene in ‘The Accused’ (which if you haven’t seen it, is one of the most horrific rape scenes I have ever seen in a film) in conversation with his wife regarding medical checks. Stay classy, Work It. After hearing that “joke”, I knew it could only get worse. And it really did. Next we had the friend who was bitter towards women for causing the “mancession”, and later a lovely racist joke with “I’m Puerto Rican, I’d be great at selling drugs”. All the women that work in the office are portrayed as total airheads (obviously, because women working in an office isn’t real work). They also make jokes about everything from sexual harassment to someone being a lesbian…because clearly, as she is a lesbian, one of the protagonists can now feel free to hit on her. UGH. Fucking hell, HOW DID THIS SHOW GET GREENLIT?! It is honestly the most offensive show I have ever seen. And I used to watch Family Guy!! Emphasis on the used to part of that…

I’d love to get a good discussion of this issue going here. It’s a sad fact of the LGBT movement in Ireland that so often we ignore the inequalities faced by T identified people of the acronym. And that’s to say nothing of the invisibility of bisexual people, but that’s a whole other discussion we need to have.

The LGBT movement is never going to progress if we don’t fight for the rights of the entire community. We’re either a community or we’re not, we’re either activists or we’re not. We need to wake up and realise that we can’t *just* fight for the rights of lesbian and gay people, we have to fight for equal rights for all. The roots of homophobia and transphobia are the same, in the end we have a shared experience in the LGBT community of breaking gender role stereotypes. Whether we do this through our gender identity or expression, or through our romantic and sexual relationships, we are all punished by wider society for breaking these norms. We will never eradicate homophobia as long as there is transphobia. After all, it was the trans* members of the LGBT community that kicked off the entire global LGBT rights movement in Stonewall over 40 years ago. Without them, where would we be today?

The last couple of years have seen some great leaps forward for the Irish trans* rights movement, when LGBT NOISE started campaigning on trans* issues. A trans* activist spoke at the March for Marriage, raising awareness about the Gender Recognition legislation, and how trans* people are being excluded from Civil Partnership legislation. It seemed that people were finally recognising that the trans* community has stood in solidarity with LGB efforts in Ireland for ages, and realising that we all need to work together to combat transphobia and homophobia. I was hopeful that the situation was improving, that people were coming on board, educating themselves and properly putting the T in LGBT – but then this discussion happened.

I need your help, and your suggestions. What can we do, as an LGBT community, to address this problem? How can we counter the apparent apathy among so many LGB people towards trans* issues? And, most importantly of all, what can we do to educate people on trans* issues?
For information on being a good trans* ally, please see:
http://web.mit.edu/trans/allies.html
For more information on trans* issues in Ireland, visit:
www.teni.ie
To begin exploring the concept of cisgender privilege and how it operates, check out:
http://takesupspace.wordpress.com/cis-privilege-checklist/

Could the new Miss California be an out lesbian?

Gooner — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 11:00:31 +0000

I have to start this article by saying I’m not a fan of beauty contests.

I don’t think they have any real interest in what actually makes a woman beautiful, but rather ask women to lower themselves to talking about world peace and batting their eyelids. Having attended and even served as a judge at Irish lesbian beauty contests I’m proud to say in those instances the opposite was true. We had such a laugh and all the women were winners regardless of shape, size or any other superficial crap.

OK, now I have that off my chest, on with the show.

Mollie Thomas and Jenelle Hutcherson are going to compete in this years Miss California pageant, and yes, they are both out lesbians.

Firstly, lets look at Mollie Thomas. At just 19 years old you have to take your hat off to this young woman. Raised by an American mother and a French father, Mollie says she always knew who she was and never really had to come out as her family always knew. She has travelled the world living in Switzerland, and even as far as Thailand where she worked on an elephant reserve (how gay is that?), as well as Mongolia where she volunteered at a school for children with disabilities. Mollie is currently studying at UCLA and hopes to go on and study women’s studies and politics. (cough)

When asked if she has any fears for the big day she simply responds:

I don’t have any. Initially I wondered if the organizers and other contestants would accept or ostracize me, but I’ve been fine

I don’t know about you but I’d be in bits – those heels! Having been a trained dancer for many years I’m sure she’ll manage.

Our next contestant is Jenelle Hutcherson from Long Beach, she’s 26 years old. I don’t feel like such a perv talking about her as a beauty queen! Jenelle says:

That Miss California crown would sure look nice atop the ‘hawk

I’m sure it would too – I’d love to see them trying to get it to stay on there. You may recognise her: Hutcherson recently competed in the Miss Long Beach pageant, where she made it to the finals, wearing a tux for the evening gown section and ditching the bikini for shorts and a tank top.

So what do you think of these young trail blazers? Are they lighting the way for others and tearing down stereotypes or are they lowering themselves to the level of a meat market? Let us know in the comments!

Why are all ads for “feminine hygiene products” awful?

CanuckJacq — Wed, 04 Jan 2012 06:37:25 +0000

This keeps happening. A bunch of overpaid jerks in suits decide that an ad is hilarious and release it, thinking they’re awesome. And then the world goes “uh, wut?” and the ad is pulled with apologies and a final phrase about the handful of people who didn’t find it offensive.

The most recent ad was blasted on several counts of asshattery. Complaints ranged from the outrageously transphobic content to the implication of menstruation being somehow the indicator of femininity. Women the world over who run their pill months together to avoid it, those who don’t have, or never had a uterus, those who do not menstruate for other reasons, all felt like they were somehow being called less than “girl”. Because, as we are told in the ad, “Libra gets girls.” (but only girls who need tampons).

www.youtube.com/watch?v=6lReX1dAUAE

And there was this one, in July, where a company selling unnecessary products that potentially cause problems and don’t fix anything that needs fixing (yup, douches!) attempted to sell female empowerment and also a bunch of racist vagina-hand ads. They’re unreal.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=433UqE_9qbg

I know that our own Bear once lamented the lack of the word “vagina” in these ads, but I’m not entirely sure this is what she had in mind.

This isn’t an ad, but it’s a demonstration video for the Moon Cup. They don’t really do television ads (which may be why they only have about a 1% market share). They do, however, use the word “vagina” in a way that isn’t racially or otherwise offensive.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=E4FV0B_msBQ

So this leaves us with the final question: is there a way to advertise these products that isn’t offensive? And if so, why do they keep missing the mark?

I, like, like that you like this: Your fave Facebook links of 2011

click here — Sat, 31 Dec 2011 08:00:16 +0000

Here are some of the most popular non-Gaelick links from our Facebook page this year. Lovely!

16. Women have US Navy’s first same-sex homecoming kiss

They’re gorgeous, they’re confident, and they wear amazing uniforms. They’re Officers Gaeta and Snell, and they were the first same-sex couple to have the Navy’s traditional “homecoming kiss” since the repeal of DADT. They’re the new this.

As well as the Beeb’s story, there was the video, as well as the original story and pics from The Virginian-Pilot.

Petty Officer 2nd Class Marissa Gaeta (23) and her girlfriend of two years, Petty Officer 3rd Class Citlalic Snell (22) share the traditional dockside “first kiss” since the US ended a ban on gays in the army.

Aren’t they only gorgeous?

15. Amber Heard: Staying in the closet in Hollywood is a horribly detrimental lie

We do love Amber Heard here on Gaelick. (At least, some of us are obsessed.)

14. Billie Jean King and Martina Navrátilová respond to Margaret Court’s homophobic rant

13. Gay couple being told they will become grandparents

12. In memory of Sonia Pierre, human rights defender

Sonia Pierre was a prominent human rights defender of African descent from the Dominican Republic, who founded and served as Director of the Movement of Dominican-Haitian Women (MUDHA). Sonia passed away at the age of 48 from a heart attack on 4 December.

11. Same-sex partnerships from abroad to be recognised in Ireland

This brings to 32 the number of jurisdictions in respect of which Ireland recognises same-sex relationships as civil partnerships, as of 25th December 2011. Of these 32 jurisdictions, 18 provide for marriage equality.

This means that (despite The Journal‘s headline) if you are validly married under the law in any of these 18 places, your marriage will be downgraded by Ireland to a civil partnership.

Happy Christmas.

10. Ellen and Sofia Vergara shoot a CoverGirl ad

9. “What’s goin’ on”

8. “Sarah Silverman’s It Gets Better message is to adults: antigay adults. Blunt and to the point.”

7. Gay Agenda planning

From the Recruitment Committee: We are facing an uphill battle. The world’s population has reached 7 billion. This means that we will have to work hard to not only maintain our strength at 10 percent of the population, but each current member will have to recruit at least three new members to reach our target goal of 11 percent in 2012. (Remember our long-range plan: 16 percent by ’16!)

6. Recently, a Michigan mayor wrote on Facebook, “I think I am going to throw away my I Love New York carrying bag now that queers can get married there”. This woman stood up with her wife and her two children and spoke directly to the mayor. She was magnificent.

5. Margaret Cho feat. Tegan & Sara: “Intervention”

4. The primary reason why cats will never develop a system of organised religion

3. Yoga Cat

2. Ah, the Burke family, of ..somewhere in Mayo

1. From Jack to Jackie: “Why I had a sex change at 16”

“I do feel guilty sometimes,” says Jackie “because my mum’s gone through all this with me and I know people judge her and think she’s done the wrong thing. But I just couldn’t wait for it to happen. She and my dad have been brilliant. When they both came to terms with the situation they helped me so much. I owe them my life.”

Gaelick’s top posts of 2011

click here — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 16:41:30 +0000

These are the top 10 articles on Gaelick that you just couldn’t keep your peepers off this year. Is your favourite here, or have we left out something very important? Read! Share! Comment!

10. A is for Autostraddle

Before our super fabulous give-away, we brought you a taste of the gorgeous women of the Autostraddle 2012 calender, which is produced, photographed, make-upped, hair-did and modelled by and for lady-lovin’ ladies.

We can fully understand why this one is popular with you, dear readers..

9. Bitches Be Hazy

Best club night of 2011? It’s certainly a contender: I predict queues out the door, around the corner and down the streets in 2012.

Keep an eye out for the next one in January!

8. Preview: X Factor final

Admit it! You were all hooked this year: At least there were plenty of you were eagerly anticipating who among Marcus, Amelia and Little Mix would be victorious in telly’s greatest hype mach- er, I mean, talent competition.

Are we pleased with the outcome?

7. Glee: Santana vs It Gets Better

Glee stirred up a lot of passions this year, especially when it came to Santana’s storyline, and the (lack of) on-screen lesbian action.

Here, CanuckJacq took a look at the brouhaha in the context of the It Gets Better campaign.

6. Hillary Clinton’s speech to the UN

Shortly before Human Rights Day, and Belong To’s amazing achievement at the UN in Brazil, Hillary Clinton delivered a historic speech to the UN in Geneva.

My advice was (and still is) to set aside 30 minutes to sit down and fully listen to the whole speech.

5. Filming Lip Service Season 2

Seems no-one can wait for the return of Lip Service to our screens, as our article published back in May is still one of our most read articles on the site. We last heard that the show was due to go on air “in early 2012″.

Ruta Gedmintas has been told it’ll air in the springtime – so thinks “Marchish?” Let’s hope they don’t delay!

4. Australian marriage ad is internet hit

A recent ad for Marriage Equality, this time from the land of Oz, became a hit online and on our blog.

It carries a simple but powerful message.

3. The lezolution is not being televised

Back to Glee, and of all the articles written about the programme’s treatment of its lesbian characters (we had at least three), this one was the most read of all.

One of our new writers, Sinéad, took a sideways look at lesbians on Glee, and on telly in general, and she was not a happy chappy!

2. To watch out for in 2011: Film

What hot girl on girl action came to the big screens in 2011? Here’s a list of queer-tastic films we predicted at the start of the year.

It seems we were a bit ahead of ourselves in naming some of these titles: a few are now no longer listed on IMDb (or anywhere in one case!), while some others are listed as “in production” with release dates in the new year or in 2013.

1. FAIL: RTÉ Sportsperson of the Year Awards

Just before Christmas, I had a big rant about the fact that, despite being shortlisted for the Irish Sports Council/RTÉ Sports Person of the Year Awards in 2011, 2010, 2008, 2007, Katie Taylor was once again overlooked.

The lovely folks at Broadsheet picked up on the tirade, and the next day I spoke to Phantom FM’s Feedback to explain myself on air. Rarrrgh!

New year, new you

HAL — Thu, 29 Dec 2011 16:34:27 +0000

Here we are on the crux of 2012, a whole year is over since you made all of those New Year’s resolutions and what do you have to show for it? New book written? Two stone lost? Marathon run? World peace secured?

According to a SlideShare survey, the top resolutions for 2012 are:

Be financially-savvy
Read at least one book per month
Eat properly
Get enough sleep
Keep a journal of awesome moments

Not that I’m psychic or anything, but really, how many of these are sustainable?

Don’t get me wrong, I know one bloke who swore to lose 6 stone and began to do so one New Year’s eve, plus, for all of those who fail, there are many who actually stop smoking.

Fail. That’s my problem with this tradition, just one slip and you’re setting yourself up for guilt which will set you back in your quest for awesome moments to journal.

If you truly want to change something, have a plan and implement it, don’t decide over a glass of bubbly.

Note: There is a poll embedded within this post, please visit the site to participate in this post's poll.

Christmas Day open thread

click here — Sun, 25 Dec 2011 15:21:05 +0000

How are things going for you, then?

Are you already feeling a hangover building? Have the meat sweats started? Have you had more turkey today than you’ve ever had in your entire life? Did Santa arrive at your house? How many times have you watched Harry Potter? How many times have you watched The Wizard of Oz? Do you think you might have a mental breakdown if you hear one more Christmas song? How many times have you cried into your Christmas pudding over the departure of Anne Doyle? Which relation is snoring on the couch? Which relation is passed out under the tree? Which (obviously clueless) relation keeps asking you if you’ve a nice young man yet?

Share your highs and lows in the comments!

In the meantime, here are this season’s hottest lesbians. Enjoy.

Petty Officer 2nd Class Marissa Gaeta (23) and her girlfriend of two years, Petty Officer 3rd Class Citlalic Snell (22) were the first same-sex couple to share the traditional dockside “first kiss” since the US ended a ban on gays in the army.

And when you’ve finished watching those adorable women, here’s a list of some of the most important things to see today on the gogglebox:

3:40pm: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (RTÉ One)
8:50pm: ’s last broadcast (RTÉ One)

9pm: Downton Abbey (UTV)
10pm: Absolutely Fabulous (BBC One)

How are you coping with Christmas Eve? (Open thread)

click here — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 18:17:41 +0000

It’s nearly that time, leslies and gentlefolk! The moment we all get to celebrate the birth of the almighty creator in human form and saviour of mankind, by gorging ourselves into a food coma and drinking ourselves into A&E.

God bless us, every one.

So, tell us: How are the preparations going for you? Have you all the presents bought? The food ready to go? The massive arguments primed and ready? The alka seltzer on standby? Are your nerves just about to snap? Stacks of mince pies waiting to be gobbled?

And most importantly, what are you hoping for this Christmas?

Gather ‘round, get it off your chest and tell all in the comments!

In the bleak midwinter…

click here — Thu, 22 Dec 2011 09:06:12 +0000

Ah, the winter solstice. It could be the ultimate hipster holiday: “Yeah, well I celebrated Christmas before Jesus was even born, y’know roysh?”

Literally tens of people turned out yesterday morning (okay, hundreds, then) to mark the shortest day of the year at Newgrange – an event ruined by clouds obscuring the sun (hopefully not a bad omen; things were a bit better in previous years).

Seemingly, however, the winter solstice this year officially falls today, the 22nd December.

And so, to help you through the shortest day of the year – and, more importantly, to welcome the days getting longer (in your face, bleak midwinter!) – here are some sun-themed songs to get you dancing naked around the nearest bonfire and stone circle.

Enjoy, you dirty, hell-bound heathens!

No related posts.

A Suppa Earl Gae

Webmaster — Wed, 21 Dec 2011 10:21:55 +0000

Morning Gaelickers! 4 days to go and most of the shopping done! The poor missus has come down a bad head cold though and being a tad difficult patient. Sometimes people don’t understand you have their best interests at heart! Right, news I hear you cry!

Gay Couple Receives Obama Congratulations on Wedding

A gay couple in Brooklyn, N.Y., were surprised to find a letter in their mailbox six months after their wedding congratulating them, but they were more surprised to find it was from the commander-in-chief.

Staying with the wedding theme , Ariff Alfian Rosli, a Malaysian national who has been studying in Ireland for eight years, is under fire from his home country after photos were published showing his wedding to his civil partner (identified only as Jonathan) at Dublin City Hall, the Irish Times reports:

Another user, @shkyla, wrote: “Looking at those wedding pictures of Ariff Alfian, makes me want to vomit. Blergh, disgusting.”

Looking at the pictures gave me a smile Differnt strokes I suppose.

Over to http://www.kcrg.com who report that Iowan’s Video Most-Watched Political Video of 2011

NEW YORK (AP) – A young Iowa man’s plea for marriage rights for his lesbian parents drew 18.3 million views to become the most-watched political video of the year, according to YouTube’s ranking of viral political videos.

President Barack Obama’s speech to the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in April was second on the list, while Republican presidential candidate Rick Perry’s ad criticizing gays in the military placed third and was the year’s most-watched campaign commercial.

Lesbian Couple Wisely Sues B&B Owner For Refusing To Give Them A Room

In 2007, a California couple’s Hawaiian vacation got off to a bad start when they tried to book a room at the Aloha Bed & Breakfast in Honolulu and were turned away because they’re
lesbians.

Gay couple win custody of five year old twin girls

The Star Ledger reports that Donald Robinson Hollingsworth and Sean Hollingsworth won a long fought legal battle over the custody of their daughters against Donald’s sister, Angela
Robinson.

French Mag Taps DSK’s Wife as “Woman of the Year”

Perhaps more noteworthy was the fact that women voters were the ones who ultimately handed the title to Sinclair, picking the wealthy art heiress over Lagarde by a 10-percent margin, 31 to 21. Male respondents, meanwhile, opted for the former French finance minister over Sinclair 28 percent to 19 percent, the New York Post points out.

Interesting article over at the Slate Should Children’s Toys Be Separated by Gender?

Finally this gave me a giggle!

until next time , have a fantabulous Christmas and New Year

Secrets Ireland competition winner!

click here — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 08:30:26 +0000

Congratulations to the winner of our Secrets Ireland hamper!

We had so many entries for this prize (eh? eh? *nudge-nudge*), so thank you to everyone who emailed us to put their name into the hat!

Our lucky winner, Sinead from Meath, has won for herself a fabulous hamper of goodies, which has been put together exclusively for Gaelick and is worth over €80! The prize includes:

A Crystal Clear Vibrator (Day 5)
ID Moments lube
A naughty buke
An Amore couples kit
And – the classic – a Jessica Rabbit Original (Day 12).

I have the feeling someone will have a very merry Christmas indeed. Well done, lady!

This competition is now closed. Keep an eye out for future Gaelick giveaways, folks!

About Secrets Ireland:

Secrets Ireland started almost by accident.

You’re 27, the recession hits and you lose your job. What do you do? Sit around in your PJs all day, eating cereal from the box and watching Ellen in the afternoons? After all there are no jobs out there. Not if you’re Grace O’Sullivan you don’t. If you’re Grace, you get up of your bum cheeks and think, “What shall I do? I know! I’ll sell sex toys!”. Ok, it didn’t actually happen that way, as she told us.

I lost my job in December and with the skill that I have in web, marketing, publishig and design I decided to get selling online. To be perfectly honest, it was a big accident. I was trying to set up a horse riding store, selling all kinds of equestrian goods.

While I was searching for suppliers I, somehow, came across an adult toys wholesale company. I called them and their terms seemed to be appropriate for how I wanted to run a business. After a small pang of guilt I decided that I would give it a go and came up with Secrets Ireland.

From riding to roiding, it’s not that big a jump after all.

Baking mad

HAL — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 11:56:41 +0000

I’m becoming more stereo-typically lesbian as I get older. I’ve recently started to bake, something I loved to do as a kid, but haven’t done in yonks. I even tried baking bread. Let’s not dwell on the results. Now that Christmas is coming and I’m intending on fattening the family, I asked what they wanted me to bake for Christmas. Banoffi, cupcakes and trifle without the fruit are what’s on order.

I have never made any of them, so here I am online looking for recipes and there are so many of them that I’m starting to go cross-eyed. I need advice people. What are the best websites? Are cupcakes just a fancy name for fairy cakes? Is it possible to make trifle without the fruit?

So far, the sites I’ve liked most have been AllRecipes and SimplyRecipies as well as the Odlums website which is quite good. The problem is that some are good for one thing, but not for another. Help me out here people, are there any nooks on the interweb that I’m missing?

Even better, do you have fool-proof recipes for any of the above? Emphasis on the fool.

Next week – making your own herbal tea out of organically knitted socks.

The 12 Toys of Christmas: Day 9

WIN! A Secrets Ireland hamper

click here — Wed, 14 Dec 2011 08:30:56 +0000

Lesbians! Bifolk! Transpals!

Did you enjoy our 12 Toys of Christmas series? Did you see things you liked? Would you like a free something to jingle your bells and tousle your tinsel?

Well, don ye now your gay apparrel! Because thanks to Secrets Ireland we have an amazing hamper to give away to one lucky reader!

Read on, naughty ones, read on . . .

What’s the prize?

Secrets Ireland has put together a fabulous hamper of goodies exclusively for Gaelick, worth over €80!

One lucky winner will receive a collection of delights, including:

A Crystal Clear Vibrator (Day 5)
ID Moments lube
A naughty buke
An Amore couples kit
And – the classic – a Jessica Rabbit Original (Day 12).

* fans self *

How to enter!

We know some of you might be shy about posting in the comments, so: to enter, all you have to do is email gimme@gaelick.com with “Gaelick Secrets Ireland hamper” in the subject and including your name and postal address.

(Your information will be kept private, and will not be used for any other purpose. The hamper will be sent in discrete packaging, with no logos or company names. This competition is open to residents of Ireland only.)

The competition runs from 8:30am today (14th December) and will end at 4pm on Sunday (18th December).

After that, we’ll pull the winner’s name out of the hat.

Simples!

(P.S. – If you email more than once, we’ll just count one entry. So no messin’.)

About Secrets Ireland:

Secrets Ireland started almost by accident.

“I lost my job in December and with the skill that I have in web, marketing, publishig and design I decided to get selling online. To be perfectly honest, it was a big accident. I was trying to set up a horse riding store, selling all kinds of equestrian goods.

“While I was searching for suppliers I, somehow, came across an adult toys wholesale company. I called them and their terms seemed to be appropriate for how I wanted to run a business. After a small pang of guilt I decided that I would give it a go and came up with Secrets Ireland.”

From riding to roiding, it’s not that big a jump after all.

The 12 Toys of Christmas: Day 11

click here — Sun, 11 Dec 2011 09:00:13 +0000

In this, the penultimate post in our 12 Toys of Christmas series – brought to you by Gaelick and Secrets Ireland – we have yet another festive fave from the Secrets Ireland toy store, to make you ooh! and ahh!.

(Depending on your employer, these may be NSFW!)

Day 11: Loving Joy Bully Boy

This will always be popular whether you are really into its shape or not. An affordable and fun vibrator, it’s designed to ‘fit’ women.

It has a bulbous base that’s spiked with gentle latex nodules to tease and tantalise your clitoris with every thrust.

It also features a twist and go multi-speed control which makes controlling the speed of vibration and your destination easy!

Get yer jolly under the holly.

The 12 Toys of Christmas: Day 10

click here — Sat, 10 Dec 2011 09:00:34 +0000

Our 12 Toys of Christmas – brought to you by Gaelick and Secrets Ireland – has another festive fave from the Secrets Ireland toy store, to make you ooh! and ahh!

We’re on to day 10, and it’s a good ‘un that’s guaranteed to get you, er, leaping!

(Depending on your employer, these may be NSFW!)

Day 10: Jessica Rabbit Ultimate

The Jessica Rabbit Ultimate vibrator has all your needs sorted. This powerful orgasm machine will blow your mind.

It really is the ultimate rabbit for simultaneous vaginal and clitoral stimulation and with 36 stimulation combinations you’re sure to find one to knock your socks off!

The reversible rotating shaft has six speeds to please with two rows of massaging metal beads.

The bunny ears also have six vibrating functions.

Use the soft touch control pad to find the combination to suit you.

It’s waterproof, too, for bathroom and bedtime fun!

* fumbles for debit card *

The 12 Toys of Christmas: Day 9

click here — Fri, 09 Dec 2011 08:30:32 +0000

“Nine ladies dancing”. Is that what they’re calling it these days?

Whatever you’re into, day nine of our 12 Toys of Christmas – brought to you by Gaelick and Secrets Ireland – has the following festive fave from the Secrets Ireland toy store, to make you ooh! and ahh!.

Today we bring you a certain kind of magic…

(Depending on your employer, these may be NSFW!)

Day 9: Fairy Mini Mini Massage Wand

Based on the Hitachi Magic Wand (and as seen in naughty TV), the Fairy has fast become one of Secrets Ireland’s best sellers.

It features the choice of using a battery pack for freedom of use or an adapter for higher mains power relief.

It’s compact shape means it fits neatly in the palm of the hand and the easy scroll dial means that you can experience varied power of vibrations.

The soft but firm flexi head is certain to ease any frustrations you have!

Comes with a battery pack and plug add on so you can make this product mains powered and more powerful.

Sounds fairy impressive.