Article here. Excerpt:

'LYNN Rosenthal, a veteran of the battered women’s advocacy movement, was named to the new post of White House counsel on violence against women on June 26. On the same day, a conference opened in Los Angeles disputing the basic tenets of the movement Rosenthal represents - such as the view that domestic violence is overwhelmingly a male crime against women rooted in patriarchal power. Speakers argued for new policies based on a fuller understanding of the problem. Is there a way to bridge the gaps between these competeing paradigms?

Challenges to feminist orthodoxy on domestic violence are often seen as anti-feminist backlash from angry men. But this conference, “From Ideology to Inclusion 2009: New Directions in Domestic Violence Research and Intervention’’ (sponsored by the California Alliance for Families and Children), could not be so easily dismissed. The speakers included scholars, social workers, and counselors; about half were women.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'The good news is that Congress has already made a commitment to do something about this. The bad news is that it hasn't put its money where its mouth is. While having previously recommended $175 million for emergency shelter in the Family Violence Prevention and Services Act, Congress budgeted only $127.7 million for these services last year. Likewise, the much-lauded Violence Against Women Act (VAWA -- a flagship piece of legislation for Vice President Biden when he was a senator) has never been fully funded.

This could dramatically change on Friday. The House Appropriations Committee is set to decide how much money to provide for a number of critical domestic violence services, including emergency shelter. Members would do well to remember Michelle, and the millions of American women like her who are forced to flee violent relationships. They should remember the duty of protection the government owes them and the pledge of assistance it has made. And they should be aware of the repercussions if that pledge is not kept. '

Story here. Excerpt:

'Police recently concluded that former Baltimore Ravens star Steve McNair was shot dead in his sleep by girlfriend Sahel Kazemi in a murder-suicide. Yet while there are more than 10,000 media entries on Google News for "Steve McNair," only a few of them mention the phrase "domestic violence."

Article here. Excerpt:

Story here. Excerpt:

'Women athletes have far more opportunities than men to earn scholarships and to participate in many college sports, according to a study by an organization which advocates Title IX reform.

The College Sports Council largely limited its analysis to 19 sports in which both men and women compete, such as basketball, volleyball and tennis. The study released Wednesday determined male high-school athletes in those gender-symmetric sports face longer odds and fewer total opportunities to land college scholarships.

"We are trying to shine the light on a problem that exists where football frequently clouds the issue," CSC chairman Eric Pearson said. "We're not trying to tear down the women's numbers. We just want it to be even and fair. We support both men and women playing sports. We want more sports. We want more athletes to play, both men and women, and the NCAA's rules make that difficult."'

Article here. I wonder if immigrant men who suffer domestic violence at the hands of women would also qualify for asylum? That's actually a rhetorical question because I suspect they wouldn't. I wonder how many women will lie about abuse just to gain asylum? Excerpt:

'The Obama administration has opened the way for foreign women who are victims of severe domestic beatings and sexual abuse to receive asylum in the United States. The action reverses a Bush administration stance in a protracted and passionate legal battle over the possibilities for battered women to become refugees.
...
The administration laid out its position in an immigration appeals court filing in the case of a woman from Mexico who requested asylum, saying she feared she would be murdered by her common-law husband there. According to court documents filed in San Francisco, the man repeatedly raped her at gunpoint, held her captive, stole from her and at one point tried to burn her alive when he learned she was pregnant.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'The legislation focuses primarily on programs to benefit low income fathers and contains a number of positive provisions. For instance, low income fathers will be able to get a break on child support arrearages under certain circumstances. The entire bill is over 100 pages, here's a copy for those who enjoy this type of reading.

We believe the bill can go much further in addressing the issues faced by fathers in general, particularly providing relief for parents who have been separated from their children by the family courts.

There are a half dozen provisions that would improve the legislation and we need your help to get them implemented.'

Story here. I can hear it now: "Girls don't do this kind of thing! Her boyfriend must be behind it all!" Ugh... Excerpt:

'A heartless kitty killer hissed angrily at animal rights activists Wednesday, grinning widely as she took credit for stuffing the helpless pet into a 500-degree oven.

"It's dead, bitch!" snapped an unrepentant Cheyenne Cherry, sticking her tongue out after a plea bargain that will put her behind bars for a year in the May 6 killing of tiny Tiger Lily.

Cherry, 17, was confronted after her guilty plea in Bronx Supreme Court to charges of animal cruelty and attempted burglary in the May 6 killing at her former roommate's apartment.

Tiger Lily was left to die inside the blistering oven after Cherry and a 14-year-old friend trashed the apartment of Valerie Hernandez, destroying furniture before stealing DVDs and food.
...
Cherry is not new to animal crimes.

This time in Adel, Georgia. Story here. Excerpt:

'ADEL, Ga. – A Georgia man spent more than a year behind bars for failing to pay child support for a child that wasn't his, but he was released after DNA tests showed he wasn't the father.

Frank Hatley, 50, had been jailed since June 2008 for not making payments, but two separate DNA tests in the last nine years showed he was not the father of the boy, who is now 21.

Southern Center for Human Rights attorney Sarah Geraghty won Hatley's release at a hearing Wednesday in Superior Court. A court order has also relieved him of his financial obligation to the Georgia Department of Human Resources.

"State child support officials have shown extraordinarily poor judgment in Mr. Hatley's case," Geraghty said.'

Tonight during Jimmy Kimmel Live a Six Flags commercial was run featuring a boy hitting his father in the testicles with a baseball. This was intended to lure more customers into the Six Flags parks by comparing how much 'more fun' it is to ride a roller-coaster vs. hitting your father in the testicles with a baseball.

Six Flags, and all corporations who use sexual violence and degradation of men as an advertising gimmick, need to hear from us. Their website contact page is here (scroll to the bottom for an email form).

Like most corporations who use misandrist sexual violence in their ads, Six Flags doesn't really want to hear from you, but they must.

Article here. Excerpt:

'Many men aren't proactive when it comes to their personal health care needs. A Men's Health magazine and CNN survey found one-third of men would not go to the doctor, even if they were experiencing major health problems, such as severe chest pains or shortness of breath -- both of which are signs for heart disease.

But it's imperative that men receive regular medical exams because they can be life saving. "GMA" medical contributor Dr. Marie Savard explains the five tests men must get and why they're important.'

Article here.

'HAGERSTOWN, Md. — Maryland jurors have convicted a 16-year-old girl of soliciting the murder of her father who was stabbed to death outside the family's Hagerstown home on Halloween.

The Washington County Circuit Court deliberated about 90 minutes Wednesday before finding Danielle Black guilty of solicitation of first-degree murder.

She faces up to life in prison when she is sentenced.

The 20-year-old man charged in the death of 47-year-old Billie Lee Black is not the same friend she spoke to on a school bus about killing her father.

The girl contends she only wanted her father roughed up, not killed. She told police she had asked some friends to "take care of" him to end beatings she claimed she suffered. Police haven't been able to verify her claims of abuse.'

Article here. Excerpt:

'Behind Washington's feverish debate over the $787 billion stimulus package is a question of why one gender is getting left behind--and it's not women.

No modern economic crisis has more disproportionately impacted men than today's Great Recession. Despite women constituting no more than a quarter of job losses, they are expected to receive more than 40 percent of the stimulus spending--and possibly significantly more
...
Men amount to a slim majority of the workforce but about 75 percent of all job losses, since the recession began in December 2007. Before the recession, there was no significant gender gap in the unemployment rate. Since then, men's unemployment rate has more than doubled.
...
Some respected media outlets have been quick to blame manhood for the bad guys who brought us to the brink. We are told an innately, and flawed, male quality has led us astray. This recession purportedly signifies more than economic decline, but the decline of American masculinity itself.

Article here. Is there any doubt this country values the health of women more so then that of a male? Excerpt:

'ST. LOUIS - A lot of amendments have been attached to the health care reform bills being finalized this month in Washington, and several of those amendments have concerned people on all sides watching closely. One in particular, known as the Women's Health Amendment, would increase access to primary preventive care and would support clinics that are often the only source of health care for low-income women, such as Planned Parenthood. The amendment does not include coverage for abortions, but critics claim that it would.

Paula Gianino with Planned Parenthood of the St. Louis Region says misinformation threatens to derail health care reform and to hurt women.

"We believe that health care reform must strengthen and protect women's health care. Certainly it must not weaken it. And we believe that women's health care has to be a priority."'

Article here. Excerpt:

'Microsoft has made its second million-dollar grant to the National Center for Women & Information Technology (NCWIT) to support the advancement of women in IT.

Founded in 2004, NCWIT is a coalition of over 170 corporations, academic institutions, government agencies, and non-profits working to expand women's participation in IT. Members include Apple, AT&T, the Bank of America, Carnegie Mellon, Google, HP, Intel, MIT, Motorola, Pfizer, Princeton, Qualcomm, Stanford University, the University of California at Berkeley, Wal-Mart, and others.
...
NCWIT cites a number of statistics (PDF) to support its assertion that women are underrepresented in IT:

•Although 57 per cent of US undergraduate degrees went to women 2008, only 18 per cent of computer and information sciences degrees were earned by women.

•Only 24 per cent of IT positions in the US are held by women.