TOXIC MASCULINITY: “Overcompensation Nation: It’s Time to Admit That Toxic Masculinity Drives Gun Violence” / Salon / Amanda Marcotte ☮

In the wake of the horrific shooting in Orlando that left 50 dead, a political struggle is forming on whether to define this act as an anti-gay crime or an act of radical Islamic terrorism.

The answer, it’s quickly starting to seem, is both of these, and more. A picture is quickly starting to form of who Omar Mateen, the shooter, was. His ex-wife describes a man who was controlling and abusiveA colleague says he was always using racial and sexual slurs and “talked about killing people all the time.” Both his ex-wife and his father describe him as homophobic, with his father saying he spun into a rage at the sight of two men kissing. He was clearly fond of guns, having not one, but two concealed carry licenses. He worked at a security firm, a career that can be attractive to men with dominance and control issues. He was investigated by the FBI in 2013 for making threats to a coworker.

There is a common theme here: Toxic masculinity.

Continue reading . . .

h/t: Alternet

POLITICAL COMMENTARY: “Presidential Candidates React to the Orlando Shooting” / RT America / Anya Parampil ☮

The candidates were quick to the react the Orlando shooting on social media, and quick to politicize it. Both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump also gave speeches on the Orlando tragedy. Clinton opened her speech by saying “Today is not a day for politics,” but then proceeded to take several indirect shots at Donald Trump. RT America’s Lindsay France joins Anya Parampil to discuss the presidential candidates’ reactions to the shooting. Then, Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein tells Anya Parampil about her reaction to the Orlando shooting and expresses her sadness that “LGBTQ community was specifically targeted on Pride Week” in this latest attack.

POLITICAL INTERVIEW: “Michael Moore: Trump is Like the Sound of Dying Dinosaurs” / Owen Jones☮

With the release of his new documentary, ‘Where to Invade Next’, director Michael Moore tells me that a vote for Brexit would be like asking for relegation from the Premier League. We also chatted about Donald Trump’s chances of becoming the next American President, whether Bernie Sanders should carry on fighting Hillary Clinton and why Moore believes Tony Blair is more responsible for the Iraq war than George W. Bush.