webmaster@supportfortheshort.org
 
Heightism is so pervasive, no one even notices it's there.  When you're born you're tiny and you grow, and growth is associated with maturity, competence, intelligence.  It's associated with physical power; it's associated with sexual power.  And a lack of it is associated with a lack of all those other qualities. . . . Can you imagine somebody's competency being questioned on the basis of their race or their color or their sex?  It just wouldn't be tolerated.

 - Joe Mangano, from the Canadian Documentary - 'S&M:  Short and Male'

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DRC:  Displacement and discrimination - the lot of the Bambuti Pygmies  (NEW)
Source:  United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs - Integrated Regional Information Networks (IRIN)
Date:  01 Sep 2010


GOMA, 1 September 2010 (IRIN) - Conditions in Mugunga camp for displaced people on the outskirts of the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo city of Goma are tough, but tougher still are those endured by hundreds of people from the Bambuti Pygmy community living just outside the camp.

"We can't plant seeds here," said Bambuti chief Mupepa Muhindo, scratching the ground which is littered with lava from a 2002 volcanic eruption [http://www.irinnews.org/report.aspx?Reportid=29831]  "It's not possible to cultivate the land."

snip

For Muhindo, life changed in 2004 when he and millions of others fled the war in eastern DRC.  Life was hard for all IDPs but even worse for the Bambuti, whose lives are blighted by violence and daily discrimination.

One international specialist described DRC's indigenous people as the most marginalized of all the marginalized people with whom he had worked.

The group quit Mugunga camp, in DRC's North Kivu province, after fights with other residents, which left one dead.  Now they live with little if any support from humanitarian agencies.  They have no electricity or running water, straw-covered roofs on the makeshift shelters provide poor protection from the frequent rain.

snip

Mark Lattimer, executive director of the London-based Minority Rights Grop, says discrimination against Pygmies dates back hundreds of years and is deep and ingrained at all levels of Congolese society.

snip

Though they never took up arms, the Bambuti were victimised by almost all the armed groups.  Brutal human rights abuses against Pygmies were common, particularly in the northeastern Ituri region in 2004 where MRG documented a campaign of rape, torture, murder and even isolated cases of cannibalism committed by soldiers from Jean-Pierre Bemba's Mouvement de liberation du Congo (MLC) and the Rassemblement congolais pour la democratie (RCD).

snip

"I doubt the perpetrators really believe this," said Lattimer.  "it's used as a justification.  The real problem is just the impunity that surrounds any kind of attack on Pygmy communities and their complete marginalization in Congolese society." . . .


Just read the article and the phrases it uses to describe the Pygmies plight:

     "the Bambuti, whose lives are blighted by violence and daily discrimination"
     "the most marginalized of all the marginalized people with whom he had worked"
     "they live with little if any support from humanitarian agencies"
     "their complete marginalization"

The article fails to mention the most obvious characteristic of the Pygmies which of course, is their short stature.  Sounds like Heightism - The last bastion of discrimination.  Don't you think?

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ENLIGHTENED SEGMENTS of our society frown on racism, sexism and religious persecution, but not enough attention is given to prejudice relating to body type and stature.  In Stature and Stigma, Leslie Martel and I reviewed a great deal of research relating to the significance of height and body type as factors in personality development and social relations.  The short endomorphic or short ectomorphic child is especially likely to have problems in self-acceptance and in succeeding in social situations, whereas the tall and mesomorphic male is much more apt to attain a high peer status and a position of leadership.

Relatively short stature, in itself, can be a continuing social handicap.  Our research with successful middle-class college students clearly revealed that young men who were short (defined as 5 ft. 2 in. to 5 ft. 5 1/2 in.) were more likely to have anxiety in social, dating and job-related situations and were less confident in their ability to influence others than were their average-height (5 ft. 8  in. to 5ft. 10 1/2 in) and especially their tall (6 ft. to 6 ft. 4 in.) counterparts.  Regardless of their own height, college students generally perceived short males as much less competent than tall males.  Compared to other males, those that were tall tended especially to value stature and have the most negative attitudes toward their smaller peers.

Short females as well as short males report that others tend to treat them as if they were younger and less experienced and knowledgeable than their peers.  Furthermore, short individuals are more often the targets of condescending, manipulative and physically abusive behavior than their taller peers.  On the other hand, taller individuals are routinely at an advantage in social endeavors, although little public acknowledgment is made of this fact.  Being tall is positively related to greater social power and economic status.

Quite formalized types of job discrimination relate to stature,  This is the case when an explicit criterion for minimal stature is set with the assumption that those below a certain height do not have the physical competence or social influence necessary to do the job.  Traditionally, for example, entry into positions in police and fire departments has been closed to individuals with short stature (typically defined as less than 5 ft. 7 in. or 5 ft. 8 in.)

 - from the book 'Fathers and families: paternal factors in child development' by Henry B. Biller


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Southwest Boots Thin Passenger   
by Fran Golden
Posted July 26th 2010 03:18 PM


Southwest Airlines, the same carrier that booted overweight actor-director Kevin Smith from a flight for taking up more than his seat, has now bumped a super thin frequent flier.

According to the Sacramento Bee, the carrier deplaned a 5-foot-four, 110-pound Sacramento woman because they needed her seat for a hefty teen who took up two seats.

The incident happened on a Southwest flight from Las Vegas to Sacramento, the newspaper reports.

The Bee says the thin woman, a sales representative, was flying standby.  She got on the plane and stowed her bags.

But when a late-arriving, overweight 14-year-old required two seats, the thin woman was told to leave the flight.

"It didn't seem right that I should have to leave to accommodate someone who had only paid for one seat," the woman, who asked to remain anonymous, tells the newspaper.

She also claims to have been berated by Southwest personnel when she questioned the decision.

Southwest spokeswoman Whitney Eichinger tells AOL Travel News the plane was completely full and the adult passenger had not originally been booked on the flight.

continued here . . .


As usual the small must make way for the large.  The large don't even necessarily have to be tall.  A thin adult woman had to take another flight because a fat teenager took up 2 seats - her own the adult woman's.  Talk about insanity.

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Tom Cruise   
He may be a small man pushing 50 with limits as an actor but he shines playing characters facing failure.  He should do it more

David Thomson
guardian.co.uk, Thursday 22 July 2010 22:30 BST


Tom Cruise is 48.  At that age, Gary Cooper had just made The Fountainhead, Bogart had done The Big Sleep and Montgomery Clift . . . well, he was dead.  Meanwhile, Cruise is preparing a fourth Mission:  Impossible picture and has just opened Knight and Day in the US, an uneasy comedy thriller with Cameron Diaz as his partner.  The opening was swamped by Toy Story 3 and the next bit of the Twilight saga, and its numbers are dismal.  Cruise has now had three flops or under performers in a row -- Lions for Lambs, Valkyrie and Knight and Day.

snip

Admittedly, he has started to look older, and that seemed unlikely for a long time, while success, Scientology's rapture and a mix of health and conviction kept him so young it was alarming.  But looking older is not yet mature, and the grim truth is sinking in -- that Tom Cruise is a short man . . .

That's the grim truth folks.  More of  - 'The Last Bastion of Discrimination'.
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Webmaster Visits with Jimmy, Nora and Alan Au -- WOW!
July 24, 2010

One of the most difficult aspects of being a short-statured man - in addition to being discriminated against in the workplace, being rejected by women, being insulted for no apparent reason by strangers, getting bumped into on the sidewalk, being used as a target, being dismissed and not taken seriously by the general populace, being locked out of sports, the boardroom and the bedroom, being juvenilized, infantilized and feminized and having to endure the above with a smile and otherwise tolerating indignities that no other recognized group would ever tolerate, and then getting blamed for his plight too - is the indignity of having to look sloppy and unkempt too, no matter how much money you have, simply because the vast majority of stores and clothing manufacturers cater to taller men.  By the way, another indignity of being short is for short men to have to do their clothes-shopping in the boys department, but I think I've given enough indignities for the time being.

'Jimmy Au's for Men 5'8" and Under' is well on the way to solving short men's clothing problems.  Take it from the webmaster.  It was called, 'Jimmy Au's for Men 5'8" and Under New York City Trunk and Road Show', and well worth the title.  Jimmy and family came to New York City to promote his clothing line for short men.  I thought that I would attend.  I thought that is was a good idea at last to actually meet Jimmy and his son Alan so I made an appointment with a lady at his Beverly Hills store to meet him at the Double Tree Hotel in New York City.  I had been in contact with Alan Au - his son - in the past and wanted to see for myself up close and personal the clothing line that he had for short men.  The Double Tree Hotel is a new hotel in Manhattan by the way.

Every short man knows the difficulty of finding clothes that fit.  No - check that.  Every short man knows the difficulty of finding clothes that fit AND look good.  Now I'm a guy that looks and looks and looks for clothes that fit.  When I shop it's never a case of going to one store and buying a bunch of clothes.  I have to go to one store and see what they've got.  If I find something that fits and I think that it looks good I'll buy it.  Occasionally I can get so impatient - after I've gone to a few stores with no luck - that I pick up something that looks 'half-good' and then I wind up never wearing it.  Very few people understand the frustrations of buying clothes if you are a short guy.  Now I'm lean and muscular (if I do say so myself) so I should be able to find more clothes than a short and fat guy.  Not true.  When I go to a store and find a pants with a  29" length (29" is the shortest pant you will find off the rack in a store and even the 29" length is one inch past my ideal length of 28") the smallest waist I can find in that length is a 34" waist.  The reason for this is the obesity epidemic that is overtaking society today.  Everyone and his grandmother seems to be fat, and the clothing manufacturers have responded to the fat ones by making waist and leg sizes bigger and short men seem to be no exception.  Whoever thought that it would one day be easier to find clothes if you were fat rather than slim?  In saner times it was more difficult for fat people to find clothes than slim people.

My appointment was for a specific time, but I thought I'd get there just a little bit early.  I opened the door and was greeted by Nora Au, Jimmy's wife and Alan's mom, a very friendly lady who ushered me in and didn't mind that I was early.  Alan and his dad were busy with another guy, but there were three Au's, so it was no problem for them to take care of me too.  I introduced myself as the webmaster of supportfortheshort.org and gave my website card to Alan.  After talking with Alan for a little while, Jimmy came over and "sized me up", rather quickly I might add.  With 50 years of experience under his belt I wasn't surprised.  Nora picked out a specific suit jacket for me which was just a little too big.  Even though it was a little big it was still a little bit better fit than the best that I can find in any store off the rack.  She got it perfect on the next turn though.  Imagine, I can go from store to store to find an article of clothing that "almost" fits and here I was trying something on and in two minutes they've got it right.  Now I'm good at finding clothes that fit as close as possible to what I want.  I know what looks good; the problem is I can never find exactly what I want, so I come as close as possible to that ideal.  For example, I was wearing a shirt that I bought that was one of about eleven that said "fitted" on them when I bought them.  They were a size 'Small' of course.  I bought them at a well-known department store.  They fit 'OK'.  'OK' means decent in my book.  I bought only one at first, tried it on, saw that it came as close as possible to what I wanted, then I bought the other 10 quickly before all the 'small sizes disappeared.  (There are always fewer size 'Small' in stores than any other size).  Nora got a shirt for me and asked me to try it on.  Butta Boom!  It fit better than the shirt I had on, one of the ones that I bought in the department store.  One of my little habits when wearing a shirt is to unconsciously 'pull' the sleeves up by habit, and that's because even with a size 'Small' the sleeve lengths are always too long.  With a Jimmy Au shirt there's no problem with that, and if the sleeves are a little too long, Jimmy can take care of that of you.  By the way, a regular store size 'Small' can fit a 5'7" man well.  I'm 5'4".  Jimmy's shirt was properly tapered too.  The  length of the shirt was fine as well, NOT going down almost to my knees either.

Amazing.

A little bit later I tried on a suit pants.  It fit better than anything I had in my closet.  It wasn't perfect buy Jimmy Au's specializes in tailoring his clothes to the wearer and showed me exactly how he would tailor it to fit me perfectly.  This is the kind of service that I wish I could get out there in the cold, cruel world of being a short man and trying to find clothes that not only fit, but also look good.  I'll tell you, I wanted to purchase right then and there, and if it weren't for budget constraints right now I would have.  And you would have too.  It's time that short men stopped settling for the junk that is sold in most mainstream stores these days.  It's time for short men to make an attempt at looking good.

You know I read somewhere that Eddie Bauer a few years ago started charging more money for clothes for Tall people and also large sizes for Fat people.  The Tallers and the Fatters actually got together (mostly women) to picket an Eddie Bauer's on the West Coast.  Incredible isn't it.  It's incredible that the Largers - that is - the Tallers and the Fatters, identify with each other and can get together for a common cause.  It reminded me in a sense of how a naive short guy some years ago appeared at a Tall Club get together because he thought the Tallers would "join" with him to fight heightism in some way.  The Tallers ain't interested in fighting heightism my man.  They're interested in keeping their acknowledged superiority intact any way that they can.  Helping you ain't in their playbook.   But be that as it may, we have at last a store here that caters to the short man and the short man exclusively.

Jimmy Au's of Beverly Hills has a wonderful collection of sizes for the short man and if the fit isn't perfect they'll see to it that it is.  This is one plus for the short man in America.  If you are a short-statured man and you want to dress well and look good I would strongly recommend that you visit Jimmy Au's For Men 5'8" and Under.

Stop looking the way society wants you to look and start looking good.

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The Andy Griffith Show (Season 3; Episode 7)  1962

The above episode is especially instructive to the short man.  Nothing intimidates like tall height and/or large size.  They say TV shows do not represent the real world, but the example in this episode is indicative of the way society views short men.  An oldie AND a goodie from 1962.
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Bad News for Short People:  Higher Risk of Heart Problems   
by Maria Cheng
June 9, 2010 1:19PM


Who knew?  Height is a risk factor for heart disease.  A new study is suggesting a link between height and heart problems like angina, heart attacks and angioplasties.  However, height's impact on heart disease was still less important than things like smoking, which increases the chance of a heart ailment by up to four times.

Short people have a 50 percent higher risk of having a heart problem or dying from one than tall people, a new study says, though weight, blood pressure and smoking habits remain more important factors.

snip

Experts did not consider patients' heights objectively, but within the context of a particular country's population.  They found the shortest people in the population were one and a half times more likely to have heart problems or die from them than the tallest people.

On average, short people were under 161 centimeters (5 feet 3 inches) and tall people were at least 174 centimeters (5 feet 9 inches).

The study was paid for by the Finnish Foundation for Cardiovascular Research and others.  It was  published online Wednesday in the European Heart Journal.

"We don't want to scare short people, but perhaps they should be extra cautious about their lifestyle," said Borge Nordestgaard, a professor of genetic epidemiology at the University of Copenhagen.  He was not connected to the study.


All the anxiety, anger, rage, and repressed emotions of being an acceptably discriminated against group with no means of redress couldn't have anything to do with it.  No, of course not.  There must be something wrong with the short inherently.  There must be.
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6'4" Cop Bullies 4'11" Videographer as She Videos a BP Worker Taken Away in Ambulance   

Actually the police officer was quite reasonable compared to some cops.  What is noticeable is the fact that many police, like the general population today, are quite obese, as this officer is, probably weighing in at over 300 pounds.  People respect the large - whether it's tall height or heavy weight.  Short stature is an immutable physical trait.  It is not the result of over-eating or anything that a short person has the slightest bit of control over. 
This website does not support the civil rights claims of groups that are in full control of certain physical traits.  We respect people who exert control over the traits that ARE controllable.

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Police:  Ohio Woman Posed As Boy To Be With Girl   
Updated:  Wednesday, 07 Jul 2010, 7:09 PM EDT
Published:  Wednesday, 07 Jul 2010, 7:09 PM EDT


LEBANON, Ohio (AP) -- Authorities say an Ohio Woman pretended to be a 14-year-old boy so she could have a sexual relationship with a teenage girl.

Springboro police Sgt. Bob Marchiny says that 31-year-old Patricia Dye of Franklin used the alias Matt Abrams as the 16-year-old girl's boyfriend, and that the girl did not know Dye was a woman.

continued here . . .

According to Toronto's Center for Addiction and Mental Health only short men can be pedophiles.  Please see "Pedophiles Tend to be Short Men".  CAMH so-called "psychologist" implies short men's brains underdeveloped.  Also see the webmaster's broadcast of December 28, 2008 titled - 'Size simply does matter - doesn't it?  Part II'.  Women can't be predators.  Don't even think about it.

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Mendoza Against the Deaf   

Mendoza Eugenics Stalled as California Legislator Considers Deaf to be Defective Americans
Dan Levin    June 21st 2010

California Assemblyman Tony Mendoza has been stalled in his effort to pass legislation the deaf community feels will launch a eugenic campaign against them.  Although originally scheduled for brief testimony and a vote last Wednesday, June 16, 2010, an informal survey of Health Comittee members by Mendoza's office determined he did not have the votes.  Other Health committee members, stung by accusations of a slide back to California's dark history of Nazi-style eugenics, have declared their unwillingness to vote for the measure in its present form.

California eugenics was a system of eliminating unwanted bloodlines of those who were deemed "social misfits" in the twisted pseudoscience.  Those targeted included such groups as the poor, prostitutes, Asians, Whites with brown hair, those needing glasses, the deaf and many others.

snip

Mendoza's eugenic bill, known as AB 2072,  admittedly seems innocuous enough at first blush, critics argue.  AB2072 calls for all newborns to be screened for hearing problems; and if found to be deaf, their parents are to be given an "informative brochure" describing the options.  The problem, complain large numbers of deaf people, is that the brochure is under the control of the well-financed cochlear implant industry, the audiology profession and various Alexander Graham Bell foundations--all of which are determined to see deaf culture, and its distinctive American Sign Language, disappear.

snip

For their part, the generation-to-generation deaf are passionately determined to keep their special identity which depends upon visual communication, including sign language.  They have fought back with mass protests and letter writing campaigns, as well as STOP AB2072 Internet sites and t-shirts.

snip


Last week, Black lectured on eugenics in Sacramento to more than 500 members of the deaf community, including many who traveled from around the state to attend the event and thousands more who attended online.

continued here . . .

Mass protests and letter writing campaigns by deaf people "determined to keep their special identity". -- We can't even get two intelligent short people together in the same room. 
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Women say, "I can't respect a guy who's shorter than me"   
posted Thu, 04/16/09

Height And Money Still RULE For Men

Look at the personals in the web or papers.  Most of the time you'll find what are women's preferences towards men's height weight or looks.

One being that it is still (compared to 15 years ago) consistent that meny women's ads specify an older man (2-10 years) and even more specify that he must be financially established/ comfortable.

The other being a height requirement.  Very common to specify that the man be 5'10" or more, even 6' and more.

I think that some of you "women seeking men" don't subscribe to general reality.  Let's look at a few examples . . .

Height - This appears to be a common trait that women here seek out, though actual preferred height seems to vary.  However, when you say something like this, "I like tall guys, they have to be 6 feet tall -


I CAN'T RESPECT A GUY WHO'S SHORTER THAN ME" . . .

Think about the above statement.  Imagine if she had stated any of these:
I can't respect a man who has darker skin than me.
I can't respect a Hispanic man.
I can't respect a Jewish man.
I can't respect a bald man.
I can't respect a man who has less education than me.
I can't respect a man who drives an older car.
I can't respect a man who has green eyes.

Some of the above would sound racist.  Some would sound ridiculous.  But dislike of short men is always appropriate.  Do you think this attitude on the part of women only applies in dating?  Do you think taller men feel differently?  This is why the webmaster call's it - 'The Last Bastion of Discrimination'.

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Broadcast of July 1, 2010 - 'One Short Man's Life'

The webmaster talks about the life of the late actor Gary Coleman and the injustices associated with being a short man.

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NOSSA NINCOMPOOP HAMRE ON THE PLIGHT OF SHORT MEN:  "I THINK IT'S A LITTLE BETTER"    (NEW)

Would You Date  A Short Guy?  Take our Poll

Poor Rob.

Did you ever see the "short guy" 20/20?  Ten or so years ago, the ABC news show decided to do a little studio test, The anchors presented women with lineups of men-five at a time-from which to choose a date.  To boost the shortest contender's chances, they trumped him up with fake selling points.  Rob, for example, 5-foot-3, was billed as an MD.  When no one wanted to go out with him, the show added:  bestselling author, champion skier, and chalet owner.  Still, no takers.  Stu, only 5 feet tall, fared worse.  Although he was supposedly a multimillionaire at the age of 25, the women wouldn't go near him.  (You've got to read the transcript.)  Asked what it would take, one said, "Maybe if the other four were murderers."

snip

"It's still hard,"  Hamre, 41, says.  . . .  "But I think it's a little better."

continued here . . .


Well, well, well. 
Short men just a shade above murderers. 
Arianne Cohen denigrating short men as she pleases.
Convicted criminal Martha Stewart airing 'The Tall Show' with Miss 'Arianne Supremacy' herself as star of the show.
Gary Coleman used and abused by spouse and parents alike, dying under suspicious circumstances without even a legitimate investigation by the police, his wife taking deathbed photos and post-mortem photos to make money, taking Gary off life support after a day, and now both parents and spouse trying to cash in.
Short men being profiled as more likely to be pedophiles.
Short men being labeled as less intelligent.
A website fraudulently represented as a legitimate incorporated non-profit organization for the benefit of short people by a two-bit con artist, manipulator and sociopath.

And we could go on-and-on. 

But stooge and ne'r-do-well 'Luda'-Chris Hamre thinks "it's a little better" for short men now.  Does anyone wonder why short people are victims?  Just the title, "Would you date a short guy?", makes short men appear less than human.  I mean, does it take a rocket scientist to see what we're dealing with here?

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Gulf oil disaster:  Pensacola Beach    (NEW)

The tide came in Tuesday night, under  a moon almost full, and when the sun came up and the water retreated there it was :  a broken band of oil about 5 feet wide and 8 miles long.

It look like tobacco spit and smelled foreign, and it pooled in yesterday's ffootprints as far as you could see.  State officials called it the worst show of crude on shore from the gusher 120 miles away.  READ THE STORY:  Oil blankets Pensacola Beach.



The Gulf oil situation is an unfolding tragedy and story.  The City of Pensacola does figure a bit in the NOSSA saga.  We do hope little Matthew Campisi has found another lair.  Way back in 2006 when the webmaster made complaints to two different state agencies about Matthew Campisi's website - www.nossaonline.org -  in reference to fraudulent representation on the Internet, Matthew Campisi "flew the coop" so-to-speak.  At the time Campisi was an airport policeman at the Pensacola Florida Airport for several months when those complaints were filed.  He promptly left the police to become a building inspector - of all things - in the same city.  He did not last long as a building inspector either.  Here's a link to the City of Pensacola website apparently indicating Campisi asking for his retirement contributions back from Pensacola's Finest.  You'll note the date of November 8th, 2006 only a few weeks after the webmaster's complaints were filed.  This website came online about a week before little Mattie made his grand exit from the Boys-in-Blue.  The Matthew Campisi story is quite an epic saga.  Please watch for The NOSSA FILES.
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Gary Coleman's wife 'mocked his height and often called him stupid'  
by DAILY MAIL REPORTER
Last updated at 11:42 PM on 23rd June 2010


Gary Coleman's estranged wife Shannon price ridiculed the child star during his final days and often called him 'stupid', it has been claimed.

The tragic Diff'rent Strokes actor, who died last month aged 42, was allegedly subjected to constant humiliation from his estranged spouse.

According to his former lawyer, Randy Kester, the pair slept in separate bedrooms in their Utah home after their relationship had soured to an alarmingly toxic degree.

Kester alleges that Miss Price, 24, would routinely make derogatory remarks about the 4'8" former child star in front of others.

Shannon would demean him and say very personal things about him in public . . . she would frequently call him stupid,' he told Hollywood website RadarOnline, 'I thought is was an inappropriate relationship . . . Shannon treatment of Gary was harsh and it was domineering.'

Kester added:  'If Gary would respond in the wrong way, if he would disagree then there was this barrage of why he was wrong and why he shouldn't be saying it that way . . . and even comments about his stature.'

continued here . . .


In this corner, at 4'7" and 85 pounds - Gah-ree Coleman.  And in this corner at 5'6" and 145 pounds Shah-none Price.  Winner take all.
- And that's exactly what she's got in mind.


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Bracketed by Crimes:  Van Der Sloot's Last 5 Years   
For Dutch murder suspect Van der Sloot, a five-year slide of world travel, poker and lies
By FRANK BAJAK Associated Press Writer

For all of is garrulous charm, Joran van der Sloot didn't do himself any favors in his online interactions, where his generation tends to reveal a lot about itself.

"If I would have to describe myself as an animal it would be a snake," he wrote on his YouTube page. . . .


The reader should also know about the 5-year slide of another snake named Matthew Campisi.  Incidentally, the resemblance between snakes is striking - except of course - in the height department. 

Joran Van der Sloot  
Matthew Campisi      

Once again, the resemblance is amazing, except little Mattie can hide a bit more easily.  However, Matthew Campisi cannot hide from the facts.  The NOSSA FILES are coming.
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Joran Van der Sloot:  Most Eligible Bachelor?  

By:  MEGAN GIBSON June 22, 2010

Sounds like every girl's dream guy:  he's tall; he's on the cover of newspapers around the world; he's confessed to, then denied, a murder.  No wonder he's receiving love letters in prison.

Joran Van der sloot is claiming that he's been receiving letters from women who are eager to marry him.  And this is despite the fact that 22-year-old has been charged with the brutal murder of Stephany Flores and is being investigated for the 2005 disappearance of Natalee Holloway.

"One of them even wants me to get her pregnant," he reportedly told Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf according to the AP.

Assuming van der Sloot is telling the truth (which, admittedly, isn't really a safe assumption) then someone should probably set these women straight.  After all, some of the accusations made against him make the craziest contestants on The Bachelorette look downright sane.

Ladies, a word of advice - set the bar a little higher.


How much higher - 7'3"?

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Tall Men Don't Get Labelled   
 June 21, 2010

Recently I happened to notice a photo of Joran Van der Sloot.  What I saw was a tall guy.  I didn't know exactly how tall though.  You see, being the webmaster of the only website on the Internet that deals seriously with the prejudice of heightism I usually try to be on top of any situation pertaining to height, so I Google'd "How tall is Joran Van der Sloot?"  I noticed that there seemed to be a lot of people asking the same question.  It was like, "Oh he's sooo tall!  I wonder how tall he is?"  Some women seemed to have that sort of an attitude, you know, the "OH, he's soo tall", sort of attitude.  I did a little searching and I found some articles where it was written that he was 6 feet or 6'1" or so.  I didn't believe that.  He looked much taller than that.  I came across an article that stated, "Yahoo Answers says that Joran van der Sloot stands 6-1, but I'm going with the 6-3 estimate, based on photos." 

No way I said.


I then found this article from Boston.com.  The measuring wall behind him shows the top of his head to be a shade ABOVE 2.00 meters (I'm assuming that's meters).  Two meters equals SIX FEET SIX AND THREE QUARTER INCHES, which rounded off becomes SIX FEET SEVEN INCHES.  One thing I noticed in some of the articles that I found is that people seemed to be trying to make poor little Joran smaller than he really is.  It's almost like, 'No, No, he can't be THAT TALL, tall men don't go around murdering women.  Tall men are our role models.  Tall men are our athletes.  Why, I'll only date Tall men!  Why poor little Joran is as tall as Peyton Manning!  - No, Taller!!  How dare they!  Yep, everyone seems to be making him shorter.  But the measuring tape doesn't lie.  Think anyone will label tall men now?  Don't bet on it.


Here's some more photos for you.

http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/06/11/peru-sloot-holloway.html
http://www.livinginperu.com/news-12497-law-and-order-peru-joran-van-der-sloot-refuses-answer-court-interrogatory
http://www.ecanadanow.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/06/Joran-Van-der-Sloot2.jpg  (Look at the short girl next to him.  Isn't she happy!)


Six foot one my ass.

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Heightism, a mutually accepted bias  
Friday June 11th 2010

Heightism is a type of discrimination which is based upon the height of a person.  As far as the American society is concerned, the bias of heightism is pretty much obvious and persuasive.  The heightism is not affected by other factors and considerations such as race, religion, belief, or wealth of a person.

Meaning thereby, any person who is short is the victim of this type of discrimination regardless of the fact what other strengths he has.

In America, any person below the height of 5 ft. 8 inches will be treated with prejudice and bias whatever other 'credentials' he has.  This is the research of a sociologist from Cleveland, Saul Feldman.

The socialist is of the firm view that heightism is not less severe, though not much talked about, than any other loathsome forms of discriminations such as racism, gender discrimination and it is even more 'deep-rooted' in the American society.

Saul Feldman expressed his views about heightism when he was attending a recent meeting of the American Sociological Association and told that this type of discrimination is so much 'mutually accepted' that nobody even talks about it . . .



Someone actually getting it right - and all you have to do is read the articles below to see for yourself.
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Sir Paul McCartney - McCartney Annoyed by Nowhere Boy   

SIR PAUL MCCARTNEY has yet to watch JOHN LENNON biopic NOWHERE BOY -  because he's "peeved" the actor playing his role is too short.

snip

But McCartney is not happy about the height difference between the onscreen pair - because he was just as tall as his Beatles bandmate in real life and insists movie bosses should have put Sangster in "platforms" to make up the extra inches.

He tells Britain's Seven magazine, "I haven't actually seen it, but I hear I'm OK in it.  But you know what I'm slightly peeved about?  My character, my actor, is shorter than John!  And I don't like that.

continued here . . .


Paul McCartney - egalitarian.  Just like all the rest.
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Sarko's Short Man Complex Reaches New Heights  
June 12th, 2010 at 12:22 am by RACHEL RYAN

Sarko's legendary insecurities over his 5'5" frame reached new heights this past Sunday when he requested that a taller, "beefier" bodyguard not apply for the position.

The French blogosphere is abuzz with stories about the President's uniquely designed, height-enhancing shoes, his tendency to stand on tiptoe while posing for pictures, and - of course - his 5'9", ex-supermodel wife, Carla Bruni.

snip

The French President's approval ratings have recently dipped to below 30 percent.

No one likes an egoistic, insecure, petty person.  And people especially don't like leaders who routinely exhibit some - and in Sarko's case, all - of these qualities.


continued here . . .

The twit who wrote this garbage - Rachel Ryan - stands a proud 5'9" Tall.  (That's equivalent to a 6'3" man)  We might have expected it.  Writes Miss Ryan, "No one likes an egoistic, insecure, petty person".  We think that description fits Miss Ryan much better than President Sarkozy.

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Nicolas Sarkozy 'bans tall workers from factory walkabout'   
French President Nicolas Sarkozy has been accused of banning tall workers from attending a factory walkabout - because they will make him look too short.
Published:  7:30AM BST 15 Jun 2010

The 5ft 5ins tall leader is alleged to have sent aides to the plant ahead of an official visit, to stop anyone over 5ft 6 ins from appearing alongside him.  The claims come just a week after Mr Sarkozy was reported to have banned tall bodyguards from his presidential protection team.  Mr. Sarkozy, who wears platform heels to disguise his size, is due to visit the Turbomeca areonatics factory near Toulouse on June 22.  But local paper the Republique des Pyrenees said he sent two staff to there first to 'whittle out the tall ones.  One unnamed engineer working there told the paper.  "

I am almost six feet tall, and I was told I was not allowed near the official reception group."

continued here . . .


Tallers don't like it when the shoe is on the other foot.  That's discrimination.

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Gary Coleman's Deathbed Photo Published, Crime Investigator Points Out Murder Evidence
Thu, 10 June 2010 05:12:57 ET  

Image of Gary Coleman on his deathbed has spread through a printed media.  On Wednesday, June 9, the editors of the Globe have published the controversial photograph on the cover of the tabloid.  In the picture said to have been sold for $10,000, Gary is hooked up to a ventilation machine, while his ex-wife Shannon Price leans beside him staring at the camera.

Along with the photo, a new claim that the "Diff'rent Strokes" actor has been murdered is proposed.  Crime investigator Ted Gunderson has told the publication there is evidence that points to a struggle with a possible intruder at the actor's home.  "I hope we're not seeing an inexperienced police force make up its mind without knowing what they've got," he first said.

"To me, the pictures of the scene that I examined strongly suggest a murder occurred," Gunderson further noted.  He then detailed, "You can tell from a blood smear on the wall the he (Coleman) fell over backward with a great deal of force, then turned his head at impact . . . This is a job for scientists, not beat cops." . . .

And a job for activists.

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Gary Coleman leaves bittersweet instructions for funeral   
By Ken Lee, PEOPLE.COM
June 9, 2010 -- updated 1346 GMT (2146 HKT)


(PEOPLE.com)  -- So often surrounded by Hollywood users and hangers-on during his career, Gary Coleman made it clear he wanted to have nothing to do with them after he died.

His two-page will, filed Tuesday in a Provo, Utah, court, requests that his remains be cremated, then spells out who would be -- and not be -- welcome at his wake.

The actor wanted only "those who have no financial ties to me and who can look each other in the eyes and say they really cared personally for Gary Coleman," according to the will.

snip

In the court documents accompanying the will, Mial expresses concern that Coleman's ex-wife Shannon Price, 24, "has been removing personal property from [Coleman's] home which has not been inventoried or accounted for."

continued here . . .


What can we say here?

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Gary Coleman exploited?  (Video)   
June 8, 2010
HLN's Jane Velez-Mitchell says child star Gary Coleman was exploited by those closest to him.


Said Ms. Velez-Mitchell:  Gary's former co-star Todd Bridges said it best, "I hope someone burns in hell for this one".  And I hope Todd's right.


The treatment Gary Coleman received throughout his life couldn't have had anything to do with his height.  It's all in your mind little man.
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Nicolas Sarkozy bans tall bodyguards   

Tall security agents have been discreetly advised not to apply for a job guarding Nicolas Sarkozy, police sources have claimed.


By Henry Samuel in Paris
Published:  2:23 PM BST 07 Jun 2010


The vertically challenged French president is said to have banned statuesque bodyguards despite their added value of being able to spot potential attackers in a crowd.

A police source told Le Parisien that "there's no point recruiting supermen" as "large-sized" candidates stood little chance of being taken on.

The presidential guard, known by its acronym GSPR, has been beefed up from 50 to 80 men since 2002, when a mentally disturbed man managed to take a potshot at Jacques Chirac, Mr. Sarkozy's predecessor, with his hunting rifle before being overpowered.

President Sarkozy is notoriously sensitive and secretive about his diminutive height of around 5ft 5 ins - making him shorter than Napoleon.

continued here . . .


It's always the same bulls**t.  When Sarkozy gets a lectern that's suited to his height, he's sensitive.  When his wife wears flat shoes, he's sensitive.  When he chooses short people to be around, he's sensitive.  When he gets short bodyguards, he's sensitive.  Isn't it glaringly apparent that society unfairly and unjustly label short men as "sensitive" no matter what they do?  And not even the President of a major country is immune from this universal labelling.

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Gary Coleman 'death photos' sold to tabloid   
By Alan Duke, CNN
June 7, 2010 -- Updated 2059 GMT (0459 HKT)


Los Angeles, California (CNN) -- Gary Coleman's ex-wife sold "death photos" of the former child actor in "ongoing desperate attempts" to profit from his death, according to the person Coleman named as executor of his estate.

The photographs, taken inside the hospital where Coleman died last month, will be published this week in Globe magazine, according to a publicist for the magazine.

"We bought the photos," said Samatha Trenk, a spokeswoman for Globe parent company American Media.

The magazine would not disclose how much it paid or who sold the images.

snip

"Knowing Gary, as well as anyone could have, I assure his closest family, friends and fans that his disdain for this behavior would be unquestionable and paramount to any foregoing profession of 'love' for Shannon that might have ever poured from his lips, "Dion Mial said in an e-mail to CNN.

Continued here . . .


The webmaster wrote in February 2008 on an article that the viewer can see if he scrolls down this page:


"The article goes on to quote his wife as saying that, "he was 10 feet tall to me because he was sweet."  The associations of tall height with positives are absolutely relentless everywhere you look.  Also, the perceptions of the short-statured as extremely vulnerable is indicated in the way that his wife so freely mentions Colemans temper, "I don't like the violence, I really don't," Price said.  "He's got to damage something before his anger stops."  It's difficult to imagine any star's wife commenting so freely about violence in her spouse, especially this early in a marriage - unless of course they are divorced already.  It's as if she's not concerned about it too much because, 'Oh well, he's not big enough to hurt me anyway'.   Hollywood marriages typically are not long-standing affairs in any case.  Shall we take bets on when the bliss is going to end and Shannon proudly breathes a sigh of relief -ala Nicole Kidman- that she can now wear high heels again?"

We could smell her - a thousand miles away.  However, not even we could predict this. 
__________________________________________________

Gary Coleman on 'The Insider' (Courtesy of 'The Young Turks')   
February 2010

Gary:  You know if people would want to believe that I assault my wife at 4'7" and she's 5'6", then they can believe that all day long, I don't care

Four on one.  And the one is 4'7".  The other three people were placed there strategically for psychological intimidation, that is, they were placed there specifically to intimidate a short man.  Talk about a set-up.  And this Lisa Bloom brings in a psychologist to boot - a two-bit hack named "Dr." Charles Sophy - to tell us in effect that Gary has anger problems after he walks off the set.

"Dr. Sophy:  You're lucky he didn't hit somebody here.  . . .  What I saw there needs medicine.


It seems to us that Gary was trying to protect his wife.  We believe that he was trying to "act like a man".  When you're wife is a foot taller than you are and 60 pounds heavier, "acting like a man" can get one accused of abuse.  It may even have gotten Gary Coleman killed.

What we see needs justice.
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Gary C's Ex:  'He Would've Been Like Muhammad Ali'   
Originally posted Jun 3rd 2010 6:42 AM PDT by TMZ Staff

TMZ obtained an interview with Price . . . shot the day after Gary died.  Among other things, Price blurted out that she's heard speculation that she pushed Gary and caused him to fall and ultimately hemorrhage.  Price insists she didn't push Gary -- a weird statement, since no one had publicly accused her of that.


Wait till you see the interview.
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Gary Coleman's wife resisted giving him emergency aid  
By Ken Lee, PEOPLE.com
June 2, 2010 -- Updated 2152 GMT (0552 HKT)


(PEOPLE.com) -- Gary Coleman's panicked wife initially balked at helping him after he suffered an apparent head injury that left him bloodied, according her 911 call.

Shannon Price, 24, tells the operator that Coleman was Stricken while preparing her something to eat the evening of May 26 downstairs in their Santaquin, Utah, home.

"He just got home, I heard this big bang, I went downstairs.  Blood everywhere," she says.  "I don't know if he's okay.  I'm not down there right now because I have a fever, if I get stressed out I'm going to faint." . . .

continued here


Poor baby.  She mustn't get stwessed.  She was okay enough 2 days later to have the plug pulled on her husband's life
though.  And nobody seems to give a damn.  The police don't even seem to.  Is a short man's life so worthless?

___________________________________________________________________________

Gary Coleman's Heartbroken Parents Want Answers About His death  
By Ken Lee
Saturday May 29, 2010 05:20 PM EDT

In the last 10 years, the only way Sue and Willie Coleman kept up with their estranged son's life was through headlines:  his marriage, his legal problems, and finally, his hospitalization and removal from life support on Friday.

"We would've loved to have been there by his side at the hospital, to let him know we love him before he passed away," Sue Coleman, 67, tells PEOPLE.  "This is a shock to us.  We loved Gary very much."

snip

"We're not pointing fingers at anyone, but we need to know exactly what happened" says Sue, a longtime nurse who lives with her husband, Willie, 71, a retired forklift driver, in suburban Illinois.  "We're not angry.  We're just concerned.  Did our son fall down the stairs?  Did he fall in the bathtub?  We need to have some closure on our son's life."


Such wonderful concern.  In 1989 Gary sued his "parents" and ex-advisor for mismanaging his funds and misappropriating money for themselves.  He won $1.3 million.  If Shannon Price had anything to do with Gary's death
they could be the ones inheriting.  That simply couldn't have anything to do with their sudden concern over the facts surrounding their estranged son's death.  It just couldn't.  And any rumors to the contrary are just pure speculation.

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Gary Coleman's Quick Removal off Life Support and Resulting Death Raises Questions.


Commentary by Matthew Cullinan Hoffman          

May 31, 2010 (LifeSiteNews.com) The death of Gary Coleman has elicited reactions of surprise and sadness from Americans who had come to know and love the actor through his role on the popular situation comedy Diff'rent Strokes during the 70s and early 80s.

However, what is not being discussed in the mainstream media, what is assiduously avoided, are the obvious questions:  is it certain how Coleman sustained his deadly head injury, and why did his wife"pull the plug" on her husband only hours after he was put on life support, and only two days after he entered the hospital?


Coleman was hospitalized on May 26 after sustaining a traumatic head injury that was severe enough to cause bleeding inside of his skull.  The injury was said to have resulted from a fall.  Still, the severity of the injury, other issues surrounding his death and events in the recent past would seem to have called for at least a preliminary police investigation.

It is public knowledge that Coleman and his much larger wife, Shannon Price, had a stormy, conflictive relationship that led to her arrest in 2009 on charges of domestic violence. . . .



At least some others are beginning to question these strange circumstances.

_____________________________________________________________________

CNN VIDEO
- In February HLN's Joy Behar talked with Lisa Bloom about being the "target" of Gary Coleman's meltdown on "The Insider". 

During Miss Bloom's interview she asks Gary, "Is that the way you talk to your wife"? Joy Behar asks Miss Bloom, "We're you scared"?


Both these women were twice Gary's size.  I am referring to both Miss Bloom and Gary's wife.  Either one of them could probably kick his behind easily, simply and only because of the size difference.  They could literally pick him up and manhandle him.  Aside from heightism, there's a little phenomenon working here called "Feminism" where a woman is still viewed as a potential victim here, even though she is twice the size and probably significantly stronger than the man who is her husband - in this case Gary Coleman.  When a woman has a size difference over a man like this - SHE becomes the man - and it is the man who is the one who needs the protection, once again in this case - Gary Coleman.  I think the question should have been asked of Gary, that is, if he was "scared".  These women were more than physically capable of abusing Gary.  They think they're clever trying to turn it around onto him.  Gary was the one needing the protection simply because of his small size.  He is expected to "act like a man" in spite of his extreme physical disadvantage.  In reality in the real physical sense, he - and all short people - deserve protection.  The gall of Joy Behar - "Were you scared"?  Can we blame Gary for saying - "Go f*** yourself!".  Gary states very clearly at the beginning of the clip - "MY WIFE IS ABUSING ME!"

We believe him.

__________________________________________________________________

CNN VIDEO
- Janet Frank:  "There was an accident that occurred at his home. . . . We're gonna say it was an accident.  We don't know the details of the accident."


They don't know the details?!  They're "gonna
say it was an accident"?!  Where's a cop when you need one? 

_________________________________________________________________________


Todd Bridges:  Coleman "Very Mad at the World"

Actor Todd Bridges was interviewed on Larry King Live back in March and made the above statement in reference to Gary Coleman.  This is a common stereotype of short men.  They're depicted as being "mad at everybody" or "mad at the world".  Even the webmaster recalls a person or two saying the above about him as a boy.  When an entire group of people are a victim group and are not identified as a victim group and who are discriminated against freely and openly - WITH NO MEANS OF REDRESS WHATSOEVER - some of them might just be a little bit angry.  As a matter of fact they should be angry.  We like angry short men who see the world accurately.   Dullards, bromides, goldbrickers and con men we don't like - along with Giant fans and Son-of-a-Beaches. 

_________________________________________________________________________

Read this from nymag.com:  

 Gary Coleman Dead

Sad news:  Following an intracranial hemorrhage earlier this week that left him in a coma, Gary Coleman has been taken off life support by his wife.  He was 42.


Taken off life support???  After 2 days in a coma?!   Where did you ever hear of someone being taken off life support so quickly?  Another slight to the short-of-stature -- even in death.  Would any news outlet care to tell us why?  Do they even care?  I wonder if the doctors (along with his wife) were practicing their own brand of eugenics?  Has anyone actually asked how Coleman fell?  And where's law enforcement?  Shouldn't they be investigating this?  If by chance his death wasn't an accident, it sure does seem to be easy to get rid of a short guy doesn't it?

___________________________________________________________________


Gary Coleman Dead of intercranial hemorrage - sad life ends
from SFgate.com May 29, 2010

"Gary Coleman Dead of intercranial hemorrage - child actor dies" happened Friday after the famous child star passed away after a  severe head injury he sustained at his home in Utah caused bleeding in his brain and described as an intercranial hemorrage and a epidural hematoma.

snip             

 In part, his small stature, his parents, and his anger issues, and Coleman's celebrity mixed together to produce what from a distance looked like a terrible life.  The Lord called Gary Coleman away from that mess on Friday.

Gary Coleman has openly said his parents did not treat him correctly.  Edmonia Sue and W.G. Coleman adopted Coleman and from all accounts they did not care about him at all.  Gary sued them for "misappropriation of funds" and they counter-sued for defamation and breach of contract.

snip

Coleman sued them, won, and was awarded $1.3 million.  But nothing could recover the emotional damage Coleman sustained from four years of battling with his parents.

snip

"I don't have any friends and don't have any intention of making any.  People will stab you in the back, mistreat you, talk about me behind your back, steal from you.  And they're not really your friends.  (They're) only there because you're a celebrity or because they want to get something from you."

And this statement from the NY Daily News explains why the Lord took him on Friday:

"it's not her fault," he says.  "I always feel like I have the weight of the world on my shoulders every day I get up. . . . there are days I don't even want to get up."

On Friday, Gary Coleman got his wish.


A cruel article written by we know not who.  We believe Gary Coleman's problems - most of them - stemmed from his height.  The abuse and exploitation by his so-called parents, we believe, was based mainly on his small stature.  Of course there are no hate crime laws protecting the short-of-stature.  Gary's tall wife is now likely to inherit whatever money he had.  Arianne Cohen must be loving it.

____________________________________________________________________________

Drawing the Short Straw:  How Height Affects Your Life
Monday, May 10, 2010

In this brief audio segment 5'3" John Schwartz shows us "it's all a matter of confidence".  Isn't it strange how authors Ralph Keyes (The Height of Your Life), Stephen Hall (Size Matters), and John Schwartz (Short:  Walking Tall When You're Not Tall At All) seem to either neglect or deny the discrimination side of short stature.

You decide what the agenda of these guys' is.

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For Crime, Is Anatomy Destiny?
By PATRICIA COHEN
Published:  May 10, 2010

Poverty, greed, anger, jealousy, pride, revenge.  These are the usual suspects when it comes to discussing the causes of crime.  In recent years, however, economists have started to investigate a different explanation for criminal activity:  physical attributes.


Do you get the impression that some people want to "stick it" to the short-statured?

_____________________________________________________


Bullish:  Dealing with Short Men, Tall Men, and Their Various Battles for Dominance

By: Jen Dziura

Women are often judged by their weight, and indeed, it can be difficult to achieve the whippet-thin, rib-baring appearance desired by society (or at least for social dominance over other women).

But men are judged by their height, and there's nothing they can do about that.  There's no Celebrity Height Club.  Even with all the money in the world, Tom Cruise puts lifts in his shoes and calls it a day.


There is no "battle" for dominance.  Tall men dominate.  Short men try to survive and battle prejudice and discrimination as best they can -- alone.  Some rare insights though, and from a comedian no less.  She's no "Son-of-a-Beach".

_________________________________________________________________________


A Task Too Tall for a Soccer Great?
Barcelona's Pint-Sized Lionel Messi Has an Uphill Climb in his Champions League Match

By MATTHEW FUTTERMAN
April 28, 2010

Just 22 years old, Lionel Messi has already been declared the greatest player of his generation, a star who may even have the ability to become the greatest of all time.

Listed at 5 feet 6 inches tall and 148 pounds, Mr. Messi appears both shorter and slighter than even that.  He is a waif-like shrimp who has darted and wriggled his way to an absurd 35 goals in Barcelona's 42 Spanish league and Champions league games this season. . . .


A "waif-like shrimp".  More positives for the short.  This time from the Wall Street Journal.

__________________________________________________________________


Webmaster Not Taking Any S**t
Monday April 26, 2010

A couple of weeks ago I sent a congenial letter to Shannon Boodram who made a Youtube video entitled - 'Short Men - I'm Callin You Out' which we believe did not tend to paint short men in a positive light.  Ms. Boodram has now replied to the webmaster after a slightly less congenial e-mail was sent to the lovely young lady.  The text of her e-mail is here


We would have loved to have had an interview with her.  Lovely girl. 

__________________________________________________________________________

When (short) tyrants meet:  Mugabe welcomes Ahmadinejad to Zimbabwe
By MAIL FOREIGN SERVICE
Last updated at 9:43 AM on 23rd April 2010

They are two diminutive men, short in stature but long on anti-Western rhetoric.

Yesterday two of America's staunchest opponents embraced as Robert Mugabe welcomed Iranian president Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Zimbabwe.

In a ceremony full of pomp and circumstance at Harare's airport, the two leaders met, united by their politics.

The daily Herald newspaper, a mouthpiece of Mugabe's ZANU-PF party said Ahmadinejad's visit came after the West had declared Iran 'an axis of evil' and Zimbabwe a pariah state.

It accused the West of wanting to bully both nations using 'the might of its weapons of mass destruction'.


There's no doubt that heightism almost exclusively is discrimination against the short-of-stature.  At the height of the Cold War no one denigrated Fidel Castro because he was 6'2".

___________________________________________________________________________


F**K YOU SHORT PEOPLE

It's getting worse and worse all the time.  You've heard of Randy Newman's song "Short People".  Now there's a new song called the "Tall People Song".  Unfortunately it doesn't degrade Tall people, like you would expect it to.  No.  It degrades short people too!  Ain't that wonderful?!  "Short People" degrades short people and "Tall People Song" degrades short people too!  Heh!  Heh!  Heh!  Heh!  Heh!  Heh!  Heh!  The video actually describes the song as an "Anthem against heightism"!  And that's my eleventh exclamation point in only a few lines.  You've got to listen to it to believe it.  It finishes up by stating:

"For more information on heightism visit your local library or ask a Tall adult."

The Tallers are asserting themselves in lieu of this website and what we believe to be an increased awareness on the part of short people that they are truly the victims of heightism.  They're showing that there's one prejudice that they can keep.  They're showing that they can do what they want, when they want.  They're showing that,  "We can't discriminate against anyone based on race, religion, color, creed, political ideology, sex, sexual orientation, transgenderism, disability, national origin, weight, eye color hair color, bald, etc., but we can discriminate against you little man!  And we will continue to do so."


Yeah.  I can see how courageous you Tallers are.  We asked your girl to debate us and she didn't have the courage.  You're nothing but cowards.  You can't face anybody unless you have the advantage, and even with the height advantage you still can't face the webmaster.  Cowards!

__________________________________________________________________________

WYSIWYG

The creep known as Matthew S. Campisi has taken his famous 'In the Closet with heightism' farce off Youtube.  We did predict that he would you know.  We don't expect accolades for it though.  It was only a few days ago that it could be viewed here.  It can now be seen at Truveo.com and on Google Videos.  We posted a link some time ago to this piece of quintessential repugnance and if you looked at the stats on Youtube you would have seen that most of the viewers there were led there from this website.  We calculated approximately 20 or so visitors from the famous Nossa website.  We believe Campisi believed that folks were catching on by looking at the stats as to how few people actually visit his Nossa website, so he simply "removed" the great work of art from Youtube. We offer an apology for not issuing the below warning before however.  In any case, the webmaster now has a full and complete profile of Campisi.  We need no further knowledge of this untermensch's psyche.  We have no reservations about linking up to this "video" - if you can call it that - once again.  We have nothing to hide as far as Matthew S. Campisi is concerned.  As a matter of fact we believe that folks need to see the world as it is.  They need to see Campisi 'up close and personal' so-to-speak.  The snake-like Campisi really gives a good account of himself in this brief horror show.

We're sure the viewer especially appreciated 'the close-up'.  If ever a picture did anyone justice it was 'the close-up'.  It gave the viewer a real look-see into the mind and personality of 'the creature'.  I wonder if Campisi ever thought about starring in horror movies?  He's sure to have all the talent scouts after him now.  Forget about heightism and 9th rate singing and fantasies about being the next Billy Joel and organizations and ingathering money under false pretenses.  The real talent lies in horror.  Oh yeah.  Campisi has a real penchant for turning people off - approximately 6 and a half billion of them at last count.  Since this writer is already well familiar with 'the creature', my stomach managed to hold on to my supper long enough to watch the entire one minute and thirty-nine second segment.  Only hard experience with monsters saved me a major clean-up job.  The first thought that might enter the mind of a neophyte though, upon viewing the video might be a confusion with 'The Creature from the Black Lagoon'.  Let me allay the reader's fears; it's not.  'The Creature from the Black Lagoon is a handsome monster.  However, you may want to view a few good horror movies first, you know, just to be prepared.  Following the advice below is wise.  I guess the rational of the brief video is to show you the bad part right up front, get that out of the way, and then you can concentrate on more important things - like running to the bathroom and throwing up.  Don't worry though, the nausea is only temporary.  It only lasts as long as you look.  Once you've experienced REAL nausea, heightism will seem mild by comparison.  One good look at 'Campisi in the Closet' will cure you permanently of worrying about heightism, yes it will.  Heightism will never bother you again.  Guaranteed.  This boy may have something there after all.  (Incidentally, for you betting men - and women - out there, we'll be taking bets as to when the famous NOSSA 'board' decides to 'remove' the video from Google and Truveo.com too, in the interests of humanity.)

You make the comparison folks:

The Creature 'In the Closet'
The Creature from the Black Lagoon


Who do you think is handsomer?


What you see is what you get. -- By the way, it's really cool if you play the audio of 'The Creature from the Black Lagoon' while watching 'The Creature in the Closet'.  The 'Creature in the Closet' is not just a movie creation, it's the real thing.

_________________________________________________

THE PRESIDENT SPEAKS -
(The former president, that is)

'In The Closet With Heightism' Rears It's Ugly Head Again

WARNING: 

Do Not view this video unless precautions are taken!  When you click on the above link and click on 'In the closet with heightism' make certain that you don't view this video unless you have not eaten for 12 hours and have taken a strong dose of Dramamine at least 45 minutes before.  Make sure you are sitting down on a comfortable sofa, preferably one you can't fall off of if you pass out.  Also be sure to be in close proximity to a bathroom and have a friend or relative around just in case.  Have your cell phone on and a button set for 911.  As a matter of fact take the above precautions with most of the videos on this page as extreme caution is advised.

We thought it wise to display the warning first.  Saving lives is our first priority.

__________________________________________________________________________


Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme (Heightism 1968)    
By Joe Mangano
April 7, 2010

We know we're going to be accused of reading heightism into everything with this one, but we don't give a damn.  Several years ago I watched a special on PBS about entertainer and singer Andy Williams.  Andy Williams was a great singer and even had his own show - 'The Andy Williiams Show' from 1959-1971.  While watching the program I noticed what appeared to me to be one of those subtle examples of heightism that one sees, or rather doesn't see.

The program showed a segment taped in 1968 on the show.  Williams was singing 'Parsley, Sage, Rosemary and Thyme' with Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel.  The first thing that I noticed was the fact that the camera homed in several times to get a close-up of both Andy Williams and Art Garfunkel.  However there were no close-ups of Paul Simon.  The first thought that entered my mind was, of course, heightism.  I hadn't seen that segment again until just a few minutes before writing this.  I remembered the show and began wondering if I could find the segment on Youtube.  I could and did.  The cameras homed in on Williams 3 times and Art Garfunkel 3 times.  The only close-up of Simon was his fingers on the guitar strings; there were 4 of them - close-ups that is.  Ain't it so typical.  Can anyone give me one good reason why the cameramen saw a need to show close-ups of both Williams and Garfunkel but failed to see a need to show 5'3" Paul Simon's face up close?  He wasn't a bad looking guy.  Are the heightists going to say now, "Grow up little man!" before I even finish writing this short piece?  This is an example of how short men are ignored in the real world.  People just sort of do it; no thought required.


Watch the segment and see for yourself.
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Joshua Teen Commits Suicide Following Bullying

JOSHUA (CBS 11 / TXA 21) - Parents send their children to school hoping they'll be safe and protected.  Sadly, more and more often, that does not appear to be the case.  Bullying may have claimed the life of another North Texas youngster.  Joh Carmichael took his own life Sunday after what some say was bullying by bigger classmates.

Jon Carmichael was an 8th grader at Loflin Middle School, which just opened two weeks ago.  Those closest to the 13-year-old say he had been bullied for years.  Jeremy Stanbaugh was one of Carmichael's best friends.  He said Carmichael was bullied "because he was short." . . .


If Martha Stewart can cut a wooden figure of Tom Cruise and take turns with Arianne Cohen to make a joke of his height, what do you think can happen to an average 13 year-old in an average school?

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Chinese Dwarfs Start Their Own Village

by MIKE BRODY


(MYFOX NATIONAL) - A community of dwarfs in China is tired of being discriminated against and is doing something about it.

The Telegraph reports that the people of Kunming, a mountain community in southern China, have set up their own village to escape discrimination from normal sized people.

All fo the 120 residents are under 4-feet, 3-inches tall, and they run their own police force and fire department.  The group also has turned itself into a tourist attraction by building mushroom houses and living and dressing like fairy tale characters.

"As small people we are used to being pushed around and exploited by big people. . . .


Some wise and determined short people.  Why is it that the Chinese seem to be the only ones that are doing anything about heightism?

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Typical Deluded Short Guy in 'Dreamland'                                       

We'll bet that he actually thinks he might "get it on" with one of these girls.  All it took was one Tall guy to pass by.  The Tall guy didn't even have to be the same race as the girls.  And yes, we believe the girls were laughing AT the short guy.


Note how quickly the short guy seemed to understand exactly why the girls were cheering when the the other guy passed. 

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20/20 In Touch - Can Human Growth Hormone (HGH) heighten confidence?

This 20/20 segment highlights 2 youngsters who are significantly shorter than their peers and the pain associated with heightism


The father of one of the youngsters makes some very astute observations with respect to prejudice against the short-of-stature. 

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Broadcast of April 1, 2010 - The Tall Show - again

Further thoughts on 'The Tall Show' and the constant put-downs of Tom Cruise

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Broadcast of March 30, 2010 – ‘The Short Show’

The webmaster discusses the very heightist 'The Tall Show' and other topics with guests 'Brian' and 'R K'. 

'The Tall Show' gets its come-uppance along with "Room 101" and a few other things.

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THE TALL SHOW

Heightism Now Has Martha Stewart's Endorsement (with a little help from Arianne "Supremacy" Cohen)



On February 18, 2010, the Martha Stewart Show had a special segment entitled "The Tall Show" depicting, for the most part - Tall women.  The entirety of the audience was required to be 6 feet in height or more.  All of the guests - the vast majority of which were women (and the audience too) - were over 6 feet in height as well.  Convicted criminal* Martha Stewart, a shortie at 5'9", was actually wearing what appeared to be 5 inch heels, making her 6'2".  (Believe me she didn't appear 6 foot 2; perhaps she's another one of those who likes to "enhance" herself by exaggerating her height).  Good old Arianne Cohen, the lass who's "too big" to debate the webmaster literally stole the show with witty heightist remarks about Tallers' advantages in the good old world.  (Good for Tallers' that is)  Diva Martha even saw fit to have a bust of Tom Cruise for the audience and the Tall girls to spit at and throw fruit at if they wanted to.  Martha just loves to pat short people on the head too.  All in all it was a rollickin' good time for the Tallers sticking it to short people - especially short men.

*In fairness to Martha Stewart, she proclaimed her innocence on the charge she was convicted of.  The CNN article dated July 20, 2004 stated she said,  "I didn't cheat the little people . . . we're all little people".




We suspect that if Martha had done 'The Tall Show' 6 years earlier, her sentence might have been just a little harsher.  "We're all little people", she says.  Yeah, we can tell by the way she pats Tom Cruise' bust on the head.

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Berlusconi buys Napoleon's 'priceless' bed - and asks for it to be widened (plenty of room for visitors, then)
By Nick Pisa
Last updated at 8:18 PM on 25th February 2010

It is not the first time Silvio Berlusconi's bedroom activities have made headlines.  But on this occasion, the colourful Italian prime minister has chosen a nocturnal companion fit for a true leader.  Berlusconi, 73 has bought an antique fourposter bed that once belonged to his hero, Napoleon Bonaparte.  And in the Napoleonic spirit of expansion, he has asked for the bed - complete with canopy, bronze fittings and eagle heads on its bedposts - to be widened.  Berlusconi made the purchase in Rome while visiting the antiques emporium of friend Annamaria Quattrini.  She refused to disclose what he paid for the bed, but described it as 'priceless'.

snip

He has also likened himself to Napoleon, the megalomaniac French emperor who made up for his 'shortcomings by becoming a tyrant, several times.  Italian newspapers often depict him as the miniscule emperor.  During a TV interview in 2006, Mr. Berlusconi said:  'Only Napoleon did more than me - but at least I am taller than him.' . . .




In an article on smh.com.au dated April 9, 2008 Berlusconi claimed that he was taller than Putin and Sarkozy.  Said Berlusconi, "I'm taller than Putin or Sarkozy.  I'm tall like (Romano) Prodi".  Apparently we have another deluded short man who will say anything to make himself feel taller than he is.   

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Figures Reveal Executives Are Focusing On Beauty And Height To Keep Jobs In Recession
21/01/2010

By Lea Pachta


Sales of plus size outfits and height increasing footwear rocket 3.6%

Businessmen and women are turning to specialist "plus size" retailers in a bid to compete with their taller and more beautiful colleagues during the recession.  Figures released last week by N Brown Group plc, which owns the High & Mighty, Jacamo and Simply Be outlets which cater for large women and short men, reveal sales rose 3.6 percent in the 19 weeks to January 9.  According to N Brown, "Sales have been particularly encouraging in the footwear and menswear product ranges".

While the UK suffer its worst recession since the Great Depression and unemployment continues to rise, more and more executives are going that extra mile to make themselves more competitive in the workplace.  Successive studies have shown that physically attractive women and taller men not only earn more, but rise to more senior leadership positions.

Research suggests that for men height has an extremely important role in workplace success. . . .
                                     


I wonder where they could have gotten that idea?

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Con:  Short people stand tall despite stature
by Sonny Long    January 11, 2010

At 5 feet, 6 inches tall, Victoria County Judge Don Pozzi never gives his height much thought.

But he doesn't think being vertically challenged has affected his career path.

"I've never found my height to be a problem," said Pozzi, who practiced law for more than 30 years before being elected county judge eight years ago.

"In my professions, height doesn't matter," Pozzi said.

The same holds true for famous men throughout history who achieved the pinnacles of their careers, including Napoleon Bonaparte and English poet Alexander Pope who stood only 4 feet, 6 inches tall.

Even if there is a perceived or actual bias against short people, research reveals some good news . . .


 "Short people stand tall despite stature".  That's like saying Black people are White Knights despite color.  

 --- And here's another article for you from the same writer ---
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Related Article:  Tall people have an advantage
by Sonny Long    January 11, 2010

Don Truman says he is 5 feet, 17 inches tall.

Some people would call it 6 feet, 5 inches, but the owner of Truman Transfer and Storage in Victoria never gives it much thought.

"When you live it, you don't realize it," said the 58-year-old who runs the family business that's been in operation since 1912.

Similarly, DeWitt Count Judge Ben Prause, at 6 feet, 4 inches tall, has never perceived an advantage to being tall . . .


The webmaster is not going to comment on these articles.   Keep in mind the author's name - Sonny LONG.

That should tell us something.


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The President's* Greatest Videos

Then vice-president 'Luda'-Chris on Growth Hormone
'Luda'-Chris lends us some of his vast knowledge in endocrinology and genetics in this video.

'Luda'-Chris on Katherine Mangu-Ward
In this famous video Hamre vents his anger at folks like Katherine Mangu-Ward and double-standards for short people.  'Luda'-Chris made this video in response to the webmaster's broadcast of April 27, 2009 - 'Ridiculous Heightism Laws' in all likelihood to 'show Joe Mangano a thing or two')

Eloquent isn't he?  The 'Pwesident' obviously took a public speaking course or two.  His incredible knowledge and insights simply cannot be matched.  It's difficult to figure out though why the folding doors, microwave, toiletries and bed are on one side in one video and on the other side in the other video, although it could be dual-personalities.  It's like eat, sleep, and excrete - as well as broadcast - all within a 10-foot radius time again folks.  If the webmaster isn't mistaken the folding doors lead to the bathroom.  Incidentally, we searched the famous NOSSA website for the famous 'Chris Hamre Podcast' of October 2008, but it seems to have done a disappearing act very much like a few of Matthew Campisi's famous youtube videos.  If this is what's representing short people then we're all in real trouble.

*  Both videos were taped when 'Luda'-Chris Hamre was vice-president of NOSSA COMMA INC. the organization that got started after the webmaster made complaints about the website - www.nossaonline.org - to state agencies for false representation.  'Luda'-Chris by the way - by his own admission - received Growth Hormone as a child - TO MAKE HIM GROW! 

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Taylor Swift Wooed by Boys Like Girls Frontman

February 7, 2010 / Author:  Valerie Nome


Now that Taylor Swift is on the market after her late 2009 split from Valentine's Day co-star Taylor Lautner, she has been out on the town with everyone from John Mayer to Glee's Cory Monteight.

Like the girl she sings about in her smash hit You Belong With Me, the country/pop princess, 20, doesn't have to look far to find a suitor:  Boys Like girls frontman Martin Johnson, her duet partner on their hit Two is Better than One.

"Taylor Swift is the perfect human being," he tells me.  "She's great.  She's such a nice, wholehearted, sweet girl, and she's the biggest superstar in the world.  My mom would be stoked if I brought her home."

To catch Taylor's attention, guys must be funny.

"Definitely somebody who can make me laugh," she tells me.  "Somebody who had a compatible sense of humor with me.  That would be the most important thing."

They should also be taller than the 5'11" singer.

snip

She continues, "It just depends on what group of people you're around.  If there are a few scattered tall people in the room or in the group of people that you're talking to, it's not awkward at all.  But if you're around A BUNCH OF LITTLE, MINI PEOPLE AND YOU'RE THE ONLY GIANT in the circle, it can be kind of interesting" . . .



One of Supportfortheshort.org's frequenters e-mailed me the link to the above article on the twit named 'Taylor Swift'.  Cut in the mold of people like Nicole Kidman, she is a Tall lass, standing 5'11".  She has blondish hair and of course, an air of superiority that can only come from a long-standing abode in the clouds.  To see a photo of this 21year-old one is reminded of a young Nicole Kidman, who of course, is another inhabitant of the stratosphere also standing in at a larger-than-life 5'11".  Like most Tallers and particularly tall women today, who are airing their seeming natural hate for short people, specifically short men, more easily probably than at any other time in the past, she has a natural sense of who she is based on the distance between the soles of her feet and the top of her head at maximum elongation.  Maybe we should introduce her to Arianne 'The sky is the limit' Cohen, that is, if she hasn't taken some tall lessons from her already.

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Joe Pops The Question to Arianne One More Time

Joe Mangano sent Arianne Cohen one last e-mail.  One last attempt to initiate a meeting of the minds for a first-time-in-history debate.  The World's Pre-eminent Tall Expert vs Joe Mangano, defender of the little guy - mano e mano.  The seeming World's greatest defender of Tallers vs the webmaster.  Height vs Right.  Is Arianne really the expert she claims to be?

We shall see.

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ATTENTION SHORT PEOPLE:  THIS ONE WILL KNOCK YOUR SOCKS OFF (AND EVERYONE ELSE'S TOO)


The webmaster discovered this article on www.overlawyered.com -

By reader acclaim:  great moments in "targeted disabilities"
by WALTER OLSON on FEBRUARY 4, 2010

The federal government is seeking applicants who are mentally ill, mentally retarded or both to work as lawyers in the Justice Department.  Specifically, a job announcement for "up to 10 experienced attorneys for the position of Trial Attorney in the voting Section in Washington, D.C." contains the following language:

The Civil Rights Division encourages qualified applicants with targeted disabilities to apply.  Targeted disabilities are deafness, blindness, missing extremities, partial or complete paralysis, convulsive disorder, mental retardation, mental illness, severe distortion of limbs and/or spine.  Applicants who meet the qualification requirements and are able to perform the essential functions of the position with or without reasonable accommodation are encouraged to identify targeted disabilities in response to the questions in the Avue application system seeking that information.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Yes.  You read it correctly.  People who are mentally retarded and people with mental illness are encouraged to apply.  These are lawyers they're looking for.  Let's see now - Race, religion, skin color, creed, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, age, ethnic background, pregnancy AND deafness,, blindness, missing extremities, partial or complete paralysis, convulsive disorder, mental retardation, mental illness, severe distortion of limbs and/or spine.
  The "mental retardation" and "mental illness" part takes the cake.  And if short people make a complaint about heightism, by God they're too sensitive!

Here's the link to the original at the justice.gov website.


Wake up Short People.

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Webmaster Invites Arianne Cohen to Debate
Tuesday February 2, 2010

Joe Mangano sent Arianne Cohen an e-mail at her website - ariannecohen.com - with a most congenial invitation to engage in a rather friendly debate about height-related issues.  While listening to Miss Cohen's repartee on more than one radio interview, it appears to the webmaster that she feels that the discrimination against the short-of-stature that she and her fellow Tallers benefit from, is wonderful and beautiful.  She conveys the image that it is wonderful to be Tall and that Tall people make more money, are viewed more as leaders, given power as leaders, get more respect and that Tall men can literally date whomever they want to date and that really folks, that's just not enough.  Furniture, clothes, homes and even airplanes should be re-designed to suit the 'Stratospheric' crowd.  The fact that Tall people benefit in a 'big way' from the discrimination and indignities heaped upon the short-statured apparently means nothing to Miss Cohen.  She wants it all.

She described herself in an interview displayed on Amazon as:

     "The World's Pre-eminent Tall expert"

Well, the webmaster is more than willing to give her a chance to prove it.  She has not yet responded to the webmaster's generous offer, but I think she will.  She's Big enough to handle the webmaster.  She's 'man' enough to take him on.  She can handle any little squirt, eat him up and spit him out.  And it will only confirm what all the good nutrition, warmth, nurturing, and 'looking-up to' has done for her.  However, if she doesn't accept the webmaster's kind invitation then it will only prove the webmaster's viewpoint - and that is - that short people are victims of an unrecognized prejudice that Tallers are aware of and that they benefit from and have benefited from throughout time and that they are not willing to bring this into the light because that might herald the beginning of the end of their dominance.

Once again we call upon her to accept the webmaster's kind invitation.



SEE THE "WORLD'S PRE-EMINENT TALL EXPERT".  CHECK HER OUT HERE.

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'The Tall Book' is here!  Listen to this Interview.

Six-foot three inch Arianne Cohen is as hot as a firecracker.  And I'm referring to her book - "The Tall Book".  What else could we expect from an intelligent, wealthy, sophisticated Taller who just seems to enjoy life in the Stratosphere.  She picked the perfect interviewer in a bum named Mike O'Brien - all 6'2" of him.  He states:

Cohen mined through years of scientific studies to write 'The Tall Book', a celebration of life from on high.  She admits her claims of vertical superiority have upset a small group of people - well, actually a group of small people.  She gets a lot of e-mail over her claim that Tall people are, on average , smarter.  I asked her to explain this finding and to speak slowly for all the non-Tall people listening.

Spoken like a true Taller Mike.

The jokes just never stop.  If you listen carefully to what is spoken and substitute the word 'Tall' with the name of any ethnicity, race, skin color, creed, sex, sexual orientation, religion, etc. then we're talking about a serious matter of blatant and malicious discrimination.  And there are legal ramifications for that.  Of course when it's short people - especially short men - who are shown blatant discrimination, then 'All's wonderful in the Land of Oz'.  Oh don't feel hurt little people!  That's just the way it is.  It's wonderful and beautiful to be Tall.


How could it be otherwise with all that good nutrition, warmth and unconscious favoritism for those who inhabit the highest altitudes.

Wake up short people.

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Broadcast of January 24, 2010

Part I - Prologue
Joe discusses experimental evidence for the existence of heightism and also mentions the opinions of academics on the influence of height and warms the listeners up for his interview with Dr. Jeff Gardere.

Part II - Interview with Dr. Jeff Gardere
A barn-burner of a broadcast as the distinguished and articulate Dr. Gardere lends his knowledge and expertise to Joe Mangano's to further confirm the heightism phenomenon and educate people on its existence.  Dr. Gardere also advises short people on what they must do to help make a dent in the armor of heightism.

Dr. Gardere's website is www.drjeffgardere.com

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Rushing Attempting to Re-introduce Bill on Height and Weight Discrimination

January 17, 2010
By Joe Mangano

It was a little less than two years ago that the webmaster appeared at a State Senate hearing in Boston, Massachusetts the purpose of which was to hear testimony on the possible passage of a bill preventing height and weight discrimination in venues like housing and the workplace in the State of Massachusetts.  The virtual cavalcade of fat women who appeared and dominated the hearing from start to finish left an indelible impression on the webmaster, and it made me realize the extent of the phenomenon that I refer to as "The Silence of the Short"*.

* Copyright 2010 Joe Mangano

There were only three short people who appeared.  The panel seemed to have very little interest in pursuing questioning of those three (myself included).  It further confirmed my own belief that large size, whether it's tall height or heavy weight, gets its due, gets its respect no matter what.  It seems that anything large cannot and will not be ignored.  Even morbidly obese people as most of the women testifying there were, were asked numerous questions and the panel members at least appeared to have a great interest in the fat womens' difficulties.  On the other hand, the panel members seemed to have little or no interest in the problems of the short people appearing there.  It was like - yeah, yeah, yeah,, next customer please.  This is part and parcel of the situation that the short find themselves in perpetually. . . .


The hearing is scheduled for Wednesday January 27, 2010 at 10:30 A.M. in Room A-2 of the Massachusetts State House in Boston.  If you'd like to write a letter to the committee stating why you think the Bill should be passed, please contact legislative aid Tracy Choi.  Contact information is:

Tracy Choi
Legislative Aide
Representative Byron Rushing
Second Division Chair
State House Room 121
Boston, MA 02133
P:  617.722.2006
Tracy.Choi@state.ma.us


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Height Issues
Why Height Doesn't  Matter
(from Men's Health)

Four short men who have survived ridicule and prejudice share their success secrets

Don Murdoch
Height:  5'3"
Age:  36
Occupation:  Police officer, Philadelphia SWAT team

It's a sweltering summer night in Philadelphia's Badlands.  That's the nickname for the 25th Police District, where Officer Don Murdoch fights to keep some semblance of order.  By his own admission, this place is "infested" with drugs:  Crack, heroin, cocaine, marijuana, pills . . . it's all here, for sale on every corner.  Take one dealer off the street, and another will replace him in less than 15 minutes.  More than 80,000 people packed within a 5.4-square-mile area make it a hornet's nest of theft, assault, and murder.

Murdoch, recently reassigned to SWAT, was a narcotics officer here for 2 years.  He's had his nose broken, had gun barrels pointed at his head, and even been bitten three times -- not by dogs, but by people he was struggling with.  All this would be challenge enough for any cop, but Murdoch stands at just 5'3" and weighs 165 pounds.  He's known in the hood as the "little white guy."  And although he's 36 ears old, he looks 26, which compounds the problem.

"I see officers who are 6'3" tell people to do something and they do it, " he says.  "But when I say the exact same thing, they ignore me.  They have no respect for an officer with my size and physical appearance.  Let's face it:  I don't scare too many people."

It took a while for Murdoch to learn that lesson, though.  As a rookie, he got into lots of scuffles as he was tested by the denizens of his district.  But he gradually realized he wasn't going to overpower or even stare anyone down.  So he became smarter.  Now when he pulls someone over to make an arrest, he cuffs the person inside the car.  Or when he detains a suspicious character, he acts like it's no big deal while waiting for backup.  And, in a strange kind of way, he's learned to enjoy this strategy more.  "They hate being tricked," he quips.

Unlike the other men profiled on these pages, who claim to give their height little or no thought on a daily basis, Murdoch must stay constantly aware of his stature.  If he disregards it when he's trying to defuse a situation, he could end up dead.  For him, height does matter.

Out on the street, it's as if he never left grade school.   People see his height before they see his badge and automatically challenge his authority.  During a school-dismissal detail, he's verbally abused by kids, many of who tower above him. . . . .


You know, if height didn't matter there wouldn't have been a need to write this article and depict four short men who are "proving" "Why Height Doesn't Matter".  There's a lot to be discussed about this article and we may do it in a broadcast or two.

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From Yahoo! ANSWERS --

Why do women hate short men so much?

The other day at a party I approach this girl who is about my height (5'4") and say "hi" to her.  she looks me up and down and mumbles "jerk" and walks away.

I wasn't rude at all, had not had a drink (in fact, I don't drink alcohol) and she didn't know me from before.  Yet, this is the sort of reaction short men have to face day in and day out.

Why?    


Below is the "Best Answer" - Chosen by Voters -

I have never heard of this before . . . i usually just pat them on the head and say "look at the cute little munchkin".


Yahoo! is right in step.  It's always either a joke or the short man's fault.
  It's not women who are prejudiced.  No, of course not; it couldn't be.  Women have been oppressed for too long. 

Wake up short men.


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Campisi's Famous Videos Say their Goodbye's
January 13, 2010

It is with great regret that we must inform frequenters of Supportfortheshort.org that some of Matthew Campisi's famous Videos have - unfortunately - made their final curtain call.  The famous "Room and Board in the Psycho Ward" video has said it's good-bye's to Youtube forever.  Campisi's famous "Bathroom frolics" video is now gone from the scene.  Oh! If only we could harken back and re-live those exciting films all over again.  "Alien Landing" has also made an 'exit, stage left'.  And we thought we had definitive proof at last of the existence of alien life.

Oh well.

We are though, very pleased to announce that there is some good news however, and that is the fact that 'Matthew Campisi's famous "Closet" is still goin' strong on the old Youtube.  Yesiree.  It's still swooning audiences everywhere.  Even more importantly the famous - 'Learn to Drive the Matthew Campisi Way' is currently still as hot as a tamale and setting a fine example for new drivers everywhere.

We are still holding out some hope that these don't just "fade away like an old soldier".  We bravely hope against all hope that the masterful Treasurer of the at least 20+ member NOSSA COMMA, INC.  (We think that the membership might even be a lot more at this point.  It's so wonderful to see NOSSA COMMA, INC. growing like this!) will find it in his generous heart to magnanimously keep those videos up for awhile.  After all, how is everyone going to get a good look at the tike who fled to Pensacola, Florida back in 2006 to become a famous airport policeman and building inspector?  I wonder if the wonderful little man is still in Pensacola?  He may have high-tailed outta' there for some new digs.  Oh well, no matter.  We all have our problems.  People remember a man's work's of art now don't they?  Let's not curse the day that Matthew Campisi's famous videos were no more.  Let's rather celebrate the days that they enthralled us and gave us such memorable moments.  And anyways who knows what masterpieces little Mattie has yet to create - eh?


Please watch for "The NOSSA FILES".
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Supportfortheshort.org歡迎北京,中國!的點擊來自北京及周邊已經採取了顯著的增加在最近的過去。我們歡迎意見,從講英語的中國誰是訪問本網站。請發送到:webmaster@supportfortheshort.org謝謝,網站管理員

Supportfortheshort.org Welcomes Beijing, China!

The hits from in and around Beijing have made a remarkable increase in the recent past.  We welcome comments from English-speaking Chinese who are accessing this website.  Thank you.

The webmaster


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Joseph Schmidt 1904-1942


The Rumanian tenor Joseph Schmidt seemed to be a musical Sunday's child, predestined to have a successful and glorious career.  The son of Jewish parents - Sara and Wolf Schmidt - , he was born on March 4, 1904, in the village of Davidende as the third child.  He had two sisters, Regina and Betty.  Four and two years old a that moment.  Davidende, now Davideni is a village in Boekinova, Rumania.  At the beginning of the Great War he moved with his parents and his two sisters to the village of Czernowitz, where he went through the local grammar school without much difficulty, showing a particular feeling for languages.  At home they speak Rumanian, at school German and because they were Jewish he also learned Hebrew.  He sang purely as a hobby in the synagogue choir and it was not until he was about twenty when it became clear that his future lay in music.

By that time, his voice had developed into a lyric tenor of such a remarkable quality, that he was frequently asked as a soloist with the various choirs in Czernowitz and its surroundings.  In 1924, he even ventured a solo evening with folk songs, Jewish songs and opera arias from Puccini, Verdi, Leoncavallo, Bizet and Rossini.  The evening was such a success, that the twenty-year-old Joseph Schmidt decided to go to Berlin to study singing.  In Berlin, he was taken in hospitably by his uncle Leo Engel, who became closely involved with his nephew's musical career and would even become his impresario.  In a musical sense, too, Joseph Schmidt did well in Berlin.  Soon, he drew the attention of the singing master Hermann Weissenborn, at whose intercession he was accepted at the state conservatory of Berlin.  The only thing to briefly interrupt his way to the top was the military draft, in 1926.  He served in the Boekinva and to his good fortune he was placed at the military band.  He had to play the big drum.  Must have been a funny contrast.  But he also was asked to sing for the officers.  Immediately after his military service he was cantor at the Czernowitz synagogue for a while, but in 1929, he returned to Berlin, determined to build up a professional singing career from then on.

Joseph Schmidt had one great handicap for the profession of opera tenor, though:  his length.  A singer of only five feet tall would only be able to perform a limited number of parts on the opera stage, and these certainly did not include the parts for which he seemed destined in view of his vocal qualities.  In some scenes, his height of only five feet could be concealed, but more often it could not, certainly not in lovers' duets with sopranos towering over him head and shoulders. . . .


In these youtube videos - 'Joseph Schmidt sings live in Holland' and 'ich singe dir ein Liebislied, Joseph Schmidt', it is quite apparent the extent to which "they" went to make him appear taller.  Notice in the above article how it is 'admitted' that his short-stature was a "handicap" to be "concealed".  Here's another page on  myspace.com with more videos.  The viewer will notice the attempts at concealment of his height.

Height - the physical trait that is "so trivial".

________________________________________________

Short Men Problems - Heightism, Workplace Discrimination

Men come in all sizes and shapes and nothing can be done about it as it has already been structured genetically.  This tends to create problems for shorter men when it comes to buying clothes, accessories or even dating women.  Not only these, shorter men are subjected to racism which is popularly known as heightism, workplace discrimination, etc.  There are as such no solutions to these problems.  The only way out is to be more confident, improve their appearance and be witty enough to deal with any situations. . . .


Imagine telling an individual of any race, religion, color, creed, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, age, national origin, ethnic background, disability, transgenderism, even weight - that there are no solutions to the discrimination they face and that they must be witty enough to handle any violation of their rights or any indignity that comes their way.  Imagine.

Wait till you read the lone comment posted there - by a short man no less.


________________________________________________________________

Do tall men get all the breaks?  How to cope if you're a short man

By Howard Seidman, Staff Writer, myOptumHelath
Content provided by
MyOptumHealth.com


Men in the U.S. seem to be getting taller.  The National Center for Health Statistics reported that the average height of men aged 20 to 70 years grew from about 5 feet 8 inches in 1960 to 5 feet 9.5 inches in 2002.

While this height increase may seem like a boon for men, it may not be good news for those of shorter stature.  Short men may battle long-held perceptions that being tall means you are more attractive, dominant and even more fertile.

In the animal kingdom, larger males are more likely to dominate, win fights and monopolize access to females.  That "animal instinct" may have carried over to humans, especially in the workplace.

Better jobs and pay?
Taller adults tend to hold jobs of higher status and earn more money.  research dating back to 1915 shows that executives are often taller than the men who report to them.  The leadership-to-height link extends to other fields as well.

snip

Taller people have higher average incomes and earnings, too.  Each one-inch increase in height over the average brings a 2 percent to 2.5 percent increase in income.

On the social front, studies have found that taller men may get more replies to dating requests, have more physically attractive girlfriends and more reproductive success.

Coping with a tall world
The nod to tall males, whether in school or at work, may lead to self-esteem problems in shorter men.  Low self-esteem can cause:

Anxiety, stress, loneliness and depression
Problems with friendships and relationships
Impaired school and job performance
Drug and alcohol abuse

If you have low self-esteem, you may find that you need a lot of positive experiences to counteract negative feelings and thoughts.  . . .


The writer of the article goes on to state that short men should, rebut their inner critic, practice self-nurturing, and get help from others like a good therapist who "can help you learn more about yourself and let go of things that may be holding you back".
  I wonder if the author of this article would think of telling someone who was a victim of racial, religious, ethnic, sexual or any other type of discrimination to go get help from a therapist so that they can "let go of the things that may be holding them back" - Don't you? 
________________________________________________

Walking "Tall"


If you're thinking that the webmaster is doing a 'matthew campisi' with the title "Walking "Tall"" - think again.  We don't "Stand Tall" against discrimination here.  We just take a stand against heightism.

We just found a website called Tallmenshoes.com.  The website obviously sells shoes to give men that 'extra lift' that is so important in today's competitive society.  Everyone knows that taller people are more successful, more prolific, more attractive, more vibrant, more intelligent, have newer cars and have more money.  It's the tall person's right to live well.  Wouldn't you agree?  Everyone knows that the taller candidate usually wins the election, the taller man usually gets the girl, and the taller man beats up the shorter man.  We could go on and on.  The list of advantages for the tall is endless.  Here you go short men; sample some of the wisdom of this web page:
-----------------------------
Advantages of Being Taller
Does greater height really bring a person advantages in real life?  If yes, exactly what are those advantages?  How big are those advantages?  In what aspects of life?  Why does height bring a person advantages?  How can you obtain the same advantages even without enough height?  The information in this bonus will answer these questions based on historical facts about height, as well as actual statistics of people's attitude towards height.


Question:  Does greater height really bring a person advantages in real life?
Answer:  Yes, greater height really brings a person lots of advantages in real life.


Question:  Exactly what are those advantages?  How big are those advantages?  In what aspects of life?
Answer:  Greater height may bring a person:
1. Better job/career opportunities.
    a)  every extra inch in height brought a man an additional $600 per year in salary.
    b)  Job recruiters, choosing between men of comparable backgrounds and skills, select the taller man 72% of the time.
    c)  Promotions/Raises come faster to the taller man.


2. Better dating/mating opportunities.
    a)  Women find taller men "Significantly more attractive".
    b)  A careful study shows that out of 79 women, only 2 are willing to date a man who is short than themselves.

3. More respect and support from other people.
    a)  90% of company chief executives are "above average" in height.
    b)  19 out of the last 23 U.S. Presidential elections have been won by the taller man.

Question:  Why does height bring a person advantages?
Answer:  Height brings a person advantages because:

1. All species of insects and animals begin small.  Helplessness and weakness are usually brought by being small or short.  so lacking of size or height has been naturally associated with weakness and vulnerability.
2. People are usually intimidated by size so greater height gives a person a primary physical advantage.  This becomes the basis for all the height discrimination.
3. Greater Height makes us feel greater, better, and superior.  so most people want to be tall and favor tall people more than short people.

Question:  How can you obtain the same advantages even without enough height?
Answer:  To obtain the same advantages without enough height, you should try the following:
http://www.shortsupport.org/Essays/JoeMangano1.html#Dos


The Tallers apparently don't have enough already.  They even have to appropriate information from the webmaster's essay -
'Heightism - The Last Bastion of Discrimination'.  Too much is never enough for the Tall Man.

________________________________________________

South Korea Stretches for Success
By CHOE SANG-HUN
Published:  December 22, 2009

Seoul, South Korea - With acupuncture needles trembling from the corners of her mouth like cat's whiskers, Moon Bo-in, 5, whined with fear.  But the doctor, wearing a yellow gown patterned with cartoon characters, poked more needles into her wrists and scalp. 

"It's O.K., dear," said her mother, Seo Hye-kyong.  "It will help make you pretty and tall.  It will make you Cinderella."

Swayed by the increasingly popular conviction that height is crucial to success, South Korean parents are trying all manner of remedies to increase their children's stature, spawning hundreds of growth clinics that offer hormone shots, traditional Eastern treatments and special exercises.

"In our society, it's all about looks," said Ms. Seo, 35.  "I'm afraid my daughter is shorter than her peers.  I don't want her to be ridiculed and lose self-confidence because of her height."

Ms. Seo spends $770 a month on treatments for her daughter and her 4-year-old son at one such clinic, Hamsoa, which has 50 branches across the country and offers a mix of acupuncture, aromatherapy and a twice-a-day tonic that contains deer antler, ginseng and other medicinal herbs.


"Parents would rather add 10 centimeters to their children's stature than bequeath them on billion won," said Dr. Shin Dong-gil, a Hamsoa doctor . . .


Acupuncture? Aromatherapy?  Deer antler?? Whether it's the U.S.A. or Europe or outer Mongolia for that matter, it always seems to be the same story.  There always seems to be a bunch of people out to exploit the fear of being short, and there always seem to be plenty of people who will try anything to either grow themselves or to help make their children grow.  Instead of trying to make short kids grow taller maybe somebody in South Korea could try a new twist and start a website and fraudulently represent it as a legitimate incorporated non-profit organization claiming to fight "heightism" and ingather money under the false pretense of one.  Pretend that, they "don't want their children to grow up that way".   Then no one would suspect . . .

Or would they?

_______________________________________________________________

Taking Sprinting to New Heights
The 6-foot-5 Usain Bolt set two more world records.  Why haven't there been more tall sprinters?
By Edward McClelland
Poster Thursday, Aug. 20, 2009 at 5:19 PM ET


On Thursday Jamaica's Usain Bolt set his second world record of the week, breaking his own mark by running the 200 meters in 19.19 seconds.  Bolt, who stands 6-foot-5, has been leaving short sprinters in his dust for the last two years.  In 2008, after Bolt rewrote the record book at the Beijing Olympics, Edward McClelland explained how the Jamaican's huge frame helps him run so fast and pondered why tall sprinters had never succeeded before.  The original article is reprinted below.

Usain Bolt, the 21-year-old Jamaican who set a world record in winning the Olympic 100-meter dash this weekend, is the most extraordinary sprinter in track-and-field history.  Not because he's so fast, but because he's so big.  At 6-foot-5, Bolt has been called by Sports Illustrated "the tallest world-class sprinter in history".  He's easy to spot on the track, Goliath-ing over his human-scale opponents. . . .


This article and the one above it are out of chronological order.  And the next one after that may be as well.  But it doesn't matter.  What does matter is that the Tallers are living up to their full potential as human beings and being, truly, all that they can be.  It's wonderful and it's beautiful.  We are so happy for them.

________________________________________________

January 6, 2010
Webmaster Batting a Thousand.  His predictions are now "Officially" Confirmed:
'Luda'-Chris Hamre now 'Pwesident'-Elect 'Luda'-Chris
-And Matthew Campisi is treasurer.



NOSSA Buffoon Talking about 'NOSSA Mission'
They didn't form this organization because a girl rejected them at the bar the other night or someone called them a name in 3rd grade.

No.  They didn't.

NOSSA, Inc. was formed after the webmaster's complaints about the website - www.nossaonline.org were made to two State agencies (one of them the New York State Attorney General's Office) in 2006.  The webmaster's suspicions about Matthew S. Campisi and his website were confirmed when United States Secretary of State's Jurisdiction searches at that time for 'National Organization of Short Statured Adults, Incorporated' found no evidence of their existence.  We're going to be covering that, and more, in "The NOSSA Files".


Don't be surprised if "NOSSA Mission" makes an unscheduled departure from Youtube sometime soon.


_________________________________________________________________________


GIANTS CRUSHED 44-7 BY VIKINGS

Vikings sail to bye with 44-7 victory over Giants

MINNEAPOLIS(AP)  Sunday January 3, 2010  Time will soon tell whether these were the real Minnesota Vikings.  For now, they sure finished the regular season on a strong note.

Brett Favre and the rest of his teammates did everything right that went wrong in December, aggressively pursuing the swagger they had before the slump to move into the playoffs with a 44-7 victory over the barely-there New York Giants on Sunday. . . .



Poor 'Luda-Chris.  'Luda'-Chris is a "Giants Fan".  Football - Big Man's sport.  GIANTS - as in very large or tall men.  Little 'Luda'-Chris wouldn't have it any other way. 

The famous words of 'Luda'-Chris Hamre

_________________________________________________


IS 'LUDA'-CHRIS HAMRE THE "HEIR APPARENT" - MATTHEW CAMPISI'S "MAID IN WAITING"?

(In 2010, the Page "The NOSSA Files" will reveal important facts and the webmaster's experiences with the website www.nossaonline.org and the repulsive individual named Matthew S. Campisi)


In October of 2008 'Luda'-Chris Hamre announced in his famous podcast, "The Chris Hamre Podcast", that Matthew S. Campisi will not run for the 'pwesidency' of NOSSA COMMA INC. again.  (That podcast no longer can be found on the famous NOSSA website by the way - at least not by us.  It seems to have been "Removed")  It would appear that Mommies' big Law Enforcement man wants to "give someone else a chance to drive this NOSSA choo-choo train".  Isn't that magnanimous of the tike who likes to "Stand Tall Against Discrimination"?  We predict that 'Luda'-Chris Hamre will most likely be NOSSA COMMA, INC'S. new "pwesident".  He's Matthew $. Campisi's original go-fer and stooge a la mort.  Hamre is 41 years old.  He once asked the webmaster if there were any job openings at his company.  It seems Hamre lost his job and was looking for another one.  Sometime later Hamre lost still another job working at a New York City company at a low wage.  We're fairly certain that we read the news on the famous NOSSA COMMA INC. blog and the famous blog intimated that Hamre had been discriminated against because of his height.  It is our understanding that it was stated that a manager said to him words to the effect of, 'You short guys, you have personalities'.  (Incidentally there is no longer any trace of this that we could find on the famous NOSSA COMMA INC blog.  This also seems to have been "Removed")  He was also living in a one-room ground floor apartment under the apparent auspices of seemingly very generous relatives when Mommies' little 'He-man' took him in as "vice pwesident".  The videos he "stars" in usually depict him in that one-roomer (or another one that looks like it) complete with bed and microwave. 

It appears to this writer that Hamre has been the beneficiary of much generosity though - growth hormone as a kid, or so Hamre claimed, apparent magnanimity from family, free rides in Mattie's car (or is it Mattie's Mommies' car?),  butta boom, butta bing.  It seemed to be just barely enough to see him through, however.  Even with such generosity he appeared to scrape by, by the skin of his teeth.  However we are not without compassion; we don't hold him entirely responsible for his plight.  After all, part of the reason for his predicament IS heightism.  As foolish as Hamre is to take up with the likes of Matthew S. Campisi, as naive as he seems to be, as pathetic as his so-called "videos" are, he is still somewhat of a victim.  Hamre though, may think that being this rinky-dink organization's so-called president will give him some sort of 'prestige'.  The feeling here is that he just might see dollar signs down the road.  Campisi may have promised him the moon and Hamre is probably naive enough to believe anything Campisi says.  All he's going to get is green cheese.  Okay enough about 'Luda'-Chris.  Let's get back to Campisi.  Knowing this knave like we do, we don't envision Campisi wanting to lose power, but we do feel that Mommies' 'Big Man' wants to "lay low" but yet still have the reins of power in his grasp.  How so?  Very simply.  With 'Luda'-Chris in the role of "pwesident" Campisi can still possibly call the shots from behind-the-scenes using his lackey as a figurehead while he - Campisi - appropriates another position.  If this hypothesis is correct - and we believe that it is - the best position for Campisi to "step into", would be 'treasurer'.  We feel that this is the most likely scenario. 
We believe Campisi is the only one that has control of the NOSSA website and that he will not give up sole control of the NOSSA website willingly.  As long as he - and he alone - has control of the website www.nossaonline.org, he would also have control of the $ and he alone would know the actual number of dues-paying members of this sad so-called "organization".    Being NOSSA COMMA INC'S treasurer would give him a reason to have control of the money, and if he also has control of the website then he can conceal (if he wants to or has done so already) the actual number of NOSSA members from the other so-called 'board members'.  The belief here is that Campisi doesn't want them to know the actual number of NOSSA COMMA INC. dues-paying members.  It is our belief that he may currently be concealing this from the other board members.  We think he may want to keep this knowledge all to himself.  We also believe that if the 'prestigious' NOSSA COMMA INC. did have a significant number of members Campisi would probably want to conceal that knowledge from the other board members too.  We have a strong belief that he wouldn't want them knowing how much money is being taken in.  So we predict that Campisi will be NOSSA COMMA INC'S next treasurer.  We will see very shortly whether or not we are on the mark with our predictions - that is - if little Mattie deigns to mention the names of the new so-called "board members" on the prestigious NOSSA website.

As far as the other positions go - Secretary and Vice-President, this is where a newbie or two might come in.  It would seem apropos for one or two more useful idi - uh - persons, to step into those positions.  A couple of naive ne'r-do-wells would probably do nicely to suit Campisi's taste.  No questions asked.  "Hey look at me, I'm da vice-pwesident!", I can picture one of the possible newbies yelling with pride.  It would seem logical for Campisi to use power as bait to lure the kind of people that he wants into those two positions.  But who might they be?  Well, we won't venture a guess, but one thing is almost a sure bet:  They will most likely be green, naive, and without a clue.  That's just about the only kind of "board member" for little Mattie.  Once again, don't be surprised though if no mention is made of just who the so-called new "board members" are, on the famous NOSSA COMMA INC. website.  That's NOSSA COMMA INC.'S business and nobody else's.

By the way, here's a good 'Oath of Office' for Pwesident-Elect 'Luda'-Chris:

I 'Luda'-Chris Hamre do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of "pwesident" of Nossa, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, 'pwotect' and defend Matthew Campisi, So Help Me God!


Yes sir, it was one historic election this past November 8th - and on a Sunday to boot.  The voting is actually continuing through December 31st!  Mommies little 'Big Man' wants the whole world to have a chance to vote in the famous NOSSA COMMA INC. election so he magnanimously extended the voting time.  We're wondering though exactly who is going to count the votes.  Hey - I've got an idea!  Maybe the 'The Washington D.C. Alien' could appoint himself the Official NOSSA Vote Counter or some such rot.  He can insure that the votes are counted fairly and honestly.  (LOL)  For the present folks, keep your shirts on, sit back, grab the beer and the munchies and watch the little tike drive.  (no seat belt, camera in right hand driving one-handed, looking down almost 100 times in about 2 and one-half minutes) - Don't worry though; Mattie's an "excellent driver".  He's "been involved in law enforcement for many, many years"!  NOSSA COMMA INC. will tell us one day who the famous "board members" are, don't worry.

And here's a couple more "videos" for your perusing pleasure.  Better hurry up though before little Mattie gets rid of the evidence.

Asylum
Snake Eyes
Bathroom Blues

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Summary of Our Predictions for 'NOSSA COMMA INC.' for 2010

It is our educated opinion that:
  1. 'Luda'-Chris Hamre will be the new 'pwesident' of NOSSA COMMA INC.
  2. Matthew S. Campisi has been "elected" treasurer.
  3. One or two "newbies" will be used to fill up one or more of the remaining positions of vice-president and secretary.
  4. Matthew S. Campisi will have sole control of the website www.nossaonline.org
  5. Matthew S. Campisi is the only person who has knowledge of exactly how many dues-paying members NOSSA COMMA INC. has.
  6. Matthew S. Campisi is the only person who has knowledge and control of the $.
  7. Matthew S. Campisi is the person who "counted" the votes in the so-called "election".

If our educated opinions are correct - and once again we believe that they are - then Matthew S. Campisi will probably not want to reveal any information.  That might demonstrate to one and all just how accurate and on the mark we are in our predictions.  If we are off the mark in our educated opinions then Matthew S. Campisi will no doubt show how inaccurate we are just by displaying the appropriate information.  We will then be shown-up as being not-so-accurate, and not-so-on-the-mark -- now won't we?

Here's some 'food for thought':

If one and only one person has control of an organizations' website,
If one and only one person knows exactly how many dues-paying members an organization has,
If one and only one person has knowledge of dues and donation money for that organization,
If one and only one person counted votes in an election for "board members" in that organization,
And -
If the one and only one person in all of the above is the same person in that one organization --

- - Then we think any intelligent person can figure out the rest.


Once again, it's not about caring.  It's about educating.


_______________________________________________


Room 101 - Rich Hall - Part III - Short People        
(NEW)

The show "Room 101" first aired in the UK on July 4, 1994.  Paul Merton was the host of 64 episodes from 1999-2007.  The above clip features Merton with an American named Rich Hall who included short people as "items on his list to be banished . . ." - all according to Merton.  We don't know exactly who Hall is - or was, but we do know that Short People are high on his list of things to get rid of.  We're not quite sure when this show was taped.  Obviously it was taped sometime between 1999-2007, but it makes no difference.  

Notice how the sizes of the puppets were depicted out of proportion to make them appear proportionately smaller in reference to the "ideal" six-footer - a product of the show's manufacture no doubt.  The host then blames short people for the puppets being out of proportion.
  Watch and listen carefully.


It's all in your mind little man.  You should just - 'Get over it'.

_______________________________________________


Coming Soon! - Is 'Luda'-Chris Hamre being secretly groomed
by Matthew S. Campisi to take over the 'pwesidency' of NOSSA COMMA INC?  And will Matthew Campisi still be calling the shots secretly from behind the scenes?  And what about the other positions?  The webmaster will give his educated opinion shortly.


It's not that we care.  We don't.  It's not about caring.  It's about educating.

_________________________________________________
 
Life is Short - Episode 1
Life is Short - Episode 2
Life is Short - Episode 3

I'm sorry what did you say, I did not hear you?  Oh No! Oh you thought these were a production of Supportfortheshort.org?  Oh No!  They're a production of someone else's genius.  However the three episodes do depict a short guy with an aberration for wanting only Tall women.  And they do portray fairly accurately most women's real opinions of short men.

Short people got no reason,
Short people got no reason . . .


Don't worry Randy your time is coming.


_______________________________________________

Of Clowns and Giants

The "Son-of-a-Beach" has done it again.  Yes sir.  Another simpering broadcast cut in the mold of Matthew Campisi and 'Luda'-Chris Hamre.  It's really gonna have a 'snowball effect'.  I wish I had a snowball right now.  The "Son-of-a-Beach" would get a Nolan Ryan fastball right where it belongs.

The son-of-a-beach's latest broadcast featured a 7'3" guest with the nickname 'George the Giant'.  That's right - George the Giant;  Seven feet three inches in height.  Too bad he doesn't play for the Giants though, 'Luda'-Chris would love to have 'em.  George the Giant is  "a big believer that as long as you know what you are inside and how your are as a person, what they call you doesn't really matter as long as you're happy with yourself".  Yeah, that's right.  So you little pipsqueaks don't worry about being called a few names, Mr. 7'3" doesn't mind being called a 'Giant'.  Oh No.  He's Big enough to take a little kidding, don't worry about that.  He's not small-minded.  When people make inane remarks to him he 'Stands Tall.  He's 'Above all that'.  That's the nature of the Big Man.  When people make an inappropriate remark to Big and Tall Men, they carry themselves "high and proud".  Big and Tall Men don't mind being put on a pedestal . . .

Continued here . . .


It gets more and more pathetic all the time.
________________________________________________

Broadcast of December 20, 2009

Heightism - A Universal Prejudice

The webmaster discusses the recent remarks by the Korean teenager who negatively characterized short men.   He compares the treatment accorded tall men as opposed to short men and mentions poignant moments involving hypocritical, cowardly and even unscrupulous so-called "activists".  Some of the reasons heightism promulgates are also discussed.

_________________________________________________

Did invading farmers drive pygmy diversity?

February 2009 by Ewen Callaway


(This article is out of chronological order but the webmaster recently found it and we think it is worthwhile displaying up front)

West African pygmy populations vary more than their similarities in body size would indicate.

A new genetic analysis of pygmy populations native to Gabon and Cameroon suggest they split apart from one another roughly 3000 years ago and from other humans at least 50,000 years ago.

European explorers first encountered pygmy populations in the 19th century and lumped them together under a name that Horner used in the Ilian to describe an African tribe of diminutive crane-fighters.

"Artificially we created a common origin and a common heritage just by the use of this pygmy term," says Paul Verdu, a geneticist at the Musee de l'Homme in Paris who led the study.


No group identity

Although pygmies resemble on another in physical stature - about 1.5 metres on average - they share little else in common.  Some live as jungle hunter-gatherers, while others practice agriculture and commerce and live in the savannah.

Many of their languages are also very varied, and the populations do not view identify any of the others as an ancestral group.  "There is no such thing as a pygmy civilisation or identity," Verdu says.

Working with ethnographers, anthropologists and musicologists, his team collected DNA from 604 people belonging to nine pygmy groups and 12 non-pygmy populations living nearby.

Their analysis of 28 DNA markers hinted at close relations among the non-pygmies, but more widespread genetic diversity among pygmies.  A mathematical analysis of the data suggested that thy pygmy populations diverged from one another roughly 2,800 years ago.

What's more, all the pygmy populations showed signs of inbreeding with outsiders.  None of the non-pygmy populations, however, exhibited any evidence of pygmy genes.


'Second-class citizens'

This apparent paradox might be explained by widespread discrimination against pygmies, Verdu says.  Occasionally, pygmy women marry into non pygmy families and have children.  Often these women and children are treated as second-class citizens . . .


Don't you wonder why they're "treated as second-class citizens"?

_________________________________________________


SHORT MEN ARE LOSER'S TEE-SHIRT

How long are we going to let this sort of thing continue?

_________________________________________________

'Short Men' Jibe Boon for Online retailers    (NEW)

By Jane Han
Staff Reporter


A female college student's recent remark bashing "short men" is upsetting for many, but it turns out that the jibe is serving as an unexpected blessing for online retailers who've been quick to capitalize on the brouhaha.

Leading Internet shopping sites Interpark, Auction and Gmarket have put out all kinds of products, including T-shirts, shoes and pants, with a humorous marketing twist aimed at comforting men "who aren't good enough."


Yeah.  We can tell how much they're "comforting" short men. 

__________________________________________________

"Short Losers" controversy causes Misuda production team to resign & retail boom

(NEW)

November 18, 2009

You may have heard about the "Short Losers" controversy, in which a guest on Misuda/Chat with Beauties said that men under 180 cm (about 5'11") are "losers."  the young woman, Lee Do-kyong, a student at Hongik University, immediately found herself in a lot of hot water.  she tried to defend herself by claiming that the show is scripted, and that she was merely doing what was asked of her.

The show, and even its TV station, also were the targets of criticism, with one man suing KBS for causing him "emotional distress,"  As a result, the entire production team of the show has resigned.

If you're one of those who've suffered "emotional distress," take heart in the fact that Hyun-ah, of the group 4Minute, likes losers.  It would be sok much better if she weren't 17 and underage.

The controversy has been a boon to online retailers . . .


Wait till you see some of the ways that retailers are attempting to exploit the prejudice toward short men.

__________________________________________________

'Short man's mental distress
    (NEW)

2009-11-12 15:09

Seoul - a South Korean television viewer on Thursday filed a complaint with a media watchdog against the country's largest broadcaster over comments that he said humiliated short men.

The man is seeking 10 million won ($8,600) from KBS for mental distress over a programme in which a female student said "short men are losers", Yonhap news agency quoted the Press Arbitration Commission as saying.

The man gave his height as 1.62m.

The programme Beauties' Gossip features female students and foreign women giving their views on local culture and society.

On Monday's show a Korean college student said she could never date short men and that she viewed men shorter than 1.80m as "losers".

Internet users posted criticism at the comment.  The student said she was only reading from the script provided by the producers, Yonhap reported. . . .


Amazing how quickly Korean men responded.  It appears short Korean men still have some manhood as opposed to some others.  They're not taking any s**t.

Time to wake up short men.


__________________________________________________


Internet Hot over 'Misuda' Guest's Loser Remark    (NEW)
By Cho Jae-hyon
Staff Reporter


A remark deriding short men by a female student guest on KBS2 TV's talk show, "misuda," (Beauties' Chatterbox), is creating a stir on the Internet.

Lee Do-kyung of Hongik University, one of the 12 students invited to the program broadcast on Monday night, dropped a bombshell, saying a short man is a "loser."

Asked whether she would go out with a short male, she said, "I won't.  Height is a measure of competitiveness.  I think a man who is short is a loser. . . .


The webmaster predicted this.  As we begin to bring Heightism to the fore we are going to see people's real attitudes to the Short-statured come to the fore, although in fairness to the young lady that said this, she did state that it was written into some sort of script that was given to her by an unknown scriptwriter. 
The article did indicate some harsh comments being made about the lovely young lady on the Internet.  It would appear that Korean short men are not so timid and obsequious as American short men.  Some of them appeared to even go so far as to find out personal details of the lovely young lady and post them on the Internet.   The lovely young lady recanted and apologized.  There's a new experience.  When are we going to see an American awakening of short men?? 

_________________________________________________________________

Broadcast of November 27, 2009

Part I - Solitary Short Man
Part II - Short Guys Talking - Joe speaks to two short men, 'Michael' and 'R K'

_________________________________________________

A recent study in Australia indicates that short people earn less than their taller counterparts.  Speaking as one who is 5'4", this confirms, in part, what I've long thought:  that discrimination against short people is endemic, and so deeply embedded in the societal subconscious that no one thinks anything of it.  I can't tell you the number of times that I've been called "sawed-off,' "stubby," "little man," and similar phrases.  I've even had people question the extent of my professional experience . . .


Apparently some short folks are awakening from their slumber.

__________________________________________________

Here are two more 'World's Shortest Man' Videos

The shortest 'man' in the world
Worlds smallest man celebrates 18th birthday

Why is 18 year-old Khagendra Thapa Magar depicted 'playing' with 3 and 4 year olds and sitting in a classroom with what appear to be 5 and 6 year-old children???


The answer is, it's all part of the stigmatization of the short-statured as incompetent  and child-like.

_________________________________________________

1st YouTube Video:  New Tallest Man in the World!

Craig Glenday, Editor-in-Chief – Guinness Book of World Records states:

The most exciting thing about this year’s edition for me has to be a new “World’s Tallest Man”.  That’s why we’re down here at London Bridge, an iconic place in London to meet a new WORLD ICON, Sultan Kosen EIGHT FOOT ONE, two hundred forty-six and a half centimeters confirmed as the Guinness World Records – WORLD’S TALLEST MAN.

 Sultan Kosen states:

 “ . . . I enjoy the attention.”                                              

“I love the photographs that people take.”

“The great thing is that you’re really different and I can see everyone from a really long distance.”

“I never imagined I’d be in the book.  I dreamed about it . . .”

 

2nd Youtube Video:  Sultan Kosen Tallest Man in the World 2009

This brief video shows just how people admire the Tall as kids line up for autographs. 


3rd Youtube Video:  8-foot Man is Pretty Unhappy

According to this YouTube video, it appears that Leonid Stadnyk was stripped of his title of “World’s Tallest Man” for refusing to be measured.  It is claimed he is 8’5” in height.  It seems that in addition to awe, wonderment and admiration there is also much sympathy for the “problems” of exceptionally Tall people.  Their logistical difficulties are well-known and much heart-felt sympathy apparently goes out to them.  

 

4th Youtube Video:  World’s Tallest Man has Trouble Fitting In

States the news commentator:

At 8 feet 5 inches tall Leonid Stadnyk is starting to pick up a few perks though, the largest bike in the world, a special engineered exercise machine and clothes from all over the world.”  (We’re assuming here that the clothes have been donated by wonderful people from “all over the world” who ‘feel the pain’ of this man’s struggles.)  Stadnyk says the perks don’t make up for the pain.  The doorways of his home are too short, forcing him to crouch down when he walks through the house.  His 440 lb frame causes constant knee pain forcing him to occasionally use crutches and doctor’s say he’s probably still growing.  The 37 year-old former veterinarian quit his job after developing frostbite walking to work.  He couldn’t afford to buy custom-made shoes for his 17 inch feet so he walked in socks.  Stadnyk says the outpouring of international support has kept his spirits up.  Media attention brought online friendships from all over the world.  And Ukraine’s president offered him a super-sized car to help him get around better.  Stadnyk says he now dreams of finding a ‘soulmate’.  – Diane Keplay, the Associated Press

 

Compare these four videos with the following video:

Youtube Video:  World’s Shortest Man’

The captions read:

This is 27 year old Younis al-Kayed.  Back in 1998 he was looking to be recognized . . . as the world’s smallest living man.  He measures just 25 inches (65 centimeters) in height.  Kayed’s growth was stunted when his bone marrow was damaged in the womb after his mother took contraceptive pills while pregnant.

Where’s the media attention?

Where’s the admirers?

Where’s the Guinness Book of World Records’ people?

Where’s the kids asking for autographs?

Where’s the perks?

Where’s the smallest bike in the world? 

Where’s the “special engineered exercise machine and clothes from all over the world?  Where’s the outpouring of international support to keep his spirits up?

Where’s the media attention bringing friendships from all over the world?

Where’s the president of a country offering him a custom-fit car to help him get around better? 

Where’s Younis’s soulmate?

 

And here’s another one for the Tallers:  Xi Shun – The Tallest Living Man in the World

Why is it that the Tallest Man is always surrounded by admirers and the shortest man seems to be all alone?

Try this Youtube video on for “size”:  World's Tallest Woman: My Shocking Story

Does the sympathy for the Tall ever end??

 

Are you getting the message Short People? 

________________________________________________________________________


Former Ashland Worker files discrimination lawsuit   
October 27, 2009 6:15 AM
BY MARIA NAGLE
Journal-Courier


A former Ashland village employee is asking for more than $250,000 after he said he was humiliated by city officials because of disabilities and because he is missing some of his fingers.

Former public works employee Dale T. Naylor accuses public works Director Ronald Cave and Police Chief Jim Birdsell of violating his civil rights.  The lawsuit, which was filed in federal court, includes assertions he was taunted because of his physical appearance and mild learning impairment and on several occasions had his pants pulled down to mock him.

"He is short of stature, the fingers of his right hand were eaten off by rats when he was a young child, his eyes do not line up in the same direction and his voice is non-standard as to sound and cadence," according to Naylor's attorney, James Devine of Springfield.

Naylor maintains he had to have heart surgery because of chest pains that resulted from the abuse.  In addition to the $250,000 in compensatory damages, he is asking for lost wages and benefits, a year's pay from Cave, Birdsell and Mayor David Handy, and punitive damages.

snip

Cave assaulted Naylor "on nearly a daily basis" by striking him on the head and abusing him verbally because of his physical and mental impairments - calling him "stupid", "dumb" and "retard," according to the lawsuit.  The action contends Cave placed a plastic rat on the table where Naylor would sit to take rest break.

The lawsuit contends Cave pulled Naylor's pants down on at least six occasions during the summer of 2008 and that Birdsell also participated.  Birdsell's predecessor "would often handcuff [Naylor] to objects and walk away," the lawsuit claimed.  Birdsell's predecessor was not included among the defendants.

When Naylor complained to Handy, he "laughed and walked away . . .



The reader will notice that the first physical characteristic that Mr. Naylor's lawyer mentioned was his client's height.

_________________________________________________

Heightism on ‘Today’  

by Joe Mangano

November 1, 2009

Even though this clip is a bit on the old side, (April 2008) nonetheless not too many short folks have seen it.  It seems the 6’5 male host (Wouldn’t you know they’d put this story on with a Super-Tall host) and approximately 5’5” woman host interview Becky Thomas and Lee Herman who, respectively are 6’4” and 5’0”.  Also making an appearance is the noted psychologist Dr. Jeff Gardere. 

The story highlights the difficulties of the exceptionally tall woman and the very short man.  Somehow, some way, a visitor who just dropped in from Mars (not the same creature from ‘Possible Alien Landing in Washington, D.C’ now.) and viewed the brief 7 and a half minute segment might get the impression that very tall women and very short men had roughly equal difficulties in life.  The visitor from Space might even get the impression that the short man had life better than the Tall woman.  After all the little fool is standing there with his hands on his hips and his chest out with a silly simpering grin on his face like, “Oh boy I’m on television!  Imagine a little shrimp like me on television!  They sure are being nice letting a little tike like me on TV!”  He stands there like a Short-statured ‘Uncle Tom’ saying ‘Yessa’ and ‘Nossa’ (Did I just say Nossa?!  I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to curse.)  “Pleese don judge me harshly boss, I’m just a po’ dumb short man, boss.  I like being a fool boss.  See mah silly grin boss, that’s a sure sign I ain’t too smart boss.”  You know, I have to admit the tall woman appeared to be a whole lot more dignified than the silly short jerk.  And she was only about 21 years old – a senior in college.  On the other hand the short guy appeared to be hovering around 40 or so, give or take.  The way Lee looked up at Big Becky starry-eyed, you’d think he was her baby brother instead of a man old enough to be her father.  To see the clip of him reaching up for an item in the supermarket with a basket in the other hand and his fat belly sticking out and his baggy pants hanging down, I mean, I gotta admit, I was laughing out loud.  He looked like an awkward little buffoon to me.  I quickly regained my composure however and stopped laughing and started shaking my head from side to side.  Not another one.  Not another obsequious short man lickin’ the Tall Man’s boots.

Now if I were the guy from Mars I might have thought that Becky was Lee’s mommy and not just because of the size difference either. 

A man should act like a man no matter what his height is.

I will say this for Lee.  He did state that, “Most people think that I’m not capable or smart or that I can’t handle certain tasks.”  So at least he has some awareness of Heightism at some level.  Now if those same people thought him incompetent based on his race religion, sex, sexual orientation, weight, ethnic background, nationality, creed, color, disability, etc. they’d be in for some high-fallutin’ legal actions.  Not so with little shrimps.  By the way, I didn’t notice Big Becky stating that anyone thought she was incapable or incompetent because of her height.  That just doesn’t happen with the Tall.  As a matter of fact it’s the other way around – Big Time.  Lee doesn’t want to be miserable though.  He wants to be a happy little camper.  He stated that, “I’ve got a great family.  I’ve got great friends.  I’ve got a good job.”  That’s a couple of pluses, but I’m wondering what he meant by the word “family”.  I’m thinking he meant the family his Mommy and Daddy created rather than any family he might be responsible for.  After all if he was married, wouldn’t he say something like, “I’ve got a great wife and kids”, yada, yada, yada?  I’m thinking what he meant by family is his Mommy and Daddy, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, etc.  Isn’t that interesting?  Why doesn’t he mention the fact that he’s never had a girlfriend in his life or had sex with a woman because women are prejudiced toward short men?  The irony here is as thick as pea soup.  But let’s get back to Big Becky. This approximately 21 year old girl Becky had the colossal nerve to say that she “didn’t date until a few years ago because I always wanted a guy taller than me.”  Read her lips.  She “didn’t date until a few years ago”.  She’s 21 or 22 freakin’ years old.  What are we supposed to do feel sorry for her because she didn’t start dating boys when she was 4 years old??  Lee is about twice her age and look at him!  But read her lips again,

“I didn’t like, date until a few years ago because I always wanted a guy taller than me.”

 She didn’t say that she didn’t date because guys weren’t interested in her.  She didn’t say that she didn’t date because guys thought she was too tall.  She didn’t say that she didn’t date because guys found her yucky.  She didn’t date because SHE WANTED A GUY TALLER THAN HER.*   Her non-dating was her decision and no one else’s.  SHE WANTED A TALL MAN PERIOD, END OF SENTENCE.  There was no indication that it was the guys who were rejecting her because of her height.  There was no evidence that guys were prejudiced towards her because of her tall stature.  It was She that was doing the choosing and SHE alone.  Now getting back to Lee, does anyone believe that Lee’s celibacy is due to the fact that he’s making that decision? (Yes I know his love life was never mentioned, I’m making the leap here in my assumptions about it).  The reader knows as well as I do that if Lee had a girlfriend or was married, ‘Today’ would have depicted that girlfriend or wife just like they did for Becky’s boyfriend.  They would have showed her in a supportive role being the loving wife of the “charming” little short man; but they didn’t.  They didn’t because there wasn’t any supporting wife or girlfriend.

* Did you notice how in the clip of Becky walking with her boyfriend he seemed to be ‘Bounding’ i.e., walking on his toes?  Did the reader notice the two of them sitting on the sofa and Becky intentionally sitting low so her boyfriend could feel taller?  Becky’s boyfriend by the way was no “shrimp”.  He was a six-footer.  In the segment on the show Becky also had high heels on.  Strange shoes for a young woman who is self-conscious about being too tall wouldn’t you say?

 Near the end of the segment, the woman host of the show comments to Lee as if she was talking to a little boy, “Oh you’re so charming!  You’re a giant!”  Yeah he’s so charming.  If he’s so charming how come he’s so alone??  The woman host knows perfectly well why Lee is alone – He’s five-feet tall.  Women discriminate BIG-TIME against five-feet tall guys.  And everyone else too.  It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to figure that one out.  Young Becky came off as the mature young woman and Lee acted like just another silly deluded short guy in this writer’s opinion. 

It’s too bad that it would be difficult to convince guys like Lee that his behavior only reinforces discrimination against short people – especially short men.  Would it have hurt Little Lee to have been just a little bit more serious and to say something like,

“People discriminate against me because I’m short-statured.  They think I’m incompetent and incapable.  They look at me with condescension and sometimes act condescending towards me.  I find it difficult to advance in the workplace.  That kind of discrimination based on any other characteristic would never be tolerated by anyone.  Short people have just as much right to protection as Blacks, Gays, Women and other groups.”

 Would it have killed him to say something like that?  No, but it would have taken far more guts than Lee was obviously capable of mustering.  And it would have taken someone who had the realization that he had been victimized.  Unfortunately group awareness does not include the short-of-stature.  A pity.  There was one plus however, and that was Dr. Gardere.  He was the only person who had the guts and the gray matter to call a spade a spade.  Dr. Gardere stated:

 Studies show that when a person is taller especially a male that we tend to attribute them having more power, more authority, more intelligence.  MBA’s who are over 6’2” end up making 12.7% more money than people under 6’2” who happen to be more intelligent.  Heightism is very real in this world and I mean all over the world.

 The above statement by Dr. Gardere made the whole segment worthwhile.  Once again:

"Heightism is very real in this world . . . all over the world."



Thank you Dr. Gardere.
_______________________________________________

Griese suspended 1 game for Montoya remark  
Associated Press
Updated:  October 27, 2009, 3:30 AM EDT


ESPN broadcaster Bob Griese has been suspended on week for a remark he made about NASCAR driver Juan Pablo Montoya.

ESPN spokesman Josh Krulewitz says Griese will not be working a game this week.

Krulewitz says ESPN has spoken to Griese and "he understands the comment was inappropriate."

During ESPN'S broadcast of the Minnesota-Ohio State game Saturday, a graphic was shown listing the top five drivers in NASCAR's points race. Fellow analyst Chris Spielman asked where was Montoya, who is Columbian.


Griese replied he was "out having a taco."


Danny Herrera, relief pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds talking about an incident he was involved in:
"I was at [Triple-A] Louisville.  One of our catchers, [Alvin] Colina, who is a really bug guy, picked me up and put me in his lap as he sat in the bullpen.  Then he stuck his arm inside my jacket, and up my back.  He wouldn't let me go.  I though, 'What is he doing?'  Then, whenever I would talk, he would move his lips.  Everyone was cracking up.  He was the ventriloquist, and I was [the] puppet."  Herrera is 5'6" and Hispanic.  -

 - Heightism - The Last Bastion of Discrimination".

_______________________________________________

Kids dope up to get 'high'   
Short prepsters and kin eyeing hormone 'cure'
By JANON FISHER
Posted: 3:45 AM October 18, 2009  


But medical experts question the ethics and effectiveness of such treatments.

"It's outrageous," said Dr. Alan Rogol, a professor at the University of Virginia Hospital who specializes in growth and development.  "We're struggling to get kids up to 5 feet.  Only in New York on the Upper East Side."

He said he doubts there will be any benefit to continued treatment. Rogol said Humatrope usually adds only one or two inches to a child's growth.

"I can certainly see where the insurance company is coming from," he said. 


The growth spurt Jeffrey enjoyed after taking the drugs did not go unnoticed by his classmates' parents.

"After Jeffrey grew taller than some the kids in his class, other mothers called me, " Margot Stern aaid.  "Three kids went on it as a direct result of Jeffrey.  I think it has something to do with competition, but others were just concerned."

In Jeffrey's sophomore class of about 120 students, there are six students taking the drug, Stern said.  Statistically speaking, that's five times the norm if you use the FDA's "1.2 percentile" rule as a guide.

But doctors often disregard FDA guidelines and prescribe the hormone "off label" to families concerned about their kids' height.

HGH side effects include headaches, glucose intolerance and hip problems.  The long-term risks are still a mystery.



One of the world's foremost experts on growth hormone, 'H. G.' Hamre of the National Organization of Short ESSOBEES, Inc. warns of the possible side effects of growth hormone.  As a matter of fact he's a living example.   Oh by the way dig his fancy apartment baby!  Bed in back.  Bathroom on the right.  Microwave on the table.  Toiletries on the microwave.  Eat, sleep and excrete all within a 10 foot radius.  What more could you ask for?  What I can't figure out is why they're on one side of the room in one video and on the other side in the other video.  Must be dual personalities - one of those possible side effects.

_______________________________________________________________________


The Fat and Short of It  

By Daniel Engber
Published October 15, 2009


At nearly 6 feet 2 inches and about 175 pounds, Barack Obama may be the slimmest president since the Civil War.  His body-mass index hovers near 23, well within the healthy range and somewhat to the left on the bell curve of American bodies.  Perhaps he has some credibility, then, when he encourages the rest of us to shed a few pounds.  During the presidential campaign, Obama suggested that rolling back obesity rates would save a trillion dollars for Medicare.

He's right that there is a connection between excess fat and public health.  Obsity is associated with a higher risk of cancer, diabetes, cardiovascular disease and other problems.

snip

 . . . but girth shouldn't be the only dimension in the health care debate.  There's at least one more bodily attribute that's eting away at the Medicare budget:  shortness.

snip

Whatever the cause, higher weight and lower height are associated with chronic disease, low wages and poor educational attainment.  And while we are getting fatter, we may be getting shorter too.  The ecomomist John Komlos has shown that the United States is losing height relative to other developed nations, and some American demographic groups are even shrinking in absolute terms.  Yet we tend to discount shortness as a mere byproduct of genetics and early-life experience, while treating the obesity epidemic as if it wer a grave danger to public health.  why can't our campaign to reshape the American body have two fronts?  If we really want to make our country healthier, let's have a war on shortness too. . . .


That's right.  You read it correctly.  "Let's have a war on shortness".  As if all the prejudice, discrimination, harassment, bullying, and hate were not enough.

________________________________________________


Why women of the future will be shorter, fatter and healthier       
By David Derbyshire
21st October 2009


Women are getting shorter and fatter, according to research into the future of the human race.

They are also likely to evolve healthier hearts and lower cholesterol, and will start the menopause later than they do now, researchers say. . . .


The fatter you are, the healthier you are?? 

_________________________________________________

The height of the matter  
by Olu Jacob
October 9, 2009 05:27 PMT


Nicolas Sarkozy, the French leader, has always modelled himself after American presidents, men like Kennedy, Clinton and Obama; men whose media appeal straddled the line between politics and entertainment.  And he has done everything possible to fit the image, inlcuding marrying a beautiful model, Carla Bruni, who is set to star in Woody Allen's next flick.

But Mr. Sarkozy is short on one count:  he is short.  Or rather, to use the socially correct phrase, he is vertically challenged . . .


"Socially correct phrase"??  Do we refer to Blacks as "color challenged" or fat people as "mobility challenged"?  Did anyone ever hear of very tall individuals being referred to as "height challenged" even though everyone seems to feel so sorry that they hit their heads on door frames frequently?

_________________________________________________

Study:  Tall men have more attractive partners   

Short people got nobody to love? Short People composer Randy Newman may been on to something, suggests a study of short and tall men.

In the current Evolutionary Psychology journal, Gayle Brewer and Charlene Riley of the United Kingdon's University of Central Lancashire asked men whether height played a role in their relationships.  "Previous research has outlined the female preference for tall partners, " says the study.  "Tall men also obtain more attractive partners, are less likely to be childless and have a greater number of children than their shorter rivals."

Mate choice, or sexual selection, has been a favorite topic of scientific investigation since at least Charles Darwin's 1871 The Descent of Man and Selection in Relation to Sex, which introduced the idea of "sexual selection", or mate choosing, as a mechanism for evolution.  "One of the intriguing features of human mating is that it cannot be characterized by a single strategy," notes David Buss of the University of Texas.  Studying the complexities of human relationships has been controversial, but also one of the "success stories" of evolutionary psychology, Buss wrote last year in the journal, Acta Psychologica Sinica.

He adds, "Much more research needs to be conducted on the complexities of human mating strategies, " given that scientists are trying to pin down something as intangible as affection.

snip

 . . . the researchers found that taller men were indeed happier and less jealous, but also
more likely to monopolize their partner's time and threaten perceived rivals, perhaps because they could get away with it and still seem attractive . . .

Monopolizing their partner's time and threatening people are not the only things they get away with.

________________________________________________

HERE’S ANOTHER ONE FOR YOU – ONE OF DICTIONARY.COM’S DEFINITIONS FOR THE WORD “SQUIRT”

 

Squirt

- noun

Informal

a.       a youngster, esp. a meddlesome or impudent one.

b.      a short person

c.       an insignificant, self-assertive person, esp. one who is small or young.

 

We really can’t over-emphasize the fact that a blatant double-standard exists for disparaging words depicting short people.  EVERY disparaging and offensive word that we could find for every recognized group we could think of is defined as such - in other words – as disparaging and offensive – by this online dictionary.  Derogatory and denigrating words depicting short people are defined as being merely “informal” in this so-called dictionary.  If you look at those definitions above you can see the association between short stature and being a “youngster”.  You can also see the association between short-stature and the so-called “Napoleon Complex”* for example, if one is small and “self-assertive” then it follows that they’re also insignificant.  One cannot be small and self-assertive, otherwise a label will be hung on that individual.  The definition also implies that to be small is to be “insignificant”.  The fact of the matter is that this so-called online dictionary has an in-your-face double standard for short people and ONLY short people.  Dictionary.com is saying in effect that it’s okay to denigrate short people.  When you call a member of any other group a denigrating name it’s you that has a problem.  When you call a short person a denigrating or demeaning word – it’s the short person who has earned it.  So add the word “squirt” to dictionary.com’s list of disparaging and offensive words for short people that ARE NOT defined as disparaging and offensive.

 


Folks, this is just simple logic, nothing more.  The attitudes of society towards the short statured are quite obvious.  This is reflected even in a dictionary.  Do we need any more proof that Heightism truly is – “The Last Bastion of Discrimination”?

________________________________________________

Sarkozy's short crowd

Charles Bremner
September 07, 2009


President Sarkozy has been caught again compensating for his modest stature.  Last June, you may remember, he was snapped standing on a stool to match the height of President Obama during the D-Day ceremonies in Normandy.  This time, we hear that a busload of short people was driven in to stand behind the President when he visited a factory.

Sarkozy's appearance at the Faurencia firm near the Normandy town of Caligny last Thursday was a photo-opportunity for the national television news.  It was designed to show a dynamic Sarkozy, back from the summer break, making a speech to eager workers at the automotive parts plant.

A Belgian television crew decided to show how the Elysee Palace state-manages these events.  It filmed volunteers being driven in from other Faurecia plants as extras to stand around the president.  They were picked because they were not taller than Sarkozy's five feet five inches . . .

The article goes on the state that:
Height seems to be a criterion for membership of Sarkozy's government.  There are few tall men . . .


 - - Now isn't that a shame.
___________________________________________________

Does Nicolas Sarkozy have short-man syndrome?

Why does President Sarkozy go to such ridiculous lengths to disguise his true height?
Stuart Jeffries
The Guardian, Wednesday 9 September 2009


When Alan Ladd starred in the 1957 film Boy on a Dolphin, Sophia Loren had to walk in a trench alongside him so filmgoers couldn't tell she was taller than him.  Loren was 5ft 8 in of Italian voluptuousness, while Ladd was 5ft 5 in tall and, in his own words, a man with "the face of an ageing choirboy and the build of an undernourished featherweight".  The following year, when screen hardman Ladd starred in The Deep Six, he stood on boxes so as to appear smaller than his co-stars.

More than half a century on, another man who is 5 ft 5 in tall is similarly doing his damnedest to conceal the shortness of his stature. . . .


"Why does Sarkozy go to such ridiculous lengths to disguise his true height?"

-- Maybe because he knows that Heightism is the "Last Bastion of Discrimination".

_____________________________________________________________________________


SARKOZY'S LITTLE RUSE TO MAKE HIM LOOK TALLER

Tuesday September 8, 2009
By Martin Evans


HE is not the first French leader to be sensitive about his diminutive stature - but not even Napoleon went to the lengths of President Nicolas Sarkozy to look taller.

Not content with his usual stacked heels to gain inches, the 5ft 5 in leader surrounded himself with hand-picked half-pints to appear statuesque. . . .


It's always the same nonsense.  Why is it that the short-of-stature are always labeled "sensitive"

___________________________________________________

Short Kids Are Just As Popular As Taller Peers
by Karen Pallarito

MONDAY, Aug. 17, 2009 (Health.com) - Height-challenged parents around the world can now breath a sigh of relief.  Contrary to popular belief, short children do just as well as their taller peers when it comes to social skills, popularity, and behavior . . .

 - - Well we might have suspected that.  The problem is why do we have to tolerate:

 - being discriminated against blatantly without protection or even recognition
 - being locked out of politics and major sports
 - being paid less for doing the same work
 - being insulted in ways no recognized group would tolerate
 - a demeaning song written about us that once again no recognized group would tolerate written about them
 - being slighted even by dictionaries that describe disparaging and offensive words about the short-statured as merely "informal"

- And we could go on and on.  The "researchers" who took part in this "study" know where they can go.

___________________________________________________________________

Eight Famous Women that Love Short Men

It takes a self-confident woman - and equally secure man to overcome major height differences in a relationship, especially when it comes to the tall lady, small guy type of scenario.  Personally I can't seem to get into being taller than a boyfriend or husband . . .


Eight down, 3 billion to go.

____________________________________________________________________

THE “BEACH” CLUB

It's so sad.  It really is.  He sounds almost as pathetic as Matthew Campisi and 'Luda'-Chris Hamre.  As a matter of fact I think he's trying to compete with them for top honors.  He could even be the next pwesident.  I'll explain.  A character named 'David Beach' gave a broadcast for NOSSA COMMA INC. and he spoke about little people wanting to do away with the word - "midget".  According to the way I understood this idiot is that he doesn't think words like midget should be banned.  It's our fault - meaning short people - for giving people the power to hold these words as weapons to hurt us.  According to him we should wear shirts saying things like, "I'm a Midget" and stuff like dat dere.  Well if you ban disparaging and offensive words for every group, ex., racial, ethnic, religious, sexual orientation, weight, ad infinitum - WITH SHORT PEOPLE BEING THE SOLE EXCEPTION - which is the way it is right now (Please listen to my broadcast "The Definition of a Shrimp") then short people will be the only acceptable group to discriminate against WHICH IS BASICALLY WHAT THE SITUATION IS RIGHT NOW.

It seems that this "Son-of-a-Beach" wants to keep it acceptable to call short people midgets.  That's right.  If you listen to his podcast it doesn't seem that you can draw any other conclusion from what he says.  It's apparent to me that this nincompoop wants to draw the line at short people when it comes to disparaging comments.  This moron is supposed to be someone that Matthew Campisi and NOSSA INC. have engaged to stand up for short people??  Sounds about right.  The very person that does broadcasts for them advocates that the double-standard for short people continue.  He seems to want the onus to be on 'us' rather than 'them'.  He apparently wants short people to stop being 'so offended'.  Just get over it little man and stop giving the world so much power to hurt you, is what he seems to be saying.  This is exactly what our "Mrs. Tallman" might say.  Well Mr. Beach Bum, it's not short people who give others the power to hurt them, it's birdbrains like you who fail to recognize that short people are de-powered everywhere.  We don't give them the power.  They have it already.  They're not going to relinquish it under any circumstances without a fight.  That's a fact.  And imbeciles like you can advocate for individual empowerment all you want, it's not going to change a damn thing.  Mr. "Son-of-a-Beach" you better wake the hell up my man.  You need some hardcore smelling salts to say the least.  I challenge you to come on one of the webmaster's broadcasts; he'll put your ass in its place and make you fly right.  Oh yeah.  Right now we'd have to say though that you're hooked up with the right website.  Birds of a feather do indeed flock together.

NOSSA and their resident "Son-of-a-Beach" are so pathetic it's just laughable.  Oh wait a minute I forgot! -Mr. Bitch's, uh, I mean Beach's opinions don't necessarily reflect those of the "great" NOSSA.  Oh well.  Hey Matty, maybe you could start a beach club next. You'd make more money.  You'd like that wouldn't you?  You know you would.

KEEP UP THE GOOD WORK! 

GO DAVID GO!

CAN'T WAIT TO LISTEN TO YOUR NEXT PODCAST!

SAY HELLO TO PAUL FOR ME!


And if David "Son-of-a" Beach doesn't like being called the words "idiot", "nincompoop", "moron", "imbecile" and "birdbrain", then he must stop giving people the power to hurt him, that's all.  If Matthew Campisi doesn't like it, well, he should just hop in his car, hold his camera with one hand, look down about 40 or 50 times per minute, leave that seat belt a hangin' and take another trip to the 'BIG Easy' or the Empire State Building, or the Washington Monument.  The little man from "Long Guyland" does like his Big and Tall things.  (HUH! HUH! HUH! HUH! HUH!)

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Herrera short in stature, not heart
Originally Published:  June 13, 2009

At 5-foot-6, Reds reliever surviving in big leagues on stuff and guts
By Tim Kurkjian ESPN The Magazine Archive


I am 5-foot-5.  This is relevant for one reason:  On Wednesday, I stood next to Danny Herrera.  He is 1 inch taller than I.  And he is a good relief pitcher for the Cincinnati Reds.

"I'm 5-6," Herrera said.  "My first year of professional ball, I listed myself as 5-8, but they had me at 5-8, 145 pounds.  That made me feel like I was some frail guy, which I'm not.  I weigh 165, 170 pounds.  I used to lie about my height, but I don't do that anymore.  I am 5-foot-6."

Herrera is the shortest major league pitcher - according to listings, which aren't always accurate -- since 5-6 Bobby Shantz, who retired after the 1964 season with 119 victories and an American League Most Valuable Player award in 1952.  Herrera, 24 is no Shantz, but as a left-handed specialist, he has a 1.96 ERA with 18 strikeouts in 23 innings.

"The first time I say him was last year during the week of the Kentucky Derby, and we figured he would have to leave the team that Saturday to go ride one of the horses,"  said Nationals outfielder Adam Dunn, who was Herrera's teammate last season in Cincinnati.  "I've never faced him.  But I haven't faced anyone his size since I was 11 or 12 years old."


Herrera has heard it all and seen it all.

"The best one was last year," he said.  "I was at [Triple-A] Louisville.  One of our catchers, [Alvin] Colina, who is a really big guy, picked me up and put me in his lap as he sat in the bullpen.  Then he stuck his arm inside my jacket, and up my back.  He wouldn't let me go.  I thought, 'What is he doing?'  Then, whenever I would talk, he would move his lips.  Everyone was cracking up.  He was the ventriloquist, and I was [the] puppet.  That was the best one." . . .

The above is just unbelievable on its face.  Imagine picking up a player putting him in your lap and "sticking your arm inside his jacket and up his back" and pretending he was a puppet because of his race, ethnic background or sexual orientation -- or any other reason under the sun.  And this short-statured imbecile (Herrera) calls it, "The best one".  Here's your classic case of self-delusion, that is, a short person fully cooperating in his own humiliation and even celebrating it along with the perpetrator.  Pathetic.

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Good News, Short People: Your Senses May Be Faster Than Tall People's

Discover Magazine Blog

Short people may be disadvantaged on the basketball court, in the workplace, and when trying to see over large crowds, but they just might be quicker in sensing the world around them-because, well, their signals don't have to travel as far to get to their brains. . . .


You see there are positive aspects to being short -"their signals don't have to travel as far".    So stop whining shrimps.


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Room and Board - In the Psycho Ward

It's not caffeine.  Where's 'Luda'-Chris when you need him?
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It Has Come to This!  Your Wife, Sister, or Mother will be Next

The above link is a very disturbing video of Cops on the move.  The video is one of a strip search in a local jail, where a woman probably innocent of any crime is held down and strip-searched by both male and female police officers after a minor incident.  What does this video have to do with heightism you might ask?  Well, there's someone running around claiming to want to help short people who claims to have been involved in Law Enforcement for "many many years" by his own admission and who
has been known to film in closets and bathrooms.  He also likes to drive a car without wearing a seat belt, while holding a camera in one hand and also looking down about 40 times a minute.  (Talk about high-risk behavior!) And there are a few other topics we're going to be covering in the near future.


We'll keep you posted.  In the meantime watch for certain youtube videos to do a Harry Houdini.

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Possible Alien Landing in Washington D.C.

Washington D.C. Sunday August 23, 2009

Here it is folks.  Finally it appears that we have definitive proof that alien life exists in the universe.  After all the decades of reports of flying saucer crashes, crop circles, missing airmen and alien abductions, here is what could be the final proof positive – and on the lawn of the Washington Monument and the White House no less.

Just yesterday we were browsing youtube for videos on alien life.  (We’re not just interested in Heightism by the way)  Some videos displayed wonderfully informative information.  For example there was one that went over all the different alien species from the so-called “greys” to the much more human-like Pleadians.  We viewed one video on the famous Betty and Barney Hill abduction case in New England in 1961 and one on the famous alleged crash of a flying saucer in Roswell, New Mexico in July of 1947.  We learned that the heights of the different alien species varied from 3 and one-half feet tall to 7 or 8 feet tall. 

Now the quintessential aliens are the “Greys”.  They are the ones usually described in most alien abduction reports.  The Greys have been described as between 3 ˝ -4 ˝  feet in height.  This only goes to show that an advanced civilization doesn’t necessarily have to be tall, although some UFO experts claim that the Greys are nothing more than cybernetic organisms created by the much taller “Reptilians” to collect sperm and egg samples from abducted humans to create some sort of a hybrid Alien-Human “Race”.  (If you looked like them you’d want to create a hybrid race too.)  The Reptilians have been described as 7 to 8 feet in height.  You see there just might be heightism in Outer Space too.  But no matter.  We found a video of what appears to be a landing on the lawn of the Washington Monument.  The creature obviously had some sort of recording device and speaks English.  The creature also has a command of the Internet and was seemingly able to put the video up on Youtube, although we can’t be absolutely certain who really DID put it there. 

The “creature” bears a striking resemblance to another “creature” posting disgusting videos on Youtube.  The Washington D.C. creature has a slightly human appearance with its head shaved with a slightly bushy moustache and likes to point its camera at “Tall” things and also at itself.  The creature also pointed its “camera” at the White House.  Thank goodness there was a barricade and a police car on hand, although who knows what weapons the creature is in possession of.   If you happen to see this creature, take no action yourself – repeat – TAKE NO ACTION YOURSELF.  Instead call the police.  They’re equipped with the knowledge and the tools to handle monsters like the one in this video.  They will handle the situation effectively and safely.

 

The Creature in Washington, D.C..     (Boy it looks familiar)


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Size does matter
Cute maybe, but little weenies just don't cut it

Saturday July 26, 2008 22:46 (SA)

My friend has promised to stay away from poor men, but I forgot to tell her that short men are just as unappealing and freaky, especially in public.

Dating a short man is ridiculous because you attract unnecessary attention all the time.

It's worse than a Black chick dating a White man.

When folks see you and a short man in public as a couple, from behind he looks like your son, and from the front he looks like your garden gnome.

You end up feeling like your part of a circus.

How can you date someone as tall as an 11 year-old boy.

"I had a short man once and it was comical", my friend chips in.

"He always avoided shopping with me.  One time I spotted him going to the children's department looking for shoes.

"I never mentioned the topic of shopping again."

I'm not being mean but if you want a reason to dump your short man then take him to a crowded area, switch off your phone and later tell him you couldn't find him.

But what are you doing with him in the first place?

The worst is when they have a big head on that small body.  Who the hell can you introduce him to?

Do you ask him to wear platform heels even though we are not in the 70s?  To avoid being insensitive, please be more careful when flirting with a stranger, especially when you arent sure of his height.


This article is out of chronological order but no matter, it needs to be displayed prominently.  This isn't the entire article, but you get the picture.  The link is no longer active
http://www.sundayworld.co.za/swzones/sundayworldNEW/bitchsbrew/bitchsbrew1217105210.asp  This has to be one of the most heightist writings that we've ever seen, but at least "bitchesbrew" tells you how she feels.  At least she's honest.  At least she didn't fraudulently represent any websites as legitimate incorporated non-profit organizations, ingather money under false pretenses, and lie to any state agencies, as far as we know.  At least she's not an unscrupulous policeman.  Speaking of unscrupulous policemen . . .

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Campisi Rappin' Now

The lunacy just never stops folks.  Who's at the bottom of it?  Why, it's the usual suspect - our friendly neighborhood law enforcement clown - the abominable Matthew S. Campisi.  Campisi claims he's been involved in 'Law Enforcement' for "many, many years".  (The little tike is a venerable 31)  There's not much we can say this time though.  This time Matthew Campisi is doing all our talking for us.  The webmaster has never in his life heard of Long Island referred to as:


LONG GUY-LAND

Matthew Campisi fled Long Island, New York in 2006 for the sunny shore of Pensacola, Florida not far from the Alabama border, by the way.  "Long Guy" and "Guy-land" are phrases that I think are very illuminating as far as Matthew Campisi's choice of funny phrases goes.  No matter how Campisi tries he just cannot help revealing himself.  He just can't stop.  What else is there to say?

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94 TIMES
LEARN TO DRIVE - THE MATTHEW CAMPISI WAY
ANOTHER MATTHEW CAMPISI VIDEO


Just when we thought it was safe to go driving the former foot soldier, security guard, 9th rate singer, entrepreneur 12th class, airport policeman, building inspector and currently 'Law Enforcement' man once again - Matthew Campisi is on the loose again.  This time he's behind the wheel of a car - a moving car.  His latest video masterpiece - "Am I too short to be a cop" has every short person swooning, including the webmaster.  But it's not his repartee at stature issues that has us bedazzled; it's his concentration and technique at driving, and his abiding concern for other motorists and pedestrians that is what's truly awe-inspiring.

I don't know about you but in the 2 minute and 36 second segment that Campisi was visible we noticed Campisi looking down a grand total of 94 times; That's NINETY-FOUR TIMES IN 2 MINUTES AND 36 SECONDS.  Not 94 times in 2 hours and 36 minutes, or 94 times in 2 years and 36 days, but 94 times in 2 minutes and 36 seconds.  This must be a record of sorts.  A very dubious honor indeed.  That's looking down once every 1.66 seconds.  But it's okay, don't worry.  Campisi's a "good driver".  He's in "Law Enforcement".  They told him all about driving in POLEECE ACA-DUMMY, don't worry about that.  It doesn't matter what height you are, "They're going to equip you with the knowledge, they're going to equip you with the tools you'll need to do your job effectively, to do your job safely".  Amen to that.  Especially driving safely.  Even if you cause an accident you can always tell the judge at your trial that you're a POLEECE-MAN.  Maybe fabricate some evidence while you're at it.  Maybe get one of your "Law Enforcement" buddies to put up the "Blue Wall of Silence" for you.  Maybe take the 5th.  And make darn sure NOT to have a jury trial.  A jury of your peers can always get in the way.  Or you can always high-tail it out of the police if the heat is on, and then come back later-after, maybe a brief stint as, oh let's say, a building inspector, for example.  Remember:  you can always control your response.

We also didn't notice Officer Matty wearing his seat belt either.  Seat belts are such cumbersome things.  After all what will happen if your car winds up in water?  How are you going to get out?  Suppose you get slammed by a big truck?  Isn't it better to get thrown clear and land in some nice soft rose bush?  Don't know why they were ever invented - no not rose bushes - Seat Belts.  'Law Enforcement' Campisi proves they're completely unnecessary.

Oh by the way, if you fast-forward to about 2 seconds before the end of this masterful video and just click 'start' and 'stop' rapidly, I think you'll notice another unusual thing, and that is the fact that Campisi was probably holding the camera in his right hand and doing the filming himself all the while.  Another masterful Campisi driving technique.  I wish I was a POLEECE-MAN!  So everybody let's follow the example of a "Law Enforcement" "man":

Driving Rule #1 - Make sure you look down at the ground at least 40, preferably 50 times a minute while you're driving.  After all, you have to make sure your foot is on the right pedal don't you?

Driving Rule #2 - Make sure your right hand is occupied so you only have one hand on the wheel.  No hand-held cameras though.  Only a POLEECE-MAN can do that.

Driving Rule # 3 - Stay away from seat belts.  They only keep you cooped up.

Rule #4 - (not pertaining to driving )  Don't start any websites and fraudulently represent them as any legitimate incorporated non-profit organizations.  Don't ingather money under false pretenses either.  Only a POLEECE-MAN can do that.

Matthew Campisi - To protect and to serve.


Matty at the Wheel

This time we'll be taking bets as to when this video does ITS disappearing act, unless Officer Matty has another surprise for us, like asking a helpful writer to get him a brief interview in a vain attempt to uplift his minuscule credibility.  Remember:  he can always control his response - and he usually tries to make it a big surprise. -- We're all ready for Officer Matty's next 'antic'.

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Campisi Now Filming in Bathroom too

Saturday August 15, 2009

Since the below link to a 'closet video' was posted a few days ago Matthew Campisi has relocated to the bathroom. 
I guess the idea is to attract other "birds of a feather".  Campisi seems to have a need to show his true essence.  It's not difficult to see. 
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This is Matthew Campisi's Closet

Would YOU get involved with this character?       


Don't be surprised if this "video" disappears from youtube in the near future.

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Broadcast of June 15, 2009 - The Definition of a Shrimp

In this powerful broadcast Joe Mangano discusses the incredible double-standard in certain online dictionaries involving the definitions of derogatory and denigrating words describing short-statured people.


Heightism is so blatant and acceptable that even an online dictionary or two describes words like 'Shrimp', 'Runt', 'Pipsqueak' and 'Shorty' as merely "informal" ways to describe or address a short-statured person.  

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COMING SOON!  JOE MANGANO'S MOST POWERFUL BROADCAST YET! --  'THE DEFINITION OF A SHRIMP'

When dictionaries set double standards for short people - AND SHORT PEOPLE ALONE - something is rotten in Denmark.  When every disparaging word for any and every group is defined as such and called what it is while disparaging and offensive words describing short people are trivialized as "informal" and literally condoned and even celebrated, it's time to take the gloves off.

Read Joe's powerful letter to www.dictionary.com  (This is the first correspondence in history demanding that a dictionary change its definitions of derogatory words depicting short-statured people)

____________________________________________________________________                                                            

JOE MANGANO FIRST TO SEND COMPLAINT TO DICTIONARY.COM

Sunday June 7, 2009

Prejudice toward the short-of-stature seems to know no bounds.  Recently, the webmaster was looking up the definition of a word on www.dictionary.com.  A thought came to me to look up the definitions of certain words; words that are used to depict people of different races, ethnic backgrounds, religions, sexes, etc. derogatorily or contemptuously.  I looked up the words Nigger, Sambo, Blackie, Spic, Wetback, Queer, Faggot, Fairy, Dyke, Bitch, Kike and Fatso and found that in each and every case these words were defined as “disparaging” and/or “offensive”.  I then looked up the words Shrimp, Runt, Pipsqueak and Shorty and here’s what I found.

 Shrimp

2. Informal. a diminutive or insignificant person. 

______________________________________________________________________

Runt

a person who is small and contemptible  That runt causes most of the trouble at the meetings.

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Pipsqueak

–noun Informal.

a contemptibly small or unimportant person; a twerp.

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 Shorty

-noun

1.  A person of less than average stature

In no case were these words described as either disparaging or offensive.  It appears that EVEN THE DICTIONARY is guilty of heightism.  I’m telling you it’s absolutely incredible!  Please listen to my broadcast entitled “Definition of a Shrimp” – coming soon.

SUPPORTFORTHESHORT CALLS UPON ALL SHORT PEOPLE TO CONTACT DICTIONARY.COM AND THE MERRIAM-WEBSTER DICTIONARY ONLINE AND DEMAND THAT THEY CHANGE THEIR DEFINITIONS OF THESE WORDS AND DEFINE THEM TO BE EXACTLY WHAT THEY ARE – DISPARAGING AND OFFENSIVE TOWARD SHORT PEOPLE.  TO DEFINE A WORD LIKE SHRIMP OR PIPSQUEAK AS MERELY “INFORMAL” IS AN INSULT TO THE INTELLIGENCE OF ALL SHORT PEOPLE AND IS THE QUINTESSENTIAL EXAMPLE OF HEIGHTISM COMING – INCREDIBLY ENOUGH – EVEN FROM A DICTIONARY.  DICTIONARY.COM DEFINES ONE OR MORE OF THE OTHER WORDS AS CONTEMPTUOUSNESS ON THE PART OF THE PERSON USING THE DISPARAGING WORD TOWARD THAT INDIVIDUAL.  IN THE CASE OF THE WORD “RUNT” FOR EXAMPLE DICTIONARY.COM DEFINES THE PERSON BEING CALLED THE WORD AS CONTEMPTIBLE.  THIS SORT OF NEGATIVE CHARACTERIZATION OF SHORT PEOPLE IN A DICTIONARY IS ABSOLUTELY INTOLERABLE AND FURTHER ILLUSTRATES THE INCREDIBLE UNSPOKEN NEGATIVE ATTITUDES IN SOCIETY (EVEN IN THE DICTIONARY) TOWARDS SHORT PEOPLE.  IT SEEMS ANYTHING GOES WITH RESPECT TO SHORT PEOPLE – EVEN IN A DICTIONARY.  I’M SURPRISED DICTIONARY.COM DIDN’T PROVIDE A LINK TO THE SONG“SHORT PEOPLE” BY RANDY NEWMAN WHILE THEY WERE AT IT.

Read my letter to www.dictionary.com - here.

The reader can either e-mail dictionary.com through this link (http://dictionary.reference.com/help/contact.html) at their website or send a written letter to:

Dictionary.com, LLC                                                                                                                                                                                                      Attn:  Customer Service                                                                                                                                                                                             Ask.com                                                                                                                                                                                                                           555 12th St.                                                                                                                                                                                                                    Suite 500                                                                                                                                                                                                                     Oakland, CA 94607

 The Merriam-Webster dictionary online can be e-mailed at this link (http://www.merriam-webster.com/info/contact.htm) or a letter can be sent to:

 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
47 Federal Street
P.O. Box 281

Springfield, MA 01102

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The Millionaire Matchmaker

Looks like another silly Hollywood twit and two adolescent behaving  30-something males.  Oh but that's okay, they're tall.  One is the 'strong, silent' type.  All a tall man has to do is just simply 'be'.  That makes him strong.

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Chelsea Lately; David Faustino Interview, "It's the 5'3" thing"

2/10/09

Another self-deprecating short man.  A Robert Reich sound-alike all the way.
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The Secret Advantage of Being Short

by Robert Krulwich

All Things Considered, May 18, 2009  Take a look at Abe Lincoln, particularly this version, and what do you see? A very very very very tall man.

And it's good to be tall.  But, says neuroscientist David Eagleman, there is one possible, ever-so-slight drawback.  Eagleman can imagine situations where tall people experience the world a little later than short people.


This is an audio clip on www.npr.org .  Just another buffoon or two making a joke out of short-stature.  Naturally "The Song" can be heard.
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Broadcast of April 27, 2009 - Ridiculous Heightism Laws

This is Joe Mangano.  I discovered a video recently from Youtube concerning legislation that was attempted to be put forth in Massachusetts concerning discrimination against the short-of-stature and also fat people.  The video was taken in 2008 on CNN and the commentator was a man named Mike Galanos.  The brief 6 minute segment was about the law that was attempted to be put through by Congressman Byron Rushing in Massachusetts that would have made height and weight discrimination illegal in the state of Massachusetts. . . .


Short people once again dissed - this time in Massachusetts.

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Ridiculous Anti-Discrimination Laws for Fat and Short People   


This is the video the audio of which is highlighted in the Broadcast of April, 27, 2009.  A cinch to anger any short person. – Any short person who is awake that is.  The viewer will notice that the brief ‘debate’ is between a fat woman and another woman over whether laws to protect fat and short people in Massachusetts from discrimination in the workplace are sensible and viable.  The viewer will also notice that there is no person representing short people here.  (The webmaster was not approached to speak).  There is no one from any “organization” involved in the brief interview either.  This could be because there is no one from any “organization” competent enough to speak intelligently about the issue of heightism or anyone willing to show his face simply out of fear of having their face seen on national TV.  There are reasons for this.  Here's one.  To wit:

                      ""Cal Lutheran is a small school and Chris Hamre is a shining example."  So, that was kind of offensive.  To me that was a shot  across the bow . . . . But I found that kind of offensive and it kind of humiliated me a little bit.  so that's one thing that kind of offended me."   . . .    

Some of the words of one 'Luda'-Chris Hamre at a state senate hearing in Boston, Massachusetts in March 2008.   This is another reason why the short-statured are "kind of" not taken seriously.  There are like "kind of" more.   Who is 'Luda' - Chris Hamre?  He is the former $12/hour mailroom worker (and most likely still one) Vice-President of NOSSA, Inc., which, by the way, got started in November of 2006 after the webmaster made complaints to 2 different state agencies about the website www.nossaonline.org being falsely represented as a legitimate incorporated non-profit organization.   More on 'Luda'-Chris and his 'leader', Matthew S. Campisi, later.


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Broadcast of April 14, 2009 - Interview with Steve Penner

Joe interviews Steve Penner who wrote the book,  'The Truth About Dating Revealed'


Women really do discriminate against short men.

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Pygmies want UN tribunal to address cannibalism   

May 23 2003


Pygmy activists from Congo have demanded the United Nations set up a tribunal to try government and rebel fighters accused of slaughtering and eating Pygmies who are caught in the country's civil war.

Army, rebel and tribal fighters - some believing the Pygmies are less than human or that eating the flesh would give them magic power - have been pursuing the Pygmies in the dense jungles, killing them and eating their flesh, the activists said at a news conference yesterday.

There have been reports of markets for Pygmy flesh, the representatives alleged.

"In living memory, we have seen cruelty, massacres, genocide, but we have never seen human beings hunted and eaten literally as though they were game animals . . .


Although 6 years old this article demonstrates the ultimate in deviant hatred, cruelty and inhumanity leveled at a group for no other reason than their height.  This is the "advantage" short people have everywhere else in the world; that is, the "advantage" of not being identified as a group.

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Heightism - The Last Bastion of Discrimination - by Joe Mangano

The Original Classic Heightism Essay


The essay that started it all.
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An Oldie and a Baddie   

by Joe Mangano

About 5 years ago, I was thumbing through a magazine and lo and behold I found a wonderful advertisement for a new high-tech color copier from Toshiba.  Now Toshiba is a wonderful company.  I bought a Toshiba TV set many years ago and it lasted over a decade and a half without any repairs whatsoever.  Unfortunately upon reading the advertisement I felt - once again - the sting of the lash of heightism. The ad read:

I do her color copying,
I scan all her pictures, I make her look good
And she completely ignores me.

IS IT BECAUSE -  I'M SHORT?

See Ad here

The advertisement went on to state that you can ". . . Add finishing touches like booklet making, saddle-stitching, stapling and hole punching and you're sitting pretty.  Even if you happen to be vertically challenged."

Toshiba is obviously keeping pace with the times.

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Short Stature Kids   

Listen to the story


Short-stature is not a disease.  It is not a physical disability unless associated with things like Turner's Syndrome or other types of dwarfism.  Just what is it then about short stature in a child that causes parents so much anxiety?

Ask thyself.
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 . . . AND A PINCH TO GROW ON   

Hormone therapy helps short children stand taller

Monday, March 9, 2009 3:08 AM
BY AMY SAUNDERS
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH

Aw, you're so little and cute, Gabrielle Dolbin was always told.
As an 8-year-old, she typically wore out clothers before she outgrew them -- and she stood a head shorter than her friends.
"We though she was cute as well," said her mother, Andrea, of Dublin.  "But, at a certain point, . . . (her height) became sort of upsetting." . . .


The article goes on to state that Gabrielle's parents decide to get her growth-hormone therapy "out of a concern for her health, not her appearance".  And if we believe that they'll tell us another one.

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Size matters & color codes   

3/5/2009 Moscow News No 08 2009

By Mark H. Teeter

With a meeting between presidents Medvediv and Obama now looming on the near horizon, it's a good time for Russian speakers learning English to consider the two most obvious differences between these gents - think a moment - and figure out how to talk about them without offending anyone (especially the two presidents).

Let's take the easy one first: height. . . . .

Why is height automatically the "easy one"?

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Getting Shorted   

For height-challenged men, finding clothes that fit is the real challenge

3/5/09 4:49 P.M. ET Wall Street Journal

One out of three men in the U.S. is under 1.73 meters tall.  You'd never guess the magnitude of the demographic from menswear.
"they have stores for big and tall men, so why not for shorter men?" asks Josh Lefkowitz, who describes his height as 1.61 meters.

snip

Yet when standard-size clothes are altered for a man like Mr. Lefkowitz, the final proportions can come out all wrong.  simply shortening a suit's hems and sleeves can leave the collar too broad, the pockets oversize, the armholes gargantuan, the elbow curves too low and the rear droopy.

All this can make a small man look even smaller.  "Taller men can get away with having things look a little baggy, " says Mr. Lefkowitz.  But the wrong fit "can make us look schlumpy."

Height, for a man, is the ultimate power marker.

snip

The bias against short men is apparent even in Mr. Au's Store windows.  Unable to buy shorter mannequins, Mr. Au turned to a Hollywood special-effects studio that makes crash dummies for action movies - the kind that get blown up in chase scenes . . .


Short men only good for getting blown up in movies.

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Fact or Fiction?:  It's No Tall Tale, Height Matters   

Is it true that short people have a tougher time in life than their taller peers?

SCIAM.com - 24/02/2009

Short people know the sad litany all too well:  Numerous studies show that they probably earn less than taller colleagues.  They get fewer dates as well as fewer promotions.  Their bosses are probably taller than they are - in fact, more than half of U.S. CEOs clock reach six-feet- (183-centimeters-) plus.  And if all that wasn't depressing enough, now comes . . .


According to article prejudice against short people due to poor nutrition.

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Height Discrimination in Employment   

Isaac B. Rosenberg
William & Mary Law School
February 16, 2009
Utah Law Review, 2009

Abstract:
At first blush, the concept of real height discrimination is almost laughable.  After all, we don't typically think of height when we discuss types of discrimination.  Yet there is no denying that we place a high premium on height, be it social, sexual, or economic, and our preference for height pervades almost every aspect of our lives. Economist John Kenneth Galbraith - who towered at 6'8" - described the favored treatment we afford taller people as "one of the most blatant and forgiven prejudices in our society."  If you don't believe it, consider whether you yourself would like to be taller and, if so, try putting your finger on the reason why. . . .



Even a paper about height discrimination on the prestigious 'Social Science Research Network' begins and ends with words from "The Song".

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How your looks betray your personality   

11 February 2009 by Roger Highfield, Richard Wiseman and Rob Jenkins

THE history of science could have been so different.  When Charles Darwin applied to be the "energetic young man" that Robert Fitzroy, the Beagle's captain, sought as his gentleman companion, he was almost let down by a woeful shortcoming that was as plain as the nose on his face.  Fitzroy believed in physiognomy - the idea that you can tell a person's character from their appearance. . . .


The article seems to come to the conclusion that there is some truth to the assertion that our looks do reflect some aspects of our character.  The question is, do people "act the way they look" because they and others expect themselves to conform to what their appearance seems to represent or is there some genetic component involved connecting both appearance and behavior?  A logical question is, "Would these researchers come to the same conclusions based on race, religion or ethnic background"?  Would they even dare ask the question? 

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Obama is Prejudice* Against Short People   

By Buddy Nevins

I'm vertically challenged.

At maybe 5-feet-5, the only folks I can look eye-to-eye are middle schoolers and maybe Ken Jenne.
It is natural that article about height interest me.
The following editorial in Saturday's Daily News caught my eye.
This is what happens when we elect a presidentt who plays basketball.
So, as they sing in "Guys And Dolls", what's in the Daily News?
I'll tell you what's in the Daily News:

An Obama Tall tale

Barack Obama's prejudice has been revealed.  The man ia a tallist.  Now that he has assembled his whole cabinet, who can ignore the evidence?

  • Paul Volcker, chosen for a plum White House economics job, is 6-feet-7.
  • Arne Duncan, picked to be education secretary, is 6-feet-5.
  • Gen. James Jones, national security adviser, is 6-feet-5.
  • Eric Holder, attorney general-designee, is 6-feet-3.
  • Tom Vilsack, the choice for agricultrue secretary, is 6-feet-3.
  • Ray LaHood, tapped for transportation, is 6-feet-2.
  • Ron Kirk, new U.S. trade representative, is 6-feet-1.
  • Obama's idol Abraham Lincoln was 6-feet-4.
  • Where are the Robert Reichs (4-feet-10)?  Or the Madeleine Albrights (4-feet-10)?  Or the Michael Bloombergs (5-feet-8 on a good day)?
  • Clearly, Obama (6-feet-1) looks down on all of them.

Original Article


The average height of the above people (not including President Obama) is 6-feet-3 and three quarters, an incredible 6 inches above average heights for men if indeed Buddy is accurate.  Amazing.  In that event I would imagine that this is some of the "Change we can believe in"; although it would appear to be some of the same old doo-doo - only worse.  Imagine the comments that would have been made in the media if these folks were 6 inches below average height at 5-feet-3 and three quarters.  Imagine.

* The word should be 'Prejudiced'.

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Confronting Racism in America

Customers React Very Differently When Hispanics Denied Service at N.J. Deli

By ERIC HANAN and YARDENA SCHWARTZ

Jan. 5, 2009

It was 6:30 a.m. on a Friday in down town Linden, N.J., when two Hispanic day laborers were struggling with their English as they tried to order a coffee and a sandwich at a deli.

But rather than getting served, they got a string of insults hurled at them from the clerk behind the counter.  Their broken-English request for food was met with a barrage of racist remarks, including, "Get back in your pickup truck with the rest of your family."  This scene wasn't real.  It was all part of a "What Would You do?" experiment designed to find out what action, if any, bystanders would take after watching the men's exchange with the clerk. . . .


When you go to the link to the story above you'll see that the 'clerk' in the photo was significantly taller then the Mexicans.  It appears that he's at least 6 feet in height, and the Mexicans are probably around the height of about 5'4" -  as short as that little shrimp Joe Mangano.  Although this little episode was staged, it makes us think a little bit.  Could they have staged this with a short clerk and two taller Mexicans I wonder?  Or a medium height clerk?  Handsome actors are mostly all taller than average.  Is the webmaster being heightist stating this?  Not at all.  It's just so natural to see a larger individual bullying a smaller one or two smaller ones.  It's just written into the script - unconsciously.  It would look so unnatural with a shrimpy clerk.  At least THIS clerk was viewed as the bad guy.  I wonder if the clerk had made heightist comments how fast the patrons would be running to the defense of the short men.  Don't you wonder?)


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Broadcast of December 29, 2008 - Size simply does matter - Doesn't it?  Part II

The second article I'm going to mention here is the real doozy.  It's title is 'Pedophiles tend to be short men, study finds'.  It's written by Joseph Hall, Health Reporter.  Now I'm not going to read the entirety of this article, I'm just going to quote snippets of it.  But the first two paragraphs of the article sum up the conclusions of the researchers quite nicely . . .


IT ISN'T ENOUGH NOW THAT SHORT MEN ARE DISCRIMINATED AGAINST.  NOW WE'RE MORE LIKELY TO BE PEDOPHILES TOO
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The Pygmies' Plight  

A correspondent who chronicled their lives in central African rain forests returns a decade later and is shocked by what he finds

By Paul Raffaele

Smithsonian Magazine, December 2008

Some 50 Pygmies of the Baka clan lead me single file through a steaming rain forest in Cameroon.  Scrambling across tree trunks over streams, we hack through heavy undergrowth with machetes and cut away vinelike lianas hanging like curtains in our path.

snip

With about 250,000 of them remaining, Pygmies are the largest group of hunter-gatherers left on earth.  But they are under serious threat.

Over the past decade, I've visited Pygmy clans in several Congo Basin Countries, witnessing the destruction of their traditional lifestyle by the Bantu, as taller Africans are widely known.  On this trip, this past February, my companion is Manfred Mesumbe, a Cameroonian anthropologist and expert on Pygmy culture.  "The Banur governments have forced them to stop living in the rain forests, their culture's bedrock, " he tells me.  "Within a generation many of their unique traditional ways will be gone forever."

snip

Three scowling Bantus brandishing machetes stride into the clearing. I fear that they're bandits, common in this lawless place. I'm carrying my money in a bag strung around my neck, and news of strangers travels fast among the Bantu here. Mesumbe points to one of them, a stocky man with an angry look, and in a low voice tells me he is Joseph Bikono, chief of the Bantu village near where the government has forced the Pygmies to live by the roadside.

Bikono glares at me and then at the Pygmies. "Who gave you permission to leave your village?" he demands in French, which Mesumbe translates. "You Pygmies belong to me, you know that, and you must always do what I say, not what you want. I own you. Don't ever forget it."


SOUNDS LIKE SOME TALLERS I KNOW OVER HERE.  

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At a hair under 4 feet 11, police officer holds his own   

Emily Nipps, Times Staff Writer                                                                                                                                                                                         In Print:  Friday, November 21, 2008                                      

TAMPA

When the Tampa Police department needs a touch of compassion, someone who can roll into any situation and defuse it with a calm, tolerant demeanor, they know just the guy.

He's like a superhero of sorts, a man of may powers.  His specialty is children, especially those who have been abused, as he has a knack for dealing with them, literally, eye to eye.  His mere presence can calm a thrashing, fighting criminal.  Thugs just don't feel like taking a punch when they see him.

His supervisor says he's great for crawling through small windows or tossing on roofs or over fences.  He can do it all, it seems . . . except maybe put you in a standing headlock.  Or dunk a basketball. . . .

_________________________________________________________________________

Taller People Are Happier

Taller people report higher life satisfaction than shorter people

by Angus Deaton, Ph.D. and Raksha Arora

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Taller people are happier, at least on average.  According to recent data from the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index study, taller people are more satisfied with their lives than shorter peopole are; are more likely to report experiencing several positive emotions such as enjoyment and happiness; and are less likely to report experiencing negative emotions such as anger, sadness, stress, and worry.  Taller people are also less likely to report experiencing physical pain.

snip

The main reason why taller people do better is because they have higher incomes, they are better educated, and they work in higher status occupations.


(Webmaster's note:  The results are based on interviews and responses to questions.  Dear Angus postulates that because of exposure to disease or lack of good nutrition some children do not attain their full height and Dear Angus seems to think that is a cause of a decreased cognitive ability on the part of the shorter individuals.  Dear Angus doesn't seem to consider the prejudice and discrimination faced by those who are short.  I guess that wouldn't occur to this distinguished Ph.D.)

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Broadcast of November 25, 2008 - Size simply does matter -- doesn't it?

This is Joe Mangano.  I just happened to see a few articles in the recent past and one caught my eye and that one was on yorkpress.co.uk and the title of that article is . . .

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The height of 'heightism'   

By Steve Penner

August 08, 2008 6:00 AM

The first column I wrote three years ago dealt with the single issue that bugged me the most during the 23 years I ran the dating service LunchDates. Frankly, it was the aggravation caused by this issue that partially motivated me to start writing these columns.

I am referring to single women's prejudice against meeting short men. Since I doubt that too many current readers actually saw that column, I decided to revisit the topic. After all, this is one area in which many women display all the shallowness and superficiality that they love to accuse men of possessing.

The same woman who is 10-20 pounds overweight, and who cannot understand why a man might not want to date her because of those few extra pounds ...; that same woman often will refuse to meet a man who is 2 inches shorter than her "ideal."

During my years at LunchDates I interviewed women who were very flexible about a man's religion, his hobbies, and even whether he was divorced. But the one criterion they would not budge on was his height! . . .

snip

But those men also had to be tall! When pushed to the wall and asked their reasons, they replied with some of the following excuses:

  • "I usually wear shoes with at least three to four-inch heels," some women responded very naturally. They also frequently pointed out that many boots have even higher heels. So these women would add at least three to four inches to their own height just to pull even, then another few inches to make sure that the man on their arm was still taller.
  • "My father, my brother, and all the men in my family are over 6 feet, so that is what I am used to," one women stated, insisting that she KNEW that the average height of men was around 6 feet. When I tried to tell her that the median height of men was between 5 feet 8 inches and 5 feet 9 inches, she got up and angrily marched out of the interview room!
  • "I am short, and I am looking for a man to father my children, and I don't want to have short children," a number of women told me, with a straight face, I might add.
  • "I just feel safer when I walk down the street with a man who is much taller than me," was also a common response.
  • "I am only attracted to tall men, I just can't help it!"


The truth -- from an expert.

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Living the Petrarchan Motif   

Petrarchan Motif Chicago, IL, United States Insomniac former arcane Renaissance Lit scholar cum socially accessible techno-geek

Tuesday, November 21, 2006

Short Men's Dating Woes Played for Laughs: Reuters

Sigh. So, apparently the only way I'm going to get a date at one of these Speed-Dating venues is to hope that I'm not the shortest guy there. "Ha Ha, yeah, let's all laugh at the poor short men who can't get dates, glad I'm not that short." Thanks for the healthy dose of multi-cultural sensitivity, Reuters reporter. Now, if I were a Palestinian short man...

I was reminded of a similar story that John Stossel reported on ABC's 20/20, and related in his book Myths, Lies, and Downright Stupidity (2006, p. 45)

Height matters to women too. 20/20 once put short and tall men in lineups behind a two-way mirror, and then invited groups of women to choose a date. They always chose the taller guys.

Listening to their comments made me cringe. We told them that one man, who stood just five foot three, was a doctor, a best-selling author, and a champion skier who'd just built his own ski house. "He's still too short!" said the women.

Another man was only five feet tall. He was handsome and well dressed. But the women weren't interested. We said he was a millionaire. He still got turned down. I asked the women what it would take to make them want to to date him.  "Maybe the only thing you could say is the others are murderers," was the response. . . .

Such is the depth of some womens' contempt for those men who have less active pituitary glands.

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Little Big Man   

Geting over our obsession with height.

By David Wallace-Wells

Washington Monthly December 2006

In 1712, a first child was born to the militarist prince Frederick William of Prussia. A year shy of the throne himself, Frederick had high hopes for his son, the future Frederick II. But the child was “small, sickly ... delicate, backward, and puny,” writes the journalist Stephen S. Hall in Size Matters, his engaging new nonfiction picaresque. The pitiful size of the crown prince was an embarrassment to the new king,

snip

In 1985, a handful of children in the United States and Britain died after becoming infected with Creutzfeld-Jakob disease, the degenerative neurological disorder, from a contaminated batch of HGH. The doctors supervising hormone treatment immediately suspended the program, but many parents protested. “We’ll take the risk,” they told one growth expert. He responded, “‘Yeah? For an inch, two inches?’ And the parents said, ‘Yeah.’”

To some parents it's better their kids are dead than short.

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Knee Defender Keeps Passengers Upright, Uptight  

by Keith L. Alexander

Tuesday, October 28, 2003

It's a recipe for air rage.

You're settling in for the long flight when you get the urge to recline your seat. You push the armrest button, give a little shove backward -- and nothing happens. You try again. Nothing. The seat won't budge.



You investigate, and you discover that the passenger behind you has locked your seatback in the upright position.

Welcome to world of the Knee Defender, a plastic palm-size clip that attaches to a passenger's tray table, preventing the seat in front from reclining. . . .


It's wonderful and beautiful to see the Tallers sit comfortably. 

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Air traffic controller loses case for 'height discrimination'   (9/9/05)  

A 6ft 10in man has lost his case for unfair dismissal against the National Air Traffic Services (Nats) at an employment tribunal.

Mr Sargeaunt-Thomson had been accepted for the post of air traffic controller but was failed on health and safety grounds at his medical because he was considered too tall to sit at his desk on health and safety grounds. He claimed indirect sexual discrimination, arguing that only a man could reach 6ft 10ins.

(Oh how quick those tallers sue when they're wronged!)

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Troops mourn teenage comrade who insisted:  'I ain't no baby'  

CNN.com    July 2007

Story Highlights

  • Army Spc. Christopher D. Kube was memorialized by comrades
  • He enlisted at age 17 and volunteered to be a gunner on Humvee
  • The newlywed soldier was killed after eight months in Iraq
  • "You were like a little brother to us all, " wrote on soldier

FORWARD OPERATING BASE LOYALTY, Iraq (AP) - Army Spc. Christopher D. Kube was memorialized Thursday in a packed theater at this outpost in east Baghdad.  Another fallen soldier.  Another reminder, far from the public spotlight, of the grief that hits not only families of this war's casualties but also their comrades in arms.

He was 18.

He was a newlywed.

He was killed on July 14, eight months after he arrived in Iraq on a deployment that made him nervous from the start, as one fellow soldier remembered.  Back at his home station, fort Carson, Colorado, he drew attention for being so young, so short, so slight and so cheerful.

"When I saw him I asked, 'How old are you, 10?'" recalled his platoon sergeant . . .


(Webmaster's note:  It is tragic that some short fellows feel a need to join the armed forces 'To prove they're a man'.  Joining the Armed Forces or professions like security guard or policeman usually entails carrying a gun.  It is not the gun that makes the man.  Sometimes they pay the ultimate price for the "proof".  A lesson the soon-to-be ex-president of NOSSA - Matthew Campisi - would do well to learn when he gets his  next "adrenaline rush "chasing bad guys".  

Sounds like an "Anticipated future" topic for a new or "upcoming" broadcast or two.  A "bad guy" chasing "bad guys".   An appropriate title to say the least.)

Hopefully when you click on the above link - "chasing bad guys", the Campisi story "My love/hate relationship with law enforcement" of October 15, 2008, will still be there or not altered or changed from his original story - but that's a big 'if'.  Disappearing acts are one of Matthew Campisi's specialities.  (Notice the photo of the cop apparently manhandling - of all things - a person dressed as a clown!  A seemingly quite LARGE cop no less.)

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Success is the best revenge  

A personal story for the experience group:  I Am Short             

Dec. 3, 2007

Short.  I walk into a room and the subtext is short.  Women pat me on the head.  Men think they can mess with me and they do.  Not because they are good or smart, but because they are taller.  My boss regularly, openly ridIcules me for being short.  Makes fun of the fact that I am short.  It's apparently okay to make fun of short people.  It's the forgiven prejudice. . . .


(Webmaster's note:  The author goes on to state that he rose to the top position in his field and his work has won him international recognition.  What I find amazing is that with all this success he claims his current boss "regularly, openly ridicules him for being short".  Obviously success isn't always "The best revenge".   Which makes me wonder;  would we tell a Black man in Mississippi in 1950 something like, "Oh just be successful.  That's the best revenge. "  This type of advice is just pure nonsense.  The bottom line is, success is extremely difficult for the short person, not usually because of any intrinsic inferiority on the part of the short, but mostly due to society's prejudice toward the short - and more importantly - IT SHOULD NOT BE.  It is obvious from what this man writes that even somewhat successful short men are still victims - right in the very workplace where a man is in "the top position in his field".  This must stop.)

______________________________________________________


About Short Men: Answers to the discrimination against this type?   

I'll start off by saying I am 6 feet even. By the common occurences scale I am tall. So why would I ask this question? Because I think about more than myself and my issues, that's why.

This is one of the biggest social shunning issues in civilization today. When we hear concerns over body image issues in regards to women and weight (which are indeed valid) no one ever seems to recognize the utter contempt people-at-large have for short men. I've seen it at my job with a capable responsible employee mocked and frequently disrespected by his own co-workers. And it angered me.

In the dating scene, on the corporate ladder, in daily interactions short men face staggering disregard as a human being. They pooh-pooh it as "short man's syndrome" and wonder why many short men have complexes. Well when you kick a dog on a chain every day all day, how can you NOT expect for the dog to be messed up? Short men who fight back and try to overcome it all get negatively called "Napoleons".


(Webmaster's note:  I found this at 'Yahoo Answers'.  It is surprising to find this kind of insight from an individual removed from the situation.  The phrase, "utter contempt people-at-large have for short men" is very illuminating.  Imagine people freely showing "utter contempt" for anyone based on skin color, national origin, religion, disability, or anything else for that matter - and in the workplace to boot.  The fact that short people have to tolerate this is in the 21st Century is unbelievable.)

_________________________________________________________________________


Broadcast of October 9, 2008 - 'Unusual things Part II'

I make observations of people occasionally.  I make observations of things like their body language for example; what they wear, how they walk, how they talk, and of course how short people including myself get treated by others and how those others treat people who are taller.  I mentioned something along these lines in my essay.  I wrote, and this is to paraphrase, ‘Observe how taller others are treated in comparison to you . . .

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Ridiculous Anti-Discrimination Laws For Fat and Short People   
Friday, September 26, 2008
YouTube.com

Mike Galanos of CNN interviews a fat woman arguing for laws to protect the fat and the short from discrimination.  Presenting an opposing view was Katherine Mangu-Ward of reason.com who claimed that:

                "There's an important difference between saying that the Massachusetts Legislature has a say
                and saying my mom should tell me what to do."

Such words of wisdom.  Miss Mangu-Ward also claims her mom would smack her if she insulted any short or fat people.  But that doesn't mean there should be a law.

__________________________________________________________________________

Broadcast of September 17, 2008 - 'Unusual things'

This is Joe Mangano.  The short-of-stature have to deal with all kinds of unusual things.  And unusual things can be very positive or they can be very negative.  In the case of the short-of-stature, obviously they're usually very negative.  Go into companies, I guess in every state, I haven't been in every state, but in New York City they've got all this stuff hanging on the wall . . .

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Broadcast of August 23, 2008 - 'Olympic heights'

This is Joe Mangano.  I titled this broadcast 'Olympic heights' because as you're probably aware, the Olympics are currently taking place in Beijing China, which by the way is very coincidental because . . .

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Tall Order!  The bizarre Russian clinic that offers leg-lengthening surgery 'if you can STAND the pain'   

Last updated at 4:25 PM on 29th July 2008

Throughout her school years, Sara Vornamen, 29, was relentlessly riduculed for her height.  At just 5ft tall, she endured regular taunts and was nicknamed 'midget' and 'small fry'.  Even as an adult, in her job as a lawyer, she often endured snide remarks from colleagues.

A common enough experience for those on the short side, perhaps.  But in Sara's case, she decided that only the most dramatic action would put paid to the comments which were making her life a misery.



(Webmaster's note:  One would think that a lawyer might decide to fight heightism by trying to get legislation passed to protect short people in the workplace or society in general.  This is not what this lawyer did.  She chose to lengthen her legs instead.  I wonder if - if those other lawyers were making comments about her being a woman - she would consider changing her sex.  Don't you wonder?)

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I have 2 little words for you S&M whiners, 'grow up'   

May 23, 2008
Joel Rubinoff
RECORD STAFF


"One hundred years ago," begins S&M:  Short & Male (7 p.m. Saturday on CTV), an amusing but delusional doc about the perils of being short, "women took to the streets in New York City to demand equal pay and the right to vote.  Fifty years ago, a black student sat at a Whites-only restaurant and asked to be served. 

But today, continues narrator Howard Goldberg, there remains on group that has made no progress in the face of rampant discrimination: "shrimps." . . .


- - - - - - - - - - - - - -

(Webmaster's note:  Rubinoff goes on to call the folks in the documentary "self-indulgent whiners who moan and groan about being jostled on sidewalks, rejected by women who find them "cute" and earning less money than their sky-reaching peers, I can't help but feel what they really need is to, ahem, stop whining".  Rubinoff is 5'6" in height.  The quintessential example of a short man 'identifying' with aggressors and also in a state of denial.  The webmaster sent Mr. Rubinoff an e-mail but so far Mr. Rubinoff has not been BIG ENOUGH to reply.)

__________________________________________________________________________

Don't want no short, short man   

By Amber Dowling
2008-05-22

The doc that wonders why some men come up short

Have you ever heard of a limb-lengthening procedure?  It's an excruciatingly painful surgical process that involves breaking a patient's legs, inserting metal screws and turning them to keep the separated sections apart as the bones grow back into one another, therefore lengthening the leg - a couple of inches.

In this film, 12-year-old Akash undergoes the surgery because being short is too emotionally painful.

Filmmaker Howard Goldberg first stumbled upon the idea of documenting the struggles of short males when his acrophobic painter asked him to climb a ladder and change a light bulb.  When Goldberg cracked a joke about the guy's height, he realized they were both about 5-foot-3 and around the same age.  A frank and honest discussion about what their respective heights meant followed - a first talk of the sort for both of them. . . .

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Smaller guys get the short end of the stick   

Siri Agrell
From Thursday's Globe and Mail
Thursday, May 22
8:53 AM

Justin Parfitt remembers one man who arrived early for a speed dating event hosted by his company, FastLife, and sat down instantly.  Usually, participants mingle before the flirtations begin, but this man stayed planted in his seat until the bell indicated it was time to date.  "It turned out he was really, really short, " said Mr. Parfitt.  "But he managed to get through most of the evening by disguising it."

_______________________________________________________________________

Documentaries on CTV   

S&M:  Short and Male

Do height-challenged men come up short against their counterparts when it comes to love, work and life?  In the new CTV Original Documentary S&M:  Short and Male, short-statured filmmaker Howard Goldberg travels the world, exposing the trials and tribulations of life as a short man.

As Goldberg discovers, many endure painful surgery, growth hormones, discrimination and problems attracting a partner as a result of their height.

On a journey that takes him from Montreal to Beijing . . .

__________________________________________________

Short & Male:  Short stories   


May 16, 2008 04:30 AM

Philip Marchand
Movie Critic

S&M:  Short & Male
2 1/2 stars out of 4

Montreal filmmaker Howard Goldberg's battle cry at the beginning of his documentary about physically diminutive men is a characteristic mix of earnestness flavored with a dash of self-mockery.

"In the interests of creating self-awareness, I set out to bond with my fellow shrimps," he states.  "I discovered a great group of guys who may have stopped growing physically but never stopped growing up inside, where it counts."

Goldberg takes the viewer to France where people, according to the film, are shorter than average and psychoanalyst Alfred Adler, who gave us the phrase, "Napoleon complex" to describe short men . . .

__________________________________________________________________________

Standing on the shoulders of just about everybody   

Chris Knight, National Post
Published:  Thursday, May 15, 2008

Film review:  S&M: Short and Male (2 stars)
This film deserves a long review by a female critic, or maybe that wouldn't be fair.  Howard Goldberg is no slouch as a filmmaker (at least, I assume he's not slouching), but his racily titled documentary does start as something of a whinge.  Short people, its says, got no reason.  No, wait, that's the Randy Newman song, which I, the shortest guy in my class until I sprouted into a towering five-foot-eight-and-a-half-incher at age 18, have never liked in the least.

Short men, it says, have troubles.  They earn less. Women are less likely to want to date them, particularly when they're at their most fertile.  According to a completely unscientific experiment, they are expected to move aside more often on crowded streets. . . .

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S&M:  Short and Male  

by Adam Nayman

Dully conventional technique exacerbates the shortcomings of this would-be crowd-pleaser about heightism, which premiered in Toronto last month at Hot Docs and now scores a theatrical release.  Montreal-based filmmaker Howard Goldberg's concerns about the indignities suffered by diminutive males are not entirely without merit . . .

(Webmaster's note:  Correction Mr. Nayman; they are entirely WITH merit.)

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Statement in Massachusetts

The webmasters prepared statement for the hearing before the Massachusetts Committee on Labor and Workforce Development on March 25th 2008 at the Massachusetts State House in Boston.

[The view from the committee room]
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Broadcast of April 19, 2008 - 'The tougher they get . . .'

This is Joe Mangano.  You know heightism is your quintessential ‘ism’.  And I know I’ve said that before, but there’s no ‘ism’ like heightism, like there’s no business like show business.  I mean let’s face it; let’s be candid with ourselves, shall we?  Heightism is a situation where we, you, you’re short, most of the people who listen to this are short-statured people, listen to these broadcasts.  We are victims and we have no redress. . . .
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Webmaster takes 'Project Implict' test and Passes!  -- Shows automatic preference for the Short of Stature!

[webmasters' note:  Please see www.shortandmalethemovie.com . to take the test.  Are you Giants fan?]

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Broadcast of April 5, 2008 -
Hearing in Boston

The webmaster talks about his recent trip to Boston and testifying at a state senate hearing to discuss the possible passage of a bill to make discrimination in the workplace on the basis of height illegal in the state of Massachusetts.
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S & M:  SHORT AND MALE THE MOVIE!

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COMING SOON!   JOE MANGANO'S POWERFUL AND MOVING TESTIMONY BEFORE THE MASSACHUSETTS COMMITTEE ON LABOR AND WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT ON MARCH 25th 2008 AT THE MASSACHUSETTS STATE HOUSE IN BOSTON.

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Strip search:  camera that sees through clothes from 80 ft away
 
March 9, 2008
Jonathan Leake, Science Editor


A CAMERA that can see through people's clothing at distances of up to 80 ft has been developed to help detect weapons, drugs and explosives.

The camera could be deployed in railway stations, shopping centres and other public spaces.

Although it can see objects under clothes, its designers say the images do not show anatomical details.  However, it is likely to increase fears that Britain has become a surveillance society.

Original article

[Webmaster's note:  Britain already is a surveillance society, what with well over 4 MILLION cameras in public locations.  This would be a perfect location for former policeman Matthew S. Campisi's next 'life-changing seminar'.]

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Broadcast of February 25, 2008 - 'Joe for you III'

You know, radio silence can be a good thing - sometimes.  Sometimes you have to maintain radio silence.  But there comes a time when you have to tell what needs to be told.  There comes a time when you have to let people know the facts and that's really what's being done for the short-of-stature in these broadcasts.  The facts are what you mustn't be afraid to confront.  You're a victim, and you should admit that to yourself.  You've been wronged as well, and you have to admit that to yourself too.  You've been a pawn in other people's games; none of this is that hard to admit.  It really isn't when you think about it.  Many or most of the short-statured are ashamed like little children.  You know why they feel like little children don't you? . . .

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Broadcast of February 18, 2008 - 'Joe for you II'

. . . And that's what he really meant.  You could hear it.  And you know something, they wouldn't say this about people who are overweight.  You know, somebody asked me about weight and height and how they compare, well, you know when you give a description of someone, weight and height usually follow each other in consecutive order.  But they're very, very different and the differences are irreconcilable.  The simple fact of the matter is:  weight is a choice and height is not a choice.  That's the simple truth.  You can choose not to be overweight.  I understand that some people have glandular conditions.  I understand about conditioning.  I understand that obesity is a big problem in society today, and that there are different factors that affect how much weight one might carry around on their body.  Nonetheless as an individual you still have some control over how much fat you have on your body.  You don't choose or control your height.

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Gary Coleman, Married Man 

By Joal Ryan

Wed, 13 Feb 2008 10:18:25 AM PST

Gary Coleman once vowed he'd never get married.  Well, what do 13-year-olds know?

The 40-year-old former child star has revealed to Inside Edition that he's been married since last summer to a woman who was barely alive when he starred in Different Strokes.

Coleman and Price exchanged vows on the occasion of her 22nd birthday last Aug. 28, on a Nevada mountaintop, the TV tabloid show reported Tuesday.

"Nobody was around but the minister, the preacher, the videographers, the photographer, the helicopter pilot and us, "  Coleman said . . .


Original article

[Webmasters note:  The article goes on to quote his wife as saying that, "he was 10 feet tall to me because he was sweet."  The associations of tall height with positives are absolutely relentless everywhere you look.  Also, the perceptions of the short-statured as extremely vulnerable is indicated in the way that his wife so freely mentions Colemans temper, "I don't like the violence, I really don't," Price said.  "He's got to damage something before his anger stops."  It's difficult to imagine any star's wife commenting so freely about violence in her spouse, especially this early in a marriage - unless of course they are divorced already.  It's as if she's not concerned about it too much because, 'Oh well, he's not big enough to hurt me anyway'.   Hollywood marriages typically are not long-standing affairs in any case.  Shall we take bets on when the bliss is going to end and Shannon proudly breathes a sigh of relief -ala Nicole Kidman- that she can now wear high heels again?]


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Broadcast of February 9, 2008 - 'Joe for you'

Hello.  My name is Joe Mangano and I’m gonna be talking about discrimination against the short-of-stature which is referred to as Heightism.  Heightism is the belief – usually – that the short-of-stature are inferior to the tall-of-stature or the tall-ER people or even average height people.  It’s a long-standing belief among humanity; it’s usually not verbalized, it’s usually accepted as gospel truth, and it’s usually set in stone and no one questions it.  No one has ever questioned it; no one has ever said anything about it.  The short-of-stature are victims very much like people of different races or religions or nationalities who’ve been victims, but no one has ever looked at it that way and very few short-statured people view it that way.  I happen to be one of the few short-statured people in this world that looks at it that way.  I’ve approached short-statured people and many of them, as I’ve mentioned on other occasions, are in a very bad state of denial, which is unfortunate.  The reason that they’re in such a bad state of denial . . .

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At least 5ft 10ins, clean-shaven and driving a silver Mercedes:  The 20-point guide to what women REALLY want in their Mr Right     

by LUCY BALLINGER

Last updated at 21:18pm on 16th January 2008

He should be cleanshaven, good-looking and drive a silver Mercedes.  And most important of all more than 5ft 10in.*

Height is apparently more important than looks to women looking for Mr Right, a survey claims.

* italics webmasters

(Webmasters note:  The number one most important characteristic of 'Mr. Right' according to this article was the man's height.  Not looks, not weight, not hair, not muscles, not money, not education, not health, not race, not number of previous sexual partners.  These criteria seemed to be based on information from www.UKdating.com. It was HEIGHT that was most important to these women whoever they were.  The webmaster made a comment to this article among about 15 other comments or so.  The webmaster's comments have not as yet been posted.  We must assume there is some sort of problem with the webmaster's comments as viewed by the 'Daily Mail'.  The webmaster will try again shortly.)

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THE CUTTING EDGE   

What's Fair?

Equity in Educational Practice

by Gary K. Clabaugh and Alison A. Clabaugh

 . . . Short Stature

Height, particularly in men, is another physical attribute associated with negative stereotypes and discrimination.  A 1992 study by researchers from Michigan State University demonstrated that short men are often judged inferior to tall men . . .

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Short men:  Live it up or live alone   

It should be so obvious to woman and short men alike.  Short men have it tougher in the dating arena, and really REALLY need to maximize their other attributes to level the field.  In other words, they had better have a great face, a stunning body and be very charming.  Of course, there is a chance of being labeled with the (inherently false) "Napoleon Syndrome" and hence "overcompensating".  However, I, and likely other self-respecting short men would much rather stick up for and improve ourselves and deal with the stigma.  The alternative is to be meek and "nice', and still get no dates while be "run over" by society in general.  Thanks, but no thanks . . .

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GLADWELL.COM

Why do we love tall men?   

This excerpt is from the part of "Blink" where I talk about the things that throw off our powers of rapid cognition.  I've just been talking about a test--called the IAT--which measures your level of "unconscious prejudice."  That's the kind of prejudice that you have that you aren't aware of, that affects the kinds of impresions and conclusions that you reach automatically, without thinking.

Or what if the person you are interviewing is tall?  On a conscious level, I'm sure that all of us don't think that we treat tall people any differently from short people.  But there's plenty of evidence to suggest that height--particularly in men--does trigger a certain set of very positive, unconscious associations . . .

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Short People Are Vertically Deprived But Energy Efficient     

By Natalie Zellat Dyen
Published in the Philadephia Inquirer

I am a short person.  My mother is short, my father is short, and so are my sister's and my cousins and my aunts.  I grew up almost completely unaware of my shortcomings.  However, there were a few clues that I was longitudinally lacking.  For one thing, I reached my full height of 5'3" before the advent of the Petitie Department.  This meant that I had to trim approximately 5 inches of material from every article of clothing I bought.  I figure that the exesss material cut from garments purchased between 1958 and 1973 would make a quilt the size of North Dakota.

The other clue was the stature of my blind dates in high school and college.  Invariably the primary criteria for matchmaking was height . . .


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SHORT AND MALE DOCUMENTARY

October 30, 2007

The prejudice that short men face in society is monumental.  It is part of the scenery of life-meaning it is acceptable everywhere one may go.  Whether it's the United States, the Orient, or anywhere else in the world, heightism is a worldwide phenomenon that is rarely acknowledged, let alone discussed.  Film-makers Howard Goldberg and Ina Fichman tackle this most neglected of topics in their ground-breaking documentary that is soon to be aired titled, "S&M:  Short and Male".

(Instinct Films has recently posted two excerpts on youtube.  Joe Mangano was interviewed for this first time film expose of Heightism.  That's the webmaster being interviewed in the New York City taxi in the first clip.)

S&M:  Short and Male - Women Hate Short Sperm - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uRCQJO77U3I 
       

S&M:  Short and Male - Heightism in China - http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WqXK6IY5gPg

 

Supportfortheshort will post an air date as soon as it becomes available.

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Broadcast of October 7, 2007‘The Height of Whose Life?’

This is Joe Mangano.  There isn’t a great deal of literature out there about the topic that is the focus of these broadcasts, and that topic of course is heightism.  I’ve only found a few hundred articles in the last 6 years or so.  So scanty is the information on heightism, that if you did a Google search for the word ‘heightism’ and then did one each for racism, sexism, homophobia, or any other kind of ‘ism’, you could think of, you’d see the tremendous disparity in the number of hits, an almost astronomical disparity.  Many of the articles are dismissive of the whole topic.  Some even joke about the ridiculousness of even discussing the topic at all, and that really folks, we should get back to more important things, like who won the latest Yankees-Red Sox game or what happened in the last episode of ‘Sex and The City’. 

You know, what information is out there, I take and integrate it with my own experience-which is considerable.  It’s unfortunate that much of the discourse on some groups on the Internet is of such low quality, but I guess that’s to be expected given the nature of this topic.

There are only a tiny handful of books that have been written about any issues connected with height.  One of the most informative books-probably the most informative book out there-if you know how to interpret the information in it-is ‘The Height of your Life’ written by Ralph Keyes.  Even though ‘The Height of Your Life’ was written over 25 years ago, it is probably much more relevant today . . .

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WIPO in Crisis Over Chief's Age Change
Thursday October 4, 10:07 am ET
By Bradley S. Klapper, Associated Press Writer
UN Patent Agency Faces Prolonged Deadlock Over Top Official's Age Change

GENEVA (AP) - The U.N. patent and copyright body could face two years of deadlock after the United States and European countries blocked its $537 million (378 million euro) biennial budget, while developing countries fiercely defended the agency's top official who used a false birth date for over two decades. . . .

(Webmaster's note:  Director General of the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) - Dr. Kamil Idris - it appears gave an erroneous birth date on WIPO personnel records, thus making himself appear older than he really was.  It would appear according to the article that his perceived older age allowed him to get jobs and promotions that would not have been available had he been perceived as his actual age.  This seems to destroy the myth that, "It's good to look young" - a line which many short-statured people have heard.  There are a multitude of short people who cannot rise above their current position simply because they are 'perceived' as being younger than they are and are discriminated against on that basis.  And of course there are no protections or defenses for the short-statured as there are with other recognized 'groups'.)

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As you can imagine, this was a very difficult time for me. On a daily basis I was called words like "midget," "shrimp," "small-fry," "shorty," and a number of other derogatory terms. Life on the playground wasn't easy either. I was always the last one chosen to play on any sports team.  I was laughed at in gym because I was so much smaller than everybody, that I couldn't run as fast as everybody else. Basketball was a joke. I was always pointed and laughed at whenever I had the ball in gym class.

I was so small that the gym teacher wouldn't allow me to climb across the stall bars like all the other children. Instead, I had to climb up, hang for a few seconds, and then climb down. So, again, I was singled out because of my height.

Take all these factors, and it's no wonder that I became a bad student. I was detached and alone most of the time, and the last place in the world I wanted to be was at school . . .

. . . When I hear of studies that conclude that short kids don't suffer psychologically because of their height I know they are mistaken. You see, these short kids have to be tough; to build up a thick skin just to have the confidence to go to school everyday. So, when they're in a study and somebody is asking them whether or not their life is different because they're short, what these kids have to tell themselves and others is: "No, of course, I'm perfectly normal." And this comes out only after a great deal of trust and time is spent with each of these patients, may the truth possibly surface. And, in most cases, it doesn't. . . . Kids do not want to open themselves up to that sort of interrogation in a clinical setting. It's just not going to happen. . . . What bothered me most as a child was that I was treated according to my height and not my age. At age seven, people spoke to me as though I were four or five years old.

Deno Andrews’ statements at a meeting of the Endocrinologic and Metabolic Drugs Advisory Committee of The Department of Health and Human Services Food and Drug Administration Center for Drug Evaluation and Research, June 10, 2003.

In the same meeting Dr. Margaret MacGillivray in concluding statements displayed a video of a former patient of hers.  The patient stated:

You know, you can blow it off when it's just your older brother making fun of you, but my friends and my peers were always saying, "Oh my God, she's so short," and "Oh, you're not old enough to be hear," and like normal people that I passed on the street, or, you know, when I was shopping in the mall didn't take me seriously . . .

 

Webmaster’s note:  Never in this 8-hour meeting was the issue of discrimination or prejudice by society against the short of stature even mentioned or addressed.  There didn’t appear to be any psychologists or psychiatrists on the panel either. (I guess they were busy treating those poor disadvantaged Tallers)

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" . . . After what happened I'm not sure you want to work with me again . . ."

          - Matthew Campisi's message to me in September of 2005

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Broadcast of September 18, 2007 'Economy Class'

This is Joe Mangano.  About 2 or 3 years ago I was traveling on a passenger jet -economy class-unfortunately-and I had a seat next to the window.  After about 45 minutes or so on the flight, I pressed the button-I think it was a button- that allows you to recline your seat slightly because I thought it would allow me a more comfortable position for the remainder of the flight.  As I pressed it and forcibly leaned back I didn’t feel anything move.  So I tried again.  I finally tried a third time and still I found I could not recline the seat, so I gave up trying and resigned myself to sitting with the seat in the position it was in for the remainder of the flight.  I got very annoyed at this but I didn’t make a complaint about it because I’m usually not the type to make complaints about this sort of thing, so I never mentioned it to any of the stewardesses or airline people.  But I thought it peculiar nonetheless.  Did you ever say to yourself words to the effect of, ‘If I only knew then, what I know now.’  That’s a little something we say to ourselves sometimes when we wish we had done things differently in the past, because if we had been in a more advanced state of knowledge we most assuredly would have done differently.  It was a couple of years later, not too long ago as a matter of fact, as I was browsing the Internet searching for articles about height and heightism that I discovered the likely reason why my airplane seat would not recline.  Before I discuss the reason why . . .

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Tom Cruise Sexiest Short Man in the World

Sunday, 16 September 2007 15:57 By Kiara McLeish

The world's sexiest little man has been named as Tom Cruise, beating off competition from Richard Hammond, Mark Owen and Lewis Hamilton.

Original Article


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New world's tallest man stands at a towering 8ft 5ins
by REBECCA CAMBER

He has spent years shrinking away from the limelight and at school his nickname was 'titch' because he was so tiny.

But Ukrainian Leonid Stadnyk has now officially become the world's tallest man standing a t a towering 8ft 5ins in tall.

Measuing an impresive 8incs taller than the previous record holder, Mongolia's Bao Xishun, it has long been suspected that Stadnyk should hold the official title of the world's tallest man.

Original Article

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Tall order   

Tuesday August 21, 2007

When we were hunter-gatherers a man's height mattered, but does size really matter today?  The answer is yes, absolutely, according to Dr. Thomas Stuttaford.  No one who wanted a second invitation to dinner or to lecture to a  learned society would dare to show any evidence of gender bias, racial or religious prejudices, ageism and (other than the disparaging remarks about toffs that are for some reson acceptable) class prejudice . . .

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'Over the top' security sees pilots revolt
By David Millward, Transport Correspondent
Last Updated:  1:41am BST
08/08/2007

Pilots are in open revolt over what they describe as "heavy-handed" security checks at airports.

More than 70 have submitted official complaints to the Civil Aviation Authority while others have voiced their anger on a number of websites.

One pilot has even left the industry after a confrontation with a security guard which led to him being arrested, even though he was later cleared.

Many have registered their anger on the Chirp website, the UK Confidential Human Factors Incident Reporting Programe.  Although independent, it is sponsored by the Civil Aviation Authority and approved by the Department for Transport.

One pilot said:  "When dealing with the police one has certain rights and a well-defined procedure if you are not treated correctly.  This is not so with airport security who seem to be a law unto themselves using the knowledge that you are on a tight time schedule to ride roughshod over any rights that you might have."

Original Article

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N.J. Officer Sues Dept. Over height Harassment 
Bayonne Sgt. Says He Was Tormented Because He's Short

by Christine Sloan

BAYONNE, N.J. (CBS) -- A police officer who claims his fellow officers harassed him because of his height and supervisors did nothing to protect him from the harassment has taken the law into his own hands and slapped the department with a lawsuit.

Sgt. Patrick Burns of the Bayonne Police department said fellow officers at the station tormented him, making fun of him for being short and pinning insulting posters around the headquarters that poked fun at him.

"The Bayonne Police Department is excellent, but there are a few individuals there who have made it their mission to torture Sgt. Pat Burns for reasons unknown to us, " said Patrick Toscano, Burns' attorney.

Burns said officers took a picture of Napoleon, who was said to be only 5-foot-2, and superimposed his face on the body of the French emperor.


Original Article

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NY Police Report Bomb to Frame Activist as Terrorist
"By the time the government finds out, you'll be in the hole thrity days" 9/11 Truther is Told by Officer who Admits to False Accusation of Having a Bomb


Aaron Dykes & Alex Jones
Prison Planet
Saturday, April 28, 2007

Two persons identifying themselves as New York police officers interrupted a 9/11 Truth demonstration on a public sidewalk in front of the new WTC 7 Building to intimidate free speech, stating "Larry [Silverstein] doesn't want to hear it, " before accusing We Are Change founder Luke Rudkowski of having a bomb and that his cell phone was "a gun." . . .

Original Article

(Webmaster's note:  To unscrupulous police a cell phone can be 'mistaken' for a gun.  Opinions can become "A violation of our ethical code")

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The big issue

When we were hunter-gatherers a man's height mattered, but can it really matter today?  Yes, say the surveys:  tall men attract women and are better paid.  Dr. Thomas Stuttaford explains why the last of our prejudices refuses to go away

No one who wanted a second invitation to dinner or to lecture to a learned society would dare to show any evidence of gender bias, racial or religious prejudices, ageism and (other than the disparaging remarks about toffs that are for some reason acceptable) class prejudice.

The law has accepted that discrimination on grounds of race, disability or sex is illegal and has recently added age to the categories of prejudices that are not only socially unacceptable but can result in legal consequences. . . .


Original Article

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The BBC reporter who was caught short. . .

It was always going to be a tall order.

When a 5ft 6in BBC reporter was sent out to interview a German MP (6ft 4in in her high heels) the production team had difficulty getting them both into the shot . . .

Original Article

(Webmasters note:  No one seemed to ask why the tall woman needed high heels in the first place)

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Forget Napoleon, taller men have the shorter fuse
by JULIE  WHELDON

Ever since Napoleon Bonaparte picked a fight with the rest of Europe, there has been a popular belief that little men are more aggressive.  But research suggest it is nothing more than a myth.

Scientists took a group of men of differing heights and gave them a game to play in which they were exposed to deliberate provocation.  They found that taller men flew off the handle more quickly than shorter ones.

Researchers concluded that the myth could have evolved simply because when a short person loses his temper it is the first explanation that springs to mind.

The idea that men below average height have fan inferiority complex and try to compensate for it in other ways was put forward by Austrian psychologist Alfred Adler.

Original Article

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Toll Road Checkpoints to Deal With Dissenters
Jackbooted thugs given stop and search powers for people suspected of removing tracking tags, arguing with officials merits 6 month jail sentence


Paul Joseph Watson
Prison Planet
Wednesday, February 14, 2007

Tony Blair's toll road surveillance and taxation grid is to be enforced by a new cadre of jackbooted inspectors who will be given powers to stop and search vehicles where owners are suspected to have removed their tracking tags.  Arguing with the officials will be punishable by a 6 month prison sentence, according to a leaked government memo . . .



Original Article

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Goldberg takes on Short subject   
by Matthew Hays          Jan 22, 2007

Goldberg takes on Short subject

Montreal - Documentary filmmaker Howard Goldberg's latest film is personal.  At 5'3", Goldberg stands at a below-average height.  And that, he says, led him into his investigation of attitudes towards the short for Short & Male, an hour-long doc that will air on CTV in the fall.

"A lot of people dismiss the height issue," says Goldberg.  "But it can be a very profound thing for some men.  It has everything to do with who you are, and at the same time nothing to do with who you are."

While some have dismissed the feelings of shorter men as simply "short men's complex," Goldberg delved into research on the topic and was taken aback at what he found. . . .

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Why Short People Suffer the Height of Prejudice
by Adele Horin


Ever since King Frederick William I of Prussia formed his regiment of giants in the early 1700s and discovered that taller soldiers could thrust their bayonets further, it's been cool to be tall.

Yes, it's old news that tall people on average earn more, get more respect, and have higher-status jobs than short people. But you might have missed the latest disturbing news: tall people earn more because they are smarter.

If you are oblivious to this disturbing research by two Princeton University economists, it must be because you are a tall person. Short people, such as myself, who live close to the ground and miss little, devoured the findings with anger and disbelief. The economists, Anne Case and Christina Paxson, in their paper called Stature and Status: Height, Ability and Labour Market Outcomes, concluded after looking at four long-running studies in the US and Britain that taller people are on average smarter, and the difference in ability is apparent by age three. "Throughout childhood," they write, "taller children perform significantly better on cognitive tests."

Original Article

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Little Big Man
Getting over our obsession with height.
By David Wallace-Wells

In 1712, a first child was born to the militarist prince Frederick William of Prussia.  A year shy of the throne himself, Frederick had high hopes for his son, the future Frederick II.  But the child was "small, sickly . . .  delicate, backward, and puny," writes the journalist Stephen S. Hall in Size Matters, his engaging new nonfiction picaresque.  The pitiful size of the crown prince was an embarassment to the new king, but it was also, Hall suggest, a private incitement.

Between his ascension in 1713 and his death in 1740, Frederick more than doubled the ranks of the Prussian army-from a considerable 38,000 men to an intimidating 83,000-but the fugure that concerned him most was not the size of his army but the height of his soldiers.  Modestly built himself, Frederick had fallen in love with tall men.

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Randy Newman on Short People   

This brief  youtube video depicts Randy Newman singing and also talking about his infamous song, "Short People" along with a few clips of what appears to be teeny-boppers dancing to his trashy song circa 1978.  The now gray-haired and overweight Newman talks a little about why he chose short people to debase in his prejudiced song.  According to Newman, since short people don't have cabals after them with regular meetings planning lynching strategy, it is therefore okay to lambaste the little bastards.  What he really meant was that it's okay to create garbage, uh, I mean, a song about short people, because he knew instinctively that there would be few repercussions.  Imagine a song entitled 'Black People', 'Hispanic People', etc. with similar words like "no reason to live", "go around telling great big lies", "nasty little feet", "little voices that go peep, peep, peep", etc.  Imagine ridiculing the physical characteristics of any group like this - AND GETTING AWAY WITH IT.  IMAGINE.

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Short men thrive in spite of bias, author says        
Updated Wed. Nov. 8 2006 2:57 PM ET
 
Mary Nersessain, CTV.ca News
 
The world clearly prefers tall to small, the author of a new book argues.  But being short has its advantages, particularly for adults who grappled wit discrimination as children, he explains.
"There is a long history of both positive qualities like moral rectitude that's been associated with tallness," award-winning jounalist Stephen Hall told CTV.ca in a phone interview from Brookln, NY.
 
"There is a longstanding social association of tallness with fits like strength.  I think it's much less important now, but  think there's probably a cultural and evolutionary carry over from the early importance of physical size," said Hall, author of  "Size Matters."


"Short men thrive in spite of bias, author says"?  I guess that makes it okay.  I guess that because there was bias against Blacks in the 1950's a few successful Black people thriving makes it okay.  Does anybody see the 'Disconnect' here?
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Oct. 25, 2006  

Tall girls, short boys:  Using hormone therapy to shape children's height to social norms

U-M researcher provides insight into the use of hormone therapy to alter height during the past 50 years

ANN ARBOR, MI--In the 1950s and 1960s, tall girls were coming up short in life.  Viewed as unfeminine and less attractive to marriage suitors than shorter girls, many otherwise healthy tall girls were given estrogen treatment to stunt their growth.

While estrogen therapy today for tall girls is rare, its use to conform a child's height to fit social norms may provide valuable insight into the present-day use of growth hormoe treatment for healthy boys of short stature.

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Do Pretty People Earn More?
Kate Lorenz, CareerBuilder.com Editor,


Studies show attractive studens get more attention and higher evaluations from their teachers, good-looking patients get more personalized care from their doctors, and handsome criminals receive lighter sentences than less attractive convicts.  But how much do looks matter at work?

Original Article


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Human species 'may split in two'

Humanity may split into two sub-species in 100,000 years' time as predicted by HG Wells, an expert has said.

Evolutionary theorist Oliver Curry of the london School of economics expects a genetic upper class and a dim-witted underclass to emerge.

The human race would peak in the year 3000, he said - before a delcine due to dependence on technology.

People would become choosier about their sexual partners, causing humanity to divide into sub-species, he added.

The descendants of the genetic upper class would be tall, slim, healthy, attractive, intelligent, and creative and a far cry from the "underclass" humans who would have evolved into dim-witted, uply, squat goblin-like creatures.

Original Article


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Light Sentence for Short Sex Offender Under Fire

LINCOLN, Neb. - A judge's decision to sentence a 5-foot-1 man to probation instead of prison for sexually assualting a child has angered crime victim advocates who say the punishment sends the wrong message.

But supporters of short people say it's about time someone recognizes the unique challenges they face.

Original Article

(Webmaster's note:  This is the Associated Press report that contained the statements that Matthew S. Campisi a former airport policeman and security guard and his then fake organization NOSSA, Inc. lambasted the webmaster for.  Campisi took his website
down - www.nossaonline.org - the site that represented the then non-existent incorporated organization, and went into hiding for weeks.  Please see 'Statement 1 broadcast',  and other broadcasts and articles on this website pertaining to 'NOSSA'.)

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Think You Have Problems?
Consider Primordial Dwarfism
By Ted Twietmeyer
tedtw@frontiernet.net
5-1-6

So we think we have problems as adults?  A recent special aired on TLC, which is so important I wanted to share it with you.   Most of this essay is based on the facts presented by children, parents and doctors.  However, I've also included a few comments that were not discussed on the special.

Perhaps to realize our own potential and what we have, we must look at what's it like to be short - REALLY short.  We're not talking about dwarfs such as those that played in the Wizard of Oz.  Not even the pigmies of Africa.  these are special people, of which there are only about 400 of them in the entire world. 

Original Article

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DID SCHOOL BULLIES FORCE SIDNEY TO TAKE HIS LIFE?  Mother's tearful question after star pupil dies in river

Monday, March 13th 2006, 12:00 AM

A GRIEVING Manhattan mother whose teen son jumped into the East River is being tormented by a heart-wrenching question:  Did relentless bullying drive him to take his own life?  Keisha Davis said she fears her 14-year-old son, Sidney Hatchett, left his little sister and jumped into the frigid water March 3 because callous classmates made his life a living hell.  "He didn't jump into that river on his own account," a tearful Davis, 31, told the Daily News in an exclusive interview.  "He was pushed to the limit by the school," she said, standing next to her son's bunk bed and clutching his favorite blue blanket. . . .

Original Article

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Strong Inverse Association Between Height and Suicide in a Large Cohort of Swedish Men:  Evidence of Early Life Origins of Suicidal Behavior? 
Patrik K.E. Magnusson, Ph.D.
David Gunnell, M.D., Ph.D.
Per Tynelius, M.S.
George Davey Smith, M.D., Ph.D.
Finn Rasmussen, M.D., Ph.D.

(American Journal of Psychiatry; 162: 1373-1375)

Objective:  Previous studies have found associations between poor fetal and infant growth and the risk of suicide.  The authors' goal was to investigate the association between height--a measure of childhood growth--and suicide risk.

(Webmaster's note:  Maybe someone should investigate the role of society's prejudices against the short-statured as a cause of heigher rates of suicide among short men rather than searching for a biological or genetic cause.  Of course that would never do.  Better to search for some inherent flaw in the short man's genetic make-up.  "It's his own fault.  It's all about how much confidence you have", some 'wise' person might say.)

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Clinical Case  (Nov 2005)  


Treating Short Stature with Growth Hormone
Commentaries by Melissa D. Colsman, MA, and David E. Sandberg, PhD;
by David B. Allen, MD; and by Wilma C. Rossi, MD, MBe

Mr And Mrs Malcolm are worried about the growth of their 5-year-old son, David.  David was the shortest child in his preschool classes, and his parents worry that, as he enters kindergarten, he may be teased for his shortness.  Looking ahead, they fear all kinds of other consequences; competitive sports could be closed to him, and dating and job finding could be more difficult than for his taller contemporaries.  Mrs. Malcolm is 5 ft tall, and Mr Malcolm is 5 ft 4 in.  They have expressed thier concerns over the course of David's last few pediatrician visits.  The pediatrician, noting in David's chart that he has been approximately 3 standard deviations below the mean for height since 18 months of age, refers the Malcolms to Dr Tyson, a pediatric endocrinologist.

Dr Tyson orders several tests to determine whether David's short stature is due to an underlying pathology (eg, Turner's syndrome, renal insufficiency) or growth hormone deficiency.  All tests come back negative.  After a radiological evaluation, Dr Tyson concludes that David has idiopathic short stature (ISS), specifically, familial short stature; he is short because his parents are short.  The Malcolms are relieved that David does not have a serious illness, but their fears and concerns are not abated by Dr Tyson's diagnosis.  Mr Malcolm recalls the pain of being a short teen and still feels that people look at him awkwardly when they first meet him.  A lawyer, he prefers to do most of his initial client interviews by telephone. . . .

Original Article

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The Short of It    (NEW)

By STEPHEN S. HALL
Published:  October 16, 2005

Several years ago, around the time the Food and Drug Administration was considering the use of human growth hormone to treat extremely short but otherwise normal children, researchers were working up the results of a large-scale psychology experiment involving hundreds of middle-school and high-school students in the Buffalo area - including some who were extremely short but otherwise normal.  The students didn't know the study was about height.  All they knew was that each of them had been asked to be the director of a class play.  They were given thumbnail sketches of various characters in the drama - "a good leader." "teases others too much." "gets picked on" and so forth - and were then asked to cast the play by selecting classmates who best fit each role.

If short stature is a ticket to social prejudice and psychological purgatory, which has been the animating idea behind expanded use of growth hormone in the last 20 years, you would have expected the shortest children in the Buffalo study to be lining up to collect their Tonys in victimhood; they would have been nominated by classmates for every beleaguered role:  being picked on, behaving shyly, acting withdrawn, being left out.  But that , surprisingly, was not the case.  . . .


According to Hall the team of psychologists, led by David E. Sandberg at the University at Buffalo, "concluded that a child's stature, whether tall or small, had "minimal detectable impact" on his or her social standing among schoolmates."  -- (What people say or write and what they do are very often two different things-especially among children.)

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Cosmetic bilateral leg lengthening:  EXPERIENCE OF 54 CASES
Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery,  Oct 2005 by Catagni, MA, Lovisetti, L, Guerreschi, F, Combi, A, Ottaviani, G

The Ilizarov method for leg lengthening was used for cosmetic reasons in 54 patients with constitutional short stature.  A mean lengthening of 7 cm with a low rate of complications produced an excellent or good outcome in all the patients, including improvement in psychological disturbances related to short stature.  Those who undergo the procedure must be highly motivated, fully informed and unsderstand the technique and possible complications . . .

Original Article

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Men Tell Tall Tales On Height
Study Finds More Men Than Women Overstate Their Height

(WebMD) More men than women overstate their height.

The finding comes from a study of 200 parents (100 men and 100 women).  The parents, who were about 38 years old and lived in the U.K., were asked how tall they are.

"On average, males overestimated height while females reported their height relatively accurately," write the researchers in the Archives of Disease in Childhood.

How far off were the men's estimates!  That varied, but 27 percent overestimated their height by an inch or more, compared with 13 percent of the women, the study shows.

Why Does it Matter? . . .

Original Article


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Short people:  no reason to live?   

Are short men discriminated against?  A new study published in the American Journal of Psychiatry has raised the question once again.

The report, based on the records of nearly 1.3 million Swedish men, suggests that shorter men may be more likely than taller men to commit suicide.

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Strong Inverse Association Between Height and Suicide in a Large Cohort of Swedish Men:
Evidence of Early Life Origins of Suicidal Behavior?            


Patrik K.E. Magnusson, Ph.D., David Gunnell, M.D., Ph.D., Per Tynelius, M.S., George Davey Smith, M.D., Ph.D., and Finn Rasmussen, M.D., Ph.D.

OBJECTIVE: Previous studies have found associations between poor fetal and infant growth and the risk of suicide. The authors’ goal was to investigate the association between height—a measure of childhood growth—and suicide risk. . . .

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Your appearance, good or bad, can affect size of your paycheck    
Growing research shows how you look is influential while lawsuits raise awareness
By Stephanie Armour, USA TODAY

When Jennifer Portnick wanted to be a Jazzercise franchisee, she says, she was denied.  The reason:  The company had a policy that required exercies instructors to appear fit.  Portnick, who weighed . . .

Original Article

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Chinese Risking Surgery for More Height   

by Rob Gifford

Weekend Edition Sunday, December 5, 2004  NPR's Rob Gifford reports on a recent trend in China's booming cosmetic-surgery industry.  Chinese men and women are spending thousands of dollars, and months under medical care, to have their legs lengthened.

(Webmaster's note:  There is a 5 minute audio segment associated with this link.  Note the musical tune at the end.)

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