Femonomics reads the internet: racism, salt, and FGM

Quick hits because I have to go to sleep.

Ohmygod, areyouserious:  School asks artists to "lighten" Latino and Black students' faces in mural, in response to racist complaints and drive-by slurs. 

Bill Easterly notes we don't just produce oil spills, we export them, too.

Many people think the ruling on Miranda Rights saying you have to explicitly invoke your right to remain silent removes protections for people accused of crimes.  I understand why they would say that, but it also seems like it provides an important protection, by making it clear statute that if you say you would like to no longer be questioned, and this is not respected, what you say cannot be used against you.  My legal knowledge comes from episodes of Law and Order, so does anyone know if that was always the case before?  It seems to me not.  This allows suspects to halt questioning both when they ask for a lawyer and when they express their wish to no longer be questioned (and it seems the interpretation could be quite broad, such as someone saying "Leave me alone.  I'm not saying anything.")  More info here.

This is NOT ok.  Helen Thomas says Jews in the occupied territories (or possibly all of Israel?) should go back "home" to Poland and Germany.

Did you read this piece on salt?  Like MSG before it, food manufacturers love to put stuff in our food to cover up how very un-food-like a lot of it is.  I think that if the Cheez-Its don't taste good without three different salt components, maybe you need a new recipe?

The American Academy of Pediatrics proposed, and then shortly reversed their decision, that doctors could offer a "clitoral nick" to persuade parents from going through with full-fledged Female Genital Mutilation.  People are making comparisons to circumcision, and saying if that's ok, this should be, too.  Personally, I think doctors should probably stick with that whole "First, do no harm" thing, but I do think there is somewhat of a conflict here between being anti-cultural imperialism and being pro woman, so I am somewhat more torn than some other feminist bloggers on this issue.