Just Don't Get Me Started

5. Misogyny in Sci-Fi

The year is ____. Artificial intelligence looks no different to humans, and travelling to space is easy.

One thing that hasn’t changed?

Misogyny.

*Trigger warning, this episode discusses media portrayal of violence against women, including sexual violence and assault*

Whether you’re looking at sci-fi books or their TV/film counterparts, the violence against women runs rampant. From the prevailing theme of women being primarily sex workers, or sexual assault being so ingrained into the narrative- it’s impossible to escape.

Those who oppose this concept claim that it’s simply a ‘realistic portrayal’, even though cars are flying and people can switch bodies at will. The portrayals of violence against women are not only excessive and gratuitous, but usually presented as erotic.

I elected to invite my sister, Bethany, onto the podcast, as a long-time sci-fi fan. Unlike me, Bethany actually knows her shit when it comes to the book versions of some of the TV shows mentioned.

 

Be patient with us as we dissect just how deep the misogyny runs in the genre.

Also discussed:

• Misogyny in films such as Blade Runner, Blade Runner 2049 and Star Wars
• The book/tv differences in Altered Carbon
• How Battlestar Galactica is a prime example of the ‘it’s not violence against women if they aren’t real women’ argument
• The 100 as an example of a TV show that is primarily matriarchal
• Why The Expanse is the best sci-fi show out there

 

Please don’t judge us too harshly for not going into Star Trek, as we’re not actually in a reality where we have eternal life, which is the only way we’d have time to dissect all versions of Star Trek.

 

Lucky you, you’ve landed on Just Don’t Get Me Started, the podcast that is taking on society one rant at a time.

Laugh at or with host, Grace Hall, as she attempts to battle through Salford’s intense background noise, her own procrastination and her tendency to pick up new hobbies and drop them immediately to entertain you (a little).

Just Don’t Get Me Started is sometimes informed, always humorous, and is centred around bringing entertainment through topics that matter.

If you want to receive a very loving message to your inbox, please do forward the podcast on social media, subscribe on whichever platform it is you love to listen on or just shout from the rooftops about it, because your neighbours should be as annoyed with you as you are with them.

 

Harass me on social media:

My Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grace_r_hall/

Just Don’t Get Me Started’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justdontgetmestarted/

My LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grace-r-hall/

 

Intro and outro music:

Hall of the Mountain King Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 2.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

4. PRIDE

Is that Chaka Khan playing in the background?

Pride month this year has been markedly different from other years, with good reason. The BLM protests and movement continues to shine a light on the oppression dealt upon entire communities, including the black LGBT community.

However, today I’m talking about what ‘pride’ means to me, namely, why ‘straight pride’ conversations enrage me, why pride is necessary and how pride events have adapted with time.

Also ranted about:

• My position on the topic as a bisexual, cisgender woman
• How different cities either celebrate or commemorate pride, and why it can be important to emphasise commemoration
• Why pride is necessary, including a brief discussion of the legislative and societal issues that still plague the LGBT community
• How everyone will experience and view pride differently due to their own acceptance and experience of their sexuality
• Why those advocating for a ‘straight pride’ lack any fucking common sense

 

Great resources:

Stonewall UK’s Resources page: https://www.stonewall.org.uk/best-practice-toolkits-and-resources-0

Akt, an organisation helping LGBTQ+ people between 16-25 who are currently in hostile living environments or experiencing homelessness: https://www.akt.org.uk/

Rainbow Mind (Salford) for mental health assistance: https://www.mindinsalford.org.uk/rainbow-mind-lgbtqi-project/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIzfLWxaea6gIVGIGyCh3uhgwrEAAYAiAAEgIRHfD_BwE

 

Lucky you, you’ve landed on Just Don’t Get Me Started, the podcast that is taking on society one rant at a time.

Laugh at or with host, Grace Hall, as she attempts to battle through Salford’s intense background noise, her own procrastination and her tendency to pick up new hobbies and drop them immediately to entertain you (a little).

Just Don’t Get Me Started is sometimes informed, always humorous, and is centred around bringing entertainment through topics that matter.

If you want to receive a very loving message to your inbox, please do forward the podcast on social media, subscribe on whichever platform it is you love to listen on or just shout from the rooftops about it, because your neighbours should be as annoyed with you as you are with them.

 

Harass me on social media:

My Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grace_r_hall/

Just Don’t Get Me Started’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justdontgetmestarted/

My LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grace-r-hall/

 

Intro and outro music:

Hall of the Mountain King Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 2.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

3. Post-Lockdown Anxiety

As announcements around the easing of lockdown become imminent, the dread around returning to ‘normalcy’ does as well. 

Post-lockdown anxiety has become a reality for a lot of people, with nightmares about stepping foot on public transport in the near future becoming rampant and hazmat suits looking more desirable by the second. 

Whether you’re concerned about returning to an office, or worried about stepping foot inside a shop or restaurant, you’re not alone in feeling anxiety around lockdown restrictions being lifted. 

Also discussed in this episode:

• The trials and tribulations of ever stepping foot on public transport again
• How office spaces are hardly going to be viewed confidently considering the usual state of shared work-spaces
• Taking small steps to decrease your anxiety around lockdown being lifted
• How the government’s insistence for several years that we all take public transport is now biting them in the ass
• Sharing your concerns with others

 

Lucky you, you’ve landed on Just Don’t Get Me Started, the podcast that is taking on society one rant at a time.

Laugh at or with host, Grace Hall, as she attempts to battle through Salford’s intense background noise, her own procrastination and her tendency to pick up new hobbies and drop them immediately to entertain you (a little).

Just Don’t Get Me Started is sometimes informed, always humorous, and is centred around bringing entertainment through topics that matter.

If you want to receive a very loving message to your inbox, please do forward the podcast on social media, subscribe on whichever platform it is you love to listen on or just shout from the rooftops about it, because your neighbours should be as annoyed with you as you are with them.

 

Harass me on social media:

My Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grace_r_hall/

Just Don’t Get Me Started’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justdontgetmestarted/

My LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grace-r-hall/

 

Intro and outro music:

Hall of the Mountain King Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 2.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

2. Sounds about White

The media is fraught with discussions around racism, and within that discussion there is a topic a large part of the population seek to deny…

White Privilege.

In this episode, I talk about what white privilege is and why in the UK we struggle to accept and acknowledge it, whilst battling at least ten interruptions during recording.

Also discussed in-between sips of a Starbucks iced coffee:

• How trying to counteract white privilege by talking about our hardships doesn’t suddenly wipe white privilege from existence
• The things we take for granted due to privilege
• The language used in media regarding BLM protests versus ‘far-right’ protesters
• Understanding our privilege in order to use it for good

 

(When I mentioned my neighbour ‘blowing up’ their hot tub, I’d like to clarify that I do not in fact mean, explosives, but instead air).

 

Resources:

White Privilege: Unpacking the Invisible Knapsack: https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED355141.pdf?utm#page=43

History of racism in the UK (yes, I'm linking to my OWN article):

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/protesters-didnt-erase-britains-history-britain-did-grace-hall/

Anti-Racism resources (bottom of the page as a downloadable PDF: https://www.darkcoffee.co.uk/downloads)

Random man dancing mid counter-protest: https://twitter.com/curlygaz1/status/1271778564728373248?s=21

Part of Alexandra Burke’s thoughts on X-Factor: https://twitter.com/djbiggoss/status/1274271166836944896?s=21

Misha B’s experience on X-Factor: https://twitter.com/sultanasrgross/status/1272271403375562752?s=21

 

Lucky you, you’ve landed on Just Don’t Get Me Started, the podcast that is taking on society one rant at a time.

Laugh at or with host, Grace Hall, as she attempts to battle through Salford’s intense background noise, her own procrastination and her tendency to pick up new hobbies and drop them immediately to entertain you (a little).

Just Don’t Get Me Started is sometimes informed, always humorous, and is centred around bringing entertainment through topics that matter.

If you want to receive a very loving message to your inbox, please do forward the podcast on social media, subscribe on whichever platform it is you love to listen on or just shout from the rooftops about it, because your neighbours should be as annoyed with you as you are with them.

 

Harass me on social media:

My Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grace_r_hall/

Just Don’t Get Me Started’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justdontgetmestarted/

My LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grace-r-hall/

 

Intro and outro music:

Hall of the Mountain King Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 2.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

1. Life in Lockdown

Ah, lockdown…

The UK has been in lockdown since Tuesday 23^rd of March, starting off with people picking shelves clean of pasta and toilet paper and Facebook Karen’s thinking that tanks were roaming around London to enforce lockdown on citizens.

It’s been quite the ride!

For my first official episode, I’ve kept it short and sweet and mainly anecdotal. Perfect to listen to ten seconds of on your lunch break before clicking off never to return!

Whilst lockdown restrictions are easing, a large majority of people across the UK remain at home, and in this episode, I discuss the trials and tribulations of lockdown for myself and others.

Also included in this rant:

• Every video call you’re on being interrupted
• Getting to know (hate) your neighbours
• ‘Bang a pan’ Thursday, a.k.a – ‘Clap for carers/the NHS’
• Daily briefings becoming the new Love Island
• A marketing idea for Specsavers

 

Lucky you, you’ve landed on Just Don’t Get Me Started, the podcast that is taking on society one rant at a time.

Laugh at or with host, Grace Hall, as she attempts to battle through Salford’s intense background noise, her own procrastination and her tendency to pick up new hobbies and drop them immediately to entertain you (a little).

Just Don’t Get Me Started is sometimes informed, always humorous, and is centred around bringing entertainment through topics that matter.

If you want to receive a very loving message to your inbox, please do forward the podcast on social media, subscribe on whichever platform it is you love to listen on or just shout from the rooftops about it, because your neighbours should be as annoyed with you as you are with them.

 

Harass me on social media:

My Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grace_r_hall/

Just Don’t Get Me Started’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justdontgetmestarted/

My LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grace-r-hall/

 

Intro and outro music:

Hall of the Mountain King Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 2.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

0. Welcome to 'Just Don't Get Me Started'

I suppose you’ve stumbled across this clicking on a link I’ve plastered across some form of social media. Lucky you!

In this episode, I introduce Just Don’t Get Me Started, namely, how it came about and what it’s going to involve moving forwards. As an anxious 21 year old who rants a lot and researches a little, my vision for Just Don’t Get Me Started is one of combining humour with societal issues, with some research and ridiculous anecdotes in between.

If you want to stay on for what promises to be a very interesting journey as I travel through a variety of topics, from Reality TV to what exactly a ‘Karen’ is, then I’d like to say thank you in advance.

I also discuss, briefly, a bit about myself and why I became interested in the idea of starting my own podcast.

This episode also includes:

• How Just Don’t Get Me Started came about
• Me doing a random Boris Johnson impression
• Disclaimers about what you can expect in future episodes
• Why ranting is so important for us

Lucky you, you’ve landed on Just Don’t Get Me Started, the podcast that is taking on society one rant at a time.

Laugh at or with host, Grace Hall, as she attempts to battle through Salford’s intense background noise, her own procrastination and her tendency to pick up new hobbies and drop them immediately to entertain you (a little).

Just Don’t Get Me Started is sometimes informed, always humorous, and is centred around bringing entertainment through topics that matter.

If you want to receive a very loving message to your inbox, please do forward the podcast on social media, subscribe on whichever platform it is you love to listen on or just shout from the rooftops about it, because your neighbours should be as annoyed with you as you are with them.

 

Harass me on social media:

My Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/grace_r_hall/

Just Don’t Get Me Started’s Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/justdontgetmestarted/

My LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/grace-r-hall/

 

Intro and outro music:

Hall of the Mountain King Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com)

Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 2.0 License

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0