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http://borderhouseblog.com/?p=1067

[This post is off-topic, as it doesn't involve games, social media, or virtual worlds.  However, I have yet to see this reported on the web - so I feel compelled to bring attention to it.]

On my morning drive yesterday, I heard a radio commercial for Taco Bell that aggravated the heck out of me.  I have Googled to the best of my ability and I am unable to find any information on this commercial, such as a transcript, to share with you all.  The general gist of the commercial is as follows:

Some male tells a female (presumably his wife or girlfriend) that it’s a surprise that there is nacho cheese in a layer of the Taco Bell burrito.  The woman responds with “Well, I have a surprise for you.  I was born male, my name was Claudio” and her voice is lowered several octaves.  After which, the male says “Ew.”

This is yet another example of media and marketing finding it “funny” that someone has transitioned from male to female.  Using someone’s transgender status as being a punchline, just a funny joke to sell products.  Couple that with the male responding “ew” to her coming out as transgender, which is a completely hurtful response to someone who discloses their biological sex to someone.  These aren’t jokes to people like Jorge Steven Lopez Mercado, who was decapitated, dismembered and burned for being a MTF transsexual.  How about Gwen Araujo or Angie Zapata?  Someone said “ew” to them and then decided to kill them because their gender identity threatened the offender’s sexual orientation and comfort in society.

How much longer are we going to consider people who are transitioning as taboo and gross?  When will media realize that their normalization of transphobia makes the opinion even more widespread that transsexuals are disgusting and misleading people instead of human beings?

To contact Taco Bell about this and tell them why this is WRONG and HATEFUL:
Contact Website
Yum! Brands Media Inquiries – 502-874-8200

Off-Topic: Taco Bell’s Transphobic Radio Commercial is a post from: The Border House

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Hi everyone! Just had a quick question for you. I sent in my red Elite 360 (it's the Resident Evil special edition) for repair right before Christmas. The disc drive wouldn't recognize games or DVD's anymore. When you tried to play anything, it'd automatically switch to that damn "Open Tray" message. So I packed it up, sent it off, and just got it back today.

Today? Really? That quick? I mean, thanks. . .but I guess I thought it would take longer or something.

Have any of you dealt with Microsoft's repair center? How did your console operate afterwards?

This is my 9th Xbox, and as the red Elite's are in very limited supply, I'd like to keep it for as long as possible. I'm too nervous to open the box. Haha. :(

Any advice? Thanks in advance!

Okay, so for the first time ever, a UMD has broken on me. It's not a game I totally love (a review copy I got), but it is fun and I was disappointed to see it break. You know that metal disc that's in the middle of a UMD? Well, this game's metal disc is slipping and sliding all over the place.

I did manage to get the UMD to play successfully in my PSP once since I discovered the problem, and played the game for 15-30 min. But yesterday I tried it again and, when it was still in the PSP home screen, the UMD didn't sound like it was spinning properly so I took it out.

Any tips or hints on repairing it? There's an independent game store about an hour away that I visit once a every other month or so, and they might be able to fix it. But I figured I'd check here in case there's a simple, free solution.

(I also think I've pin pointed the cause - a single UMD case that has a hard plastic button that probably poked up into it and pushed it out of place or something. I threw out the four other cases I had to prevent this from happening to another game that I do love.)

I hate to bother everyone to ask for suggestions, but I am at a loss. I don't even know if anyone will have any suggestions, but I hope so!

I work at a learning clinic where I tutor kids, and in the early session I have a group of kids in the 3rd-5th grade range (I think that's 9-12ish range age wise?). What I'm looking for are some computer games that are age appropriate for that group. It would be a huge plus if it was fun to play for myself, too. :P (I get addicted to stuff like Snood and Sally's Spa xD) It doesn't have to be educational, though that is a plus. We don't have a wireless connection at the clinic (I'd be bringing my other laptop for them to play on), so I can't play on any websites or anything that requires I be online.

Any suggestions are welcome! Thanks~

Going through my play through as a female City Elf and I have a question...again. ( Spoiler )

January 6th

I was away for nearly two weeks over the holidays, and although we got back on Sunday night I'd been too busy with work since then to even leave the apartment. But today I had errands to run downtown, and man -- I've lived in this city for over ten years and by all rights should be jaded by now, but every time I go out I'm reminded of how much I love beng here. I walked along Broadway toward Houston and watched the Chrysler building shine against a slate-blue sky, and I wondered how anyone could stop looking up, no matter how long they've been here.

Fic! Promiseverse domestic fic like thing. I NOW WANT TO WRITE SOMETHING ELSE BUT THEY WON'T GET OUT OF MY HEAAAAAAAD.

Okay real point of this post.

Spoony has been talking about wrestling some. And I feel totally ashamed that I know a lot of what he's talking about. Because back a looooong time ago, I used to love this show so much. Seriously. I would watch it every single week. But for pretty much only one reason: The Rock.

Of the handful of movies I've seen in theaters*, I saw his first, simply because I wanted to see him.

And about the time they started making The Rock someone to boo at I stopped watching. HAHA OH ME.

ETA: Oh god I remember when it was changing to the WWE. It's still WWF in my head.

ALSO XFL. GOD THAT WAS A TOTAL FAILURE OR WHAT.

ETA 2: I remember when I first heard wrestling was fake. Dirty dirty lies. LIES.

*someday I will make a list of all the movies I've seen in theater. It will be no more than twenty, I guarantee you. Though I've been wanting to watch more. Learning about directing from various sources has actually improved my writing a lot.

I've been tempted to buy an Xbox 360 for some time now but I'm a little bit worried because many people have told me the Xbox 360 has a lot of problems and although I really want to get my hands on one, I don't think shelling out $449 for one would be worth it if it's just going to break.

How often do problems occur with the Xbox 360? I've heard of discs being scratched, overheating, red ring of death etc. Is there anything I could do to ensure that these problems don't happen? I've heard NOT having Xbox 360 standing vertical will stop discs being scratched - is that true?

Has anyone had problems with their Xbox 360? And do you think it would be worth buying one? (I'd be getting an Elite and the price for one at the moment is $449 although I might wait and see if the price drops).

I already have a PS3 and a Wii. I want the Xbox 360 because there are a few exclusive games I want to play (mainly Fable 2). I was told that I could get a gaming PC instead of an Xbox 360 because most games are on PC as well but that it would cost around $1500 for a decent one... and I don't want to pay that much :(