Bedugul Coffee: Never underestimate the power of dancing grandmas

The Huffington Post

This week we're talking about dancing grandmothers in China, what "The Jinx" means for the future of true crime, the beautiful realm of queer comics, and the role of hip hop lyrics in court.

What Does 'The Jinx' Mean For The Future Of True Crime?

"The documentary genre has the potential to impact cases... because of its inherent and presumed journalistic ethics. And yet, as entertainment, the form falls under the danger of breaching that code of conduct in the push for sensationalization. When the content is working to convict a suspect rather than free the wrongfully accused, that inherent possibility is much more problematic." (Read more here)

Can Ballerinas Make Us Pay Attention To Climate Change?

"'I know scientists are frustrated,' Karole Armitage, the famed dancer and choreographer, explained over the phone. 'They've been giving the facts for more than 25 years and it hasn't changed behavior.' Armitage is talking about climate change, and for good reason. She's currently staging a site-specific dance performance at New York's sprawling American Museum of Natural History, a work that is not-so-subtly aimed at raising awareness of our planet's shifting reality. Titled 'On the Nature of Things,' the work was created in collaboration with Stanford University biologist and MacArthur Genius Paul Ehrlich." (Read more here)

Wrath Of Dancing Grandmothers Forces Chinese Government To Backtrack

"The line dancing craze has swept the nation over the past decade, with informal groups of primarily female retirees gathering at dusk and dawn to dance on any spare piece of pavement. Chinese media has estimated that up to 100 million people take part in the activities -- known as 'square dances,' for the public squares and plazas where many gatherings take place." (Read more here)

This Short, Simple Book Is A Must-Read For Nature Lovers

"The author's rich descriptions of the land indicate not only a reverence for it, but also a belief that the characters in his story are shaped by their surroundings -- the sea, the farmlands, the bustle of animal cries and other earthy sounds... [Cynan] Jones's tense tale pulses steadily towards an abrupt yet satisfying conclusion. At 150 tightly-packed pages, it's a darkly beautiful book worth reading." (Read more here)

Prosecutor Used Hip-Hop As A Weapon To Convict Mac Phipps

"To be sure, you could quote the lyrics of John Lennon, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan or another celebrated songwriter, take them out of context and use their art to portray them as violent. Nevertheless, several notable hip-hop stars -- including Snoop Dogg, Beanie Sigel and Lil Boosie collaborator B.G. -- have had their music used against them in criminal proceedings." (Read more here)

Your Brief And Wondrous Guide To Contemporary Queer Comics

"The following artists and creatives identify as queer, among other labels, like, for example, comic, illustrator, storyteller and writer. They defy rigid categorization in both life and work, weaving wonderfully unique and sex-positive tales about everything from college parties and intergalactic adventures to a criminal potato. If the following artists show us anything, it's that there's no one way to be queer. And why would you want to, when each individual perspective looks oh-so beautiful?" (Read more here)

Author Jon Ronson Calls Internet Shaming 'Appalling.' Here's Why He's Wrong.

"Ronson's failure to critique the corporate role in destroying people who've been shamed online is a central weakness in his investigation of shame. It's accepted in his book, as a matter of course, that people will naturally lose their livelihoods and ability to find future work as a result of having their social media publicly blasted. This aspect of the process merits no discussion or investigation. It's the shaming that must end, even if that means silencing those who've finally found a way to lobby for respect, recognition, and social progress." (Read more here)

'Her | Self' Photos Reveal What Women Really See When They Look At Themselves

"Created by Jennifer Bermon, the 'Her | Self' series is a gallery of 28 black-and-white portraits of women from all walks of life, taken over the past 20 years. Bermon, a professional photographer and network TV producer, asked each of her subjects to write down what she saw in the image of herself and included each woman's response underneath her picture. The results are undeniably powerful." (Read more here)